Chapter 538: This Is Not the Nurse Joy I Know!

"No good, Mightyena, dodge quickly!"

Danyu's voice sounded almost immediately after Joy Jingxiang's, from which one could see her reaction speed.

As a Pokémon that becomes extremely loyal once it acknowledges a trainer, Mightyena did not hesitate to release its bite and attempt to retreat backward.

But it was already too late.

Mightyena could only watch helplessly as the flower on Venusaur's back closed into a bud; after wriggling slightly, purple venom reeking of foul odor rained down from the sky, dropping like raindrops onto its back and seeping into the skin protected by its fur.

In just the blink of an eye, the areas on Mightyena's body that had been splashed with the venom began to bubble with purple froth.

That is to say—

It had entered the badly poisoned status!

Danyu's expression instantly turned ugly.

She never expected that Nurse Joy, whom she had always associated with friendliness, kindness, and goodness, would call out the move "Toxic."

This caused her to let her guard down.

She was careless and did not dodge.

"This is simply not the Nurse Joy I know! 'I suppose this counts as a surprise tactic—'"

Geeta, who had been closely watching the battle, lifted the corners of her mouth slightly.

In her view, Nurse Joy Joy Jingxiang had used an information gap to catch Danyu off guard with this move; hitting with Toxic again afterward would likely not be so easy.

As a student who had broken through the encirclement at Blueberry Academy, Danyu's combat intuition could be seen from her reaction earlier, which was only a step too slow.

Luo Mu's eye for talent is indeed accurate; this girl is a promising talent worth the Paldea League recruiting.

After confirming Danyu's talent, Geeta, who usually thinks at high speed, began pondering Nurse Joy Joy Jingxiang's seemingly plain and unadorned use of Toxic.

"Perhaps I could also place Terapagos in the lead to establish an initial advantage for the team through surprise, and then send out General Pu Dao to hold the rear?" Analyzing this line of thought, Geeta suddenly felt enlightened, as if an entirely new path had appeared before her.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

The battle between the badly poisoned Mightyena and Venusaur continued.

Danyu, having quickly adjusted her mindset, seemed to have some plan; she did not recall Mightyena directly but instead commanded it to engage Venusaur in a close fight, seeking an opportunity.

The gap in experience between the two Trainers became apparent at this moment.

With Danyu now on high alert, Joy Jingxiang's next moves immediately became disjointed.

The "Leech Seed," continuously spraying from the flower's center like bullets, missed repeatedly due to Mightyena's agile movements, while Mightyena seized every opening to successively unleash the status moves "Taunt" and "Sunny Day."

But as a trade-off, due to the accumulation of poison damage, Mightyena's own condition continued to deteriorate.

However, none of this mattered anymore.

Danyu's setup was already complete.

"Return, Mightyena!"

Danyu raised her hand to recall Mightyena, swapped for another Poké Ball, and threw it toward the sky.

"I'm counting on you, Ninetales!"

Behind her, the corner of Nali's mouth lifted.

"Yes, just like that, step by step, calmly regain the advantage until victory, my good friend."

This was not the Alolan Ninetales from Luo Mu's farm.

The Pokémon that appeared possessed gleaming, radiant fur, an elegant and noble demeanor, and a full nine smooth, slender tails.

The Fox Pokémon, Ninetales.

Pure Fire type.

The moment he saw Ninetales, Luo Mu sighed lightly.

Joy Jingxiang was still "too young"; although he had taught her many tactical routines, there was still a gap before she could fully master them and make flexible adjustments based on the battle situation.

He could only hope that through this battle, Joy Jingxiang would realize that "Toxic" is not a panacea and that opponents will not rigidly wait for you to conduct a formulaic battle.

The moment Ninetales appeared, the "Sunny Day" left behind by Mightyena provided stronger support for its Fire-type moves, while Venusaur was still under the effect of Taunt, unable to use status moves, and itself immobilized due to being rooted.

"Protect" and "Substitute" were also sealed, and the "Chlorophyll" ability was practically useless due to being rooted.

The "Toxic" was burned away by flames before it could spray onto Ninetales.

Venusaur could only rely on its attacking moves to clash with Ninetales—

But that was undoubtedly like trying to put out a cartload of firewood with a cup of water.

With comparable strength, plus the weather bonus, and being naturally super-effective against Venusaur, Ninetales ultimately ended the battle with the unavoidable "Fire Blast."

"Venusaur is unable to battle, Ninetales wins!"

"Student Nurse Joy Joy Jingxiang, please send out your second Pokémon!"

Clavell's voice, calm as a still well, rang out; at this moment, he was not deliberately looking at anyone but was fully upholding his stance as a referee representing fairness and justice.

Joy Jingxiang bit her lip, recalled Venusaur, which clearly showed signs of burns, into its Poké Ball, and handed it to her former colleague.

She took a deep breath and threw out a second Poké Ball.

"Porygon2!"

This time, a rounded, duck-like Pokémon colored in red and blue, with its entire body composed of curves, appeared.

Around its neck hung a necklace; upon closer inspection, the outline of an "Eviolite" could faintly be seen.

This was also an item Joy Jingxiang had purchased for Porygon2 at her own expense.

With the boost from the Eviolite, Porygon2's dual defenses reached a rather Kong Bu De Jing realm; coupled with its inherent durability and its own typing, it could be described as incredibly tanky.

Within the Grape Academy team.

The moment she saw Porygon2, Peony, who had been quite worried about Joy Jingxiang, instantly turned pale as a sheet; a feeling of nausea rose from her stomach, nearly causing her to vomit on the spot.

The reason was none other than this.

As the only girl who had contact with Joy Jingxiang before Hearing Hearing Nimo and Piper returned.

Peony was often dragged by Joy Jingxiang to conduct various experiments, and thus came to understand just how nauseating this seemingly comical duck truly was.

"Ugh—"

Just thinking about it made one want to vomit.

The ability of Joy Jingxiang's Porygon2 is "Download."

Its effect is—

If the opponent's Defense is lower than their Special Defense, Porygon2's Attack is boosted accordingly.

If the opponent's Special Defense is lower than their Defense, Porygon2's Special Attack is boosted accordingly.

This can greatly amplify Porygon2's offensive output, after all, its innate Special Attack aptitude is quite good.

Unfortunately, since Ninetales's Defense is lower than its Special Defense, the red light emanating from Porygon2 signified a boost to—Attack.

Luo Mu had always felt somewhat regretful about this; if Porygon2's ability had been "Trace," then upon evolving once more, its ability would become "Adaptability," increasing the Same-Type Attack Bonus for its moves to 100%.

That would have made it a true super cannon, compensating for the lack of offensive power in Joy Jingxiang's team.

However, "Download" itself is not so useless; at times, the boost it provides can be even stronger than "Adaptability," it is just that "Adaptability" is more stable.

Just like now, Porygon2 could only abandon its proficient long-range strikes and opt for the slightly inferior "Take Down," which, under the boost, erased the gap, to break through the flames spewed by Ninetales, slamming fiercely into it! Simultaneously, Joy Jingxiang's command was issued rapidly.

"Conversion 2!"

Blue waves of light ignited across Porygon2's body, and its momentum changed abruptly.

Facing the flames launched by the enraged Ninetales, it actually chose to tank the hit directly, while simultaneously unleashing a Tri Attack upon Ninetales! Boom! Violent explosions detonated successively around both Porygon2 and Ninetales; when the dust settled, many spectators were surprised to discover that compared to Porygon2, whose aura remained relatively stable, Ninetales was instead panting heavily, its sleek fur stained with considerable dust.

In the ranks of Blueberry Academy, Nali spoke again.

"I see, so it used Conversion 2 to change into the Water type; this way, it can stably engage Ninetales in a battle of attrition."

Nali's gaze passed through her lenses, landing on Joy Jingxiang on the opposite side of the field, whose face was entirely serious and solemn.

It seems the opponent is unexpectedly tenacious as well.

This battle still has much to be fought.

After several more exchanges, watching Ninetales's condition begin to decline, Danyu realized that if things continued this way, Ninetales would be worn down until it lost the ability to battle by Porygon2's monstrous durability.

Blueberry Academy frequently trained students in rotation awareness; without much hesitation, Danyu recalled Ninetales and sent out Mightyena again, hoping to seek an opportunity for victory.

But she had still somewhat underestimated the pressure "Toxic" exerted upon Mightyena.

After struggling to leave a few scars on Porygon2 that would hinder its actions, Mightyena's body tilted, and it collapsed onto the battlefield.

Thus, both sides were tied at one apiece.

Perhaps wishing to give Porygon2 some time to rest, Joy Jingxiang recalled it and sent out her third Pokémon.

"I'm counting on you, Chansey!"

Almost the representative Pokémon of the Young Lady Joy's public image, the round-bodied Chansey displayed an innocent smile; looking at the Ninetales staring coldly at it, its narrowed eyes suddenly opened wide.

"Lucky~"

Can Chansey even fight?

Just like Miss Qi Shu before she had been beaten senseless, this thought flashed through the minds of the many students at Blueberry Academy.

But shortly after Chansey and Ninetales began battling, they realized something was off.

This... could no longer be summarized merely as "able to fight."

Most of the time, Chansey did not need commands from its Trainer, Joy Jingxiang; its own reactions were fast, allowing it to calmly use moves to contend with Ninetales.

If Joy Jingxiang issued a mistaken command, it would even make a secondary correction, judging the situation to select the most advantageous method.

That tactic of using "Minimize" at the critical moment to dodge Ninetales's "Fire Blast," then waving its hand to summon Rock Slide, causing Ninetales to "Flinch" due to the move's additional effect, made people's mouths twitch.

How should one put it? This could no longer be considered a Pokémon battle, but rather pure torment.

The elegant and noble Ninetales, practically sporting a head full of bumps smashed out by "Rock Slide," lost consciousness with a face full of resentment, collapsing to the ground.

Two to one, the score reversed! The expressions of the Blueberry Academy crowd gradually turned serious.

In their view, Joy Joy Jingxiang's command level was full of loopholes, yet due to various whimsical move combinations, it exerted a strange power.

It had even plunged Danyu, whose strength was quite considerable, into a bitter struggle.

Grape Academy is truly a tough bone to gnaw! "Sister..."

Wuli looked at his sister's back with some worry.

Seemingly noticing her own younger brother's gaze, Danyu cast a reassuring look of "Don't worry" toward him, took a deep breath, and threw the Poké Ball in her hand.

"Polteageist!"

Light flashed, and Polteageist, which had evolved from Sinistea and changed its appearance greatly, hovered in mid-air, giggling as it looked at Chansey.

Polteageist was Danyu's ace Pokémon; its strength was superior to that of Mightyena and Ninetales, and this was the source of her confidence.

Acting out of caution, Joy Jingxiang recalled Chansey and sent out Porygon2, whose condition was not optimal, intending to test Polteageist's capabilities.

Beside Luo Mu, Bashou stared at Porygon2's body and asked curiously, "Does Porygon2 have any means of recovery?"

Since it was a Pokémon uncommon in Paldea, and furthermore, he himself specialized in Dragon types, he naturally did not know much about Porygon2.

"Yes, it can learn 'Recover,' but Porygon2 hasn't learned it yet."

To this, Luo Mu gave an affirmative answer.

Hearing this, Bashou clicked his tongue somewhat.

With such formidable damage resistance, if it could also heal itself like Chansey, fighting it would be utterly nauseating.

While the two were discussing, Porygon2 and Polteageist had already clashed.

Since Polteageist's own Special Defense was lower than its Defense, Porygon2 successfully boosted its own Special Attack, pushing the power of its energy attacks up considerably.

However, due to Polteageist's own typing, Porygon2 could only use "Icy Wind," the only move it had learned, to deal effective damage to Polteageist.

On the contrary, as Danyu's starter Pokémon, Polteageist possessed extraordinary strength; even though it could not use Ghost-type moves, its Grass-type moves were sufficient to defeat the sub-optimal Porygon2.

Ten minutes later, the victor was decided.

Porygon2, lacking any means of recovery and possessing relatively weak offensive capabilities, was eventually worn down by Poltchageist's attacks, running itself ragged until it lost the ability to fight.

However, under the influence of Icy Wind, Poltchageist's agility had also decreased significantly.

With the score tied at two-all between Shizuka and Dan Yu once again, the white-hot battle reached its final act.

Chansey faced off against Poltchageist.

Luo Mu already sensed that this would be an exceedingly long battle.

The duel between Chansey and Poltchageist alone lasted over a full hour.

Even the enthusiastic spectators began to grow drowsy watching it.

On Chansey's side, constantly wary of the poison from Dan Yu and Poltchageist, it could only rely on its own bulk, attempting to wear down Poltchageist just as before by using the not-very-effective move "Rock Slide."

Yet neither it nor Shizuka knew that Poltchageist's signature move, "Matcha Gotcha," being its specialized special attack, not only had the effect of restoring stamina but, if luck held, could also inflict a burn on Chansey, further reducing the already meager power of Rock Slide.

Chansey would also use "Heal Bell" to cure its own status conditions, and when its stamina ran low, it would simply eat an egg it had laid itself.

Two Great Emperors fought out to the desolate edges of the universe, grinding even the Great Dao to dust.

As the time approached the two-hour mark, Chansey's own accumulation ultimately proved slightly inferior to Poltchageist's; with its energy and stamina completely drained, its head tilted to the side, and it lost consciousness.

Poltchageist fared no better on its end; after swaying a few times in the air, it plummeted headfirst to the ground and failed to climb back up for quite some time.

The opening match of the Academy Exchange Tournament concluded with a victorious start for Blueberry Academy.

The next battle would be decided between Shinji and Kuri.

Following those two was the highly anticipated Hearing Hearing Nimo versus Du Ruo, a match that could perhaps be called a contest between the strongest two among the fourteen contestants.

The strongest of Blueberry Academy versus the strongest of Grape Academy! (End of Chapter)