Pokemon: I refuse to be a supporting character!

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Day Three of the Journey.

After boarding a massive car ferry, Li Xiang's family finally arrived at their destination.

— Qiong Island.

The tropical monsoon climate here made it comfortable enough to wear thin jackets, T-shirts, and beach pants even in winter. However, since they weren't part of a tour group, they had to find a place to stay on their own.

"I've already booked a hotel through a friend here," Li Zhehan said as he made a phone call.

Naturally, they hadn't come unprepared. He had taken care of all the necessary arrangements well in advance.

Having a dad around really makes a difference.

Traveling with parents might be a bit annoying and lacking in freedom, but the upside was that they handled everything, so he didn't have to lift a finger or worry about getting scammed.

In the back of the truck, Li Xiang sat on the neck of a Feraligatr, gripping the roof rack with both hands, mesmerized by the surrounding azure sea, white clouds, and blue sky.

Unlike Qingcheng, the sea around Qiong Island seemed to have a natural filter, making everything appear exceptionally clean and pristine.

Maybe it was just his mindset? Li Xiang wasn't sure, but aside from the overly humid air, he found nothing wrong with Qiong Island.

Moreover, their arrival coincided with the preparation phase of Qiong Island's Wind God Festival.

What was the Wind God Festival? Legend had it that in the distant past, Qiong Island was a place plagued by harsh environments—frequent tsunamis, earthquakes, and typhoons—making it difficult for both humans and Pokémon to survive.

But the people and Pokémon of the island refused to give up. They supported and helped each other, and through years of hard work, they managed to improve the environment.

However, before they could celebrate their success, tragedy struck.

One day, a terrifying typhoon, tsunami, and earthquake simultaneously ravaged the island. The natural disasters devoured lives, destroyed all traces of humans and Pokémon on the land, and mercilessly shattered their dreams, leaving them in despair.

At that moment, a silver figure silently descended.

This Pokémon, radiating a holy light, rewarded the bond between humans and Pokémon and their relentless struggle against the disasters. It helped them withstand the typhoon, suppress the tidal waves, and quell the earthquakes.

It bestowed upon them nourishing breezes and life-giving rain.

Finally, it sank into the sea, using its own body to protect the island from further natural disasters.

This Pokémon's name was— Lugia.

Afterward, to express their gratitude for Lugia's selfless help, the people built an enormous stone statue of it at the highest point on Qiong Island.

They designated February 27th as the Wind God Festival or Wind God Day, a week-long celebration for all life on the island to honor the benevolent Lugia with the utmost reverence.

This was the origin of the Wind God Festival.

To be honest, when Li Xiang first heard about this, he thought it was an alternate version of Fula City and even started considering how to catch Zeraora.

But after some research, he realized that Qiong Island had suffered far more than Fula City. While Fula City was merely barren, Qiong Island had been struck by every terrifying natural disaster imaginable.

Moreover, although there were wind power stations on the island, they were still functioning and hadn't been destroyed like in the movies.

The so-called "curse of the forest" was also nonsense.

Humans and Pokémon on Qiong Island lived in harmony. Even if someone accidentally intruded into a Pokémon's territory, they would simply be chased away. Sometimes, they even shared food with each other.

This was nothing like the world depicted in the movie - The Power of Us.

…....… 

After checking into a luxurious hotel, the family had lunch and decided to head to the beach to enjoy themselves before the Wind God Festival began.

Although, as residents of a coastal city, all three of them had seen the sea and played on the beach before—with Li Zhehan even making a living from the sea—traveling was all about having fun, and the scenery they saw now felt entirely different from what they were used to.

Faced with the true blue sea and sky, even Torracat, who usually shied away from water, was captivated by the view. It joined a few other Pokémon on the beach to play a four-"player" beach volleyball game.

Unsurprisingly, Torracat teamed up with Riolu, while their opponents were the intimidating Feraligatr and Floatzel.

The stark size difference between the two teams drew the attention of many other tourists.

However, their trainers weren't around, as they had gone off to try jetboarding—the activity where you stand on a board that sprays water beneath it, allowing you to fly up and twist around like a snake.

Li Xiang was surprised to see that this activity already existed in this world.

Then, at Li Zhehan's encouragement, he paid to give it a try.

To be honest, it was a lot of fun. The thrill of rising from the sea and soaring into the sky was enough to make anyone laugh with joy.

But it required a lot of core strength and stamina. Li Xiang managed to get up twice and had his fill of excitement, but by then, he was already gasping for breath.

Being twelve years old really had its limitations.

With a sigh of regret, Li Xiang went to find his mom, who was sunbathing, to rehydrate and wash away the strange taste in his mouth.

At this time, the beach was still mostly filled with genuine tourists.

In a few years, when live streaming became popular, the beach would likely be overrun with streamers.

Who knows, someone might even disturb Mrs. Yin while she was sunbathing.

As he drank water, Torracat and Riolu came over, bickering.

When the two saw Li Xiang, they both looked dejected, their eyes even welling up with tears, as if they were about to cry.

"Did you lose?" Li Xiang wasn't too surprised. The difference in size and experience was obvious. It would have been strange if they had won.

"It's okay, you're still young. You've got plenty of time to grow stronger and win in the future," he said, squatting down.

With his left hand, he pinched Riolu's cheeks and tugged at the black tufts on the sides of its head.

With his right hand, he rubbed Torracat's head and scratched under its chin.

After some playful teasing, he finally managed to comfort the cat and dog.

Losing their first match together must have been a blow to their young hearts.

Feraligatr and Floatzel, on the other hand, were laughing and joking around. Why did they have to take it so seriously?

Li Xiang felt a surge of frustration as he grabbed the two big guys by their skin and, along with Riolu, headed out to surf.

Using them as surfboards, Feraligatr and Floatzel reluctantly obeyed Li Xiang's grip and walked toward the sea.

Unfortunately, Torracat was afraid of water and had to stay behind with Mrs. Yin to sunbathe. Otherwise, a cat-and-dog surfing competition would have been a lot of fun.

But half an hour later, something unexpected happened.

Feraligatr, caught up in the excitement, accidentally swam out of the designated beach area, speeding far out into the sea. No matter how much Li Xiang called, it didn't listen.

To make matters worse, the big guy nearly collided with a small yacht!

It was like it had gone deaf and blind!

Luckily, Feraligatr snapped out of it in time and dodged, or else Li Xiang might have been carried back to Qingcheng on a stretcher!

"Are you an idiot?!" Li Xiang angrily twisted the red crest on Feraligatr's head.

Parent-like Pokémon were always so unreliable when they got carried away!

Feraligatr, knowing it was at fault, sank its chin into the water and blew bubbles in resignation.

"Are you okay, kid?" A middle-aged man on the yacht poked his head out, looking visibly shaken.

He had seen Li Xiang coming and had stopped the boat just in time.

Li Xiang immediately put on an apologetic smile. "I'm fine, I'm fine! I'm so sorry! This was entirely our fault. Please forgive us!"

Since he was the one at fault, he had to apologize. The man was just out enjoying his day, and getting hit by someone would have been really unlucky.

"It's good that you're okay," the middle-aged man said, relieved. Then he asked, "Where are your parents?"

Suddenly, another voice came from the boat.

"Uncle Zhang, what happened? Why did we stop?"

Hmm?

Li Xiang perked up his ears. That voice sounded familiar.

"It's nothing serious, just a minor incident. We'll be on our way soon," Uncle Zhang replied, turning to the person who had spoken.

The person let out an "oh" and then curiously came to the side of the boat to look down.

Just as they did, their eyes met Li Xiang's.

Both of their expressions instantly turned to shock.

Then, they exclaimed in unison—

"Song Jie!"

"Li Xiang!"