After dinner, the group rested for the night. The Elite Four Challenge officially began on the second day, drawing a significant crowd of Aoki's acquaintances who came to witness the high-stakes battles.

Almost all of the top thirty-two participants from the last Sinnoh Tournament were present, as these individuals had earned the right to challenge the Elite Four in their respective regions. However, a considerable gap in skill still existed among the top thirty-two teams. Regardless, all of them were undoubtedly qualified to become Gym Leaders in any region.

Cynthia and the other attendees from the Sinnoh region were seated not far from Aoki and his companions. After noticing Aoki, Cynthia hesitated for a moment before ultimately deciding to approach him. "Long time no see, Cynthia," Aoki said with a friendly smile. He was likely the person most familiar with Cynthia among those present. Cynthia nodded in acknowledgment. Aoki had reached the semifinals in the last Sinnoh Tournament, and Steven had secured first place; the difference in their abilities was almost negligible. Her own victory in becoming the Champion of that tournament had a lot to do with the event being held in the Sinnoh region itself.

"The Pokeblocks from last time are running a bit low. I was wondering if I could..." Cynthia rarely asked others for favors, so she felt a hint of embarrassment making the request. Hearing this, Aoki was momentarily taken aback. Although Cynthia would transfer funds to his account periodically, and Aoki had arranged for someone to send her Pokeblocks from time to time, he had not anticipated that her Pokemon would continue consuming them at such a rate until now. As her Pokemon's strength increased, their dietary requirements would naturally become more demanding. Without hesitation, Aoki smiled and nodded. "No problem. But the old rules still apply; I need to observe your Pokemon up close." If someone was willing to bring their Pokemon to him for data collection, he certainly would not refuse, especially when that someone was a future Champion.

"What about us? Aoki, you can't put love before friendship," Steven chimed in immediately. "Yes, yes, count us in too, Brother Aoki," Phoebe echoed. Others might not be fully aware, but Steven had learned some information from his father. Aoki's ability as a Breeder might be no less than that of his master, Yagyu Tsuyoshi, but because Aoki preferred to maintain a low profile, it had never been publicly advertised. Adams and Yagyu Tsuyoshi had also chosen to keep this information confidential. Seizing such a good opportunity, Steven naturally seized the chance. Given the relationship between the three of them and Aoki, this was not an unreasonable request.

"Oh? Then I wonder if we could be included as well?" Another female voice sounded from the opposite direction. Looking up, they saw Kaluna and Doracena approaching from the other side. The two of them had interacted with Aoki previously when he traveled to the Kalos region for work, and also due to the announcement of the Fairy type. Originally, Kaluna and Doracena had just intended to come over and say hello, but they seemed to have overheard something extraordinary. These chosen Trainers from various regions were actually asking Aoki to customize Pokeblocks for them. Adopting a 'why not try' attitude, Kaluna certainly would not refuse. Hearing this, a trace of helplessness appeared on Aoki's face. They had come to him of their own accord; it had nothing to do with him. For most Trainers, customizing Pokeblocks for an entire team of Pokemon was a massive undertaking. But Aoki was different. It was merely a matter of his system running for an hour or a few extra hours. The actual creation process was a little troublesome, but overall, it was not an insurmountable problem.

Aoki nodded. "No problem, Miss Kaluna, Miss Doracena. Long time no see." Steven, Wallace, Cynthia, and Kaluna all had the potential to become Champions in their respective regions, and Phoebe and Doracena were not far behind. Without even realizing it, Aoki's circle of friends had expanded to include so many individuals with extraordinary potential. Since everyone had gathered, they did not return to their original seats and instead found some nearby seats to sit down together. There had been some communication between them during the Sinnoh Tournament, so there was no sense of awkwardness upon seeing each other again. If Giovanni were to be notified now to send operatives to eliminate everyone here in their cradle, Aoki estimated that the League would be set back by at least a hundred years. The impact would be absolutely profound. He kept that thought to himself.

The King Challenge commenced. To quickly select the candidates qualified to challenge the Elite Four, the preliminaries were conducted directly in a knockout format. The match sequence was continuous, with no breaks. Nurse Joy and the Chanseys were already stationed at the edge of the battlefield, ready at any moment. Any Pokemon that lost its combat capability could be sent directly for treatment to ensure it would not affect subsequent matches. There was no unnecessary ceremony or talk; as the audience consisted entirely of experts, the matches began straight away. Fresh chapters posted on NoveIＦire.net

The first match featured Lance. His opponent was unknown to Aoki, and the gap in their strength was quite substantial. Lance sent out his Dragonite, which successfully achieved a victory against three opposing Pokemon in a row. Many of the participants invited here were largely going through the motions to gain experience. But for anyone invited by the League to participate in the King Challenge, it was an honor worth bragging about for a lifetime. Yes, participation was by invitation only. Those who took part in the King Challenge were all invited by the League, and only those whose strength had reached a certain threshold received such an invitation.

The second to appear was Koga. The gap between his strength and his opponent's was also very large. Without any suspense, Koga secured a victory. Next was Bruno. Perhaps it was a deliberate arrangement by the League, but all the initial battles seemed to pit the strong against the weak. It appeared they wanted to eliminate the less powerful contestants first, allowing them to gain some experience and prestige. There were only a few exceptions. For instance, Lorelei, who was considered among the weaker participants, successfully defeated her opponent. Will and Karen also won their matches, but they were hard-fought victories. From this, the gap between geniuses became apparent. Lorelei, Will, and Karen would definitely receive more attention from the League moving forward.

Aoki had not necessarily expected these three to win, but there was also a stranger who managed to secure a victory from a disadvantaged position, and it seemed much easier for him than it had been for Lorelei and the others. However, Aoki had never heard this person's name before: Heba. Heba was a man whom Aoki had never seen or heard of, yet he had been invited by the League, which left Aoki feeling somewhat puzzled. This person did not specialize in a particular Pokemon type. However, Aoki felt a strange familiarity with his battle commands and his attitude towards his Pokemon. It was just like... just like... the Team Rocket members he had encountered in his previous life. In other words, those who were powerful but used Pokemon as tools, an approach almost identical to the one Aoki himself had employed in his past life. That was why it felt so familiar. But how could such a person receive an invitation from the League? Not only Aoki was surprised by this; Professor Oak, seated behind Aoki, also seemed to share this sentiment. Such a person, he likely felt, should not be qualified to become one of the Elite Four.