Despite Baimu deliberately delaying his exit for a while, he was still surrounded by crowds of enthusiastic gamblers.
"Buddy! I have high hopes for you!"
"Do you know you slapped a lot of people in the face?"
"Dark horse, dark horse, you're my lucky star!"
"Who let you win? Who allowed you to win? Do you know I've lost a ton of money because of you!?"
Excitement, ecstasy, teasing, and anger—all kinds of emotions, directed at him or others, were displayed on those faces, coming one after another.
Of course.
His path being blocked was the main reason he could observe those faces closely.
The crazy gamblers seemed unwilling to let him go just yet, grabbing him and trying to provoke some response.
Fortunately, Cheng Hong and other team members arrived in time, dispersing the gamblers and rescuing their surrounded captain.
"I almost couldn't squeeze in, too many people. The top sixteen is quite popular, huh."
Cheng Hong complained, drenched in sweat.
"It's the money that's popular, not the people."
Baimu corrected his mistake,
Flop had already warned him yesterday that after reaching the top sixteen, everyone's attention would increase significantly. Without someone to pick him up, he might get blocked at the exit.
Therefore, he specifically called Cheng Hong and the others to come pick him up, and sure enough, Flop was right.
In the lobby.
Baimu turned back towards the big screen, where he could see the participants who had already defeated their opponents and advanced to the finals tournament.
If nothing unexpected happens, these people will be his toughest opponents.
But to be honest, reaching the top sixteen, he and Lairon were already starting to feel the strain, relying mainly on Mawile's superior talent and unpredictability for direct combat.
The three-on-three format would become even more difficult.
"Tough opponents..."
"Baimu, they're all saying you're that dark horse who might win the championship! Should we place a couple of bets?"
Cheng Hong eagerly inquired.
The others also showed expectant expressions.
Evidently, during their time in the lobby, they frequently overheard others betting and bragging about how much they won, the allure of easy money drawing them in.
"Sure, but the maximum bet is two thousand bucks. I only bet two thousand myself. Losing it doesn't hurt, winning it feels great." Baimu certainly wouldn't do something like forbidding others from benefiting.
Yet, gambling can easily go to one's head, so he emphasized the betting limit.
The team members, hearing this, nodded with delight.
——
After advancing to the top sixteen of the battle tournament.
The rewards were quite generous.
Although there were no direct cash prizes, items like a year's supply of Pokémon-specialized canned food and a Pyrite Arena membership card—offering discounts on purchases—were quite appealing to Baimu.
Unfortunately, for those seeded from previous tournaments and potential winners, these things might not hold much interest; their primary goal remained profiting from those gambling addicts.
Throwing matches was out of the question; Ying Yuan would not tolerate such actions, but Ying Yuan indeed turned a blind eye to the operation of underground gambling rings.
There's even gossip that the Pyrite Arena battle tournament has remained popular precisely because Ying Yuan also invests in the gambling side, earning shocking profits annually.
Baimu wasn't too interested in these matters.
He was more focused on who his next opponent would be.
Though he long understood that winning against those formidable foes was impossible, a twinge of regret lingered.
After all, he hadn't achieved ultimate victory in the simulator, and he wouldn't achieve it outside the simulator either.
If only he had two more months, he thought.
With three months of progress, at the current rate of growth, reaching the manager level—where the average Pokémon level exceeds Level 50—was absolutely attainable.
By then, even if the top few had manager-level skills, he wouldn't be afraid.
But alas, there wasn't enough time to develop.
On the other side.
As a well-known event in Pyrite Town, the top sixteen spots quickly spread throughout the trainer circles.
Baimu's familiar yet unfamiliar name resurfaced in many ears.
Driven by curiosity, people began searching for information on him, quickly discovering significant findings, like his rise from a young age and the origins of his Pokémon.
Except for Mawile, whose origins remain unclear, the other two already had conclusions.
Many discovered that Baimu's success so far relied equally on his own efforts and his Pokémon's abilities.
Because trainers who had battled Baimu reported that their Pokémon seemed to have no secrets before his eyes, they consistently devised strategies specifically targeting them.
As if blessed with an eye of insight.
Of course, they would never admit their own lack of knowledge or poor command; to save face, they opted to lavish excessive praise on Baimu.
Especially one from the top thirty-two, who had some fame in the Pyrite Arena, having reached the top sixteen last year.
So among those lauding Baimu, he praised the loudest, even bestowing him with a nickname—
"Demon Wood."
The meaning implied that Baimu was as fearsome as a demon.
No choice.
In the end, it's a fight for dominance; if they don't make things a bit high-strung and spirited, it's tough to rally their subordinates.
After all, the main series regions have also given champions and the Four Heavenly Kings nicknames and titles, albeit a bit corny.
"Lorelei" and "Dragon Messenger Adu" are considered normal.
Dan Emperor is blatantly called the "World's Strongest King," seemingly ignoring champions from other regions.
And on that night,
Baimu unexpectedly received another summon from Group Leader Cang Zhilang.
The familiar boxing arena.
As usual, gloves were thrown at him as soon as he entered the room.
Only this time, it wasn't Machamp facing Baimu, but Cang Zhilang himself.
This excited him.
Cang Zhilang surely wouldn't appreciate subordinates deliberately holding back, so wasn't this a chance to fight the boss openly?
Baimu eagerly stepped into the ring.
Two minutes later.
He, drenched in sweat, clutched his chest and abdomen, slowly moving to the edge of the boxing ring.
"Li!"
Machamp tossed him a sports drink.
"Thanks."
Baimu took it, somewhat glumly drinking.
If not for the ten punches from Cang Zhilang, he'd have already paid back the earlier blows he received from Machamp.
Indeed, no matter which world you're in, the weight and height advantages of similar species remain; unless you mess with some bizarre superpowers, there's no breaching this "common sense."
"Where did you learn boxing?"
Cang Zhilang's voice came from behind.
He replied, "I've been exploring it myself with textbooks. Do you think my stance and all are correct?"
"Ha, nonsense!"
Cang Zhilang scoffed disdainfully, clearly not believing Baimu could self-learn to this extent from just books. What book could turn an absolute novice who relied solely on physical talent into a semi-professional in a month?
But he had no interest in delving into that topic, as he summoned him for another purpose this time.
"I've settled the matter with your Lairon."
"Huh?"
Baimu turned around, a bit puzzled.
Cang Zhilang said, "Your Lairon belonged to a casino under the River Association. Its trainer lost all his money, and more Pokémon, incurring a massive debt, and ran away through the mayor's connections. They sought us to reclaim it."
"..."
"Bring back good results; otherwise, you'll get beaten again."
"...Boss."
"Get back and rest, don't embarrass the Quicksand Team in tomorrow's match." Cang Zhilang issued a dismissal order.
Baimu quietly left the boxing arena.
Returning to the surface, a gust of cold wind startled him.
Holy crap.
Almost got pua-ed successfully!
Baimu felt a tug at his heart, unable to resist how after painting a perfect picture, they actually handed him a complete piece; this time being summoned, whether for motivation or to foster closer relations, all worked.
Not to mention they'd settled matters with the Lairon.
Those lackeys under Cang Zhilang probably longed to be summoned and beaten like that.
"Truly, the most adaptable creatures are humans; getting used to things is terrifying." He sighed,