In just about half an hour, Imperial University defeated Harbin Academy, showcasing a significant gap in strength. However, Harbin Academy was also quite unlucky, as they ended up facing Imperial University, ranked the top among the Five Elite Universities.
Had they not encountered one of the Five Elites, they might have secured a more respectable ranking.
Among the Top Five, the only opponent Harbin Academy might dare to challenge would be Modu Academy.
After all, Dragon-types are twice as weak to Ice, giving Ice-types a definitive advantage.
Under similar conditions of strength, Ice-types typically dominate Dragon-types. That said, if the Dragon-type Pokémon are powerful enough, they can endure the Ice-type attacks.
Unfortunately for Harbin Academy, even though they were placed in a group with both Imperial University and Modu Academy. But due to bad luck they ended up facing Imperial University.
Meanwhile, Modu Academy and Sichuan University were locked in a fierce battle.
Sichuan University is a longstanding top competitor, consistently ranking in the top ten of the Hundred Schools League. Just last year, they ranked sixth.
This year, they aimed to break into the Top Five. To achieve that, defeating Modu Academy was a must.
Taking down one of the Elite Five was their ticket to becoming one of the new Elite themselves.
In stark contrast to Imperial University's swift victory, the match between Modu Academy and Sichuan University was still ongoing, currently in the third round.
So far, Modu Academy had won two matches, but it seemed unlikely they would win this third one.
Modu's Pokémon was a Tyrantrum, while Sichuan's was a Pangoro.
Both Pancham and its evolved form, Pangoro, are iconic Pokémon of the Sichuan region, as these species are found exclusively in a few secret areas there.
With a devastating Ice Punch, Pangoro landed a direct hit on Tyrantrum's abdomen. The dragon Pokémon staggered and then collapsed, unable to battle.
Sichuan University clawed back a victory, and Pangoro still had the strength to fight on.
Soon, Modu Academy sent out their fourth competitor. Julian noticed something familiar about the trainer's appearance and quickly remembered why—they bore a striking resemblance to Ian.
Julian recalled that Ian had mentioned having an older brother who didn't attend Imperial University. This must be him.
A quick glance at the large screen confirmed his suspicion: the name displayed was Owen Drake.
"Salamence!"
A Salamence exuding the aura of a peak pseudo-Elite Pokémon entered the battlefield. Its Intimidate ability activated immediately, causing Pangoro to show visible signs of fear.
Among the Top Five Universities, if one were to name the wealthiest, it wouldn't be Imperial University, despite being ranked first. That title undoubtedly belonged to Modu Academy.
Raising Dragon-types comes with numerous strict requirements, the most critical of which is a massive financial investment. If you don't have billions to spend on raising a Dragon-type, it's better to give up the idea altogether.
Billions of dollars were merely the initial investment for raising Dragon-types. The subsequent costs were even higher. Of course, this applied to pseudo-legendary Dragon-types specifically—other Dragon-types required less money and resources, but even those costs far exceeded those of most Pokémon.
Because Modu Academy is entirely composed of people involved with Dragons—from students to teachers to the principal—it's essentially a haven for the wealthy.
Almost any student you meet there might be the child of a city's richest tycoon or the offspring of a board member from a listed company.
At worst, their family owns an entire district's worth of rental properties.
If your family is rich, it doesn't guarantee you can raise a Dragon-type, but anyone raising Dragons definitely comes from a wealthy background.
Near Modu Academy, high-end malls, luxury apartments, and a steady flow of influencers and celebrities dominated the area.
Julian could relate to this firsthand. For example, in his system store, a box of top-grade energy cubes for Dragonite costs 1,000 points, whereas the same for Fire-types costs only 800 points.
Back in the match;
Salamence's Intimidate ability had already weakened Pangoro's fighting spirit. Combined with Salamence's superior strength, it only took a few moves for Pangoro to be defeated.
After the battle ended, Julian assumed Owen would continue, but he surprised everyone by recalling Salamence.
Instead, a teammate stepped forward, sending out a Dragonite.
While not every student at Modu Academy owns a pseudo-legendary Dragon-type, those on the school team generally have at least one.
Following this, other participants from Modu Academy sent out a Garchomp, Hydreigon, Goodra, and, earlier, Salamence and Dragonite. That brought the count of pseudo-legendary Dragon-types in this match to six.
For most spectators, it was a feast for the eyes.
What trainer could resist the allure of a pseudo-legendary Dragon-type? Unfortunately, harsh realities often forced them to give up on the dream.
Some even abandoned the path of becoming a trainer entirely, returning to the life of an ordinary person.
Even Julian couldn't help but marvel.
When Hydreigon entered the battlefield, its savage and brutal aura was palpable, even through the protective barrier.
It truly lived up to its reputation as the most violent pseudo-legendary Dragon-type.
With three heads, Hydreigon's central head served as its primary brain, but the two side heads also possessed thoughts of their own.
If all three heads lose control, there's no telling what destruction could ensue—possibly even turning on its own trainer.
Incidents where Hydreigon killed its trainer have happened in Celestria.
As a pseudo-legendary Dragon-type unique to the Celestria, Hydreigon is exceedingly rare in Drakoria.
Two hours later, the match between Modu Academy and Sichuan University finally concluded.
In the end, Modu Academy defeated Sichuan University with a record of five wins and three losses.
Notably, they only fielded seven participants—their final team member didn't even need to battle.
Since their match had been the longest in this round, by the time it concluded, all the other group matches had already ended.
"Looks like I'll have to dig through the match recordings tonight. Time to pull an all-nighter"
Lucas said, pressing his fingers against the glasses on the bridge of his nose, trying to look as professional as he could.
Though his chances of being sent out in future matches were slim, gathering data for the team gave him a strong sense of involvement.
"I really envy you"
Julian said suddenly, patting Lucas on the shoulder. With his own Slowking constantly monitoring him, Julian didn't even have the chance to pull all-nighters for games or videos anymore.
Lucas blinked in confusion.
'Envy me? Envy me for what? It's me who envy you'
"I envy your good liver. You can detoxify, pull all-nighters, and still be fine. Youth is truly a blessing," Julian explained casually.
Lucas nodded subconsciously but was stunned the next second.
'What does he mean, 'Youth is truly a blessing'? I'm a year older than you! Why are you talking like an old man? or is your liver actually failing?'
Lucas started overthinking: Could it be that Julian is so strong because he trains his Pokémon late into the night?
Tomorrow at 8:00, Imperial University and Modu Academy will compete to determine the top team in Group D, securing a spot in the finals.
*****
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