The strongest gym leader starts by beating up Gary.

But the swimming frog quickly recovered and continued to look at Fang Yuan with a wary expression.

But their attitude has visibly softened considerably.

Fang Yuan then opened his pocket and saw a bag full of blue energy cubes, making him almost think he had arrived in heaven.

The fast-swimming frog used all its strength to barely manage to look away from the energy cube.

But then Fang Yuan said

"Don't worry, Swimfly, I'm not here to tame you, I'm here to discuss cooperation."

The fast-swimming frog looked at Fang Yuan with a puzzled expression.

"I'll give you ten blue energy cubes every day and let you live in a backyard where there are no enemies or dangers. All you have to do is defeat the intruders under my command, how about that?"

Upon hearing Fang Yuan's words, the fast-swimming frog hesitated.

Although leaving like this would provide food, drink, and shelter, it would also mean losing precious freedom!

Just as the fast-swimming frogman hesitated, Fang Yuan played his final trump card.

Fang Yuan placed the Pokémon's Poké Ball in front of Pokémon and said...

"You can keep your Poké Ball yourself. If you feel you want freedom one day, you can destroy it and leave. I promise I won't stop you."

Upon hearing Fang Yuan's words, and especially seeing the Poké Ball placed in front of him, Poliwrath's last trace of wariness vanished.

Thinking this, Fang Yuan stretched out his fist, which was wearing a white glove.

Seeing this, Fang Yuan also reached out and touched the fast-swimming frog's fist.

"It's a word."

Then Poliwrath returned to its Poké Ball on its own. Fang Yuan picked up the Poliwrath's Poké Ball and looked at the little guy in front of him.

"Do I still need your help to direct things?"

Xiao Mao scratched his head somewhat awkwardly and said...

"No need, no need, Master."

Then Xiao Mao asked curiously.

"Master, this fast-swimming frog seems to be very familiar with energy cubes."

Fang Yuan patted the heads of Mudkip and Bubble and said

"Of course. Strictly speaking, the Pokémon in this forest are all semi-free-range Pokémon raised by our gym."

"We will randomly release some energy blocks every once in a while to make it easier to capture and command these sprites later."

"After all, a gym leader can't use his own Pokémon every time he battles; he'd be exhausted after a whole day of battles."

"That's it."

Shigeru stroked his chin, gaining a deeper understanding of the strength of the Matsuzo Dojo.

But then a question from Xiao Mao almost broke Fang Yuan's composure, even though he was in a good mood.

"But Master, if our dojo is so strong, why is it ranked near the bottom among all the dojos in the Kanto region?"

Xiao Mao's words were like a sharp sword piercing Fang Yuan's heart.

"Are you bored? Don't think you're so great just because you beat a fast frogman! Start your physical training right now, the cross-country run around the forest starts immediately!"

Seeing Xiao Mao sweating profusely, Fang Yuan felt a little better.

Then, Fang Yuan looked at Xiao Mao, who was drenched in sweat, and said to the Mudkip and the Poliwrath, who had recovered a lot of energy,

"Listen to me, quietly go into the water, and then I will direct you to an inconspicuous corner of the river where there should be a blue stone. Work together to retrieve it, understand?"

"You can move slowly, but you absolutely cannot let anyone else see it."

The raptor and the flounder nodded as if they understood, and jumped into the water.

At the same time, Fang Yuan closed his eyes, and the green power of Tokiwa emerged from his mind. The power of Tokiwa passed over Mudkip and Swimfrog, and appeared in a crevice on the seemingly ordinary riverbank.

A pale blue stone seems to breathe, absorbing the water energy from nature little by little.

However, because the stone contained little energy at this time, and because it was in the water, even though Mudkip and Frog swam past it, they didn't notice it.

But it was clearly visible under Fang Yuan's Tokiwa power.

"On your left!"

At that moment, Fang Yuan's voice suddenly appeared in the minds of the Mudskipper and the Fast Frog at the bottom of the river.

Mudkip and Frog didn't think much of it and quickly followed Fang Yuan's instructions to open the crack, then brought the blue stone out of the water and handed it to Fang Yuan.

At this moment, Fang Yuan was also panting heavily because he had exhausted a huge amount of physical strength due to overuse of Tokiwa's power.

"This incomplete version of Tokiwa's power is really no good. It consumes so much energy even for a simple sound transmission."

But Fang Yuan looked at the Permanent Evolution Stone in his hand, and a genuine smile appeared on his face.

"But as long as I get you, it's worth it even if I have to exhaust myself."

[Water-type Permanent Evolution Stone: A reusable evolution stone that does not disappear after use; it can be used again by reabsorbing energy.]

Chapter 8 Fang Yuan's Cheap Old Man

This trip not only allowed Fang Yuan to obtain a fully-developed Poliwrath as a timely addition to his combat power, but most importantly, he also obtained this Water-type permanent evolution stone. This trip can be considered a very fruitful one.

【Pokémon: Poliwrath♂】

【Level: 23】

[Talent: Medium Grade (Physical Attack: 28, Special Attack: 22, Defense: 20, Special Defense: 18, Speed: 25, HP: 23) Total: 136]

【Special Feature: Agile and Free (Speed ​​doubles in rainy weather)】

[Skills: Impact, Water Gun, Hypnosis, Rain Prayer, Belly Drum, Mount Tai Slam, Abyss Roll.]

[Evaluation: A fast breaststroke swimmer with decent ability, but lacking training.]

Although this Poliwrath's aptitude is only average, and it's not cost-effective for Fang Yuan to raise, it also has many highlights, such as its rare Swift Swim ability, which is very suitable for rainy days.

Moreover, its skill pool is quite good. Although it lacks water-type physical moves, Belly Drum and Rain Dance are enough to elevate the tactical value of this Poliwrath to two levels.

Although the Matsushima Gym receives many ultra-rare TMs every year because it owns shares in TM Inc., such as Sandstorm, Rain Dance, and Sunny Day, saving one TM is still good news.

. . . . . .

When they returned to the dojo that evening, Xiao Mao was so exhausted that he was practically slumped on the ground, but Xiao Wen still woke him up to clean up.

Looking at the broom in his hand, Xiao Mao suddenly felt like crying.

"Me, Professor Oak's grandson, the 'second-generation trainer' of the League's Red and White Banner, was driving a sports car and eating hot pot yesterday, and today I have to clean someone else's house..."

Although Xiao Mao was complaining, he didn't slow down his work at all.

Looking at the spotless floor he had cleaned, Xiao Mao even felt a sense of healing.

Xiaowen packed her things, slung her Pokerb backpack over her shoulder, and walked up to Fang Yuan.

"Gym Leader, as you requested, our dojo will not accept challengers for the next few days."

"But there are some things I still need to tell you..."

Fang Yuan nodded without even looking up.

Seeing this, Xiaowen glared at Fang Yuan angrily and said...

"My Lord Curator!"

At this moment, Fang Yuan, who was holding a blue stone, finally came to his senses and said...

"Huh? Xiaowen, are you talking to me?"

Xiaowen's lips twitched, but she still took a deep breath and said...

"What I want to say is that the league's review and assessment are coming up soon, so you should be a little careful, Master."

"If we fail this dojo review again, our dojo's rating will be the same as Hua Lan Dojo."

"It will not only affect the reputation of the dojo, but also reduce the league's monthly funding."

"The Hua Lan Dojo makes money by selling ballet tickets and doesn't care about this little bit of funding. But if our dojo's funding is reduced, next month after deducting the cost of water, electricity, and Pokémon feeding, we'll be broke!"

Hearing Xiaowen's words, Fang Yuan couldn't help but rub his temples.

"Dojo inspections are indeed a bit troublesome..."

However, when he looked into the distance at the blue stone in his hand, his previously furrowed brows relaxed.

"Don't worry, even if the review fails, your salary won't be reduced by a single penny."

Seeing Fang Yuan like this, Xiao Wen inexplicably became a little unhappy and left the dojo alone with her small backpack.

After walking a distance, Xiaowen walked alone halfway down the road, and couldn't help but mutter to herself as she thought of Fang Yuan's smile.

"It's just a permanent evolution stone, right? These things were just used as decorations in my house when I was a kid..."

......

Returning our attention to the gym, Fang Yuan sighed, placed the Water-type permanent evolution stone aside, and rubbed his brow.

"The dojo entrance exam..."

"It is indeed a difficult problem."

While the dojo assessment also emphasizes other indicators, such as the dojo badge issuance rate and challenger satisfaction, a comprehensive score is also given.

However, among these assessment items, only one item carries the highest weight in the overall score!

The dojo master's strength!

This is, after all, the world of Pokémon, and the strength of a Pokémon is the core of a gym leader's power.

At this time, Fang Yuan's strongest Pokémon was just a level 22 wild Poliwrath.

The alliance's examiners are all at an average level of 45 or higher!

Furthermore, according to some unreliable legends, one of the League Examiners is Nurse Joy, and the Pokémon she uses to examine Gyms is a Latias.

If this person comes to inspect...

Level 22 Fast Frog vs. Latias.

......

No matter how Fang Yuan thought about it, he felt that his chances of winning were not high.

Considering the league's funding for next month and the dojo's monthly expenses of nearly seven figures, Fang Yuan hesitated for a while before dialing a phone number.

On a beach in the Alora region, a middle-aged man wearing blue beach shorts leans back in a deck chair.

Leisurely gazing at the distant coastline... the young girls vacationing at the beach, their white thighs exposed, sunscreen on, bikinis in hand—everything seemed so beautiful.

"This is life..."

The middle-aged man took a sip of coconut juice and said leisurely.

Just then, the middle-aged man's phone rang.

The middle-aged man glanced casually at the number on his phone and said with some surprise.

"Wow, it's actually my good son who called me first. That's really rare."

The middle-aged man said cheerfully as he dialed the number.

"Son, you're really something else. You actually called me on your own initiative. Are you asking for help? Just ask me..."

"Pah! You shameless old man, who else but you would take all the Gym Pokémon away and leave your son with only two starter Pokémon to guard the Gym?"

Although he was scolded by his son, the middle-aged man wasn't angry at all.

"Alright, alright, it's just a small matter. Tell me, what did you want to see me about?"

Fang Yuan didn't want to waste words with his cheapskate father at this moment.

"I'm not here to beg you, I'm here to cooperate with you."

"Cooperation? Interesting, tell me more."

Fang Yuan looked at the blue stone placed on the seat, sat up straight, and said...