Chapter Twenty: Arrival at Shui Jing City
At first, Cheng Cheng thought this wilderness area would be just like the ones in Kanto, perhaps with some particularly rare Pokémon. The truth was that there were indeed rare Pokémon here, but nothing extraordinary. In the end, Cheng Cheng used up all his Safari Balls. With these ten Poké Balls, he managed to catch two Psychic-type Pokémon; the remaining eight were of other types. Each of the last ten Pokémon he caught was carefully chosen, and among them, six were of a grade higher than light green. Cheng Cheng had successfully completed his task.
“Ding! Congratulations, host, you have completed Task Two and earned 500 achievement points.”
Hearing the system’s notification, Cheng Cheng relaxed. With both tasks accomplished, he could now enjoy the next stretch of his journey without worry and would have more time to figure out how to approach Pikachu.
After using up all his Safari Balls, Cheng Cheng decided to leave. When he entered the main hall, Ash was already there.
“Ash, Pikachu.”
“Cheng Cheng, you’re back too.”
“You’re back so soon. Which Pokémon did you catch?”
“Well… I caught thirty Doduo and Dodrio.”
Ash scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.
Cheng Cheng was speechless. In Kanto, Ash had caught thirty Tauros; now, in Hoenn, he’d caught thirty Doduo and Dodrio. He really had a way of catching entire herds wherever he went. It looked like Professor Oak’s lab would soon be home to another stampede, this time of Doduo and Dodrio.
Cheng Cheng walked over to the side of the hall, where there was a Pokémon transfer machine. After connecting it to the Daycare’s machine, he sent all twenty-two of his Psychic-type Pokémon over.
After a little more than ten minutes, May, Brock, and Max returned, also having used up all their Safari Balls.
“How did everyone do?” Cheng Cheng asked.
“Pretty well,” Brock replied.
“Yeah, I caught a few Pokémon I really like,” added May.
“That’s great.”
May, Max, and Brock also transferred their Pokémon away. Once the five of them had packed up, they continued on toward Slateport City.
Before long, the group could see the houses of Slateport in the distance.
As they approached the city, a delicious aroma wafted toward them.
“Pika pika!”
Pikachu seemed delighted and ran ahead toward the city, stopping in front of a stall covered with all kinds of berries.
“So many berries!” May exclaimed, amazed by the abundance.
“Slateport grows a huge variety of berries; they’re the best in all of Hoenn,” Cheng Cheng explained. Seeing so many berries, he decided to buy some to take back. He bought five or six kinds of berries at the stall, spending nearly ten thousand, and then found a courier to send them to the Daycare.
“By the way, May, Slateport holds a Contest Spectacular—are you here to participate?”
“That’s right, I came here to compete in the Slateport Contest. This time, I’m determined to win the Ribbon.”
“In that case, why don’t we have a Contest Battle ourselves?”
“You can do that too?”
“I know some of the rules. For a regular match, I should be fine.”
“All right, let’s have a battle.”
“Let’s go, Beautifly!”
Pokémon: Beautifly
Type: Bug, Flying
Level: 26
Grade: Deep Yellow
Rarity: Common
Ability: Swarm
Moves: Absorb, Hurricane, Stun Spore, Morning Sun, Gust, Defog, Silver Wind
Pokémon: Mr. Mime
Type: Psychic, Fairy
Level: 30
Grade: Green
Rarity: Rare
Ability: Soundproof
Hidden Ability: Technician
HP: 24/40
Attack: 18/45
Defense: 23/65
Special Attack: 33/100
Special Defense: 35/120
Speed: 34/90
Total: 207/460
Item: None
Moves: Confusion, Barrier, Pound, Light Screen, Mirror Coat
“Let’s begin. We’ll go first—Beautifly, use Gust!”
A flurry of wind swept toward Mr. Mime.
“Mr. Mime, Barrier!”
Mr. Mime quickly conjured a pane of glass in front of itself.
“Keep making glass mirrors, Mr. Mime—make them as transparent as possible.”
“Beautifly, use Stun Spore!”
Beautifly danced through the air, scattering rings of paralyzing powder in an elegant display that was sure to impress the judges, but Cheng Cheng had no intention of falling for it.
The Stun Spore couldn’t reach Mr. Mime at all; by now, it had surrounded itself with glass barriers on all sides, sealing itself in.
“Beautifly, keep circling Mr. Mime and use Stun Spore.”
“Mr. Mime, use Light Screen—gather all the sunlight!”
“Control the glass barriers with Confusion, Mr. Mime—focus the sunlight!”
Mr. Mime manipulated the Light Screen and glass barriers, making the entire stage blaze with light. Standing at the center, Mr. Mime was bathed in brilliance. Meanwhile, the intense sunlight dazzled Beautifly, leaving it unable to act.
“Now’s your chance, Mr. Mime! Hurl all the glass barriers at Beautifly with Confusion!”
The barriers shot toward Beautifly, hitting it repeatedly. Finally, Beautifly fell to the ground, unable to continue.
“Beautifly is unable to battle. Cheng Cheng wins this match.”
“Return, Beautifly. Thank you for your hard work,” May said, recalling her Pokémon.
“Come back, Mr. Mime.”
“Cheng Cheng, you’re amazing! I never expected you to know so much about Contest Battles, and I can’t believe how well you used Mr. Mime’s glass barriers and Light Screen together.”
“It was like watching a performance,” Brock added admiringly.
“It wasn’t that impressive. Honestly, this was my first Contest Battle. But I think that every battle isn’t just about being flashy—it’s about giving a complete, cohesive performance. The heart of the Contest Spectacular is in the word ‘spectacular.’ If you can make a battle feel whole from beginning to end, that’s when it’s truly spectacular.”
“Thank you for your guidance, Cheng Cheng.”
“No problem—we’re all companions here. Companions should help each other out, right, Pikachu?”
“Pikachu~”
Cheng Cheng took the opportunity to pat Pikachu’s head twice.
“By the way, you should hurry and register. I heard the Contest is tomorrow.”
“I’d better go sign up, then. You all go to the Pokémon Center and wait for me.”
“All right, we’ll wait for you.”
May went to register, while Cheng Cheng and the others took their Pokémon to Nurse Joy for a checkup.
The next day, the Contest Spectacular began—Cheng Cheng’s first time attending in person. The host opened with the usual lines, introduced the three judges who never seemed to change, and then the first round commenced.
May used Combusken for her performance. Though there was a small mishap, she overcame the difficulty and earned a good score.
Next up was a bespectacled woman—though Ash and the others didn’t recognize her, it was obviously Jessie in disguise. Jessie used Chimecho, and her bizarre performance somehow received a perfect score, making Cheng Cheng question the judges’ taste.
Despite the surprises, both Jessie and May advanced to the second round.
The second round began quickly. Both May and Jessie defeated their first opponents, and soon it was time for their showdown.
As expected, May won. Still, Jessie had mistreated James’s Chimecho so badly that James probably wouldn’t let it go, though knowing him, he’d never really do anything to Jessie.
Then came the final match: May versus a Grumpig. Cheng Cheng watched this match with interest, as he owned a Spoink that would eventually evolve into Grumpig. It was a good opportunity to learn.
To his surprise, the match wasn’t as impressive as his own earlier battle with May. It was so dull that Cheng Cheng couldn’t muster any enthusiasm. Such a childish contest left him with nothing more to say.
Thus ended Slateport’s Contest Spectacular. May became the champion and received the Ribbon.
Afterward, everyone returned to the Pokémon Center to rest. Cheng Cheng, however, wanted to buy some Pokémon Eggs while in Slateport, so he went alone to the city’s largest department store.
The store was enormous, much larger than the one in Verdanturf. In all of Hoenn, Slateport’s department store was famous.
On the first floor was a vast hall—not for selling goods, but for information and product collection.
Cheng Cheng went straight up to the second floor, which sold all kinds of items for Pokémon: Poké Balls, TMs, and various held items.
Since he’d soon be heading out to sea, he didn’t want to miss the opportunity. He bought a good fishing rod and some specialized Poké Balls for catching Water-type Pokémon.
Catching Pokémon in the water is much harder than on land. If you fail, they escape into the ocean and are nearly impossible to find again. That’s why Cheng Cheng bought the right Poké Balls to improve his odds.
He continued to the third floor, which sold berries, berry-making machines, and some Pokéblocks.
Since he’d already bought some at the market, he went up to the fourth floor to have a look.
The fourth floor was elegantly arranged, specializing in Pokémon and Pokémon Eggs.
There were some Psychic-type Pokémon and eggs, but after seeing the prices—some even higher than at his own Daycare—Cheng Cheng decided not to buy any.
He went up one more floor for a quick look, but found nothing of interest, so he returned to the Pokémon Center.
After celebrating May’s victory and her new Ribbon, everyone retired to their rooms for the night. The next day, they would board a ship bound for Verdanturf.