Join my p@treon for more chapters
[email protected]/Tempest_29
Due to Chris's arrival, the World Pokémon Headquarters had become increasingly busy. Following Chris's request to "accelerate the schedule," battles were being arranged almost daily.
The World Pokémon Headquarters was constantly occupied with receiving and scheduling trainers who came to issue challenges.
Videos of the live battles were also being broadcast.
The battle footage in these videos was brutal.
Chris hadn't used the same Pokémon twice over six consecutive days, and in half of those matches, he'd defeated his opponent using just a single Pokémon. In some cases, Chris hadn't even bothered showing up in person, allowing his Pokémon to battle autonomously.
Still, no one could shake Chris's position as one of the Masters Eight.
Countless viewers couldn't help but marvel. "Is this the youngest and strongest champion in China's history?"
"He hasn't even used his main team, right? He's defeating these top-ranked trainers with just his second-string Pokémon."
"If he actually deployed his primary team, wouldn't it be completely unfair!"
"The Chinese champion is absolutely terrifying!"
The general audience was simply enjoying the spectacle, but in the eyes of trainers worldwide, this was far more significant than mere entertainment.
If the announcement of the World Pokémon Contest had awakened trainers who'd been dormant for four years—like tossing a large, lively fish into still waters—then the powerful trainers who typically remained quiet had emerged one after another, each harboring fierce ambitions to challenge the Masters Eight and claim the title of World's Strongest Trainer!
Now, Chris was like a fisherman who'd speared that big fish with a single strike.
The World Pokémon Contest clearly hadn't even reached the Masters Eight stage yet, but it already seemed like everyone was just waiting to fast-forward and hand Chris the crown of "World's Strongest Trainer."
As a result, the World Pokémon Alliance headquarters officially had to suspend live broadcasts of Chris's battles.
Several other Masters Eight members came forward and issued "championship declarations" vowing they would definitely win the tournament.
The stagnant waters of the trainer world were now showing signs of revitalization.
"I only made a small move, and I've already reached this division's limit," Chris remarked while reviewing information on his phone and sipping tea.
Why do those words sound so infuriating?
Wanda thought to herself.
She drank her tea in silence. Her boss's arrogance was truly astounding, but his strength absolutely qualified him to be arrogant. Did that make it more or less irritating?
"Christina just sent a message. For the remaining scheduled duels, those trainers have all forfeited."
"So you can directly claim your seat among the Masters Eight, and we can return home tomorrow," Wanda glanced at her phone and announced suddenly.
"That was expected," Chris said with a smile. He'd already been turned down three times before receiving this news.
Judging from the current state of "public opinion" in the trainer world, only a fool would consider challenging him now.
Other trainers were far more willing to challenge the other Masters Eight members than to face a legendary trainer who possessed Lugia, Zeraora, Deoxys, and Jirachi.
Even if their alternative opponent was currently ranked first among the Masters Eight.
Although Chris wasn't yet ranked highest among the Masters Eight, in the eyes of trainers and audiences alike, he was already the uncrowned king standing above them all.
"What time is tomorrow's flight?"
"Eight in the morning."
"Alright." Chris stood and headed upstairs.
He walked onto his room's balcony and gazed into the distance, enjoying one last beautiful view of the sky island.
After stretching, he sat down, pulled out his handheld gaming device, and began "working."
During his two weeks on Sky Island, aside from training his second team of Pokémon, Chris had also been busy with his handheld device.
He opened the quest panel.
[Tip: Number of champions defeated so far (8/10)]
[Note: When the number of defeated champions reaches 10, the Pokémon Championship will automatically unlock, and all Gym Trainers, Elite Trainers, and Champion Trainers previously defeated will receive enhanced difficulty in the Pokémon Championship mode!]
The eight champions were: Wallace and Steven from the Hoenn Alliance, Glenn from the Iron Alliance, Cynthia from the Sinnoh Alliance, Alder from the Unova Alliance, Diantha from the Kalos Alliance, Leon from the Galar Region, and from the Johto Region Alliance and Indigo Alliance, the Dragon-type master Lance—though he was actually classified as a "Flying-type" champion.
Unfortunately, the Orange Islands' Head Trainer "Drake" wasn't quite strong enough to be classified as a champion-level trainer, despite Chris having cleared the Orange Islands storyline ten times.
Fortunately, he'd recently encountered and defeated former champion "Steven" in a mining area within the Hoenn Region.
The system calculated former champions as qualifying toward the "champion" requirement.
After discovering this mechanic, Chris had breathed a sigh of relief.
For the remaining two champions, he had targets he could definitely locate at any time—no need to search across the entire world.
One was the former Galar Region champion, "Mustard," who happened to be Chris's teacher.
The other was Red, located at "Mt. Silver"—the highest-level dungeon with a challenge requirement of level 100 and difficulty comparable to facing Mewtwo.
After defeating all the powerful trainers in the real world, Chris's confidence had soared even higher.
Mt. Silver was just a dungeon anyway. If he lost, he could simply retry. It was worth attempting the challenge.
If he truly couldn't win, he could wait a while longer, or alternatively seek out "Blue."
However, before challenging Red, Chris decided to prioritize "betraying his master"!
He took a plane to the Galar Region, then flew to the Isle of Armor.
Chris traveled at full speed, and his character on the handheld device pedaled furiously on a bicycle until reaching a very familiar courtyard.
He selected the option to enter the dojo.
Suddenly, the scenery before Chris transformed, and he found himself stepping into the dojo's interior.
Inside the dojo, Teacher Mustard cut an unimpressive figure.
White pants, green jacket, two long white eyebrows hanging down both sides of his face like a cricket that had lost a fight.
He was leaning in the corner, holding a handheld device almost identical to Chris's, playing games. He didn't possess even the slightest hint of championship presence—just like an elderly child.
"Long time no see. I heard you went to other regions for training and defeated several regional champions. It seems you've grown considerably stronger," Mustard said without looking up.
Chris was slightly surprised. News of him defeating other regional champions had already reached Master Mustard's ears?
That made sense upon further reflection. Even Glenn, champion of the remote Iron Region, knew about his accomplishments in other regions. As someone from the Galar Region—which boasted the most competitive battling scene in the Pokémon world—Mustard had no reason not to know about his apprentice's feats.
"Yes, Master," Chris replied loudly.
"So, you've returned today to challenge me?" Mustard set down the handheld device in his hands, and his eyes gleamed brightly, as if trying to see straight through Chris.