When Su Wen and the others arrived at the training hall entrance, some students were already waiting. However, due to the scorching heat, everyone instinctively stayed in the shade.


    "Sister Wan, are you organizing your class?" Su Wen guessed that, given Zhou Wan’s personality, she had likely taken on the role of class monitor.


    Zhou Wan glanced around and sighed, "Let’s wait until everyone’s here. I don’t even know all their names yet."


    Su Wen suggested, "How about we gather everyone inside the hall? It’s too hot out here."


    "Agreed," Chen You said, raising both hands and feet in support as he looked at the blazing sun outside.


    Zhou Wan, noticing the heat distorting the air, nodded. "Let’s wait until most people are here."


    By around 2:20 PM, Su Wen and Zhou Wan led their respective classes into the training hall’s lobby to organize the groups. Seeing this, Classes 1, 4, and 5 naturally followed, unwilling to stay in the sun.


    However, to everyone’s surprise, Wu Yan was late. Even more shocking was that Wu Yan had shaved his beard and changed his clothes, completely transforming his appearance.


    His slightly weathered gaze and sharp features even drew soft gasps from some of the female students.


    "...Didn’t expect him to be a handsome uncle," Su Wen muttered, comparing him to the scruffy man from noon and seriously wondering if Wu Yan had a twin brother.


    "Everyone’s lined up? Good, good. I’ll take you to your dedicated training area," Wu Yan said, waving for the class monitors to follow.


    After a short walk, the group entered a massive training field roughly the size of a sports field.


    "This is Training Field No. 1. Unless something unexpected happens, this is where your indoor training classes for the next three years will take place. Do we need to re-elect the class representatives for training, or will the monitors take on the role?"


    Wu Yan seemed to be asking for everyone’s opinion, but Su Wen sensed laziness in his tone.


    Seeing that no one had strong feelings either way, Wu Yan smiled. "Looks like you’re not too familiar with this. I don’t know what perks the monitors get, but in my class, the training representative gets an extra 15 points on the final practical exam. Oh, and the full score is 100 points."


    This caused an uproar. An extra 15 points on a 100-point exam meant that scoring 85 would be enough for a perfect grade.


    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    Su Wen immediately felt the gazes of his classmates shift, now filled with intensity and ambition.


    In Class 3’s line, a boy raised his hand. "I think the training representative should be the strongest in battles."


    When personal interests were at stake, some things had to be fought for.


    Most students believed that since they’d all gotten into Cloud City High School, no one considered themselves inferior to others. Even if their entrance exam scores were lower, they were now on equal footing with their new Pokémon.


    Wu Yan didn’t comment but looked around. "Anyone else have an opinion?"


    Others chimed in, suggesting the representative position should be contested.


    With so many conflicting opinions, Wu Yan crossed his arms and signaled for silence.


    "Let me make a suggestion. At noon today, I had a little spar with eight students the school recommended as the most promising among you. Most of the results... weren’t very satisfying," Wu Yan said, his gaze sweeping the crowd, causing students to look around, guessing who those eight might be.


    Zhou Wan, Wang Momomo, and others with straightforward personalities immediately felt embarrassed, imagining themselves as the disappointing ones. This felt like public humiliation.


    Chen You, on the other hand, blended into the crowd, enthusiastically discussing with a boy next to him about who those eight students might be.


    Su Wen, as the temporary leader, stood at the front. Without Chen You to chat with, he didn’t feel like talking to the students behind him. Instead, he wondered what Wu Yan was planning.


    After a dramatic pause, Wu Yan continued, "But since the school recommended them, I can’t completely ignore them. So here’s my idea: we’ll use a擂台制 (challenge system). I’ll first name five擂主 (challengers). Until the end of the semester, everyone will have one chance to challenge them. If you win, you take their place. If you lose, you can’t compete for the representative position again. Does that work? Of course, if a representative is challenged later and loses, they’ll be replaced until no one has挑战机会 (challenge opportunities) or no one挑战 (challenges). Does that make sense?"


    Someone raised their hand. "Teacher, doesn’t that make it unfair for the first challengers?"


    Wu Yan stretched lazily. "You could all choose not to challenge, and the擂主 (challengers) would win by default."


    "What about the first擂主 (challengers)? Do they get another chance if they lose?" The speaker was the Murkrow trainer Su Wen had seen at noon.


    Wu Yan shook his head. "Nope. If the first擂主 (challengers) lose, they’re out for good."


    "Eww~" The crowd collectively groaned, shrinking back, not wanting to be the first ones chosen.


    Wu Yan scanned the group. "Seems like there are no more questions. Let’s begin. Ni Xuanya from Class 1, Su Wen from Class 2, Zhou Wan from Class 3, Wang Momomo from Class 4, and Deng Hanmeng from Class 5. You five are the first擂主 (challengers). Swap places with your monitors and come to the front to lead."


    Su Wen instantly felt a wave of sympathy directed at him.


    Moreover, out of the five擂主 (challengers), Su Wen was the only male, which made many boys eager to challenge immediately.


    This kind of spotlight, with the added bonus of securing their dating prospects for the next three years, was enough to make many boys impulsive.


    Meanwhile, Su Wen was thinking about what Chen You would do if he were the representative. Would he auction off the position beforehand?


    Yeah... that was totally something Chen You would do.


    Seeing the representatives take their places at the front, Wu Yan nodded and continued, "I’ll also explain this semester’s final exam."


    He released his Helioptile from its Poké Ball.


    "This Helioptile has just broken through to Tier 1. I’ll be training it alongside you. By the end of the semester, each of you will battle it. Lasting one minute earns you 60 points (a pass), two minutes earns 70, five minutes earns 80, ten minutes earns 90, and defeating it earns a perfect score. I doubt any of you will fail, right?"


    The crowd burst into laughter, all claiming it would be a breeze—except for the students who had battled Wu Yan at noon.


    Su Wen, however, knew they were in trouble. This Helioptile could wipe the floor with Chen You right now, and most students likely didn’t grasp how terrifying it was.


    Without warning, at least a third of the class would likely be blindsided by this Helioptile.


    And that was without considering its evolution into Heliolisk using a Sun Stone. Su Wen could only imagine how terrifying a Heliolisk under Wu Yan’s command would be.


    In the end, how many students passed wouldn’t depend on their own strength but on how much effort Wu Yan decided to put in.


    By setting up Su Wen, Zhou Wan, and the others as targets, Wu Yan was clearly trying to divert the students’ attention toward them, making them overlook the Helioptile, which was currently at a similar level to their own Pokémon.


    Exchanging a glance with Zhou Wan at the front of the line, Su Wen understood her thoughts: Wu Yan was indeed a sly old fox.


    But Su Wen had no intention of letting Wu Yan have his way. He needed to discuss with the other representatives how to turn the tables on Wu Yan in the end.