As the saying goes—
Hesitation leads to defeat.
In battle, your opponent would never give you time to stop and think.
"Graveler, use Rock Blast!"
Xiao Fan's calm voice rang out from the opposite side.
Already prepared, Graveler moved without hesitation.
Its outer arms slammed against the ground—
And in the next instant, countless rocks surged upward.
Snapping back to his senses, Gao Tianming felt an overwhelming sense of danger.
But against an attack as dense as Rock Blast—
Completely dodging was impossible.
Then we'll force our way through!
"Charmander!"
"Use Dragon Claw and stop those rocks!"
Gao Tianming shouted.
Hearing the command, Charmander shook its head, as if trying to steady its disordered breathing.
Then—
Dragon energy surged through its body once more, gathering around its claws and forming a pair of enormous, vicious-looking talons.
"Ka-na!"
Determination burned in Charmander's eyes.
Facing the endless barrage of stones—
It charged forward like a fearless warrior.
"That's it, block th— huh?"
It was only then—
That Gao Tianming noticed something strange.
Charmander's movements were terribly uncoordinated—
Completely unlike how it moved during training or past battles.
"This…"
"So you finally noticed?"
Xiao Fan's composed voice came again.
"You've been too obsessed with forcing Charmander to use techniques it hasn't fully mastered to fight my Graveler."
"Your Charmander…"
"…is reaching its limit."
The words had barely fallen—
When a massive rock slammed directly into Dragon Claw.
Crack.
The already fractured construct finally gave way.
With a sharp explosion—
The giant claws shattered into motes of white light.
Before Charmander could even react—
Rock Blast continued.
One rock after another smashed into its body—
Launching it several meters away.
"Charmander!"
Seeing Charmander force itself back to its feet despite being covered in injuries—
Gao Tianming's mood sank to rock bottom.
The difference was simply too huge.
Between the Pokémon—
And between the trainers.
At this rate—
Even if they somehow lasted long enough to use Charmander's trump card—
There was no guarantee they could defeat Graveler.
Gritting his teeth—
Gao Tianming's gaze drifted involuntarily toward the referee.
Seeing this—
Xiao Fan did not order Graveler to continue attacking.
Only a trace of regret flickered in his eyes.
He was a cautious trainer—
Someone who preferred steady, calculated battles.
But he also longed to meet worthy opponents in the Pikachu Cup.
After learning his bracket—
He had researched every trainer and Pokémon in his group.
Though Gao Tianming and Charmander were type-disadvantaged—
After reviewing previous matches, Xiao Fan had never underestimated them.
On the contrary—
He had always considered them a major threat.
The reason was simple.
Despite usually fighting with type advantage in preliminaries—
Gao Tianming and Charmander had still encountered dangerous situations.
After all—
Typing alone couldn't erase differences in raw physical ability.
Yet whenever they faced desperation—
Charmander always erupted with some inexplicable power and reversed the situation.
"What a shame…"
"I never got to see that power."
The moment Xiao Fan saw Gao Tianming slowly raise his arm—
He folded his own arms and gently closed his eyes.
But then—
"Ka-na!"
A strange cry suddenly rang out from Charmander's side.
Xiao Fan reopened his eyes.
Only to find—
Charmander and Gao Tianming staring intensely at one another.
Meanwhile, the referee looked utterly baffled by Gao Tianming's arm—
Raised halfway…
Only to lower again moments later.
After a long pause—
Gao Tianming nodded slightly.
"I understand."
Then—
Xiao Fan watched as the boy turned his red-and-white cap around.
In an instant—
His aura became completely different.
At the same time—
Charmander turned back toward Graveler.
Its fighting spirit surged.
What happened?
What's going on?
Xiao Fan was confused.
He didn't understand—
But he could tell that in those few seconds of eye contact—
Something had happened between trainer and Pokémon.
Then Gao Tianming spoke.
"Thank you, Brother Xiao Fan."
"Thank you and Graveler for waiting for us."
"Charmander and I once made a promise to someone."
"We vowed to let the world know we exist."
"To show everyone the possibilities between humans and Pokémon."
"So now—"
"Watch closely."
"The battle between me and Charmander!"
The embarrassingly chuunibyou declaration echoed through the entire stadium.
Xiao Fan froze for a second.
Looking at Gao Tianming—
At the boy whose determination seemed to burn as fiercely as Charmander's tail flame—
He suddenly remembered his first meeting with Graveler.
That massive Pokémon—
Rolling around lonely mountain roads.
Too clumsy to avoid hurting others—
Always entertaining itself in solitude.
The first time it saw Xiao Fan—
Afraid of injuring him—
It forcibly changed the direction of its Rollout—
And tumbled off a cliff over a hundred meters high.
Later—
When Xiao Fan found it—
It had hidden fearfully—
Yet looked at him with unmistakable joy.
Xiao Fan knew—
He would never forget that expression.
Unconsciously—
He looked toward Graveler.
At that moment—
Graveler was looking back at him.
After a moment of silence—
A faint smile curled on Xiao Fan's lips.
He looked up toward Gao Tianming and Charmander.
"In that case…"
"That suits me perfectly."
"Then—"
"Let's begin!"
Gao Tianming swung his arm sharply.
"Charmander!"
"Flamethrower!"
Charmander's tail flame erupted violently.
What had once been a small flicker—
Now blazed like a roaring bonfire.
"KA-NAAAA!!!"
With a fierce roar—
Scorching flames exploded outward.
A thick pillar of fire burst from Charmander's mouth—
Like a ferocious fire dragon charging straight toward Graveler.
"Rock Tomb!"
Xiao Fan responded instantly.
"WUH-HOO!!!"
Graveler slammed the ground again.
Massive stone walls rose layer after layer—
Forming defensive barriers.
BOOM!
The first several walls exploded apart instantly.
Yet Xiao Fan remained calm.
With Graveler's speed—
Dodging Flamethrower outright was impossible.
Better to stop it head-on.
And he trusted Graveler to do exactly that.
Sure enough—
As wind scattered the smoke—
One final wall still stood firm before Graveler.
"Just as expected."
"You never disappoint."
But before Xiao Fan could order another assault—
The crowd suddenly erupted.
An ambush?
Xiao Fan frowned.
He halted Graveler's attack.
After all—
He specialized in defensive counterplay.
No need to rush.
"Graveler."
"Stay alert."
Then—
The smoke cleared.
Charmander was nowhere nearby.
But the next moment—
Looking across the battlefield—
Xiao Fan's pupils contracted.
The stadium shook with the announcer's excitement.
"Charmander evolved in battle!!!"
At the far side of the field—
Brilliant light of evolution shone.
Bathed completely in radiance—
Charmander's body expanded.
Then—
Like celebratory fireworks exploding—
The light burst apart.
Standing there—
Was an orange-red Charmeleon.
Head tilted skyward—
It let out a resounding roar.
Xiao Fan stood stunned.
After a long while—
He shook his head.
Still smiling.
"Well now…"
"This just got a lot more interesting."
Meanwhile—
Chen Mo's livestream chat exploded.
[HOLY SHIT. Young people's battles are this unreasonable now? One disagreement and they evolve?!]
[BRO IS HACKING. WHO EVOLVES MID-FIGHT?! Look at Graveler's trainer, he's completely numb 💀]
[Honestly, when I heard Xiao Fan's name I thought he was the protagonist. But after this mid-battle evolution… I'm not so sure. Gao Tianming literally declared he'd defeat Teacher Mo at the Pokémon Center. This is peak protagonist energy.]
[Actually, mid-battle evolution isn't rare. Teacher Mo's Pidgey and Pichu both evolved in battle.]
[WHICH MAKES IT EVEN MORE MAIN CHARACTER-LIKE!]
[Small reminder: if you watched preliminaries, a bunch of Pokémon evolved mid-battle.]
[Wait seriously? Then why doesn't anyone know?]
Chen Mo stepped in.
"Simple."
"A lot of Pokémon that evolved in battle…"
"Still lost the match they were currently fighting."
The chat instantly filled with question marks.
Shouldn't evolution make Pokémon stronger?!
How can they still lose?
Chen Mo smiled.
"Evolution isn't simple."
"Especially for Pokémon."
"A leap in lifeform means massive changes in ability and body structure."
"And that means adaptation time."
"So yes—"
"Sometimes evolution grants enough power to win."
"But often…"
"The Pokémon struggles to adapt to its new body."
"Can't fully use its newfound strength."
"And with accumulated injuries beforehand…"
"Still loses."
At the moment—
Charmeleon faced exactly that issue.
Yet—
Whether from confidence or sheer recklessness—
Gao Tianming acted immediately.
"Charmeleon!"
"Use Flamethrower!"
"KA-BO!!!"
An even fiercer torrent of flames erupted.
"Rock Tomb!"
Xiao Fan gave the same response.
Stone walls rose once more—
Trying to block the fire.
But this time—
Charmeleon's Flamethrower surpassed Rock Tomb's defensive limits entirely.
In mere moments—
It smashed through every barrier—
And slammed directly into Graveler.
"Wuh…"
Even Graveler twisted in pain.
Xiao Fan frowned deeply.
He understood now—
Passive defense wouldn't work anymore.
"Stomping Tantrum!"
"WUH-HOO!"
Graveler raised one leg—
And slammed it down.
The earth trembled.
Shockwaves ripped through the battlefield—
Rushing toward Charmeleon.
"Jump!"
Gao Tianming shouted.
A triumphant smile flashed across Xiao Fan's face.
"Rock Blast!!!"
This—
Was Graveler's most practiced move.
Fast.
Nearly invisible.
Jagged stones instantly formed around Graveler.
"WUH-HOO!!!"
With a roar—
Countless rocks shot toward airborne Charmeleon.
If it had already evolved into Charizard—
Wings might've allowed evasion.
But Charmeleon?
Impossible.
This is over.
Xiao Fan unconsciously clenched his fists.
Then—
Gao Tianming issued a command Xiao Fan couldn't comprehend at all.
"Charmeleon!"
"Charge straight through!"
"Burn to your heart's content!"
"KA-BO!!!"
Rocks battered Charmeleon—
But there was not even the slightest hesitation in its eyes.
Flames exploded from its body.
Wrapping around it completely—
Transforming it into a blazing sphere of fire.
Every rock that struck it—
Only fed the inferno like fresh fuel.
Rather than stopping—
The fire burned even brighter.
In the raging heat—
For a fleeting moment—
Xiao Fan and Graveler felt as though they were witnessing the sun crashing to earth.
The next instant—
The gigantic fireball that Charmeleon had become—
Crashed directly into Graveler.
The ground around them collapsed inward.
And in the most literal sense possible—
The battlefield was set ablaze.
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