Elf: I have a secret realm of emerald green.

But it's only a little bit.

The Steel Slab originally belonged to Arceus, and the Golems have been using it for free for so long without paying any rent.

It is perfectly reasonable and justifiable for Xia Shen to reclaim the Steel Tablets on behalf of Arceus.

…………

Faced with Xia Shen's questioning, the sticky dragon leader waved his hands and shook his head repeatedly, letting out a wronged cry, "Sticky..."

Xia Shen saw that his tone and expression seemed to be apologizing, so she "magnanimously" accepted his apology.

"Never mind, thankfully we're all alright. Just be more careful next time."

"Sticky—" Seeing that Xia Shen had forgiven him, the sticky dragon leader breathed a sigh of relief and, in his joy, gave him two more steel stones.

Feeling somewhat guilty, Xia Shen tried to decline, but couldn't refuse the kindness of the leader, Nian Meilong.

Reluctantly, I accepted his apology gift, said goodbye, and flew away on my Garchomp.

------

Xia Shen got out of bed, his body aching all over. Even after being reshaped by the steel slabs in the secret realm, he still suffered some aftereffects.

While healing fluctuations is useful, it's not a panacea; otherwise, what would be the point of doctors and modern medical equipment?

However, Xia Shen felt the surging energy within his body constantly repairing and strengthening his physical form, and estimated that he would be fully recovered in a day at most, so he didn't think about seeing a doctor.

He limped down the stairs, leaning on the handrail, startling Yan Yan, who had just returned from her morning exercise. She and Lucario quickly came over to help him.

"Where did you go last night? You're so badly injured." Yan Yan asked, both distressed and puzzled.

After living with Xia Shen for half a month, she noticed that Xia Shen didn't always look refreshed and energized like he had just woken up in the morning.

Today was even more exaggerated. Seeing how she was barely able to walk, anyone who didn't know better would think she had been up to something last night.

"Maybe... he got into a fight with Moon Bear while sleepwalking." Xia Shen thought for a moment, but still didn't tell Yan Yan the truth, and replied half-jokingly.

Whether to trust or not is one thing, but the key point is that it's not easy to prove this kind of thing once it's been said, so let's just talk about it later.

Yan Yan guessed what was going on, but didn't press for details. Instead, she asked with concern, "But isn't today the day you're preparing for your first match in the university league? Can you... even play like this?"

Xia Shen immediately said he didn't care, "It's okay, it's the elves fighting, not me, don't worry."

…………

What Yan Yan was worried about was the small selection competition that the Chongqing University team was about to hold today.

December 1st is the opening match of the University Student Pokémon Battle Tournament, and the opponent is Sichuan University, which is known as "East Sichuan West Wudu" along with Wudu University.

Whether it was a deliberate arrangement by the organizers or not, Wudu University encountered its biggest rival and nemesis in the Sichuan-Chongqing region in the opening match.

These two historically significant schools have been taking turns dominating the Pokémon battle scene in the Sichuan-Chongqing region in recent years, making them equally brilliant rivals.

Years of competition have also created considerable animosity between the two second-best universities.

The deepest enmity stemmed from the years when Li Xiangtianwang had just graduated from Chongqing University.

Because of his enormous influence, the student body at Chongqing University was much better during that period.

It was during those years that Chongqing University achieved six consecutive years of dominance in the Sichuan-Chongqing region, and Funan City, where Sichuan University is located, was once unwelcoming to Chongqing residents.

The influence of Pokémon battles and the animosity between the two universities are evident.

In recent years, with the emergence of a new ghost-type superstar, Jin Ruanruan, from Funan University, the student body of Sichuan University has become as enticing as that of Chongqing University back then.

As the old saying goes, fortunes change every thirty years.

In recent years, Sichuan University has turned the tables, and including last year, they have won four consecutive league titles in the Sichuan-Chongqing region.

Without a doubt, for them, the revenge is far from over.

As for Chongqing University, it certainly wouldn't sit idly by and wait for its demise.

As a native of Chongqing, Rou Ge, who has a strong sense of belonging to his hometown, had already spoken before the competition.

It is our inescapable duty to rebuild the glory of Chongqing!

It can be said that this clash of titans has captured the attention of all viewers in the Sichuan and Chongqing regions who are interested in Pokémon battles.

It is valued internally and is attracting attention externally.

So the school team held this pre-competition selection tournament.

This also means that in this crucial and honorable match, the best will prevail!

Xia Shen had been preparing for this selection competition for a long time.

Although he wasn't very confident in not exposing Niu Meilong.

…………

Because of his physical limitations, Yan Yan and Tibrim were in charge of making breakfast today.

Breakfast was rather simple, so Yan Yan's cooking skills were barely enough to manage, not to mention the help from Tibrim.

After a quick breakfast, Xia Shen and Yan Yan headed to the school team's training hall.

The Zhejiang Middle School team's activity location today is also here.

Matches against opponents who are slightly better than you, but only slightly better, are the ones from which you can learn the most.

Therefore, they certainly wouldn't miss the opportunity to watch this small qualifying tournament.

Garchomp was not seriously injured in the secret realm and carried the two of them steadily to their destination.

Yan Yan helped Xia Shen, who was still having some difficulty moving, walk inside.

They arrived relatively late; in the main venue, almost everyone who was supposed to be there had already arrived.

At this moment, they looked at Xia Shen, who was limping in, with strange expressions.

Yan Yan looked at the strange gazes directed at her and Xia Shen, feeling utterly bewildered.

Although Xia Shen was still a few months away from adulthood, his soul was that of a tainted adult, so how could he not know what these people meant in their eyes?

numb!

The society is dead!

Even if Yan Yan is limping, I'd still help her in!

Xia Shen really wanted to use the digging technique to avoid being seen and attacked by everyone, but he didn't know how.

He could only feign composure and continue limping in as if nothing had happened.

As long as I am not embarrassed, others are embarrassed!

……

After parting ways with Yan Yan, Xia Shen returned to the formation of the Wudu University team.

Meanwhile, Yan Yan returned to her seat in the audience for the Zhijiang Middle School team and was chatting with a girl next to her.

Before long, her face flushed, and she clearly understood the reason for the strange looks around her.

Xia Shen didn't have many people to chat with. His best friend, Rou Ge, didn't understand this, and as for the others, their relationship with him wasn't good enough for them to joke like this.

Coach Ma, standing before everyone, said once everyone was present, "I won't elaborate on the importance of that match in a few days; as members of Wudu University, you all surely understand. So today, I hope you will all be at your best."

"Besides Ye Rou, Qiu Yanxia, ​​and Zhou Zhitong, who have already secured their spots, there are three singles positions available on the roster, which will be determined through today's qualifying matches."

"With only half a day, we naturally can't put together a round-robin tournament in a big way. Putting aside the time issue, even the Pokémon can't withstand such high-intensity battles, so today's format is rather special."

Coach Ma paused for a moment, then continued, "The top twelve players in the team will face off against each other, with the first playing against the twelfth, the second against the eleventh, and so on. The second round will be the same. After two rounds, the three winners will be the three selected players."

Xia Shen remained silent. Quickly selecting three people from a dozen or so was indeed the fairest approach.

It's fair to those at the top of the rankings, and it also gives those behind a chance to challenge.

My current ranking is fifth, which means I will first fight the eighth-ranked player, and if I can win, I will then fight the second-ranked player.

After some thought, Xia Shen realized that if it was one of the top-ranked main Pokémon, his chances were quite good.

But the prerequisite is that you must first pass the eighth level.

Wait, isn't the eighth one... that "Rika" senior?

## Chapter 198 Opening Match, I'm Here! (4.4k views)

More than two months have passed, and although everyone is growing, it is obvious that Xia Shen is growing faster.

The senior student named "Lijia" is named Wang Peipei, which is completely different from the name Lijia, but it still sounds quite nice.

However, Xia Shen didn't hold back just because they were old acquaintances. He didn't feel much pressure in this match and won.

This match was only slower than the matches in the first and second groups.

Having faced off against an opponent who had just started the semester and emerged victorious, Xia Shen had no reason to lose after more than two months.

It wasn't that Xia Shen was arrogant; he couldn't guarantee anything else, but there was one thing he was certain of.

Those he has defeated will never have another chance to surpass him!

This reflects his confidence in his phenomenal growth rate.

Okay... not like, Xia Shen admits, he really did cheat.

But since we've already started, we must strive to do our best and set a small goal first.

Leading this group of elves from Xicui, let's ascend to the champion's throne!

However, before achieving this small goal, Xia Shen, the ambitious future champion, must first overcome the current hurdle and step onto the stage of the university league.

…………

The first round of six matches took place simultaneously, with no upsets; the top six all defeated the bottom six.

Even Zhou Jiahua, who was the seventh-ranked trainer and was very close to becoming a professional third-dan trainer, failed to complete the challenge.

In the second round, since there were only three matches and they directly determined the lineup for the opening match soon after, Coach Ma decided to take it one match at a time.

In the first match, Zhang Zijun, who ranked first in points, will face off against Nan Tong, who ranked sixth.

The latter is a girl with a very interesting name.

However, her actual abilities are not as outstanding as her name suggests.