Chapter 691: Chaos in Caiyou City?

To be perfectly honest.

——The preliminary rounds of the Caiyou Conference really aren’t worth watching.

Outsiders coming for the spectacle might not mind, but in reality, most contestants’ skill levels are wildly uneven.

After all, some competitors don’t challenge the eight official Hoenn Gym Leaders recommended by the League, but instead seek out weaker, easier-to-beat smaller Gyms to earn their spots.

Their battles are nothing but amateurs brawling with amateurs; compared to them, even Ash’s command skills seem exceptional.

Yet the preliminaries are precisely designed to filter out this group of contestants.

Don’t let anyone tell you the conference champion doesn’t mean much— for many, simply collecting eight badges and entering the conference, even if they lose in the first round, is already a source of family pride.

With that credential, even if they never become Trainers in the future, they can still land decent jobs: as beginner coaches for children, or in roles tied to Trainers that require Pokémon assistance.

It’s realistic, but this is a detail never shown in the anime.

The focus of the Caiyou Conference will only fall on a small handful of people.

Just like the anime’s plot.

Ash’s first-round opponent in the Caiyou Conference is still that Fighting Dojo apprentice, sending out Hitmontop.

But unlike the anime, Pikachu—having endured plenty of training and often being beaten down by Mime Jr.—has far surpassed his earlier self.

Pikachu easily defeated Hitmontop.

His two scheduled rivals in the Caiyou Conference, Masamune and Tetsuya, both won with Metalisk and Meowth with Boots, defeating Electabuzz and Persian respectively.

Luo Mu’s main focuses, Shinji and Shizuka, also performed steadily, breezing through the preliminaries as their opponents weren’t particularly strong.

By noon, the preliminary rounds of the Caiyou Conference were already over.

The number of contestants shrank at an alarming rate—from over six hundred down to two hundred fifty-six.

These two hundred fifty-six will now enter the official preliminary tournament.

The format is 2VS2 doubles battles, one match decides victory or defeat; losers are immediately eliminated.

That means contestants must win three straight matches to advance to the next round and qualify as one of the thirty-two competitors who will compete in 6VS6 full single battles.

In Luo Mu’s view, this round is still a filter—but among those eliminated, some are simply weak, while others are unlucky enough to face strong opponents right away.

“If this preliminary tournament’s doubles format were a six-pick-four system, I bet Uru’s Infernape would be the most dazzling one.”

Luo Mu muttered to himself, setting down his remote.

The TV in front of him powered into standby mode as he did so.

Watching matches all morning—even seated comfortably on a sofa—still left him tired.

Not just physically, but mentally too.

If only he were leaning against a Snorlax’s belly, he wouldn’t have this kind of trouble.

Thinking of the Poké Egg Aoki had sent him, Luo Mu’s eyes flickered with anticipation.

A Snorlax’s belly is the ultimate bed, far surpassing any artificial mattress.

—The only danger is, if Snorlax sleeps too deeply or decides to scratch an itch, it might roll over without noticing you and crush you into the fourth dimension.

Then again, most Snorlax are as lazy as professional slackers—they probably won’t even bother rolling over.

“Huh…” Luo Mu exhaled deeply, stretching his arms, then sniffed—the scent drifted into his nostrils, instantly making his stomach protest, “What’s that smell? So good.”

He walked to the kitchen and his eyes lit up at the sight of the sizzling iron wok, blazing red with ingredients.

Crawfish!

Of course, as always, don’t misunderstand.

The crawfish in the wok are just ordinary animals—not Pokémon like Crawdaunt.

Never mind the sharp question of why crawfish still exist in a world full of Pokémon.

Luo Mu inhaled deeply several more times, his gaze glued to the crawfish already waiting in the large iron basin, ready for his “favor.”

Steamed, garlic butter, and the spicy stir-fried version in the wok.

Just thinking about it made his mouth water.

Luo Mu tried to sneak a bite, but was caught red-handed by the watching Simisage.

He shouted things like “Chefs don’t steal, crops don’t grow,” and “I used to be a chef, you can’t treat me like this,” then was forcibly exiled from the kitchen.

Still, in the end, he happily devoured three bowls of crawfish in different flavors all by himself.

Biting into the firm, bouncy, slightly sweet shrimp meat, paired with the secret garlic sauce prepared by the Kids, it was so delicious his eyebrows nearly fell off.

Even though it was only February, still far from crawfish season.

But perhaps due to the Pokémon world’s different ecosystem, these crawfish were all huge, satisfying every bite.

“So good—I’m finally not a tired office worker who comes home after work, hesitates for ages on a delivery app, orders crawfish, then finds out it’s pre-cooked with limp, rubbery meat.”

“Even Aoki isn’t this miserable.”

Luo Mu, having swallowed the shrimp meat Simisage had peeled for him with telekinesis, strung on a skewer, silently prayed in his mind.

“I hope everyone who’s had these experiences ends up like me—in this world, imperfect as it is, but truly wonderful.”

After a full, satisfying lunch.

The Caiyou Conference’s preliminary tournament was already in full swing.

According to Luo Mu, among the current regions, only Hoenn had inserted doubles battles into the Caiyou Conference.

Doubles battles occupy a rather awkward position in this world—there are hardly any notable or classic records or footage of 6VS6 or 6VS4 doubles matches.

The spectacle is decent though; compared to sports where dozens of people scramble across huge fields, watching just four Pokémon and two Trainers is far less visually exhausting.

Though in those sports, viewers’ eyes usually just follow the ball anyway.

Ash probably didn’t appear until nearly three o’clock for his first match.

His opponent remained unchanged, but unlike the anime, Ash’s team lineup had shifted slightly.

His opponent, Yuino, sent out Snorunt and Tropius. Honestly, even Luo Mu couldn’t see how these two could coordinate to produce the 1+1>2 synergy typical of doubles battles.

At best, they could only fight independently and offer minor support.

On Ash’s side, however—

Maybe spending time with Luo Mu had finally opened his eyes.

His team selection was surprisingly sensible.

The Carvanha he caught in Hoenn, and the Infernape he caught in Paldea.

In Luo Mu’s view, Infernape’s ideal partner is either one of the rare Pokémon with the “Psychic Terrain” ability, or one that can set up a Psychic Terrain field.

With Trick Room and Psychic Terrain boosting it, Infernape’s “wide-area offense” becomes terrifying against fast, frail opponents—anyone who knows understands.

But this Fire-type and Fire-type combo isn’t perfect, yet at least the direction is right.

Neither side has to worry about interfering with the other.

Too bad Carvanha’s ability isn’t “Drought”—even if it boosts Tropius’s power, the boost to Infernape and Carvanha under sunlight far outweighs that minor advantage.

The battle didn’t last long.

Yuino, while not as weak as those eliminated in the previous round, wasn’t particularly strong either.

Even though Infernape and Carvanha were only trained or caught by Ash during his Hoenn journey,

they were more than enough to handle Snorunt and Tropius.

Luo Mu turned his attention to Shinji and Shizuka, who were next to appear.

Probably to play it safe.

Shinji immediately sent out his Wangpai , Claydol, paired with his now battle-hardened Medicham, overpowering his opponent with raw strength.

But Shizuka’s opponent was another story.

In Luo Mu’s estimation, her opponent had at least a 32nd-place guarantee—enough to reach the finals.

Thus, in this no-retry match, neither side wanted to be stopped here.

Shizuka’s team was Chansey and Armaldo.

Her opponent’s team was Sceptile, evolved from one of Hoenn’s starter Pokémon, paired with Shroomish.

One specialized in defense, the other in Grass-type moves.

But one thing made it hard for Shizuka’s Chansey to perform its role properly.

—That Shroomish had the “Poison Heal” ability.

Instead of weakening when poisoned, it became even more energetic.

Coupled with its excellent Fighting-type moves and Chansey’s paper-thin physical defense,

Shizuka was instantly at a disadvantage.

Chansey could only try to endure Shroomish’s punches using its powerful recovery and healing moves.

Armaldo, in this no-switching format, couldn’t use its wide move pool—like “Spikes” and “Whirlwind”—to annoy the opponent.

It could only act as a tank, using its high physical defense to shield Chansey from Sceptile and Shroomish’s combined assault.

Fortunately, Chansey’s value still held up.

After landing a lucky “Rock Slide” that caused a full “Paralysis,” Shizuka gradually stabilized her position and slowly turned the tide.

Though Armaldo was ultimately taken down by Shroomish’s final “Reversal,” Chansey endured Sceptile’s already-minimized Special Attack “Giga Drain,” watching the Sceptile without “Poison Heal” wear itself out from sheer exhaustion.

"...It's barely passing."

After giving his evaluation, Luo Mu turned off the TV without hesitation.

Even though after he finished posing, the TV would be turned back on by the noisy demands of Victini and Ursaring to keep watching.

Ignoring these details, Luo Mu began to think.

Shinji, of course, rarely underperforms—he’s almost impossible to lose unless he faces a truly tricky opponent.

As for Shizuka… compared to her defeat against Danyu at Blueberry Academy, she’s improved significantly.

It could be said that traveling is indeed effective and useful.

Battles with different Trainers, with Gym Leaders, and interactions with things he never encountered at school brought Shinsuke a small transformation, and Shizuka also began to look more like a Trainer.

Joy of the Paldea Pokémon Inspector.ver version might not be a fantasy after all.

Unfortunately, I could never prepare something like Latias or Latios for her.

This kind of thing can only come from personal fortune.

After their match ended, the rest of the afternoon’s schedule at the Caiyou Tournament felt finished to Luo Mu.

He had no desire to keep watching, and since the afternoon sun had grown mild, Luo Mu decided to drive out for a leisurely ride.

He had driven the RV recently, but his own customized pickup truck had barely been used—he naturally had to enjoy it.

“I’m going for a drive. Anyone want to come along?”

Luo Mu looked around the living room and asked.

Unexpectedly, the Crowned King handed Cosmog to Oliwa, who was COSing on a swing, and stood up.

“I’ll go with you.”

In the empty cargo bed of the pickup truck, the young man and the former king chatted idly.

When Luo Mu asked why she had decided to join him, the Crowned King smiled and replied, “Perhaps I simply want to learn more about modern human lifestyles.”

“The farm is nice, but occasionally going out isn’t bad.”

“Alright.” Luo Mu bit down on the last bit of lollipop in his mouth and mumbled, “Let’s also stop by Bottle City. Grandma Ju Zi recommended a feed store there—they say the fish fed with their fish feed grow exceptionally plump.”

It’s been quite a while since the other half of Thunder Pool’s aquaculture zone was divided.

Unfortunately, fish farming can’t be rushed; otherwise, Luo Mu wouldn’t have to eat fish by either taking Rhyhorn out to electrocute them in the lake—crossed out—or going fishing, or driving to Pingdie Town’s market to buy them.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to just net your own farmed fish online?

Bottle City isn’t near the sea; in fact, it’s nestled near the desert.

Yet it’s actually a city renowned for fish farming, with its specialty foods all tied to fish.

After all, this city is like a water metropolis similar to Ordemare.

Like an oasis isolated in the desert, Bottle City has forcibly created an urban space within the desert through extensive canal construction.

But.

When Luo Mu and the Crowned King arrived in Bottle City by car, they found—this place seemed to be in some kind of unrest?

(End of Chapter)