Pokémon: I just became a Gym Leader, and Cynthia proposed to me.

Chapter 823 My disciple, Ni Douzi, has the potential to become a sword saint.

Li Shuwen stayed at the Weimu Daoguan for a whole week, instructing his disciples in their cultivation from morning till night every day.

Today it's Tanjiro's turn to receive guidance.

In the training field, Tanjiro stood to one side, took a deep breath, and placed his hand on the Poké Ball.

Li Shuwen stood opposite, arms crossed, his gaze calm.

Tanjiro throws a Poké Ball, and Gastly emerges from a white light, surrounded by purple smoke.

Li Shuwen waved his hand and released Gengar, "Tanjiro, let your master see how much you've grown!"

Gengar hovered in mid-air, arms crossed, with its signature devilish smile on its lips.

Even though Gengar didn't use any moves, the mere aura it emitted made Gastly instinctively take a step back, and the smoke even shrank a bit.

Tanjiro saw the fear in Gastly's eyes, so he crouched down and looked Gastly in the eye.

"Gastly, don't be afraid with me here. Unleash your full power and show Gengar and Master how much we've grown!"

Gastly's eyes shifted from fear to determination, and the smoke began to churn again.

"Gastly!"

"Gastly, Shadow Ball!" Tanjiro gave the first command.

Gastly opened its mouth, and a jet-black Shadow Ball shot towards Gengar.

Gengar opened its mouth, stuck out its long tongue, wrapped the Shadow Ball up completely, swallowed it, then burped, patted its belly, and looked satisfied.

"Lick it with your tongue," Li Shuwen ordered.

Gengar vanished from its spot and reappeared in front of Gastly, sticking out its tongue and licking Gastly.

Gastly retreated uncomfortably, its body wreathed in swirling smoke.

"An eye for an eye!" Tanjiro gritted his teeth. Gastly's eyes flashed with black light as it endured the discomfort and extended its tongue to retaliate against Gengar. Gengar neither dodged nor evaded, reaching out to grab Gastly's tongue directly. "Shadow Fist!" Its other fist glowed with purple light, sending Gastly flying with a single punch. Gastly crashed to the ground, smoke dissipating, its body dimming.

Tanjiro shouted, "Gastesse, stand up!"

Gastly's body shuddered violently, its eyes snapped open, and its body emitted a white light of evolution. Within the light, its form lengthened, the smoke thickened, and its claws became even longer.

Gastly makes its appearance.

Tanjiro was extremely excited, "Ghostly, I knew you could do it!"

As soon as Gastly evolved, it charged at Gengar, its right claw glowing with a purple light.

He unleashed the Shadow Fist, so fast that it left an afterimage in the air.

Gengar swung its fist to meet the punch, and a burst of purple light exploded out.

Gengar nodded in satisfaction. "Gengar!"

Li Shuwen raised his hand. "That's enough for now."

He stepped forward and looked at Gastly. "The speed and accuracy of Shadow Punch are good, but the power needs to be improved."

"This period after your evolution is your period of rapid growth, so be sure to seize it."

"Daily basic training cannot be interrupted. You must practice the boxing techniques a thousand times a day, not even once less."

Tanjiro nodded earnestly. "Yes, Master! I will definitely seize this time to make Gastly even stronger!"

Gastly also swung its fist in response, "Gastly!"

Nezuko ran over, excitedly congratulating Tanjiro. "Brother, Gastly evolved!"

She turned to Li Shuwen, "Master, let me assist my brother and Gastly with their training!"

Li Shuwen nodded. "Very good, very energetic!"

At noon, Li Shuwen instructed Tanjiro to adjust the recipe for Gastly's Pokémon food, increasing its vitality components to enhance its physique.

Tanjiro started making it in the kitchen, with Li Shuwen guiding him from the side.

"Add an extra spoonful of tree fruit powder, reduce the amount of herbs by half, and use wild honey, not farmed honey."

Following the instructions, Tanjiro carefully weighed, stirred, and kneaded the mixture.

Gastly squatted to the side, watching longingly.

When the finished product came out of the oven, Gastly tasted it and his eyes lit up. He nodded repeatedly in satisfaction.

In the afternoon, the brother and sister began their sparring training.

Tanjiro commands Gastly, and Nezuko commands Dokusaku.

Li Shuwen watched from the side.

"Ghostly, Shadow Fist!" Tanjiro commanded.

Gastly's two separate claws, enveloped in shadow energy, flew out and attacked the monocle sheath from both sides.

"Shadow attack." Midouzi's voice was crisp.

The sheath of the single sword was enveloped in black light, like a black lightning bolt.

Passing through the gap in the Shadow Fist, the two fist shadows intersected, and the single sword sheath accurately struck Gastly's body.

Gastly was knocked backward.

"An eye for an eye!" Tanjiro remained calm.

Gastly's body was also enveloped in black light as it rushed toward the scabbard.

Midouzi smiled. "Swallow Returns."

The single sword sheath nimbly spun in the air as the black light swept past beneath it. The sheath then twisted in mid-air and struck Gastly in the back.

Gastly lunged forward. Nezuko shouted happily, "Well done, scabbard!"

Li Shuwen nodded in satisfaction. "In just one week, Mi Douzi has mastered the use of the single-edged sword sheath to the point of complete mastery."

"Fantastic!"

"Single sword sheath, Iron Head!" Mi Douzi waved his hand and gave the order.

The blade of the single-bladed sword gleamed with a metallic sheen as it charged toward Gastly.

Tanjiro clenched his fist. "Haunter, use Shadow Fist!"

Li Fei had somehow slipped over and leaned against a pillar by the training ground, shaking his head and sighing. "That Tanjiro, he'll always be such a stubborn brat."

"The Shadow Fist was clearly countered by the Swallow Return earlier, yet you still tried to fight it head-on. Use technique instead!"

A head-on collision, Shadow Fist and Iron Head clashed, sparks flying.

Gastly was knocked back, and its monosword sheath was also knocked away.

But the single sword sheath stabilized itself in mid-air, its body radiating an evolved white light.

In the light, the sword elongated and split into two swords.

Twin sword sheaths, here we come.

Li Shuwen clapped his hands in satisfaction. "Excellent! My disciple, Mi Douzi, has the potential to become a sword saint!"

Midouzi excitedly gave the order: "Double sheaths, Shadow Sneak Attack!"

The two swords from the double sheaths struck simultaneously, piercing through Gastly's body in a crisscrossing motion, causing Gastly to stiffen in pain.

Tanjiro yelled, "Ghost!"

A resolute glint flashed in Gastly's eyes. Instead of retreating, it charged forward, reaching the twin scabbards and conjuring a Shadow Ball at close range before detonating it.

boom--!!!

The Shadow Ball exploded at point-blank range, blasting Haunter and Twin Blades away simultaneously.

The two Pokémon landed on the ground, both unable to battle.

Li Fei's lips twitched. "I take back what I just said. It seems that sometimes being stubborn isn't entirely useless."

"Most Pokémon can't launch an attack as decisively as Gastly."

Li Shuwen nodded, "Skill is important, but sometimes willpower is even more important!"

"Xiao Fei, you should also remember that your training method might be missing this one ingredient called 'stubbornness'."

Li Fei seemed thoughtful. "I... understand."

Tanjiro and Nezuko ran over at the same time, one picking up Gastly and the other picking up the twin sword sheaths.

Tanjiro smiled. "You did a great job."

Mizuko smiled too. "Double sword sheaths, you're awesome."

The brother and sister exchanged a glance, then bowed simultaneously to Li Shuwen, saying, "Thank you, Master!"

Li Shuwen waved his hand, "No need for that. I'm happy to see you all grow."