A water-type trainer who specializes in dragon-type water.

On the second day, the sun shone gently on the campus, and everywhere was filled with vigor and vitality.

As usual, Zhang Heng walked briskly into the school gate. The breeze blew past, carrying the noise from the playground. He took a deep breath of the familiar air, full of anticipation for the upcoming competition.

Walking through the bustling square with thousands of people, the brand new statue in the center of the square, which depicts a majestic man and the school's symbol Pokémon - Dancing Swan, instantly caught his attention.

This statue is of the first president of the institution, who was quite famous in the early days of the country.

In that turbulent era, he led the teachers and students of the institution to overcome numerous difficulties and trained a large number of outstanding talents for the country.

"I heard that anyone who makes it into the top ten in this ranking tournament will be eligible to select Pokémon eggs and items in South China. These benefits were secured by the dean for future generations of students."

Zhang Heng's eyes flashed with anticipation, and he quickened his pace towards the academic lecture hall.

The lecture hall is grand and solemn, its classical brick and stone exterior contrasting with the modern glass dome, creating a unique and striking scene. Upon entering, the hall was buzzing with activity, students enthusiastically discussing the upcoming competition, their voices filled with excitement and nervousness.

Walking through the bustling square with thousands of people, he was surrounded by the laughter of his classmates, but he was determined to get to the magnificent academic lecture hall in front of him.

The exterior walls of the lecture hall are made of ancient bricks and stones, with huge stone pillars standing on both sides of the entrance. The dome on the top is exquisitely designed, and sunlight pours through the glass, forming golden beams of light, adding a sense of sacredness to the entire building.

He followed the crowd into the auditorium, which was spacious and bright, with rows of seats neatly arranged towards the stage. A large electronic display screen flickered, scrolling through information about the upcoming matches.

The air was filled with a tense and exciting atmosphere. Students discussed the competition in groups of two or three, and their voices echoed in the empty lecture hall.

Zhang Heng moved through the crowd nervously, his palms slightly sweating and his heart beating faster. Finally, he saw a staff member on the side of the lecture hall.

"Students, please register here." The person who spoke was the Xingyao Technology staff who was assisting the students in drawing serial numbers.

"Ok."

Zhang Heng slowly pulled the illustrated guide from his pocket. The guide was square, with a delicate matte finish that shimmered in the sunlight. He handed it to the staff member.

The staff member took it, operated the instrument to scan and register, and then "No. 101, Area B" was displayed on the atlas.

Zhang Heng muttered to himself, "No. 101, Area B..." He looked around, knowing that he would only know his opponent before the game. This unknown made him nervous and slightly excited.

In this competition, no one knows who their opponent is until the later stages.

This also effectively protects the privacy of the contestants and prevents the other party from making targeted deployments without fully understanding the students' level.

At this time, Principal Duan was talking in a low voice with Ivan An of Xingyao Technology.

Principal Duan's eyes revealed a cunning look as he ordered, "Mr. Ivan, can you control the order of the draws and the battle path?"

When Alvin heard this, his heart skipped a beat. He hated this kind of behavior that undermined fairness the most. In his opinion, this was no different from giving someone a backdoor.

But as a returned overseas student, he also understood the social etiquette in China, so he could only respond reluctantly: "Of course, President."

Unexpectedly, Principal Duan's next words surprised Ai Wen even more: "Then can you help Zhang Heng arrange a more difficult promotion route? Let him challenge the top three players in the freshman ranking competition in the first match."

Aiwen was full of doubts and couldn't help asking: "What is this for?"

The corners of his long mouth curled up slightly as he explained with a smile, "How can a young man not show his potential? With the level he showed in the training dome, he's worthy of our serious training."

Zhang Heng was completely unaware of all this. At this moment, he had returned to the training dome, training enthusiastically with Swamp Leap Fish, with a vast expanse of water in front of him.

"Swamp Leaper, Freeze Punch!"

When the Swampert received the order, its muscles tensed up, and its originally gray-green fist was instantly wrapped in a layer of crystal clear frost. The water vapor in the air quickly condensed and turned into fine ice mist, spreading around with the Swampert as the center.

"Gela~"

It roared loudly, swung its frozen fist forward, brought up a biting cold wind, and rushed straight towards the simulated combat target used for training.

The fist wind whistled, and the metal material on the target was instantly covered with frost. A thick ice shell quickly formed on the surface, and cracks spread out like a spider web with the hit position as the center.

With a crisp "crack" sound, the entire target could not withstand the powerful impact of the Frozen Fist and the erosion of the low temperature. It broke in the middle and shattered into several pieces, splashing a cloud of ice when it fell to the ground.

Seeing the Swamp Leap Fish struggling, Zhang Heng was filled with excitement. He said to the Swamp Leap Fish, "It will soon be time for us to show off our strength!"

Marshrunken is the Pokémon that has been with Zhang Heng the longest besides Smelt. Although Smelt is special, Marshrunken has a rich history of appearances and battles.

The tacit understanding between it and Zhang Heng is no less than that of Bodangshui, so the first battle is naturally the appearance of Swamp Leaping Fish.

The training continued until noon, when Zhang Heng and Swamp Leap Fish took a short break. After a quick lunch, Zhang Heng's mood grew increasingly tense. He repeatedly checked the items he would need for the battle, constantly reviewing the details of the training and the possible tactics in his mind.

Finally, it was time for the afternoon match. Zhang Heng took a deep breath and walked towards the competition venue, filled with nervousness and anticipation.

From a distance, he saw the battlefield was full of people, and the noise was endless. When he got closer, he found that most of these people came for his opponent.

His opponent is Mu Yao, a girl who got third place in the freshman ranking tournament and is also a trainer who is good at grass-type.

Zhang Heng walked onto the court slowly. No one knew him, and no one cared, because many boys near the court started exclaiming when they saw Mu Yao, and the atmosphere was very lively.

At this moment, a drone named Rotom appeared in the sky, and a light screen was projected above its head. Three cursors on it, representing 3v3 singles, 1v1 singles, and doubles, began to rotate rapidly.

The cursor slowly stopped, finally settling on the 1v1 singles match. Rotom chimed in, "The preliminary round will be a 1v1 singles elimination match. Please bring out your Pokémon."

To show fairness, Zhang Heng and Mu Yao both raised their Poké Balls high.

"Bang bang~" Two white lights flashed, and the Pokémon of both sides appeared.

Mu Yao sent out a petite poisonous rose with three thorns on its head. Its body was light green and covered with green leaves like a dress. Its left hand was a blue rose and its right hand was a red rose.

As soon as Poison Rose appeared, exclamations were heard all around.

"Here it comes! Poison Rose!"

"Poison Rose has made a great contribution to reaching the top three of the freshman rankings."

"This Poison Rose looks to be in great shape. This opponent is going to be in trouble."

By chance, a girl near the competition venue exclaimed, "Why is this...swampskipper pink? It's so cute!"

"Oh my god... the three shining ones?!"