The car took the program crew directly to the gathering point for the teams from various countries.
Since it was an All-Star Game, mainly for commercial performance, the media was allowed to enter.
Soon, the car arrived at several seemingly new accommodation buildings.
These accommodation buildings were specially built for the Olympics, but they had only been used a few times. Normally, they were also used to host sports teams from various countries during major sporting events.
“The service in France is just not good,” Zhu Yuping complained after a brief introduction. “You’d think a country as big as theirs would at least install air conditioning. It’s so hot, I don’t know what they’re thinking.”
France’s environmental protection organizations are famous worldwide.
If this country dared to install air conditioning, the environmental protection organizations would cause a ruckus the very next day.
To avoid trouble, they simply let the athletes suffer in the heat.
Not only the athletes, but even the local residents endured the heat together. It is said that to protect the beautification of city buildings, many houses are not allowed to install outdoor air conditioning units.
It must be said, this is truly a country that values beauty more than life itself.
Fortunately, it was almost October, and the weather was no longer that hot. Compared to the tropical Kapu Islands, the weather here was already quite pleasant.
As soon as he got out of the car, Mu Li felt a different aura.
This was the unique scent of each city.
Looking at the familiar scenery around him, Mu Li suddenly felt a bit nostalgic.
Under Zhu Yuping’s guidance, everyone was assigned rooms and then went directly to the cafeteria for a simple lunch.
The afternoon was dedicated to sightseeing.
However, Mu Li’s arrival seemed to go unnoticed by others, especially the athletes. Even those athletes familiar with Mu Li seemed unaware of his presence.
Mu Li also did not actively contact them, as he was with the program crew.
Before the All-Star Game began, everyone simply toured the city’s surroundings.
The entire France was filled with various Pokémon.
It was as if all the Pokémon Trainers in the world had gathered here.
Those flying in the sky, walking on the ground, and swimming in the water—everything imaginable was present.
Mu Li even saw some Legendary Pokémon on the street, such as the Three Legendary Birds and Darkrai, which do not wield divine power.
As the All-Star Game was about to commence, the city seemed to be ignited, brimming with an atmosphere of excitement and anticipation.
Various warm-up activities appeared in every corner of the city, attracting people’s attention.
In front of the Louvre, Meowth transformed into a graceful model, standing in a giant picture frame at the entrance, showcasing its Attract figure.
Every one of its movements was full of agility and playfulness.
Many photographers and painters gathered around, holding cameras and brushes, eager to capture this beautiful moment.
Not far away, the statue of the armless Gardevoir also became the focus of attention.
The statue was lifelike, as if Gardevoir could awaken from the stone at any moment.
As night fell, the performance on the Seine River brought the atmosphere to a climax.
Holographic projections intertwined on the river surface, forming a colorful scroll.
The figure of Charizard flew in the air, a giant head of Manaphy appeared on the surface of the Seine River, and a group of Magikarp would Splash from the river, moving through the illusory head, splashing droplets of water.
In addition, there was also the constantly changing form of Mew, leaping and dancing in the air.
At 8 PM, the lights on the Eiffel Tower suddenly went out.
In their place were projections of past Olympics Champions.
These projections slowly emerged on the tower, showcasing their brilliant achievements and glorious moments.
People looked up at the tower, their hearts filled with admiration for these great athletes, and at the same time, full of anticipation for the upcoming All-Star Game.
However, what Mu Li did not expect was to see his own figure among the projections of the Champions.
The moment Mu Li’s figure appeared, it directly triggered a climax beneath the Eiffel Tower.
No one knew who made the first sound.
“Li!” This was the nickname foreigners had for A Li.
The shouts gradually grew louder, spreading throughout the entire square.
Some people even cried tears of joy as they shouted.
“Didn’t expect it, did you? After so many years away from the field, so many people still remember you,” Fu Peiyao said with some emotion.
Mu Li did not speak, only nodded silently, and smiled faintly, “It will pass eventually.”
“No, I don’t think so,” Fu Peiyao suddenly said seriously. “For those who like you so much, your appearance will affect their entire lives.”
Mu Li was silent, and after a long while, he said, “Perhaps…”
After all the projections of past Olympics Champions were finished, a line of subtitles appeared below the Eiffel Tower.
“La Légende commence sous la tour Eiffel!”
The legend begins under the Eiffel!
Eighteen light bands streamed down from the Eiffel Tower, representing the eighteen Pokémon types.
When the light bands fell like a waterfall to the ground and merged into a ball, a Mega Rayquaza emerged from the ground.
The light and shadow of Mega Rayquaza, like a true coiled dragon, spiraled up around the Eiffel Tower until it circled three times in the sky above the tower, then shot into the clouds, turning into a shower of meteors that sprinkled across the entire city.
On the Weibo platform, the topic #AllStarShowmatch had already surpassed 1 billion in popularity within 72 hours.
These past few days, the world’s attention was focused on France.
Compared to the Olympics and other Pokémon battles, which have higher professional technical content, the All-Star Showmatch seems to have been more popular with the general audience since its inception.
Related program crews conducted some surveys—why do people prefer the All-Star Showmatch?
“Because you can see your favorite players compete.”
“Only here can you see the Champions’ amazing plays.”
“Where else can you see Champion Pokémon easily defeating Elites?”
...
Everyone has a reason to like the All-Star Showmatch, not only because it gathers all the Pokémon battle stars, but also because the battles here are more free.
Without the constraints of rankings, the Trainers’ battles also become more visually appealing.
Sometimes, you can even see battles between two novices and experts, or due to various game limitations, those Elites and Champions might even be defeated by ordinary people.
Various platforms were broadcasting the grandeur of this All-Star Showmatch.
“It really makes one look forward to it,” Mu Li murmured, looking at the twinkling starlight in the night sky.