You are not allowed to be a Pokémon Trainer!

Chapter 42 New Leaf Cat: Irrelevant
"Wow, Ah Chi, are you serious?"

Back in the dormitory, Xia Chi was stopped by Chen Zhenze in the dormitory's common area.

He excitedly held up his phone screen, almost shoving it into Xia Chi's eyes, "The Shanghai Bao Cup main tournament! Do you know what that means?"

The official website of the "Hubao Cup" will update the preliminary round results in real time.

So it's no surprise that Chen Zhenze, who's good at nothing, knows Xia Chi's track record.

"What else could it be but the top 32 rookie trainers under the age of 18 in the vicinity of Shanghai?"

Xia Chi's matter-of-fact tone left Chen Zhenze speechless.

Damn it, he got away with it again!
In fact, Chen Zhenze also secretly brought his dog Pipi to the competition today, but he was eliminated in disappointment after less than four rounds with a score of 2-2.

As the saying goes, one's own failure is terrible, but one's brother's success is even more heart-wrenching!

Chen Zhenze said sourly, "You're now the only non-Pokémon battling student left at Shanghai University. No, there aren't even many freshmen left!"

"That was terrible!"

Xia Chi was truly unaware that his classmates had all perished. Thinking about it now, he realized that he was indeed quite remarkable.
He nodded and said after a moment's thought, "Yes, I work so hard every day, so it's only right that I can advance."

Chen Zhenze: "."

I live right next door to you and go to get out of class with you, how could I not know? What are you working so hard for? Are you just trying to make money by doing live streams every day?
Joking aside, Chen Zhenze was actually quite happy for his good friend.

From being penniless with "bare walls" when I first enrolled, to now having two elves and a thriving live-streaming room.

Xia Chi indeed has a plan and effort that exceed those of his peers, as well as a sincere love for Pokémon.

In a way, he really deserves it.

Of course, this wouldn't have been possible without my usual help and support!

Chen Zhenze patted Xia Chi on the shoulder with some emotion and encouraged him, "Good brother, carry my share and keep going!"

Xia Chi: "?"

Dude, what are you imagining again for no reason?

…………

After resting for a night, Xia Chi took Xin Ye Miao and set off again for the Rainbow Bridge Elf Arena.

He left the nightmare at home today.

It's not that the dream demon is socially afraid or doesn't dare to see people; the dream demon isn't afraid of people, it's only afraid of ghosts.

But it likes to scare people.

Yesterday, Xia Chi spent the whole day outside, and every now and then other trainers would bring their crying Pokémon to complain about him.

Xia Chi was afraid that it would ruin his chances of competing today, so he simply left it at home to sleep.

Compared to the rather chaotic preliminary rounds, the Shanghai Bao Cup main tournament truly had the feel of a professional competition.

Each of the 32 contestants had their own rest room, and the entire competition was broadcast live on television and the internet. The audience even filled up most of the Rainbow Bridge Elf Arena, which can hold more than 70,000 people.

Don't think it's outrageous. Given the people in this world's love for Pokémon battles, there are plenty of people who go to watch the matches live whenever they have free time on weekends.

Today's matches will be divided into two stages: the round of 32 to 16 and the round of 16 to 8.

Xia Chi's match was scheduled for the fourth game in the upper bracket, around 10 o'clock.

This means that for a long time before the match starts, he can stay in the players' lounge, watching other people's matches while enjoying some entertainment.

Just as Xia Chi was enjoying a grape that Xin Ye Miao had fed to his mouth with a vine, a line of subtitles on the screen made him pause in surprise.

The third match of the second half of the Shanghai Bao Cup: Lin Lange vs. Wang Yang!

Then the photographer gave a close-up shot of the two players. On the left side of the screen, a beautiful young woman with a cold expression was holding a deluxe ball in her hand with an upright posture.

Lin Lange. Isn't this the "Shinji" who abandoned Shin-chan?

Xia Chi turned to look at Xin Ye Miao, only to meet its intelligent, crimson eyes.

Without a doubt, it also saw the person it should have trusted most. Xia Chi, afraid of upsetting Xin Ye Miao, deliberately teased, "What, don't you recognize our ex-sister?"

Unexpectedly, Xin Ye Miao shook her head indifferently and said, "Meow-fee~"

It doesn't mean I don't recognize it, but rather—

"Irrelevant."

Xin Ye Miao had already figured it out.

To be honest, Lin Lange didn't do anything bad to it.

They provided the best in terms of food, drink, supplies, training, and material aspects.

Of course, all of this comes with conditions; you must meet her requirements.

Training volume, physical indicators, skill learning and proficiency, and match victories—if these aren't met, then let them go.

It's like a boss setting KPIs for employees, and firing them if they don't meet them—that's all.

I just didn't see things clearly sooner, and I invested unrealistic emotions.

But none of that matters anymore, because now I have already obtained the truly important treasure, and the person who is truly worth giving everything for.

Xin Ye Miao stared intently at Xia Chi, thinking to herself.

Eye contact is sometimes the most effective means of communication.

Although Xia Chi couldn't know Xin Ye Miao's true thoughts, the intense emotion in its crimson eyes spoke volumes.

Xia Chi smiled in relief, saying that she was afraid of upsetting Xin Ye Miao.

It turns out that I was the one who couldn't see through things.

I was originally thinking about whether to help Xin Ye Miao get revenge for being abandoned, and do a "Dragon King Returns" slap-in-the-face scene.

Now it seems there's no need for that anymore.

"Okay, let's leave this alone."

Xia Chi rubbed Xin Ye Miao's head and finally made the decision.

Although the relationship of being the former trainer of their own Pokémon is no longer important, the relationship of being potential rivals they might encounter in the future still exists.

Xia Chi watched the match carefully and realized that Lin Lange's reputation as a favorite to win this year's Shanghai Bao Cup was well-deserved.

Her Serpentine perfectly embodies people's imagination of Grass-type Pokémon: solid, resilient, and watertight.

At first glance, it seems unremarkable, with nothing particularly outstanding and no powerful attack capability to instantly kill the opponent, but you just can't break through its defenses.

However, if you engage in a protracted battle with it, you will be slowly strangled by its agile and resilient vines.

Even though Lin Lange's opponent was a second-tier starter Pokémon, and even a type-advantageous Pokémon like the Fire Rock Rat, this suffocating fighting style dragged him into the abyss.

This person has a deep understanding of Grass-type Pokémon.

This is Xia Chi's evaluation after watching the match.

In fact, he had often seen Lin Lange's name on the forum since he entered the school.

"A battle machine devoid of emotion," "Daughter of the Gym Leader of the Guangfu Gym," "The future Grass-type Elite Four member."
These are all nicknames given to her by well-meaning people, but Xia Chi is not in the school's core combat department and doesn't know much about her.

Today I finally have a direct understanding of her abilities.

If I meet her in the finals, will I win?
Okay, I'm getting a bit carried away. Let's get through this hurdle first.

"Contestant number 9527, Xia Chi, please prepare and proceed to Arena A1. The match is about to begin!"

The broadcast continued, and Xia Chi took out a Poké Ball and held it in her palm.

"Let's go, Shin-Ye-Nyan, it's our turn."

(End of this chapter)