blogombal Chapter 747 The entire Quartz Plateau is calling your name!
Chapter 747 The entire Quartz Plateau is calling your name!
The rest of the work doesn't require Li Shuwen's help; Adu can handle it all by himself.
Li Shuwen returned to Pallet Town, and it was about time to take Ash and the others to Indigo Plateau to prepare for the Indigo League.
When Li Shuwen and his group arrived, the Quartz Plateau was already bustling with activity.
At dawn, sunlight pierced through the clouds and shone on the massive arena, bathing the building that held the dreams of countless trainers in a golden hue.
Colorful flags fluttered in the wind, and balloons trailing long banners floated under the blue sky.
Tourists and trainers from Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and even further afield poured into the venue, creating a bustling atmosphere.
Li Meining stood at the entrance to the competition venue, clenching her fists, her eyes burning with fighting spirit.
"I will definitely win the championship and let my mom know that I haven't let her down!"
Ash peeked over from the side, his hat askew, with Pikachu perched on his shoulder.
"The championship is mine! Nobody can take it from me!"
Shinji stood behind the two, watching them expressionlessly as they became hot-blooded, and uttered two words: "Childish."
The three of them were unwilling to concede to each other, and their gazes clashed in the air, sparks flying.
The first round of the competition begins.
Ash commands Charizard to unleash a devastating Flamethrower that sweeps away the opponent, while Pikachu's Thunderbolt strikes, sending shivers down the opponent's spine.
Li Meining's Lucario missiles are precision-guided, hitting vital targets with every shot.
Shinji's Scyther blades swung, unstoppable in their attacks, while Torterra's defenses were impregnable and unbreakable.
The three of them overcame all obstacles with unstoppable momentum, like an awl piercing a bag, attracting the attention of more and more people.
In the audience, discussions about them gradually increased.
A blond-haired boy, holding an innocent-looking girl, said, "Honey, look, that kid in the hat is from Pallet Town! Professor Oak's fellow townsman!"
The girl's eyes lit up. "Palenew Town...that's where champions have been born. So, this kid can win the championship too?"
The blond-haired guy nodded. "That's right, he can definitely beat those two guys from Sinnoh Veilwall City. The championship belongs to the Kanto region!"
A middle-aged man next to him shook his head and analyzed, "Kid, do you know who the Gym Leader of Veilwall City is?"
"Li Shuwen, the Midas Touch! That Li Meining is Li Shuwen's sister! How could the Midas Touch's sister be weak?"
The middle-aged woman next to him chimed in, "Yes, yes, yes! I've also heard that the Midas Touch can greatly increase one's strength. His sister must have been touched by it quite a few times!"
The gruff, tactical-minded man interjected, "Don't forget that cold-faced kid, Shinji. His tactics are meticulous, and he plays flawlessly in every match."
"I have high hopes for him; he's got the makings of a champion!"
A young man wearing glasses chimed in, "Professor Oak's grandson, Gary, is also participating this year. He's incredibly strong; he's been a genius since childhood!"
The person next to him shook his head: "Xiao Mao... I know him. He's too arrogant. I'm afraid he won't make it to the end."
The bespectacled man waved his hands excitedly, "Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
The person next to him spread his hands, "Then you just wait and see."
The Round of 16 will take place three days later.
Xiao Mao stood in the center of the field, facing a dark-skinned young man.
The man was tall and taciturn, with eyes as calm and steady as an ancient well.
His Pokémon on the field was a Nidoking, with bulging muscles and an imposing presence.
Shigeru commanded the last Arcanine to launch a fierce attack.
Flame jets, lightning teeth, crushing blows—each move is fierce and deadly.
But Nidoking, the dark-skinned youth, simply parried, dodged, and countered steadily, each step as solid as if he were in a rehearsal.
When Arcanine was exhausted and blasted away, Nidoking didn't even have a decent scratch on its body.
Xiao Mao lost, and lost cleanly and decisively.
A collective sigh rippled through the audience. "Xiao Shigeru was too impatient; he clearly had a chance..."
"Who is that dark-skinned guy? I've never heard of him before, how come he's so strong?"
"His fundamentals are so solid; every move is precise and without any unnecessary actions. How many years has he practiced like that…?"
Li Shuwen sat in the audience, watching Xiao Mao's departing figure, and gently shook his head.
"When I was training Ash, I never saw Gary. He was very confident that he could succeed on his own without my guidance."
Li Shuwen paused for a moment, then said, "Confidence is a good thing, but we can't be blindly confident. I hope that Xiao Mao can grow from this setback."
The quarterfinals lineup has been announced, and Ash sees that his opponent is Shinji.
He shouted excitedly, "Shinji, this time I'll show you my true power!"
Shinji glanced at him indifferently, then turned and left.
Li Meining nudged Li Shuwen, "Brother, who do you think will win?"
Li Shuwen smiled faintly and said, "We'll only know after we've competed. What do you think?"
Li Shuwen would not say anything if he did, as it would affect their fight.
On the second day, every one of Ash's attacks was accurately predicted by Shinji, and his surprise attacks were easily thwarted.
Shinji's tactics were as meticulous as a net, and the more Ash struggled, the tighter it became, until he was finally choked and unable to breathe.
Finally, when Charizard fell, Ash knelt on the field, pounding his fist on the ground, his eyes red-rimmed.
Pikachu crouched beside him and gently patted his back.
In the stands, someone sighed. "Ash played very well, but Shinji is too smart."
"It's not intelligence, it's composure. Xiao Zhi is too hot-blooded, and hot-bloodedness makes it easy to make mistakes."
"What a pity, I thought he could have gone much further."
After all, the opposite of being passionate is being reckless.
The semifinal lineup has been announced, with Shinji facing off against that dark-skinned guy.
This time, Shinji's meticulous tactics met their match.
The black-skinned Pokémon was solidly strong, steadily advancing and giving Shinji no chance.
Blackie's strength comes from time, while Shinji, being a newcomer, has had too little training time. The difference in raw power cannot be made up for by tactics.
Shinji, Ash, and Li Mining can all be considered to have the potential to become champions, and even Brock and Misty are not far behind.
But they aren't the kind of prodigies who can directly reach the regional championship in just one year.
When the tortoise-like creature collapsed, Shinji's face showed a look of resentment for the first time.
He didn't shout or yell; he just stood there, looking at the still-standing Nidoking, and remained silent for a long time.
Then he retrieved the earthen tortoise and turned to leave.
In the audience, the young man with glasses sighed, "Shinji's tactics were indeed impressive, but that black guy was too strong. Twenty years of consistent training, that kind of solid foundation, can't be achieved overnight."
The middle-aged man next to him nodded. "Basic skills are basic skills; no matter how smart you are, you can't bypass them."
In the evening, Li Shuwen was busy in the small kitchen of the athletes' village.
He poured the fresh milk into a pot, simmered it over low heat, added sugar and vanilla seeds, and stirred constantly.
Then pour in the egg yolks and continue stirring until the liquid thickens.
Filtering, cooling, pouring into the ice cream machine—every step is done meticulously, with the same focus as if they were engaged in a Pokémon battle.
Li Meining slipped into the kitchen and peeked at the pot of ice cream that was solidifying. "Wow, it smells so good! Brother, why are you making ice cream?"
"Cynthia will come tomorrow," Li Shuwen said without looking up.
A meaningful smile appeared on Li Meining's lips. "Oh, no wonder you put so much effort into it."
Li Shuwen ignored her.
Li Meining leaned against the doorframe, her smile gradually fading. "Brother, that dark-skinned guy... do you think I can beat him?"
Li Shuwen finally raised his head.
Looking into my sister's eyes, I saw both expectation and unease.
He smiled slightly. "Believe in yourself, believe in Lucario."
Li Meining paused for a moment, then nodded vigorously.
The next day, the sun shone exceptionally brightly.
When Cynthia got out of the car, her long golden hair shimmered softly in the sunlight.
Li Shuwen stood beside the car, and the moment their eyes met, the surrounding noise seemed to fall silent.
They stepped forward at the same time and embraced tightly.
Cynthia buried her face in his chest, her voice muffled. "I missed you."
Li Shuwen gently stroked her long hair. "Me too."
They hugged for a long time, so long that Li Meining, who was standing next to them, couldn't help but cough.
Cynthia then relaxed, her blushing face a mixture of shyness and joy.
Li Shuwen took out a thermos from behind her, which contained light pink ice cream.
"Freshly made, your favorite strawberry flavor."
Cynthia's eyes lit up immediately.
He took the insulated box, scooped out a spoonful, put it in his mouth, squinted his eyes, and let out a satisfied sigh.
"Mmm! Yours is still the best."
She scooped up another spoonful and held it to Li Shuwen's lips. "You should try some too."
Li Shuwen lowered his head and put the spoonful of ice cream into his mouth.
The sweet and sour taste of strawberries and the creamy smoothness melted on his tongue, but what he found even sweeter was the person who handed him the spoon.
The two of them took turns eating, and soon finished the whole box of ice cream.
Li Meining stood not far away, watching the two lovey-dovey people, and exaggeratedly shrugged her shoulders.
"I'm getting goosebumps. I'm going to meditate with Lucario. You two can keep being lovey-dovey."
She turned and walked away quickly, a smile playing on her lips.
Cynthia took a book out of her backpack and handed it to Li Shuwen. "This is a gift for you. It's the 'Dragon's Handbook,' which I got from an uncle. His family has been raising salamanders for generations; it should be helpful to you."
"The King of Kings ranking competition is about to begin. You'd better seize this last chance and become even stronger."
Li Shuwen took the book, opened the title page, and found it filled with cultivation insights and training notes.
He looked up at Cynthia, his eyes filled with tenderness. "Thank you."
Cynthia took his arm, rested her head on his shoulder, and said with a smile, "That's what happens when you're my little darling."
Li Shuwen's lips curled up slightly, but he did not refute her.
The final match arrived as scheduled.
The match between Li Meining and Hei Pi was a resounding success, with the entire stadium packed and the atmosphere reaching its peak.
Li Shuwen and Cynthia sat in the audience, holding hands and their fingers intertwined.
Both sides' Pokémon took turns entering the arena, making each match a tough battle.
One Pokémon after another fell, and one Poké Ball after another was retrieved.
In the end, only two Pokémon remained on the field.
Li Meining's Lucario, and Hei Pi's Nidoking.
Lucario was panting heavily, his body covered in wounds.
Nidoking was also badly injured, but he was twice the size of Lucario, and his imposing presence was like a mountain pressing down on Lucario.
Dark-skinned Nidoking raised his hand. "Nidoking, Earth Power!"
Nidoran slammed his fist into the ground, and a yellowish-brown energy wave exploded from beneath his feet.
The ground cracked, and rubble flew everywhere, causing Lucario to lose his balance.
"Flame Blast!" Nidoking roared, and a blazing pillar of fire swept across the battlefield.
Lucario desperately dodged, but the aftershocks of the Earth Force continued.
He staggered, his shoulder grazed by the flames, the charred marks a shocking sight.
In the audience, the middle-aged man sighed. "Lucario was completely overwhelmed. Nidoking is too strong; the difference in raw power is too great."
The young man next to him shook his head. "Li Meining is already very skilled, but that dark-skinned guy, his twenty years of training were definitely not for nothing."
In the arena, Li Meining's voice pierced through the noise: "Lucario, show everyone the results of our training!"
Lucario trembled all over, and his body began to emit a resolute blue light.
Li Meining clenched her fist, "We'll stand together on the highest podium!"
In Li Meining's eyes, the power of waveguide was like a blue flame burning.
Power surged from within her, intertwining with Lucario's light.
Bond Transformation!
Lucario's form began to change, its body becoming more slender and agile, its hair standing on end like steel needles, and a blue line appearing on its forehead.
Everyone in the audience stood up.
"What is that?!"
A flicker of surprise crossed the dark-skinned man's eyes, but he remained calm. "Nidoking, 100,000 horsepower!"
Nidoking, propelled by its four legs and enveloped in earthy-yellow energy, charged toward Lucario like an out-of-control heavy truck.
A burst of blue light flashed in Li Meining's eyes.
"Lucario, beat me with the bone stick!"
Lucario, wielding his bone club, faced him head-on.
The bone club swung out, colliding head-on with Nidoking's 100,000 horsepower.
boom! boom! boom!
Triple hit!
Each strike landed precisely on the point where Nidoking was exerting his power, neutralizing his momentum layer by layer.
With his final strike, Lucario thrust his bone club into Nidoking's lower body and then yanked it upwards.
Nidoking's massive body was lifted into the air!
"Wave Missile!"
Lucario twirled the bone club in his hand, condensing it into a ball of azure energy with a diameter of over one meter.
The energy inside the sphere was spinning wildly, like a miniature blue sun!
With nowhere to gain leverage in the air, Nidoran could only watch helplessly as the giant wave missile flew towards him.
boom--!!!
Blue light engulfed the entire arena.
When the light faded, Nidoking lay at the bottom of the pit, his eyes closed, completely unconscious.
Lucario stood in the middle of the field, panting heavily.
The referee's flag was lowered. "Nidoking is unable to battle! Therefore, the winner is—Li Meining from Veilfall City!"
The entire audience erupted in thunderous applause!
In the audience, the middle-aged man slapped his thigh. "No wonder she's the sister of the Midas Touch! Her strength, her bond—it's incredible!"
"Indeed, Blackie's loss was not unjust. It's not that he wasn't strong enough, but that the bond between Li Meining and Lucario was too deep."
Li Meining stood in the middle of the field, tears streaming down her face.
Lucario walked over to her and gently nuzzled her hand with his head.
She hugged Lucario, sobbing uncontrollably. "We did it...we really did it..."
In the audience, Li Shuwen watched this scene with pride in his eyes. Shirona leaned on his shoulder and whispered, "Meining has grown up."
Li Shuwen nodded. "Yes."
He looked down at their intertwined hands, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Sunlight streamed onto the arena, onto the tearful girl holding the trophy, and onto the men and women embracing in the stands.
The champion of the Quartz Conference has been crowned, and the entire Quartz Plateau is calling out the name of Li Meining!