Pokémon: I picked up a reborn Eevee at the start of the game.

Xia Chen still touched the elf in front of him with his fingers, somewhat incredulous. He was afraid that this was another disguise that Zorua had put on, or that it was just his imagination.

However, the realistic, furry feeling in his palm quickly confirmed to him that Zoroar had indeed evolved!

"Swoosh~"

Zoroark called out affectionately, its voice slightly hoarse, lacking the spoiled nature of an elf cub but possessing a more mature composure and sharpness.

Coupled with her arrogant and handsome appearance, the term "cool girl" is the most accurate description of her.

However, just like Gardevoir when it first evolved, Zoroark's personality cannot change immediately upon evolution.

Despite her arrogant demeanor towards others, a hint of affection could still be seen in her eyes when she looked at Xia Chen.

Zoroark is about the same height as Gardevoir, and slightly taller than Xia Chen.

Whether it is taller than the racial average is uncertain, because racial data for Szczezoroark is unavailable.

But seeing all the little ones who used to curl up and cling to him now grow taller than him, Xia Chen felt a strange mix of emotions.

It's hard to say whether it's good or bad, but Xia Chen always felt a sense of loneliness, like an old father watching his daughters grow up one by one.

After being the father for over a year, and now, not counting super evolution, all four Pokémon have evolved into their final forms.

Only the two pseudo-legendary babies, Little Dragon and Sticky Baby, who are still in their eggs, have room to evolve.

…………

"That's too much! You didn't even call me when you evolved, and I didn't even have time to film you."

Xia Chen felt a pang of regret for missing the moment of evolution that was right behind him.

Aside from the two evolutions of Sylveon and Ralts that I didn't have a chance to film, Xia Chen faithfully recorded all the other evolution moments of the Pokémon.

These are all wonderful memories for Xia Chen after she enters her retirement life.

"Solo."

Zoroark, who was being curiously touched by Sylveon, let out a wronged cry. Evolution was so sudden; he hadn't expected it at all.

To be precise, she had a premonition that she was about to evolve, but Zoroark never expected that she would evolve because of the Mismagius Fruit she ate.

Now, recalling the description of that Soul Fruit, it grants access to some of the abilities of the Dream Demon.

It turns out that it's not just about moves, but also basic abilities like energy intensity, special attack, and special defense.

No, that's not all. Zoroark felt a surge of energy within his body that was different from before, and realized that the fruit was not as simple as he had imagined.

Now is not the time to test it. Zoroark suppressed his curiosity for the time being and prepared to see how much his evolution had changed and how much the fruit had altered him tomorrow.

Because of Zoroark's evolution, Xia Chen and the elves played and frolicked for quite a while.

It wasn't until almost midnight that Xia Chen, still immersed in the excitement of Zorua's evolution, remembered that there was a competition the next day.

After helping the elves wash up quickly, Xia Chen, who had been busy all day, soon fell asleep.

Starting tonight, the sleeping environment is a little warmer and more cramped.

…………

The next morning.

The opening ceremony of the main competition is being held in a lively atmosphere at the Liuhuo Arena in Funan City.

Despite the two-day break, the Donghuang Youth Trainer Competition has only become more popular than before.

There are two main reasons: first, the competition has transitioned from the preliminary rounds to the more exciting main event.

Secondly, the many amazing contestants who emerged in this competition were truly a pleasant surprise.

Besides Xia Chen, the youngest and most talked-about trainer, there's Hu Yang, hailed as the strongest academic-style trainer in this competition; Lu Weiyu and Bai Mu, who performed exceptionally well as expected and are considered strong contenders for the championship; and Red, the traveling trainer from the Kanto region, and his magical Pikachu.

Spring comes when all flowers bloom.

From the audience's perspective, no one likes a genius who completely dominates and ultimately wins the championship.

Competitions like this one, where no one can predict who will reach the finals or who will win the championship, are the ones that generate the most buzz.

Following the passionate speech by the Chairman of the Donghuang Alliance, the main stage of the Donghuang Youth Trainer Competition officially began.

Xia Chen's opponent in the first round was unremarkable; he was a top-tier trainer from a prestigious university who had climbed up from the loser's bracket.

There have been too many matches, and the tactics and strategies have been thoroughly analyzed.

In addition, given the significant difference in their abilities, Xia Chen swiftly and easily defeated him in just five minutes.

Not to mention Zoroark, he didn't even reveal one of Gardevoir and Milotic's abnormal moves.

The competition ended early, and after saying goodbye to Teacher Lin Quan, Xia Chen rushed back to his dormitory.

Zoroark has just completed her evolution, and both she and Zoroark must adapt to their evolved bodies and strengths as quickly as possible.

With only five days in the main tournament, even if Soroark is only used as a last resort on the last day, time is still very tight for them.

…………

In the training room of the dormitory, Xia Chen observed the battle between Gardevoir and Zoroark without any commander.

Gardevoir's strength before evolution is similar to Zoroark's, and the two Pokémon are also similar in size, so Xia Chen wanted to see how Zoroark would perform in this battle.

Because his team has no shortage of physical attackers, Xia Chen focused on physical attack and speed in his training plan for Zoroark.

This is reflected in the daily accumulation of things like energy blocks, cultivation items, and training content.

But like other Pokémon, Zoroark also has its own "self-training" program, so she hasn't relaxed her training in special attack abilities and moves.

If Pokémon have a six-pointed star stat chart, Zoroark's stat chart should be a triangle similar to the Mercedes logo, except its durability isn't as ridiculously low.

After evolving, Zoroark's attack methods become very diverse due to changes in its body and the expansion of its skill pool.

In this battle, in addition to the standard moves he already knew, such as Shadow Ball, Shadow Claw, and Shadow Sneak, Zoroark also demonstrated some newly learned moves.

What surprised Xia Chen the most was the stealthy attack and a move that even he had never seen before.

Xia Chen wasn't too surprised by the mastery of the Spirit Strike technique, since he had learned meditation and mastered superpowers through the technique-fruit given to him by Zoroah.

Alternatively, it's not impossible that Zoroark, with its Green Ghost attribute, could learn Phantom Sneak.

Regardless of how the technique was learned, this addition made Zoroark, who was already extremely fast, even more agile and elusive, directly raising his combat power to a new level.

The other move, however, seemed rather strange.

Xia Chen still finds it hard to believe the strange ghost-type energy that suddenly emerged from Gardevoir's feet, coiling around its body like strands of hair and spreading across its body.

The way that move is displayed is different from all the known Ghost-type moves. Could it be a move unique to the Ghost Zoroark?

…………

Unique moves are not uncommon in games; almost every cover god has its own unique moves.

For example, the three Hoenn characters' finishing touch, Root Wave, and Cliff Sword.

As a unique symbol that transcends ordinary Pokémon, their signature moves are generally very powerful.

Besides the legendary Pokémon, there are also some special rare Pokémon that have their own unique moves.

Zoroark's Dark Blast is one of them.

Before Zoroark evolved, Xia Chen wondered if the Ghost Zoroark would be unable to learn Dark Blast since its attributes had changed.

I was surprised to find out that it really is true after I looked into it.

However, without Dark Blast, it seems to have learned a new exclusive move. Xia Chen doesn't know its name, but according to the established rules in the Pokémon world, Xia Chen has the right to name this new move.

According to Gardevoir, the first Gardevoir to be hit by the move, she could sense a chilling, intense aura of resentment emanating from the Ghost-type energy spreading throughout her body.

To put it bluntly, this move should be called a resentment attack.

But the name "Resentment Attack" doesn't sound very powerful; it sounds like it's on the same level as moves like scratching or pecking.

Therefore, Xia Chen decided to name this move "[An eye for an eye]".

After further testing on the move power meter and descriptions from the Pokémon's personal experiences, Xia Chen roughly understood the damage and additional effects of this move.

"An eye for an eye" is a special Ghost-type move, and its power is not very high, roughly similar to Swift.

But the additional effects are quite interesting.

There is about a 30% chance that the Pokémon hit by the attack will enter a status ailment, similar to being frozen, but not quite frozen; rather, it's more like a burn.

It causes continuous loss of life and stamina, and more importantly, the power of special attacks is halved.

Undoubtedly, this was another new discovery regarding abnormal conditions, and Xia Chen naturally named it [frostbite].

This move has additional effects beyond that; when the "Revenge of Vengeance" attack hits an opponent who is in an abnormal state, it can deal double the damage.

In this situation, the damage caused by a cycle of revenge is extraordinary, almost comparable to high-powered attacks like meteor showers or leaf storms.

…………

Which move is stronger, revenge or Dark Blast?

To say that they each have their own merits would be a lie. Apart from the power of the moves, in all other aspects, the revenge is completely superior to Dark Blast.

One has about a 40% chance of reducing the opponent's hit rate, while the other has a 30% chance of inflicting frostbite on the opponent.

Even considering expected value, the damage to the opponent from a cycle of revenge is greater than that from the former.

Not to mention that revenge can double the damage dealt to opponents with negative status effects.

It's important to know that there are relatively few common high-power Ghost-type moves, and Shadow Ball is one of the best among them.

There are also more powerful moves, such as Shadow Strike and Shadow Light, but these are exclusive moves of legendary Pokémon and cannot be learned by ordinary Pokémon.

In such a longitudinal comparison, if double the damage can be dealt, the power of revenge becomes extremely high.

Of course, even if it doesn't work, this move is by no means weak.

After spending the morning, Xia Chen had a basic understanding of Zoroark's current strength.

However, this level of understanding is definitely not enough to get her to play on the battlefield; he and Zoroark need some time to work together.

Once the adjustment period is over, the combination of stealthy attacks, revenge, and the [Illusion] trait, which makes opponents unable to see or understand the situation, will allow for a powerful and unpredictable attack.

Xia Chen was already looking forward to the moment when the Phantom Overlord would shine before the world's eyes.

------

The main competition lasts for five days, with 64 players competing in six rounds until the final championship match.