: Acting Gym Leader - These are all experience points.

Chapter 62: Acting Gym Leader - These are all experience points.

The battle with Blaine went very smoothly.

Xia Mu demonstrated combat talent and command ability far exceeding that of ordinary people.

It can be said that Blaine's strength is extraordinary, far surpassing what is shown in the original game and anime.

However, Xia Mu's strength has already been fully developed, and even if Xia Bo brings out his strongest lineup, Xia Mu can handle it with ease.

With their levels standing there, not to mention Arcanine at level 57 and Lucario at level 55, even the red Gyarados is level 51, crushing all Fire-type Pokémon in this Fire Field.

In fact, Xia Mu could sense that Xia Bo hadn't used his full strength.

As a senior expert, Xia Bo naturally couldn't suppress Xia Mu, his grandson, so it was normal for him to give way.

But Xia Mu was certain that even if Xia Bo went all out, he was 90% confident of winning.

After the intense battle, Blaine had a very high opinion of Natsuki.

Over the years, the Xia family has produced many excellent trainers, but none of them have truly reached Xia Mu's current level of strength.

Most importantly, Xia Mu's strength had already reached that of him in less than twenty days.

Among his peers, no one could compare.

Xia Mu certainly wasn't proud of it; he just listened to these compliments and let them go in one ear and out the other.

Xia Mu's answer was also very direct, saying that although he used to be afraid of Pokémon, he had been studying them in private.

So after resolving his inner conflict this time, he was able to unleash his accumulated knowledge and skills, successfully applying his previous research findings to his Pokémon, which is why his Pokémon's strength improved so quickly.

Chapel had no doubts, and only this explanation made sense.

In Blaine's eyes, this was absolute talent.

After all, a Pokémon's strength may be something it develops on its own.

However, a trainer's mental fortitude, command abilities, and combat mindset cannot be developed overnight.

……

After the war, Xia Mu and Xia Bo had breakfast together.

Through this opportunity, Xia Mu learned after in-depth communication that the strength of a gym leader is probably around level 30 or 40.

The weaker ones are probably only around level 20.

Of course, there are some formidable ones, such as Kiki from Fuchsia Gym and Giovanni from Viridian Gym.

Blaine gave it extremely high praise, and even predicted in advance that A-Ju might become one of the four Poison-type Elite Four in the near future.

Xia Mu couldn't be completely sure if Xia Bo knew the inside story, but what Xia Bo meant to him was that the current generation of gym trainers in the Kanto region were generally not very strong, and the only ones he needed to be careful of were these two gyms.

"Speaking of which, I suddenly had an idea. I wonder if you would be interested in taking over the Crimson Lotus Gym and working as a Gym Leader for a couple of days," Xia Bo said while drinking tea after finishing his breakfast.

Xia Mu was taken aback upon hearing this and said, "A substitute gym leader??"

This is no small matter.

Although he had seen this kind of plot in novels many times in his previous life, it was mostly just a formality.

Now that Blaine has made him the acting Crimson Lotus Gym Leader, and given the current situation, isn't this tantamount to pushing him into a fire pit?

"What? You don't want to?" Blair asked with a smile.

"Grandpa, haven't you already closed the museum?" Xia Mu said, both amused and exasperated.

"The gym is closed, but it can reopen, right? I wasn't sure about your strength before, but now that you've defeated Grandpa, I believe you're more than capable of managing the Crimson Lotus Gym. Besides, this is a test for you. If you can defeat most of the challengers, it will not only help the gym out of its predicament but also greatly enhance your reputation." Xia Bo's words were full of deeper meaning.

Xia Mu fell into deep thought.

Upon closer examination, this is indeed a good thing for him.

He came to Cinnabar Island ahead of time to battle various trainers and gain experience points.

If you become a proxy gym leader now, it's like you don't need to look for it; the experience points will come to you on their own.

Seeing that Xia Mu was deep in thought, Xia Bo did not urge him.

After a long while, Xia Mu finally looked at Xia Bo and asked, "Then, shall I give it a try?"

Uncle Xia, looking like a promising student, stood up and patted Xia Mu on the shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll have my men help you. It's okay if you lose. If you really can't handle it, Grandpa will cover for you."

Having reached an agreement, Xia Mu still felt as if he had fallen into a trap.

But now is not the time to think about this issue.

The question should be how to face the numerous challengers and how to make oneself the biggest beneficiary.

……

Nearly an hour passed in the blink of an eye.

Under the protection of several staff members in black, Dr. Mulan and Sonia finally arrived at the Crimson Lotus Gym.

Today's turmoil has escalated considerably, and Mulan and Sonia are clearly aware of the current situation.

After some conversation, Blair told Mulan and Sonia the details.

They weren't originally from the Kanto region, and although they belonged to the upper echelons of the alliance, they couldn't overstep their authority to this extent.

"So your plan is to push Xia Mu into the open to shield you from trouble? I'm not saying this, but Xia Mu's strength is probably not enough." Mulan didn't think there was anything wrong with Xia Bo's approach; she would have done the same if she were in his shoes.

However, having Natsuki act as a gym leader might normally be a training exercise, but given the current situation, it's different.

Mulan, being a visionary elder, knew that unless there was a trainer with the strength to reach the Elite Four level, who could continuously accept challenges?

If the challengers were all weak newcomers, it would be fine, but it's obvious that those troublemaking trainers outside all have a certain level of strength.

"If I were to say, Xia Mu had already defeated me just now," Uncle Xia said with a smile, sipping his tea.

These words made Mulan choke for a moment, and she swallowed the words that were about to come out.

Unbelievable.

She had seen Natsuki's Pokémon before, and although their aura was indeed strong, defeating Blaine was truly unexpected.

She knew how capable Xia Bo was.

"Is this true?" Mulan asked back.

The question should not be asked of Xia Bo, but of Xia Mu.

"I guess so, but Grandpa definitely held back," Xia Mu said modestly.

After hearing Xia Mu's reply, Mulan turned to Xia Bo and said, "It seems I underestimated this child. In that case, let's observe as bystanders and see what little Xia Mu is capable of."

Bob nodded.

Their conversation ended there.

Sonia, who was standing to the side, remained silent, listening attentively, her gaze occasionally lingering on Xia Mu.

She hadn't thought Xia Mu was that amazing, but now that Uncle Xia and her grandmother had said so, she was also a little curious and wanted to see for herself.

She has the right to speak on whether someone is strong or not, because her friend is an incredibly powerful trainer.

(End of this chapter)