Although he had no feelings about love between men and women, being slandered in front of Misty always made him feel uncomfortable, so he said with a bit of annoyance, "Are you ready for your match this afternoon? Don't really get knocked out in the top sixty-four!"
Ash's words made Gary's expression freeze: "Why...why do you care? I'll definitely win anyway!"
Amidst the bickering, everyone left the arena. In the special seats, Leon and others who were quietly watching Ash also left the scene. Over the past few days, Ash had been surprising them every day. They were looking forward to what kind of performance Ash would deliver in the upcoming matches.
So far, the only Pokémon Ash had used that shone brilliantly was Pikachu, and even then, it wasn't at full strength.
Apart from Pikachu, they were also paying attention to the Aerodactyl and Gengar. They're curious whether anyone in the coming matches could force Ash to reveal his true strength.
...
In the afternoon, on the rock field, Gary, looking serious, was commanding Blastoise to battle against the opponent's Nidoking.
His Blastoise had reached the Professional Peak Level during these battles. Although it was still unclear how long it would take to break through to the Gym Level, his combat power undoubtedly placed him among the top contenders in the Quartz Conference.
The Professional Peak Level was almost the ceiling of the Quartz Conference. Currently, only three known Gym-level participants were Conway, Paul, and Ash, with the former two having over a year and a half of travel experience.
Gary, having only traveled for half a year, achieving such results, had a talent even more exceptional than theirs, but only Ash could slightly overshadow him.
This time, his opponent was also a well-experienced Trainer. His Nidoking, Golem, and Onix all had Professional Level strength, including two at Professional Peak and one at Professional Senior Level.
This level was almost the first below the three Gym Level champions in the competition. Even among Gary's Professional Peak level Pokémon, they were slightly inferior.
However, Gary's Blastoise was a perfect counter to the opponent's three Pokémon. After trading one-for-two, he had Blastoise defeat the opponent's Golem. Now it was the final battle, with one Pokémon remaining for each side; whichever one fell would miss the top thirty-two.
"...Now, Nidoking, use Stone Edge!" Gary's opponent, Ah-Ping, commanded his Nidoking.
Nidoking roared and smashed its fist into the ground, causing dozens of sharp stone blades to surge from the earth towards Blastoise!
"Withdraw into your shell and block it, then use Hydro Pump!" Gary's voice sounded at this moment; he was taking a gamble!
"Blastoise!" Blastoise withdrew completely into its shell; the sharp rocks from the earth struck directly against Blastoise's shell!
The powerful force sent Blastoise flying, with the sharp stones even cracking a section of Blastoise's shell surface.
Gary clenched his fist, his expression slightly tense. He didn't know if Blastoise could withstand this blow. Blastoise had already taken many attacks before this, and taking a Rock Type big move head-on posed a significant risk.
Under Gary's anxious gaze, Blastoise suddenly extended its head and limbs from its shell in midair, adjusting its posture. The two massive Hydro Pump cannons on its back aimed at the Nidoking below. Following that, a torrent of water burst forth!
"Boom!!"
Nidoking, having just completed its Rock Type big move, had no time or space to dodge the Hydro Pump explosion from above.
The Hydro Pump directly hit Nidoking, with two water columns as thick as barrels slamming down on Nidoking like two invisible giant hammers.
The water column exploded upon impact, forming a half-meter-high wave, shattering remnants of the Stone Edge attack. Further away, the water sprays even brushed down the front row railings of the audience seats, causing nearby spectators to instinctively step back.
Nidoking let out a painful scream, pushed back by the water columns until it hit the rock at the edge of the field hard.
"Bang!" The rock on the field shattered, and Nidoking rolled several times on the ground before slumping down, silent.
Ah-Ping frantically shouted Nidoking's name, but no matter how he called, Nidoking remained motionless. After a while, the referee waved the flag: "Nidoking is unable to battle, Blastoise wins, and the winner of the fourth preliminary match is — Trainer Gary!"
Gary successfully advanced to the top thirty-two!
With this, both from Pallet Town had advanced into the top thirty-two. There were four people from Pallet Town this time, but the other two who didn't have much presence hadn't even obtained eight badges. Their early progress was smooth, but later it became entirely stagnant.
Gary and Ash's strengths had grown geometrically, which allowed them to handle the trials brought by Gym Leaders as the badges increased. Once you couldn't keep up with the badge acquisition pace, you'd be stuck at any Gym for a long time.
The time was only six months, in which they had to challenge Gyms while enhancing their strength. Normally, there wouldn't be enough time unless you were a genius, which the other two from Pallet Town clearly weren't.
Only Gary and Ash made it to the Quartz Conference.
However, having two participants was already a delightful surprise to Professor Oak because in just half a year, two such geniuses had emerged and successfully entered the Quartz Conference; that was remarkable.
That night, Professor Oak and Delia came to the Quartz Plateau to celebrate with Ash and Gary. Delia prepared a grand dinner that night.
Ash and Brock helped out at the side.
Everyone enjoyed drinks (Cola), having a fun and playful night. Professor Oak and Delia also stayed at the Quartz Plateau that night, as there was nothing to do going back late at night.
Ash's room had a bunk bed, and Delia stayed in Ash's room, but Ash quietly left in the middle of the night.
On a cliff at the Quartz Plateau, Ash and Pikachu sat, looking at the crescent moon in the sky, lost in thought: "Pikachu, we've made it to the top thirty-two."
"Pika-Pika~"
"It's been such a tough journey, and even now it feels a bit unreal to me."
"Pika?"
"Why does it feel unreal, you ask? Think about it, I've only been traveling for six months, and now in such a large-scale competition like the Quartz Conference, I've reached the top thirty-two with almost no pressure, and even becoming the champion doesn't seem too hard... Isn't that like a fantasy?"
'Really? I think the fact you could knock me out with one punch is even more of a fantasy.' Mewtwo's figure appeared beside Ash, with a slightly teasing tone in her mature voice.
Since Ash had been participating in the Quartz Conference, she hadn't shown herself much, merely observing the situation outside from within the Pokeball.
After all, she had no interest in such contests, and she stayed by Ash's side to observe the various human conditions.
Today, Ash ran to the cliff, reflecting on his journey, which brought some novelty to Mewtwo because it was evident that Ash felt a little lost!
This guy could actually be lost?
"Ahem, what you said does make some sense... But one's own strength is just one aspect, and the Pokémon's strength is another."
'So what now? Are you discontent with your strength improving too fast? If you think like that, in human terms, you're just complaining for no reason!'
"Hey, hey, you've even learned that... Of course, I'm not complaining about my strength improving too quickly. I just feel... I'm really fortunate to have you all with me. Without you, I wouldn't be who I am today."