Hua Nation's First Police School has one headquarters and two branch campuses.
One of the branches is located in the southwestern region of Yundian, catering to undergraduate-level police academy students.
The headquarters is situated in the Imperial Capital, and only those students who successfully graduate from the undergraduate level can continue their studies at the headquarters.
The place Fang Yuan was set to visit next was the First Police School's branch in Yundian Spring City.
Fang Yuan had never been to this region, but he had heard that the terrain in Yundian was treacherous, with strange and majestic glacial landscapes, and a large number of rare Pokemon inhabited this area.
However, more than these geographical features, Fang Yuan knew from the news that the Yundian area, being on the border, was a hotspot for the majority of Pokemon poaching rings.
Compared to central provinces, instances of Pokemon poaching were not uncommon here, and the crime rate remained high.
But compared to the power of the nation, even the strongest poaching rings had to act covertly... In fact, within the ranks of the poachers, there were very few who even reached the level of a Professional Trainer; if they had that strength, doing anything else would be more rewarding than being a poacher, wouldn't it?
"Could it be that the assessment requires me to take down a poaching organization?" Fang Yuan mused after arriving in Spring City, contemplating the content of the fourth stage of the Professional Trainer assessment.
If the content of the assessment really was this, Fang Yuan felt he needed to be more cautious, such as by calling Luo Kuo from home as well.
With the combination of Sun Eevee's Future Sight, Luo Kuo's Illusion Technique, the Self-detonating Magnetic Monster's ability to disable electronic devices with Teleport, and Glutton's Shadow Contract, he was basically set.
Even if the enemy had a Master Level Trainer, he could...
"Wait, the Trainer Association surely wouldn't require an assessment candidate who isn't yet a Professional Trainer to do something so dangerous. Better not overthink this," he decided.
Carrying his backpack and walking through the streets, Fang Yuan eventually sighed,
...
After arriving in Spring City, Fang Yuan first went to register at the Trainer Association. Since he was participating in the Professional Trainer assessment, Fang Yuan only waited a moment at the Association before someone came to receive him.
The person who came was a tall and valiant female police officer wearing a blue uniform and a rolled-brim hat.
Upon seeing Fang Yuan, she gave him a salute and said, "May I ask if you are Mr. Fang Yuan?"
"That's me," Fang Yuan said. This was his second time being saluted by a police officer; the first time was by a traffic cop while he was sitting in his dad's car, waiting for a traffic ticket...
"I am Xu Manjie, an instructor at the First Police School. You may call me Instructor Xu. For the next week, I will be responsible for your assessment tasks. Of course, I am only responsible for explaining some matters. Your final examiner will not be me."
"Okay." Fang Yuan was all ears, ready to follow whatever the instructor said.
At the same time, Instructor Xu who was preparing to lead Fang Yuan to the First Police School was also quite surprised internally. Although the information she received showed Fang Yuan's age, this was the first time she had seen such a young candidate for the Professional Trainer assessment. Fang Yuan's age was even younger than most students in the police academy...
Before long, Fang Yuan followed Instructor Xu to the First Police School.
As they passed a huge training field, they saw a group of students, mostly around Fang Yuan's age, engaged in physical training exercises.
The 4th is New Year's Eve, and now it's the 1st. Normal university students have long been enjoying their winter break. These police academy students are really working hard...
"Instructor Xu, what exactly is the assessment about?"
"Would it be possible to speed up the process a bit... A 7-day assessment is too long. If it could be shortened to 3 days, that would be great," Fang Yuan suddenly asked.
Fang Yuan mainly wanted to finish early and go home for the New Year.
Instructor Xu stopped walking and turned to look at Fang Yuan, "That's not something I can decide. To be precise, the complete content of your fourth assessment has not been fully determined."
"However, I understand your feelings. But you don't have to be too sad. When the time comes, you will be celebrating the New Year with a bunch of us instructors as well as many police academy students..."
Fang Yuan: "..."
It sounded warm, but Fang Yuan was not very happy.
"Aren't those students going home?"
Fang Yuan understood that the school needed to be staffed at all times, but it seemed unnecessary for the students to stay.
"Some of the junior students will go home, and some will stay. During the Spring Festival, poaching rings are most active, and the need for vigilance is several times that of normal times. If there are no surprises, you might also get the chance to participate in a mission during this peak incident period," Instructor Xu said with a smile.
But you better hope nothing happens… Otherwise, the difficulty of your Professional Trainer assessment might increase a lot, she silently added in her mind.
...
A few minutes later, Fang Yuan was taken to an individual dormitory. The dormitories here were bungalows, single rooms, with a small backyard that seemed to be used for Pokemon training.
"Here." Instructor Xu tossed the keys to Fang Yuan, saying, "Next, I will tell you part of the assessment content."
"You must have experienced team battles, right?" Instructor Xu asked.
"I have," Fang Yuan nodded.
Even though it was one deity leading four noobs, he had still personally experienced it.
Instructor Xu said, "That makes it easier to explain. The basis of the assessment is to examine the assessor's ability to carry out team combat, requiring the assessor to select at least three Pokemon to form a core tactical system."
"After becoming a Professional Trainer, the battles one engages in are no longer the 1vs1 duels governed by rules."
"The transition phase from a Trainer to a One-Star Professional Trainer is reflected in the enhancement of the Pokemon's strength and the further development of the team system. Some formidable Professional Trainers can already combine two, three, or even four Pokemon to form the core tactics of a group battle system."
"Especially for some Masters, one-on-one duels can hardly reflect their true strength."
Fang Yuan listened quietly; although he knew roughly about these things, it didn't hurt to hear them again.
"Let me give you an example. Weather tactics are a well-established and most common group battle system. For instance, during a sandstorm, Pokemon can utilize the weather effects of the sandstorm as the main axis to form a team."
In a sandstorm, Pokemon with the Sand Force ability see an increase in the power of their Rock, Steel, and Ground moves, while those with the abilities Sand Veil and Sand Splash become more agile... In addition, moves like Photosynthesis, Morning Light, and Solar Flame are negatively affected by the sandstorm, though some moves are positively enhanced as well."
However, the most troublesome aspect is that sandstorms can continuously damage Pokemon that are not of the Rock, Ground, or Steel attributes. If the Pokemon on the sandstorm team can highly control the sandstorm, they can even directly manipulate it to attack.
"So you're saying the next assessment will be team combat?"
"Yes, you need to use your Pokemon to construct a team system with one core tactic. During the assessment, an examiner will battle against you, and you may ask me any questions during this process."
"I understand..." Fang Yuan said.
Instructor Xu Manjie continued, "This is your assessment card. With it, you can use the bathroom facilities, cafeteria, and some of the training grounds at the First Police School. Additionally, you have three days to prepare, with the initial assessment taking place after that. During this period, you may also tour the school, but please do not disrupt others' training."
After speaking, Instructor Xu Manjie placed the assessment card on the table and left the room, leaving Fang Yuan alone in the dormitory, lost in thought.
"This instructor is so dry and lacks any feminine charm. Lin Jing won't become like this in the future, will she?"
Fang Yuan suddenly thought of Lin Jing, uncertain whether she was currently at the police school, but before considering that...
Fang Yuan opened his backpack, unzipped it, and dumped out Eevee, Rotom, and some other things, then proceeded to take out his other Poké Balls.
After being dumped out, Eevee naturally rolled over on the bed and continued to hug the phone, fast asleep.
"You... heard that, right?" Fang Yuan looked towards the smartphone Rotom, as he would need Rotom's functions for the upcoming training work.
"Message received, Rotom!" Smartphone Rotom saluted as it stretched out a hand.
"..." Fang Yuan nodded and began to think. The content of the fourth assessment was within reason, yet somewhat unexpected.
The police, who battle against criminals, are undoubtedly experts in real combat. The Trainer Association must have arranged this placement to expose him to some group battle concepts.
Going solo, unless one has an overwhelming advantage, one cannot beat a well-coordinated tactical system.
Even with an overwhelming advantage, unless the gap is very large, victory is still difficult.
Fang Yuan still remembered the battle during the Su Province Rookie League, where Eevee, despite dominating in individual fights, was easily taken out by Jiang Ran's Nan University Middle School team through the use of Teleport, Swap Field, and Destiny Bond...
"This assessment should be relatively easy for Trainers who specialize in one Attribute Spirits, but for a Trainer like me, with a more diverse array of Pokemon, there are natural obstacles... No big deal, though."
"But the assessment does not sound as simple as just battling the examiner... does Instructor Xu mean that if an incident occurs, there might be actual combat?"
Fang Yuan looked at his Poké Balls. Unlike common Professional Trainers, he had a substantial foundation. Weather Moves were almost a must-have for each and every one of his Pokemon, and he could easily form a weather tactics team.
Moreover, while at the research institute, Dragonite, Self-detonating Magnetic Monster, and Milotic had already practiced Rainy Day Tactics.
Dragonite focused on wind, starts with moves like Hurricane from the Flying-type, the Self-detonating Magnetic Monster focused on Thunder and Lightning such as Thunder, and Milotic focused on water power like Water-based Spell.
All three Pokemon also mastered the Rain Dance.
The assessment requires selecting at least three Pokemon to combine into a core tactical system; Fang Yuan's team was already set without needing any additional effort.
Besides the Rain Day System, Sun Eevee also knew the Sunny Day Move, and its mastery of Sunny Day was even better than the other three Pokemon's control over Rain Dance.
But the Pokemon that could be Sun Eevee's team members... Monferno? Glutton?
Although Monferno is a Fire Type Pokemon and knows Rage, and Glutton is an expert in playing with fire, their compatibility with the Sunny Team isn't that great...
This Sunny Day tactical system was immediately passed by Fang Yuan.
Perhaps if Eevee, Monferno, and Glutton were combined, they would be extremely strong, but that's because of their individual strength, not so much because of the Clear Sky Trick. Compared to Dragonite, Milotic, and Self-detonating Magnetic Monster's Rainy Day, this Sunny Day strays from the concept.
"But there's no need to be fixated on weather. Sun Eevee has Swap Field and Substitute, the Self-detonating Magnetic Monster knows Teleport and Swap Field, and Glutton has the ability to exchange places with shadows created by Shadow Clone. These instant-transport Moves are their significant advantages. These three Pokemon could entirely revolve around 'Teleport and Swap Field' to build their tactics!!"
Space Exchange Tactics?
"Although it might be difficult to coordinate... if they can work well together, it'll definitely be a nightmare for the enemy," Fang Yuan mused.
With the strength of Sun Eevee, Self-detonating Magnemite, and what would soon evolve into Gengar, the Glutton, undoubted, their combination gave Fang Yuan complete peace of mind.
"Let's try combining them first."
Fang Yuan woke Eevee, planning to find a training field to give it a try. As for the backyard, it was too small, and he was afraid of collapsing the house.