Combusken's Progress

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The sudden arrival of the secret psychic kingdom was just a small episode in Bruce's university life. After returning to school, he went back to a very fulfilling routine. Classes, training, and the library occupied most of his time each day. The courses in the research department were much deeper and more difficult than those in the combat department, covering a variety of knowledge areas that required a lot of library study.

At the same time, Bruce also came to understand the challenge of writing an excellent paper, which wasn't as simple as the musings of a time traveler. To write a high-quality paper recognized by professionals and the public, careful logic, a rigorous format, and a substantial amount of valid data are essential. So, even if he hadn't yet discovered all of Eevee's evolutions, writing a paper on the topic would still be a significant challenge.

Still, having a direction was beneficial, and there would always be time to sort out the format and data later. During this period, many other organizational departments extended an olive branch to him, but Bruce declined. He had so much to do now that he didn't have any free time left.

Friday, September 15...

University Battlefield

Bruce and Liam stood on opposite sides of the battlefield, facing each other from a distance, with Jessica acting as a temporary referee. In the field, Combusken was facing off against a small Pokemon. Its skin was pewter-colored, its back covered with plated armor, and it had two sharp fangs and striking sky-blue eyes.

[Pokemon: Lairon (Steel/Rock)

Ability: Heavy Metal

Qualification: Elite

Level: LV 39 (Professional)]

Lairon, which feeds on iron ore, and its final evolution form, Aggron, appear dominant and powerful, often mistaken for pseudo-legendary Pokemon. This Lairon, close to the Ace level, was Liam's fourth Pokemon, and the one he was focusing on developing. His other three Pokemon had already reached the Ace level. In retrospect, if he weren't strong, how could Liam have become the school team captain? Strength is the first requirement for securing a spot on the school team.

"Rock Tomb!" Liam said calmly.

"Lairon!" Lairon let out a low growl, then stomped on the ground. The mysterious Earth Power surged, and rocks emerged from the ground, filling half the sky.

After a moment, when Lairon roared again, countless rocks crashed towards Combusken all at once!

"Rock Tomb lock."

Seeing the rocks fill the sky, Bruce appeared calm and composed.

"Combusken!" Combusken gave a soft cry, its gaze sharp, as it took a step forward, turning into an afterimage. With its extremely developed leg muscles, it leaped into the air and gracefully landed on a rock that was about to hit the ground. Then, using this rock as a springboard, it lightly leapt to the second rock, jumping from one to the next, closing in on Lairon in no time.

Watching the scene before him, Liam couldn't help but marvel, "What a subtle way to evade it."

"Using Rock as a springboard, it not only avoided Rock Tomb but also successfully approached Lairon. Incredible."

Bruce smiled slightly and issued another command: "Brick Break!"

Lairon, being four times weak to Fighting-type moves, meant Liam naturally couldn't just watch Lairon endure this attack.

"Iron Head!" he said quickly, with a calm expression.

"Combusken!" Combusken's sharp claws ignited, casting a white light as it struck down fiercely!

"Lairon!" Lairon's hard head shone like Oreburgh steel. Faced with Combusken's fierce assault, Lairon didn't dodge; it extended its head to attack with its hard skull.

Bang!

The sharp claws clashed with Lairon's head in an instant, orange-yellow eyes meeting sky-blue. Suddenly, Combusken took half a step back, while Lairon staggered backward, deep gashes forming on its limbs and scars marking its head. In this face-off, Combusken emerged as the victor.

"Go, Double Kick!" Bruce shouted.

Combusken, breathing lightly, stared intently at Lairon, then leapt up, kicking out with its powerful legs. Its terrifying explosive speed left Lairon no chance to react.

Bang! Bang!

Both legs kicked out with a brilliant white light, directly launching Lairon—who weighed over 200 kilograms—into the air. With a loud crash, Lairon hit the ground heavily, its eyes in spirals.

Jessica looked down and immediately declared loudly, "Lairon has lost the ability to fight, so the winner is Bruce!"

Even though there were no other spectators in the field at the moment, it was still meaningful to have a referee.

Liam quickly approached Lairon, using a healing spray to treat its wounds, and smiled gently, saying, "You did great."

"Lairon~" Lairon opened its sky-blue eyes, responding weakly.

Afterward, Liam returned Lairon to its Poke Ball, approached Bruce, and said with a smile, "It's over, buddy; I can't beat you anymore."

"The pace of Combusken's progress is truly terrifying…"

Some time ago, Lairon and Combusken had begun training together. Initially, Lairon won more often than it lost. Over time, their victories and losses balanced out. In the last three days, however, Lairon hadn't won a single match…

Combusken's strength continued to grow and improve steadily. According to Liam's estimate, it was likely close to the Ace barrier and, if all went well, could break through to the Ace level next year.

At that time, Bruce would be in the first semester of his first or second year. Having a professional-level Pokemon at that stage could only be described as invincible.

Bruce replied with a smile, "Combusken has indeed made significant improvements recently."

Currently, Combusken was at level 36—the exact level it should have evolved into Blaziken. But Combusken hadn't evolved. Puzzled, Bruce asked his mother, Emma, a master breeder.

"This situation is very normal," she explained, "which means that Combusken's breeding quality is excellent, its upper limit has been raised, and evolution requires more energy. You know, pseudo-legendary Pokemon all develop later, and their evolution levels are very high. This is because they require a lot of energy to evolve."

Bruce understood Emma's point; if Combusken wanted to evolve into Blaziken, it might take some time to gather the necessary energy. Once its body was filled with the required energy, it would be ready to evolve. Emma then gave a timeframe, saying, "With Combusken's qualifications and breeding, it could evolve smoothly in half a month at most, or even sooner."

Hearing this, Bruce felt reassured.

"Beep-beep…"

Suddenly, Liam's phone rang in his pocket, interrupting Bruce's thoughts. He pulled out his phone and answered. After a moment, he hung up and said to Bruce, "Buddy, your issue is resolved."

Hearing this, Bruce thought for a moment and asked, "Electric Valley?"

It seemed that was the only thing he had asked Liam to help with.

Liam nodded with a light smile, saying, "Yes, the Surge Smith player I told you about passed the test, and you can head to Electric Valley anytime."

"After Metang reaches Professional level, I'll inform you."

Bruce nodded slightly and said, "Then I can go now; Metang has already reached the Professional level."

"Really?" Liam asked, suppressing a wave of thoughts, confirming seriously.

With a serious expression, Bruce nodded and said, "It's absolutely true."

Metang had reached Professional level five days ago, and Bruce spent five days consolidating its strength. Now, Metang was ready to go to Electric Valley.

Seeing Bruce's reaction, Liam nodded in surprise. Jessica smiled and said, "Normally, with Combusken progressing so fast, Metang would progress even faster." They came from a family of psychics. With Combusken's amazing progress as a sign, Liam quickly accepted Metang's growth.

Even so, he sighed loudly, "Buddy, you're really leaving no room for your peers…"

Fortunately, he wasn't competing with Bruce; otherwise, he'd feel overwhelmed.

After sighing for a moment, Liam continued, "Then let's go to Surge Smith now. He's at the stadium."

The three left the battlefield and headed to the stadium.

Jessica walked alongside Bruce, reminding him, "Buddy, let me introduce Surge Smith first. He's the son of the Electric Gym Leader of Steampunk City. He specializes in electricity and has a very straightforward personality, so sometimes he doesn't make the best impression."

Liam smiled, turned his head, and said, "Surge Smith's favorite thing to do is show off his strength in the stadium when school starts, enjoying the cheers from younger students."

Hearing this, Bruce's mouth twitched slightly.

"He's like me. Now, in his third year, his main Pokemon has reached Ace level and is a core member of the school team," Liam added.

"He went to Electric Valley with his father in his first year and returned by himself in his second. He knows the area well, so it's safe for you to go with him."

"Good; you'll understand the rest after spending time with him."

During their conversation, the three had already arrived at the stadium.

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To be Continued

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