Chapter 143: Possibility of Raising Individual Values!

Come to think of it,

The only thing holding back the Flame Monkey's strength right now is its 6u individual value,

To go further and raise the individual value,

the game offers the related items Golden Crown and Silver Crown.

The Golden Crown's effect instantly raises six individual stats to the maximum of 31, i. e., 6v.

The Silver Crown is weaker, instantly boosting a single stat to 31.

Neither is superior; they just apply to different situations,

The Golden Crown suits a creature like the Flame Monkey, which lacks any maxed stats.

The Silver Crown is better for filling gaps, for 3v, 4v, or 5v creatures.

But calling it a crown,

in fact, it's a beer bottle cap‑shaped item, the kind that would blend in among a pile of caps and go unnoticed.

Perhaps because of its odd shape and small size.

So far, science has not discovered any real crowns.

If Ash hadn't time‑traveled, given Xiao Cilang's fondness for collecting bottle caps, this big find might have been snatched by Xiao Cilang.

Ash doesn't really care about who made the discovery,

he's more interested in checking Xiao Cilang's cap collection to see if any crowns are hidden inside.

Unfortunately,

Xiao Cilang was just sent away by a battle bird's World Wave kick; the next refresh will probably be in a few days.

…

Just as Ash was pondering the Flame Monkey's individual value,

Kekobuer's mind was also uneasy.

As a trainer specializing in the Fighting type, Kekobuer often watches some of the more outstanding Fighting trainers,

although Ash isn't purely a Fighting specialist, he does have Fighting‑type creatures, and with his impressive performance, he's naturally attracted Kekobuer's attention.

From the debut‑at‑the‑peak Blazing Monkey to the all‑dominating Heracros,

if the first two performances can be called eye‑catching,

then the little‑known Flame Monkey in the Shen'ao League is enough to be described as eye‑blasting!

The pity is,

the Flame Monkey's brilliance is eclipsed by the divine beasts Ladeios and Ladeias,

the public only noticed the divine beasts, while Ash crushed Darkdo and staged the finals early.

they overlooked that both before and after facing Darkdo, the matches were won decisively by the Flame Monkey in a 1v6 sweep.

Even in the exhibition match against Xirona, Ash chose the Flame Monkey, using its opposite type to draw level with Xirona's ace Fierce Bite Land Shark.

In Kekobuer's view,

Ash's Flame Monkey is definitely the most underestimated terrifying presence.

Facing such a worthy opponent, Kekobuer voluntarily decided to give his all.

This time he didn't pull out a Pokéball, but turned his gaze to the Lukario standing beside him.

"Go, Lukario!"

"Luka?!"

Lukario looked puzzled; wasn't he supposed to be the front‑line?

"Huh? Grandpa is sending Lukario directly?"

Keerni also wore a bewildered expression.

"This is the strongest opponent we've faced after years of campaigning; we must not be careless."

"Luka!"

Kekobuer said that, and Lukario naturally became serious.

"Strongest?!"

"What a high appraisal!"

"Was the Flame Monkey's performance at that year's Shen'ao Linglan Tournament stunning?"

Clemont fell into thought,

after recalling carefully for a moment, Clemont's face lit with sudden realization, and a flash of shock crossed his eyes.

"I think I know why Elder Kekobuer said that."

"Clemont knows? What is it!"

"Yeah, why on earth did Grandpa say that!"

"Pigeon pigeon, speak quickly, speak quickly."

The three women, together with the silent Tierno, all showed inquisitive expressions.

"Later, after the match, we'll talk."

Fearing a face‑palm, Clemont chose a safe move.

Below, the battle was about to erupt.

"Since this isn't a gym battle, I won't hold back, Lukario, Mega‑evolve!"

Kekobuer acted a step ahead.

Amid dazzling multicolored light, Lukario's body rose, surpassing the standard height of 1.3 m and finally stopping at 1.5 m.

The Flame Monkey's standard height is 1.2 m, but Ash's specimen is also exceptionally grown, reaching an exaggerated 1.7 m.

Perhaps it also has to do with Ash's Flame Monkey not being hunchbacked.

1.5 meters and 1.7 meters,

In height, they differed by a head directly, the visual gap being especially obvious.

"Godspeed!"

Kekebu'er's Lucario, as a seasoned veteran, is certainly not the kind of spirit that would feel intimidated just because the opponent is physically strong.

The body bathed in white light,

Super Lucario's body shot straight at the Flame Monkey like a bolt of lightning.

In the blink of an eye, Super Lucario, which had been on the opposite side of the battlefield just a second ago, had already arrived in front of the Flame Monkey.

The body leapt into the air, and a white-energy-covered flying kick shot out from the foot.

"Sound-Speed Fist!"

"Aga~"

Almost at the moment when Super Lucario's attack was about to hit the Flame Monkey, the Flame Monkey suddenly threw a punch.

A punch was swung out, bringing with it a huge sonic boom!

The force of the punch erupted, kicking up a fierce wind that swept in all directions.

"Lu Ka!" So fast!

Lucario was shocked, and at the same time exerted all its strength!

Accompanied by the clash of fist and foot!

Boom!

With a bang, everyone saw Super Lucario let out a miserable cry, covering its leg as it flew backward and crashed to the ground.

In the clash of fist and foot, it was actually the weak upper limbs that gained the advantage.

"How is this possible? This is Grandpa's Super Lucario! Even if the opponent is Ash……this is too exaggerated, right?"

Having grown up under Grandpa's shadow, Keerni's understanding of her grandfather's strength is especially clear; she knows that even the current Kalos Elite Four,

when facing Grandpa's Super Lucario, would mostly choose to avoid its sharp edge.

In her view, Ash would win, but he shouldn't be so overwhelmingly dominant!

"Indeed, that's right!"

Clemont, however, became excited, completely throwing caution to the wind,

facing the doubtful gazes of the three girls, he voiced his speculation.

"That year, at the Lily of the Valley Conference, setting aside Latias and Latios, Flame Monkey's record that year was 36 wins, 1 loss, 0 draws, and among all of Ash's Pokémon, its record ranks among the best,"

"and the one match it tied was against Garchomp, which had a type disadvantage against Champion Cynthia; its absence from the list was simply because Latias and Latios stole the spotlight."

As Ash's childhood friend Serena, and as Ash's fan Tierno,

their view of Ash's matches is that they never miss a one,

naturally, they quickly recalled those scenes under Clemont's verbal prompting.

"Indeed, that's the case; Flame Monkey seems never to have lost a match."

"So that's how it is……"

"Yes, that's exactly it; old man truly has discerning eyes!"

Clemont sincerely praised.

The gaze shifted downward,

Nobody saw Ash employ his usual oppressive tactics; instead, they waited for the fallen Lucario to launch another attack.

This approach is undoubtedly extremely arrogant,

yet not a single person present questioned Ash and Flame Monkey's choice.