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September 1st.
The day when summer transitions into autumn.
At the same time, it marked the beginning of school competition season for major colleges and universities.
Every school was hosting its own entrance tournament, and Capital University's Rising Star Cup was proceeding as scheduled.
Due to Roy's outstanding performance the previous year, everyone had high expectations for Trainers from ordinary families this year. They all hoped there would be another dark horse like him... Well, even half his performance would be acceptable.
In response to this, Trainers from ordinary families could only express their frustration silently.
Seriously? Why compare us to someone who's clearly not human?
Roy was now officially a sophomore.
Capital University's enrollment had doubled compared to the previous year. Many new students chose this school specifically because of Roy's reputation.
For state-funded Pokemon universities, the more Trainers they cultivated, the better their political performance ratings.
Principal Finn woke up laughing from his dreams. He never expected his investment in Roy would pay off in less than a year. He immediately hung Roy's photo on the honorary alumni wall overnight...
This magical operation of turning an ungraduated student into an alumnus left Professor Christian speechless, and he hurriedly tried to dissuade the principal.
Logically speaking, on this kind of day, no matter how much Roy liked to skip classes or how "wild" he was, he should report to school.
However...
"Taking leave? Are you asking for leave again?!"
Professor Christian's horrified voice came through the phone, making Roy's ears ring.
"Do you know how many freshmen are looking forward to your speech today?"
No matter how angry Professor Christian was, he couldn't bear to scold such a precious student, so he could only speak earnestly: "Roy, no matter how busy you are, you have to come to school and take a look. Your alma mater is proud of you. By the way, the school team needs to be reorganized. After Elon and Anya graduate, you'll be the team captain..."
Roy explained: "I really have something important to do today."
Seeing his stubbornness, Professor Christian suddenly became anxious: "Fine, then tell me what could be more important than the start of school?"
"I want to take the professional-level assessment."
Silence.
Professor Christian suddenly lost his temper.
On September 1st, there were two things that captured everyone's attention.
The first was the opening ceremonies of prestigious universities.
Capital University's Rising Star Cup this year had extremely high quality participants because of Roy's emergence last year, and its popularity was comparable to the two top universities of League University and Central University.
The second was the professional-level assessment.
However, the professional-level assessment wasn't open to the public and was conducted in secret.
Once someone became a professional Trainer, they were equivalent to an important military asset of the country.
Therefore, their specific information naturally wouldn't be released to the public... Just like a fighter jet's performance, only rough data would be given to the outside world, not specific capabilities.
Of course, at the Elite level, they were strategic-level weapons. Even if information was disclosed publicly, it served as strategic deterrence.
Although the assessment process was confidential, this matter closely related to the entire nation still attracted tremendous attention.
Therefore, officials would release the list of Trainers who passed the assessment.
"You... have you met the assessment requirements?"
Professor Christian's cautious voice came through the phone.
"Yeah." Roy happened to stop in front of a building and said with a smile, "I already have six professional-level Pokemon."
Professor Christian took a deep breath, the pain in his lungs making him realize this wasn't a dream!
Good heavens!
Roy's strength had long been stronger than most professional-level Trainers. In competitive mode, he had even defeated Henry's master-level team.
After the national competition, the outside world's evaluation of his strength was: "In competitive mode, he possesses master-level combat power." In actual battles, since only one Pokemon could Mega Evolve at a time, plus the weakness of having two non-professional level Pokemon, Roy was at most one tier stronger than normal professional level.
Regardless of which mode, people believed he had professional-level strength.
The only reason he hadn't become professional level was purely because he didn't meet the hard requirements.
Now, Roy's weakness had disappeared, and his entire team was professional-level. Professor Christian had no doubts about his ability to pass the professional assessment.
A 19-year-old professional-level Trainer.
Professor Christian was well aware of the significance, and he couldn't help but gasp, contributing to global warming.
If this news got out, it would be more inspiring than any 'speech on stage'...
"Hahahaha!" Professor Christian laughed heartily: "Taking leave? Of course you can! Actually, this whole thing was Principal Finn's sudden idea to have you give a speech and share your experience with students. In the past, this work was always done by the student council president—I've wanted to criticize him for ages!"
"If you ask me, a genius like you shouldn't be restricted! You should be allowed to express yourself freely!"
"..."
Watch your expression, Professor.
After hanging up the phone, Roy looked at the building in front of him.
—Capital Trainer Association.
Any Trainer was a member of the association.
However, they were only peripheral members.
Only by becoming a professional Trainer could one become a full member of the association, enjoying a series of benefits provided by the state: subsidies, special treatment for parents, children, and other immediate relatives within three generations during wartime, extra points for college entrance exams, investment discounts for house purchases, and other policies...
"Hello, I'd like to apply for the professional assessment." Roy removed his mask and smiled at the receptionist at the counter.
"..." The receptionist stared at him blankly.
Handsome was one thing, but more importantly, she recognized Roy's identity.
Fortunately, as an official receptionist, her professionalism was good, and she quickly composed herself, showing a sweet smile:
"I'll help you with the procedures right away."
Normally, signing up for the professional-level assessment wasn't that simple.
One needed to provide corresponding background check materials and recommender information...
But there were always exceptions.
Roy's identity naturally didn't require these bureaucratic verifications. Anyone who questioned whether he was a China Alliance Trainer would face official displeasure.
In fact, with the advent of Mega Evolution, a certain country had declared that Roy was actually from their nation.
"Here's the relevant assessment description."
The receptionist handed Roy a brochure.
Roy opened the instructions.
Professional-level assessments were divided into four venues: East China, South China, West China, and North China.
Basically, they were held in the most economically prosperous locations in each region.
The East China Region venue was naturally the Trainer Association in Capital. Trainers intending to participate in the professional-level assessment from various cities in the region would gather here on September 1st.
The professional assessment had three stages in total.
The first stage was the strength test.
The examiner and examinee would have a 6v6 full-team battle.
Both sides could only use each Pokemon once, regardless of win or loss—the next match required different Pokemon.
Winning or losing didn't affect the results. The examiners mainly observed battle performance to evaluate each Pokemon's strength.
Moreover, examinees were basically unlikely to defeat the examiners.
The examiners were typically veteran professional Trainers, and some even held master certifications.
The second stage was the team battle assessment.
This was also a battle against the examiner, but in group battle mode.
Winning or losing was also unimportant—the key point was whether the Trainer could demonstrate a mature 'team battle system.'
The third stage was the mission assessment.
A professional Trainer had to complete one official mission every year.
For example, like Cole, guarding a regional Sacred Realm.
For example, like senior Ivy, serving as a school examiner.
Or hunting down criminal gangs or poaching organizations.
A mission was both an obligation and a reward.
After completing a mission, the points earned could be exchanged for many resources at the Trainer Association.
For many Trainers from ordinary families, completing missions was the fastest way to obtain resources.
After Roy finished reading the rules, his registration was also processed.
Led by the receptionist, he came to the square behind the association, where many Trainers from across the East China Region were already waiting.
Looking around roughly, the average age was over 27 or 28 years old, and people over 30 weren't uncommon.
There were only two or three under age 25, and they were basically famous celebrity Trainers.
A young Trainer like Roy naturally attracted attention.
With his current household name status, he was recognized immediately.
"Ro, Roy?"
"He actually came to take the assessment?"
"No way, right? Has he reached professional standards already?"
"Incredible! But it's understandable when it comes to him."
"Nineteen years old, I really want to cry..."
Looking at Roy's young and energetic face, many Trainers present felt their hearts had taken a heavy blow.
Since Roy came to take the assessment, he must be confident. Now no one doubted his talent, and everyone was optimistic about his chances of passing.
But it was precisely because of this that it was unacceptable.
A considerable number of people here had taken the assessment for the third or fourth time. Even first-time assessment participants had at least three years of preparation...
Many people looked at each other with wry smiles, all having similar thoughts.
After crushing young students' confidence, is Roy finally coming to finish off us older folks?
Of course, there were also Trainers who adopted a "lying flat" attitude. Their first reaction upon seeing Roy was to pull out their phones.
Although live streaming the professional-level assessment wasn't allowed, posting on social media was still permitted.
Well, time to chase some clout...
"Ran into Roy at the professional assessment! He truly is our country's strongest genius!"
"I'm honored to be in the same examination room as contestant Roy. I'll buy a lottery ticket tomorrow (dog emoji)"
"Live updating Roy's performance throughout! Family, come give me some likes!"
As soon as this news broke, it quickly climbed the trending lists of various social platforms in China.