The proficiency of the Mimmy's Charm skill was an unknown. To eliminate the possibility of being charmed, deploying the same-gendered Lubao was the optimal choice.
Qiao Sang cast her gaze upon the Mimmy.
This was her first time battling a Fairy-type pet...
***
The Player Area.
At the section for the Lianke Region players.
"Zhang Xueming is a bit unlucky to be grouped with Qiao Sang," said a boy with thick eyebrows and a square face.
Battling against a super-popular contestant brought immense psychological pressure, regardless of whether one won or lost, simply based on the process of the match.
"You don't know Zhang Xueming; her mindset is rock solid. She won't care about some endangered pet," another boy with chestnut-colored hair replied.
"Zhang Xueming is just unlucky. At this stage, it's clearly a competition of High-grade pets. Qiao Sang's High-grade pet is the Flare Star Hound, Fire and Psychic type. Zhang Xueming's Ice Sea Lion is Ice type. Fire counters Ice, and the opponent also has a Psychic type; she has no advantage at all," a boy with brownish hair nearby offered his opinion.
The chestnut-haired boy couldn't help but ask
"Have you all forgotten how her Mimmy defeated the Octo-Turtle during the provincial tournament?"
The person who had just called Zhang Xueming unlucky suddenly fell silent.
The Octo-Turtle, a High-grade pet, had voluntarily walked out of the battle arena under the effect of the Mimmy's Charm skill.
After that match, it was rumored that the Octo-Turtle had nearly become autistic.
Indeed, Zhang Xueming didn't just have the High-grade Ice Sea Lion; she also had a Mimmy whose Charm had been trained to a terrifying level...
***
On the field.
As the whistle blew, the Mimmy first struck a pose and blew a flirtatious wink toward Lubao.
Simultaneously, a special energy fluctuation formed into a heart shape and launched forward.
Receiving the wink, Lubao wore a bewildered expression.
Then, opening its mouth, a Water Gun roughly forty centimeters in diameter struck relentlessly toward the Mimmy.
The Mimmy dodged quickly, and the Water Gun hit nothing but air.
As for the importance of intelligence... Qiao Sang felt pleased; deploying Lubao had indeed been the right choice.
*A female, huh...* Zhang Xueming's expression remained calm, showing no panic over the failure of the Charm.
Watching the Ice Lugia preparing to dive into the puddle, she issued a command: "Charm Voice."
"Mimmy~ mi~ mi~" The Mimmy immediately burst into song.
Charm Voice, a mid-tier Fairy-type skill, could cause mental damage and had a certain chance of putting the opponent to sleep. Except for pets with soundproofing traits, this move was almost guaranteed to hit... Just as the Mimmy opened its mouth, Qiao Sang also issued a command: "Healing Soundwave."
Lubao, with half its body already in the puddle, poked its head out and sang confidently
"Lu-lu~ lu-lu~ lu~ lu-lu~ lu~"
The two songs echoed above the pet battle arena.
The expressions of some spectators in the front row, originally fervent, gradually became peaceful
"Ice Lugia, keep it up."
"Both Ice Lugia and Mimmy are quite good at singing."
"Why do I feel like the Mimmy sings a bit better?"
"If you listen closely, it does seem that way..."
"Why do I suddenly want to sleep..."
"Me too..."
On the field.
"Mi..." The Mimmy wore a peaceful expression and could no longer continue singing.
On the other side, Lubao also stopped singing. With its head poking out of the puddle, its eyelids grew heavier and heavier.
"Healing Light," Qiao Sang said calmly.
"Lu..."
Hearing its Tamer's words, Lubao fought against the feeling of drowsiness.
Just as its eyes were about to close, they snapped open, then closed uncontrollably again, then snapped open once more. When they slowly closed a third time, the gem on Lubao's forehead emitted a blue light that enveloped it.
*Healing Light, I have to interrupt it. Which skill should I use...* Zhang Xueming pondered peacefully in her mind.
Once a person becomes peaceful and their nerves are no longer taut, the brain relaxes, and the speed of thinking slows down—exactly like Zhang Xueming right now.
The coaches and players in the player area saw this scene and began discussing fervently.
"So that's what Healing Light looks like when it's cast..."
"What's wrong with Zhang Xueming? Why didn't she interrupt Ice Lugia's Healing Light immediately?"
"Didn't you see her expression? When have you ever seen her look so Zen? She's clearly been hit."
"Is the range of Healing Soundwave that wide?"
"Probably because Ice Lugia's proficiency with this move is quite high."
By the time the blue light on Lubao dissipated and it dove headfirst into the puddle, disappearing from sight, Zhang Xueming finally seemed to wake up.
Her expression immediately became solemn.
She hadn't expected that Healing Soundwave could actually affect her...
"Finger Flick!" Zhang Xueming shouted.
Finger Flick, an evolvable skill that could randomly trigger any attribute skill of a pet of the same grade.
It was both miraculous and dependent on luck.
If one's luck was bad, it wasn't impossible to accidentally trigger Teleport and transport oneself out of the arena.
"Mi..."
The Mimmy had a peaceful expression and slowly raised a short toe.
"Heartbreaker!" Seeing that the Mimmy still seemed to be out of it, Zhang Xueming couldn't help but shout its name.
"Mi?"
Hearing its Tamer's voice, the Mimmy blinked, wearing a confused expression as if asking, "What just happened to me?"
But the moment it recovered its state, Lubao suddenly appeared behind it, its tail wrapped in a current of water slamming down heavily.
"MIIII!!!"
The Mimmy was sent flying, rolling several times while letting out a scream.
*I must heal it quickly...* Zhang Xueming's face tightened. She suddenly looked up and asked Qiao Sang, "What is the proficiency of Ice Lugia's Healing Soundwave?"
*Why ask that all of a sudden...* Qiao Sang looked at her, momentarily stunned.
In the brief moment her gaze shifted to Zhang Xueming, the Mimmy on the ground took the opportunity to circulate its energy, and a burst of multicolored light suddenly surged from its body.
"Lu!"
At that moment, Lubao exerted force with its front limbs and leaped up.
Simultaneously, its left front limb rapidly condensed into a sharp ice claw, which it slammed down viciously upon the Mimmy.
"MIIII!!!"
The light on the Mimmy's body dissipated as it let out a shrill cry.
*Good grief, I didn't expect the day would come where my attention would be diverted...* Qiao Sang realized, startled.
To be honest, perhaps not one in ten opponents used verbal interference.
Especially in large competitions under the gaze of the public, people who used "trash talk" were even fewer.
If the information she had gathered previously hadn't mentioned that this person liked "verbal interference," she really wouldn't have specifically guarded against it.
Fortunately, Lubao's attention remained on the Mimmy; otherwise, the Mimmy's healing wave might have actually succeeded.
She had to admit, this match had taught her a lesson...
Qiao Sang looked at Zhang Xueming with a serious expression.
"Healing Soundwave has already been trained to the Secret Art level," Qiao Sang suddenly said.
*What did she say?*
*Secret Art?!*
Zhang Xueming's eyes widened in shock. This unexpected statement left her stunned in place, and the brain that had been thinking about the next move suddenly short-circuited.
In the gap while she was dazed, Lubao's tail wrapped around the water current again and slammed viciously into the Mimmy.
"MII!!"
Having taken a triple hit, the Mimmy rolled a few times and closed its eyes.
"Whoosh!"
The entire venue erupted in cheers.
Zhang Xueming snapped back to her senses, took a deep breath, and said with a complex expression, "Is Ice Lugia's Healing Soundwave really trained to the Secret Art level?"
Qiao Sang smiled
"How could it be? I was lying."
(End of Chapter)