Chapter 1252: Ore’s Rise to Fame (Part 2)

“Wow, what a rundown place…”

“Seriously?”

“Is it safe to battle in a place like this? The ceiling isn’t going to suddenly fall, is it?”

“And no one even came out to greet us? The manners in the countryside are terrible! We haven’t asked them to line up and welcome us yet!”

“Everyone shut your mouths! If you’re unwilling, you can get back in the car and leave right now!”

Zhengyi shouted loudly. He had prepared for a week for this battle and didn’t want to be unable to compete due to this group of naive rich kids.

The Hall Master’s authority was still strong, and the chatty youths quickly quieted down.

Meanwhile.

A dozen or so people, about twenty years old, got out of the second car one after another, each showing different expressions as they looked at the arena.

Zhengyi didn’t rush into action, instead he took out his phone to contact Baimu.

The call just went through.

Baimu’s figure appeared at the entrance.

“Sorry for not greeting you sooner! I apologize to everyone! I didn’t expect you all to arrive so early!” He walked up with a cheerful smile and shook hands with Zhengyi: “Why didn’t Hall Master Zhengyi give us a heads-up call so we could come out to welcome you?”

So it wasn’t notified!

The youths squinted at their Hall Master.

Zhengyi remained unfazed, saying, “Let’s skip these unnecessary formalities. I prefer something more practical… and they do too.”

“Haha! Hall Master Zhengyi is quite the practical Trainer. Shall we head inside first?”

Baimu’s gaze quickly scanned everyone present, without pausing, as he led the way inside with Zhengyi upfront.

Jin Ge stood at the back of the group, his eyes fixed on Baimu, his breath slightly hurried.

Finally met.

The legendary Baimu!

Just like President Dennis described, he was a man of ease and confidence, with a handsome face and a tall, athletic build.

He was much more charismatic than in the battle videos!

The key was his eyes; the moment they glanced over, Jin Ge felt inexplicable panic, like being stared at by some terrifying creature, and instinctively looked away.

Only after realizing what he had done did he start to regret.

If he left a deep impression upon first meeting, perhaps the challenge later would go much smoother?

Jin Ge walked into the arena, lost in thought, while Suli, who was chatting with him on the bus earlier, was exclaiming to her best friend about Baimu’s attractiveness.

Others were also excitedly discussing various things.

Inside the arena.

Ying Ma and others gathered, looking curiously at the Trainers from Silicon City following Baimu.

For some of them, they’d never left Pyrite Town in their lifetime, Silicon City seemed close but was actually far away.

Seeing the Trainers from there now…

Nothing seems special? They look just like Ying Ma!

A group of kids from families with money or connections.

“This is Hall Master Zhengyi, who heads both the Trainer Training Center and Silicon Arena in Silicon City, along with his trainees. Everyone, a round of applause please!”

Baimu introduced loudly.

The crowd burst into applause.

Baimu promptly introduced Ying Yuan to Zhengyi, who was surprised to learn that Ying Yuan was the Gym Leader of Pyrite Arena.

“I wanted to entrust the arena to Baimu, but he didn’t want it. Nothing I can do,” Ying Yuan always spoke bluntly.

Enough with the small talk.

Trainers’ exchanges aren’t filled with all sorts of mind games; they happen within battles.

Zhengyi brought over thirty trainees, although they couldn’t pair one-to-one with Ying Ma’s group, dialogue wasn’t limited to a single battle, so no need to worry about anyone being overlooked.

The opening was a one-on-one battle.

Baimu handed it over to Ying Yuan, mainly to avoid Zhengyi losing too badly, which could affect the performances of the younger Trainers from Silicon City.

The arena Trainers’ ability to handle pressure had improved greatly after a week of sharpening.

Zhengyi felt somewhat regretful, despite being sure he’d have a summary battle with Baimu before leaving, he was keen to face him.

Ying Yuan will have to do!

The two Gym Leaders stepped onto the Trainer platforms, while others took seats on the spectator stands on either side.

Usually, Baimu liked everyone to observe battles closely around the arena for the Pokémon’s changes and convenience, but now with nearly double the number of people, that wasn’t possible.

He glanced over at the Silicon City Trainers, there didn’t seem to be a second figure with enough authority; the noisy crowd couldn’t settle down.

In contrast, Ying Ma’s group waited quietly for the match to begin.

Those from “Paradise” aren’t necessarily “Angels”…

He hoped the subsequent exchange battles wouldn’t disappoint him.

Baimu turned to look at the arena, where Ying Yuan and Zhengyi released their Pokémon—

Ursaring and Sunflora.

The significant size difference led to concerns that Sunflora might be torn apart by Ursaring’s claw.

“It doesn’t look very strong…”

“Looks are deceiving! Baimu’s Corsola doesn’t seem strong either, yet who’s defeated it?”

“That’s indeed true.”

The arena Trainers couldn’t help but whisper to each other.

Baimu crossed his arms, knowing from experience that Zhengyi’s strength was far superior to Ying Yuan’s, mainly due to Zhengyi’s use of strategy.

Yet after a week of intense training, Ying Yuan had made progress too.

The final outcome might depend on the specifics of the battle.

The battle began.

Ursaring opened with Bodybuilding, while Sunflora immediately abandoned mobility and used Rooted to switch for sustained recovery.

Is it too reckless?