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"That's not the only reason. More importantly, I don't want you to reveal your hand to Xiaoguang right now."

"What?" Rukia asked, puzzled, her large eyes filled with confusion. "What does this mean?"

Chapter 1473 My Feelings

Seeing the puzzled look on Ryukia's face, Xia You shook her head and patiently explained in a calm tone, "You may not know this, but Hikari's combat talent is actually terrifying, and her growth is much faster than that of ordinary people."

Seeing that Ryukia's eyes widened slightly, Xia You continued, "She's different from you. You became famous at a young age and stood on the top stage of the Grand Contest early on. You have super popularity and solid skills. You've had a smooth journey and are a genius idol trainer that everyone is watching. But Hikari is different. She didn't start early. Since her debut, she has only traveled to two regions. But in the Grand Contest in the last region, she already won the runner-up position. Such a growth rate can't be described as just excellent."

"Oh, right, the one who won the championship and defeated her was Haruka, who traveled with me before."

Upon hearing Xia You's words, Ryukia frowned slightly.

This wasn't the first time she and Xiaoguang had met, but because they didn't get along, she had never really known who he was.

Hearing that she achieved second place at a grand celebration in the very first region she visited is truly remarkable.

Most importantly, the one who defeated her was Xia You's travel companion, so the significance of that victory is self-evident.

It can be said that Xiao Guang did not lose to anyone else, but rather lost to Xia You in a roundabout way.

Seeing that Ryukia had really taken her words to heart, Xia You smiled and said, "She didn't have any innate fame or halo. Before her debut, she only had a superficial understanding of Pokémon. All her growth was achieved through battles and honing her skills time and time again. She is extremely good at quickly absorbing experience in battles. The more intense the battle, the more it stimulates her to break through her limits at a rapid pace."

Ryukia raised her head and looked into Xia You's eyes.

"So you think that after I defeated her, she will quickly surpass me?"

Xia You smiled noncommittally and did not answer him directly: "After you make the Albirex super evolve, you can indeed defeat her, but that's precisely why I'm not letting you reveal all your trump cards now. You used super evolution today, which seems to have won the game, but in reality, you gave her the most valuable practical lesson."

"She will thoroughly understand your fighting style, figure out the strengths and weaknesses of Super Altaria, and during the upcoming journey, she will specifically refine her moves and tactics. When you have your next official showdown, her strength will definitely undergo a qualitative change, and her growth rate will far exceed your imagination. At that time, you will meet an opponent who is completely beyond your expectations."

"So instead of rushing to decide the outcome now and revealing your trump card, it's better to hold back for now, hide this trump card, and reveal it when it's time to make a decisive move in the official competition. You'll be able to play more calmly and catch her off guard."

Upon hearing this, Rukia nodded thoughtfully, having fully understood.

Xia You's words sounded reasonable, completely from her perspective, and avoided potential problems.

But deep down, I felt something was off.

It's as if I, a top-tier Coordinator, actually need to deliberately hide my abilities to guard against the rapid growth of an opponent.

And I always feel...

Xia You was covering for Xiao Guang, not wanting her to lose so badly now.

But she quickly put that subtle sense of unease behind her.

Her eyebrows curved into a smile, and a sweet smile rippled in her eyes: "I see. It seems that Mr. Xia You really cares about me."

However, as soon as she finished speaking, perhaps because of this scene, her bright smile slowly faded, replaced by a look of loneliness.

A warm breeze from outside the window gently blew into the room, ruffling her soft hair. The girl's voice was soft and gentle, tinged with envy and melancholy: "Sometimes... I really envy Mr. Xia You's companions. They can always travel around with you, see different scenery, meet different people, and experience different things. I... I really envy them."

As she spoke, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and her voice lowered a few decibels: "I... I also want to be like them, not having to be trapped on stage and in front of the camera all the time, not having to maintain a perfect image at all times. If I could have a gentle, reliable brother like you who always considers my needs, that would be wonderful."

Xia You had never seen such a vulnerable side of Ryukia before.

It's clear that something must have touched her unexpectedly.

Feeling a pang of emotion, Xia You's heart softened as she looked at the girl before her.

"If you'd like, you can just call me Brother Xia You, like Xiao Yao and Xiao Guang do. Although I can't be the kind of brother you're thinking of, you can always come to me if you need anything."

Rukia suddenly looked up, a glint of light flashing in her emerald green eyes, with a hint of cautious probing: "Really? Can I call you that?"

"Of course."

Upon seeing Xia You nod gently, giving an affirmative answer, the weak and forlorn look on Ryukia's face vanished instantly.

Her eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but cheer softly. A mischievous and lively smile appeared on her lips, and she called out in a sweet voice, "Brother Xia You!"

Hearing this address and seeing her appearance, Xia You was slightly taken aback, then shook her head helplessly.

He then realized that her pitiful and weak appearance just now was all an act!

Impressive!

As expected of an idol who has been in the spotlight for many years, she controlled her emotions with ease and her acting skills were superb. I was actually fooled by her just now.

But he didn't take it to heart, after all, Ryukia did this just to get closer to him.

That's why he chuckled and joked, "Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Now that you're here, put down the pressure of the stage and relax. I won't bother you anymore. Also, don't fight with Xiaoguang again."

After leaving those words, Xia You reached out and paused in mid-air before gently patting Ryukia's head, just as she had done with Haruka and Hikari.

Ignoring the girl whose face instantly turned bright red, Xia You smiled again, then withdrew her hand, turned and walked out of the room, gently closing the door behind her.

The moment the door closed, Ryukia breathed a sigh of relief and then touched her burning face.

Feeling her heart pounding and hearing the footsteps outside the door gradually fade away, a genuine smile spread across her lips.

Xia Youge.

My behavior just now wasn't acting.

Those were my honest thoughts from the bottom of my heart!

Chapter 1474 The Shining Star's Farewell Declaration

As he stepped out of Ryukia's room, a gentle breeze blew in through the open window, brushing against Xia You's face and dispelling the tender aura he had carried from Ryukia's room.

He let out a soft breath, burying the girl's soft voice and flushed cheeks deep in his heart.

Now is not the time to think about such things.

Right now, there are more important things to do.

After a short rest, he returned to the battlefield.

His public challenge is still ongoing.

For the next few days, this will be Xia You's exclusive stage.

After the battles of the previous two days, veteran trainers and point challengers from the entire Unova region and even the surrounding areas all rushed over upon hearing the news.

No one dared to try their luck anymore.

Every opponent standing opposite him has made thorough preparations, bringing targeted tactics and lineups to the field.

The strength of the opponents has increased to a whole new level compared to the second day.

It's no longer a game where you can crush someone with a single attribute or a single strategy. Every battle is back and forth, full of meticulous strategy and intense back-and-forth fighting.

Faced with these trainers who have made targeted deployments and training, Xia You was even forced to constantly change his lineup and make on-the-spot changes in order to maintain his advantage.

Despite this, he still lost a few games.

Of course, the games he lost were all with his third-tier lineup, Crystal Steelix and other second-tier lineups, which still had a strong dominance and helped him maintain his undefeated record in all major games.

But the more intense the battle, the greater his gains.

His Pokémon have been growing rapidly in the continuous battles, becoming more and more experienced in battles, and their move combinations and offensive and defensive transitions have become more and more skillful. The original hidden weaknesses have been made up little by little, and the overall combat power has been steadily increasing.

Even Xia You himself became more and more accurate in his grasp of the battle situation, and his mentality became more and more stable and progressive in these successive battles.

In short, both humans and Pokémon are growing.

Of course, most importantly, his World Championship points are also visibly and rapidly increasing.

He went from being ranked outside the top few thousand to entering the top 1,000, then from the top 1,000 to the top 500, then the top 100, the top 30, the top 10, and finally, after defeating a trainer in the top 50, his score reached the passing mark for the Eight Masters.

He didn't become a Master Eight directly by accepting the tournament invitation, but through many days of hard work, he earned this qualification little by little.

From the results, it seems that the two are the same, but from the process, Xia You gained a lot, something far more valuable than the time cost - experience.

Compared to other gym leaders, Elite Four members, champions, or even older trainers, Xia You is still too young.

He debuted very late, and his success is due to nothing more than his calm personality, the theoretical knowledge and information he acquired in advance through games, anime and forums before his transmigration, the correct coping methods and tactics, and the powerful Pokémon he caught after arriving in this world, as well as the growth he gained from those high-intensity battles.

These are the factors that have helped him get to where he is today, but if he wants to go further and reach the pinnacle that no one has reached, what he urgently needs now is a wealth of combat experience.

If Xia You's strength is likened to a large tree, then all those theoretical knowledge and tactics are merely the trunk.

All the battle experience gained is like leaves, adorning this great tree until it grows lush and verdant, becoming an existence that everyone looks up to.

The more lush the leaves, the more unshakeable the tree is.

Over the course of a few days, the number of matches he quickly accumulated reinforced this point.

Although this experience is still very thin and not worth mentioning, it can be considered as adding some green leaves to his big tree.

Putting all that aside, after Xia You was promoted to the rank of one of the Eight Masters, this public challenge, which lasted for nearly eight days, came to an end.

Although many people still want to fight Xia You again, and many trainers are even on their way here, Xia You has already achieved his goal and will not waste any more time.

In the time that follows, all you need to do is play a few matches occasionally and make sure your score isn't surpassed by others.

During his quest to become one of the Eight Masters, besides Cattleya, Makomo, and Hikari, Rukia also stayed here to witness this milestone.

Rukia had already left a few days ago.

It wasn't just her schedule that was the problem; even her agent kept urging her to get back to work as soon as possible.

But Ryukia rejected them all.

Since that day, when she started calling Xia You "Brother Xia You" as well, her attitude has clearly changed.

If before, Rukia's feelings for Xia You were merely admiration and some undisguised adoration, now they are even stronger feelings of affection.

She did indeed do as she promised, no longer bothering Xiao Guang and completely ignoring him, instead focusing all her attention on Xia You.

In the past few days, she has completely replaced Gadria and accompanied Xia You in battle every day. Although she disguised herself and wore glasses and a hat, she was still recognized.

This undoubtedly put Xia You in the spotlight once again.

Of course, that's not the most important thing. For Hikari, the fact that Ryukia is always sticking to Xia You's side and calling him "Xia You-ge" is what she can't accept the most.

It also made her feel like her beloved had been stolen away.

It was only at this moment that she truly realized what Haruka meant when she told her to be careful of Ryukia.

So she turned out to be such a formidable opponent!

Fortunately, with Xia You becoming one of the Eight Masters and gaining enough points, Ryukia was finally about to leave.

This made her breathe a sigh of relief.

But for Rukia, it was also the time she was most reluctant to part ways.

As the setting sun cast its rays, it bathed the entire courtyard in a warm, golden hue.

Lucia stood by the stone corridor leading to the castle gate. Her suitcase had been taken care of by the servants, and her agent was waiting not far away, frequently casting urging glances in her direction.

Having already turned down a lot of work during her stay of several days, and now that even Xia You's matter had come to an end, she naturally had no reason to stay any longer.

She held the wide-brimmed hat she used for disguise in her hand, her long, emerald-green hair cascading down her shoulders. She had shed the glamorous outfits of an idol on stage, and now wore a simple, light dress. She had lost some of her dazzling aura and gained more of her girlish authenticity.

She deliberately chose a time when she wouldn't be disturbed by others to say goodbye to Xia You.

"Brother Xia You".

A familiar, sweet voice sounded beside me.

Xia You stood in front of her, looking at the bright young girl standing in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Are you leaving?

"Yes, my manager has been urging me many times." Ryukia nodded gently, her gaze falling on Xia You, a hint of reluctance in her eyes. "If I delay any longer, I won't be able to make it to the later performances and program recordings. After all, I'm a world-class idol, you know. I can't travel around as freely as Hikari and the others."

As she said this, she gently pursed her lips.

Being able to stay here quietly these past few days and watch all of Xia You's matches without missing a single one is already a rare treat.

"Congratulations on qualifying for the Masters Tournament! I'm so happy to witness this moment." Rukia's tone was very sincere. She paused, then smiled brightly. "But don't let your guard down! There are still many powerful trainers in the Masters Tournament. I'm looking forward to seeing you shine on the world stage!"

"Don't worry, the person who can defeat me hasn't grown up yet."

Has it not grown up?

Who are you talking about?

Rukia was somewhat puzzled by this statement, but now was not the time to delve into it.

She took a small step forward, closing the distance between them, and lowered her voice, speaking only in a voice the two of them could hear, solemnly saying, "Brother Xia You, we may meet again in Sinnoh from now on, but no matter where, no matter what day, no matter how far apart we are, I will stand before you again!"