Pokémon, Ash's art style is off!

"It's almost time, you all keep an eye on things—"

Before the words were finished, a sharp screech suddenly came from the distant mountain wall.

"Whoosh-!"

A huge black shadow swooped down from the sunken cave, its wings spread wide, blotting out the sky and stirring up a storm of dust.

The tourists gasped and covered their eyes, but Xiao Zhi excitedly took a step forward, letting the sand hit his face.

The dark figure circled in the air, the air currents it created tearing at everyone's clothes, before finally landing steadily on a towering mountain peak at the end of the clearing.

"Roar--!!!"

The fossil pterosaur roared to the sky, its voice booming.

It was a roar that had traversed billions of years, carrying the domineering and wildness of ancient times.

Even from this distance, Xiaozhi could still feel the overwhelming sense of oppression.

Yes, the oppressive characteristic.

"I really want to fight it."

Xiao Zhi muttered to himself, his eyes almost overflowing with light.

"Then go sign up."

A voice suddenly drifted from behind.

Ash looked back.

Xiao Mao suddenly appeared, hands in his pockets, with an expression that said, "I was just passing by and said something."

"Xiao Mao? What brings you here again?"

Ash blinked in surprise.

Xiao Mao snorted and turned his face away.

"It's none of your business how I got here. This place isn't yours to come here whenever I want."

Xiao Zhi didn't think too much about it and asked with great interest.

"Register? Register for what?"

Gary gestured with his chin, indicating to Ash that he should look at the fossilized Aerodactyl on the mountain peak.

"When the fossil pterosaur is in a good mood, it will choose the strongest person among those who have signed up to challenge it and fight him."

"The strongest one?" "Pikachu?"

Ash's eyes shone even brighter.

"Okay." Xiao Mao nodded. "The registration area is under that shed over there. You just need to fill out a form. But—"

"When it's in a bad mood, it won't choose anyone, so whether it gets chosen depends entirely on its mood that day."

Ash looked at Gary with curiosity.

"So, you've been in the park for so many days, have you ever been selected?"

Xiao Mao's face immediately froze.

"...When it's in a bad mood, it won't choose anyone."

Xiao Mao said dryly.

"It's still not good?"

Xiaoxia asked.

“Yes, it’s never been good,” Xiao Mao said coldly. “That’s why it never chose anyone.”

"It's not that it didn't choose me, it's that it never chose anyone in the first place. Do you understand?"

"I understand, I understand."

Xiaoxia nodded repeatedly, but her expression clearly showed disbelief.

Xiao Mao opened his mouth, wanting to say a few more words in his defense.

"Then what are we waiting for! Let's go register together!"

But Ash, already excited, didn't hesitate and immediately used high-speed movement to pull Gary along, rushing towards the registration area.

The registration area was a simple shed with a table and a chair underneath, where a staff member was yawning listlessly.

There was a wooden sign standing next to it, with a few large characters written crookedly on it.

[Fossil Pterosaur Challenge Registration (Free)]

"We want to sign up!" "Pikachu!"

Xiao Zhi said with great energy.

The staff member lazily handed over a form.

"Fill in your name and then sign this waiver."

Ash quickly filled in his name, then turned to look at Gary.

Xiao Mao didn't stand on ceremony and quickly signed his name with a pen.

"Alright." The staff member glanced at the form, pointed behind him, and said, "Go wait over there. Once we have enough people, we'll take them all over."

Xiao Zhi peeked out and saw that more than a dozen people were already standing behind the pavilion, including men and women, young and old, all with tense yet expectant expressions.

Several of them were clearly seasoned trainers, with six Poké Balls hanging from their waists, exuding an aura of authority.

"So many people..."

Xiao Zhi sighed.

After waiting for about ten minutes, the number of people who had signed up was finally reached.

Including Ash and Gary, there are a total of fourteen people.

Staff led a group of people across the safety ropes and toward the foot of the mountain where the fossil pterosaur was located.

Tourists turned their attention to it.

"Look, look! Today's challenger is over!" "I wonder if the pterosaur was in a good mood today..."

The group arrived at an open area at the foot of the mountain.

The fossil pterosaur stood high on a protruding rock, looking down at the group of tiny humans.

The staff member stepped forward, then turned back to the challengers and spoke.

"Please stand in a line so that the fossil pterosaur can choose its own opponent."

The fourteen people quickly lined up in a row.

Ash stood on the right, while Gary stood in the middle.

The fossil pterosaur tilted its head, its gaze slowly sweeping from left to right.

This one is too old, this one is too young, this one has too many Poké Balls, and this one is too ugly...

When its gaze fell on Xiao Mao, the fossil pterosaur's eye twitched violently.

It's you again?!

Blastoise is a master of tricks and a ruthless type-advantage maniac.

It knew from other fossil Pokémon that this person's tactics were extremely dirty.

No! Absolutely not!

The fossil pterosaur's gaze swept quickly past Shigeru, then it jumped to the next person as if avoiding a plague.

Looking back, I wasn't very satisfied with any of the pterosaurs near the end.

Just as it yawned, preparing to flap its wings to indicate it was in a bad mood and wouldn't choose anyone—

His gaze suddenly stopped.

It was a boy with a Pikachu.

The boy is pleasing to the eye, but that's not important; what matters is Pikachu!

It's Pikachu, the mascot known to everyone!

The pterosaur's pupils suddenly contracted.

Ok? !

This is great!

This is good!

The fossil pterosaur excitedly spread its wings and roared to the sky: "Roar—!!!"

Then it extended a claw and pointed it directly at Ash.

Challenger! You're the one!

164. This is a test! This is a test!

The scene was silent for a full two seconds, and then it erupted into chaos.

"What?! The legendary fossil pterosaur actually chose it this time!"

"Am I seeing things? It's pointing at that kid with Pikachu?"

"The one with Pikachu?"

"No...why?"

The crowd began to murmur, and the whispers quickly escalated into a loud clamor.

"I thought they'd choose that guy with six Poké Balls hanging from his waist. Look at his hair, it's the same as Gym Leader Giovanni's, that's a true veteran!"

"Yeah, right! That kid looks like he's only sixteen or seventeen. And Pikachu? Isn't that the standard for trainers who are obsessed with looks? Cute is cute, but what good is it in actual combat?"

"Is 'fossil pterosaur' just a random term?"