He knows Pokémon better than me.

The explosion of water vapor on the spot completely shook away the raging blizzard.

"Snow Fairy!!"

Misaka gasped in surprise. His Snow Maiden was clearly in "Snow Concealment" mode. Was the opponent using a X-ray vision cheat?!
As her vision cleared, the Snow Fairy's figure fell pitifully from the mouth of the Gillfish Dragon, landing in a snowdrift, her eyes darting around, completely unconscious.

Once the first gill bite strikes and hits the opponent, there's no room for fancy follow-ups.

Instant kill!

Misha's eyes widened. That was way too fast!

"Well done, ichthyosaur!"

Xiao Zhi smiled and gave a word of encouragement, his expression showing no surprise.

This was also because the opponent was unaware of information about the ichthyosaur.

If you understand the principle of gill bite, then you should attack cautiously instead of foolishly approaching and giving away a free gill bite.

However, there's also the factor of Aura; who knows if the opposing trainer can see through things?!

The Rotom drone also landed and broadcast a message:
"The Snow Fairy is unable to fight; the Gilling-Dracovish wins!"

"Since both of Misha's Pokémon are unable to battle, Ash has won this Great Ball ranking match! The real-time rankings for both players have been updated, please check them yourself!"

After saying that, the Rotom drone didn't fly far, but landed on a nearby stone platform to wait.

There are quite a few other players around who have booked ranked matches.

After watching the orange-haired girl across from him recall her Pokémon, Ash hurriedly said goodbye and ran towards the Pokémon Center. He then took out his Rotom phone to check his new ranking.

An increase from 470 to 420 isn't much.

It's not a big problem; it's just the first match, and there are still quite a few trainers around.

Ash's fighting spirit has been fully ignited. After a short rest, he immediately accepted the challenge from his new opponent.

He had originally thought that trainers in Battlegrounds would focus more on Ice-type, making it difficult for Dragonite and Shellder to make an appearance.

However, Ash's eyes lit up when he saw the second opponent he was matched with.

This is a burly man wearing a thick leather cotton coat, who seems to be quite afraid of the cold, and he also carries a lava snail with him.

The lava snail radiates a red light and spreads heat. It appears to have the Flame Body property.

"So you're Ash Ketchum, ranked 420th, right? Your League card is pretty arrogant!"

The man in the thick clothes looked menacing and rubbed his hands together, ready to fight.

Considering that trainers in Battlegrounds are more accustomed to using Ice-type Pokémon, he, a Fire-type specialist, came here specifically to fight against them and score points.

Although Ash is from out of town, the signature on the back of his League card shows he completely disregards the trainers of the Galar region. He needs to be taught a lesson!
"Then let's fight!"

Ash naturally didn't refuse, so both Dragapult and Shellder could now be used.

Boo hoo hoo-!
Soon, the two pressed the confirmation button on their phones, clearing a space on the snow slope, and the Rotom drone, which was waiting nearby, hovered above their heads again.

"This is the World Championship Super Ball Ranked Match! The two teams facing off are Ash, ranked 420th, and Wily, ranked 388th! Each player can use two Rumble Pokémon!"

The ranking difference is still not significant.

As soon as the words fell, Ash immediately threw out a Poké Ball, while the burly man named Willie flicked his finger and sent out the Magikarp beside him.

"Messi!"

Doromecia makes another appearance, this time facing a fire-attribute opponent, his eyes instantly gleaming.

"It's just a cub! How dare they underestimate us!" Willie, his face contorted with anger, launched the first attack.

"Lava Snail, use Flamethrower!!"

"Fly!"

Faced with the blazing flames shooting towards them, Ash immediately commanded Draco Messia to fly into the sky to dodge.

Although a surprise attack could be used to seize the initiative and launch a quick assault—

However, the opponent clearly has the Fire Body ability, and once there is physical contact, it is possible that the little dragon will be burned, which will greatly reduce its strength.

"Use strange light!"

Ash continued with his harassment tactics. "Hmph, let's use Yawn!"

Willie, not to be outdone, gave the same command.

The next second, Doronmesia threw out a strange ball of light with her small hand, while the lava snail burped and spewed out a cloud of dizzying energy.

Puff-!
The two collided and dissipated lightly in the air, canceling each other out.

"Although the moves were used well, there is still a level difference between the two Pokémon."

Willie, with a confident expression, suddenly spoke:

"Next comes the hot air!!"

The lava snail suddenly exhaled a fiery breath, its body frantically blowing out scorching vortexes that melted a significant portion of the snow slopes along its path.

"Messi!"

Although Draco Messia is resistant to fire-type moves, it was still blown sideways by the hot wind and had to hold its tail in front of it to block.

It is difficult to approach the target from the front.

Ash grinned. It couldn't be easier for a Ghost-type Pokémon to get close to its opponent.

"Then try out the move Gengar taught you before, Phantom Assault!"

Don't underestimate Doromesia just because she's a baby. Her talent is undeniable. At such a young age, she can already use this high-level ghost move.

"Messi!"

The little dragon immediately darted backward to avoid the hot wind and disappeared into the shadow space.

The next second, it emerged from behind the lava snail.

Of course, a direct attack would still result in burns from the fiery body, so Little Dragon changed tactics on the spot, gathering a gray, distorted ball of light in its small hand.

Strange light!

At almost zero distance, the strange light struck its target, and the lava snail began to stagger and sway.

It's in complete chaos!

"Damn it! Quick, keep using the hot air!!"

"It's not that simple, use a freeze spell!"

Lava Snail wanted to unleash an AoE attack that could ignore the chaos, but Little Dragon was faster. A strange arc of light flashed in its eyes, freezing the former in place for a moment.

For the time being, no hot air could blow around me.

"Damn it, how can there be so many disgusting moves?!"

Willie scratched his head, his face already flushed.

Xiao Zhi grinned.

Ghost-type Pokémon have to be flashy and disgusting.

Gengar is quite adept at this; a few moves he teaches are enough for Dragapult to torment people.

"Next up is Dragon Dance!!"

The little dragon began to meander through the air, its body flashing with amplifying red light as it moved nimbly.

If the battle can be decided in one strike, then there's no need to worry about getting burned!

This caused Willie to break out in a cold sweat, and he could only shout roughly:

"Use big characters to explode!!"

However, the Great Flame Burst is a low-accuracy move, not to mention that the character is currently in a confused state.

In Dragon Dance mode, Doron Mesia moved with agility, easily dodging all the Flame Burst attacks.

Finally, bathed in a sharp red light, the towering Dorgonmesia let out a high-pitched dragon roar.

"Messi—!!"

This pseudo-legendary Pokémon began to exude the powerful aura unique to Dragon-type Pokémon! (End of Chapter)