Although Xia Hunao witnessed the epic scene of Gyarados using Splash, he found that Splash had nothing to do with winning battles.
When he saw Farfetch'd take flight, Xia Hunao knew the match was slipping away. Although Gyarados had some long-range moves, as an elite trained by the Yu family, Yu Longdu's Gyarados was mostly equipped with physical moves. The only one, Twister, posed little threat to Farfetch'd. As for Gyarados's physical attacks, its range was nowhere near enough to hit Farfetch'd.
Soon, the second round of the match ended. Even though Gyarados struggled valiantly, even using Splash in combination with various moves, it was ultimately defeated by Farfetch'd's aerial assault. To put it crudely, Gyarados's performance was like a giant blue Caterpie desperately trying to fly.
Xia Hunao stood by the spectator stand's railing, "Two rounds, the current score is zero to two. There's one last round, they mustn't let their mentality collapse."
Xia Hunao's concern was actually unnecessary. Yu Longdu, having been through constant hardships in the Yu family since childhood, had developed a resilient spirit. As for Chu Xiaodie, being Xia Hunao's prized disciple, she would fight with all her might even if only one round remained.
The third match between the two sides began: Comfey and Hakao versus Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee.
Xia Hunao scratched his head, "Is it that coincidental? They brought out two Pokémon that don't often use flying-type moves, and they encountered two fighting-types."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xia Hunao thought again, "No, Comfey has eyes, right? That's fine then."
While he was talking, the walkie-talkie next to him crackled. Xia Hunao picked it up and heard Kaswiden ask him, "How is it? Didn't expect we'd have something like this, did you?"
Xia Hunao retorted, "What are you talking about? That leek?"
Kaswiden's voice came from the walkie-talkie, laced with a hint of pride, "Of course. This is a super leek we cultivated using the most advanced gene technology and multiple generations of breeding."
Xia Hunao nodded, "Is that so? But you spent so much effort and resources just to create a leek that only fits Farfetch'd? Isn't that a bit too foolish?"
"What do you know? Our breakthroughs in gene technology have also allowed us to successfully create that giant bone. Just you wait and see, we still have more powerful technologies that we haven't used yet."
With that, Kaswiden hung up the walkie-talkie and continued watching the match. Xia Hunao looked at Meng Tianya beside him, both of them looking baffled. After a moment, Meng Tianya asked, "What is he doing? Is he just here to show off the technology of their Lixing Kingdom?"
Xia Hunao shrugged, "Who knows."
As they were talking, the third round of the match on stage began. The Lixing Kingdom's trainer made a big move as soon as the match started. Hitmonchan extended its two hands, grabbed Hitmonlee's legs, and then spun in place before throwing Hitmonlee out like a shot put. The movement was precise and textbook.
"Well, how should I put it? Hitmonchan weighs just over 50 kilograms, and Hitmonlee weighs less than 50 kilograms. Coupled with professional training, it's not impossible for Hitmonchan to lift Hitmonlee and throw it."
"Isn't your Gengar's Tai Chi also like that?"
Xia Hunao shook his head, "No, Gengar's Tai Chi uses technique to redirect or throw opponents. This style usually requires an initial velocity. But look at this one from Lixing Kingdom, he gave Hitmonlee an initial velocity. The power must be considerable."
Hitmonlee, flying through the air, kicked Hakao in the head. Hakao's vision went blurry, and Comfey immediately flew up and threw a powder ball, restoring some of Hakao's stamina.
Xia Hunao sought advice from Mu Zhishui beside him, "What do you think? Are those strange shoes an item, or just special shoes for training?"
Mu Zhishui observed the slight glimmer of the shoes under the sun. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "They should be an item. Although occasionally a school of thought uses heavier shoes, the training methods of Lixing Kingdom have never been like that."
Xia Hunao watched as Hitmonlee, after kicking, jumped back and was nodded at by Hitmonchan. "Indeed. Moreover, that color doesn't look like any common training metal. Is it silver? Even with their wealth, they wouldn't plate training shoes with silver. This should be an item."
As they spoke, they looked at Hitmonchan's hands. Hitmonchan also wore gloves on both hands that shimmered slightly upon closer inspection.
"Those should be platinum, the gleam is different from silver. Silver is affected by oxidation to some extent, but platinum is different."
Meng Tianya said, drooling as he looked at Hitmonchan's hands. Wang Zhen handed him a tissue from the side, "Leader, wipe your mouth. Maintain some dignity, won't you?"
Meng Tianya pointed at the platinum gloves, "Platinum! Neither our Meng family nor the Yu family has ever used such luxurious items. Even for battles, I've never used anything like this. And I'm considered fine. Look at Yu Longdu, he's truly..."
Yes, if even Meng Tianya noticed, how could Yu Longdu, the money-grubber, not? His eyes were fixed on the item in Hitmonchan's hands. "I've decided. I will win this match, and then I'll have him give me those gloves!"
Although Yu Longdu's burning fighting spirit was fervent and intimidating, there was a problem: his Pokémon didn't box. Even Charizard, with hands, mostly used claws.
Xia Hunao, outside the arena, didn't want to interfere with Yu Longdu's burning spirit, but he had his own thoughts, "That thing is probably specialized too, specifically for Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee. It's no use for him to have it. You can't expect a flying-type master to train fighting Pokémon."
As he spoke, Hitmonlee kicked out again, hitting Hakao's head precisely. Hakao, having been hit repeatedly in vital spots, was resisting, but Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee's athleticism was truly remarkable, making Hakao's counterattacks quite futile. Moreover, Chu Xiaodie's Comfey in this match was in a supportive role, and a defensive one at that, making it even harder to gain an advantage.
"Is that Flying Kick? But what's been added to those shoes? Is it to counter Close Combat or Flying Kick?"
The battle continued. Hitmonlee completely became Hitmonchan's weapon, being thrown, then jumping back to be caught and thrown again...
The thrown Flying Kick was indeed more powerful than a self-initiated kick. Hakao was knocked out after just a few kicks, and even Comfey's healing couldn't turn the tide. This left Comfey to fight two against one.
The few pieces of good news were that Comfey's size was extremely small. With a mere twenty-centimeter stature, it would be quite difficult to get rid of it by throwing it like Hitmonlee. Therefore, the two Lixing Kingdom trainers had to resort to close-combat methods to deal with Comfey.
As expected of Hitmonlee, its legs were faster than Hitmonchan's. Even starting from the same position, it reached Comfey faster than Hitmonchan and was about to attack with its leg.
As the saying goes, one is influenced by their company. After spending so much time with Xia Hunao, although she couldn't possess the same creativity as him, Chu Xiaodie had learned quite a bit of his knack for creating chaos. "Comfey, use Charm!"
A ball of pink hearts flew out from Comfey and flickered in front of Hitmonlee before disappearing. Hitmonlee's head spun dizzily for a couple of turns, then it stood still.
Hitmonchan, who was supposed to follow up with a punch after Hitmonlee's attack, had been anticipating Hitmonlee's move. But when Hitmonlee stopped, Hitmonchan couldn't brake in time and punched Hitmonlee right in the head.
Hitmonlee walked forward a few steps in a daze, only to be met by Comfey, who had created some distance, and was pinned to the ground with a Draining Kiss to the head. Although not fainted, after being infatuated, such a blow would likely require a long recovery period.
In a short one-on-one situation, it depended on whether Chu Xiaodie could seize the opportunity.
Xia Hunao thought this, and Chu Xiaodie indeed seized the opportunity. The second Charm was aimed at Hitmonchan. After all, no one stipulated that only one Pokémon could be infatuated in a match. Moreover, Tyrogue, Hitmonchan, Hitmonlee, and Hitmontop – judging by their names, they were all male Pokémon. How could they not be susceptible to Chu Xiaodie's Comfey's Charm?
The second ball of pink hearts flew towards Hitmonchan. Hitmonchan jumped back a couple of times to dodge, but inadvertently stepped on Hitmonlee's leg, which was lying on the ground. As a Pokémon known for its legs, Hitmonlee's leg muscles were very sensitive. Furthermore, infatuation didn't completely seal the opponent's actions. So, this kick directly sent Hitmonlee flying.
Hitmonlee's jump caused it to collide with the incoming second Charm. The hearts flickered before its eyes, and it fell down again.
Xia Hunao scratched his head outside the arena, "What an unlucky fellow. You just needed to lie there peacefully, why did you have to get up? Now look, you took another hit. Little Die should seize the opportunity while it's down, don't learn from me, being too much of a gambler can lead to trouble."
Seeing Hitmonlee become the unlucky one again, Chu Xiaodie decisively chose to finish him off. It wasn't good to constantly cause trouble.
"Comfey, use Draining Kiss!"