What should I do if my pet loves watching anime?

The warm afternoon sunlight filtered through the branches and leaves of the sycamore trees beside the training field, casting dappled, shimmering spots of light on the concrete ground.

Gu Beiri sat on a bench, with Fluffy Sheep and Scyther beside him, who had just finished their basic training.

The fluffy sheep lay lazily on his calves, with tiny sparks of electricity occasionally dancing among the curled wool.

The mantis sat quietly to the side, playing with fallen leaves, its sickle-shaped forelegs reflecting a cold light.

"It seems that the trip to Mount Taibai was very fruitful."

Su Wenya's voice came from the side.

She was holding a folder and two hot drinks. She handed one of them to Gu Beiri and sat down next to him.

Today she wore a simple light blue shirt and dark trousers, her long hair tied into a neat ponytail at the back of her head, looking as refreshing and capable as ever, with clear and rational eyes behind her glasses.

"Long time no see." Gu Beiri took the drink, which was warm fruit tea.

"Long time no see." Su Wenya smiled, her gaze falling on the fluffy sheep and the flying scythe, a hint of approval flashing in her eyes.

"The changes are visible to the naked eye; Old Hong truly deserves to be called a legendary trainer."

As Su Wenya spoke, she opened the folder in her hand and pulled out a beautifully printed schedule booklet and several analysis sheets that she had prepared herself, filled with neat handwriting.

"This is?"

"The competition format."

"This year's competition format is a bit special." Su Wenya cut straight to the point, her tone calm and clear.

"In previous years, it was usually a simple single-elimination tournament, supplemented by a small number of seeded players."

However, this year's registration reached a record 467 people. In order to maximize the entertainment value and fairness of the competition, and also to address public opinion that some competition formats were too simplistic and harsh, the school and organizers introduced a brand-new composite format of points-based round-robin and elimination.

Gu Beiri perked up and listened attentively.

Any competition involving points-based matches is never easy.

"467 people is an odd number. Any elimination system will inevitably result in byes, which is unfair to unlucky players."

Su Wenya pushed up her glasses.

"Therefore, the organizers adopted a clever replacement plan."

They introduced a virtual player, or you could think of it as a personification of a bye.

All players who are drawn to fight against this virtual player are automatically declared the winners and receive 3 points.

This fundamentally changes the number of participants on the schedule to an even number of 468, completely avoiding the luck-related issues of byes in traditional knockout tournaments.

Gu Beiri frowned: "Wouldn't this just let some lucky contestants go up?"

"Let me finish." Su Wenya shook her head, clearly indicating that it wasn't as simple as Gu Beiri thought.

"Then, these 468 people will be divided into 6 large groups, with 78 people in each group."

Next, each large group was further subdivided into 13 smaller groups of 6 people each.

This resulted in a total of 78 groups of six people each.

She drew a simple diagram on the analysis paper with her finger.

"The first stage is a round-robin tournament within these 78 groups of six players each."

A win earns 3 points, a draw earns 1 point, and a loss earns 0 points.

Each group of 6 players must play 5 matches, and all players in the same group will play against each other once, with no byes.

After the group stage, the top two players in each group will advance to the next stage.

This way, the first stage will determine 156 qualifiers, which is an even number, making it easier to pair up for the subsequent knockout rounds.

Gu Beiri did some mental calculations.

The group stage consists of six teams playing a single round-robin format, with three matches per round, for a total of five rounds. Two players from each group advance to the next round…

"The schedule is very tight; two-thirds of the players will be eliminated in the first stage."

"Yes, the competition will be very fierce from the very beginning," Su Wenya nodded.

"Because the points and rankings in the group stage not only affect advancement, but may also influence the seeding in the subsequent knockout stages or the avoidance principle in the draw."

Therefore, every group stage match requires giving your all and striving for a high-scoring victory, because if there are ties in points, head-to-head records will be compared first, followed by net game wins and other tiebreakers.

She paused, then added, "If a virtual player is assigned to a group, then the other five players in that group will automatically win their 'match' against it and receive 3 points."

This means these five people essentially got a victory for free.

While players from other groups might have some reservations about seeing others have such good luck, the rules apply uniformly to all groups, and the existence of virtual players is simply a tool to solve the odd-number problem, so everyone has no choice but to accept it.

Of course, there's a small chance the school might temporarily invite an outstanding senior student or a special guest to fill the spot and have a real match, which would be perfectly fair, but that seems unlikely at the moment.

Gu Beiri expressed his understanding.

From the perspective of this match frequency, the points from a bye match don't have a significant impact on the matchmaking results; it's well within an acceptable range.

"The 156 people who advanced from the first stage will enter the second stage, a cross-elimination points tournament." Su Wenya turned the page.

"156 people, which is also an even number."

They will be ranked according to their points and rankings in the group stage, and then drawn into pairs to play single-elimination matches, following the principle of avoiding teams from the same group.

The winner will advance to the next round with 3 points, while the loser will be eliminated with 0 points.

If the score is tied after regular time, there will be overtime or special tiebreaker rules to ensure that a draw does not occur.

"If we keep eliminating people like this, from 156 to 78, from 78 to 39..." Gu Beiri continued, then realized a problem, "39 is an odd number, how will we pair them up in the next round?"

A look of satisfaction flashed in Su Wenya's eyes, as if she had indeed gotten to the heart of the matter.

"This is another ingenious design element of the competition format, and one of the key factors behind its claim of being the most reasonable competition format."

When the number of participants reaches 39, no one will be left without a turn.

The school will introduce a revival match.

"A revival match?"

"Yes, they will select the two players with the highest cumulative points from the group stage and the knockout stage from the 39 players who were just eliminated."

Note that we are looking at the total points, not just the outcome of the round where the team was just eliminated.

Let these two have an additional single-match duel.

The winners are resurrected and rejoin the ranks of those who advance.

With the addition of the resurrected person, the total number becomes 40, which is also an even number.

Su Wenya explained.

"After that, it's 40 to 20, 20 to 10, 10 to 5... When it comes to 5 people, theoretically there will be an odd number again, but by then it's close to the final round, and the competition format may be slightly adjusted."

For example, a five-person round-robin tournament might be used to determine the final rankings, or a double-elimination format might be introduced as a partial adjustment. The specific details aren't explicitly stated in the rules, but there will definitely be corresponding solutions to ensure fairness and prevent situations where players receive a bye or automatic advancement.

Gu Beiri carefully considered the competition format.

It is indeed complex, but the logic is clear and the steps are interconnected, minimizing the element of luck and emphasizing the player's stability and ability to fight continuously.

From the round-robin points in the group stage to the nerve-wracking knockout stage, and then to the revival mechanism at the crucial moment, almost every stage forces the players to give their all and not allow them to relax in the slightest.

"The schedule will be very tight, which will be a huge test of the Pokémon's and Trainer's stamina, recovery ability, and tactical reserves."

Gu Beiri summarized, "Especially in the first stage of the group stage, there were five matches in five days, with opponents of different styles, requiring quick adaptation and adjustment."

"That's right." Su Wenya closed the folder. "Moreover, the level of attention this year is unprecedented."

The competition will be broadcast live on the Linhai City TV Education Channel. The school has also partnered with several major online platforms to conduct simultaneous online live streaming and rebroadcasting.

The largest arena on campus—the Tide Arena—is fully prepared and can accommodate over 5,000 spectators. Tickets sold out three days ago.