```
"Hahaha, that killed me." After the drawing of lots was finished, Yun Guancheng came over, patting Fang Yuan on the shoulder and almost laughed till he cried.
"Don't be too pessimistic," he said. "After all, the battle is based on a scoring system. I've studied the rules, they're very strict. You can forfeit this match and save your strength for the next one."
Yun Guancheng had watched Fang Yuan's battle videos and, based on the impressive performances of his Milotic and Dragonite in the national competition, believed Fang Yuan should have one of the seven slots.
Yun Guancheng trusted his own judgment.
"What a hassle..." Fang Yuan muttered to himself, looking up at the calm-faced middle-aged female Trainer in the distance and pausing for a moment.
Sect Leader Ni Feng of the Waterfall Flow Dojo, a master of both ice and water, was someone Fang Yuan remembered vividly. During the Elf Siege, her Pokémon had frozen the waves, blocking the assault, a scene Fang Yuan still found particularly memorable.
...
Soon, the battles commenced.
The first three pairs consisted of Professional Trainers whose Pokémon were mostly water and flying types.
To qualify for the Temple of the Sea, each pair had different considerations. Some trainers wanted to conserve energy in the battle to score better in subsequent fights, while others, catching on to this mindset, chose a fierce offensive to secure the first victory and gain the upper hand.
In a short while, the first three battles ended, and then it was time for an event that over twenty trainers were eagerly awaiting.
The Masters took the stage.
"That Fang Yuan will probably forfeit, right?"
"Of course, any trainer with a normal thought process would forfeit..."
Most of the Professional Trainers laughed as they watched the two trainers walk out, expressing their opinions—only those unlucky enough to face a Master Level Trainer like Fang Yuan felt a sense of camaraderie and empathy for him.
Master Ni Feng had walked out feeling rather helpless, not expecting that after just praising Fang Yuan, she would end up facing him as an opponent.
"Wait a minute... It seems like Fang Yuan doesn't plan to forfeit??"
When it came to the fourth group's match, Fang Yuan remained expressionless and directly headed towards the aisle, walking to the training platform above the sea, with no sign of intending to forfeit.
"Maybe he plans to forfeit after going up? Quite the ceremonial guy..."
Below, Master Yun Miao and Master Zhang Yuhai both wore puzzled expressions—was Fang Yuan really going to fight?
Although Fang Yuan's Dragonite was not bad, and his Monferno was unreasonably strong, one was a Dragon type and the other was a Fire type that couldn't touch the sea. Facing the Master of both ice and water, Ni Feng, did Fang Yuan have another main Pokémon capable of standing up to a Master?
Inside the corridor, knowing his opponent was an Ice Master, Fang Yuan gave up the idea of sending Dragonite to fight, and Milotic wasn't suitable either. That left... the glutton. That fellow could also easily fight over the sea.
If there was indeed a huge difference in strength, Fang Yuan would definitely forfeit tactically, but the current matchup was not unsolvable. Masters weren't unapproachable.
"What is he doing?"
As Fang Yuan and Master Ni Feng headed to the field with Fang Yuan showing no signs of forfeiting, everyone realized he might genuinely want to battle.
However, once Fang Yuan reached the platform, his Eevee suddenly leaped from his shoulder, starting to "Bwoo, Bwoo" at his feet.
Immediately afterward, everyone saw Fang Yuan and his pet Eevee "communicating."
"Why didn't you say you wanted to fight earlier?" Fang Yuan knelt down, looking helplessly at Eevee and whispered.
Having reached the platform and Eevee suddenly expressing a desire to move around... If Fang Yuan had known Eevee wanted to battle, he would have let it evolve earlier down below.
"Bwoo!" Eevee's face puffed up, only realizing the scene below looked nice after reaching the platform.
Seeing this environment, it suddenly wanted to try out the new move it learned yesterday.
```
Just yesterday, Eevee learned a new partner skill, and to Fang Yuan's surprise, it was an Electric-type move.
The Electric-type move, which Eevee was quite averse to, was mastered before Fairy-type and Dark-type moves...
Perhaps it was because Eevee had spent the longest time practicing Electric-type moves, after all, the Self-detonating Magnetic Monster and Rotom were its perfect learning templates.
"Alright, it's your turn then," Fang Yuan shook his head and stood up.
So it was decided, Eevee and the Self-detonating Magnetic Monster would battle together.
...
"Now, please have both trainers send out their Pokémon at the same time to begin the battle!"
With the referee's confirmation, after Fang Yuan and Master Ni Feng nodded to indicate they were ready, the referee immediately followed with.
"Go, Gyarados!"
"Go, Eevee!"
As the referee finished speaking, both sides released their Pokémon simultaneously. Master Ni Feng pressed the Poké Ball, and a flash of light appeared, instantly revealing a ferocious blue Pokémon from the ocean below.
"Roar!!!!" As Gyarados entered the battle, water splashed all around, and it let out a roar, its gaze showing a confident glimmer.
Overconfident Gyarados, which grows more powerful as it battles, has an ability related to emotional energy that can increase its attack power by boosting its confidence after defeating an opponent. Master Ni Feng chose this Pokémon aiming for a better endurance battle.
However, as soon as Gyarados saw its opponent, it was stunned.
Not only was Gyarados stunned, but Master Ni Feng was as well, and so were the Trainers watching from outside the ocean arena.
As Gyarados appeared, Fang Yuan's Eevee suddenly leapt from the platform towards the sea surface, a sight that nearly shattered the worldviews of some spectators.
What's going on... In an ocean arena, letting Eevee battle? Isn't this Eevee supposed to be a pet?
"It's going to drown..." Yun Guancheng subconsciously blurted out, but quickly shut his mouth when, to his utter disbelief, he saw that after jumping in, Eevee was standing quite steadily on the surface of the water, not even causing much of a ripple when it fell on the ocean.
Blue light enveloped Eevee's limbs, and under the wrap of Superpower, Eevee stood naturally on the water's surface as if it was on solid ground, moving freely.
"Bwoo!" Eevee raised its head, looking towards the opposing Gyarados, ready to battle the Blue Carp King.
Blue... Blue Carp King?
Being referred to in such a way by Eevee, the Master-level Gyarados roared in anger, unable to bear the insult.
Master Ni Feng's expression was somber... Is it Superpower?
Boom!!
There was no time for further thought, as the battle had already begun.
Ferocious, rapid water flow coalesced in front of Gyarados, compressing into a high-speed jet of water that lashed out at Eevee with a tangible sense of power.
Ni Feng was curious how an Eevee could battle on water and started with a probing Water Gun.
But the next second, her expression changed as a powerful psychic force emanated from Eevee, and a blue tide of psychic energy swept forward, tearing through the Water Gun with a Confusion move just as destructive.
"Impossible!!!" Seeing Eevee stand off against Gyarados with equally matched power, many Professional Trainers exclaimed in shock.
An Eevee that can use Confusion... and to break through the Water Gun with it, the Trainers basically knew what this meant... An Eevee with Master-level combat power?