Ash, with his invincible physical body, wants to become a Pokémon Master.

Chapter 526 Take it, Zhizhi, this is the last ripple from our hometown!

There's no way around it; after all, Xiao Zhi comes from China, and he always has a strange fondness for the special combination of the four words "ancient East."

What if there really is some connection?

Of course, it's impossible to think about it, this is the Pokémon world.

But then, a system notification sounded in Xiaozhi's mind again.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, you have triggered a new hidden quest, "Sword, Bamboo Slipper, Cauldron, Jade": It is a bond from the East that brought us together. Please collect all four Calamities. (Take this, Zhizhi, it's the last Ripple from our homeland!)]

【奖励：联盟币+40000；防御+4；攻击+4；特攻+4；特防+4；自由属性点+4；太晶化进化的相关任务解锁+1】

Ding! Congratulations, host, you have triggered a new side quest, "The Oath That Never Breathes": Please raise the Ancient Sword Leopard's favorability and intimacy to the maximum value.

【奖励：；联盟币+6000；速度+2；攻击+2；自由属性点+2；四灾兽对战券+1】

"Sword, bamboo slip, tripod, jade — they really are related."

These combinations, clearly belonging to a major Eastern power, immediately made the connection between Xiao Zhi and the rest of the group.

It seems there might be a place similar to China in the Pokémon world. The Pokémon world is truly amazing. Ash's heart was suddenly touched.

But then, Xiaoyao suddenly returned with the disheveled and dirty Strong Chicken.

Although their faces were covered in dust, they were still full of energy.

As soon as May saw Ash, she immediately waved happily.

"Ash, we did it! We successfully defeated five Donphans!"

"There were five Donkeys rolling in a circle, fighting for mating rights. When they saw me and the Mighty Chicken approaching, they attacked us directly. It almost scared me to death."

"Luckily we still won in the end!" May happily gave Ash a thumbs-up.

"Wow, it's that fast?" Ash was a little surprised; he thought it would take at least longer.

Xiaoyao was also quite surprised.

In a moment of desperation, she and the Mighty Chicken used the combat skills they had honed in the Grand Contest to divide the Dongar army with dazzling vortexes of fire.

Only then did they target each opponent individually, unleashing a small combo of a million-ton kick and a soaring punch to achieve a counterattack.

However, the whole process went very smoothly, with Xiaoyao's Mighty Chicken completely dominating in a one-on-one match.

She had always compared herself to monsters like Ash, and May never imagined she was actually this strong.

After defeating the Donkey, she and the Mighty Chicken were greatly encouraged.

She made great strides and completed the day's training program that Xiaozhi had arranged for her a whole morning ahead of schedule.

She wasn't injured at all during the entire battle; the dust on her body only came from when Xiaoyao and the others were treating the Donta warriors after the battle.

"Aren't we awesome!"

"Come on!"

"Great job, you deserve praise!" Ash patted May's head with satisfaction, giving her full recognition.

But then his mischievous side kicked in again, and he immediately adopted a serious tone and said...

"But Yao, remember that there are always people better than you and there is always something beyond your understanding. Don't be complacent just because you defeated some Dunka. There are countless masters in the world."

"Therefore, progress should be endless, and special training must never stop!"

"Hmm." Haruka nodded immediately, agreeing with Ash's point.

The more you improve before a competition, the more secure you will be.

It's rare to have a renowned teacher like Xiao Zhi providing close guidance; it's definitely not advisable to slack off now and wait until the grand finale.

"So, Mr. Xiaozhi, what will our next special training session be like?"

"Hehe, next up—" Ash grinned mischievously.

"Since you've already perfectly completed all the tasks I assigned you, there's no need to bother the shield-bearers anymore."

After all, this is an important mating season for the shield-bearers, and it wouldn't be good to delay them.

"From now on, my newly captured Pokémon will be your training subject, hehehe!"

That's right, Ash plans to treat May as someone he "can't mess with" and use her to build up his and Leopard's battle synergy.

There's no other way; May is the only Pokémon Trainer on the island right now, so who else can we ask?

Moreover, it is an honor for Combusken to be able to battle against a Pokémon of the caliber of Leopard!

The Mighty Chicken's combat experience will certainly be greatly improved through training.

At this moment, the naive May had not yet realized Ash's sinister intentions.

Although the muscular man's smile was wicked, wasn't Ash always looking at her with a sinister glint in his eye? May completely ignored it. (Ash: That's slander!)

She was actually more interested in the Pokémon that Ash had just caught.

"Wow, Ash, you've caught another new Pokémon in such a short time! What kind of Pokémon is it, and how did you catch it?"

"I just happened to find it on the island and felt a connection with it, so I caught it. Plus, its type is Dark and Ice, which makes it perfect for battling and training with Combusken."

Ash decided to keep May a little mysterious and didn't reveal what Pokémon she was.

Of course, even if Ash says it's an Ancient Sword Leopard, May might not recognize it.

When May heard Ash say that it was a Dark/Ice-type Pokémon, she was overjoyed.

"A newly caught Pokémon with such unfavorable type attributes—Ash, you seem to be underestimating me and Combusken." The busty girl smiled confidently.

"So that means you've agreed to participate in my upcoming advanced training?"

"Of course, this is a rare and golden opportunity to defeat you, how could I possibly miss it!"

Xiaoyao has to consider whether this is her only chance in this life.

This time, she's determined to wash away the humiliation of being defeated by Ash in the past!

The girl crossed her arms and couldn't help but laugh as she imagined Ash being defeated by her.

But she didn't dare to laugh too much at Xiaozhi's imposing presence, and could only try her best to hold it in.

The earthquake caused the two majestic mountains to surge with waves.

stare----

The muscular man swallowed hard, feigning composure.

"By the way, Haruka, if you lose a battle during the special training later, the loser will have to accept a small punishment from the winner."

"This has always been a rule of the advanced training!"

Actually, Ash was blinded by the big bomb and came up with this on his own.

Xiaoyao didn't notice the problem at all.

"Okay, I couldn't be happier! If you lose, Ash, you'll have to call me Mom!"

Seeing this, Ash didn't hold back, "Hmph, let's go then!"

The two immediately set up their formation—

Then Xiaoyao's Mighty Chicken got utterly thrashed by the Ancient Leopard.

White-skinned Hakimi stands 1.9 meters tall, his massive body bringing him immense strength, while also possessing astonishing speed.

May's Combusken is just a decent-talented second-stage Hoenn starter Pokémon; it's hardly a match for her.

For two whole days, they endured inhumane torture.

Neither Mighty Chicken nor Little Haruka's mountain was spared.

Xiao Zhi is winning so badly!

Of course, the strength of the Mighty Chicken is also undergoing a qualitative change in such high-intensity combat.

An icicle crashes down on Twilightwater, the location of the Grand Contest.

The square was bustling with activity as the final grand competition before the opening of the major celebration was about to take place.

The event was packed with trainers who came to participate.

The place was packed with people, making the competition extremely fierce. Everyone was hoping to give it their all and earn the Twilight Ribbon Medal with an outstanding performance.

So they and their respective Pokémon were nervously making their final preparations backstage, except for a certain stunningly beautiful girl with an amazing figure.

She has undergone such rigorous training under Ash's guidance and has finally managed to stand here.

Unaware of her weakness, and with an incredibly strong inner self, Xiaoyao felt invincible at that moment!

Every time the cameras in the venue panned across Xiaoyao's pretty face, which was made even more charming by her confidence, it would elicit gasps of amazement from the audience.

"Wow, sister's whole demeanor seems to have changed completely! Ash, your special training is so effective!"

Sitting in the audience with Ash, Max looked at his radiant sister on the screen and said with a hint of regret.

"I should have stayed on the sidelines and watched your special training back then."

"Haha, Xiaosheng, you can't think like that. The footage you filmed of the Dongyal tribe's courtship is also very meaningful."

"That's the most detailed and complete record ever. Professor Oak will definitely praise you for your tremendous contribution to Pokémon research."

Ash's firm words greatly recognized Sheng's work over the past two days, making the bespectacled kid blush and wipe his nose shyly.

"It's not that amazing."

But the reason Ash said that was because the special training he and May had done earlier was something Max couldn't even watch.

After all, there's a spectacular defeat cutscene, exclusively for Ash, so please don't disturb others.

This is also a rare step forward in the relationship between Ash and May.

However, after their relationship became so close that they shook hands and had physical contact, instead of confessing their love or kissing, they jumped straight to "bullying the mountain peak".

Isn't this progress a bit too abrupt?

Xiao Zhi (with a satisfied look): "Of course not!"

At this moment, Vivian on the stage finally finished introducing the judges of the event.

Apart from Miss Joey being replaced by Joey from Duskwood, the other two are familiar faces: Conkenstein and Sukizo.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the first round of judging for the thrilling Twilight Water Tournament begins!"

As Vivian finished speaking, the contestants went up on stage one after another.

After all, this was the final grand competition, and many experts who hadn't yet collected all five ribbon medals came to participate.

There were many more skilled trainers on the field than ever before, and the contestants were all giving it their all.

The level of competition was several notches higher than the grand competitions Xiaoyao had participated in before.

One dazzling performance after another raised the bar for the judges.

They were particularly cautious with their scoring during this conference.

Many performances that would have been rated 25 points at other conferences only received a little over 20 points here.

Everyone's scores were very close, and soon it was finally Xiaoyao's turn to perform.

As soon as she stepped onto the stage, a confident and composed smile appeared on her face.

"Powerful Chicken, Flame Vortex followed by Skyward Punch!"

"Come on!"

A sharp glint flashed in its eyes, and an indomitable aura burst forth from the strong rooster's yellow body.

A powerful vortex of fire instantly engulfed the entire battlefield.

This was something that Mighty Chicken had painstakingly honed to avoid being hit by the Ancient Leopard's icicles.

The flames spun and rose, shooting straight into the sky.

At this moment, the Mighty Chicken clenched its fist and flipped the constantly rotating heat wave directly from the bottom of the fire vortex, and then the flames immediately scattered into a sky full of sparks.

The light shone brightly on the beautiful body of the Mighty Chicken, which was sculpted from devouring Kira Fruit energy cubes.

"Such immense power! The connection between the two moves is flawless, truly outstanding!"

"Oh, I like this!"

"This Mighty Chicken is clearly very well trained by its owner, and its performance perfectly showcases its unparalleled appearance. It was a truly excellent show."

Conkenstein, Sukizo, and Miss Joey gave their opinions one after another. Except for Sukizo, who was a scoundrel, the other two gave him very high marks.

In the end, Xiaoyao scored a perfect score of 30.

"Great, Mighty Chicken!"

"Come on!"

Unexpectedly, in this magnificent competition, Xiaoyao received her first perfect score in the judging.

Even if there are only 4 people in the second round of review at this conference, she has basically secured her place in the second round of review.

Xiaozhi and Xiaosheng were also in the audience, happy for her.

Ash also took out his Pokédex and took a picture of May's adorable smiling face as she hugged Combusken, which he then kept in his commemorative photo album.

The muscular man meticulously records and treasures every key moment and adorable instant of each of his girlfriends.

Of course, the overwhelming majority of photos in Xiaozhi's album are still Xiaoxia's photos.

At this moment, Haruka happily left the stage with Mighty Chicken, and the next contestants took the stage.

Soon, after the last contestant finished performing, the list of those who advanced was announced.

Xiaoyao advanced smoothly as expected, and her headshot was placed first.

Following her were two women and one man, making a total of four contestants advancing, including Xiaoyao.

At this point, the match-up list for the second round of review was also arranged, and the only green-haired boy among the four was Xiaoyao's next opponent.

"His name is Toshiki, and I remember he used to play as Houndoom."

Xiaoyao stared at her opponent's image on the screen and muttered to herself.

"They seem quite strong, Powerful Chicken! Let's give it our all and secure victory in this Grand Contest!"

"just!"

"Hmph, you can't do that."

"?"

The sudden sound startled Xiaoyao, who was cheering on her friends, and she quickly turned around to look.

It turned out to be a reddish-brown girl with a puckering mouth, and she looked very familiar; she was one of the four who advanced to the second round of auditions.

"Um, I remember your name is Ms. Jiang Lizi, right? Why do you say that?"

Originally kind and gentle, May started to unconsciously cross her arms and speak with a domineering tone after spending a lot of time with Ash.

Jiang Lizi paused for a moment before pretending to be tough and said.

"Because you absolutely cannot defeat the pear tree. He and I are going to stand on the final stage together and receive the ribbon medal as a loving couple!"

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