After hanging up the phone, Ash wiped the non-existent cold sweat from his forehead and mumbled, "Is Professor Oak exaggerating a bit too much? Are those two Gyms really that terrifying?"
"I don't know about Saffron Gym, but Cerulean Gym's reputation is indeed as Professor Oak described."
Xiao Xia tapped her tender chin with her finger, a thoughtful expression on her face.
"The Gym Leader of Cerulean Gym is named Saka Mu. Besides being a Gym Leader, he's also an entrepreneur. It's said that Poké Balls, spatial backpacks, and other items all have Saka Mu's investment. His strength has always been hidden, making him unfathomable. From the strength he occasionally displays, he's at least an Elite Trainer level."
"Besides that, everyone who has challenged Cerulean Gym says that Saka Mu is gentle and gives guidance. Every Trainer who has battled him, regardless of victory or defeat, feels greatly benefited, provided the strength gap isn't too large."
"There are also rumors that Saka Mu occasionally makes charitable donations and supports Trainers from impoverished families, etc. He practically seems like a perfect man."
Xiao Xia recounted Saka Mu's information as if listing her family treasures, leaving Ash and Pikachu stunned.
From Xiao Xia's words, Saka Mu seems to be more than just a Gym Leader. From his personality to his public image to his strength, he is a flawless man. If a new Trainer were to face such a person as their first Gym, it would indeed cause a considerable psychological shadow.
"Then forget it, let's go to another Gym. The closest Gym from here is... Pewter Gym. Xiao Xia, do you know about Pewter Gym?" Ash looked at the map given by Joy, finding the city closest to Viridian City: Pewter City. There was also a League Gym in Pewter City.
"Pewter Gym, huh... I remember that Gym's Leader specializes in Rock-type Pokémon. Generally, Rock-types will have some Ground-type attributes or Ground-type moves. Ash, you only have Pikachu, right? Challenging Pewter Gym like that would be very disadvantageous!"
The all-knowing Xiao Xia provided information about Pewter Gym. Although Ash didn't know where Xiao Xia got all this information, her intelligence was usually spot-on, almost never wrong.
"And Gym battles are usually two-on-two or three-on-three. If you only have one Pokémon, unless you can handle two or three opponents, you shouldn't even think about challenging a Gym."
Xiao Xia's words made Ash fall into deep thought. Pikachu's current strength was significantly stronger than that of ordinary beginner Pokémon, and dealing with the most basic Gym difficulty should be no problem—in a one-on-one situation.
If the opponent had two or even three Pokémon, Pikachu really wouldn't be able to handle it.
Moreover, Pewter Gym might even use Ground-type Pokémon. Ground-type moves not only counter Pikachu, but Pikachu's Electric-type moves are completely ineffective against Ground-types. It looked like a complete disadvantage from every angle.
The original Ash didn't really understand type matchups, but the experts in the group had analyzed Pikachu's type, so Ash knew what types Electric-type countered and what types countered Electric-type.
"What about this one then? This Hua Lan Gym is also very close. What type of Gym is Hua Lan Gym?" Ash pointed his finger at Cerulean City on the map.
However, Ash, focused on the map, didn't notice Xiao Xia's suddenly stiff expression when he mentioned Hua Lan Gym.
"Hua... Hua Lan Gym is Water-type, but I don't recommend you go to Hua Lan Gym!"
"Why? If it's Water-type, my Pikachu should be very useful, right?" Ash was a bit confused. For him, who only had an Electric-type Pikachu, wasn't a Water-type Gym just perfect?
"Pika, Pika!!" Pikachu also patted his not-so-muscular arm, indicating that he would shine brightly in a Water-type Gym and defeat the opponent.
"Because... that... there's... no challenge! That's right, there's no challenge! Think about it, aren't you out on an adventure to challenge the unknown and stronger things? What's the point of fighting a Gym with a favorable type? If you're going to fight, you should definitely fight a disadvantageous type! I think Pewter Gym is very good, mm."
Xiao Xia spoke with a serious expression, and by the end, she herself nodded in agreement, indicating that what she said made perfect sense.
Ash looked at Xiao Xia suspiciously. He always felt that the excuse she gave was too clumsy, as if she didn't want him to challenge Hua Lan Gym.
"But didn't you just say that Pewter Gym was a bit too difficult for me?"
"Difficult? Where was it difficult? I didn't say anything like that! I just said it was a bit disadvantageous, because you only have one Pikachu, after all! But if you're going to Pewter City, you have to pass through Chang Pan Forest. You just need to catch one or two Pokémon in Chang Pan Forest that can counter Rock-type Pokémon, and then you'll be fine!"
Ash: ...
"But you just said that a disadvantageous type has a challenge..."
"Can't it be one disadvantageous type and one advantageous type?! Why are you so stubborn! In short, I don't recommend you go to Hua Lan Gym, as for whether you go or not, it's up to you!" Xiao Xia snorted, turning her face away from Ash and Pikachu.
Ash and Pikachu exchanged glances. Both the boy and the mouse felt a bit confused, seemingly not knowing why the other seemed a little angry.
"Alright then, let's go to Pewter City first. Let's set off now!" Ash put on his backpack and was about to continue his journey with Pikachu, but Xiao Xia pulled him back directly.
"Wait a minute! Didn't I just say? We have to pass through Chang Pan Forest. Chang Pan Forest is very big, and it's impossible to get out of Chang Pan Forest in one or two days, so we need to buy some camping equipment. Do you already have some?"
Ash shook his head. His mom had prepared a lot of things for him, but not much of it was actually useful. At most, there was a sleeping bag, instant food, and some universal Pokémon food; the rest was basically useless.
"If you don't have any, then let's go buy some at the Viridian City mall. The most important thing is to buy more insect repellent, there are a lot of bugs in the forest!" Xiao Xia emphasized the latter part of her sentence, especially when she said 'bugs,' her voice seemed to tremble slightly.
"I understand, then let's go, target Viridian Mall!" Ash nodded in understanding, then took the lead and walked out of the Elf Center, with Xiao Xia following closely behind.
As they walked out of the Elf Center, Ash brushed past three people who were completely bundled up. As if sensing something, Ash's gaze turned to the three, two of whom were relatively tall and one relatively short.
"What's wrong, Ash? Do you know those three people?" Xiao Xia followed Ash's gaze and saw three people completely wrapped in coats, their appearance completely hidden.
Putting aside whether Ash knew them or not, to be able to recognize them when they were completely covered like that, did Ash have eagle eyes?