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"Congratulations to Chris for becoming Elite Four"
"New MEGA Pokemon: Mega Greninja"
"World's Strongest Greninja"
"Chris's New Shiny Pokemon"
"Chris Earns the Nickname: Shiny Elite"
The night Chris defeated Elian, his news once again dominated the trending searches.
Not just domestically, but internationally as well.
The battle between Chris and Elian offered many compelling elements, but the main focal points were the battle process and Mega Greninja's appearance.
Regarding the battle process, everyone expected an intense clash between equals, but it turned out to be a one-sided domination by Chris.
Within half a day of the battle's conclusion, countless Pokemon experts had already released commentary videos to capitalize on the excitement.
However, no matter how many commentary videos emerged, they could all be summarized in one sentence:
"Chris is truly powerful!"
Many people had already begun anticipating Chris's pursuit of the Championship, potentially becoming China's youngest Champion in history.
Domestically, the Elite Four replacement generated significant trending topics. But internationally, what truly captured attention was the emergence of "Mega Greninja."
Worldwide, Pokemon MEGA evolution hadn't seen a "new face" for decades.
Even according to MEGA evolution principles, all Pokemon should theoretically be capable of undergoing MEGA evolution.
However, in reality, only a limited number of MEGA evolution stones had been discovered.
While multiple copies of existing MEGA stones existed, no completely new MEGA evolution stones had appeared for years.
This led all Trainers to believe that performing MEGA evolution was an "exclusive" ability of certain Pokemon. It was similar to how certain Pokemon possessed their own unique Z-moves or exclusive Dynamax forms.
This phenomenon explained why Pokemon capable of MEGA evolution, exclusive Z-moves, or unique Dynamax forms were more popular than Pokemon with superior base stats and competitive rankings.
Even though the vast majority of Trainers would likely never obtain MEGA stones or Z-crystals in their lifetimes.
Who didn't harbor some "what if" thoughts when training these Pokemon?
Now Mega Greninja's emergence was undoubtedly disrupting the gradually forming Pokemon "hierarchy of desirability."
That night, Froakie prices skyrocketed!
Elsewhere, Chris remained unaware that Froakie's standard price in China's breeding facilities had been around 300,000 Pokédollars, but now at least one zero had been added to that figure.
And they still weren't necessarily available for purchase.
Just like the original Ralts situation! However, Greninja wasn't as rare as Ralts, so the price increase wasn't quite as extreme.
Wanda also received numerous appointments from VIP customers that night, requesting that Chris's Breeding House include "Froakie" in their next Pokemon sales.
This represented the "brand benefit" brought by Chris's own Pokemon. Purchasing Greninja from the ranch of the world's strongest Greninja owner might mean encountering offspring of that very Greninja!
When Wanda called to ask Chris about this, he flatly refused.
For now, Froakie would not be included in Chris's Breeding House sales list.
Let the demand build for a while!
The optimal time to sell Froakie would be after publishing his research paper on Greninja's MEGA evolution.
Selling ordinary Froakie would only generate modest profit, but Froakie with "Bond Transformation" capabilities would command astronomical prices!
While various trending topics dominated the outside world, Chris was brought by his teacher and senior to Capital's premier hotel to celebrate. The celebration included the two other Elites as well as leaders from Capital's Trainer Association Headquarters.
"Chris, why are you spacing out? Come drink! You're today's protagonist!" When Chris was checking trending searches on his phone, Alexis grabbed him with a wine glass in hand.
"Alright, I'll be right there." Chris sighed softly, put away his phone, and picked up a glass to toast the Trainer Association leaders.
Drinking held little appeal for him.
Because the three orbs resided within his body, his physical constitution could be described as that of a humanoid legendary Pokemon.
"Never drunk from a thousand cups" was no longer an exaggerated figure of speech, but literal reality.
Drinking sixty-proof liquor felt like drinking soda. There was no difference except for the burning sensation in his mouth.
"Come on, Chris, let me introduce you. This is Tate, and this is Victor. I don't think I need to explain their positions to you, do I?" Roy led a middle-aged man and an elderly man over to find Chris.
"No, no, no—I'm sure there's no one in China who doesn't know these two Elites!" Chris hurried forward to greet them.
These were none other than the other two Elites who had watched today's match.
Fire-type Elite Tate was in his early fifties, a veteran Elite just past his prime. Nicknamed "Flame Emperor," he was a renowned master of "fire manipulation."
Globally, among Trainers specializing in Fire-types, he ranked among the top three.
His "Flame Emperor" nickname originated from this expertise.
The other Elite was even more established.
Fighting-type Elite Victor, nicknamed "Tyrant," was already sixty-five years old and approaching retirement.
He projected an "old master" demeanor with a kindly face, making it difficult to imagine his "Tyrant" nickname had even caused international concern.
But if you knew his past achievements, you'd understand that in this world, there were only inappropriate names, never inappropriate nicknames!
Fifty years ago, the world wasn't as peaceful as it was now.
Pokemon battle rules in international competitions still employed "survival fighting."
In peaceful times, Trainers might not comprehend the cruelty of "survival fighting," but glimpses of its "brutality" could be seen in officially recorded data.
Before survival fighting rules were changed, the Trainer mortality rate in World Pokemon Championships reached fifty percent!
That meant for every two people entering the World Pokemon Championship, one person would die during competition!
With such high Trainer mortality rates, the number of Pokemon casualties was countless.
In this environment, Victor emerged victorious.
His "elimination rate" in every World Pokemon Championship was the highest—for both Pokemon and Trainers.
"Tyrant" was a respectful title given to him domestically, based on his fighting style. But "Executioner" would be a more accurate portrayal of his competitive reality.