Chapter 968: Legendary Battle

Rigged!!

Rigged?

All Baimu had initially thought the League President had pulled some strings, but seeing the strange expression on Shan Ren's face, he realized it was truly pure luck.

It's divine will!

Even the Heavens want him to take down a guy like Tobias!

All Baimu gripped the Thousand-Universe Bracelet hanging on his chest and prayed devoutly to the one and only Supreme God.

However, good luck seemed to favor only him.

The civil war between acquaintances arrived early; Cheng Hong encountered Gladion, Lady Ayana faced Long Ren, and...

Shan Ren faced Tetsuya.

From this point, one could see it was indeed all down to luck; if one wanted to win, there were still plenty of better choices among the thirty-two.

Even if he had planned in advance to lose in the second round, there was absolutely no need to face Tetsuya.

The reason was simple.

Tetsuya was a tournament winner.

In All Baimu's view, the confidence Shan Ren had lost was entirely due to his failures in the four previous League tournaments.

With a knot in his heart that had lingered to this day, could he face a successful person with composure?

The live-streamed draw ended quickly.

All Baimu stepped forward and said, "Your luck is mediocre."

"This is mediocre?"

Shan Ren's tone was normal. "You drew Tobias, whom you've been obsessing over all day."

"Who said I was talking about me? Look at our people from Iron Town; you've ruined them all with your drawing!"

All Baimu pointed to the brackets for Cheng Hong and Lady Ayana.

Shan Ren hummed, not answering.

He then said, "And the draw you got for yourself—"

"Do you think I'll lose?"

Shan Ren interrupted him and asked seriously, "So, this draw is a bad one, isn't it?"

All Baimu was slightly stunned. Looking at his friend's bright and clear eyes, he said happily, "That's impossible. How could I think you'd lose? I trust you more than anyone in the world!"

That's right.

Tetsuya was indeed a formidable opponent.

But he was definitely not so strong that Shan Ren couldn't defeat him; the gap in their raw strength could be bridged by tactics, strategy, conviction, or even the three-word mantra.

There was never any need to worry about Pokémon.

If Shan Ren felt he could win, then he definitely could!

All Baimu turned and left happily, the genuine joy from his heart making his demeanor much softer.

Only after he had walked far away...

Shan Ren quietly loosened his fists, which he had clenched until they lost all color. The light in his eyes dimmed instantly as he looked at Tetsuya's avatar and sighed softly.

"A tournament... winner, huh."

——

The next morning.

Seemingly to express his determination.

Shan Ren abandoned his administrative work and came to Mount Silver again to cram at the last minute.

All Baimu was naturally welcoming, but on the eve of the match, good rest was more important than heavy training.

He personally massaged and cared for Shan Ren's Pokémon.

Ensuring they could exert at least... 120% of their power tomorrow!

"In Tetsuya's team, there are two Pokémon most worthy of vigilance."

All Baimu said while grooming the fur on Meowstic's tail, "Sceptile and Meowth."

"Meow?"

The Alolan Meowth, licking catnip, looked up.

"I wasn't calling you."

He waved his hand and continued, "Sceptile is Tetsuya's first Pokémon and also the Mega-Evolver on his team; I don't think I need to say much about the power of Mega Evolution."

"And Meowth... this Meowth looks strange, but the power it can actually exert is beyond your imagination. Take those two down, and you've basically won."

The Meowth in boots was positioned similarly to Ash's Pikachu.

It belongs to the existence that can transcend gods on the tournament stage.

It was also the powerful Pokémon that helped Tetsuya defeat Ash and cut through the competition to win the Ever Grande Conference.

You can't judge a cat by its appearance!

Shan Ren nodded. He had studied Tetsuya's Pokémon the previous night and had watched all the available data.

After winning the Ever Grande Conference, Tetsuya seemed to have no other significant achievements, but in reality, he had participated in many battles over the years and had gained something from all of them.

In other words.

This was a professional Trainer whose combat power remained at its peak!

To defeat such an opponent, one needed the right time, the right place, and the right people; mindset was the top priority.

His visit today was less about cramming.

And more about hoping to gain that conviction of certain victory from his friend.

Noon.

A lively dinner at the villa.

All Baimu invited most of his friends, and even Tetsuya, Shan Ren's opponent for tomorrow, was lured over using Hoopa's power.

Sawyer, who had wanted to refuse as usual, suffered a double-whammy of a chokehold and kidnapping.

"President Shan Ren, please go easy on me tomorrow!"

It was Tetsuya's first time battling a League President, so he came over specifically to pay his respects to avoid any breach of etiquette.

Shan Ren said solemnly, "The same goes for me. Mr. Tetsuya, your talent is brilliant; it is truly a joy to be able to battle you!"

"No, no... you're too kind..." Tetsuya was panicked.

Was he being too polite?

His younger sister gave her useless brother a speechless glance, then bowed politely and rhythmically to respond.

"My brother is untalented; I ask that you show mercy tomorrow, my lord President."

"Likewise."

Shan Ren smiled slightly with great grace.

This made Tetsuya's sister blush a little.

Noticing his sister's expression, Tetsuya, who had just been smiling bitterly, immediately became alert.

Fortunately, Shan Ren soon moved to Sawyer's side to chat with this inarticulate youth, asking about the latter's views on Orre.

After the tournament, the selection of the Elite Four and Gym Leaders would be put on the agenda.

Retaining as much talent as possible was Shan Ren's next step in his plan for the Orre League.

Or, like the Galar League, poaching from other regions would also work.

After the dinner where both host and guests were satisfied.

Chansey and Butler Sebastian quietly cleaned up the mess; Lisia wanted to help but was persuaded away by Ji Meiya.

Doing the housework was Chansey's hobby, and sharing a portion with Butler Sebastian was already out of respect for the care he had once provided.

Mount Silver was its territory!

Chansey put its hands on its hips proudly, looking at the set of tableware that was clean and shiny. "Happy! Ha——ppy?"

It tilted its head; did something seem wrong?

Forget it.

Never mind.

Chansey took off its apron and joined the outdoor sunbathing army.

After the Orre climate changed completely, the warm winter sun gradually became a rarity for many Pokémon.

Before? Even Lycanroc wouldn't sunbathe!

In the small garden of Mount Silver.

All Baimu intended to weave a flower crown for Calyrex. The little deer was leaning against Glastrier with an awe-inspiring air, but its eyes would glance toward him from time to time.

It was clearly very expectant.

Shan Ren walked in and said, "So you're here."

"What's up? Something wrong?"

He turned his head and said, "Don't tell me you're going back to work this afternoon. Take a break, President! Today is a rest day for the contestants!"

Shan Ren waved his hand. "It's not that; I wanted to ask what your plans are for tomorrow."

"What other plans could there be? Just fight all out."

All Baimu finished weaving the flower crown and tied it to Calyrex, beaming. "Nice! It has the air of a king being presented with flowers by a maiden after a triumphant return!"

Queen Queen Leiguanwang flew to the small lake in the garden to look at herself, feeling pleasant.

"I am very satisfied!"

Shan Ren couldn't stand his clinginess with the Pokémon and said, "I'll be straight with you; I think—"

"Using a Legendary Pokémon to battle a Legendary Pokémon?"

All Baimu predicted, "Taking the approach with the most traffic, right?"

Using an ordinary Pokémon to defeat a Legendary Pokémon would certainly generate traffic.

After all, there was a beauty in the underdog winning.

But in terms of topicality, it was far less likely to attract the attention of outsiders than a battle between two "tigers."

Why?

The mere fact that it was 【unprecedented】 was enough!

Let alone the League tournament, looking at the Champion Leagues and Battle Frontiers of various regions, there had never been a scene of a Legendary Pokémon battle!

"Will it work?"

"It's a guaranteed win."

All Baimu gave Shan Ren an OK sign, and Shan Ren returned a thumbs-up.

——

The next day.

The highly anticipated second round of the preliminaries.

After the guessing activities related to the first round ended, all the prizes were sent globally via Dragonite Express.

Currently, viewers who guessed correctly on the scene had already shown off their prizes.

The heat rose instantly.

Poké-Sound struck while the iron was hot, further launching platform rewards and creator revenue policies, starting to pay money based on views and likes.

The number of Trainers willing to post videos increased instantly.

After all, many people traveling abroad were "budget travelers."

Some even didn't have enough money in their pockets, forcing them to release previously caught Pokémon when they caught new ones.

The threshold for Poké-Sound creation was very low; it only required a Rotom Phone or Porygon Phone, and many people were willing to pay for it.

And the intuitive feeling was—

There were more phones held up at the tournament venue, and more lenses aimed at various contestants.

"Is this considered counterproductive?"

All Baimu sighed.

But even if he hadn't done that, the Pokémon world would eventually develop to that point.

Iono's live streams hadn't just become popular recently.

He ignored the gazes from all around and strode toward Venue No. 1.

Same as the previous round.

He seemed to bear the role of heating up the atmosphere.

All Baimu didn't care; finishing the battle early would allow him to watch others' matches with full focus.

Venue No. 1.

The 25,000 seats in the sub-venue were packed.

The crowd was dense, and looking down from a high place would make many people with trypophobia feel physically uncomfortable.

But everyone was very excited.

The 【Mysterious Person】 Tobias, who used Legendary Pokémon, versus All Baimu, the 【King of Kings】 who had a monster-level performance in the qualifiers.

A battle between a dragon and a tiger couldn't be more intense!

Let alone the audience, even the tournament staff were looking forward to it, crowding into places that wouldn't affect the contestants, craning their necks to look.

Bartlas, Leo, and others who didn't come in the first wave, including Jin Ge and Ford who lost in the qualifiers, were all present now.

It was even livelier than the tournament finals.

Everyone was curious about the result, and even more curious about what kind of battle style All Baimu would use against Darkrai.

The audience stands were heated, but the battle area was quite quiet.

All Baimu sat on a bench, wiping his Heavy Ball, recalling the relevant information he had looked up.

Tobias lived up to the nickname 【Mysterious Person】 given to him by the internet; the known intelligence was pitifully little, and apart from the Orre tournament, there was only that Sinnoh League match against Ash.

He didn't even go to the Pokémon Center.

So even if someone tried every means to check the backend, they couldn't find out exactly what his full team of Pokémon was.

All Baimu remembered that in his past life, some people thought the production team was referencing "Takuto," a Champion from the Pokémon TCG.

But others thought not, simply because Darkrai didn't exist in Takuto's deck.

He still didn't know the specific situation.

Of course.

It didn't matter.

Today, All Baimu wanted to realize a dream he hadn't realized in his childhood; Ash had lost a match he should have won.

But he couldn't lose.

Not only that, he had to win beautifully!

"Come on!"

He looked at the opposite side; Tobias's lower face was buried under a maroon cloak, and his exposed eyes were full of smiles.

It was clear that Tobias was also very happy.

From beginning to end, he had come specifically for All Baimu, wanting to see an existence that possessed some kind of mission like him.

He didn't care about the ranking or the result; he was just happy to be able to battle him.

"Let's begin!"

When their gazes collided.

The commentator's loud voice pierced the sky above the arena.

"The second round of the Orre League preliminaries! The first match is about to begin! The two contestants are Tobias and All Baimu!"

Huh?

Is it Flobo?

All Baimu was stunned for a moment; he didn't expect it to be Flobo's turn to commentate his match, so he couldn't help but wave at the commentary booth.

Flobo said with a full face of smiles, "Everyone must have witnessed the performance of the two contestants in the previous round. What kind of wonderful battle will they bring in this round? Please stay tuned!"

The Porygon referee machine was in position.

Then the field selection began—

Rock Field!

The familiar sand and scattered stones entered both sides' eyes, and All Baimu couldn't help but frown.

Truly random?

Don't just set a Rock Field because he's from Iron Town!

He actually preferred the Grass Field, even if the Rock Field was relatively suitable for his Pokémon.

Porygon referee machine: "Please decide on your Pokémon."

All Baimu showed a Heavy Ball.

Tobias smiled slightly and showed a Poké Ball.

Beep—

The starting whistle sounded loudly.

"Go."

"Hmph~"

Facing All Baimu's bold throwing motion, Tobias chose to flick his wrist with one hand.

Bang bang!

Light flashed.

Tobias's starter was indeed the unchanging Darkrai.

But the Pokémon opposite it made the audience gasp!

"Buzz buzz buzz——Lei! Ji! Luo!"

Regirock hummed deeply, its massive body over three meters tall making the spacious field seem much "smaller."

Especially when compared to Darkrai, which was about 1.5 meters tall.

Many people stood up excitedly.

Bartlas and other contestants known as championship seeds, even if they showed different expressions, were unified in that their eyes never moved away.

"The Legendary Giant!"

"So it was All Baimu's Pokémon! No wonder it appeared in the trial of Iron Town!"

"Legendary versus Legendary! Even if I die, it's worth it!"

A viewer who was too excited had a flushed face.

But his mood, to some extent, could represent the thoughts of most of the audience at this moment.

Why is a legend a legend?

Pokémon that ordinary people find it hard to see with their own eyes in their lifetime are Legendary Pokémon.

Which Trainer doesn't yearn for them?

"Even if I die, it's worth it" was an exaggeration, but the mountain-shaking cheers from the audience stands proved their anticipation for the match!

The civil war of the gods, officially staged!

"Knock Off!"

"Meteor Beam!"

Tobias and All Baimu gave orders at the same time.

The sharp-eyed former saw the fire-red leaf on Regirock's arm and decisively wanted to knock it off.

Darkrai flew over in response.

It was just that he didn't expect that this thing wasn't used to defend against Dark Void.

"Buzz buzz buzz——Lei!! Ji!! Luo!!"

Regirock raised its arms high, its body surface lit up with a shining luster, and then gathered toward its arms.

It was slow at first, but when the fire-red leaf on its arm disappeared.

The entire charging process was instantaneous!

Buzz!

The terrifying gold-red high-pressure energy, like the brilliant radiance of the Earth's core, broke through the air the moment Tobias was stunned!

Boom——!!

【Power Herb · Meteor Beam】!

Before Darkrai could react, the gold-red beam of light had already engulfed it! ===== CHAPTER 969 =====