Early July.
Shen Island. The closest and largest island to the Zhu Xia mainland.
Its land area was immense. Even excluding the forested regions, it was equivalent to three Mist Cities. Some had once proposed dividing Shen into three separate cities, but for unknown reasons, the idea never came to fruition.
Shen Island remained the same, still comprising numerous districts that functioned like small cities.
This year's Summer Tournament was being held at the Starlight Arena in Fuhuo District, Shen Island.
Locals called it the Starry Sky Battlefield or the Champion Stage, because Xia Chunyu was born here.
The Spring Tournament's Sky Chasm Arena couldn't compare to this place at all.
Unlike the Sky Chasm, which had only a single battlefield, the Starlight Arena resembled the tournament venues from the anime. It consisted of four satellite arenas surrounding a central main arena.
Moreover, it provided accommodation—a veritable athlete's village—along with many other specialized facilities.
From the outside, these round buildings of various sizes were arranged like scattered stars, with the largest arena at the very center.
That was where the doubles finals would be held, determining the champion and runner-up. It felt almost sacred.
As the Summer Tournament kicked off, the number of tourists on Shen Island skyrocketed, along with the number of media personnel. Locals could see dozens of people holding cameras just by taking a walk around the neighborhood.
The residents of Shen Island felt both proud and somewhat troubled by the crowds. After all, so many people did affect their daily lives.
But their complaints didn't matter. The number of visitors to Fuhuo District would only keep growing, until there was no more room to squeeze in.
That day, the sun hung high, casting bright rays down from the sky.
The Mist City team, led by coaches like Xu He, arrived on Shen three days early and headed to their accommodation.
As before, the group of over twenty people, all dressed in their school uniforms, rode in a luxurious bus.
The vehicle drove along the highway until it reached a cluster of large cylindrical buildings.
The clamor of the crowd grew louder, and the bus slowly came to a stop.
Li Xiang lifted the blue curtain shielding the sun and saw countless heads outside, along with cameras flashing and clicking.
People were shouting, wearing the uniforms of their supported teams, holding up signs and waving them vigorously.
"Wow, they'll turn you into a celebrity whether you like it or not."
Li Xiang looked at the sea of people and couldn't help but click his tongue.
In the past, he had always watched such scenes on his computer, treating them as entertainment.
He never thought he would one day become a participant in this kind of spectacle. Though it seemed he was on the receiving end of the adoration.
His gaze passed through the one-way glass and suddenly spotted something interesting in the crowd.
"Hey! Hey! Song Jie! That's your photo!"
Li Xiang pointed at a wooden sign being held up, shouting as if he had discovered treasure.
Then Song Jie smacked him on the head.
"I saw it. You don't need to point it out."
Song Jie held a thick book. As a substitute, he had no role to play in the Summer Tournament, but he still had to be present. To pass the time, he could only read.
To be fair, the way he tucked the book under his arm naturally gave him an air of scholarly refinement, as if he had activated some kind of cheat. Being handsome had its perks.
"Can you go easy? I might get a concussion," Li Xiang said, rubbing his head.
On the wooden sign far outside, there was a photo of Song Jie from the Spring Tournament, held up by a group of excited, enthusiastic female fans.
A fan club?
Li Xiang shook his head. Standing next to Song Jie seemed to draw a lot of attention away from himself.
The bus started moving again. It seemed the crowd blocking the road had been cleared.
Inside the arena, outsiders were not allowed to enter casually, and most media couldn't get in either.
However, some special media outlets were granted access.
Xu He specifically mentioned a few of them and warned the team that if they were cornered, they must not speak carelessly. They should simply say they had urgent matters to attend to and leave immediately.
Do not say anything reckless.
The team acknowledged his warning.
In the quiet, park-like surroundings, the bus silently pulled up to the plaza in front of a huge egg-shaped building.
White marble paved the smooth, wide ground.
This was the accommodation provided by the Starlight Arena. The environment and service were top-notch, so there was no need to worry about rundown lodgings like those in some remote mountain villages.
Each person would have their own single room.
The group filed out one by one.
Quite a few schools had chosen to arrive on Shen Island today. In front of Li Xiang's group was another team, wearing purple-and-white school uniforms.
"That's the Ryukyu Island team," Song Jie's voice sounded beside Li Xiang. "They ranked sixteenth last year. They're a typical 'disconnected' school. Based on their performance in the last two matches of the Spring Tournament, they're not looking very strong this year."
Ryukyu Island was one of Zhuxia's thirteen islands, not considered a powerhouse school.
Li Xiang withdrew his gaze and followed the coaches into the hotel to receive his room assignment according to the rules.
Arriving early was an unspoken rule that almost all schools followed.
Before Mist City U even arrived, more than twenty of the twenty-seven higher education institutions had already checked in and settled their members.
All that remained was to wait for the pre-match preparations.
Coincidentally, just inside the hotel entrance, there was a spacious hall with floor-to-ceiling glass windows on all sides, offering excellent lighting.
When participants weren't allowed to wander outside freely, this hall became a gathering place for students from different schools to chat and mingle.
They clustered in small groups, either huddling together or striking up conversations with acquaintances from other teams.
The atmosphere was lively.
Powerful Pokémon often accompanied them, exuding an extraordinary presence just by standing there. In other words, the conversations in the hall also served as a subtle display of strength.
However, amid the buzz of conversation, the hall suddenly grew quieter.
Many eyes turned toward the entrance, watching the team emerge from the light, dressed in silver-black uniforms, with more female than male members.
They walked forward leisurely, chatting and laughing, chattering away.
But no one present would underestimate them.
Especially the girl leading them. She had sharp, focused eyes and walked with a steady, unwavering gait, yet every step she took seemed to make the ground tremble.
Of course, the reason for that tremor was her reputation.
—Su Qian of Mist City. One of the strongest young trainers among the Big Six.
Behind her were four boys of varying hair and skin colors. Three of them looked somewhat youthful but were particularly handsome.
The three new members of Mist City U, and Vice-Captain Chao.
Like scanners, they mentally catalogued the well-known members of the Mist City team.
For ordinary schools, even a Big Six school that hadn't been to the global level in years was still a mountain to be climbed with all their might.
"Mist City. The fourth Big Six school to arrive. Only Tiandu and Dragon City are left, right?"
"They have such a strong presence."
"That short-haired girl with the tear mole is really pretty. Her name is Bai Xiang, right?"
"They're all pretty! That pink-haired one too!"
"Tone it down. Her name is Zhao Jie."
"Song Jie looks even more handsome than in his photos and videos..."
"Wow, is that a foreigner? Her facial features look a bit mixed. And she's so... impressive!"
"The black-haired one should be Li Xiang, right? The Son of the Gods? He doesn't look like much, hahaha, what a chuunibyou."
The onlookers whispered among themselves.
Their comments all reached the ears of the Mist City team.
Abigail frowned. She hated such frivolous remarks the most. She stared directly at the speaker until he awkwardly looked away, then she let it go.
Zhao Jie was used to people pointing and whispering. She held onto Lü Shu's arm, smiling brightly.
Bai Xiang wore a gentle, ladylike smile, looking completely relaxed.
Song Jie simply ignored it all.
As for Li Xiang...
He was looking for a brick. If there was no brick, a folding stool would do too. Either way, either he or the one who spoke would be going down today.
Okay, that was a joke.
He had grown used to all sorts of strange nicknames being pinned on him.
If he had been born in the special manga world and Professor Oak had given him a Pokédex, his title would have been obvious.
—The Man of Many Nicknames. Without a doubt.
These people had way too much time on their hands, doing nothing all day but giving others silly, chuunibyou titles.
Just wait until they step onto the battlefield!
Li Xiang noted the speaker's school uniform: white with green and silver trim. It was the Lion Island team.
Don't let Su Qian draw your school! If she does, we'll crush you!
He gritted his teeth and followed the group to the front desk.
"Little brother, you've got another new nickname. Son of the Gods. Does it make your scalp tingle? Hehehe."
Lü Shu and Zhao Jie stood beside him, giggling.
"Senior sisters, you don't even look out for your junior, and now you're teasing me. What's that about?"
Li Xiang rolled his eyes at them.
As fellow doubles partners, they had trained together a lot recently, naturally growing closer. He didn't mind their occasional jokes.
"We're just worried you might get upset." Zhao Jie's smile was bright, but her tone was genuine.
This girl was like Whitebeard—one would adopt any little brother, and the other any son.
"Well, I really appreciate your concern."
Li Xiang twitched his mouth.
Up ahead, Xu He finished registering and received the room keys from the front desk, handing them out individually.
The four boys were assigned rooms next to each other.
Li Xiang glanced at his room number and didn't pay much attention.
Just as they were about to head upstairs, a voice called out from behind.
"Li Xiang! Li Xiang!"
Someone was calling him?
He turned around and saw Nagayama Taro from Triple Village, with the captain and vice-captain of the Sakura Island team standing beside him.
Their names were Tenzoji Ki and Fujioka Shizuya, if he remembered correctly.
"Go ahead. Don't wander off," Xu He's voice came, giving him permission to move freely.
Li Xiang nodded. "I'll be right back."
After greeting Song Jie and the others, he went to find Nagayama Kunimi.
Since they knew each other, it would be rude not to say hello.