The first match of the arena battles pitted Lu Bingming against a classmate of Chuan Yuanda, Jia. Lu Bingming sent out his Luxio, while Chuan Yuanda's side fielded a Vileplume.
Xia Hunaod watched the two on the field. "Hmm? Vileplume? This is also a Pokémon not in my data. They've hidden quite a few things, and not all of them are water-type."
"Coach Xia, can Lu Bingming handle it?"
Xia Hunaod nodded. "It should be fine. I recognize Lu Bingming's strength, and purely from a Pokémon type perspective, it's fortunate they used a Leaf Stone instead of a Sun Stone."
Lu Bingming's Luxio didn't rush to attack at the start, instead playfully leaping around the arena as if giving the opponent an opening. Chuan Yuanda's player seized the opportunity and used Stun Spore.
Seeing the powder drift towards them, Lu Bingming ordered Luxio to charge, and it managed to leap right over the powder.
"Ah, has Chuan Yuanda's student studied our formations? If they had, they wouldn't have overlooked Chu Xiaodie, and they would know that the members of Six Spirits University are basically immune to these straightforward powder attacks."
Xia Hunaod's words weren't an exaggeration. During the intensive training sessions, Chu Xiaodie had participated frequently, and the move "Double Powder Whirlwind" had been used often. Furthermore, under Xia Hunaod's guidance, Chu Xiaodie's double powder combination had ultimately settled on the more potent Sleep Powder. Even the more threatening Double Powder Whirlwind didn't deter the Six Spirits University members from facing it head-on, let alone these simple powders.
Having bypassed the powder, Luxio charged directly at Vileplume, electricity crackling around its body as it collided with the Pokémon.
Although the electric attack hit, it didn't inflict fatal damage on Vileplume. Instead, Vileplume's spores proved more effective than the earlier Stun Spore.
Seeing Luxio's pained expression, Lu Bingming clicked his tongue. "Hidden ability? All flashy. Luxio, finish this quickly with Bite!"
From the sidelines, Xia Hunaod also pouted. "Is that a line you should be using? That's my line."
While Luxio's Bite didn't defeat Vileplume, its effect was certainly better than the previous electric attack. The Vileplume, bitten by Luxio, didn't just stand by. Under its trainer's command, it used Giga Drain to recover its stamina.
Luxio, hit by Giga Drain, rapidly lost stamina. Despite Lu Bingming's various attempts, Vileplume ultimately secured a victory.
Lu Bingming returned to the waiting area. Xia Hunaod raised his hand. "Say no more. It was too difficult for Luxio to cope with a Grass-type. Next, Chu Xiaodie, you go. Listen to me, do it like this."
Chu Xiaodie then entered the arena. Seeing that Six Spirits University had fielded a first-year student, the students from Chuan Yuanda began to pay closer attention. Fielding a first-year student in an arena battle suggested they possessed something special.
This time, Chu Xiaodie didn't send out her ace, Beautifly, but instead dispatched a Butterfree to the battlefield. As the referee's whistle signaled the start of the match, Chu Xiaodie immediately commanded Butterfree to fly.
The competition didn't prohibit flying at high altitudes, but flying too high for extended periods could result in a penalty and disqualification. Although Xia Hunaod had developed a targeted strategy of taunting the referees with Electric Terrain attacks, it was considered too excessive for Chu Xiaodie, a young lady.
"Butterfree, use Air Cutter!"
From the air, Butterfree unleashed sharp gusts with its wings. The opponent, seeing this, sneered. "How could an attack from this distance hit? Vileplume, dodge!"
Vileplume swayed to its left, but inadvertently flew directly into Butterfree's Poison Powder. Seeing Vileplume paralyzed and unable to move, the expressions of both sides drastically changed.
"Butterfree, use Silver Wind!"
Butterfree successfully boosted its combat power comprehensively by using Silver Wind, and then ended the battle with an Air Cutter. Xia Hunaod looked at Chu Xiaodie on the stage and nodded with satisfaction. Lu Bingming, standing nearby, was visibly displeased. "Damn it, if this continues, Coach Xia will cultivate another ace from the first-year students."
Li Qiufeng patted Lu Bingming on the shoulder. "Give it up. What are you envious of? Chu Xiaodie is someone who is both talented and hardworking. Is it strange for her to become an ace?"
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Chuan Yuanda also made a change, bringing in Swellow, which had already participated in the first round's three-on-three match.
"Coach Xia, it's a Flying-type. Will there be any problems?"
Xia Hunaod shot him a look. "No, have you forgotten the information I compiled? Flying-type Pokémon don't necessarily carry Flying-type attacks. Perhaps this Swellow knows Blizzard."
"Isn't that even worse?"
"Let's wait and see. Has he used the in-game tactics I taught Chu Xiaodie yet?"
Half of the situation unfolded as Xia Hunaod had predicted. Swellow indeed didn't carry Flying-type attacks, but it didn't have Blizzard either.
However, since both could fly, the battle moved from the ground to the air. What was even more astonishing was that this aerial exchange turned into a war of attrition. Both Butterfree and Swellow surprisingly knew Roost!
"This is bad, this is going to be troublesome."
Roost, capable of restoring half of a Pokémon's HP, could easily negate the damage inflicted so far.
The battle raged for over ten minutes. It was Chu Xiaodie's Poison Powder that ultimately proved decisive. Butterfree, flying higher and faster, managed to hit Swellow with Poison Powder from the air, causing it to plummet to the ground and thus determining the victor.
However, this battle also revealed Butterfree's four moves: Silver Wind, Air Cutter, Poison Powder, and Roost.
Chuan Yuanda sent out their third combatant, an Electrode.
"This, are they trying to counter Chu Xiaodie?"
Xia Hunaod shook his head. "More than that. Electrode doesn't have many type weaknesses, and it also has recovery moves. It might be aiming for a war of attrition, who knows."
As the match began, Electrode used Water Pulse. Seeing the water rings floating around Electrode, Xia Hunaod sighed. "This is troublesome. The technique I taught Chu Xiaodie won't work."
Wei Chiting asked, "What technique did you teach Chu Xiaodie?"
Xia Hunaod pointed at Electrode. "A prolonged battle of attrition using Poison Powder and Roost."
On the battlefield, Chu Xiaodie understood the difficulty of this match, but she was not one to give up easily.
"Butterfree, use Silver Wind!"
"Electrode, use Shock Wave!"
Silver Wind met Shock Wave, shattering all the pulses. Electrode, capitalizing on the exploding pulses, unleashed a Thunderbolt.
Electrode wasn't very fast, at least not against Butterfree, so the full power of Thunderbolt couldn't be unleashed. However, the super-effective hit compensated for this.
Hit by Thunderbolt, Butterfree was forced to use Roost to recover its stamina. Electrode didn't let up, slowly approaching and using Thunder Wave.
While recovering, Butterfree couldn't dodge and was hit by Thunder Wave, falling into paralysis. Although Chu Xiaodie wanted Butterfree to create distance, it had to endure another Thunderbolt. In desperation, Chu Xiaodie opted for a trade, landing Butterfree's final attack, Silver Wind.
Having been strengthened multiple times by Silver Wind, this final attack was highly effective. While it didn't take Electrode down with it, it significantly reduced Electrode's HP.
Chu Xiaodie returned from the arena, and Xia Hunaod and the others offered her warm applause. She had performed exceptionally well. Currently, Six Spirits University held the advantage. Even the Chuan Yuanda team looked at Chu Xiaodie with admiration. This first-year student had truly shone, a worthy opponent deserving of applause. However, with the competition still ongoing, applause would have to wait until after both sides had finished their matches.
"Tan Yue, you're up. Move quickly, don't give Water Pulse too much time!"
Following Xia Hunaod's instructions, Tan Yue strode onto the battlefield and sent out Onix.
The others were puzzled. "Coach Xia, Onix is the least advantageous matchup."
"I know, but the situation now is that both sides have deployed their third Pokémon, and we have a certain advantage. Although Tan Yue's Onix is at a type disadvantage, it won't be instantly defeated. Even if it's a one-for-one trade, we won't be at a loss. I'm only worried if Tan Yue can't even manage a trade, then it would be troublesome."
"Electrode, use Water Pulse!"
"Onix, Rock Tomb!"
The battle was fierce, with both sides immediately engaging in a fierce exchange of blows. Despite the type disadvantage, because Tan Yue had entered the field quickly, Electrode hadn't fully recovered from the damage inflicted by Butterfree. Under Onix's Rock Tomb attack, it quickly found itself in peril.
While Onix was immune to Electric-type attacks, the Water Pulse was still quite painful, and its HP dropped rapidly. Both teams anxiously watched the two Pokémon, hoping their teammate could endure longer. Finally, in the second exchange of Rock Tomb and Water Pulse, both Pokémon fainted simultaneously.
"Battle concluded, a draw. Please send out your next combatant."
Xia Hunaod pondered for a moment and then said, "Li Qiufeng, you go."
On the other side, Chuan Yuanda's coach thought for a long time before pointing to a member. "You go. They will likely save their captain for the final match to ensure victory. You must stall them in this round!"
However, when both combatants stood on the field, Chuan Yuanda's coach's expression changed. "They've sent out their captain in the fourth match already?"