Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

In addition, there will be a female host named 'something An', and she will definitely be given the title of 'the most XX host of this century'.

Then there are the spectators, watching the grand finale, which perfectly illustrates the saying "the layman sees the spectacle, the expert sees the details."

Most viewers are actually just watching to see if the Pokémon are pretty or if their moves are flashy; in short, they're just there for the spectacle.

As for the judges' emphasis on the inherent charm of Pokémon, what they were really looking at was whether the Pokémon's performance met the requirements of the pre-set labels.

The last type, like Ash, who is neither an expert nor a novice and belongs to a completely different system, can only be judged by looking at the Pokémon's basic stats and special moves.

Just like he told Robert before, many Pokémon that specialize in Contests don't actively take damage, so they generally have low HP.

To ensure the visual impact of special moves, trainers will intentionally weaken the power of their Pokémon's moves in order to better control their variations…

Objectively speaking, this kind of micro-management does have its merits.

Skilled trainers can easily outmaneuver those who are used to regular battles and whose strategies mainly involve brute force, at the beginning.

For example, the poisonous rose teases the proud swallow~

Getting back to the main point, Ami's first stage performance went smoothly.

She first had Guang'er use cotton defense, which caused her body hair to swell dramatically, and then she suddenly twisted her body and released a series of cotton spores. After that, she used her ultimate move to create a crackling, fiery display.

The electric dragon's fur, combined with the sparkling light from the bursting spores, did indeed look shiny, giving one the feeling that 'this is exactly how an electric dragon should be.'

In his final act, Glow raised his tail and unleashed a flash, illuminating the magnificent arena with the light of the Radiant Beacon, undoubtedly winning thunderous applause.

27 points!

Each of the three judges deducted one point, probably because they thought that it was Ami's first time participating in the competition and giving her a perfect score would make her arrogant.

In short, passing the first round is a sure thing.

In addition, Rukia also participated in the tournament, and her performance speaks for itself.

Hoenn Idol is a professional-level player, and she is currently the only one with a higher score than Ami, achieving three 9.5s.

Another thing is...

"Next up is Marina from Wakaba Town!"

Ash was slightly taken aback when he saw the blue-haired girl appearing with Misdreavus.

The other party should be the female protagonist of the spin-off "Legend of Raikou". In the collaboration between Diamond and Pearl and the main series, it was mentioned that she has become a top Coordinator.

Her performance was indeed of a high standard, and with the added bonus of her appearance as a dream demon, passing the preliminary round should not be a problem.

...

"You guys keep watching, and while you're at it, please congratulate Miss Ami on winning the championship in advance."

After patiently watching the first round of performances, Xiao Zhi confirmed that Ami had advanced and also gained a general understanding of the contestants' skill levels.

He didn't need to watch any more of the spectacular battles that followed.

If Ami can still lose a match of this intensity, she might as well just be demoted to the second-tier gym leader.

After leaving the venue, Ash planned to find a place to train his Pokémon a bit. A few of the little guys in his team were quite restless, probably because they were about to take another step forward.

Especially Feebas, which kept reminding Ash that he was only a few more special moves away from the final, perfect refinement.

As Ash was pondering this, he nearly bumped into a boisterous young man as he stepped out the door.

"Oh no, I'm late! Uh... sorry, get out of the way!"

The boy rushed over in a hurry, and stumbled as he passed Ash. Fortunately, Ash helped him up.

"Phew... I'm saved, thank you." The boy steadied himself and let out a long sigh of relief.

But when he looked at Ash, he immediately had an expression as if he had discovered a new continent.

"You are... Mr. Ash Ketchum?!"

"It's me, but you can just call me by my name," Xiao Zhi replied politely, inwardly marveling at his luck today.

Even without being introduced, Xiao Zhi knew who he was just by looking at his outfit.

To put it simply, if you wore this outfit and went for a stroll around Mount Shirogane, even Lord Akatsuki would have to take off his hat!

Of course, Xiaozhi was referring to the game.

"I'm Kenta, a trainer from Wakaba Town," the boy hurriedly introduced himself. "I'm here to cheer on my friend... Oh, her match has already started?"

Coincidentally, at that very moment, the large screen outside the venue was showing Marina's spectacular battle against Rukia.

Upon seeing this, Kenta couldn't help but wear a bitter expression: "I'm doomed, Marina is definitely going to nag me to death this time."

I promised to be a spectator at the girl's grand finale, but I only arrived after the first stage performance was over. This is basically the worst kind of mistake, being late for a date.

"I think you should think about how you're going to comfort her later," Xiao Zhi gently shook his head. "Your friend is going to lose."

"Huh... what form is this?!" Kenta subconsciously looked at the big screen and happened to see the scene of Altaria's Mega Evolution.

"That's Mega Evolution. Besides a complete boost to its base stats, Altaria's attributes also change," Ash explained.

"I see, but it's clearly a close contest right now... Well, Marina's in danger." Kenta was about to say that his friend was going back and forth with his opponent, but the crocodile suddenly started to underperform.

What he's curious about now is how Ash figured that out.

"Feraligatr's normal output is insufficient, and its only threatening move, Ice Fang, cannot be used at four times the normal power due to the opponent's Mega Evolution; in addition, Altaria has Cotton Guard, so Feraligatr's offensive will inevitably be hindered."

"That's really true." Kenta suddenly realized, and his expression towards Satoshi showed a hint of eagerness.

"What...aren't you going in?" Xiao Zhi asked, puzzled.

"No, Marina doesn't want to see me right now." Kenta shook his head and earnestly pleaded with Ash, "Instead of that... Mr. Ash, could you battle me?"

"Alright, let's have a match then." With nothing else to do, Ash readily agreed. "No-trade battles, best two out of three, is that alright?"

"Huh... why is it the same way?" Kenta was taken aback.

"Have you encountered other people playing like this before?" Xiao Zhi was also a little curious.

"Yeah, there was a redhead named Gin..." Kenta shrugged, looking like he had a terrible past, clearly having been badly abused.

Ash is marveling at how small the world is; the Gold and Silver protagonists have already met up there!

Chapter 508 VS Kenta, First Two Wins

In an empty space near the grand arena, Ash and Kenta were ready for their battle.

Ash was quite interested in Kenta, since he was based on Hibiki.

"Can we decide who goes first by flipping a coin?" Ash raised his phone to Kenta, which had a built-in coin-flipping program.

“No problem, I guess it’s a character.” Kenta immediately gave his choice.

"Then I'll choose a flower," Xiao Zhi said, clicking the screen.

For roadside fights like this, there might be no referees, but there still needs to be a selection process.

Since it's a no-exchange format, deciding who goes first is crucial. Going first can give you an advantage, but it can also make you vulnerable to being targeted by enemy attributes.

The result of the coin toss was quickly announced: Kenta would go first.

"I'm sending out this one, the Donkey!" Kenta's first one was a sturdy, elephant-like Donkey...

But it is only a little over a meter tall, so it is really not big.

Pure Ground-type Pokémon like this don't have great resistances, but they also have relatively few weaknesses, making them a decent choice.

"Heracross, the first battle is yours." Ash chose to send out the Bug Fighter, a heavyweight like the opponent.

"This one... Donkey, turn round! Then roll!"

"Sword Dance!"

Kenta clearly knew some tactics. At the start of the battle, Donta curled up in place to increase its defense, while launching an attack with double the power of Roll.

However, Heracross completed the enhancement without dodging or avoiding it, letting the opponent crash into him.

The Fighting type can compensate for the Rock type's weakness, and Heracross can easily block a move like Rollout that has no type advantage, even if the initial power is doubled.

"Thunderclap, use Rollout again!"

"Grab its teeth!"

Kenta wanted Donphan to continue using Roll, but before it could push away its opponent, Heracross swiftly reached out with both hands and pinned Donphan firmly in place!

In this way, the subsequent power-up scrolling can no longer be used.

"Use the Flame Fang..."

"Throw it out!"

Kenta reacted quickly; seeing Donja captured, he immediately instructed his partner to burn his fangs in an attempt to break free.

But Ash had anticipated this move and had Heracross unleash its power in advance, sending Donphan flying into the air!

"Seed Machine Gun!" "Hera!"

Five consecutive emerald green beams of light shot out, and the Dongar was immediately severely damaged in mid-air!

To lay the foundation for Mega Evolution, Heracross has specifically practiced combos, and it is now very proficient in Pin Missile, Rock Blast, and Seed Gun.

"In that case... Donka, use the Billion Impact!"