Chapter 543: Ursaluna Brings Shock: A Battle Between Brothers

Thanks to Hearing Nimo's efforts, the trailing score was pulled back by one point, bringing it to one to two.

Compared to the inevitable decline in momentum on the Blueberry Academy side, the low morale here at Grape Academy was instantly reversed.

Peony and Cassia, the opponents for the fourth round, thus stepped forward with crystal-clear resolve.

Having experienced failure once before, the Blueberry Academy side had long since made corresponding preparations regarding mindset; furthermore, since the opponent was Peony, whom she had lost to previously, Cassia's fighting spirit instantly ignited.

As for Peony, bolstered by the momentum of morale and rarely maintaining her composure under the surrounding gazes, she fought the entire battle without a single mistake.

Cassia's father is Burgh, the Gym Leader of the Unova region; having been immersed in this environment since childhood, her abilities as a Trainer were certainly not weak.

Peony, however, was even more extraordinary; to put it bluntly:

Her father was the former Champion of the Galar region, her uncle is the current Chairman of the Galar Pokémon League, and she sometimes contacts the current Galar Champion through her uncle's connections, with these nepotistic ties even extending to Champions from much eras past; despite being merely a shut-in girl proficient in hacking techniques, her knowledge reserve as a Trainer was actually completely sufficient, not to mention that Luo Mu had also been intentionally guiding her to fully utilize this advantage during their usual interactions.

Strictly speaking, Cassia was not a Fairy-type specialist, but rather a "Cuteness specialist."

She would always unconsciously catch Pokémon she found cute, thereby naturally mastering the Fairy type, though in reality, her team also included quite a few non-Fairy-type Pokémon.

In this three-on-three battle, Cassia successively sent out Whimsicott, Primarina, and her self-proclaimed very cute Excadrill, which she had received from her father Burgh, using Nest Balls for each.

On Peony's side, she sent out Sylveon, Jolteon, and Flareon.

As Peony's ace, Sylveon appeared first; after defeating Whimsicott, Peony recalled it and sent out Jolteon to battle against Cassia's Primarina.

Probably feeling the type disadvantage, after Primarina suffered a few setbacks, Cassia sent out Excadrill; leveraging its type advantage, it defeated Jolteon, after which she switched Primarina back in.

Peony chose to send out Sylveon again; after a prolonged struggle, Sylveon defeated Primarina, but due to poor condition and type disadvantage, it was taken out by the subsequently appearing Excadrill.

Peony's final Pokémon was Flareon, now fully healed, capable of spewing flames at will, and in peak condition despite not having appeared yet.

Cassia's Excadrill, having sustained some counterattacks during its battle with Sylveon and having also fought Jolteon consecutively, was not in great condition.

Yet at this very moment, Peony pulled out her trump card kept hidden in the bottom of her box—the Tera Orb.

With the boost of Fire Tera Type, the power of Flareon's already prominent Fire-type moves increased even further; within a short while, the charred-black Excadrill collapsed to the ground with a thud, losing the ability to battle.

The score consequently leveled out, arriving at two to two.

On the Blueberry Academy side, Bai Bai Leiya, who had been observing the situation on the field, gazed thoughtfully at the Flareon with a candle on its head, murmuring to herself in a voice only she could hear.

"This is Terastallization... a wonderful phenomenon related to Disc Pokémon."

"It would be great if we could find a way to reproduce this within the Ecological Dome."

The fifth match fell to Penny and Chili.

Several months ago, Chili's mentality had been slightly unbalanced due to Luo Mu defeating Alder, leading to poor performance in the exchange match, but his condition this time was much better.

Not only was he no longer nervous, but his performance was also flawless.

The severe lack of experience exposed in the previous exchange match seemed to have been improved under Alder's training.

As for Penny, she had after all experienced a journey, ventured into the Great Crater of Paldea with Luo Mu, and undergone a period of hellish special training from Hearing Nimo.

Both possessed talent as chefs; regarding battle experience, Chili still had his own deficiencies as a Trainer, making the battle situation slightly intense.

In the end, Penny's Ursaluna roared and decisively defeated Chili's ace Blaziken, bringing this battle to a close.

That ferocious figure, leaping and pouncing, was so overwhelming that even Blaziken, skilled at jumping, seemed like a little chick at the mercy of a bear, ravaged by Ursaluna's formidable strength.

For a moment, Ursaluna's powerful form was etched into the hearts of everyone present.

Many reporters had already begun organizing information and sending it back to their headquarters, intending to scoop the first-hand report.

The upcoming battle between Rika and Elesa pushed this sentiment to an even greater peak.

Elesa hailed from Castelia City in the Unova region; if one were to summarize her in a single sentence:

She became a Pokémon Trainer as soon as she was old enough to understand, capable of precisely controlling Steel-type Pokémon, calmly and composedly driving opponents into a desperate situation.

Her battle style was terrifyingly calm, serving as a perfect counter to Rika, a Fighting-type specialist Trainer who relied on intuition to fight.

Skarmory, Scizor, and Metagross comprised her team composition.

Although she herself was very proficient in Double Battles, she also possessed considerable insight in Single Battles.

Skarmory appeared and immediately chose to set up Spikes, flexibly rotating with Scizor to suppress Rika's dispatched Breloom.

Had Luo Mu not already taught Rika the correct way to utilize the "Poison Heal" ability, Breloom would have been unable to hold on and would have fallen.

Krokorok could not take the field due to type disadvantage, Klawf moved too slowly, and Blaziken's strength had not yet been cultivated to the level required for battles of this caliber.

Rika had no choice but to recall Breloom and send out her ace, Annihilape, to seek an opportunity.

Under Scizor's dazzling Bullet Punches:

First having its feet pierced by Spikes, then being led around like a dog by Skarmory because it could not fly.

Filled with resentment, Annihilape seized an opportunity to grab Scizor, landing a single Superpower that completely dazed Scizor.

Before Scizor could react, having finally seized this chance, how could Rika, an intuition-type Trainer, miss it; deciding immediately, she issued the command "Fire Punch," and the power of a four-fold super-effective hit smeared across Scizor's face, taking it out.

However, having taken too many passive hits and accumulated a certain amount of damage, Annihilape was also taken out at the cost of significant effort by Elesa, who had pinpointed the timing to send out her ace, Metagross, using a Heavy Ball.

After taking out Annihilape, Elesa recalled Metagross without hesitation, switched in Skarmory to take the field, and replenished the somewhat depleted Spikes to restrict Rika's rotations.

Forced by circumstances, Rika could only switch in Breloom, hoping to find an opportunity through Breloom's endurance capabilities.

After all, with Annihilape now down, sending out Ursaluna directly would truly be exploited to her disadvantage by the meticulous Elesa.

Strangely enough, although Fighting types supersede Steel types, the Pokémon Elesa sent out either reduced the threat of Fighting types through their secondary typing, or, like Scizor, despite having a type disadvantage, could still trade blows with Breloom relying purely on strength.

Rika's side was fighting with immense frustration.

Breloom truly could not break through Skarmory, which boasted outstanding physical defense and resistances, and could only engage in a war of attrition with it.

With Metagross lurking menacingly behind, Rika dared not switch in Ursaluna while enduring the damage from Spikes, resulting in a stalemate that lasted for a long time.

Fortunately, the sustainability of the Toxic Orb Poison Heal Breloom was indeed reliable, and Rika finally waited for her opportunity.

Seeing that Skarmory was somewhat exhausted and would not be able to endure a prolonged stalemate, perhaps trusting in Skarmory's defensive power:

Elesa chose to take a risk, lowering Skarmory's flight altitude to use "Roost" and recover stamina.

During the duration of "Roost," Skarmory lost its Flying type, becoming a pure Steel-type Pokémon.

Rika, without the slightest hesitation, commanded Breloom to rush forward with a Mach Punch, followed by consecutive explosive Focus Blasts unleashed with full force.

The Skarmory naturally would not allow itself to be slaughtered; screeching, it retaliated with a close-range burst of Brave Bird. Finally, the Breloom collapsed under the unbearable burden, while the Skarmory still retained a sliver of stamina.

Forced into a desperate situation, Bipa could only send out Ursaluna; taking advantage of the Skarmory's inability to take off in time, she "Body Pressed" forward, draining its last bit of energy.

Then came the showdown between Metagross and Ursaluna.

On one side was the late-blooming Pokémon renowned throughout the Hoenn region; on the other was the Ursaluna that had been overwhelmingly dominant in the hands of Hearing Nimo and Paim, delivering a brilliant performance.

The struggle between both sides was fierce, perfectly interpreting what constituted "absolute violence."

When Metagross's "Meteor Mash" collided with Ursaluna's "Hammer Arm," locking them in a clash, Ursaluna seized the opportunity to viciously attack the nearby Metagross with a super-effective "Crunch."

Before such a pure contest of strength, Nali's schemes actually seemed somewhat superfluous.

Even though Metagross possessed extraordinary intelligence, it also held its own pride, absolutely refusing to admit defeat to Ursaluna in terms of power.

Both sides finally collapsed simultaneously, declaring the result of the sixth round.

A draw!

In the crowd, a monster enthusiast contentedly put away his camera, preparing to go back and re-appreciate the content he had recorded.

The collision of steel and muscle was indeed incredibly shocking to the heart.

Many reporters' eyes lit up even brighter as they wrote furiously.

First, there was Hearing Nimo's Ursaluna overwhelmingly crushing the Flygon; then, Paim's Ursaluna crushing Akamatsu's Blaziken; and finally, the heart-shaking collision of power between Nali's Metagross and Bipa's Ursaluna.

It made them all excited!

At this moment, standing in the center of Sun Plaza, Bai Bai Leiya and Clavell exchanged a glance before announcing aloud: "Currently, the score is three points for Grape Academy, two points for Blueberry Academy, with one draw."

"The upcoming battle will determine whether Grape Academy claims victory, or whether Blueberry Academy catches up at the last moment to tie with Grape Academy."

"Please wait and see!"

With just a few words, Bai Bai Leiya stirred the emotions of the surrounding audience, making them look forward to this final, headline-grabbing battle.

On the Blueberry Academy side, Ai Li Qi Si, looking extremely relaxed, made a promise to several juniors.

"Rest assured; as Ai Li Qi Si's older brother, I understand him very well."

"It is not that I look down on him; precisely because I know him best, I can say with certainty that he cannot win against me."

"This battle is a certain victory."

Once Ai Li Qi Si spoke these words, Du Ruo, who had already recovered from the crushing defeat, sighed imperceptibly.

Perhaps this was for the best.

Although the other party had been rightfully defeated by her and had become a member of the Blueberry League's Elite Four, Du Ruo still trusted Ai Li Qi Si, this senior upperclassman within the academy.

At least compared to the previous crushing defeat, Blueberry Academy had managed to tie the team score this time, which counted as progress.

Next time, perhaps they could defeat Grape Academy.

Ai Li Qi Si instantly became the focus of attention.

Hearing Nimo, Bipa, and Shizuka cheered him on; Botan attempted to remotely hack into the Blueberry Academy student system to expose Ai Li Qi Si's team lineup down to his underwear; Paim flusteredly took out sandwiches he had made to replenish everyone's stamina; while Shinji, expressionless, emphasized the precautions mentioned earlier to him.

Feeling warmth in his heart, Ai Li Qi Si became even more firm in his resolve.

At this moment.

As the exchange match neared its end, Luo Mu, pondering that he should at least make some presence felt, led over a spirited, hat-wearing old man.

Hearing Nimo was the first to spot the newcomers, exclaiming in surprise: "It's that grandpa from the ranch on the edge of Mesagoza!"

"Hehehe, this young lady has an excellent memory; to think you still remember an old man like me."

Ai Li Mo Si chuckled while stroking his beard, his gaze falling upon Hearing Nimo.

"I originally intended to ask about Tauros's condition, but seeing your lively performance just now, I imagine its condition must be much better than when it was at the ranch."

"Thank you for the compliment! Tauros runs one hundred laps every day on the private beach near my family's villa; its energy is quite abundant!"

Hearing Nimo's eyes lit up as she responded loudly.

"A private beach near the villa."

The corner of Shinji's mouth twitched; he could be considered as coming from an ordinary family.

Although he often saw Hearing Nimo being picked up and dropped off by a low-key black sedan driven by a meticulously dressed, seemingly very professional butler in black attire.

Yet hearing such impactful words so unexpectedly still left Shinji speechless for a moment.

Could this be the world of the rich—

Compared to the atmosphere on Shinji's side, which was inexplicably filled with the sourness of lemons.

Ai Li Qi Si looked at the old man, saying with some surprise: "Grandpa, how did you come here?"

"Of course, your teacher invited me over; otherwise, I wouldn't be able to see you brothers."

Ai Li Mo Si glanced sideways at Luo Mu with his eyes.

Luo Mu added at the right moment: "Regarding your older brother's side, Mr. Elimus has already met with him."

Ai Li Qi Si instantly understood.

Meanwhile, Ai Li Mo Si placed his aged, warm, large hand on Ai Li Qi Si's shoulder and said solemnly: "Grandpa knows that you want to surpass your older brother; regarding Pokémon Trainers, Grandpa doesn't understand much either."

"But this sentence, Grandpa must say personally in front of you."

Pausing briefly, the old man looked directly into his grandson's eyes and said solemnly: "Regardless of which of you brothers achieves victory, Grandpa will applaud both of you."

"The final match of the Academy Friendship Exchange Match: Grape Academy student Ai Li Qi Si versus Blueberry Academy student Ai Li Qi Si."

"Both sides, send out your first Pokémon!"

Accompanied by the falling sharp whistle, both sides simultaneously threw out their Poké Balls.

"Meowscarada!"

"Rillaboom!"

(End of Chapter)