Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

...With a mortal body, one covets the power of the gods!

Chapter 164 The Underlying Colors of the World

“I think you’re completely ungrateful!” Luo Wei bluntly refuted the other’s idea. “...You actually think you can control the power of the Earth God?”

"Why not? In the end, the Earth God is just a Pokémon. Although it is a legendary Pokémon that is much stronger than ordinary Pokémon, as long as it is a Pokémon, it can be caught. That's how we humans have achieved our current status!"

To be honest, his theory would actually make sense in a normal world, especially in a world with a strong survival-of-the-fittest mentality.

However, the problem is that the underlying world of Pokémon is different from that of ordinary worldviews, and even includes what the other side considers common sense.

"I'm truly sorry, but I completely disagree with your idea. Humanity's current way of life is not due to conquest or domination..."

According to Luo Wei, the underlying principle of this world should be "mutual understanding." Humans are able to coexist with Pokémon despite being inferior to them in all aspects, because they can understand each other's thoughts and feelings.

In the early days, trainers relied on mutual understanding with their Pokémon before Poké Balls existed... obtaining what they needed by becoming "friends".

Humans need the power of Pokémon to survive, and Pokémon, under human guidance, can better realize their potential.

Mutual understanding is what led to a result where 1+1 is greater than 2...

As I said before, this is the underlying tone that only exists in this world. It is precisely because the underlying tone of this world is so gentle that the God of Creation gave it an incredibly abundant material universe, allowing humans and Pokémon to coexist peacefully and understand each other, rather than hating, plundering, and fighting for survival resources.

Indeed, this approach would not work in another world, and could even be considered too naive and innocent. But it is precisely because this is a gentle world that this innocence can become the truth that governs the world!

Because Luo Wei had witnessed and fully understood that in a world where the strong prey on the weak, just "living" is a painful thing, he clearly understood that the world before him was different.

What we should do is not conquer, but try to balance, guide, and reconcile with this force...

In a world that should be filled with gentleness, the practice of the law of the jungle gives Luo Wei the feeling of trying to make something dark and cruel in a mainstream, positive work. He thinks this behavior is innovative, but it is actually quite boring.

...or even nonsensical!

“I see, it seems we have different philosophies…” Chi Yan nodded in understanding. “Indeed, I didn’t expect you and the Alliance to understand. So it doesn’t matter. Just watch and see who is right between you and me!”

The device behind him emitted a deafening roar, while he proudly spread his arms, and the Mega Fire Camel in front of him amplified its firepower once again.

"Alright, let's see who's the best then!"

In this situation, trying to persuade the other party is obviously unlikely. After all, the other party is the leader of the Lava Team who can hold the team together. In particular, most of the Lava Team's minions are useless weaklings. Under such circumstances, the only people in the Lava Team who can actually get things done are Crimson Pine and two executives.

Even those elite members were selected from the worst of the worst under their guidance. With such a small number of people, they were able to build a team and become a villainous organization that gave the alliance a headache. They were indeed quite capable.

If he were to seriously pursue a legitimate career, he would be more than qualified to be a dojo master, and even his two subordinates are quite capable.

Putting aside Fire Village, Fire Goose's ace Darmanitan is quite formidable. Although her training method is unconventional, there's no fixed path for Pokémon training. As long as you don't follow Team Rocket's path of human experimentation or biological modification, even unconventional methods are still a valid approach.

After all, there are also training sessions involving hand-to-hand combat with Pokémon. If you're talking about extreme training, then Firegoose's tactics don't really reach the most extreme level.

The methods used to cultivate Crimson Pine are actually very orthodox. At least after experiencing Team Rocket's artificial Pokémon "Mewtwo" and the products of various failed forced evolution experiments, most other villainous organizations seem quite respectable.

Both Scarlet Sedum and Archie have somewhat extreme philosophies, but their methods of raising Pokémon are very orthodox. Even when they cause trouble, they ensure that innocent people are not harmed in most cases, and they try to hold back and avoid hurting their opponents.

Although these people blew up mines and set fire to volcanoes, the Pokémon world's security system is different. Trainers protected by Pokémon are not so vulnerable.

Because of his orthodox methods, his fighting style is quite upright and simple, and it does not have the obvious shortcomings of the extreme breeding method of Fire Goose.

After six or seven rounds of fighting, Luo Wei and Ya Sha, two against one, still couldn't gain the slightest advantage.

"This guy is surprisingly strong...and quite serious..."

Asha tried several times to launch a fierce attack to break through the enemy's defenses, but she was forced back by the enemy's overwhelming firepower, and she couldn't help but come to this conclusion.

Being strong is fine, but if he can't even beat a gym leader who claims to be a beginner, what kind of villainous organization is he...?

The head of a dojo is roughly equivalent to the head of a local police station. Surely an organization that a local police captain and two beat cops can handle can cause headaches for a country or region?

However, there are different types of strength. Some strength comes from unorthodox methods, giving the impression of being strong through crooked means, such as using drugs or other methods to forcibly enhance their strength.

But the man in front of her did not. His fighting style was so good that even Aysa, the gym leader, could not find any fault with it. At the same time, she discovered something even more frustrating.

It seems the leader of this villainous organization actually looks more like a proper "Fire-type Gym Leader" than she does...

Asa already lacked confidence in her current situation, and then suddenly she encountered an opponent who also played with Fire-type Pokémon and was even better at it than her. The opponent's strength was earned through proper training, not through any crooked methods, which naturally made her even more discouraged.

That momentary lapse in concentration was immediately exploited by the other party.

"...To be honest, it's really disgraceful that you were distracted during the fight!"

With a sharp shout from the other party, Asha was startled. When she looked up, she saw a streak of fiery meteors flying towards her!

Chapter 165 Reinforcements Arrive

"To be distracted during a fight is, frankly, utterly disgraceful!"

A sudden shout pulled Asha back from her somewhat chaotic thoughts.

She looked up in surprise and saw a shower of fiery meteors falling...

Her reaction was quick enough; she immediately issued a command, and the Pokémon beside her looked up at the same time... A burst of intense sparks flew out, connecting in mid-air to form a curtain of fire in front of her.

However, less than a few minutes after the fire curtain was formed, a falling meteor struck solidly, and a series of explosions tore the fire curtain apart, followed by another pillar of fire sweeping across the ground.

Caught between two attacks, Aysa only had time to react to one side. At the critical moment, several clumps of psychic energy were thrown at her, directly colliding with the sweeping pillar of fire.

"Thanks……"

Aysa naturally knew that it was Rowe who had helped her. She spoke with a hint of apology, while Rowe calmly replied.

"You're welcome, but... but, has something made you waver?"

Of course, Rowe could see that Aysa's emotions were wavering. She was never very confident in her own strength and still believed that she was able to become a gym leader because the League gave her a back door because of her grandfather.

Although this is not the case, Aya did indeed become the gym leader through her own abilities, but because of her father's past, she has always lacked confidence in her own abilities.

An overly outstanding grandfather and an overly mediocre father weighed heavily on her heart. She possessed talent and wanted to prove her abilities... to reclaim all the glory her father had left behind.

However, the more this happens, the heavier the burden becomes on oneself, to the point that one becomes extremely sensitive and overreacts to even the slightest situation.

At this moment, the strength of the man in front of her made her feel insecure. In terms of strength alone, as the dojo master, she was surpassed in actual strength by a villainous leader, which naturally made her a little defensive.

Crucially, Red Pine didn't use any cheating methods. Although he was a villain, his methods of becoming stronger were very upright. Even Team Rocket, which had done many bad things, had a leader named Giovanni who had earned his strength through proper training, without relying on any evil tricks like injections or drugs.

It was precisely because she was suppressed by the opponent's fair and square strength that she felt even more powerless, especially since Luo Wei, a newcomer, performed better than her.

"...Thinking too much will only make things more complicated."

Previously, this is what Luo Wei told Asha: it is precisely because he cares too much about what others think that he will get deeper and deeper into trouble. It would be better to simply ignore everything, do things at his own pace, and leave behind a result that no one can find fault with.

"But……"

She was clearly still a bit stuck. The more she tried to prove herself, the more she worried about whether her performance was lacking, just like when she was taking an exam and was always anxious and afraid of failing.

The more you fear failing the test, the more anxious you become, the more likely you are to underperform. It's better to treat it like a regular quiz; you might just get a good score that way.

Everyone understands the principle, just like everyone can say nice things, but whether they can actually do them is another matter entirely...

"It's alright, I'll hold them off here for now. Aysa, just take a moment to calm yourself down..."

Luo Wei stepped forward and blocked Aysa's path, leaving her with his back to him. Then, he charged forward alongside Meowth, Gardevoir, and Sylveon.

The enemy's firepower was still fierce, but after seven or eight rounds of fighting, Luo Wei had gradually adapted to their firepower.

As the Psychic Field was deployed, its enhancement effects began to take hold, and Gardevoir and Sylveon's psychic attacks gradually turned the tide...

Although overall, there is still a gap between them and their opponents, Luo Wei is indeed gradually turning the tide.

“Oh…” Red Flame Pine raised his chin, his gaze towards Luo Wei filled with admiration. “Compared to that dojo master, you are more impressive than I imagined. The son of that ‘tough guy’ Senri? I must say, like father, like son…”

To be honest, this statement itself is already a case of praising one while criticizing the other, not to mention that it is also subtly mocking Aysa, because in a sense, Aysa and Rowe are in similar situations.

Luo Wei has a father who is a gym leader, and his own strength has not let his father down. As for Aya, her grandfather was one of the Elite Four and the first gym leader of LavaCity, but her performance... at least based on her current performance, is really not worthy of her strength.

"Hey, I don't need anyone to praise my dad's amazing skills, but even if it weren't now, I'm sure I'd be even better than him!"

Without any hesitation or doubt, the statement carried an almost irrefutable confidence, as if it were stating a self-evident fact.

Rowe believes he will surpass his father and become a stronger trainer...

...Anyone who knows Qianli's strength understands how difficult it is to say this. Luo Wei is Qianli's son and considers himself the second person in the world who understands him best.

As for first place, it's naturally his own mother, just like how Luo Wei is confident that he is the second man his mother loves in the world.

As a son, he couldn't possibly be unaware of his father's power; even so, he still delivered his verdict in this way...

...This confidence is definitely not the kind of arrogance that comes from ignorance.

More importantly, none of the three people who heard this statement—Asa, Lillie, and Crimson Pine—found anything wrong with it; they all believed that Rowe could definitely do it.

As for Meowth, Gardevoir, and Sylveon, there's no need to even confirm their identities. They are Lowell's partners who share his heart and soul, and that's the basis for Lowell's confident statement...

"This is really..."

Looking at the young man before him, Chi Yansong couldn't help but want to say something praising him. He was indeed an outstanding young man that even his enemy couldn't help but admire.

But before he could say those words, a voice suddenly interrupted...

"...That's right, that's right, Luo Wei will definitely surpass Uncle Qianli, but the one who will be the first to surpass him... will definitely be me~"

"!"

When the voice came out, Luo Wei was first stunned, and then his face lit up with joy.

Daigo had previously mentioned that the League had arranged for reinforcements to help, and it seems that these reinforcements have arrived at this moment.

Just hearing the sound, Luo Wei was immediately certain of one thing...

...This is it!

Chapter 166 What makes you think you can bring two props?!

The league had previously stated that it would arrange reinforcements to help, but others might not be able to make it in time, as the league has more than one issue to deal with.

After all, the Ether Foundation and the Ultra Beasts causing trouble in various places are already enough of a headache.

Fortunately, if the alliance really wanted to allocate manpower, they could always squeeze out some people, so this reinforcement arrived at that moment.

Upon hearing that familiar voice, Luo Wei felt instantly at ease; he had only one thought…

...We've got this in the bag!

The reason why Luo Wei was so confident was, of course, because the person who came was the formidable rival and worthy opponent that Luo Wei had identified.