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After strolling around the Pier, Jacob—introduced by a broker—spent a considerable sum to rent the most luxurious yacht at the entire wharf.
Although the price was steep, you get what you pay for, and Jacob was quite satisfied with the yacht's furnishings and décor.
Money was a minor concern. After all, traveling was meant for enjoying life, not for enduring hardship, and Jacob had always maintained this philosophy, never holding back when it came to his own comfort.
Eat well when you can, drink freely when you should, and enjoy yourself completely when the opportunity presents itself.
What's the point of earning money if not to spend it? Otherwise, if something unexpected happened, all the money you'd worked half your life to earn would just end up benefiting someone else.
Jacob grabbed a quick bite to eat, just enough to satisfy his hunger, and prepared to board the ship to continue his journey along the River.
Unexpectedly, when he arrived at the dock where the yacht was moored, a group of people stopped him.
Jacob's gaze swept over the few individuals standing before him. Although their clothing was quite fashionable, their faces still carried a youthful innocence, clearly indicating they were recent high school graduates.
At the same time, their backpacks and clothing were all high-end luxury brands, and the Poké Balls hanging from their belts were almost exclusively Luxury Balls.
It seemed these young people came from wealthy families.
… … … …
"Excuse me, could we ask you for a favor?" A boy stepped forward from the group. Standing about 1.8 meters tall and wearing a T-shirt and shorts, he was tall but his face still held the youthful look of a student.
"Go ahead," Jacob said, studying the people in front of him while quietly trying to guess their intentions.
"We're high school seniors who just finished our college entrance exams, and we came to Greenvale for our graduation trip. There are nine of us total, and since many of us are girls, we wanted to rent a nice, spacious boat. But the best boat at the entire wharf has already been rented by you. So we were hoping to ask you a favor," the high school student explained to Jacob without any sign of nervousness.
"We'll rent a smaller boat for you and cover the rental cost. If you let us have this larger boat, we'll also pay for this one's rental fee. What do you think?"
This high school student spoke articulately and had a clear mind, stating his intentions simply and directly.
His approach to handling the situation was also quite considerate—offering to pay for both boats made it hard to find any fault with his proposal.
However, Jacob wasn't short on money, and this wasn't really about money anyway. The equipment and condition of the other boats were far inferior to this one. Besides, Jacob wasn't the type of person to inconvenience himself for strangers.
"Sorry, but no thank you," Jacob said, waving his hand to refuse the boy's offer. The rejection made the boy's expression turn slightly awkward. After glancing at Jacob one more time, he could only walk back to his group looking dejected.
"How did it go? Did he agree?" Seeing the boy return, the group immediately surrounded him, everyone asking questions at once.
"He didn't agree," the boy replied, shaking his head and speaking in a low voice.
"Why not? Didn't you tell him we'd pay for everything?" one of his companions asked.
"I did tell him, but he still refused," the boy said, clearly annoyed by all the questions. "The person who rented that boat probably isn't hurting for money either. I told you guys he wouldn't agree. Anyway, I'm not going to ask again. If any of you want to try, go ahead."
In the end, the nine people had no choice but to rent a slightly less impressive boat.
… … … …
Jacob stood on the deck, gazing at the green mountains lining both banks as the large ship beneath him drifted downstream with the swift river current. Compared to the first half of the journey, this latter section of the river was much less crowded.
On the river, which stretched dozens of meters wide, aside from a few Trainers riding Water-type Pokémon, almost all the remaining vessels were large ships like Jacob's.
Additionally, Jacob even spotted two bamboo rafts floating on the rapid river, which demonstrated incredible boldness.
Why not just grab a bamboo pole and cross the river standing on a single leaf while they were at it?
On each of the two bamboo rafts, besides the Trainers sitting at the stern, there was only a Lucario standing tall, the two Pokémon facing each other.
From their stance, it appeared the people on the two bamboo rafts were about to engage in battle.
However, the more Jacob observed, the more familiar the two people on the bamboo rafts seemed, especially after he used his system to scan the strength of the two Lucario. What he discovered utterly astonished him.
A Champion-level Lucario.
Another Champion-level Lucario.
Jacob rubbed his eyes, suspecting he might be seeing things. Two Lucario had appeared on this section of the River, and both possessed Champion-level strength.
As the yacht drew nearer, Jacob gradually made out the faces of the two people on the bamboo rafts.
The first was Westin, the Champion of the North China region. His muscular, imposing physique was extremely distinctive, making him impossible to miss.
Jacob also noticed that Westin's Lucario had a Lucarionite affixed to its chest, and the Pokémon looked at its opponent with eager fighting spirit in its eyes.
The person on the opposite bamboo raft was also an old acquaintance of Jacob's. With his hip flask, simple clothing, and somewhat drunken appearance, it was none other than Ryan, Asher's sworn older brother.
The powerful auras emanating from the two Pokémon caused the surrounding boats to steer clear, maintaining their distance to avoid getting caught up in the impending battle.
Of course, there were also many fearless and enthusiastic onlookers who kept their distance while live-streaming the scene with their phones.
"Everyone, I've stumbled upon the ascetic Ryan battling North China Champion Westin!"
"A battle between Champion-level powerhouses—you can't miss this! Stay tuned to this live stream to watch the Champion battle and witness who has the strongest Lucario!"
One streamer seized this golden opportunity, grabbed his phone, and started broadcasting live.
"Can you guys not see clearly? This distance is already pretty close. I wouldn't dare get any closer to a battle between Champion-level powerhouses—it's way too dangerous. If even one attack goes astray, I'd be finished right here today."
"However, if this live stream reaches one million likes, this streamer will risk his life to move in closer!"
… … … …
Along with the male streamer's enthusiastic commentary, the likes quickly surpassed one million.
"Everyone, you're all incredible! Since you're being so amazing, I, as the streamer, will naturally keep my promise and move forward. Captain, set sail!"
"Thank you for the spaceship donation, big bro! Thank you so much! Since you're being so generous, I'll go all out today and get even closer so you can all see more clearly!"
"Captain, take us further ahead!"
"Young Master, we can't go any further! It's too dangerous—someone could die if we move closer!"
"So what if someone dies? To let all my viewers and supporters watch this battle in high definition, what does death matter? Set sail!"
As the engine roared to life, the boat moved forward once more, now extremely close to the two bamboo rafts.
… … … …
Jacob naturally wasn't watching this live stream. His attention remained fixed on the battle unfolding on the river.
The auras of the two Lucario gradually intensified, and the moment they reached their peak, both Lucario leaped almost simultaneously from their bamboo rafts onto the water's surface, launching their attacks.
Jacob was utterly dumbfounded at that moment. The two Lucario were actually standing completely on the surface of the water, continuously exchanging blows.