Xia Huna shook his hand, "Discuss your tactics yourselves. As long as we defeat one of their Pokémon, it's a victory for us. It shouldn't be too difficult."
The crowd replied, "Coach Xia, rest assured."
As he spoke, Xia Huna approached Tong Ruo, "Sister Ruo, with this, we've entered the top sixteen."
Tong Ruo looked at him, "What, are you satisfied just entering the top sixteen?"
Xia Huna shook his head, "Of course not satisfied. However, the matches for the top eight and the semifinals might present some trouble."
Before they could chat further, the team battle began, and the contestants entered the arena.
Six Ling Da fielded Wei Chiting's Shuckle, Chu Xiaodie's Butterfree, Zhu Feng's Crobat, Tan Yue's Onix, Yan Chunyu's Blissey, and Tu Zhuanghai's Blastoise.
Xia Huna observed the lineup, "Hmm, Wei Chiting understood my tactical intent. It remains to be seen how Chuan Yuan Da will counter. I don't believe they can field six Wingulls!"
As it turned out, Chuan Yuan Da did not have a lineup of six Wingulls. They sent out a Wingull, Poliwrath, Blastoise, Vileplume, Cloyster, and a Drifloon.
Xia Huna's interest was piqued by the sight of the pink Drifloon, "Oh, something like this too. I really didn't expect it. However, it's not very effective. Although it looks like it's floating, it's not."
Under the referee's judgment, the battle commenced.
"Butterfree, fly up and use Sleep Powder!"
"Crobat, use Supersonic!"
Chu Xiaodie and Zhu Feng launched a simultaneous offense, employing strong control tactics.
"Wingull, use Tailwind!"
Wingull flapped its wings, creating a gust of wind that not only accelerated its teammates' speed but also somewhat blocked the Sleep Powder attack.
"Blastoise, use Hydro Cannon!"
"Drifloon, use Gust!"
The Pokémon on both sides began to attack from a distance. Six Ling Da's cannon fodder was Tu Zhuanghai, while Chuan Yuan Da's was the girl commanding the Drifloon.
Tan Yue's Onix stood still in the front. Chuan Yuan Da aimed to focus fire and quickly defeat Onix.
Various attacks rained down on Onix, while Wei Chiting and Yan Chunyu hastily commanded countermeasures.
"Shuckle, use Sunny Day."
"Blissey, use Soft-Boiled!"
Sunny Day weakened water-type moves, and with Blissey's Soft-Boiled, coupled with some missed attacks, they managed to keep Onix's HP from dropping critically.
"Shuckle, use Withdraw, then Power Trick!"
Hearing Wei Chiting's command, Chu Xiaodie and Zhu Feng once again initiated their attacks. This time, Butterfree did not attack from a distance but quickly flew into Chuan Yuan Da's formation and used Stun Spore. Although Butterfree was quickly focused down by Chuan Yuan Da's team, Chu Xiaodie smiled as she recalled Butterfree, "Butterfree, you did very well. Vice-captain, the rest is up to you!"
Wei Chiting nodded, looking at the now-controlled Pokémon, "Excellent, Shuckle, use Earthquake!"
Shuckle gathered energy and channeled it into the ground, sending out seismic waves that attacked all Pokémon on the field.
After the seismic waves subsided, no Pokémon had fainted, but it was visibly apparent that all of them were not in optimal condition. Only Crobat and Wingull, being flying types, were spared.
"We can't let Shuckle use Earthquake again. Wingull, fly over and use Water Pulse!"
"Not so easy. Crobat, use Supersonic!"
Wingull, rushing to attack Shuckle, was hit by Supersonic during its flight. The attack missed Shuckle and instead caused some damage to itself.
"Blissey, use Soft-Boiled, then Heal Pulse on Onix!"
Although the move was called Soft-Boiled, Blissey actually conjured an egg to restore HP, and Heal Pulse once again restored a significant amount of HP to Onix.
"Shuckle, use Earthquake again! We can win this now!"
"Drifloon, use Recover!"
"Vileplume, use Stun Spore!"
Without Trick Room, Shuckle's speed was abysmal. Before it could use Earthquake, it was hit by Vileplume's Stun Spore. Shuckle felt its body go numb and froze in place.
"Everyone, I've bought us time!"
Indeed, the paralysis status made Shuckle, whose speed was already sluggish, even more sluggish. However, this did not mean it couldn't successfully use Earthquake; it would just take longer.
But in Six Ling Da's lineup, there was an all-around healer, Blissey. Although this Blissey did not have the Natural Cure ability, Yan Chunyu had already confirmed Blissey's move set when she decided to pursue the healer role.
"Blissey, use Heal Bell!"
A pleasant bell sound rang out, and Shuckle shook its body, breaking free from its paralysis, "Excellent. Shuckle, use Earthquake!"
"Vileplume, use Giga Drain on Onix!"
Although Chuan Yuan Da's Pokémon were not in good condition, as long as they could recover their energy through various means, they might still withstand the second Earthquake.
"Crobat, go help Onix take this Giga Drain!"
Zhu Feng quickly commanded Crobat. With Crobat's dual poison and flying typing, taking Giga Drain should have been no problem. However, just as Crobat flew in front of Onix, something unexpected happened.
"Cloyster, use Aurora Beam!"
A rainbow-colored beam shot out from Cloyster's horn and accurately hit Crobat. Meanwhile, Poliwrath rushed in and delivered a series of rapid punches. After Butterfree, Crobat also exited the battle. And at this moment, Shuckle's Earthquake finally arrived.
The seismic waves successfully took down most of the Pokémon on the field. Six Ling Da was left with only Shuckle and the dedicated healer Blissey. On Chuan Yuan Da's side, only Drifloon and Wingull still had combat power. Vileplume, unable to restore its HP with Giga Drain, collapsed. Blastoise, locked in a struggle with Tu Zhuanghai's Blastoise, suffered collateral damage. Although Cloyster and Poliwrath managed to take out Crobat, they were already in poor condition after the first Earthquake.
Looking at the situation on the field, Wei Chiting smiled, "The match is over."
The two students from Chuan Yuan Da also nodded, "Yes, the match is over, but the battle isn't. Wingull, use Water Pulse!"
"Drifloon, use Gust!"
Wei Chiting looked at the attacking opponents, "You're right. Shuckle, use Power Trick!"
"Blissey, use Heal Pulse!"
In this exchange, the two from Six Ling Da fell into a trap. Wingull and Drifloon's simultaneous attacks, due to the ghostly Gust, led Wei Chiting and Yan Chunyu to believe they were targeting Shuckle. They didn't expect Gust to be a feint, and it was Wingull that ultimately used Water Pulse to attack Blissey. Blissey was already not in good condition, and after another hit from Earthquake, it had little combat strength left. Hit by Water Pulse, it was no surprise that it lost consciousness.
The subsequent battle was not worth describing. Six Ling Da had no way to win the team battle and ultimately conceded two valuable points to Chuan Yuan Da. Although Wei Chiting tried his best to have Shuckle use Earthquake to eliminate Drifloon, due to type disadvantages, it couldn't withstand the attacks from Drifloon and Wingull and fell on the battlefield.
The referee waved his flag, "Match over. Chuan Yuan Pokémon University wins the team battle with a score of two to zero. The match concludes, and with a total score of four to two, Six Ling Pokémon University emerges victorious."
The team members from both sides once again stood in the center of the arena and saluted each other.
The coach from Chuan Yuan Da looked at Xia Huna, "You won. A very exciting match."
Xia Huna smiled, "You weren't simple either. Your Destiny Bond skill was a bit unexpected. However, I have a question: wasn't that Poliwrath a Water Absorb ability?"
The coach from Chuan Yuan Da shook his head, "No, it was Damp. To counter that team. But it's a shame."
"I see. Don't worry, we'll keep winning for you."
As both teams finished their matches and left the arena, the coach from Chuan Yuan Da approached Xia Huna, "Coach Xia."
Xia Huna turned around, "Is there something?"
The coach from Chuan Yuan Da pointed to the student beside him, "After this match, does your school plan to hold an analysis session? If so, would you mind if we sent someone to observe?"
Xia Huna glanced at the girl standing beside the coach, "If I remember correctly, she's the student who used the pink Drifloon just now."
"Yes, and she's also the next captain of our school team. Do you mind?"
Xia Huna pondered for a moment, "This, I can't really decide on my own. I need to consult everyone. Please wait a moment."
Saying this, Xia Huna went to Tong Ruo, "Sister Ruo, Chuan Yuan Da wants to send someone to observe the analysis session. I think it's okay to let her attend. It can also help us maintain good relations with other schools."
Tong Ruo listened and replied, "Alright. You're the coach, so you can arrange it as you see fit."
Xia Huna turned back to the Chuan Yuan Da duo, "We welcome this student to attend the observation. However, for now, we need to go back and prepare for the afternoon match."
The coach from Chuan Yuan Da was taken aback, "The afternoon match? This afternoon isn't..."
"Yes. The winner will play against us in the top sixteen. We need to prepare and analyze their match this afternoon."
The coach from Chuan Yuan Da understood, "I see. In that case, Qing Piaopiao, you'll travel with the Six Ling Da students. You'll rejoin us during the training matches. That's all. I'll be leaving now."
With that, the coach from Chuan Yuan Da turned and left, leaving Xia Huna and Qing Piaopiao standing there, looking at each other.
"No, what's with your coach?"
Qing Piaopiao felt a bit embarrassed, "That. Please bear with us for the next few days..."