If one were to view the Yuhong Dojo from a divine perspective, they would find that its appearance somewhat resembled a Gloom.
Li Qingfeng guessed this was likely due to something that happened to Erika when she was young.
"Then, I will go change into more suitable clothes first.
Please wait in the hall for a moment.
I will be right back, please bear with me."
Erika smiled slightly and walked into the changing room deep within the Gym to change her clothes.
Xiao Gang patted Xiao Zhi's shoulder, cheering him on: "Xiao Zhi, you can do it, don't be nervous."
Xiao Xia also encouraged Xiao Zhi: "That's right, you'll definitely win this time."
Xiao Zhi sat on the chair, a bit anxious: "Oh… I really want to challenge the Gym quickly! I also don't know when my Charmander and the others will be able to evolve."
Now that Dratini had evolved, his three starter Pokémon hadn't evolved, which gave Xiao Zhi a sense of crisis.
Surely, they wouldn't fail to evolve before the Indigo Plateau Conference, right?
'I estimate that after this battle, Charmander should be close to evolving.
Haven't you noticed its temper has been a bit off lately?
Those are some signs before a Fire-type Pokémon evolves, so you should pay attention then.'
Li Qingfeng pondered for a moment; Charmander had become increasingly agitated these past few days, and it had more power during battles.
'Hmm? What's wrong, what do I need to pay attention to?' Xiao Zhi was a bit confused, wanting to know why Li Qingfeng suddenly said that.
Li Qingfeng recalled the situation in the original series and replied: 'Some Pokémon will have bad tempers after evolving, and Charmander is showing a bit of that tendency now.' (Just to clarify, in the original work, it was because Xiao Zhi didn't have enough badges and Charmander had a bad temper.
Now Xiao Zhi has enough badges, but Charmeleon's temper will still be a bit volatile.
You can see the solution I write about later.)
'You know, it was abandoned before.
I now have two solutions here to make it trust you after it evolves.'
Upon hearing this, Xiao Zhi immediately became serious and quickly asked: 'What, what? Tell me quickly.'
Li Qingfeng extended his first finger: 'One, use strength to make Charmeleon submit; this is the most violent and effective method.
I personally don't recommend this.'
After speaking, he extended his second finger: 'Two, let Charmeleon feel your goodwill.
This way, it can recall your past times together, and your bond will become even closer.'
Xiao Zhi eagerly asked, "Two, two, two, Li Dage, tell me quickly, how can I make Charmeleon feel my goodwill?"
Li Qingfeng said without hesitation: 'This requires using Aura.
When it evolves, you immediately run over and transmit your goodwill into its heart.
This way, theoretically, there shouldn't be any problems.'
Xiao Zhi nodded: 'Okay, I understand! But how do I use Aura?'
'…'
Just then, Erika also changed her clothes and came to the hall.
Now she was wearing an elegant furisode, and she looked somewhat sleepy, making Xiao Zhi wonder if she truly had the strength.
However, the next moment, he remembered what Li Qingfeng had told him: never underestimate any Gym Leader.
Only then did he perk up, ready to face the Yuhong Dojo battle.
"Haaah… Challenger, thank you for waiting."
Erika nodded gently, then led Xiao Zhi and the others to the Gym's battle arena.
Xiao Zhi blinked, subconsciously thinking she was looking down on him: 'Li Dage, she's not deliberately mocking me, is she?'
Li Qingfeng shook his head, recalling Erika's original situation: 'No, she probably accidentally inhaled Sleep Powder while changing clothes, which is why she's a bit sleepy now.'
He specifically added: 'Don't let your guard down.
Fight well this time, and Charmander might even successfully evolve.'
'Understood!'
[Erika often dozes off, which means she is frequently affected by Grass-type Pokémon pollen.]
— — — — Arrived at the battle arena — — — —
After explaining the rules… (3V3)
Erika stood on one side, holding a poké ball, and threw it first.
This was a Pokémon covered entirely in blue vines.
It had a pair of red, boot-like feet, but its arms were not visible.
pokémon index: "Tangela, the Vine Pokémon."
This Pokémon is very suitable for acting as a vanguard to test the challenger's strength.
Xiao Zhi chose a type advantage this time and shouted: "Charmander, I choose you!"
"A Fire-type Pokémon, a very wise choice."
Erika praised the energetic Charmander.
The next moment, her tone shifted: "However, against my Pokémon, simply relying on type advantage may not guarantee a win~"
Xiao Zhi dared not slack off; he already had four badges, so Erika would surely display different strength than before.
As usual, he decided to test her depth: "Charmander, use Flamethrower!"
Charmander opened its mouth, and a vivid orange-red beam of flame shot out.
The high temperature immediately spread, making Tangela uncomfortable.
It quickly dodged, avoiding Charmander's Flamethrower, desperately searching for a safe refuge.
Tangela ran, with Charmander close behind, constantly changing its firing direction, giving Tangela no chance to breathe.
Soon, Tangela was hit by the Flamethrower.
Flames instantly ignited, burning its body, and the scorching sensation made it unbearable.
Tangela tried to extinguish the flames on its body but to no avail.
The power of the flames pushed it back relentlessly, leaving it on the verge of collapse, and finally, it weakly fell to the ground.
Erika saw Charmander easily defeat Tangela and analyzed that Xiao Zhi probably wanted to learn moves early by suppressing evolution, not like someone who had just obtained a Pokémon.
Thinking this, Erika looked at Xiao Zhi with a hint of fighting spirit in her eyes.
She took out a smoothly polished poké ball and released her second Pokémon—Vileplume!
This Vileplume was much larger than what the index showed, certainly more than 1.2 meters.
It was evident that she had trained this Vileplume well.
"Charmander, no matter what, the opponent is a Grass-type Pokémon, use Flamethrower on it!"
Xiao Zhi thought that even if Vileplume was strong, it was still a Grass-type Pokémon, and Fire-type moves would definitely cause considerable damage.
As a Gym Leader, Erika must have moves to counter Fire-type Pokémon.
She waved her hand forward and commanded: "Go, Petal Dance."
Xiao Zhi was still wondering what Petal Dance was when he saw flowers flying everywhere, like clouds and mist, forming a splendid floral wreath around Vileplume.
The petals bloomed, colorful and vibrant, various flowers intertwined, like a dazzling painting of a flower sea.
Vileplume's flower wreath formed a flower wall around it, like an unbreakable barrier, stopping Charmander's flames.
Charmander's flames collided with the flower wall, making sizzling noises, but they could not penetrate the thick flower defense.
The interplay of flames and petals created a beautiful and magnificent scene, with the fiercely burning flames dancing on the flower wall, as if flying through an ethereal floral curtain.
— —
Erika