Pokemon: I refuse to be a supporting character!

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The countdown ended in an instant, followed by the piercing sound of an alarm!

At every exit, armored officers stepped aside, allowing the students to rush out with their Pokémon in tow.

A chaotic flood of students and Pokémon surged toward the open field, everyone pushing and shoving, afraid of falling behind.

Li Xiang and Song Jie's starting position was quite far back, with the path ahead densely packed with people and Pokémon, making it difficult to squeeze through.

Fortunately, both were nimble. Using their agility, they weaved through the crowd, leaping over some Pokémon and ignoring the shouts of "Stop pushing!" as they fought their way to the front, becoming one of the first groups near the exit.

With fewer people around, the air instantly felt fresher.

Riolu hovered in the air, its eyes glowing blue, while Lycanroc followed closely behind, nose twitching slightly.

"Riolu!" "

Awoo!"

The two Pokémon immediately alerted their trainers upon finding a clue.

Below them, Li Xiang and Song Jie exchanged a glance.

"Left!" "Left!"

Once again, they spoke in unison, and as expected, their target was the same.

Not daring to waste time, the two sprinted in the direction their Pokémon indicated, quickly putting distance between themselves and the other students.

The crowd around them gradually thinned.

Some students were fast runners, but their goals were unclear—hesitating, searching for scattered luggage, or waiting for their Pokémon to scout ahead.

By the time Li Xiang and Song Jie reached the front, there was no one behind them.

Most seemed to be using the field as a central point, conducting a block-by-block search—the least efficient but most foolproof method.

Come to think of it, the camp leader had emphasized that Pokémon weren't allowed to carry luggage but never said others couldn't help find or carry it.

Before this, he'd also stressed that everyone was in competition…

This camp leader was surprisingly sneaky.

As Li Xiang followed Lycanroc and Riolu, his mind wandered.

Beside him, Song Jie scanned the surroundings, occasionally pausing to memorize the terrain.

Searching blindly like a headless fly was pointless.

"The facilities here are surprisingly complete," Song Jie suddenly remarked. "Look over there."

Li Xiang followed his gaze and spotted what looked like a leisure resort—completely out of place in the intense atmosphere of the training camp.

"Is that…?"

"Pokémon Paradise Resort, also called a rehabilitation center—a vacation village for Pokémon health maintenance. There are only two in Zhu Xia right now, one in Tiandu and the other on Shen Island," Song Jie explained.

Li Xiang blinked. "Only two in Zhu Xia? And one's on Shen Island?"

"Right," Song Jie nodded. "The one on Shen Island opened two years ago. Business is decent, but the scale was too ambitious. The target audience wasn't well-defined, and the public couldn't immediately accept such high costs."

If even a rich kid like Song Jie called it expensive… Li Xiang didn't dare imagine—it had to be pricier than Disneyland.

No wonder the public struggled to accept it.

But why was it here? Could it be part of the rewards?

If so, that'd be great.

Why not take advantage of free perks?

Li Xiang withdrew his gaze and focused on finding his luggage.

Speaking of Shen Island—

Li Xiang remembered it was Zhu Xia's largest island and the closest to the mainland, not matching any location from his past life, as if it had appeared out of nowhere.

Located near Haizhou and connected by the Shenxia Grand Bridge, plans for an underwater tunnel were currently under discussion.

The Association had once considered naming it "Divine Capital" or splitting it into two cities, but the idea was ultimately rejected.

Shen Island University's team called themselves the "Celestial Team"—corny, but their strength was undeniable. They were championship contenders, placing second in this year's regional phase oft the youth Junior World Tournament.

They hadn't had time to compete globally yet, but their results wouldn't be bad.

Additionally, Xia Chunyu, the reigning champion, hailed from Shen Island and had led the Celestial Team to a global championship.

Rumor had it the team's edgy name was his idea.

....

Two minutes later.

Li Xiang found his backpack hidden among the branches of a large tree, and not far away, beneath a pile of leaves in a gray crevice, he spotted his luggage.

"Seriously? I thought they'd hide it somewhere tricky, but it's just… here?"

Li Xiang muttered, quickly checking if anything was missing.

Everything was accounted for.

As the camp leader had said, cameras were everywhere.

Li Xiang glanced at the surrounding trees—though well-hidden, the sensation of being watched was unmistakable under the Three-Blind Perception Technique.

"You go back first—"

"Back my ass, let's go."

Li Xiang grabbed his luggage and followed Riolu and Lycanroc toward the next location. The weight was nothing to him.

Song Jie swallowed his words and chased after him.

He had been about to suggest that at least one of them secure a top-ten finish to negotiate conditions—like being in the same class and dorm.

Of course, there was a chance of failure. The camp leader might refuse, insisting the top ten pick first before shuffling the rest.

Li Xiang had chosen a different approach—retrieve both their belongings before returning to the field.

If the luggage was too far away, who knew how long it'd take?

This was ultimately a test of luck. Along the way, they'd spotted plenty of hidden luggage—some ridiculously close to the field.

Sadly, none of it was theirs.

Lycanroc sniffed the air and looked toward a three-story school building.

Riolu, still airborne, pointed in the same direction.

A school building… Hopefully, it wasn't hidden somewhere weird.

Li Xiang gave Song Jie a sympathetic look. Even if the restrooms in the new building were freshly cleaned and unused, finding luggage there would still be gross.

"Don't look at me like that. If it's in there, I'm leaving the bag behind," Song Jie said, his face darkening as unpleasant possibilities crossed his mind.

The two sprinted toward the building.

Burdened by his luggage, Li Xiang was slightly slower but still outpaced Song Jie.

Over two years of diligent martial arts training had drastically improved his physique—especially during his rapid growth phase.

In contrast, Song Jie had never formally studied martial arts. Under the guidance of professional combat coaches and fitness experts, he'd only learned basic self-defense and systematically improved his physique through exercise.

He preferred spending more time studying trainer knowledge.

Soon, they reached the school building.

Lycanroc and Riolu rushed in ahead but split up midway, as if finding separate targets. After a quick glance, the two decided to split up for efficiency, agreeing to regroup at the entrance.

Inside the hallway, they noticed quite a few students searching.

Makes sense—the outdoors were too open, with few hiding spots. Any logical person would search indoors.

As Li Xiang dragged his luggage, envious eyes followed him. To onlookers, he must have been nearly done, ready to return to the field.

"Riolu!"

At the end of the hallway, Riolu peeked out, waving excitedly. It had found something.

Li Xiang brightened and dashed over, spotting Song Jie's suitcase inside a storage closet.

"Anything else?"

He asked Riolu, who closed its eyes and expanded its Aura Sphere, scanning the area before shaking its head.

With that, Li Xiang carried the luggage to the entrance to wait.

About thirty seconds later, Song Jie leaped down from the second floor, Lycanroc following closely.

Thud.

A crisp landing sound.

"Ow, my feet are numb."

Song Jie winced, shaking his legs. Fortunately, a five-to-six-meter drop was nothing in the Pokémon world.

"Let's go."

Li Xiang urged. Nearly fifteen minutes had passed—who knew how many had already returned to the field?

With only a two-hour limit and a 5,000-acre area, some might not even find their luggage in time.

Some unlucky trainers without Pokémon might wander endlessly.

That'd be their own fault—no vigilance at all. Handing your Pokémon to someone else outside a Pokémon Center? Risky.

Arriving at the field's edge, they were shocked to find it empty.

"Are we first? No one else found their stuff right away?"

Song Jie scanned the area, confirming they were indeed the first.

Inside the field, Camp Leader Xiang, the instructors, and the supervising teachers noticed them.

"Oh? Already back? Which school are you from? Names?"

Xiang Yangwei walked over, smiling, his entourage in tow.

The supervising teacher from their school opened his mouth to speak but was silenced by Xiang Yangwei's gesture.

"First Middle School, Class 1, Li Xiang."

"First Middle School, Class 1, Song Jie."

The two introduced themselves. An officer counted their luggage and nodded at Xiang Yangwei.

"Excellent. You're the fastest. You may choose your instructor and dorm. Once done, you can return to settle in and purchase necessities."

Xiang Yangwei glanced at their light luggage, satisfied. "Your instructor will inform you of further arrangements. Any questions can be directed to them."

Both nodded, but before that, Li Xiang raised his hand.

Xiang Yangwei raised an eyebrow. "Speak."

"After choosing our instructor and dorm, can we help others who haven't found their luggage yet?"

Li Xiang asked softly.

If possible, he wanted to lend Yang Tianwang and Lin Feng a hand. He had time to spare.

Xiang Yangwei paused, then chuckled. "Of course. Just don't violate the previously stated rules."

Pokémon couldn't carry luggage, assist in movement, cause trouble, or engage in battles—those were the main restrictions.

Everything else should be fair game.

"Thank you, Camp Leader Xiang." Li Xiang nodded, then glanced at Song Jie.

Song Jie waved him off. "Don't ask. I don't care."

With his own situation secured, he didn't mind helping Li Xiang out.

Good enough.

Following their prior discussion, they selected the sharp-eyed instructor and a spacious second-floor dorm near the stairs.

After asking the supervising teacher to watch their luggage, Li Xiang released his Pokémon and began contacting Qu Sheng and the others.