Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

May waved to Lowell and quickly headed towards the Pokémon Center. It must be because a big battle had just ended and she wanted to let her Pokémon rest.

Seeing this, Luo Wei was motivated and pushed open the dojo door without saying a word.

"Challenger Luo Wei, nice to meet you!"

Upon entering, the person introduced themselves and stated their purpose directly, immediately attracting the attention of everyone in the dojo.

A gym usually doesn't only have the gym leader; there are also other trainers training there. Naturally, those who aren't the gym leader don't need to be challenged, but if you're interested, you can spar with them before challenging the gym leader.

"A new challenger?" Immediately, several trainers from the dojo excitedly gathered around. "How about it? Before challenging Teacher Du Juan, do you want to spar with us first?"

The Du Juan teacher they were talking about is the Gym Leader of Rustboro City, known as the "Rock Prodigy," an elite trainer who loves Rock-type Pokémon and has reached the expert level in this field!

Luo Wei originally wanted to challenge Du Juan directly, but he thought it would be good to warm up before the battle, so he immediately nodded with a smile.

"No problem, then... let's go!"

"Little Geodude, unable to fight... The victor is Lowe!"

As the referee announced his verdict, the trainer reluctantly recalled his defeated Geodude into its Poké Ball. Meanwhile, a group of trainers had already gathered around to watch the spectacle.

"Amazing! Including this game, that's five consecutive wins!"

"Hey, that guy who lost earlier, doesn't he already have two badges?"

"Such a skilled trainer, and he hasn't even earned a single badge?"

Their amazement was understandable, after all, Luo Wei and Xin Ye Miao had easily achieved five consecutive victories with almost effortless efficiency.

Among the opponents defeated by Rowe, there were newcomers who were also challenging the gym for the first time, as well as veterans who had already obtained two badges.

Without exception, none of these trainers lasted more than ten rounds against Rowe. The new Leafy, who had won five consecutive battles, seemed to have no energy at all and was calmly licking her paws. The amazement of the trainers around her pleased the little girl, but due to her personality, she still maintained a cold and indifferent demeanor.

After all, Newleafy only shows enthusiasm to its trainer; when dealing with outsiders, it always has a cold and aloof demeanor.

Regardless, Rowe has already delivered an amazing performance, and almost everyone believes that with Rowe's strength, obtaining the badge is a foregone conclusion.

After all, Gym Leaders adjust their team and strength based on the badges trainers have already obtained. Generally speaking, the difficulty of obtaining a badge is almost like giving it away for free. Basically, as long as the Pokémon isn't too weak, anyone who has trained their Pokémon seriously can get a badge.

Lowe's performance is at least at the level of three badges, which gives people the feeling that he's a sure thing.

Just then, a clear and melodious voice rang out.

"Indeed a brilliant performance, truly worthy of being Mr. Qianli's son..."

Upon hearing the voice, the trainers around him immediately perked up and made way for him. Rowe looked in the direction from which the voice came and saw a graceful figure walking towards him.

She was dressed like a student, but holding a pointer and wearing glasses, she looked like a little adult; she was clearly a young girl with pigtails.

She walked up to Luo Wei and stopped, nodding slightly in acknowledgment. Luo Wei immediately recognized her.

"You must be Ms. Du Juan. Well then, please accept my challenge!"

There are pictures here, which can be viewed after the updated version

“Of course, but before that…” The girl named Du Juan smiled and waved her pointer, speaking calmly, “Before that, I received a request from Mr. Qianli. He hopes I can spar with you at least at the difficulty level of 'four badges'.”

"..."

Very well, that's exactly the kind of thing that dad would do!

Four badges mean that even if it wasn't all-out effort, it was at least a serious fight, not a case of deliberately holding back.

"Of course, this doesn't follow the normal procedure, so you are fully entitled to refuse..."

"Haha, no problem, bring it on!"

Upon hearing Luo Wei's words, Du Juan immediately took off her glasses, and her demeanor changed abruptly...

"...Very good, very confident indeed. Well then, the Rock Gym Leader of Laputa City, it's time to go!"

Chapter Thirty-Six: Always eager for a good show

Qianli hoped that Du Juan would fight Luo Wei with the same level of skill as someone facing a challenger with at least four badges, which was obviously against the rules.

Therefore, Luo Wei had the right to refuse this "unreasonable" arrangement, but he agreed without hesitation.

"No problem, bring it on!"

When his father wanted to increase his strength, Rowe readily agreed, and the trainers who had gathered to watch naturally became excited upon hearing this.

"What's going on? Four badges level?"

It's important to know that a trainer who can obtain four badges is already considered an elite trainer, and you might only encounter two in a year. Most of the time, gym leaders face challengers who have one or two badges, or even none at all.

In other words, at least 80% of the time, the gym leader's battles are just going easy, with only a handful of serious matches. And this level of competition is bound to be incredibly exciting.

Such a rare and exciting duel is certainly thrilling, and amidst the excitement, some people are bound to be curious about Luo Wei's identity.

However, Du Juan's words just now have already revealed Luo Wei's identity: the son of that "tough guy" Qianli!

No one objected to the obviously irregular development. Originally, as long as the person involved didn't care, it was fine. Anyway, if you can win, you can challenge the difficulty of the eight badges right away. If you can win, that means you have the ability.

As long as you didn't win by cheating, no one will criticize you.

"How many Pokémon are you planning to send out?"

When Du Juan asked this question, Luo Wei immediately showed her New Leaf Cat and Ralts. Du Juan nodded in understanding, "I see. In that case, I'll send out two Pokémon too... As for who goes first..."

Du Juan quickly made a decision, raising her hand to throw out a black and white Poké Ball. It was an Ultra Ball, which had a higher catch rate than the Great Ball. It was a Poké Ball that only Gym Leaders were qualified to purchase and use, and it was also the strongest Poké Ball mass-produced by Silver Company.

Above that is the legendary "Master Ball," a limited edition that has never been mass-produced.

Regardless of all that, the advanced sphere emitted a burst of light, instantly casting a large shadow that covered half of the arena. When the light dissipated, its true form was revealed.

The giant serpent, constructed entirely of rock, raised its head with a single horn and calmly gazed at Rowe, Newleaf, and Ralts beside him.

"Is Onix the first one? Well then, this is Shin-chan, please!"

Xin Ye Miao nodded, and with high spirits, leaped into the arena, staring at the enormous creature before her without the slightest fear.

It's worth noting that Onix is ​​more than ten times the size of Leafeon; it's as if Onix could just flick its tail and send Leafeon flying.

Du Juan greatly admires this courage, but Pokémon battles require more than just "courage"...

Du Juan waved her pointer, and Onix immediately received the command. The giant snake, which had been coiled up waiting for an opportunity, suddenly stretched out its body. A layer of hard metallic luster shone on its thick, long tail, and it swept towards the direction of Shin-Ye-Nyan with a gust of chaotic air!

Wherever the long tail passed, the arena appeared as if a dim yellow tornado had suddenly appeared out of thin air. The arena itself was arranged as a structure filled with gravel and rocky mountains, and when this tail swept over, it was simply an overwhelming force!

The trainers watching from the sidelines couldn't help but take a step back. Even those who were just watching felt a clear sense of oppression from that terrifying aura, let alone the new Leafy Meow who was facing it head-on.

The sheer power of this "steel tail" proved that the opponent was indeed not holding back. Amidst the billowing dust, the enormous snake tail swept across, as if it were about to tear off a layer of the ground.

Of course, Luo Wei wasn't afraid at all; in fact, he was excited by it. This overwhelming sense of pressure was exactly the feeling he wanted!

"Go, Shin-chan!"

He raised his hand and waved it, and New Leaf Cat immediately understood. It charged forward to meet the oncoming steel tail, its body leaving a series of beautiful afterimages. As its claws scraped the ground, sparks flew everywhere, and New Leaf Cat plunged headlong into the rolling yellow sandstorm.

The next second, the slashing snake tail landed in empty space, splitting the rolling yellow sand in two the instant it hit the ground. The huge tremor made people lose their balance, but Xin Ye Miao had already leaped into the air and was not affected at all.

Meanwhile, the newly enhanced Leafy, using its claws to boost its attack, swiftly descended with the help of gravity, its sharp claws striking the Onix with a devastating blow, only creating a shower of sparks.

"...It's so hard!"

Luo Wei couldn't help but complain, "Xin Ye Miao's enhanced attack didn't seem to do any damage at all..."

That makes sense, their 160 base physical defense stat isn't just for show...

...In response, Lowe immediately launched an additional offensive.

"Leaves!"

When Newleafy missed its first attack, it immediately used Onix's body as a springboard to leap into the air again, scattering a large number of leaves around it...

After all, Onix's Rock and Ground types are four times weak to Grass types, so the power of this Leaf attack is naturally something to look forward to.

However, when Onix missed its Steel Tail attack, it nimbly spun around, and the landing tail created a gust of wind that blew all the leaves that had been swept around Leafeon back to its original position.

Using the momentum of her attack, Xin Ye Miao performed a beautiful somersault in the air and landed steadily, but when she looked up, she saw that all her attacks had been deflected...

"..."

Given its massive size, even rolling eighteen times on the spot would create a deafening commotion. And Dujuan's Onix was clearly an exceptionally large individual; one can only say it's no wonder the Gym Leader raised this Pokémon—the nutrition is truly top-notch…

After the Steel Tail swept away the leaves, Onix raised its head, and a faint light gathered on its single horn. Upon seeing this, Lowe's eyelids twitched.

"Oh no, we have to dodge this!"

With a deafening, almost piercing explosion, Onix charged straight at Newleaf Meow.

New Leaf Cat seemed to realize the immense power of this attack and immediately tried to pull away with a flash of light. However, the opponent's attack came too fast and too fiercely...

Good news, at least Xinye Miao managed to avoid it...

...Bad news, Shin-Ye-Nyan was grazed by the swirling airflow.

With just a slight rub, Xin Ye Miao's body swayed, and it looked as if she was about to lose her balance.

"...double-edged mace"

With a power of 150, this skill inflicts significant damage on the enemy while also causing a powerful recoil. As its name suggests, it is a double-edged sword that can kill both the enemy and yourself.

However, Onix seemed unaffected by the recoil...

"...Because Onix has the 'Stone Head' ability, can it negate the damage from recoil?"

This means that Onix can continuously use this powerful STAB move without consuming any resources, while Leafeon, being so fragile, obviously has no chance of withstanding this full-force attack.

Now that things had come to this, Luo Wei understood, and he smiled with relief...

"...Then, let's evolve~"

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Leap Evolution

"Then, let's evolve!"

Luo Wei's calm demeanor surprised everyone around him.

Evolution is something trainers are naturally familiar with. Pokémon gain experience points through training and battles to level up, and when they reach a certain level, they can evolve...

...After evolution, a Pokémon's form, base stats, and even its type may change, and it may learn new moves and gain more powerful abilities.