Pokémon, but cultural invasion.

Sakura stared at this scene, lost in thought.

She used to say that Xiaoxia's dancing was terrible.

Her graceful water dance now truly resembles that of a mermaid princess.

Meanwhile, the live stream chat was already exploding with comments.

Chapter 41: Have You Ever Been a Mermaid? (Some parts are random and based on assumptions)

One second Izumi was tormenting the audience with advertising tricks, the camera suddenly switched, and the next second they were presented with a spectacular underwater scene.

The fantastical and dazzling visuals caught many viewers off guard, drawing them in and immersing them in the symphony played by the water-type Pokémon.

"This stage play is so much more visually stunning than the movies of recent years, isn't it?"

"The sea of ​​sky floating overhead, how spectacular it must be to see it in person."

"Every frame could be captured and used as a background. I really regret not arresting Izumi!"

The beautiful visuals and the surging music stimulated the audience's senses, and the most eye-catching figure was undoubtedly the mermaid princess wearing a pearl headband in the center of the picture.

Her meticulously applied makeup and costumes, her diligently practiced dance moves, and her melodious singing voice.

A combination of factors led to viewers not recognizing the actress playing the Little Mermaid at first glance.

But as the camera zoomed in, Misty's face appeared on the big screen, and the expressions of the trainers in the Kanto region froze.

"No way, don't tell me that the dreamlike mermaid princess in the center of the stage is Xia!"

"I was wondering why the princess in the poster looked so much like Xiaoxia, and it turns out she really did it."

"Why did you become the Mermaid Princess?! Cerulean Gym Leader isn't like this! You should have first used Psyduck to test my strength, then, after losing, angrily unleashed Mega Gyarados, then used your incredibly high Defense stats to force a Dragon Dance, and finally defeated my simple Quagsire with a powerful kick! Cerulean Gym Leader isn't like this at all! I don't accept this! (crying)"

Some viewers in other regions know very little about Kanto and do not understand why the Kanto trainers are reacting so strongly.

"I was ignorant before. This water fairy-like Cerulean Pavilion Master is probably only comparable to the Fragrance Fairy Mashu in our Carlos region."

Watching the stunningly graceful figure on stage, many spectators from the Carlos region nodded in approval.

Seeing this, viewers from other regions also brought out their own most charming hostess to compare with Xiaoxia.

The Kanto trainers were completely enraged.

"Xia isn't usually like this; you guys don't understand her at all!"

"Have you ever challenged the Cerulean Gym? Making random comparisons and assumptions is unfounded!"

"I can't believe I've ever seen Xiaoxia's reputation reverse in my lifetime."

Despite the efforts of Kanto trainers to clarify the misunderstanding, their words were utterly inadequate in the face of the ever-changing visuals.

And they had to admit that, surrounded by spotlights and with the support of the stage, Xiaoxia's visual appeal was comparable to that of a top-tier glamour competition idol.

The disconnect between new impressions and preconceived notions, coupled with the lavish praise from audiences in other regions, is impacting the hearts of Kanto trainers, causing them to waver.

If they don't admit it, they'll be left speechless.

Admit it, it's both a guilty conscience about the product not matching the description and a betrayal of my past self.

Caught in a dilemma, the Kanto trainers finally remembered who was behind it all.

It was him who shamelessly cut out the story, keeping impatient viewers up at night.

It was he who attracted a large number of tourists to Hualan's performances through performance art on social media platforms.

It was him who abandoned his perfectly good game development to dabble in stage plays, and incidentally gave Xiaoxia a makeover.

"Quanshu, you've done so many bad things!"

"Izumi-ki, if you're a man, come out and fight me!"

"Izumi-ki, you deserve to die!"

The Kanto trainers felt like ants were crawling all over their bodies, but not one of them could bear to click the exit button in the live stream.

Because the stage play, which had been in the works for several days, had finally begun.

The youngest mermaid princess always had many questions, gleaned from the land-based stories she heard from her grandmother.

Why do flowers on land emit fragrance, while those on the sea cannot? Why do people on land glow at night without the help of lanternfish? Why can land creatures move freely without tails?

To understand this, she had to surface.

The Little Mermaid passed through the coral palace and nestled beside her elderly grandmother.

"My grandmother, when will I be able to go out to sea?"

"Wait until you're over fifteen."

The old woman patiently explained, "Back then, you could sit on the rocks and watch huge ships sail by in the moonlight, and you could also see the city lights shining in the distance at night."

"Fifteen years old... God knows how much longer that will be."

When the Little Mermaid is upset and depressed because of her grandmother's prohibition, her five older sisters will play with her and comfort her with words.

“Our silly sister, mermaids are always especially excited to see all sorts of new and amazing things when they first surface.”

"But when you look back, you'll find that the scenery at the bottom of the sea is more beautiful, and it's better to live in a palace."

The sisters danced around the mermaid princess, showing off their tails of different colors.

"Moreover, we are mermaids, without legs, and cannot walk or survive on land."

"A fish without legs that insists on going ashore is destined to be a tragedy."

Previously, the water spirits' parade was more of a spectacle, but now the mermaid princesses' dance steps truly let the audience experience what splendor and elegance are.

After a few minutes of waltzing, the other mermaids swam away into the distance, gradually disappearing from sight.

The Little Mermaid's swimming style remained graceful, and her dance steps were effortless, but her smiling expression had taken on a slightly stiff edge.

Quanshu observed Xiaoxia's situation through the screen.

To ensure the performance effect on stage, they did not equip the stage with those jarring oxygen devices that clashed with the style of the stage paintings.

It would be too surreal for a mermaid princess living in the deep sea to need to take a breath of oxygen every now and then.

Therefore, the underwater performance in the first act relies entirely on Xiaoxia's lung capacity and endurance.

From the start of the performance until now, the waltz, which has lasted for about two minutes, has pushed even Xiaoxia, who is extremely skilled in swimming, to her limit.

"Is it just my imagination? Xiaoxia's movements seem to have slowed down."

"I don't know if you noticed, but not a single actor wore an oxygen mask throughout the entire process."

"No wonder the immersion was so strong. Were they holding their breath the whole time since they never surfaced?"

Without exception, all underwater performances without equipment incorporate breathing techniques into their dance moves.

If the audience can't tell that the actors are taking breaths, that's a great success.

So far, "The Little Mermaid" hasn't even shown a single shot of the sea surface, let alone a moment of breathing.

This made the audience start to worry about Xiaoxia.

Her nickname is Savage Bass, but she's really just a girl and can't possibly breathe underwater.

None of the five older sisters had as strong a desire as the youngest sister; she was so silent and thoughtful, yet she was the one who had to wait the longest.

Unable to shake off her melancholy, the Little Mermaid sat on a tree branch in the garden.

She caught a small flying fish that was passing by.

He cupped its face in his hands and asked, "Flying fish, you've been to the sea, can you tell me what the land is like?"

The little flying fish exhaled a huge bubble, isolating the seawater and enveloping the mermaid princess within it.

It was as if a dream, like a bubble, had been woven.

Chapter 42 Izumi, you've done so many bad things

Xiaoxia fell into the bubble as tall as herself, visibly caught her breath, and her expression became lively again.

Izumi nodded slightly in the backstage area of ​​the live stream; her performance this time was truly perfect.

During the rehearsals for the first act, Xiaoxia almost choked on her breath many times. It would be difficult to reach this level without a lot of practice.

This reminded him of Qi Shu, who persevered through exhaustion and fatigue to complete the game via livestream for an extended period.

These dojo owners are really going all out.

In areas other than combat, their willingness to put in effort will not diminish in the slightest.

"So this is how it was solved?"

"I love the image of the mermaid princess sleeping peacefully in bubbles in the deep sea."

"It's a very clever design, but most people would have been stifled by the earlier dance steps."

"Isn't Xiaoxia an excellent swimmer? Could it be that Quanshu didn't choose people randomly, but rather had his own deeper meaning?"

The gradually swayed audience was brought back on track by Xiaoqiu Feiyu's answer.

"Your Highness, I have only ever seen beaches under the moonlight regarding land."

The bubbles slowly rose to the surface.

The little flying fish wagged its tail and somersaulted, excitedly saying, "When the sea is calm, you can see countless star-like lights in the big city right by the shore; you can hear the drums of the clock tower, the laughter and music of people at banquets, and the sound of carriage wheels on the bridge."

As soon as he finished speaking, the huge bubble that had risen to the surface could no longer remain stable due to the change in water pressure.

After a violent tremor, it inevitably burst, turning into a series of tiny bubbles that startled the princess from her sweet dream.

The Little Mermaid listened intently, as if she could glimpse the bustling streets of a big city and hear the ceremonial music played by people gathered together.

Not content with the fleeting nature of her dream, she swam downstream and stopped a group of passing fluorescent fish.

"Fluorescent lights, you are used to staying close to the surface of the sea at night and swimming into the deep sea when the sun rises. Can you tell me what the land looks like?"

The fluorescent fish scattered, their stripes on either side of their bodies flashing with neon light.

“Your Highness, we have only seen the distant horizon of the land.”

"When you surface, the sun has just risen over the other side of the land, and the whole sky is like a piece of gold, with elusive red-purple and rose-colored dawn clouds floating around."

The fluorescent fish swam around her, their pink light dazzling the mermaid princess's eyes.

She reached out her hand, as if the beautiful sunrise was within reach.

Unfortunately, as the fluorescent fish went away, everything faded away.

The Little Mermaid is devastated once again, and the unattainable action design makes the audience feel anxious.

No matter how many sprites you asked, their answers were all different.

Some say the land is a forest full of flowers; others say it's a dock where ships come and go, their horns blaring; still others say it's rivers and lakes of all sizes.

The Little Mermaid longed to find the answer herself.

She slid down and hid inside a clam.

The bright sunshine suddenly turned into a storm with dark clouds and a violent storm.

A moment later the weather cleared up again, and the turbulent sea returned to calm.

The plants in the palace gardens began to grow rapidly, and the fruits on the branches and the blooming flowers all dimmed, withered, and fell off.

Light snow began to fall above the floating sea, and beams of icy light from all directions froze the surface of the sea, causing it to bloom into ice flowers.

As the blazing sun rises, wisps of white steam seep from the melting ice.

This cycle repeats throughout the four seasons.

When the clam opened again, the mermaid princess was already a young woman who could float freely to the surface of the sea.

She wore a wreath of lilies woven by her grandmother, adorned with pearls.

Eight beautiful seashells were attached to its tail to signify its nobility.

On her birthday, the Little Mermaid could no longer contain her impulse and swam toward the shimmering sea.

As the seasons changed, the hearts of the cherry blossoms, calamus, and peonies in the audience were in their throats.

Frozen beams of light, thunder, growth, rainmaking, snowscape, sunny day...