There are two main types of racing competitions: one where only Pokémon compete, and another where both Pokémon and Trainers participate.
The latter has more unexpected elements and is more exciting to watch.
This racing competition also followed the latter rule.
"Which one do you want?" Mu Li asked Fu Peiyao.
Fu Peiyao only had one Milotic, and while Milotic's speed was decent, it would be difficult for her to go fast while carrying a person.
Mu Li didn't have many Pokémon suitable for racing either, only Arcanine and Togekiss. As for Gyarados, he could forget about it.
The rules stated that they couldn't fly higher than 3 meters, and 3 meters wasn't even enough for Gyarados to turn around.
"I'll still use Arcanine," Fu Peiyao finally decided.
"Why not Togekiss?" Mu Li asked, puzzled.
Fu Peiyao rolled her eyes and said, "I don't want to be that ostentatious."
Ostentatious?
Mu Li didn't immediately react, but he quickly understood.
He had been using Togekiss frequently in the country lately, and for domestic audiences, they were somewhat accustomed to Togekiss appearing often in short videos.
But the situation abroad was different.
These randomly selected audience members were all Pokémon battle enthusiasts, and two of them even had Pokémon like Venusaur, which was completely unsuitable for racing.
However, the officials had already considered this and prepared some Pokémon in advance to temporarily provide for them.
These Pokémon were also specially trained and had very gentle temperaments, so they wouldn't behave disobediently.
The self-introductions quickly reached Mu Li and Fu Peiyao.
When the camera swept over them, the venue immediately erupted in a commotion.
When the two had first come on stage, they were wearing masks and hadn't attracted much attention, but now that they had taken off their masks, many Chinese people recognized Fu Peiyao.
"It's Pei Pei! Why is she here?"
"Isn't she currently filming a show? Did she just happen to arrive in France?"
"That's right, the person next to her is Mu Li, her good friend! They're participating in 'Flowers and Youth' together!"
...
Before Fu Peiyao could introduce herself, Mu Li heard the audience below shouting Fu Peiyao's name. Listening closely, he could occasionally hear his own name mixed in with the shouts.
The host also realized Fu Peiyao's uniqueness and quickly spoke into his earpiece to the backstage.
Soon, he nodded, presumably having received some information about Fu Peiyao from backstage.
"It seems many people recognize this lady!" the host said with a smile, "I've also heard that she is a celebrity from Hua Nation."
Fu Peiyao wasn't shy at all. She picked up the microphone and joked, "I didn't get in through the back door. I was actually wondering why, after being late, I was caught by the host as soon as I entered the venue."
The audience burst into laughter.
Fu Peiyao didn't say much more, simply introduced herself, and then the program continued.
The host obviously didn't let Mu Li off the hook either, teasing him about being so handsome and asking if he was also a celebrity.
After receiving an affirmative answer, the host was just about to shift the topic to the racing competition when he saw Mu Li summon a Togekiss with a shimmering light.
The host immediately froze.
Immediately after, a thunderous roar erupted from the audience, and suddenly, the entire venue seemed about to explode.
"I'm not mistaken, am I? That's a Togekiss!"
"Whose Togekiss is used for racing?"
"This guy's background isn't ordinary, is it? Could he be some rich second-generation?"
...
The audience immediately started discussing, and the target of their discussion was clearly Mu Li's Togekiss.
Not to mention these spectators, even the Trainers from other countries on stage looked at Togekiss with some surprise.
While they valued strength, they also had some understanding of the value of Pokémon.
This one Togekiss was even worth several times their own net worth.
However, what made them even more curious was, who exactly was the owner of this Togekiss?
To bring a Pokémon like Togekiss to a racing competition.
Anyone who would do such a thing must be a little crazy.
He didn't continue, after all, the upcoming racing competition was the main event.
The host just remembered that he still needed to continue hosting, but he certainly wouldn't miss such a major news story as the appearance of Togekiss.
"Mr. Mu Li, if I'm not mistaken, are you going to have Togekiss compete?" the host asked, somewhat surprised.
Mu Li nodded and said, "Is there something wrong with that?"
"Nothing wrong, it's just that it surprises us all," the host said with a smile, "You must know the value of your Togekiss. May I be so bold as to ask, how much did you spend to acquire him?"
The host immediately asked the question everyone wanted to know the most.
Mu Li frowned and said indifferently, "I didn't spend a single cent. All my Pokémon are caught by me personally."
The host's eyes nearly popped out, and his voice immediately rose a pitch: "You mean, you caught this Togekiss yourself in the wild?"
"That's right!" Mu Li said as a matter of course, "As a Trainer, isn't it about catching your own Pokémon?"
The host didn't continue to ask. Although there was a phenomenon of Pokémon trading among Trainers, that phenomenon was looked down upon by many Pokémon Trainers, and he didn't need to cause such a dispute here.
However, the host could imagine how many purchase inquiries this young man would receive after the competition ended.
"Now, our main event is about to begin."
With a command from the host, the entire venue suddenly began to vibrate. The originally sealed venue began to separate from the back of the stage, forming a passage.
"So, our starting line is also our finish line," the host explained the rules, "Everyone must follow the designated route. Once you go out of bounds, you will be disqualified. Skills can be used throughout the process, but no skills can be used to attack others."
Everyone stood on the starting line, riding their Pokémon.
"But we can use skills..." Mu Li muttered to himself, "Then there's no hope."
Wang Xin, who was beside him, asked curiously, "No hope for what?"
"Naturally, no hope of winning the championship," Mu Li sighed.
Wang Xin looked at Mu Li with a puzzled expression: "You actually have such a lack of confidence sometimes? Who's that amazing? It wouldn't be me, would it? Don't worry, my Extreme Speed Dragonite will leave you in the dust."
Mu Li scoffed, "Your Dragonite? Leave us in the dust? You'd be lucky to even see the taillights of our Togekiss."
Wang Xin immediately became indignant: "Your Togekiss? If you're talking about fighting, I might not win, but when it comes to speed, our Dragonite is one of the best in the world."
The Trainers from several other countries beside them were also trash-talking each other.
Especially a South Korea contestant whose Pokémon was also a Dragonite, he seemed particularly arrogant.