I haven't decided on a name for my Pokémon trainer yet.

Ye Feng and Ning Xian arrived at the meeting place as agreed.

Ning Xian didn't have to come, but she said she wanted to see her boyfriend look cool during the match, so Ye Feng "reluctantly" brought her along.

The gathering took place at the Deli Battle Club, the place where Gyarados learned Thunderbolt, yeah, the club that messed up the charging room.

When Ye Feng entered, the receptionist glanced at him a couple of times, almost making Ning Xian think he was having an affair.

The main venue for the gathering was the stadium in the club.

Quite a few trainers have already arrived here. Ye Feng looked around but didn't recognize a single one, which made him feel a little uncomfortable.

Ye Feng took out his phone and sent a message to Zhang Qiang asking when he would arrive—he didn't know anyone there, and he wasn't a social butterfly, so spending all his time with Ning Xian was getting a bit boring.

Actually, it wasn't that it was pointless... Didn't you see everyone looking over here? Why did it seem like their eyes were glowing red, and some were even holding up torches?

Doesn't your group only burn records of impure heterosexual relationships? We two are perfectly innocent!

Zhang Qiang replied to the message, saying that he had received news of a rare fire-type Pokémon and had already set off for the secret realm to see if there was a chance to catch it. He didn't have time to come over.

"Zhang Qiang said he was going to capture a rare fire-type Pokémon and didn't have time to come," Ye Feng said with a shrug.

"I see." Ning Xian nodded casually and looked around.

"Ah Feng, I saw my friends. You play by yourself for a while, I'll go find them." Ning Xian said, and ran towards a group of girls. Soon they were chatting happily.

Ye Feng couldn't help but watch for a while. Ning Xian's friends were all quite pretty. He really wanted to join them and chat with them.

But it just doesn't feel right for a grown man to be surrounded by girls, and who knows, those torches might actually catch fire.

Just as Ye Feng was hesitating about whether to find someone to chat with, a middle-aged man in a black suit and square-rimmed glasses walked up to a platform—only then did Ye Feng notice that there was a platform on the side of the venue.

"Ahem! Everyone!" The middle-aged man coughed loudly, attracting everyone's attention, and then said, "Hello, outstanding trainers of Jinghai City. I am Debin, the manager of Deli Battle Club."

This Deli Battle Club, Jinghai City branch, is one of the businesses of Deli Company, whose boss is named Deli.

This person was named Debin, and just from the name, you could tell he was someone with connections. Ye Feng secretly speculated.

"To be honest, I actually started this gathering," Debin said with a smile.

Ye Feng raised an eyebrow. He had already vaguely guessed when this person came on stage, and sure enough, he was right.

“We have many excellent trainers in Jinghai City, but most of them probably don’t know each other, so it’s difficult for them to have the opportunity to meet and battle or exchange ideas.”

"Although our company occasionally holds some competitions, they are currently mainly aimed at new trainers."

"Everyone here is at least a beginner trainer, and I believe some of you may already be preparing for the intermediate trainer promotion exam."

"As the manager of a club, I also really enjoy playing matches."

"Our company is already preparing for a competition for novice trainers. I'm also taking this opportunity to say that this gathering is actually an attempt to create a competition for novice trainers."

"···"

Ye Feng raised an eyebrow as he listened to Debin's speech.

Good grief, all that talk about trying something sounds nice, but the real purpose of this gathering is just to advertise the Deli Company's beginner trainer competition.

Debin said that once the trainers who attended the gathering returned home, they would spontaneously spread the word that Deli Company was preparing to hold a competition for novice trainers.

Commercial advertising is not allowed on the association forum, but trainers' spontaneous promotions are unlikely to be prohibited—besides the association forum, the main communication platform for trainers is the university campus forum.

However, campus forums are relatively small circles, while association forums are different. They are national forums, with each province and city having its own independent sub-forum. Promoting on these forums is definitely faster than advertising.

Compared to organizing a competition for publicity, a party requires significantly less cost, and doesn't even require any advertising fees. It's a smart move.

Since there aren't that many formal competitions and they're not easy to participate in, smaller competitions with commercial elements are very popular with trainers who aren't qualified to participate in formal competitions.

However, Ye Feng was very skeptical that even though it was a trainer's spontaneous promotion, would the association sit idly by with such an obvious intention?

However, Ye Feng didn't care what other people's purpose was. He came here to find some opponents of similar strength to fight against.

Debin also stated that there were no restrictions at today's gathering, and everyone was free to compete and exchange ideas.

The club has provided dedicated elf doctors who can treat and restore the elves' stamina. In addition, there is a free buffet in the restaurant where you can eat as much as you like during mealtimes.

After Debin finished speaking, the trainers began to observe each other and look for opponents. After all, the theme of today was still battles, so they should fight first.

Ye Feng's gaze swept back and forth, searching for any trainer who could make eye contact with him and start a battle.

Soon, his eyes met those of a trainer.

Chapter 168: It's so embarrassing to be recognized by a classmate from the next class but not know their name.

"Are you Ye Feng?" The trainer approached.

"Huh? You know me?"

Ye Feng couldn't help but feel secretly delighted. Had he become that famous? How come so many people recognized him?

“I’m from Class 3,” the trainer said after a few seconds of silence.

"Uh..." Ye Feng was stunned for a moment. It turned out to be an alumnus. Although you don't necessarily have to know your alumni, they were from the next class after all. And the fact that they recognized him but he didn't was a bit awkward.

"Hahaha, it's you! I remember your name is..."

"···"

"···"

? ?

Ye Feng's lips twitched. "No, shouldn't you usually give your name in this situation? You're making things difficult for me."

"My name is Jiang Yucheng." Jiang Yucheng could tell that Ye Feng didn't recognize him, so he had no choice but to give his name.

"Oh right, Jiang Yucheng!" Ye Feng smiled on the surface, but inwardly he was thinking, "Damn it, this guy seems to have low emotional intelligence? Should I find someone else? This is so awkward to talk to."

"Alright, now that we know each other," Ye Feng said with a forced smile. "How about a match?"

"Okay." Jiang Yucheng didn't say much, just nodded in agreement.

The two walked to an empty field, and immediately some trainers who had not yet found an opponent came to watch.

The two stood there in silence for a while.

"The competition rules?" Ye Feng sighed inwardly and asked.

"How about one-on-one?" Jiang Yucheng thought for a moment.

Ye Feng nodded in agreement. Since it was an exchange, there was no need to make it as formal as a 3-on-3. Saving some energy for the Pokémon to exchange with different opponents would allow them to gain more.

The two decided to play rock-paper-scissors to decide who would go first, and Ye Feng got the second move.

"Go, Vileplume!" Jiang Yucheng threw out the Poké Ball.

This is a grass- and poison-type Pokémon with an indigo body, a huge flower on its head, and some resemblance to the Rafflesia.

Ye Feng thought for a moment, then threw out the Gyarados's Poké Ball.

Asking Coco to pull it up here would be too much to ask.

"Roar!"

As soon as Gyarados entered the battle, it let out a fierce roar.

"Overlord Flower, use Sunny Day!" Jiang Yucheng ordered.

The Queen of the Night let out a soft cry, and a large ball of light shot out from the center of the flower and rose into the air. Soon, a small sun appeared in the sky.

"A sunny day? Could it be a characteristic of chlorophyll?" Ye Feng began to analyze.

"Stomp again!" Ye Feng prepared to test the waters first.

Gyarados roared and slammed its tail into the ground, creating visible ripples that quickly spread to Vileplume.

Vileplume is a Grass/Poison type, and Ground-type moves are weak to it and weak to it respectively. With the two attacks combined, Vileplume takes normal damage, which is a good opportunity for Ye Feng to see how well Gyarados has mastered Stomp.

"Overlord Flower, grassy field!" Jiang Yucheng ordered.

The Queen of the Night flower released its energy, and a green halo spread out from it. The area was instantly covered with green grass, and several small flowers that looked somewhat similar to the Queen of the Night flower bloomed.

The power of the stomping ground waves was greatly reduced by the influence of the grassy field, and the Queen of the Flower was not greatly affected.

Ye Feng narrowed his eyes. Grassy Terrain? Besides enhancing the power of Grass-type moves, it has this other use?

Moreover, it was a sunny day with a grassy field; Jiang Yucheng really likes to create favorable conditions for his battles.

"Queen of the Sun, Blazing Sun!" Jiang Yucheng shouted.

The giant flower atop the Queen of the Night quickly gathered energy, and a thick beam of white energy shot out in the blink of an eye.

At the same time, Ye Feng's instructions had already been issued.

Gyarados's body surged with electricity, and it unleashed a Thunderbolt towards the blazing sunlight. The collision between the two caused a violent explosion.

However, with the blessing of a sunny day, Solar Beam not only no longer needed to be charged, but its power also increased significantly with the presence of Grassy Terrain. Although it was blocked by Thunderbolt, a portion of it still managed to penetrate the smoke and hit Gyarados.

However, this didn't do much damage to the thick-skinned Gyarados; it just shook its body and acted as if nothing had happened.

"Iron Tail!" Ye Feng ordered.

Gyarados roared and charged at Vileplume, its tail gleaming with a metallic sheen as it slammed down.

"Hold on!" Jiang Yucheng said.

A flash of green energy transformed into a sphere that enveloped the Vileplume. Iron Tail slammed into the Guardian, and despite Gyarados's maximum effort, it still couldn't break through the defense.