Chapter 143
The next day, Lorze and his group packed a few days' worth of clothes and caught the high-speed rail straight to Shanghai.
As one of the premier metropolises in China, Shanghai's prosperity was on a level that Gui City couldn't even dream of matching.
Setting aside the endless skyscrapers, the sheer number and scale of the botanical gardens and parks completely eclipsed their home province.
Anyone who could afford to own property and send their children to school in such a "land of gold" certainly wouldn't have a poor background.
Every family here was likely wealthier than Shi Fan and his peers.
In this world, money was often directly tied to power.
If a Trainer couldn't afford a steady supply of high-grade Berries, how could their Pokémon ever reach the top tier?
Not to mention how astronomical the prices were for high-power move instruction videos.
Coming here to challenge a top-tier academy in the heart of the metropolis, it would be a lie to say Shi Fan and the others weren't feeling the pressure.
They had their "hacks," sure, but they were minor advantages that could still be overturned by raw stat gaps or type disadvantages.
If an elite from Shanghai University High (SMU High) could fight Lorze to a draw, then the rest of the team would be finished.
But... was there anyone in their generation who could actually stand toe-to-toe with Lorze?
Even with the country's top geniuses gathered at SMU High, they still struggled to believe any high schooler could fight him normally.
In a way, Lorze's current status reminded them of Goddess Xue Tong's youth.
While her peers were worrying about the National Tournament, she was already competing in the Master Rank; they were simply living in different worlds.
Still, with a "Xue Tong-tier" monster leading them, why should they be pussies? Just go in and fuck them up.
"Is this SMU High?" Hu Wenjun stood at the wide-open main gates, staring in shock at the magnificent campus.
At a glance, the entire academy looked like a sprawling royal garden.
Before even entering, the atmosphere radiated a sense of high-class nobility.
Compared to this, their own school looked like a dumpster fire.
Back in Gui City, their school grounds only had enough room for the teaching buildings and a small arena.
Here at SMU High, the gardens alone looked larger than their entire campus.
Is it really necessary to be this luxurious?
"Don't be surprised. SMU High is technically just a small section of the main Shanghai University campus," Lorze said calmly.
"When you're dealing with the children of the elite, they're going to make sure their environment is comfortable."
"The wealth gap is truly staggering..." Hu Wenjun muttered with a bitter smile.
"Shhh! What wealth gap? There is no wealth gap! Watch your mouth before you get us censored!"
"..."
Fine. If they kept talking, the story might get banned, so they shut up.
It was clear that Shanghai University was incredibly confident. The campus didn't even have a physical gate.
Instead, a massive stone stood at the entrance with "SHANGHAI UNIVERSITY" carved into it in vibrant red ink. The entire grounds were open to the public.
Whether you were a tourist or a challenger, the university feared nothing.
This put Lorze at ease; he didn't have to worry about being impolite during his "door-kicking" challenge.
Since they established this open-challenge culture themselves, they couldn't blame anyone for coming to tear the house down.
"Lorze! Over here!"
As the group stood admiring the luxury of the campus, a familiar voice drifted through the air.
A slender, beautiful blonde figure was waving at them—Anna Lee had arrived.
Anna was a student at SMU High, after all. Since Lorze was in town, he naturally had to see her and let her act as their guide.
Without her, it would take them forever to navigate this massive campus and find the competitive arena.
"Why are you here so early? I was going to pick you up at the station," Anna said, immediately wrapping her arms around Lorze's.
The intimate way she clung to him made Tang Ming and the others green with envy.
They had realized during the winter training camp that Anna was much more than just a "research assistant."
The two of them were always stuck together; it was a clear case of "If there's work, the assistant does it; if there's no work, he does the assistant..."
Combined with Hu Wenjun and Teacher Liu's ambiguous relationships with him, it was obvious Lorze was juggling three—or more—women at once.
And even knowing how much of a fuckboy he was, the women seemed perfectly happy to be part of the rotation...
It's too much. This is a modern society—how the fuck is he running a harem?
I'm so goddamn jealous...
"I only came early because I couldn't wait to see you," Lorze said, shooting her a wink.
The sheer "trashy fuckboy" energy in his voice made Tang Ming and the others shiver with disgust.
Is being this shameless the only way to build a harem?
No. We can't do it. Our dignity won't allow it!
"Liar~. You only came here to cause trouble," Anna rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.
"I'm literally being a traitor to my school for you right now. You better compensate me properly later~."
"Fine. I'll help you 'reinforce' your True Qi Mode tonight~," Lorze said, sliding his hand down to rest on her waist.
"That's more like it." Anna smiled with satisfaction.
She obviously wasn't looking forward to the "meditation" part. But with outsiders around, Lorze couldn't be too explicit.
As long as she had him to herself tonight, she was happy~.
Anna began to introduce the campus to her lover with a smug grin.
She didn't waste time on boring history; she knew Lorze's mind was only on women and Pokémon.
She pointed out the exact location of the girls' dormitories and the various state-of-the-art training facilities available to students.
There was a "Sunny Day Room" for Fire-types, a "Rain Dance Chamber" for Water-types, and so on.
These facilities were saturated with elemental energy, making it much easier for Pokémon to master high-level moves.
SMU High had dozens of these rooms, and students could use them by spending their academic credits.
Compared to Gui City No. 1 High, which had a single dirt arena and nothing else, their home school felt like a third-world village.
The group toured the grounds for a while before arriving at a localized arena that was absurdly large.
Based on the scale, you could tell him this was a municipal-grade stadium and he'd believe it.
At the entrance, a quiet, scholarly girl was sitting on the ground, reading a book.
Resting its head on her lap was a Shelgon, lazily basking in the afternoon sun.
Yes—a Dragon-type!
Even though they were mentally prepared, running into a Dragon Trainer at the front door was a reality check.
In Gui City No. 1 High, the entire student body couldn't produce a single Dragon, and even Starters were rare.
Here at SMU, "Starters" were basically the common trash of the freshman class...
Lorze had to manually cover Hu Wenjun's mouth before she started complaining about social inequality again.
"Halt. This is the student/faculty entrance. Tourists should use the side gate for spectators," the quiet girl said, closing her book.
She clearly took them for tourists and pointed toward the visitor path.
"Does 'spectators' mean there are matches happening today?" Lorze asked curiously.
"Yes. At 2:00 PM, our Team 2 will be having a scrimmage against the Team 2 of the Beijing University High School (BU High)."
"It starts in about an hour. You can go inside and find a seat now," she said dismissively.
"Hey~, don't be in such a rush to kick us out. We aren't here to watch."
Lorze noticed the girl was actually quite pretty, so he went back to his old habits.
"I actually just wanted to ask... do you have a boyfriend?~"
"Huh?" The quiet girl was blindsided by the sudden flirtation. She stared at the boy in shock.
Usually, she was indifferent to boys, but for some reason, she felt a sudden, inexplicable flutter of panic.
She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear, her face turning pink. "A boyfriend... no, I don't."
Shi Fan: "..."
Tang Ming: "..."
Holy shit, are you kidding me?
She's a total beauty, and he hooked her in one sentence?
Are girls really this easy? Do I actually have to be a piece of trash to get a date?
Xue Yi finally had enough. She stepped forward with a dark expression and grabbed Lorze by the ear.
"So sorry. This man is a professional fuckboy. Don't believe a word he says."
She turned back to the girl. "Go tell your teachers that we're here to kick the door. We're the challengers."
"You... you're what?" The girl was stunned.
She forgot about being hit on. Did they just say they're here to 'kick the door'?
You're the one who shouldn't be taken seriously! How can you say something so insane with such a straight face?
It had been years since anyone dared to "kick the door" at SMU High.
While they didn't officially forbid it, the school's reputation and power meant no one was stupid enough to try.
Who are these people? I haven't seen them on any of the elite rosters in the major provinces.
Where did you come from, and why do you have the balls to challenge SMU?
The quiet girl gave Lorze a long, lingering look before running inside to find a teacher.
Lorze didn't wait for her to finish. He followed right behind and kicked the heavy doors open with a bang.
"ANYONE HOME? I'M HERE TO KICK THE DOOR!"