Elf: I have a secret realm of emerald green.

The more people praise someone, the more people criticize them.

The initial motivation of those who criticize is their aversion to capital controlling public opinion. Therefore, the more capital wants to promote someone, the more they want to criticize them.

As for the degree of "blackness," it depends on the black marks on the person being praised.

Xia Shen has only been in the public eye for a few days, yet her rise to prominence has been so rapid that it's hard to find anything to criticize her for.

Fortunately, they managed to find one, which was the last match of the group stage, the one where Garchomp lost to Sagamosa.

His only failure became the main argument used by Xia Shen's haters to attack him.

Today, in this semi-final, there might be a second chance, which has become the main reason why Xia Shen's haters are watching this match.

…………

Inside the official live stream room.

The commentator and Yan Yu sat on the sofa in the commentary room, chatting casually before the match while waiting for it to begin.

The male commentator, beaming with joy, enthusiastically introduced today's special guest.

"Today we are honored to have a distinguished guest, welcome Master Yan Yu, to the live broadcast of the semi-finals of the Jiangnan Division Breakthrough Tournament!"

As a leading figure among China's younger generation in recent years, Yan Yu, who exudes considerable prestige, is already accustomed to this kind of introduction.

She smiled reservedly at the commentator who was introducing her, and then greeted the viewers in the live stream.

After a brief introduction and pleasantries, the two got down to business and started talking about the first game of the night.

"You may not know this, but Zhijiang Middle School, one of the four schools that made it to the semifinals tonight, is Master Yan's alma mater. The currently popular [Strongest Grade 11 Student] is actually Master Yan's junior."

The commentator then asked Yan Yu, "So what are your thoughts or opinions on Xia Shen, who has recently been the subject of much discussion?"

……

"Is the commentator just hyping things up? They're just there for the money. Do they really think a master would watch a high school sophomore's match?"

"To be honest, Xia Shen shouldn't try to take advantage of Yan Yu. He doesn't have the right. He might end up saying he doesn't know her and making things awkward for everyone."

The commentator probably never expected that a question he asked unintentionally would lead to a fierce argument in the live stream.

……

Inside the live stream room.

Yan Yu seemed to have been prepared for this question. She pondered for a second and replied with a smile, "A few months ago, I said that Xia Shen would bring more surprises to the lifeless elf world, but now, my opinion has changed."

She paused briefly, as if to give the audience time to react, before continuing, "He will be the rising star of China... no, even the world of elves!"

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

Even the dense barrage of comments in the live stream experienced a brief pause.

Both those who support Xia Shen and those who oppose her fell silent.

So, the youngest master in China is the biggest blowhard?

Yan Yu looked at the speechless explanation and felt slightly guilty.

Xia Shen said there would be a surprise tonight, and told her to praise him a lot before the match to gain more popularity, so that she could make up for it before the match ended.

But I'm not good at bragging. I just pass on the same kind of bragging that others do to me to Xia Shen.

But wasn't that just a bit of an overstatement...?

Forget it, if that surprise doesn't satisfy me, I'll beat him to a pulp after the match!

……

Unsurprisingly, with the help of others, topics such as "[Yan Yu praises Xia Shen]" and "[Yan Yu, the group leader of the Xia Shen fan club]" quickly rose to the top of the trending lists on social media platforms.

Then a large number of new onlookers rushed to the scene, either joining the battle or watching from the sidelines.

In short, under the discussion and attention of almost half of the Chinese internet, the match between Zhijiang Middle School and Ocean University Affiliated Middle School kicked off on time.

------

Xia Shen gazed at the full moon hanging in the sky above the open-air battlefield, and gripped the peat block in his hand tightly.

[Yuxie, are you sure tonight's moonlight will allow Ursaring to evolve?]

[Oh dear, how many times have you asked? I guarantee there's no problem. Asking again means you don't trust me, the god of knowledge!]

It's no wonder Xia Shen is so cautious; tonight's opportunity is truly rare.

If we miss this opportunity, it will be very difficult to have the chance to bring Moon Bear to the world in front of so many people in a short period of time.

[Oh, by the way, don't forget about Tebrim's mental outburst tonight. But after you absorbed so much mental energy last time, it'll be much better this time. You'll have to handle it yourself this time. Yuuki doesn't want to sleep for another month and miss out on watching anime.]

After reminding Xia Shen, You Kexi went silent again, most likely going online.

Bringing my thoughts back, the first main match has already begun.

The two opposing teams were Chu Si's Swampert and his opponent's non-main Pokémon, Devourer.

The audience instantly understood that tonight's first semi-final would most likely be decided in a ring match.

……

The lineup of Haida Affiliated High School is very strange. Their strongest singles player, Gallade, is exceptionally strong and can be said to be the closest to Cinderace in this competition.

Furthermore, their doubles team is in a class of its own in this competition, remaining undefeated so far.

However, the other Pokémon in the team were rather unremarkable, although they were still above average for this competition.

But by the time they reached the semifinals, they were clearly not up to par.

Therefore, Xia Shen and his team were not surprised at all by their choice of opponent.

The opposing team openly told Zhijiang Middle School that all the previous singles matches were just cannon fodder, and they could easily win against them.

In the doubles match, no matter how the players from Zhijiang Middle School were arranged, none of them could defeat him.

I want to fight you to the death in the ring!

Fortunately, the principal had anticipated this situation and knew that the doubles match would inevitably give the opposing team two points.

Therefore, the lineup for this match between Zhijiang Middle School and the ring team remains the same: Alakazam, Aggron, and Ursaring.

Both sides tacitly chose to leave the suspense until the end.

……

Unsurprisingly.

In the first match, Swampert defeated the Devourer Turtle!

In the second match, Garchomp defeated Kung Fu Itachi!

In the third match, MetalGreymon defeated Magneton!

In the fourth match, the long-haired troll and the fiery red fox fought against the wind fairy and the scorpion king, and lost!

Before the match, the score was 4-2.

Although the first few matches were uneventful, everyone knew that most of the top singles players from both sides did not play.

But now, the competition has only just begun.

……

Without changing their lineup, the first Pokémon sent out by Zhijiang Middle School was Alakazam, which was pre-selected and ranked third in singles strength within the team.

On the other side was Charizard, the team's second strongest Pokémon in singles combat.

These two Pokémon have absolutely no counter-relationship, but Charizard is slightly weaker in terms of strength.

The whistle blew, and the battle officially began.

Both Pokémon are high-speed special attackers, and they put on a fierce beam battle for the audience right from the start.

The scorching flames and the invisible psychic power met between the two spirits. The sudden collision of the crimson flames and the psychic waves triggered a violent explosion, and the aftershocks spread outwards wave after wave from the center of the explosion.

Seeing that their moves canceled each other out, the two trainers did not hesitate and immediately commanded their Pokémon to move.

Charizard leaped into the air, flapping its wings and charging straight at Alakazam, while Alakazam kept its distance and tried to use Psychic to disrupt its opponent's approach.

Although Charizard focuses on special attacks, its physical damage output is not weak either.

Moreover, Alakazam's physical defense is much lower than its physical defense, so Charizard would undoubtedly have the advantage in close combat.

But how could Huka, who has mastered teleportation, easily allow his opponent to get close?

Thus began a protracted and costly chase between the two sides.

Alakazam expended its energy and stamina in exchange for the numerous wounds left on Charizard's body from being hit by Psychic Wave.

Ultimately, the first match of the tournament ended in a crushing victory for Alakazam.

The significant damage inflicted by Charizard was secondary; the crucial issue was that the repeated teleportation had severely weakened his mental strength, and his Psychic-type energy was about to be completely depleted.

……

Xu Chong looked at the exhausted Hu Di on the field and felt a little regretful.

Knowing his starter Pokémon intimately, he knew that there was little he could do in the second battle.

However... casting Trick Space once is definitely enough!

Let Hudi give his last bit of energy on this stage.

With this in mind, Xu Chong faced his second opponent.

Liu Yu, the captain of the High School Affiliated to Ocean University of China and the team's absolute ace in singles, and his Pokémon, Gallade.

Xu Chong's heart skipped a beat. He knew that the most crucial turning point of the entire game was about to arrive.

If Gallade, which is much faster than Aggron, can create Trick Room, its strength will be greatly reduced.

If Aggron can take down Gallade, then the opponent's last remaining Raptor will be nothing to fear.

……

With a whistle, a flash of red light appeared, and a slender Gallade, green on top and white on the bottom, made its appearance.

Upon its appearance, Gallade charged toward Alakazam with unstoppable momentum and incredible speed.

Xu Chong gritted his teeth and said, "Hu Di, ignore him, it's the magic space!"