At that moment, another youthful voice rang out.
The crowd turned toward the sound and saw a young man wearing sunglasses raising his right hand. Beside him stood a woman, also in sunglasses, leaning in to whisper something in his ear.
"Is a battle at this level really worth your attention?" Mu Xue muttered softly.
She already knew that Oliver's Milotic had broken through to Gym-level, and she had watched the previous match from start to finish.
In her eyes, the gap between the two sides was like heaven and earth—there was no real comparison at all.
Even if Oliver was a bit short on cash, surely he wouldn't stoop to bullying a rookie Trainer for a mere 10,000 yuan, right?
Worst case, I can just support you, Mu Xue thought silently.
The crowd couldn't see Oliver's face clearly, but judging from his voice, he seemed to be about the same age as the young man on the field.
Sensing the intense fighting spirit emanating from Oliver, the young organizer knew instantly—this opponent was no ordinary challenger.
"Finally, someone interesting!"
A smile curved across the young man's lips.
Wasn't the whole point of hosting these battles to attract opponents like this?
Only by constantly fighting strong opponents could he continue to grow!
Oliver tossed a Poké Ball.
A flash of red light—
Gible appeared on the battlefield.
"That's—Gible!"
"Holy crap, this challenger actually has a pseudo-legendary!"
"Looks like a real tough one this time!"
"Tough my ass. Only a fully evolved pseudo-legendary deserves that title. This is just a baby form!"
"Exactly. Even if it'll be strong in the future, right now it's just a kid Pokémon. This match will probably end even faster than the last one!"
The young man cast a meaningful glance at Gible.
Having a pseudo-legendary meant this challenger clearly had some background.
But at the end of the day, Gible was still just Gible—an unevolved Pokémon. There was only one possible outcome against his Blaziken.
Gible and Blaziken stood at opposite ends of the field, Trainers behind them.
Gible's round, stubby body looked almost comical compared to Blaziken's tall, powerful frame.
Ding!
The sound of the coin hitting the ground echoed.
"End it cleanly!" the young man commanded immediately.
"Blaziken—charge in and use Fire Punch!"
"Gible—Sand Attack," Oliver replied calmly.
Gible's small hands moved at lightning speed, flinging a cloud of sand forward.
Blaziken charged straight into the sandstorm without hesitation.
Back when Gible was still in the League's breeding zone, it had relied on Dig combined with Sand Veil to repeatedly sneak out—so fast that even the caretakers rarely caught it.
"Good. Now—Sand Tomb!"
Speed was Blaziken's greatest advantage, and Sand Tomb's swirling quicksand was perfect for restricting that mobility.
The solid concrete ground rapidly softened, transforming into rotating sand. Blaziken's powerful legs sank straight into it.
"Blaziken!" the young man frowned.
"Use a ranged attack—Flamethrower!"
Don't think you've won just because you've restricted its movement.
Blaziken isn't just strong in close combat—its ranged attacks are just as deadly!
Blaziken opened its beak and unleashed a roaring stream of flames, far more powerful than Rapidash's Flamethrower from earlier.
Oliver remained unhurried.
"Gible—Dig."
Gible's short, chubby arms tore into the ground. In an instant, it vanished underground, leaving Flamethrower to scorch only the empty tunnel entrance.
"What? That fast?!" the young man exclaimed in shock.
Before he could recover, Gible burst out from the shifting sand behind Blaziken, firing a Dragon Breath straight into its back!
"Blaziken!" the young man shouted urgently.
Blaziken staggered forward, barely regaining balance—only to realize Gible had already disappeared underground again.
By combining Sand Attack and Sand Tomb, Oliver had successfully constructed a miniature desert battlefield, perfectly activating Gible's Sand Veil Ability.
The loose, sandy terrain further boosted Gible's Dig speed, and with the accuracy reduction from Sand Attack, Blaziken simply couldn't track its position.
"Damn it… I fell into his rhythm from the very start!" the young man clenched his teeth.
Gible continued popping up from different points on the battlefield, never engaging in close combat—just relentless ranged harassment.
Blaziken couldn't touch it.
Unable to break the strategy, the young man was ultimately forced into defeat.
The spectators were stunned.
No one had expected Gible to completely suppress Blaziken like this.
"That was insane!"
"Winning against a stronger opponent by exploiting advantages—his command ability is terrifying!"
"Using Sand Attack and Sand Tomb to create a mini desert… I learned something today!"
"With this kind of tactical thinking, if he focused purely on battling, he might become the youngest Heavenly King ever!"
Even Mu Xue nodded in approval.
This strategy was genuinely impressive.
"Finish it," Oliver's calm voice rang out.
"Not good!" the young man yelled.
"Blaziken—watch your back!"
Blaziken spun around—
Nothing.
From the side, a final Dragon Breath shot in and struck the already battered Blaziken, knocking it to the ground.
"I win this match," Oliver said, looking at his opponent.
The young man recalled Blaziken and stared at Oliver solemnly.
"You're strong! My name is Meng Ming. I'll challenge you again someday!"
He pulled out a thick stack of cash and handed it over—the promised prize money.
Oliver accepted it happily.
Ten thousand wasn't much, but every bit counted.
He considered it Gible earning its own food money.
"Gible, let's go—"
Oliver was about to call Gible back—
When suddenly, a brilliant white light erupted from Gible's body!
Gible had already been standing on the brink of evolution.
After consuming large amounts of top-tier Dragon-type Energy Blocks, its energy was overflowing.
This battle—defeating a stronger opponent through strategy—became the final trigger.
The crowd exploded in shock.
This match had already exceeded everyone's expectations—
And now… an evolution right on the battlefield!
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