Chapter 127: The Fisherman at Trainer Beach!

A brown figure sprinted across the beach at high speed, kicking up a cloud of sand that forced the surrounding crowd to scatter.

The next instant, teeth blazing with flame bit down powerfully on the Kricketune, which was too slow to dodge; flames roared aloud, and moments later, the Kricketune, having lost its ability to battle, collapsed onto the ground.

The victor and the vanquished were decided.

"Well done, Gumshoos!"

The young Trainer, about thirteen or fourteen years old, excitedly raised his right arm and shouted, while applause and words of praise erupted from the surrounding crowd, causing his sense of accomplishment to swell even higher.

The Gumshoos, looking remarkably mature despite its youth, clasped its paws behind its back; it merely acknowledged the Trainer's praises with an air of casual indifference.

Having achieved a three-match winning streak, Jamie planned to press his advantage and fight a few more rounds; brimming with confidence, he scanned the surroundings and raised his voice to declare loudly, "Is there anyone else who wants to battle me?"

If he could win just a few more battles, he felt confident enough to challenge the second gym, the Deep Striaton Gym.

Some of the Trainers gathered around hesitated; although the boy was very young, his Gumshoos was extremely troublesome, and they lacked the certainty of victory.

Others felt that Jamie was still too green, and fighting him would only earn them a reputation for bullying children.

If one were to fight, it should be against an opponent of equal strength.

For quite a while, no one responded, so Jamie repeated himself: "Is there anyone who wants a Pokémon battle?"

Luo Mu, strolling through the market with four Pokémon, happened to pass by; hearing Jamie's shout, he paused temporarily, and upon seeing Jamie and his Gumshoos surrounded by the crowd, he pondered in his heart.

He had already found some wild Water-type and Flying-type Pokémon to let Growlithe and the others warm up, so now it was about time to let them engage in actual combat against other Trainers' Pokémon.

Thinking thus, Luo Mu raised his hand without any psychological burden and called out, "How about me?"

Immediately, the gazes of both Jamie and the onlookers turned toward him.

Luo Mu, accompanied by Growlithe and the others, walked through the gap that the crowd actively cleared, coming to a stop directly in front of Jamie.

The surrounding eyes sized Luo Mu up and down, as well as the Pokémon around him; aside from that unfamiliar horned puppy Pokémon, neither Mudbray, Mawile, nor Delibird looked like particularly powerful Pokémon.

Looking again at Luo Mu's leisurely farmer attire, everyone assumed he was probably an amateur Trainer passing by who just felt an itch to fight.

Everyone felt he stood little chance against Jamie; after all, Jamie had initially stated that he already possessed the first Mei Hui Zhang, meaning he had passed the Gym Leader's trial.

Seeing someone respond, Jamie stopped hesitating; clenching his fist with boiling blood, he said, "Naturally, that works!"

This big brother is bringing out four Pokémon; he must be a formidable opponent, Jamie felt himself getting fired up.

Stepping to the opposite side of Jamie, Luo Mu asked, "How shall we fight?"

"One-on-one singles battle; the one who renders the opponent's Pokémon unable to battle wins. How does that sound?"

Jamie recited the battle rules he had memorized by heart.

Luo Mu nodded in agreement, glanced at the Pokémon beside him, and said, "In that case, Mudbray, you're up."

"Neigh."

Mudbray calmly strode forward to stand before the Gumshoos; having fought wild Pokémon before, it had adapted quite well to the sandy beach, which felt different from muddy ground, at least avoiding the embarrassing situation of losing its footing and falling over.

The onlookers glanced at the domineering and mature Gumshoos, then at the simple-minded, non-aggressive-looking Mudbray, guessing that this battle would likely end in another victory for Jamie and his Gumshoos.

Both sides were tacitly understood; in a battle without a referee, the moment their gazes met signified the start of the match.

"Ice Fang!"

Young people always fought aggressively; just like Jamie, who preferred to launch a strong attack without saying a word.

Understanding type advantages, recognizing Mudbray, and knowing its type already placed him ahead of a large portion of novice Trainers.

Luo Mu, however, chose a basic move that most Trainers would have completely forgotten.

"Mud-Slap."

When it came to masters of playing with mud, the Mudbray line would certainly rank high, and Luo Mu's Mudbray was no exception; even with its eyes constantly squinted, the mud clumps it threw were fast, accurate, and ruthless—two clumps blocked the Gumshoos, which didn't want its fur dirtied, while two other clumps directly and precisely hit the Gumshoos's eyes.

Letting out an involuntary scream of pain, the Gumshoos covered its eyes and retreated several steps, temporarily falling into a confused state due to the loss of vision.

"Gumshoos!" Jamie cried out in worry.

At that moment, Luo Mu's next command followed immediately.

"High Horsepower."

The moment the words left his mouth, Mudbray's squinted eyes suddenly snapped open, and the aura emanating from those black, horizontal eyeballs startled Jamie to his core.

Immediately after, glowing with red light contrary to the impression it usually gave, Mudbray charged toward the Gumshoos with overwhelming momentum.

Accompanying Mudbray's charge, the sandy ground trembled continuously, forcing both the Gumshoos and the surrounding crowd to divide their attention to ensure they wouldn't fall over.

Just then, Mudbray's High Horsepower, exerting its full strength, arrived; the broad and fierce assault plunged the surroundings into a deathly silence.

Boom—

Finally, Mudbray's forehoof landing heavily put a period to this battle, while the previously high-spirited Gumshoos now lay in a crater on the beach, covered in injuries, clearly having lost its ability to battle.

"A one-hit knockout?"

No one knew who blurted out these words, followed immediately by the surrounding crowd discussing the event with faces full of shock.

As for Jamie, he stood stunned on the spot; it was only under Luo Mu's reminder that he, with red-rimmed eyes, rushed off with his Gumshoos toward the medical room set up on the beach.

Feeling the complex gazes of the people around him, Luo Mu knew they must be viewing him as the scum of humanity who fishes in newbie ponds.

But Mudbray had only been bought by him from the Ely Ranch not long ago; it had merely learned High Horsepower and Aura alongside Tapu Tapu Moumou while practicing plowing fields, and then, through prolonged association with Swampert, it had simply achieved mastery over High Horsepower through constant exposure.

Clearing his throat lightly, Luo Mu, thick-skinned, imitated the fleeing Jamie and shouted to the surroundings, "Is there anyone else who wants to battle?"

Luo Mu thought he would probably have to wait a while, or perhaps no one would fight him at all, but unexpectedly, someone responded very quickly.

"I'll do it."

A beautiful woman walked out from the crowd, dressed coolly and revealing her graceful curves; her lower abdomen was completely Exposed to Outside, making one involuntarily worry whether she would often catch a cold.

Luo Mu turned his head to look at the person who had spoken, his eyes widening slightly.

He was not bewitched by the woman's appearance; on the contrary, Luo Mu's attention was entirely focused on the spot by the woman's feet.

Standing there was unmistakably a Growlithe identical to Luo Mu's own Growlithe.

In other words, a Hisuian Growlithe!

(End of Chapter)