I caught a Pokémon

But there was nothing I could do. Since I had drawn this number, no matter how unwilling I was, I had no choice but to grit my teeth and continue performing.

With her eyes glued to the screen, Xiaoxia clasped her hands together, praying for Xiaoyao. She seemed even more nervous than Xiaoyao: "Xiaoyao, you must do your best!"

Xiaoyao walked out of the contestant passage and then walked to the side of the host, Vivian.

Vivian smiled at the audience and said, "May seems a little nervous since this is her first time participating in the Grand Contest. But that's okay. I believe she'll forget all her emotions once she gets into the zone. Now, let's have her Pokémon make their grand entrance and show everyone their carefully prepared performance!"

Thanks to the guidance of seniors Bi hope and Ling Zi, and the encouragement of Xia You and the others, Xiao Yao quickly got into character when the performance began.

She threw out a Poké Ball and released her Beautifly. As soon as the match began, Beautifly simply flapped its wings and scattered phosphorus powder, unique to butterfly Pokémon. Under the spotlight, the phosphorus powder looked like a galaxy slowly falling.

As May threw a disc, Beautifly immediately used String Shot, whipping the disc back into May's hand. This was repeated several times, showcasing the perfect teamwork between the Coordinator and her Pokémon.

As she threw the disc for the last time, Beautifly used Wind Blow to blow it back at a wide angle. May also leaped high and caught the disc steadily with a beautiful turn, winning a round of applause.

Seeing this, Xiaoxia and the others secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least for now, May's behavior seems perfectly normal. In fact, unlike Dash, who simply lets her Pokémon showcase its beauty on its own, May's frequent interactions with Beautifly, almost like a circus act, have given the audience a different experience.

This also helped the audience and judges shake off their fatigue, and they all focused intently on watching the performance.

And Xiaoyao obviously did not disappoint them. Finally, as Hunting Butterfly used Silver Whirlwind, her body began to spin continuously, forming a small silver vortex in the field that kept sprinkling powder outwards!

The vortex enveloped the hunting swallowtail butterfly, and the wind blew the silver powder across the entire stage, as if the whole stage was covered in a layer of silver light!

Under the silvery light, Haruka bowed to the audience with a cool gesture, and the Hunting Butterfly landed behind her, making a perfect farewell with her in front of and behind!

The audience erupted in applause.

Xia You and the others in the lounge were relieved to see that Xiao Yao was able to complete her performance smoothly and well. However, they didn't have time to be happy. Instead, their eyes followed the camera and turned to the judges' panel.

Regardless of what the audience says, only these three people can decide whether Xiaoyao can advance!

Miss Joy was the first to speak, and she smiled and said, "To perform like this in your first competition is quite impressive!"

With a few taps, the display screen in front of her immediately showed the score she had given.

8.7!

After her, Conkenstein, the director of the Grand Contest, was the second to speak.

"Indeed, such a smooth and outstanding performance is really surprising. She doesn't seem like a novice at all. She has a bright future ahead of her, and I have high hopes for her!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the screen in front of him displayed the score he had given.

8.9!

In the end, only Sugisaki, the president of the Pokémon Enthusiast Club, remained.

When Vivian handed him the microphone, he only said one short sentence: "I like it very much."

9.1!

He gave the highest score among the three, and was the only one who scored over 9 points!

It's important to understand that there's a significant dividing line between scores of 9 and below, representing two completely different levels with entirely different implications!

This also means that Xiaoyao's performance just now has truly won the approval of the president of the enthusiast club!

The computer quickly added up the scores given by the three people and displayed Xiaoyao's final score.

26.7!

Upon seeing her score, Xiaoyao jumped for joy!

Is this score high?

Actually, it's not that high. Not to mention that it's far from the high scores of 29 like Xiaoshun and Luo Bo, it's not even comparable to those mediocre performers.

But this is Haruka's first time participating in the Grand Contest!

With such achievements and performance, just as Director Conkenstein said, she certainly has a bright future.

With a few more tournaments to hone your skills, you'll definitely become an excellent coordination trainer!

Seeing this, Xia You felt somewhat gratified.

After all, he clearly remembered that when Haruka first participated in the Senna City Grand Festival in the anime, she made a mistake during her performance and ended up only getting a slightly lower score.

It seems that although my arrival did not personally help her in any way, it still had a significant impact on her performance.

At least in the anime, she didn't receive training from Bixi, nor did she meet Ayako or get her guidance!

A good start can greatly promote her mindset and growth!

At this moment, Vivian continued, "Now all the contestants in the first round have finished performing. Please wait a moment, and the list of those selected to advance to the second round will be announced shortly!"

After leaving the arena, Xiaoyao returned to the rest room.

As soon as she entered, she was greeted by enthusiastic applause from Xia You and the others.

"Congratulations! You did a great job!"

"Yes, sister, you could say you performed beyond your usual level!"

Compared to these people, Xiaoyao, though happy, still looked worried.

"I don't know if my score is high enough to make it to the second round..."

"Don't worry." Xia You smiled slightly. "I just calculated it, and your score is above average among these contestants. If nothing unexpected happens, advancing to the second round should be no problem at all!"

Even so, how could Xiaoyao be at ease until the actual list was released?

Amidst this anxious waiting, Vivian soon announced the results.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting!" Vivian said. "Now, let's announce the list of selected participants. There are eight people who have advanced to the second round. They are as follows!"

As she spoke, photos of eight people appeared on the big screen.

Xia You and the others spotted Xiao Yao, the last one, almost immediately!

"Very good!!"

Convinced that she had finally made it to the next round, Xiaoyao jumped up and down, holding hands with Xiaoxia, laughing and jumping around, their faces beaming with excitement.

Xia You glanced at the other contestants who had advanced.

These contestants include both men and women, and are generally quite young.

As expected, Shun and the guy named Robert took the top two spots, while the rest were contestants who had also given outstanding performances.

This was largely in line with his previous expectations. After all, not only the referees could see it clearly, but even the spectators believed that these players' performances were indeed enough to advance to the second round.

Seeing Xiaoyao's happiness, Xiaogang promptly poured cold water on her enthusiasm.

"Although it's great to have made it to the second round, the second round of the review is a combat segment, and Haruka isn't very used to combat yet, so this isn't good news for her."

Upon hearing Xiao Gang's words, Xiao Yao immediately quieted down.

Indeed, as Xiao Gang said, in her previous practice, she focused almost entirely on how to perform and pass the first round of review, as combat was still quite unfamiliar to her.

"It's okay..." Xiaoyao didn't seem to care much about it. "I'm already very happy to have made it to the second round. As for winning the tournament, I don't even dare to dream about it."

This shows that Xiaoyao is quite self-aware of her current abilities and doesn't set her sights on the highest goals. She is the kind of person who takes things one step at a time and is down-to-earth.

Vivian continued, "Next, we'll begin randomly assigning opponents for the second round of review!"

On the big screen, the avatars of the eight people were randomly shuffled and began to flash in order. After a few seconds, a table resembling the quarterfinals appeared in people's eyes!

The second round of match reviews was also divided into two halves.

The two teams from different halves of the bracket will never meet before the final match.

Xiaoyao quickly went to find her opponent, and almost immediately she saw Xiaoshun's avatar!

"What!?" she exclaimed in surprise, "My opponent is actually him!?"

Xiaoxia and the others looked at each other in surprise. No one had expected it to be such a coincidence!

"This is bad." Ash sighed. "Shun is not easy to deal with, and May, you..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiaoxia interrupted him with a look.

Seeing Xiaoyao's furrowed brows, Xiaoxia didn't know what to do and could only stand silently beside her.

Seeing their expressions, Xia You adjusted her posture and smiled slightly: "If you don't want to lose, how about I lend you a Pokémon? My Pokémon is very strong, I guarantee it can teach that kid a lesson and help you vent your anger!"

Ash's eyes lit up: "In that case, May, you can borrow my Pikachu too!"

"Xia You-ge!" Xiaoxia said helplessly, "Can you please stop teasing Xiaoyao? You know cheating is wrong, right? And you, Xiaozhi, don't make things worse!"

Xia You laughed it off, not paying any attention.

After all, he was just joking, simply trying to help Xiaoyao calm down.

Having participated in so many major competitions, how could he not know the consequences of doing this?

If discovered, not only will their results be cancelled, but they could also face a lifetime ban!

Even if May had just nodded and agreed to let him lend her his Pokémon, he wouldn't have done it.

Most importantly, the Pokémon cannot be changed in the second round of battle review; they must be the same as in the first round. This is common knowledge that most people know, so everyone knew he was joking, except for Ash who foolishly believed it.

Sure enough, Xiaoyao's mood improved, and she smiled and said, "It's okay, I can do it myself. Even if I can't beat him this time, there will be next time and the time after that. I believe I will win sooner or later!"

The tense atmosphere was completely dispelled by this interlude.

Those who are disappointed remain in their positions, while those who advance wait with anticipation.

After a short break, the second round of combat review began immediately.

After the opening battle in the upper half of the bracket, the second battle began between Haruka and Shun.

Battles in the Grand Contest are very different from regular battles.

First, it has a five-minute time limit. Whoever can reduce the opponent's score as much as possible with the most dazzling moves within the time limit will win the final victory.

Haruka and Shun stood facing each other, looking at one another.

Shun's expression was full of confidence and arrogance, while Yao, although she didn't think she would win, was equally unwilling to show weakness.

After all, in terms of type, the Flying-type Butterfree is twice as strong against the Grass-type Roselia, which means she is not without a chance of winning!

Seeing that the two trainers and their respective Pokémon were ready, the host Vivian signaled the start of the match!

As the time on the clock ticked down, Xiao Shun decisively gave the first instruction.

He was well aware that his Pokémon's type was disadvantageous, but he didn't seem worried at all. Instead, he had Roselia release Magic Leaf and launch his attack from a distance!

Chapter 652 The Grand Contest Concludes

Faced with the magical leaves of the poisonous rose, the hunting swallowtail butterfly immediately used Wind to counter it.

As it flapped its wings, a strong gust of wind scattered the magical leaves.

However, Shun had clearly given his poisonous rose special training in this area. Despite seeing the wind causing a great deal of trouble, he remained calm and instead revealed a cold smile.

Suddenly, Poison Rose's eyes snapped open, and the magic leaves it was shooting out forked, dodging the strong wind head-on and shooting towards the Hunting Swallowtail Butterfly from both sides!

This scene not only shocked Xiaoyao, but also made the audience's eyes widen!

Even Xiaozhi, Xiaogang, and Xiaoxia were greatly incredulous.

This is not something you can learn simply by practicing repeatedly.

How did this poisonous rose manage to do that?

Xia You touched his chin; only he had noticed.

Although it deals Grass-type damage, Magic Leaf is different from other Grass-type moves. Because it contains the word 'magic', it doesn't hit the enemy in a straight line, but has a certain degree of automatic tracking ability!

This also allows them to use the swaying properties of their leaves and then use magic to track them when encountering attacks such as strong winds, achieving the same effect as before.

Unfortunately, Haruka is just a beginner; she doesn't even know all the moves, let alone understand such principles.

Magic Leaf's change left her completely bewildered, unsure how to issue any commands.

"Get out of the way!"

In the rest room, seeing May still standing there in a daze, Ash and the others clenched their fists, anxious and wishing they could personally take charge of the battle!

Just as Haruka hesitated, the Hunting Butterfly was struck by the Magic Leaf.

Fortunately, the magic leaf did not cause much damage to the hunting swallowtail butterfly, thus averting a major disaster.

However, the Grand Contest isn't about defeating your opponent...