Pokémon, Ash's art style is off!

Ash looked at Blaine, whose face was ashen.

"Pikachu?"

Pikachu followed at his feet, tilting its head in confusion.

Blair took a deep breath, trying to make his expression appear calm and professional.

He glanced at the two Pokémon in the arena who were still using their peripheral vision to assess each other's "backlog of dirty tricks," and decided to cut off the disaster at its source.

"Ash," Blaine patted Ash on the shoulder, her tone kind, "I think Charizard has learned enough. How about we call this training session over?"

Xiao Zhi paused for a moment, then shook his head, his expression serious.

"Senior, that's still a long way off!"

He stared intently at the fire-breathing dragon in the arena.

"I feel like Charizard only learned about 40-50% of it?"

"The rhythm of the Flamethrower to Flamethrower combo this morning wasn't smooth enough, and the temperature control precision after the Blaze ability was triggered was still lacking..."

"I think I need to practice for at least another three or four days!"

"Three or four days!?"

Bob nearly suffered cardiac arrest.

“That’s right!” Ash said matter-of-factly. “Don’t worry, senior, we will train hard!”

"Look how well the Magmortar is teaching! The Charizard is improving so fast!"

Xia Bo's eye twitched.

How well did he teach?

Wasn't the teaching done well?

They've already mastered the most underhanded tactics. If they teach them for another three or four days, will they even teach them underhanded tricks like, "How do you know the other Pokémon didn't sleep well last night and therefore will be 0.3 seconds slower in its reaction time today?"

No.

We must get rid of the Charizard now, immediately, and at once.

Xia Bo took a deep breath and straightened his back.

In an instant, his expression changed.

He was no longer that flustered old man, but a dignified and respected elder.

"Xiao Zhi, listen to me."

His voice was steady and powerful, each word like a proverb coming from the top of a high mountain.

Seeing Blaine suddenly become serious, Ash and Pikachu straightened their backs and looked at him intently.

"When it comes to learning new things... you can't learn everything."

"Hmm? Is that so?"

Ash scratched his head and looked at Pikachu.

Pikachu scratched its head as well.

This means that even the mouse doesn't understand what this means.

"I'm asking you."

With his hands behind his back, Xia Bo slowly took two steps, and the CPU that had removed his wig began to spin wildly.

"You're talking about the body structures of Charizard and Magmortar... can they be the same?"

"Different."

Xiao Zhi shook his head.

"And what about your fighting style?"

"They're not the same... Magmortar is more suited to mid-to-close range suppression, while Charizard..."

Xiao Zhi paused for a moment, then embellished his thoughts.

"It prefers to look for an opportunity to strike decisively in combat."

"very good."

Bob nodded.

"So, what do you think would happen if Charizard were to simply imitate Magmortar's fighting style?"

Ash frowned and fell into deep thought.

Before Ash could speak, Blaine continued.

"If your Charizard blindly imitates the fighting style of Magmortar, not to mention whether the differences in body structure will make the fighting style suitable."

"Even if it were possible to replicate it one-to-one, it would only be able to achieve the best of 'second Blaine'."

Xiao Zhi was slightly taken aback.

"So, Ash wants to surpass those who came before him."

Blair's voice suddenly softened, yet it carried more weight.

You must forge your own path!

"Others' experiences and skills are never meant to be 'copied,' but rather 'learned from.'"

"Fifty percent...that's enough!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Zhi's breath hitched.

Go your own way?

Yes!

He said that the training these past few days seemed to be lacking something, and now I see!

That's it!

Learning from others' experiences is not the same as copying them verbatim.

The exquisite techniques, rhythmic thinking, and timing of psychological warfare employed by the Duckbill Flame Beast—

These things are indeed worth learning, and are a valuable asset.

But what happens after you learn it?

It's not about turning Charizard into a "flying version of Magmortar".

Instead, it's about digesting these things, breaking them down, and then piecing them back together into Charizard's own fighting style—

"what!"

Ash's eyes lit up instantly, and his whole face shone with a look of sudden realization.

"Okay! I get it!"

"Pikachu?"

Wow! That's strong!

Pikachu looked at Ash.

You've figured it out again?

Ash raised his head and looked at Blaine.

"As expected of a senior! What you said makes perfect sense!"

He said excitedly, his fists clenching unconsciously.

"Fifty percent is definitely enough!"

"Once you've mastered the core concepts and techniques, the rest is about integrating them into Charizard's own style—not turning it into a Magmortar, but making it an even stronger Charizard!"

Although we don't know what Ash realized.

But Blaine's expression remained unchanged; he even nodded slightly, giving the impression that the boy was "teachable."

"Ah."

He responded with a deep, steady voice.

A huge weight has finally been lifted off my shoulders.

He stood with his hands behind his back, facing the sun, golden light shining on his bald head, making him look like a dignified old sculpture.

Putting everything else aside, the style is absolutely top-notch.

"By the way, Ash."

Xia Bo's tone suddenly became casual, as if he had inadvertently remembered a small matter.

"By the way, which gym are you going to challenge next...?"

"The Evergreen Gym!" Ash replied. "It was closed when I went there before, so I thought I'd check it out this time."

"Oh, Changqing City."

Xia Bo nodded, took out the encyclopedia and pressed a few buttons.

"I checked, and there's a ship scheduled for this afternoon. The route will pass by a port that's relatively close to Changqing City."

"You can get off the boat there and walk a short distance to get there."

As he spoke, he swiped his finger across the illustration a few times, accompanied by a crisp "Payment successful" notification sound.

"I've already bought your ticket. It's for the 3 PM ferry. Get ready now, the timing will be perfect."

"senior……"

Xiao Zhi was stunned.

Blaine turned around, patted Ash on the shoulder, and smiled kindly.

“Since you’ve already called me senior, I naturally have to consider your needs as a junior.”

"Don't be shy about the boat tickets!"