Wu Yan was momentarily stunned and instinctively looked down at his chest, puzzled. "I’m not wearing a name tag, though."

  "I’ve seen pictures of you online, so I recognized you," Su Wen replied, though he didn’t mention how different Wu Yan looked now compared to his dashing appearance in the past.

  Wu Yan seemed quite pleased. "I didn’t expect to still be so famous after all these years out of the spotlight."

  This time, it was Su Wen’s turn to be speechless. He had assumed Wu Yan had retired from being a trainer due to the heavy blow he’d suffered back then, but now it seemed that wasn’t the whole story.

  "Do you need anything else, Teacher? If not, I’d like to continue Charmander’s training," Su Wen said, feeling that Wu Yan was just here to waste his time.

  "Why are you in such a hurry, young man?" Wu Yan took out a Poké Ball and said, "I started training a Cyndaquil st week. How about a battle?"

  Cyndaquil? Su Wen’s interest was piqued.

  Cyndaquil and Charmander were both Fire-type starter Pokémon, but their connection went deeper than that.

  Whether it’s Cyndaquil and Charmander, their evolved forms Quiva and Charmeleon, or their final evolutions Typhlosion and Charizard, their base stats in the games are identical.

  Another interesting point is that Charmander’s hidden ability, ?Sor Power, is stronger than Cyndaquil’s hidden ability, ?Fsh Fire.

  Meanwhile, Cyndaquil can learn the most powerful Fire-type area attack, ?Eruption, while Charizard, despite having "bst" in its name, cannot learn ?Eruption. This has led to endless debates among fans about which Pokémon is stronger.

  One of the most famous battles in this world was during the World Championships two years ago, when the previous Fire-type Heavenly King faced off against a Fire-type trainer from the White Eagle Federation. They used Charizard and Typhlosion, respectively.

  The result was a rare double knockout, ending in a draw, which left countless fans crying out for justice.

  But Su Wen was only mildly interested. Battles were still too early for Charmander.

  "Sorry, Teacher Wu, I think Charmander’s training is still too early for battles..."

  "If you win, I’ll give you a Muscle Wing."

  "Deal!"

  Su Wen’s eyes locked onto the pristine white feather with a ruby-like center that Wu Yan pulled from his pocket. He immediately changed his tune, as if he hadn’t just been about to refuse Wu Yan.

  Wu Yan was caught off guard by Su Wen’s sudden shift but then ughed. "Not bad, not bad. I like students with thick skin."

  Su Wen pretended not to hear the comment. Being teased a little was nothing compared to the value of a Muscle Wing.

  Aside from some extremely rare berries, the only publicly avaible items in Xia Kingdom that can enhance a Pokémon’s potential are the "Feather Series" products from Tengfeng Group.

  The "Feather Series" consists of six types of feathers:?Health Wing: Enhances HP potential.?Muscle Wing: Enhances Attack potential.?Resist Wing: Enhances Defense potential.?Genius Wing: Enhances Special Attack potential.?Clever Wing: Enhances Special Defense potential.?Swift Wing: Enhances Speed potential.Even with Tengfeng Group’s resources, only about ten sets are auctioned off each year, with each set valued at nearly 100 million yuan. Truly rare and hard to come by.

  Wu Yan held the Muscle Wing by its stem, gently fanning himself as if it were an ordinary fan rather than a priceless treasure. Su Wen’s heart skipped a beat every time he saw it.

  "Teacher Wu, when are we starting the battle?" Su Wen urged. Facing a Cyndaquil that had only been trained for a week, even if the trainer was a former legend, he wasn’t intimidated—especially with a treasure like the Muscle Wing on the line.

  Wu Yan gnced at Su Wen’s eager expression and chuckled. "Don’t get too fixated on the Muscle Wing. Charmander, like Cyndaquil, has higher potential in Special Attack. Don’t lose sight of the main focus."

  Su Wen responded confidently, "Even if I don’t use it, selling it would be great."

  Wu Yan was left speechless and could only smile wryly as he put the Muscle Wing away. "Follow me."

  Their departure didn’t attract much attention, as Wu Yan had kept the Muscle Wing hidden from view.

  After a series of twists and turns, Su Wen finally arrived at an open rocky battlefield.

  "Good afternoon, Teacher Wu," a staff member greeted Wu Yan, clearly familiar with him.

  Wu Yan nodded in response. "Thanks for opening the field, Master Niu."

  "No problem," Master Niu replied, then gnced at Su Wen. "And this is?"

  "My student. He insisted on battling me," Wu Yan said, feigning helplessness, which even the usually calm Su Wen found hard to swallow.

  Master Niu shook his head and turned to operate the equipment while offering some advice. "Young people these days don’t know their limits. Teacher Wu, you’d better teach him a lesson."

  Wu Yan smiled. "Of course, of course."

  Once they stepped onto the battlefield, Su Wen muttered, "Teacher Wu, how did this become my idea?"

  Wu Yan pretended to be surprised. "Oh, wasn’t it your idea? Then forget it. The Muscle Wing is off the table..."

  Wu Yan deliberately dragged out his words, and Su Wen quickly interjected, "Yes, yes, it was my idea."

  With that, Su Wen gritted his teeth and took his position on the opposite side of the battlefield. He crouched down and whispered to Charmander, "Do your best, Charmander. Let’s show him what we’re made of."

  Charmander waved its cws, its eyes burning with determination. The fme on its tail even grew brighter, signaling its readiness to teach this annoying guy a lesson.

  "Such fighting spirit," Wu Yan remarked from across the field. He then released his Cyndaquil.

  Cyndaquil’s coloration could be divided into two parts: its back and the top of its head were a deep navy blue, while the lower part of its head, chest, belly, and limbs were a creamy yellow.

  Its back had four small red holes that would emit fmes when it was in battle, attacked, or startled. Trainers had to be careful not to touch its back when they first caught it, or they’d risk getting burned.

  The most distinctive feature of Cyndaquil was its eyes, which were always narrowed into slits, as if it were perpetually sleepy. It reminded Su Wen of a certain Li-surnamed singer he’d liked in his past life.

  Su Wen released his Aura to check Cyndaquil’s ability and moves.

  Since Cyndaquil’s hidden ability, ?Fsh Fire, allowed it to absorb Fire-type moves and enhance its own power, Su Wen couldn’t use ?Ember if Cyndaquil had this ability.

  But before his Aura could reach Cyndaquil, it was blocked by an unseen force.

  "Using hacks in a game is cheating, you know," Wu Yan said with a smile.

  Su Wen was stunned. What kind of power was this? It felt like a wave, but it definitely wasn’t Aura.

  At that moment, a pleasant female electronic voice came from the speakers on the wall: "Battle countdown begins: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Begin!"

  As soon as the countdown ended, Su Wen issued his first command. "Use ?Smokescreen!"

  "Char~"

  The smoke Charmander exhaled instantly enveloped its body, then spread across the battlefield. Thanks to the protective barrier, the smoke stopped just before reaching Su Wen.

  As the smoke began to engulf Cyndaquil, Wu Yan calmly said, "Use ?Quick Attack to disperse it."

  Su Wen watched as Cyndaquil darted across half the battlefield like a bolt of lightning, the wind pressure from its movement thinning the smoke significantly.

  "Teacher Wu! I remember Cyndaquil only learns ?Quick Attack when it’s close to Tier 1 Mid! You said you just started training it st week?" Su Wen barely held back the urge to curse.

  Wu Yan responded earnestly, "That’s right. When I got Cyndaquil, it already knew ?Quick Attack."

  Su Wen’s heart sank. He’d assumed Wu Yan, like him, had started training Cyndaquil right after it hatched. He’d been careless.

  At this point, it was clear Cyndaquil’s level was higher than Charmander’s. So, what was their advantage?

  Before Su Wen could figure out a strategy, Wu Yan had already begun his attack. "Use ?Ember!"

  Wu Yan didn’t have Su Wen’s concerns. Whether Charmander’s ability was ?Bze or ?Sor Power, it posed no threat to Cyndaquil at this stage.