After dinner, Ash went back to his room to review the gains from his cultivation.
According to the panel, after dual cultivating with Delia, he had gone up two levels in just one day and one night!
He had spent ten years to get to level 6, so a body with enhanced stats was bound to lead to a more powerful experience.
At the same time, a new kind of energy called True Qi had been produced in his body. Or had his previous attribute energy been converted into True Qi?
Ash wasn't exactly sure, but the effect of the Joyful Meditation's True Qi on the opposite sex was very potent. He felt that it was a little hard on bedsheets.
Changing the sheets and comforters every day, he felt that the washing machine was going to break.
Ash wondered when he would be able to get a Wash Rotom. It would lessen Delia's burden of housework.
"Ash! Come down now! We can finally go get our Pokémon today!" Ayumi, full of energy, was standing in the yard, shouting up at his second-floor window.
"Coming!"
Ash grabbed Pikachu and walked with Ayumi toward Professor Oak's lab.
He really wanted to see how good Red and Blue were.
As the protagonists of the original manga, they were both characters who reached the top right after they started their journey.
But in the games, Blue had been champion for less than five minutes before Red took him down.
Even more terrifying, in those five minutes, the Elite Four of the Indigo League were "beaten up" twice. It was a sad story.
Of course, this world was a mix of different elements. Ash wasn't completely sure what the details were. After all, both the anime and the manga had quite a few plot holes. In this real world, he guessed it would be more realistic and logical.
While he was thinking, the two of them met up with Red, Blue, and Gary, and they talked about whatever came to mind along the way.
After seeing Pikachu on Ash's shoulder, Red's expression showed interest.
He was usually silent, and the only thing he was passionate about was battling. So the first thing he did when he saw Pikachu was to size it up.
Blue didn't comment. His personality was more arrogant. In his opinion, a common electric mouse like that had a low ceiling and was nothing to be afraid of.
Gary was a little upset. Ash had secretly caught a Pikachu, but he didn't even have a Pokémon yet. He was a little moody.
"Come on, kids. There won't be any problems today."
It was the same little cart. This time, there were no surprises. The four of them got their respective partners: Red got Charmander, Blue got Bulbasaur, and Gary got Squirtle.
This story chose the path of the special anime, which is different from the manga. I feel like Charizard X suits Red better.
Ayumi, as in the game, chose a cute Eevee.
The girl seemed to like cute Pokémon, or was this the choice of most girls?
Ash remembered that there were also some who liked muscular types, like Machamp and Incineroar.
"I say, how about a battle?" Blue had already sent out his Bulbasaur.
"Ash, I want to battle your Pikachu."
Red looked over immediately, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"No, no, Ash should be my opponent!" Gary said.
"Yay! A strange love triangle has formed! Eevee, let's just watch the show" "Eevee" Ayumi held Eevee, looking excited.
Ash blinked: "How about... you all come at me at once?"
"?" The three of them had question marks over their heads. How could you say something so arrogant so calmly?
It wasn't that Ash was arrogant. It was just that the Pokémon in front of him were all just babies. They were only around level 10 and probably hadn't even learned all their moves. They wouldn't be able to put any pressure on a level 20 Pikachu.
"I refuse. If I win three-on-one, it's not a true victory. If I lose, it would be even more embarrassing..."
Blue spoke first. In his arrogance, he didn't think he would lose.
"Then how about you go first, Blue? It'll be a one-on-one~" Ash raised an eyebrow, his expression a little provocative.
"Haha, seeing you all reminds me of my rival back in the day..." Professor Oak sighed to the side: "I have a Pokémon Center here. How about you all have a tournament!"
Everyone looked at each other and nodded slightly. The four rivals who had grown up together had always been in competition.
"The drawing is complete. It's Ash vs. Gary, and Red vs. Blue. The rule is one-on-one. The winners will advance to the next round!"
This was the destiny of rivals. As Ash stood on the edge of the battlefield, he realized his heart was already stirring.
Before, he was just a spectator in front of a screen, cheering for victory and feeling frustrated by setbacks.
Now, he had come to this world he had always dreamed of and was standing on a battlefield filled with countless regrets and dreams.
He had so many complicated emotions in his heart and so many dreams he wanted to fulfill. In the end, they all turned into one sentence: "I choose you, Pikachu!"
With that shout, Ash's heart surged. Pikachu jumped onto the battlefield and stood in front of him.
Although it didn't know why Ash was so excited, their hearts had been connected since the day it was protected by him five years ago.
Now, it could finally fight for him.
Emotions were like boiling water, a continuous stream of highs and lows. In his spiritual world, Ash's mind began to ripple. At that moment, he and Pikachu seemed to be able to hear each other's thoughts, not clearly, but enough to ignite each other's fighting spirit!
"Not bad, Ash..." Gary had been worried that his friend didn't have a Pokémon, but seeing the current scene made him excited. He threw his Poké Ball: "Go, my sweetie!"
The light faded, and a small blue turtle appeared on the field. Ash also saw its brief information:
Squirtle lv. 13 (Novice)
Description: A water-squirting turtle specially and carefully chosen by Professor Oak. It heard that the previous one was stolen and hates thieves. It has exceptional Water-type potential.
Gary first took out his Pokédex and carefully looked at Squirtle's stats. Then he gave the command: "Squirtle, Water Gun!"
Ash raised an eyebrow: "Quick Attack!"
Pikachu nimbly dodged the water stream and charged toward Squirtle at an incredibly high speed. As a Tiny Turtle Pokémon, Squirtle's speed was obviously not enough to dodge this attack.
Gary's expression was calm: "Withdraw!"
"Bang!" The next moment, Pikachu had a close encounter with the turtle's shell, but Squirtle wasn't hurt.
"Now, Rapid Spin!"
"Pika!" The hard shell spun, hitting Pikachu and causing some damage.
Ash clenched his fist. This was something he hadn't expected.
In his previous life, he had played through the games of all generations over and over again. The most straightforward experience was that a type advantage or a level advantage could directly lead to a one-hit KO. At most, you could develop some cheeky strategies to annoy your opponent.
But Gary's response just now made him suddenly realize that this world was not a simple turn-based game.
Opponents wouldn't just stand there stupidly and do nothing.
A trainer had to consider everything: when to use a move, what to use, and how to control the pace of the battle.
And good trainers could maximize their Pokémon's strength through these things.
Clearly, Ash's strategy just now had a flaw. Gary's combo of Withdraw and Rapid Spin basically locked down Pikachu's close-range attacks.
He had to say that Gary, who had the opportunity to be around Pokémon and who had a champion grandfather since he was a child, was far ahead in terms of battle sense.
"Hmm... Is Ash that bad?" Ayumi played with Eevee's tail. She thought Ash would sweep the floor with them.
After all, in a girl in love's eyes, her crush is always invincible.