Chapter 162: The Training Camp

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A naturally shiny pseudo-legendary Pokémon was, without a doubt, an extremely rare and coveted treasure.

While fur and skin could be dyed with harmless coloring agents—making them look nearly identical to shinies if left untouched—there was still a significant difference between natural and artificial.

In the games, the odds of encountering a shiny were one in several thousand—so low it might as well not exist.

But in reality, finding a shiny was even rarer, practically one in a million. Hidden Abilities paled in comparison to the sheer rarity of shinies.

Thus, even though shinies had no inherent advantages—no stat boosts or special buffs—they were still highly sought after.

Wealthy collectors with money to burn often hoarded rare and shiny Pokémon purely for prestige.

Take, for example, the villainous collector Lawrence III from Pokémon: The Movie 2000, who sought to capture Legendary Pokémon for his private collection.

Song Jie smirked. "Want me to dye one for you?"

"I want the real deal," Li Xiang replied, turning his face away slightly, unable to meet Song Jie's piercing gaze.

The white-haired boy's eyes were already gleaming with a dangerous light.

"Li Xiang, my dear classmate, Mr. Li, handsome sir—do you seriously think that's realistic?" Song Jie couldn't help but retort. "A shiny Beldum? This isn't even about money anymore!"

"Your family owns mines… I'm just asking. Maybe there's a chance?"

Li Xiang chuckled awkwardly, scratching his nose. He knew it was a long shot, but a man could dream, right?

Song Jie was practically at the top of the elite rich-kid hierarchy, so asking him was worth a shot.

But if even he couldn't get one…

Short of Arceus blessing Li Xiang or crawling through the same dimensional rift Frogadier came from to reach the Reverse World,

the idea of a shiny Beldum joining his team was pretty much impossible.

"I swear… Ugh, fine. I'll keep an eye out for you." Song Jie sighed. "But let me be clear—from what I know, in recent years, there have been fewer than ten recorded instances of shiny Metagross appearing in major tournaments."

"In other words, the odds are slim. If we still haven't found one by the time we graduate, just give up and raise a normal one like everyone else."

"You'd really help me? Don't you want one for yourself?"

Li Xiang was pleasantly surprised. If he ever found a shiny Beldum, he'd never give it up—he'd keep it for himself.

Besides, Song Jie also needed a Steel-type for his team. Wouldn't a shiny Beldum be perfect for him?

The white-haired boy patted Li Xiang's shoulder, giving him an almost paternal look. "My future team's already planned out—no room for Metagross. Besides… who else is gonna spoil you if I don't?"

"Piss off!"

Li Xiang laughed and shoved him away.

Still, this meant his chances of getting a shiny Beldum had just increased—at least he wouldn't have to crawl through Ultra Wormholes into the Reverse World.

The bell rang.

Homeroom teacher Sun Chengbin walked in with his Toxicroak, and the students quickly returned their Pokémon to their PokéBalls, settling into their seats as the teacher outlined the semester's curriculum.

Noon.

As usual, Li Xiang battled Qu Sheng during lunch.

After securing a solid record of 12 wins and 4 losses, the two of them chilled under a tree, sipping soda while watching Yang Tianwang battle another student.

"You got a lot stronger over break," Qu Sheng remarked between gulps of cola, sweat still dripping down his face.

"Got my ass kicked a bunch," Li Xiang replied, wiping his own sweat with a towel.

Beside them, their four Pokémon lay in a tired heap.

With the addition of Slowpoke, the strain of consecutive battles had increased. If not for the progress they'd made over summer, they wouldn't have lasted.

Well, Corvisquire didn't last—by the fourth battle, it was too exhausted to fly, hopping around pathetically on the ground instead.

Qu Sheng raised an eyebrow. "Got your ass kicked? You hired a private tutor or something?"

"Tournaments. Didn't you compete? There were so many over summer." Li Xiang glanced at him. "Also, you haven't updated your WeChat status in, like, a month."

Both Qu Sheng and Yang Tianwang had practically vanished after finals, leaving no trace.

"Traveling," Qu Sheng said, knocking on the red shell beside him.

A drowsy Wartortle poked its head out, blinking blearily before opening its mouth.

Qu Sheng poured soda straight into it like a waterfall.

Gulp—

BURP.

The Wartortle let out an earth-shaking belch before retreating back into its shell, resuming its nap.

"Yan Capital. The old imperial seat of Zhuxia. The palace there is… something."

Qu Sheng clicked his tongue several times before concluding, "Boring as hell."

Li Xiang: "…Then why'd you go?"

"My whole family went. You expect me to stay home alone?" Qu Sheng shot back before shifting tone. "The palace was boring, but the trainers there? Strong."

Yan Capital, one of the Five Great Cities, had been the political and cultural heart of Zhu Xia a century ago. Even now, its young trainers were among the best in the region.

Compared to that, Qingcheng felt like a beginner's town—overshadowed by Yongcheng and Mancheng, which were themselves eclipsed by the Thirteen Islands, all ultimately bowing to the Five Great Cities.

The hierarchy was clear.

"That tone… You got wrecked too, huh?" Li Xiang smirked, grabbing Corvisquire's beak as it tried to peck at his soda. The bird had been eyeing his drink curiously.

"Want some?"

Corvisquire's eyes lit up, nodding eagerly before tilting its head back, mouth wide open like a baby bird waiting to be fed.

The cold, fizzy liquid slid down its throat.

BURP.

Corvisquire shuddered, shaking its head and blinking rapidly—probably feeling the caffeine kick in.

Qu Sheng continued, "Yep. Ran into some random kid and got swept by an Alolan Raichu. Couldn't block it at all."

He sighed heavily.

"Also ran into a Galarian Rapidash—Psychic Terrain plus Expanding Force. Got completely wrecked. Those guys really know how to abuse terrain."

Judging by how he was crushing his empty soda can, Qu Sheng had clearly been traumatized.

Alolan Raichu and Galarian Rapidash, huh...

Li Xiang gave him a sympathetic look. These Pokémon might not see much play in the games, but in reality, they were quite popular.

The reason? They combined three key traits:

Aesthetic appeal

Psychic typing

Low training barrier

"Cuteness is justice!"

That motto held true here as well.

Especially for Galarian Ponyta—its initial form. With its pastel purple-and-blue mane, black-and-white spiral horn, and snow-white coat, it had won Global Times' "Cutest Pokémon of the Year" award by a landslide. It received 250,000 votes—50,000 more than second-place Eevee.

A gap that large was practically unheard of.

Li Xiang asked, "Were they first-years too?"

"Nah, third. I wasn't lucky enough to run into another first-year. But they weren't even top students in their grade."

Qu Sheng sighed. "At the end of the day, it's about the learning environment. Their teaching efficiency is just way higher than ours."

Classic "blame the environment for poor performance"—

It sounded laughable, but there was some truth to it.

After all, as Song Jie had mentioned, out of the current 400 students, only about 40 would make it into advanced academies.

That number felt way too low. By Li Xiang's estimate, at least 70 or 80 should qualify.

Come to think of it…

The previous third-year class had over 70 admitted…

Qingcheng No. 1 High really was slipping.

The broader environment did matter.

"Thinking of transferring?" Li Xiang probed, gauging Qu Sheng's reaction. His tone made it sound like he was disappointed with their school.

To his surprise, Qu Sheng gave him a weird look. "Nah. Why would I transfer after fighting so hard to get in? To compete with those guys from No. 2 and No. 4 Schools?"

No. 2 and No. 4—both powerhouse schools.

Then why even bring it up?

But… fighting to get in? Was it that hard to enroll here?

Li Xiang reached out to steady Riolu as it wobbled and nearly toppled over, then handed it some water—it wasn't a fan of soda.

On the battlefield, the match was nearing its end. Yang Tianwang's new Solosis was putting in work, battering his opponent's Mareanie with Psyshock.

"What about him? Do you know where he went over break?" Li Xiang nodded toward Yang Tianwang.

"His mom took him to Lian City. His uncle's an Ultra Ball-rank trainer. Guy spent two months training under him."

As his best friend, Qu Sheng knew Yang Tianwang's whereabouts inside out. "Can't you tell he's completely transformed?"

Li Xiang glanced at Yang Tianwang—still tall, lanky, and monkey-like—and shook his head. "Not really."

"Just wait till you battle him this afternoon. If your win count isn't higher than his, you're treating us to dinner."

Qu Sheng shrugged as Yang Tianwang finished his match. The group packed up and headed to the infirmary together.

Afternoon.

After getting reverse-swept by Yang Tianwang—ending with an embarrassing 8 wins and 8 losses—Li Xiang endured Qu Sheng's laughter and the group's loud discussions about how to extort him over the weekend as he trudged off to martial arts training.

Almost ruined my reputation right there.

At the dojo, things were different from usual.

With school back in session, Li Xiang was the only one left.

His three senior brothers attended regular high schools, so they couldn't leave as early as 2 PM.

His senior sisters had also left ahead of time. Even Master Duan Tianxing had been frequently absent lately, often leaving with Master Xiong for unknown reasons.

Li Xiang found himself alone in the vast, empty training hall, facing wooden dummies and training equipment.

A faint sense of loneliness and regret crept in.

The good old days were gone.

No more massages from his senior brothers and sisters.

Now it was just him—maintaining equipment, practicing forms, sparring against inanimate objects.

At least he had his Pokémon for company.

By 5 PM, after finishing his training, showering, and cooling down, Li Xiang returned home and gulped down water like a man rescued from the desert.

His mother walked in right after.

"Oh? Perfect timing. There's something I need to talk to you about."

She was holding a folder.

Li Xiang blinked. "What's up?"

"It's about your school. You might not have heard yet—I only found out this afternoon."

She sat beside him, placing the folder on the table with a serious expression.

"Youth Training Camp… Have you heard of it?"

"Youth Training Camp?"

"Right. The Centralized Training Program for Young Trainers, abbreviated as Youth Training Camp." She nodded, then slipped into bureaucratic mode:

"To ensure the ideological and ethical standards of young trainers, elevate their combat proficiency, and foster healthy competition and development…

"Youth Training Camps will be established in cities across the Zhu Xia region, selecting top students from foundational academies to cultivate qualified young trainers—

"With guaranteed admission to advanced academies."

Those last six words hit like a thunderclap.