A very powerful attribute.
Although it is a skill assigned to the Water type and needs to be used continuously,
It still doesn't change the incredible boost this entry brings to Pokémon!
Take Pikachu as an example.
His Thunder God attribute increases the power of Electric-type moves by 100%!
It also grants immunity to Electric-type attacks of the same level.
Without accounting for the attribute boost, Pikachu's strength at the advanced gym level is roughly that of a beginner Elite.
But if all entry bonuses are considered,
He can even rival top Elite-level Pokémon!
That's why Pikachu's level is marked with brackets in the system.
There's a reason none of Ash's other Pokémon have that notation.
It's because the system doesn't include overall entry enhancement when calculating their visible levels.
And not just Pikachu—every Pokémon under Ash can fight opponents of higher levels purely by relying on their attributes.
If someone has such a powerful advantage and still can't win above their rank,
Then either the Trainer is useless, or there's something wrong with the world itself.
All in all, this [Turbulent Waves] entry, when equipped on a Water-type Pokémon,
Can enhance its power by at least fifty percent!
Ash currently has only one Water-type Pokémon—Frogadier.
So he replaced Frogadier's water entry with the newly acquired Tidal Wave.
There's still a limit to the Water Mage ability, but Ash doesn't have enough resources to upgrade it yet.
Right now, he's focused on gathering ten orange entries to upgrade Pikachu's Best Actor attribute.
He truly has no spare entry experience left to invest!
After assigning Frogadier his new entry, Ash walked over to Misty.
He did what Sakura had done earlier—placing his hand gently on Misty's head and stroking it softly.
"You did very well, Misty. Next, reflect on this battle and learn from it. It will definitely help you improve your command skills in the future."
"I believe that before long, the Cerulean Gym will become the strongest in Kanto."
Hearing that, Misty suddenly threw herself into Ash's arms and began crying loudly.
After all, she was still a young girl in her early teens.
Being completely defeated in this battle had dealt a big blow to her confidence.
Ash's comforting words broke the final bit of restraint in her heart.
Feeling the soft warmth in his arms, Ash hesitated for a moment before gently embracing her back.
At this moment, letting her vent was the best comfort he could offer.
Serena, standing not far away, looked at the two of them hugging each other.
The scene in front of her could be described as a world-famous painting.
Still, Serena only felt a brief pang of sadness before quickly calming herself.
It was just a hug—it didn't mean anything more.
And besides, Ash had just crushed Misty so badly that she deserved a little comfort.
...
"Goodbye! Make sure to visit the Cerulean Gym more often when you can!"
"And Misty, remember to catch stronger Pokémon next time. We don't want to lose this badly every single time!"
"That's right! And Misty, you were so embarrassing when you cried just now! Hahaha!"
The three sisters saw Misty and her friends off with teasing smiles.
Lily's last remark made Misty blush instantly.
She didn't even know what to say.
The moment Ash patted her head, she had instinctively hugged him and burst into tears.
It felt like all the frustration and pressure she had been holding inside suddenly burst out.
Looking back now, she couldn't help but feel completely embarrassed by the whole thing.
Ash and Serena simply smiled and didn't tease her about it.
After all, Misty probably wanted to crawl into a hole already.
The three said their goodbyes to the Cerulean sisters and continued their journey.
One small event worth noting was that on their way out,
They ran into Team Rocket once again.
Ash immediately ordered Pikachu to send them flying without hesitation!
The trio had brought some kind of new robot,
But to Pikachu, they were nothing but clouds in the sky.
What surprised Ash was that this time, after defeating Team Rocket,
They actually dropped another orange entry!
Although it wasn't a particularly strong attribute, its quality was excellent!
With just three more purple attributes, Ash would finally have ten orange entries—
Enough to upgrade Pikachu's Best Actor attribute!
This battle at the Cerulean Gym had confirmed one of Ash's biggest theories.
By defeating plot-related characters, the chances of obtaining high-level or rare entries were much higher!
Later, Ash realized something even more interesting.
Even if you repeatedly defeat those plot-related characters,
The probability of advanced item drops still remains higher than from regular Pokémon battles!
Last time he blasted Team Rocket away, they dropped a purple item.
This time, it was an orange one.
For a brief moment, Ash actually felt grateful toward the trio.
He had a feeling that if those three continued to chase him forever,
They might just end up supplying him with endless high-tier entries!
Thinking about it that way, those three were really his lucky stars!
...
After leaving Cerulean City, their next destination was Vermilion City.
It just so happened that Vermilion City was home to an old friend of Ash's—
Or rather, it might be more accurate to call them childhood sweethearts.
As they traveled down the forest path, Ash suddenly turned to Serena and asked,
"By the way, Serena, aren't you going to challenge any gyms?"
"You seem to enjoy Pokémon battles. You could even enter the Indigo Plateau Conference if you wanted."
Hearing this, Serena gave a wry smile.
"I want to challenge gyms too!" she said helplessly.
"But I only have one Pokémon—Fennekin. I can't even meet the minimum number required for a gym challenge."
"And whether it's the Pewter Gym or the Cerulean Gym, my Fennekin has a total disadvantage in attributes."
"Plus, I don't have the level advantage either, so fighting two at once would be impossible!"
After hearing that, Ash nodded in understanding.
So that was why. No wonder Serena, despite her growing interest in battling, hadn't challenged any gyms.
It turned out she was limited by both the number of her Pokémon and their elemental disadvantage.
That explained everything.
But still…
(End of the chapter)