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There were many freebie questions like the first one, but there were also plenty of overly convoluted ones.
For example:
Question: When an Aegislash is under the effect of Forest's Curse and is hit by a Hawlucha in Charge status using Flying Press, what is the result?
A. Super effective
B. Not very effective
C. No effect
This was clearly testing logical thinking. If someone got confused by the wording, they'd probably miss the point.
And then there was:
Question: In Psychic Terrain, under Gravity, if a Jumpluff with the Infiltrator ability uses Memento on an Espeon with Magic Bounce, what happens?
A. Espeon's Attack and Sp. Attack are lowered.
B. Jumpluff faints, and its Attack and Sp. Attack are lowered.
C. The move fails.
A question full of logical traps. If you got distracted by the terrain effects and didn't understand how Memento and Magic Bounce interacted, you'd lose points.
And then:
Question: In Misty Terrain, if a Eelektross with Levitate is hit by Dragon Breath from a Flygon that has lost its Levitate ability, which of the following is possible?
A. Eelektross is paralyzed, and the move's power is normal.
B. Eelektross is paralyzed, and the move's power is reduced.
C. Eelektross is not paralyzed, and the move's power is normal.
D. Eelektross is not paralyzed, and the move's power is reduced.
In short, there were so many questions designed to trip you up.
Li Xiang stared at the scrap paper he'd filled with notes, rubbing his temples. The questions weren't hard, but they required constant double-checking.
Who even comes up with these?
Most trainers wouldn't encounter scenarios like these even in a hundred battles. Was this exam meant to torture people or what?
Still, he managed to push through.
The true/false questions were just as bad.
Some asked about the effects of Berries under specific conditions, or whether a Pokémon could perform certain actions in certain states, and so on.
By the time he reached the essay section, Li Xiang was already mentally exhausted.
Question: You encounter a Gengar flying in the wild. Your Heracross is already under the effects of Mean Look and has most of its moves disabled by Disable, leaving only Dig, Brick Break, and Pin Missile available. How do you defeat the opponent? Briefly explain your strategy and reasoning.
Li Xiang paused, his mind overflowing with complaints.
Flying Gengar? Mean Look? Disable? What even is this Gengar's ability—Shadow Tag? Levitate? Cursed Body?
Why not just slap a Curse on Heracross while you're at it?
This question was clearly forcing him to make up a scenario and logic his way through it.
And then:
Question: You are using a Liepard with Prankster. Your opponent is an Alakazam that has set up Psychic Terrain, used Calm Mind twice, is faster than you, and has Miracle Eye. How do you win? Briefly explain your strategy and reasoning.
Can't I just have a normal battle for once?
Why is it always these impossible scenarios?!
An Alakazam with two Calm Minds, Psychic Terrain, and Miracle Eye? What kind of nightmare is this?
But the last essay question took the cake.
Question: While out in the wild without any Pokémon, you accidentally step on a Ursaring's hidden Honey stash. The enraged Ursaring is about to tear you apart. What can you do?
Ans - I'll just close my eyes and accept my fate.
Li Xiang really wanted to find the person who wrote this exam and ask them what they were thinking.
Nine out of ten Ursaring hide their Honey in tree hollows. The tenth one eats it immediately. How the hell do you even step on hidden Honey? And then get caught by the Ursaring on the spot?
At that point, is survival even an option?
Might as well reset life.
Grumbling internally, Li Xiang still dutifully wrote a hundred-word response.
Complaining was one thing, but he still had to answer.
He really didn't want to retake this exam next month. No wonder Yang Tianwang and Qu Sheng had such low scores—this test was brutal.
Finishing the essays, he moved on to the final section: a short composition.
Prompt: Current Champion of the Zhu Xia Region, Xia Chunyu, is coming to Qingcheng for an exhibition match. You desperately want to attend, but as a poor, socially awkward, physically weak orphan, you don't have the money for a ticket. You feel lost and unsure of what to do.
Task: Write a concise letter (at least 500 words) to Champion Xia Chunyu, persuading him to give you a free ticket.
Li Xiang blinked.
Oh, so now I'm an orphan?
Poor, socially awkward, AND physically weak? One adjective wasn't enough, huh? You had to go for three?
Is this exam trying to be insulting? To prevent people from considering self-reliance?
What kind of sadist designed this?!
Li Xiang glanced up and accidentally made eye contact with the invigilator, an elderly man with a gentle expression.
A thought struck him.
…Was this exam written by a Pokémon?
It made sense. Exams were serious business, but these questions felt too bizarre for a human to come up with. Only a highly intelligent Pokémon—one that didn't understand sarcasm or irony—would design something so unintentionally brutal.
The realization soothed his frustration.
He couldn't exactly blame a Pokémon for this.
Finishing the exam, he double-checked his answers, then turned it in—a full hour early.
The invigilator took his paper to an Alakazam acting as the exam supervisor. The Alakazam's eyes glowed as it scanned the answers.
Two minutes later, it picked up a red pen with Psychic and began marking.
A staff member entered the scores into a computer, printed out a results slip, and handed it to Li Xiang.
"Leave quietly. No looking around, no loud noises, take all your belongings. If you have issues, call the number on the slip."
Li Xiang stepped outside, took a deep breath, and unfolded the paper.
—87.
He exhaled slowly.
Passed.
No retake next month.
"Xiang-ge! You're out already?" Lin Lan popped out from somewhere, her Eevee in her arms. "How'd you do?"
Li Xiang handed her the slip. "Good enough."
Lin Lan gasped. "87?! And 25 on the essay?! That's amazing! My senior only got 70, and her essay was a 10!"
The Eevee peeked at the paper, then chirped at Li Xiang, who scratched its fluffy neck, making it wiggle happily.
"Passing is enough. Now we just wait for your brother."
Sure enough, within ten minutes, Lin Feng burst out, ecstatic.
"Praise Arceus! I barely passed with a 60!"
People who had also finished early but failed shot him envious looks.
"Keep it down," Li Xiang said, waving him off. "Let's go schedule the practical exam."
The practical exam wasn't held on the same day—preparing battlefields and Pokémon took time, and they couldn't have all examinees testing at once.
If you failed the practical, you had to wait two months for a retake, unlike the written exam's one-month wait.
After registering, the trio sat in the waiting area.
Li Xiang pulled out his phone and messaged Anya the good news.
At a glance, it might seem like he was being overly attentive, but in reality, she was the one who sent him daily 300-word updates like a diary. He just replied in kind.
Sure enough, within five minutes, she sent back a wall of congratulatory text, sprinkled with random English words.
[Li Xiang]: Senior, paragraphs exist for a reason. Maybe try splitting your messages?
Her reply was another essay, explaining how she'd learned to write in long blocks while studying abroad in the Archipelago Region.
"Studied in the Archipelago, huh…" Li Xiang mused.
Anya had spent a year there, which was how she knew Abigaile. But she'd returned to Zhuxia early for some reason—right before the Ultra Beast invasion.
Interesting.