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The spring tournament ended in early May.
It had lasted over half a month.
In this spring tournament, there was no shortage of outstanding newcomers across the other eight regions, but none were as dazzling as Li Xiang.
Among them, the three seeded teams, including Tiandu University, received the most attention.
As veteran teams with global tour experience, aside from Li Xiang, an anomaly that defied common sense, they weren't far behind Mist City University in terms of talent resources.
Reserve players, who were equivalent to the team captains of weaker schools, could often take on one, two, or even three opponents from the opposing school's newcomers. This was a common sight.
Just like Abigail and the others back then.
Of course.. these schools didn't have the same boldness as Mist City University, daring to field first-year freshmen. Their newcomers were generally second or third-year students.
Even though their schools had plenty of top-tier students from Li Xiang's cohort, that still wasn't enough to make them give up on the more excellent second and third-year students in favor of freshmen.
After all, without Li Xiang's existence, Song Jie would probably be the pinnacle of their generation. However, that white-haired youth would only have a fifty-fifty chance against a stronger regular player.
The time gap was just too obvious.
Everyone was talented, their starting points were similar, and the resources they enjoyed weren't that different. So, the only important factor determining strength was time.
Li Xiang had been paying close attention to them for a long time.
During this period, he reviewed all the spring tournament match recordings of the three schools and did discover some interesting opponents that might pose a threat to Mist City University.
There was no chance to fight them this year, but next year was a different story.
Additionally, new talents had also emerged in Yandu and Longdu.
"The Big Six truly have talented people emerging in every generation," Li Xiang remarked.
He glanced at Incineroar and the others, who were having their bodies worked on by top-tier breeders, their faces showing a mix of pain and pleasure.
Professional massage and care every three days was pretty much the top treatment for a trainer. The appearance fee alone was a hundred thousand, not to mention additional charges based on the number and size of the Pokémon.
Powerful breeders were like money-devouring beasts.
Such exorbitant prices were only affordable for wealthy schools like the Big Six.
Fortunately, Li Xiang could also learn by observing, improving his own Eighteen Techniques of Cat Stroking.
There was no choice.
He still had the school's support now, but after graduation, he would likely need to find his own channels.
That would be a huge expense, and he couldn't keep asking his parents to pay for it, right?
It's always good to learn as much as possible. If he ever got tired of being a trainer, becoming a breeder wouldn't be a bad option.
He could also come into contact with all kinds of Pokémon.
...
Saturday.
Li Xiang arrived at the principal's office as invited to wait for Bai Wanhua.
He waited for about five minutes.
Bai Wanhua walked in with a tap-tap-tap of her heels, holding a stack of documents. It seemed she had just finished a meeting.
She said, "Have you been waiting long? Let me change clothes, and we'll leave immediately."
Li Xiang nodded and voluntarily stepped out of the principal's office.
Shortly after, Bai Wanhua, now dressed in casual wear and flat shoes, came out with a satchel. She instantly transformed from the stern, dignified principal into a woman full of family warmth.
The two walked downstairs, one after the other.
Today's destination was Mo Ye's house. But surprisingly, the renowned Elite Four member didn't live alone; he lived with his parents.
Hmm... a strong otaku vibe was palpable.
They drove away from Mist City University.
However, Bai Wanhua didn't drive directly to Mo Ye's place. Instead, she stopped at a battle club to pick up a girl with long legs who bore a six-point resemblance to her.
"Mom!"
The girl, like a little rabbit, bounced into the passenger seat, chattering happily.
Behind her, a small, fox-like canine Pokémon with icy blue fur and rabbit-like long ears, wearing what looked like a winter hat on its head.
An adorable Glaceon jumped onto the girl's lap.
"Be good." Bai Wanhua smiled gently, then turned slightly and said, "Say hello to your senior. Li Xiang, this is my daughter, Bai Yuanyuan."
"Senior?"
The girl was puzzled, turned her head, and saw Li Xiang in the back seat.
"Hello."
Li Xiang nodded at her. He knew Bai Wanhua had a daughter but was meeting her for the first time.
And why was her name Yuanyuan with the male character instead of the female one...
Yuan refers to the male mandarin duck.
"Hello." Bai Yuanyuan instinctively nodded, then remembered who this was.
Her face instantly lit up with excitement.
Immediately, she got out of the passenger seat, ran around to the other side of the car, and got into the back seat with Glaceon.
"Senior! Is it true that you started learning battling when you were five?"
Li Xiang edged closer to the car door and said, "Uh, no. I only started in the summer before sixth grade."
He recalled the first time he utterly defeated Lin Feng, feeling secretly pleased for a long time.
Bai Wanhua glanced at the two through the rearview mirror. She was also happy to see them interacting and focused on driving silently.
Along the way, Bai Yuanyuan was very enthusiastic, frantically asking about various things she had seen online.
But those were mostly false rumors, similar to the one about Xia Chunyu training his Charmander at age three.
Upon learning the truth, Bai Yuanyuan felt a bit disillusioned.
At the same time, she could tell Li Xiang wasn't very interested in answering, so she gradually quieted down. Bai Wanhua tried to say something, but didn't get much response, so she let it go.
Shortly after, they arrived at Mo Ye's house.
The building before them was a somewhat modernized Chinese-style courtyard, similar to the Zhenxing Martial Arts Hall.
Lush greenery, black tiles, white buildings, upturned eaves and pointed corners, and many low landscape walls.
Li Xiang blinked and perked up.
He remembered that the Mo family was one of the inheritors of the Eight Great Techniques of Zhuxia, the Tidewater Sword Technique.
The three got out of the car.
The first thing that came into view was a spacious courtyard with neatly arranged blue bricks on the ground. A little further away was a two-story building with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the gate.
"Grandpa! Grandma!"
Bai Yuanyuan ran towards the small building, shouting something. Glaceon followed behind her, crying out adorably, "Gurrei gurrei."
Li Xiang inexplicably felt an itch in his hands to pet something.
Indeed, Eevee, regardless of evolution, is an extremely cute Pokémon.
He had expected to meet Mo Ye's parents, the current head of the Tidewater Sword technique, and the top-tier breeder lady who had given him the recipe book.
Unfortunately, they weren't there. Only the Elite Four member himself was sitting in the quiet room of the two-story building.
Even at home, wearing a shirt and shorts, this Elite Four member, who kept his hair in a ponytail, never let his sword leave his side.
"Uncle..."
Seeing Mo Ye, Bai Yuanyuan's usual loud voice immediately softened.
"You're here?"
Mo Ye stood up, ruffled Bai Yuanyuan's hair, and looked at Li Xiang behind her.
"Teacher Mo."
Li Xiang greeted him respectfully.
"No need to be so formal. Find a place to sit. What would you like to drink? Tea? We also have soft drinks."
Mo Ye wasn't standoffish at all. He walked over to the nearby tea table, intending to brew tea himself.
Li Xiang quickly said, "Plain water is fine."
"Oh, is that so?"
Mo Ye seemed a bit disappointed but didn't say anything and poured Li Xiang a glass of water.
Bai Wanhua parked the car and walked in from outside. "A-Ye, are you the only one home?"
"Yeah, Mom and Dad went out for business."
Mo Ye nodded, sat down on the sofa, and motioned for Li Xiang to sit. "Come over here and sit. Don't be nervous."
I'm just not used to visiting other people's houses, Li Xiang thought to himself as he sat down on the sofa.
There wasn't much small talk.
They quickly got to the main topic.
Bai Yuanyuan sensibly withdrew. Surprisingly, the young girl understood what she could and couldn't listen to and went straight upstairs.
Restraining her curiosity at her age was commendable. Bai Wanhua had also planned to leave, but Mo Ye stopped her.
"Sis, you need to know about these things too, and I'll need your help."
"Me?"
Bai Wanhua was momentarily stunned but still sat down on the sofa.
Mo Ye took a sip of tea.
"Li Xiang, do you know the secret of Misty Lake?"
"Secret... you mean why the central area is inaccessible?" Li Xiang paused slightly in his movements.
He hadn't expected Mo Ye to call him over just to discuss Mist Lake.
Bai Wanhua was also a bit surprised but didn't interrupt.
"Yes. Misty Lake covers an area of over 80,000 square kilometers, of which more than 30,000 square kilometers are inaccessible and unobservable areas."
Mo Ye glanced at Li Xiang's hand. "Do you know why?"
"Please, go ahead."
Li Xiang sat upright, didn't answer directly, and waited for Mo Ye to explain.
"...Because the depths of Misty Lake are affected by unknown factors, they are an another dimension not belonging to the human world, isolated from the outside."
Mo Ye said, "Inside, there is a vast area of islands of varying sizes, which the Pokémon there call Mist Islands."
"Another dimension?"
"Yes. These islands exist and yet do not exist on this planet. They are home to countless Pokémon of all kinds."
Mo Ye nodded. "These islands are abundant in resources and blessed with spiritual energy. The unique environment nurtures a great number of powerful Pokémon. They thrive and multiply there, living free lives."
'Sounds like the Peach Blossom Spring,' Li Xiang thought to himself.
"Among them, there is a group of intelligent Pokémon. They call themselves the Disciples of Knowledge and Wisdom and have formed an organization called the Knowledge Museum, responsible for restraining powerful Pokémon and caring for the weak."
Mo Ye continued, "And the highest level of the Knowledge Museum is a small group called the Council of Ten Sages, consisting of ten Pokémon. They are at the apex of the Mist Islands."
"The Pokémon on the Mist Islands worship knowledge and long for wisdom. They are different from the wild Pokémon we encounter outside.
"They are more rational. While maintaining their combative desires, they also exercise self-restraint, even setting up camps and creating primitive tribes and fortified villages."
'Wow? Pokémon creating civilization? This, isn't this the worldview of the Mystery Dungeon series?' Li Xiang was somewhat surprised. In the Mystery Dungeon worldview, civilization was indeed created by Pokémon themselves.
"You've probably already taken the Legendary Pokémon class, right?" Mo Ye abruptly changed the subject.
Li Xiang nodded.
"Then you should know the creation legend."
Mo Ye said softly, "Legend has it that Arceus created Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina, commanding them to control time, space, and antimatter. Then it created Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf, giving all living beings that came to the Pokémon world knowledge, emotion, and will."
He finished speaking and looked at Li Xiang.
Li Xiang pretended to think for a while, then said, "You mean this Knowledge Museum is related to Uxie?"
"Yes. According to our speculation, this other dimension should have been created by Uxie, or is its habitat. It was Uxie that bestowed knowledge upon those Pokémon, along with the wisdom to think and solve problems."
Mo Ye took a sip of tea to moisten his throat.