Elf: Starts with small diamonds, then mutates into Diancie.

James had to face the fact that, with the support of the league's people, they fell in the first round of the quarterfinals.

And it all started because of their plan to carry out a decapitation strike against Diancie.

That Diancie was far too strong, easily breaking through the defenses of Steelix and Flamesaur Tauros, which had been unable to breach Bricaron's defenses for a long time. Even the follow-up damage from her attacks after breaking the shield could deplete Bricaron's health.

He would believe it if you told him that Diancie was a Champion-level Pokémon.

The referee declared Shenzhou Alliance the winner of the match, which also meant that Shenzhou Alliance became the first team to advance to the semifinals.

The stands were filled with the vibrant red of the audience from the China Alliance.

On the high platform.

"I told you, nothing is surprising until the very last moment of the match." Liao Xingchen stood up with a smile, greeted the people around him, and walked to the back. "Well, it's about time I went to greet our strong and intelligent team members. Farewell, King François."

François remained silent with a taut face, only standing up and leaving after Liao Xingchen had left.

Diancie... Ha, it seems it won't be long before we see her on the highest international stage.

Unfortunately, they no longer have the chance to fight each other.

..................................

The second match this afternoon will be between the German Union and the Indian Union. As for the matches in Zone B, they will not be completed until tomorrow, and the organizers will also give the two winning teams in Zone B a day of rest.

Although the first match was a bit thrilling, the gains after the victory were still evident. The Shenzhou Alliance will have nearly three days of rest, giving them ample time to adjust their form and analyze tactics.

At noon, the six of them went to a famous three-star restaurant in London to try the local specialties.

Because of their status as visiting league members and participants in the national youth tournament, the British League directly assigned them seats.

This restaurant is world-renowned, and reservations are already booked six months in advance. Having special privileges is definitely an advantage.

With the waiter's perfectly timed smiles and farewells, the group stood bewildered on the street, rubbing their stomachs, which felt like they had eaten something but also like they hadn't eaten anything at all.

Xiao Zijian rubbed his stomach, looking miserable, and said, "No, I still need to find another food street to have a meal."

Cheng Liming nodded in agreement: "The taste is alright, but the portion is a little small. It doesn't taste as good as my mom's twice-cooked pork."

"Aren't you guys full? We feel alright." Bai Linglong felt she had reached her limit; eating any more would exceed her daily calorie intake. Glancing at Jin Lin, who seemed to be deep in thought, Bai Linglong asked, puzzled, "Jin Lin, what about you?"

When her name was called, Jin Lin looked up, pushed up her glasses, and said, "I'm alright, but I'm a little confused about what Su Hao was talking about earlier, the 'Stargazing School'."

The group paused, their memories quickly returning: "Come to think of it, he did ask the waiter if they had this dish just now?"

Even Liao Xingchen, who had arranged for a vehicle to pick them up, turned her curious gaze over.

The Stargazing School? That sounds pretty fancy.

Seeing that everyone was waiting for his answer with curiosity, Su Hao said helplessly, "It's the kind of pie we just had, but the method and filling will be different."

Everyone asked curiously, "What exactly is this change?"

This question stumped Su Hao. After racking his brains for a long time, he finally said uncertainly, "Uh...maybe."

It's basically a pastry where you stick the cleaned fish head and tail onto a piece of dough. The filling is usually shrimp, mushrooms, bacon, or fish slices. Because the fish's eyes are facing the sky, it's called the "Stargazing Pie."

After he finished speaking, everyone imagined what Su Hao had described, and their expressions became indescribable.

My appetite vanished instantly.

"Now I can't even remember the taste of my mother's twice-cooked pork; all I can think of is the fish head that died with its eyes wide open."

"Is that kind of food really edible?"

"I didn't expect you to have such unusual hobbies."

"Quite...quite imaginative, haha."

Su Hao looked helpless. He was just curious whether there were any stargazing groups in this world. How did he end up looking like a food enthusiast after seeing these people?

........

A few moments.

"Xiao Zijian and Cheng Liming are going to have a second round of food, Bai Linglong and Jin Lin are going to the beauty salon, Su Hao, what about you, are you coming back to the hotel with me?"

Liao Xingchen looked at Su Hao with a questioning gaze.

Su Hao shook his head and watched his four teammates leave in their respective cars before saying, "I plan to go to the wild and train my Pokémon."

"Alright." Liao Xingchen nodded slightly, surprisingly agreeing to Su Hao's suggestion readily, and then reminded him, "Be careful, and always keep things in moderation. Don't push yourself too hard."

Su Hao nodded to indicate that he understood, then turned around, hailed a taxi, and left.

Watching the taxi speed away, Liao Xingchen whispered to the shadow beneath him, "I'll have to trouble you again this time, Marshall."

"Oh dear, it's troublesome, but there's no other way, so I'll mercifully agree!"

A sound came from the shadow beneath Liao Xingchen's feet, and then, the restless Marshado in the shadow moved directly in that direction.

"Then I'll have to trouble you..."

Before Liao Xingchen could finish speaking, he noticed that Masado had slipped away. He wondered if it was just his imagination, but Masado's voice sounded strangely impatient.

really weird......

------------

Chapter 689 An Adventure in the Augusto Mountains

Outside the Augusto Mountains, Su Hao asked Marchado in the shadows, "Senior Marchado, can you release the small diamond now?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the shadow beneath Su Hao's feet began to wriggle, and in an instant, a small diamond fragment was "spit out" by the shadow.

Little Diamond really wanted to yell at Marchado, but in the end, she stopped herself because of the fact that "Marchado is an acquaintance of Her Majesty the Queen," and glared angrily at Su Hao.

"I'm sorry, I'll have to trouble you to lead the way from here on out."

Su Hao smiled, patted Little Diamond's head, and coaxed it until it was dizzy. Soon, Little Diamond proudly led him into the mountains.

Although they encountered Scrambler last time near the area under the jurisdiction of the Giant Pokémon Park, they cannot directly enter the mountains from the park side. Not only would it attract the attention of others, but the park would definitely stop them.

Fortunately, the Augusto Mountains are a popular and dangerous place for trainers to train and challenge themselves, and there are still ways to enter the Augusto Mountains from other places.

Carrying Little Diamond, Su Hao ventured deep into the wilderness bordering the Augusto Mountains, declining invitations from fellow trainers he encountered. Led by Little Diamond, he soon arrived at a cave.

The Pokémon that Su Hao was responsible for fighting wild Pokémon had changed several times, and now Zeraora was by his side.

It was Jeraora's first time going on a wilderness adventure with Su Hao, and she was very excited, finding everything new and exciting.

Before entering the cave, Su Hao's gaze fell on Zeraora. After a short period of training, although Zeraora did not seem to have changed much, its combat experience had become much richer.

Having mastered the basics of electric current propulsion while practicing with Incineroar, Zeraora can now strengthen her body by stimulating her muscles with electric current.

However, Zeraora didn't focus solely on increasing muscle strength like Incineroar; instead, it concentrated on its strengths—speed.

Looking at the Pokémon in Su Hao's team, Zeraora, with its Agility maxed out, ranks among the top in speed. Once it catches up in strength and masters Electric Push even more, learning to create a special magnetic field around itself, its power will explode.

The cave that Little Diamond brought Su Hao to looked unremarkable. It was dark inside and overgrown with weeds. It was clear that almost no one went in or out. It looked like the den of some Pokémon that like to live in caves.

The little diamond explained, “Our mineral kingdom lies deep underground beneath this mountain range, protected by the power of sacred diamonds. Almost no one can reach it. These caves are merely a path into a vast underground cavern.”

Su Hao nodded, exchanged a glance with Zeraora, and without Su Hao saying anything more, it took the lead and entered the cave, raising its head to sense: "The airflow is moving, leading all the way to the depths."

Little Diamond was a little confused as to why Su Hao still wanted Zeraora to detect the direction of the surrounding airflow. Su Hao explained, "I am, after all, a human being. Breathing is an essential behavior. If there is little oxygen in the cave, there may be a situation of oxygen deficiency."

Little Diamond nodded knowingly: "The underground cavern connects to many passages and exits, and many of you humans are mining for ore inside, so you shouldn't have to worry about oxygen."

............

As they entered the cave and began to explore deeper inside, Su Hao worried that Little Diamond might get lost due to the complex terrain. Little Diamond replied that it wouldn't.

The sacred diamond aura they possess is for this very purpose; each tiny diamond, baptized by the sacred diamond, has the ability to find its way to the mineral kingdom and will never get lost.

The little diamond learned the Flash move, and with it, Su Hao didn't even need to take out a flashlight. He smoothly passed through the cave with its indescribable smell and headed underground.

After a while, the narrow passage gradually became wider, and other waveguides began to react within the waveguides that Su Hao had extended.

Su Hao whispered a reminder: "Be careful, there are many traces of wild Pokémon ahead."

Judging from the direction Little Diamond is leading, encountering wild Pokémon seems unavoidable.

"Aura!"

Several electric currents flashed across Zeraora's beard as he became alert and ready for battle.

Marshall observes the area above silently from within the shadows. To prevent accidental encounters with other humans, it never leaves its shadow.

Moreover, with Su Hao and the Pokémon's combined strength, dealing with some wild Pokémon shouldn't be a problem.

“Little diamond, come behind me.”

After passing a bend, Su Hao "looked" at the dense array of waveguide reactions in front of him and said in a deep voice.

The small diamond fragments, gleaming with light, immediately hid behind Su Hao. It wasn't very strong; the fact that it had managed to travel all the way from the mineral kingdom to the top could only be attributed to its good luck.

After all, it even managed to dodge those incredibly fast-flying insects that were impossible to communicate with. However, if it were to encounter a Pokémon that was extremely hostile to it, it might not be able to return to the Mineral Kingdom.

"A swarm of Zubats and Golbats... over a hundred in number. Zeraora, it's all yours."

Su Hao identified the densely packed, dark blue, bat-shaped Pokémon hanging above the large cave not far away. They were Zubat and Golbat. Fortunately, there were no troublesome opponents like Crobat that were extremely fast.

If you pass through here, you can't avoid running into them. Even if you turn off the flash attack, the Zubats, who use ultrasonic waves to sense their surroundings, can still detect the sound of them walking.

Little Diamond also mentioned that if you want to go deeper into the underground cave to reach the Mineral Kingdom, this is the only road nearby.