Tong Ruo’s fingers continuously caressed the photograph, his index finger meticulously lingering on the key areas of Zheng Xiaoxiao’s image.
“I wonder if that long-tailed Grumpy is still around this year. I’ll go take a look when summer break starts.”
Just then, Tong Ruo heard a knock from outside. “Sister Ruo, are you in? Can I come in? I won’t disturb you, right?”
Tong Ruo placed the photo frame on his desk. “That must be Xiao Xia Zi. Come in.”
Xia Huanao pushed the door open and approached Tong Ruo. Tong Ruo asked, “Is there something you need me for?”
Xia Huanao pulled up a chair and sat down. “Sister Ruo, do you know about the rumor going around school lately…”
“You mean the one about Wei Chiting and Qi Yeyu turning against each other and drawing swords over a girl.”
Xia Huanao blinked in surprise. What version was this now? Drawing swords and turning against each other over a girl? This sounded like a pulp novel.
However, from Tong Ruo’s words, Xia Huanao finally learned the male protagonist's name: Qi Yeyu.
“Sister Ruo, do you know the inside story of this matter?”
“I do. But why should I tell you?”
Seeing the expression on Tong Ruo’s face, Xia Huanao relented. “Alright, Sister Ruo, do you have something to tell me? Are you going to do something to Sister Xiaoxiao again? Okay, what do you want me to do? Should I drug her, or just knock her out and tie her up?”
“What are you thinking? I’m asking you, do you know if this matter will drag you in?”
As Tong Ruo clasped his hands together in front of him, Xia Huanao felt an unspoken pressure. “I need to know what this is about first.”
Tong Ruo waved him closer. “Listen…”
After hearing the story, Xia Huanao sat back in his chair, thought for a long moment, and then shook his head. “This is their family's business. It’s not good for us to get involved. So, let’s just wait and see. We don’t have much time left before the holidays anyway.”
Having understood the origin of the conflict between Qi Yeyu and Wei Chiting, Xia Huanao left Tong Ruo’s office. Back at the small pavilion on campus, Xia Huanao asked Xing Kai, “Are those two still fighting?”
Xing Kai nodded. “Yes, this match is longer than any of the previous ones. I have to admit, his progress is really fast.”
Xia Huanao leaned against the pavilion pillar. “Impressive. It’s not easy for a student from the Spirit Biology Research department to have this level of combat power in their second year.”
Xing Kai and Lu Bingming exchanged surprised glances. “Spirit Biology Research department?”
“Yeah, it’s ridiculous, isn’t it?”
The Spirit Biology Research department was one of the six major teaching departments at Ling University. This department primarily taught the relationship between humans, spirits, and nature, with little emphasis on combat. The only combat-related instruction was teaching students how to deal with unexpected situations during research.
If one were to talk about combat effectiveness, a fourth-year student from this department might not even be able to defeat a second-year student from the combat department. Yet, Qi Yeyu, a second-year student, could already hold his own against Wei Chiting, a third-year student. This could indeed be considered exceptionally talented.
Xia Huanao watched for a while longer, then turned to leave. “I’m heading off now. Let them keep fighting.”
Wei Chiting and Qi Yeyu’s battle continued for several more days. Wei Chiting had already achieved seventy-seven consecutive wins against Qi Yeyu, with a 100% win rate in individual rounds. Xia Huanao sighed as he looked at their battle data on the app’s backend, then went to Tong Ruo’s office.
“Sister Ruo, do you know where Qi Yeyu lives?”
“Oh, didn’t you say you weren’t going to get involved in this?”
Xia Huanao leaned back in his chair. “I didn’t intend to, but the score is already over seventy to zero. I can see Qi Yeyu is getting a bit dangerously obsessed. While every trainer has an innate drive to battle and win, this is a bit excessive. I need to use some… methods.”
Tong Ruo glanced at him. “Underhanded tactics?”
“Yes, underhanded tactics. It’s necessary to forcibly stop this. After all, this is something I stirred up.”
Tong Ruo tapped on his computer and brought up Qi Yeyu’s profile. “Look, Qi Yeyu lives in Nanbin City. Go and come back quickly.”
Xia Huanao glanced at Qi Yeyu’s profile and then took a plane to Nanbin City.
As for why Wei Chiting and Qi Yeyu started fighting, the story is quite cliché. It happened over ten years ago when they were both very young. Wei Chiting and Qi Yeyu’s older sister, Qi Rongrong, were childhood sweethearts. Their families had even considered a marriage arrangement.
When Wei Chiting and Qi Rongrong were seven years old, the two little ones were playing by the river. As they were happily playing, a large moving truck drove by and directly hit Qi Rongrong.
Fortunately, the truck wasn’t moving very fast. Although it hit Qi Rongrong, it didn’t kill her outright. The accident, however, caused Qi Rongrong to lose the use of her legs, rendering her unable to stand.
However, Qi Rongrong didn’t require amputation, so theoretically, there was still a possibility for her to walk again. After Qi Rongrong was discharged from the hospital, her family moved to Nanbin City. From then on, Wei Chiting and Qi Rongrong lost contact. Qi Yeyu’s reason for enrolling in Ling University was that the old principal, Zheng Hongde, was there. He also chose the Spirit Biology Research department, hoping to find other ways to help Qi Rongrong stand again.
As for why he was persistently targeting Wei Chiting in this year’s school team selection match, it was because Wei Chiting was the one who had taken Qi Rongrong out to play back then. At Ling University, Qi Yeyu didn’t have many opportunities to meet Wei Chiting regularly. However, with Xia Huanao’s involvement, the situation escalated to what it is now.
Xia Huanao sat in the airplane seat, looking at his Pokedex. “System, what methods do you think I should use for this situation?”
The system didn’t give a direct answer. “It’s hard to say, but no matter what method you use, theoretically, it’s impossible to succeed before the end of this semester.”
Xia Huanao continued to tap the Pokedex. “I didn’t say I was going to solve it for them, I’m just providing them with a solution.”
Hearing this, the system offered several options. “First, a Shiny Pelipper.”
“Ho-Oh? Does Ho-Oh have that ability?”
“It should. Ho-Oh even revived those three dogs. Healing a disabled person shouldn’t be a difficult task, should it?”
Xia Huanao thought about it and agreed. Ho-Oh single-handedly created Suicune, Entei, and Raikou. Solving this problem shouldn’t be too difficult.
“What about the other options?”
Ho-Oh was too difficult to find. Even the super rare chosen ones hadn’t seen it many times over the years. Borrowing Ho-Oh’s power would be too challenging.
“Hmm, Celebi. Forcibly reversing time and going back. Theoretically, it could alter some timelines, but this would likely involve time paradoxes, which carry immense risk.”
Time paradoxes were difficult to deal with. To combat a time paradox, one would theoretically need the help of the God of Time, meaning finding two Pokémon, both of which would be extremely rare.
“Are there any safer methods? Even if it’s not my life, I can’t just mess around with it like this.”
“Xerneas, also known as the X God, controls life. However, when you search for Xerneas, you might inadvertently provoke Yveltal.”
“Then I’d lose my life!”
“You could also find Tapu Lele. This guardian deity’s ability to restore vitality could theoretically be used to heal disabled legs. And Tapu Lele is quite fond of humans, so it wouldn’t kill anyone.”
After a brief discussion with the system about these options, they decided to abandon Celebi and Xerneas, and choose the remaining two Pokémon to attempt. However, soon after, Xia Huanao thought of another Pokémon.
“System, if I decided to find a cute pink little one, would that work?”
The system was taken aback by Xia Huanao’s idea and then said, “The cute pink one you’re referring to couldn’t possibly be Ditto, could it? Although Ditto can transform into Ho-Oh or Tapu Lele, those are entirely different classes of Pokémon. And Ditto, after transforming, doesn’t have healing abilities. Besides, Ditto can only transform after seeing the target Pokémon. Wouldn’t you still have to find Ho-Oh and the others?”
Xia Huanao propped his chin. “System, has your recent overwork made your brain faulty? Can something like Ditto even be considered cute?”
The system nodded, making a reasonable point. “You’re right. With Ditto’s appearance, it looks like a slime, and it’s indeed hard to call it cute, so you…”
The system paused for a moment, then exclaimed, “Holy crap, are you thinking of Mewtwo?”
Xia Huanao confirmed the system’s thought. “You’re right. I am indeed thinking of Mewtwo. Mewtwo’s transformation ability is top-notch, and it can transform without needing to see Ho-Oh and the others. Moreover, with Mewtwo’s life level, healing legs should be no problem.”
The system considered the feasibility. “Your thinking is not wrong, but Mewtwo is also not easy to find. And when you look for Mewtwo, you might encounter… her. Can you defeat her?”
Xia Huanao’s mind instantly conjured the image of a pink Pokémon. “Ah, right. Mewtwo is hard to find, and within a certain radius of Mewtwo, you’re bound to encounter my Sister Mew…”
“Your ‘Sister Mew’? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You know what Mewtwo looks like, right? Mewtwo can Mega Evolve into two forms, X and Y. I’m defaulting to Mewtwo Mega Evolving into Mewtwo Y here.”
The system considered the more ‘feminine’ Mewtwo Y and said, “Alright, then you can call her Sister Mew. I can’t stop you.”
“My Sister Mew is too difficult to deal with!”
As they were speaking, a young girl’s voice suddenly echoed in Xia Huanao’s mind. “While I’m happy you’re complimenting both of us, Mewtwo actually prefers to evolve into its X form.”