The familiar figure Jiang Mo saw was Lu Jiyin.
It had been over a year since he left Star City and returned to Ning Province.
Lu Jiyin, wearing a Xilong University uniform, stood on the battlefield, intently commanding a Lucario.
His opponent was a Victreebel, and the battle had entered its final stages.
“Lucario, use Aura Sphere!” Lu Jiyin calmly ordered.
“Awoo!”
Lucario quickly condensed a blue Energy Ball between its hands and hurled it at the Victreebel.
Although Victreebel tried to dodge, the Aura Sphere was too fast and directly hit its body.
Victreebel let out a painful shriek, then fell to the ground, losing its ability to battle.
“Victreebel is unable to battle! Lucario wins! The victor is Lu Jiyin of Xilong University!”
Rotom flew to Victreebel’s body, examined it, and then loudly announced.
“Lu Jiyin is awesome! A perfect three-win streak!”
A round of enthusiastic cheers immediately erupted from Xilong University’s resting area, and Lu Jiyin’s teammates all stood up to applaud him.
Evidently, Lu Jiyin had accomplished the feat of defeating three opponents in a row, easily securing victory in this match.
Jiang Mo stood by the sidelines, watching Lu Jiyin walk off the battle stage, feeling a bit emotional.
He waited for a while at the exit, and as soon as Lu Jiyin came out, he saw Jiang Mo, his eyes lit up, and he excitedly ran over.
“Big Cousin! Long time no see!”
Lu Jiyin shouted excitedly, his face full of smiles, “I knew you’d definitely participate in this competition, and I was planning to look for you, but I didn’t expect you to find me first!”
Jiang Mo smiled and patted Lu Jiyin’s shoulder: “Yeah, long time no see. I didn’t expect you to get into Xilong University. Your match just now was excellent.”
Lu Jiyin scratched his head, saying a bit awkwardly: “Hehe, it was alright. Oh, by the way, Big Cousin, how’s Lin Junjun doing lately? I haven’t seen her in over a year. Is she doing well?”
Just as Jiang Mo was about to answer, his communicator in his pocket suddenly rang.
He looked down and saw that it was a video call from Lin Junjun.
Jiang Mo answered the call, and Lin Junjun’s lively and adorable face immediately appeared on the screen; she had twin pigtails, looking very playful.
“Brother Jiang Mo! Good luck with the match! I specifically called to cheer you on!”
Lin Junjun’s voice was full of energy, her face beaming with a bright smile, “If it weren’t for the fact that I’m not on holiday yet, I would definitely come to the venue to cheer you on!”
Jiang Mo smiled, his tone gentle: “Thank you, Jun Jun. With your words, your brother will bring back a big trophy for you then.”
Lu Jiyin, who was standing nearby, heard Lin Junjun’s voice and immediately became incredibly excited, quickly leaning close to Jiang Mo and waving at the screen: “Jun Jun! It’s me, Lu Jiyin! I’m also at the competition venue!”
When Lin Junjun saw Lu Jiyin, the smile on her face instantly vanished, replaced by a sulky expression: “Lu Jiyin! How dare you show up in front of me again!”
“You left Star City without a word back then, didn’t even say goodbye before you left! All my careful preparations for that birthday gift went to waste!”
Lu Jiyin immediately panicked and quickly explained: “Jun Jun, listen to me! I had my reasons back then! My dad gave me an ultimatum, and I really had no choice but to return to Ning Province.”
“And, I also didn’t dare to tell you, my family actually…”
Lin Junjun snorted coldly, clearly not buying it: “Hmph, excuses! You just don’t care about me!”
Lu Jiyin was so anxious he scratched his head, his voice tinged with a hint of pleading: “Jun Jun, I really know I was wrong! Can you please forgive me? I promise I’ll never do that again!”
Lin Junjun rolled her eyes at him, saying with a hint of haughtiness in her tone: “Dream on! I won’t forgive you that easily!”
After speaking, she turned to look at Jiang Mo, her tone instantly becoming gentle: “Brother Jiang Mo, you must do your best! There will be a live broadcast on TV after the ranking matches, and I’ll be cheering for you on TV then!”
Lu Jiyin, unwilling to give up, shouted: “Jun Jun, cheer for me too!”
Lin Junjun glared at him, a hint of disdain in her voice: “Dream on! You’ll have to fend for yourself!”
With that, she directly hung up the phone, leaving Lu Jiyin looking disheartened.
Jiang Mo looked at Lu Jiyin’s reluctant expression and couldn’t help but smile, putting his phone away: “Alright, don’t be sad.”
“You know Jun Jun’s personality; she’s just tough on the outside but soft on the inside. She’ll be fine after a while.”
Lu Jiyin sighed, his tone tinged with helplessness: “Sigh, I know, but the situation at the time was indeed very complicated, and I couldn’t explain too much to her.”
Jiang Mo nodded, indicating understanding.
The two chatted for a while, and Jiang Mo learned that Lu Jiyin actually didn’t need to participate in the preliminary rounds.
As the eldest young master of the Lu family in Ning Province, and the son of Lu Hangchuan, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, he could have directly entered the ranking matches through his family connections.
But Lu Jiyin chose to participate in the preliminary rounds; he felt he could make it through with his own strength.
“I think getting promoted through connections is meaningless.”
Lu Jiyin shrugged, a hint of confidence in his tone, “I want to prove myself with my own strength, not with my family background.”
Jiang Mo couldn’t help but admire Lu Jiyin more.
Although he was from an aristocratic family, his Miracle Eye was not bad, and his personality was straightforward; apart from being a bit of a simp, he had almost no other flaws.
This was also the reason Jiang Mo was willing to be close friends with Lu Jiyin.
“Oh, by the way, Jiang Mo, your match is coming up, right?” Lu Jiyin suddenly asked.
Jiang Mo nodded: “Yes, I’m in Group 147 of Area B, and the match is about to start.”
Lu Jiyin immediately became excited: “Then I’ll go with you! I’ll cheer you on!”
Jiang Mo smiled and didn’t refuse: “Alright, let’s go together then.”
The two walked together towards the preparation room for Group 147. Along the way, Lu Jiyin enthusiastically chatted with Jiang Mo about his experiences over the past year.
Although his living conditions in Ning Province were much better than in Star City, he always felt something was missing.
“Actually, I still prefer life in Star City.”
Lu Jiyin sighed, a hint of nostalgia in his tone, “Jun Jun is there, you are there, and that kid Chen Jiaxing is there too.”
“No need to consider family interests, and no need to constantly fake smiles at people. That feeling of freedom and ease is really nostalgic.”
Jiang Mo nodded, indicating understanding.
He knew that although Lu Jiyin came from an aristocratic family, he didn’t like being constrained by the family.
He yearned more for a free life, which was also why he chose to stay in Star City in the first place.
Of course, the main reason was still because Lin Junjun was in Star City.
The two arrived at the preparation room for Group 147, where Jiang Mo’s opponent was already waiting.
It was a tall, thin boy wearing a dark blue school uniform, looking a bit nervous.
“Brother Jiang Mo, good luck!”
Lu Jiyin patted Jiang Mo’s shoulder, a hint of encouragement in his tone, “I believe you’ll easily win this match!”
Jiang Mo smiled and nodded: “Don’t worry, I’ll give it my all.”