After a brief exchange between Xia Hunao and the coaches of the Spiritual Encounter Pokémon Science and Technology University, the referee approached to have both sides flip a coin.
Due to Xia Hunao's condition, this segment was directly handed over to Guo Shuang'er. With Guo Shuang'er's steady performance, Xia Hunao's team confirmed they would attack first. In the free battle, Xia Hunao's team chose one-on-one, while the opposing side opted for three-on-three.
Once both teams arrived at the waiting area, Xia Hunao immediately collapsed onto a chair to arrange the first round of matches. Lu Bingming, observing this scene, sighed enviously, "Honestly, I'm also injured. Why don't I get similar treatment?"
Wei Chiting shrugged, "You would have, if you hadn't insisted on not using a stretcher."
Lu Bingming retorted indignantly, "Nonsense, are a stretcher and a chair the same level of seating?"
"If you weren't injured, Coach Xia wouldn't have to sit on a chair now!"
Ignoring Lu Bingming's antics, Xia Hunao looked at Li Qiufeng, "Li Qiufeng, you go first. Secure a point, then we'll talk."
Li Qiufeng didn't reply, simply picking up his Poké Ball and heading to the battle arena. As the match began, Wei Chiting asked from the waiting area, "Coach Xia, aren't the captain's Pokémon at a type disadvantage? Why send them out?"
Xia Hunao tapped his head, "What can I do? I can't hold up. Considering three team compositions is still too much. So, I've completely disregarded tactics and decided based on your overall strength."
Hearing Xia Hunao's explanation, Wei Chiting gave a wry smile, "So that's it, Coach Xia is trying to conserve brainpower with this arrangement."
"Yes, and I believe in Li Qiufeng's strength."
On the field, both sides sent out their Pokémon. The Spiritual Encounter Pokémon Science and Technology University sent out an Eevee, while Li Qiufeng still fielded his Feraligatr. However, upon seeing Eevee, Xia Hunao frowned, "Damn, no way. She wouldn't really have a fourth Eevee-centric team hidden for the semifinals, would she? It can't be, or Eevee wouldn't be the primary attacker in a one-on-one."
Both sides took their positions, and the battle commenced.
"Feraligatr, finish this quickly. Charge in and use Crunch."
Feraligatr stomped its right foot and charged towards Eevee. The little Eevee, seeing this, had its fur stand on end in fright.
"Eevee, evolve!"
Just as Feraligatr was about to attack, the Spiritual Encounter player suddenly shouted this inexplicable phrase.
"Evolve? Although Eevee has many evolutions, without items, it can only evolve into Espeon or Sylveon now. But can this evolution be controlled?"
Xia Hunao's confusion was soon answered by the unfolding situation. Eevee didn't evolve into Espeon or Sylveon. Instead, crackling electricity surrounded its body. After a couple of hops on the ground, it turned completely golden, revealing itself to be a Jolteon.
Watching the spikes erupting from Jolteon's body, Xia Hunao muttered, "No way, this t—"
"Eevee, use Thunderbolt!"
Thunderbolt is indeed a very effective move against a Water-type like Feraligatr. However, Jolteon's first attack was dodged by Feraligatr. After evading Thunderbolt, Feraligatr closed the distance and bit down on Jolteon.
We won't comment on the taste of Eevee, but Jolteon is clearly a Pokémon that doesn't taste very good. When bitten by Feraligatr, Jolteon instinctively discharged electricity, leaving Feraligatr numb and severely injured.
Although Crunch hit Jolteon directly, Jolteon's paralyzing counterattack was clearly more effective. Seizing the opportunity while Feraligatr was paralyzed in place, Jolteon launched a furious assault.
"Jolteon, use Discharge!"
Jolteon took a couple of steps on the ground, then hopped onto Feraligatr's head, releasing energy to guide a powerful discharge onto Feraligatr's head.
Even with Feraligatr's considerable defense, it couldn't withstand the onslaught of Jolteon's type advantage for long. It managed a few weak counterattacks before collapsing. The first match of the game ended, with Spiritual Encounter claiming victory.
Watching Li Qiufeng return, Xia Hunao focused more attention on the opposing Jolteon. The moment the match ended, Jolteon was immediately recalled to its Poké Ball, seemingly in a hurry. Xia Hunao was somewhat puzzled by this behavior, but as it was within the rules, he couldn't do anything about it.
The second round of free battle was about to begin. Xia Hunao looked at his teammates, "Xing Kai, Tan Yue, Chu Xiaodie, you three are up."
After sending out these three players, Xia Hunao resumed his study of the Spiritual Encounter Pokémon Science and Technology University's lineup. This Eevee evolution was a mystery, piquing his interest and making his mind race.
The second match between the two sides also began. The Spiritual Encounter Pokémon Science and Technology University's lineup was similar to the first round, still Eevee, and three of them.
Seeing Eevee again, Xia Hunao clutched his head. Wei Chiting looked at Xia Hunao, "Coach Xia, the opponent's Eevee, could it be..."
Xia Hunao nodded, "Ah, they're adapting. We were supposed to go second, but now it seems we'll be going first."
Six Spirits University's lineup consisted of Steelix, Butterfree, and Venusaur. As the match started, the three Eevees from Spiritual Encounter transformed into Vaporeon, Flareon, and Glaceon respectively.
This sight stunned not only Xia Hunao but also the referee for a moment.
Xia Hunao, looking at the unfavorable type matchups on the field, asked the system, "System, what is this? Can Lingyao Xing have something this outrageous?"
The system remained silent this time, emitting only a harsh static. After a long period of static, Xia Hunao finally saw the system's attribute chart for Eevee.
Slightly higher individual values were normal; as long as the parent's individual values were high, the offspring's would be decent. Effort values were unremarkable, with 85 across the board for all stats, a true hexagonal warrior. However, the system delivered a heavy blow to Xia Hunao regarding the abilities.
As everyone knows, Eevee's two basic abilities are Run Away and Adaptability. Its hidden ability is Anticipation. After evolving, depending on the evolution, they possess different abilities. These three Eevee, however, did not have basic abilities like Water Absorb, Flash Fire, or Snow Cloak, nor hidden abilities like Hydration, Regenerator, or Ice Body. Instead, they had a new ability called "Transformation."
Xia Hunao asked the system, "System, what does the Transformation ability do?"
The system replied, "Just as you see, these Eevee can transform into different elemental types through their ability, and they can revert back to Eevee after the battle."
Hearing this explanation, Xia Hunao's eyes nearly popped out, "Are you kidding me? Is this a special version of Mega Evolution or a mutated form of Bond Phenomenon?"
The system negated, "Mega Evolution is the activation of the Pokémon's inherent capabilities, leading to a brief release of hidden energy. Bond Phenomenon is a special form that can only be triggered after the trainer and Greninja have achieved a certain bond, where the creature's inherent abilities are guided out. As for this Transformation..."
"It's more like genetic engineering?"
"You can think of it that way. These Eevee are likely modified Eevee, but this does not affect their use in the competition."
Xia Hunao slumped back into his chair, "This is impossible to fight. Wei Chiting, I'm leaving the rest to you."
Wei Chiting was stunned, "Wh-what do you mean, leave it to me?"
Xia Hunao pointed at the three Six Spirits University Pokémon who currently held the advantage, "Strategic arrangements. The opponent is definitely an all-Eevee lineup. And I suspect their moves will change based on their evolved forms. Furthermore, depending on the individual, even evolving into the same Pokémon will result in different movesets. This is beyond the scope of our lucky draw strategy, it's too mentally taxing. You handle it."
As Xia Hunao said this, he completely collapsed onto the chair. Wei Chiting quickly grasped Xia Hunao's meaning, but the more he understood, the more uneasy he felt.
Xia Hunao's words meant that an Eevee has eight possible evolutions, each with four moves. Theoretically, one Eevee could have thirty-six different moves. This already exceeded the calculation limits of their lucky draw strategy. Xia Hunao had never encountered such a large pool of possibilities. While individual battles were manageable, with at most nine variations to guess, what about team battles? Six versus six, fifty-four Eevee. The theoretical calculation yielded over two hundred moves. Even with duplicates, there would still be well over a hundred moves. Xia Hunao couldn't calculate this even if he were a supercomputer.
Xia Hunao patted Wei Chiting's shoulder, "You have to think positively. Even if the opponent plays all sorts of tricks, it's still just these few Eevee forms. We'll eventually find a way to counter them. Look at the current situation on the field; it's a good example."
At this moment, the three Pokémon from Six Spirits University were dominating the three Eevee. Their strategy was brutal: they exploited the fact that Eevee cannot fly. They had Chu Xiaodie's Butterfree, under the cover of Steelix, use Sleep Powder to incapacitate the Eevee, and then had Venusaur deliver the main attacks.
It had to be said that Chu Xiaodie and Butterfree's coordination was improving significantly. The situation on the field was quickly brought under control, and the tide of victory began to lean towards Six Spirits University.
In the waiting area, Xia Hunao remarked, "Wei Chiting, be prepared to forfeit the arena match and focus on securing big points in the free battle. Currently, the only Pokémon not disadvantaged against the Eevee family is the Wishiwashi school."
Just then, the second match of the free battle concluded, with Six Spirits University winning two-nil.