"Is that so?"
Brock sensed countless female gazes focused on him, and his heart swelled with excitement.
Striking a cool pose, he brushed his hair back and pointed forward dramatically.
"Then let the passion of rock burn brightly!"
"Go—Geodude!"
"Leader Brock is so handsome!"
"Leader Brock is amazing!"
Cheers erupted throughout the Gym, thunderous and deafening.
Under such overwhelming enthusiasm, the surrounding student assessments seemed pale by comparison.
The freshmen—who were supposed to be the protagonists of today's event—
Had their spotlight completely stolen by Brock.
Gu Qiu rubbed his nose lightly.
For some reason, he found the scene a little awkward.
The Geodude Brock sent out wasn't particularly strong—it was clearly chosen based on the challenger's age and level.
The challenger was a freshman from Pewter University.
A devoted Brock fan.
He had come directly to the Pewter Gym to challenge Brock himself—
Hoping to temper his own "heart of rock" under the Gym Leader's guidance.
Brock's Geodude was Level 20.
High-grade aptitude.
The battle began.
And Brock truly lived up to the title of Gym Leader.
Although the two Geodude were nearly equal in strength—
Under Brock's command, his Pokémon secured victory with ease.
A flawless victory.
One against three.
The young man had no room to resist.
Terrifyingly strong.
"Your strength still needs polishing. Come challenge me again once you've grown stronger."
"Keep working hard."
"Thank you, Leader Brock!"
The young man had no room to resist at all.
Gu Qiu shifted his gaze across the arena and shook his head slightly.
He seemed to have overestimated these university freshmen.
As one of the Top Ten Academies, Pewter University's freshman quality felt… somewhat lacking.
At a glance—
Most were around the same level as the previous challenger.
Some are even weaker.
The strongest Gu Qiu had seen so far was a Level 26 Ivysaur.
Mid-grade aptitude.
Nothing particularly outstanding.
However, among the crowd, he spotted a familiar figure.
It was Mei—the girl he had just encountered earlier.
"So Mei is a student at Pewter University."
Gu Qiu murmured softly.
Her strength was actually quite decent.
She owned a High-Grade Snivy at Level 26.
It had mastered seven moves.
Clearly, she trained diligently.
Once Snivy evolved again, it would become Serperior—
A Pokémon with excellent potential.
"Snivy, use Leaf Tornado to finish it!"
Mei's control over battle rhythm was solid.
After launching Leaf Tornado, she decisively secured the victory.
"I did it! I won!"
After winning, she cheered excitedly, like a child.
Coincidentally, Gu Qiu happened to be standing near her battlefield.
Their eyes met.
"He… he's here too?"
"Could he also be a Pewter University student?"
That was Mei's first thought.
But she quickly shook her head.
Impossible.
With his outstanding temperament—
And a Pokémon like Ralts—
If he were a Pewter student, he wouldn't be unknown at all.
Then… was he here to challenge the Gym?
…
"Gu Qiu, next time we meet, I'll make you lose all face."
"I pulled some strings to come train at Pewter Gym a month before the college entrance exams."
"With my uncle's help, how could a commoner like you possibly be my opponent?"
By yet another coincidence—
Yu Hao, the class monitor whom Gu Qiu had defeated before, was also present.
Yu Hao's uncle held a significant position within the Pewter Gym.
After losing to Gu Qiu, Yu Hao had been unwilling to accept it.
The very next day, he had contacted his uncle and come here to train.
At Pewter Gym, he realized how weak his former self had been.
How could he have been instantly defeated in a battle where he held such an advantage?
If given another chance—
Yu Hao believed he had a hundred different ways to crush Gu Qiu effortlessly.
Here, both his strength and perspective had grown tremendously.
Gu Qiu was merely a stepping stone on his path of growth.
Nothing more.
"Next, we will begin the eleventh Gym Challenge match! The challenger is Pewter University freshman—and the strongest of this year's class—Le Liangcai!"
The crowd erupted instantly.
Especially the Pewter University students.
Le Liangcai was the No.1 freshman of their cohort.
During the college entrance exams, he had achieved exceptional results.
With his scores, he could have easily entered Indigo University.
Yet no one knew why he ultimately chose Pewter University.
Perhaps because he was a local.
Mei's attention also shifted toward the stage.
This would be an exciting battle.
She wanted to see the gap between herself and the No.1—
And also witness the moment Leader Brock defeated him.
As the No.1 freshman, Le Liangcai didn't need to undergo assessment.
He had directly earned the right to challenge Brock in a formal Gym battle.
Gu Qiu also focused his gaze forward.
In the previous matches, Brock had won effortlessly.
Brock had a good personality and treated people kindly—
But that didn't mean he was weak.
Nor did it mean obtaining a Badge from him was easy.
On the contrary—
The difficulty of earning the Boulder Badge was extremely high.
Often, ten or even fifteen days would pass without anyone successfully claiming it.
Le Liangcai stepped onto the field.
Dressed in a tailored suit.
Looking more like a successful businessman than a student.
The audience cheered loudly for him.
Yu Hao's eyes burned as he stared at the stage.
That—
Was the stage meant for him.
One day, he too would stand there.
Bathed in cheers.
Admired by countless people.
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed.
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