Chapter 130: Teaching, Journey to Qinghaibo City

“Everyone, right now Spoink is evolving. Please remember, you must not disturb a Pokémon during its evolution, or it may fail. Also, during battles, attacking a Pokémon that is evolving is against the rules.”

Soon, Spoink evolved into Grumpig, its appearance transforming noticeably.

“Attention, everyone. When a Pokémon evolves, its form changes. Sometimes, its type changes as well, and it can learn new moves. Additionally, a Pokémon’s personality may shift, which is very important. Changes in personality can alter many things, especially how we interact with our Pokémon.”

“Sometimes, we might not want a Pokémon to evolve. In such cases, we can use an Everstone to keep it in its original form.”

“Alright, now the real battle begins.”

“Grumpig, use Psychic!”

Grumpig unleashed a Psychic attack, and the Whirlipede was knocked to the ground.

“Grumpig, follow up with Mirage Beam!”

The Mirage Beam struck Whirlipede, causing it to fall into confusion.

“Whirlipede, snap out of it!”

“Everyone, remember, if a Pokémon becomes confused, don’t panic. Try to calm it and bring it back to focus. If possible, recall the Pokémon into its Poké Ball to immediately end the confusion.”

“Grumpig, use Psychic one last time!”

The Psychic attack hit Whirlipede again, rendering it unable to continue the fight.

“Alright, everyone. Whirlipede has lost its ability to battle, so the winner is Grumpig.”

Cheng Cheng and Muzi recalled their Pokémon.

“We just demonstrated for you all. Now it’s your turn to battle. I believe you’ve all had some experience with battles before, so I won’t repeat the basics. Let’s get started.”

The group began forming teams for battles. Although their fighting styles were somewhat immature, considering their age, it was commendable.

However, Cheng Cheng noticed a significant problem in their battles—their fighting was too mechanical. They lacked flexibility in using different tactics and had no creativity in their strategies.

But this was understandable. Students in school usually follow what the teachers or textbooks say, forgetting to develop their own styles. When they become official trainers and travel, they will learn to create their own battle methods.

Changing this teaching style isn’t something that can happen overnight. Cheng Cheng’s role was simply to impart some knowledge in these three days; what happened afterward was beyond his control.

That evening, Saito took Cheng Cheng and Muzi home. Since all three had been at school all day, no one had cooked, so they ate out.

“Cheng Cheng, Muzi, how did you find today’s teaching?”

“Very good, Dad. But I didn’t like the previous school’s teaching method, so I tried my own way. It seems everyone was very happy.”

“What about you, Cheng Cheng?”

“The students at school study very earnestly, and their basics are solid. But because they learn strictly from books, they lack spontaneity. They can’t apply what they know flexibly, and their styles are fixed—they don’t have their own battle approaches.”

“Cheng Cheng is right. This is indeed a flaw in current teaching. However, this method is currently the fastest way to help students learn enough about Pokémon and battling.”

“But Dad, this kind of course is so boring.”

“Not necessarily. Everyone has their own best learning style. While you might not like it, for others it might be the most effective.”

“Cheng Cheng is right. This can’t be changed for now, so no need to dwell on it. Alright, you two need to keep working hard these next two days.”

“Okay, Dad.”

“Alright, Uncle Saito.”

Over the next two days, Cheng Cheng continued teaching. He covered the remaining sixteen Pokémon in the mornings, while in the afternoons, he and Muzi introduced more battle techniques.

They also demonstrated battles using different Pokémon, helping the students better understand various characteristics.

Unexpectedly, one student brought a Cotton Ball Pokémon the very next day.

The three days of teaching passed quickly. Cheng Cheng and Muzi didn’t say goodbye to the students; on the fourth day, they simply didn’t return. To both sides, they were just passing acquaintances.

With the Unova League tournament still some time away, Cheng Cheng decided to stay in Twinleaf City for training. However, he recalled that before the tournament, Ash and his friends would face a major event, and Cheng Cheng planned to get involved as well. After all, it promised to be quite exciting.

“Muzi, I’m going traveling. Do you want to come?”

“Travel sounds great! But didn’t you say you wanted to train here?”

“Training anywhere is the same. I’ve decided to travel for a few days.”

“Where are you going? I want to come too.”

“Of course. I figured Ash and Iris will be arriving in Twinleaf City soon. So, let’s meet them and travel together for a while before returning here to prepare for the tournament.”

“Sounds good. Should we tell Dad?”

“Better to tell Uncle Saito so he doesn’t worry.”

“Okay, we’ll tell him when Dad gets home tonight, and leave first thing tomorrow morning.”

Muzi became very excited when she heard about the trip. If Cheng Cheng hadn’t said he wanted to train in Twinleaf City, she might have run off already.

That night, Muzi informed Saito about their upcoming trip. He didn’t say much, just reminded them to be careful and gave Cheng Cheng a meaningful look.

Early the next morning, Cheng Cheng and Muzi boarded a ship to Seaside City.

Seaside City had a gym—the Seaside City Gym. But since Cheng Cheng and Muzi already had eight badges, they had no need to challenge the gym.

To find out if Ash’s group had arrived at Seaside City Gym, Cheng Cheng logged onto the official website at the Pokémon Center to check for trainers who had challenged the gym. If a trainer won a badge, the official record would show it.

Cheng Cheng checked and found no record of Ash challenging the gym, so he hadn’t arrived yet. However, Cheng Cheng saw a familiar name—Kotarou. He recalled that Kotarou was one of Ash’s companions.

Cheng Cheng calculated and realized that even without the Seaside City badge, Ash had already collected eight badges. This meant Ash might skip the Seaside City Gym.

It seemed Ash might already be in Seaside City. Cheng Cheng noted that Kotarou likely challenged the gym the day before Cheng Cheng arrived, indicating Ash was still there. Cheng Cheng decided to go look for them.

“Let’s go, Muzi. We’ll explore Seaside City. Consider it a warm-up before the tournament.”

“Okay! I also want to see if there’s anything new to buy.”

Hearing Muzi mention shopping, Cheng Cheng momentarily hesitated. But since Seaside City faced the ocean and most goods were seafood, which Muzi wouldn’t buy, Cheng Cheng relaxed and accompanied her.

They spent the whole morning wandering through the city, while Cheng Cheng used his minor psychic powers to search for Ash, but no sign was found.

Had Ash already left? If so, they would need to head toward Dragon’s Home next. Cheng Cheng wondered if they could still catch up.

Returning to the Pokémon Center, as they were eating in the lobby, they noticed the TV was broadcasting the World Youth Cup battles. Cheng Cheng saw Ash and his group competing.

“Cheng Cheng, look! It’s Ash and Iris! They’re in the Youth Cup. I wish I’d joined too.”

“You’re still a youth, aren’t you?”

“Hey, what do you mean? I’m only seventeen! Don’t say that.”

“Alright, alright, you’re seventeen. You’re a youth.”

Cheng Cheng watched the intense battles between Ash and Shūdi, and then between Shūdi and the Unova champion, Alder. Their matches were thrilling. Both had grown a lot. Yet, Ash, who had attended three league tournaments, losing to a newcomer was surprising.

He also saw Bianca, the Sinnoh champion, who had traveled to Unova.

The Youth Cup was being held in Striaton Town. Striaton Town, Bianca—it clicked.

“I know where Ash and the others are.”

“Muzi, let’s go. I know where Ash is.”

Cheng Cheng grabbed Muzi, who hadn’t finished her meal, and they set off for Striaton Town.