As the commotion gradually subsided and the smoke cleared, the outline of the island, still relatively intact under the sacred light screen, became visible.
The Fairy Tail members on the island looked up. The majestic dragon silhouette occupying the sky immediately came into view. Slifer had blocked Acnologia's roar in time.
If any one of them—Chase, the Fairy Tail members, or the Tenrou Tree—had been erased, the outcome of this duel would have been without suspense!
Incidentally, Lahar, Mest, and the others had been luckier, being on the other side of Tenrou Island. They hadn't been blasted to bits on the spot, only swept further out to sea by the surging waves.
"Hahahaha! Hahahaha!!"
Watching Slifer protect the island, Acnologia couldn't help but burst into maniacal laughter.
Its guess was completely correct. As long as it destroyed the island and the ants on it, that damned crimson dragon would no longer be its match!
Having figured this out, Acnologia went completely crazy. It completely ignored its bleeding chest. Its black wings spread as wide as possible.
HUM, HUM, HUM, HUM, HUM.
A dense array of attribute-less magical arrays filled the sky. The energy contained in any single one of them could level a town, or even an entire country, in an instant!
"Destroy everything. Obtain everything. As long as dragons exist in this world, the slaughter will never stop!" Acnologia, hovering in midair, suddenly flapped its dragon wings. "I am the Dragon King! ACNOLOGIA!!! "
Space trembled violently under this dragon's roar. One after another, attribute-less magical beams, like a meteor swarm, poured down onto Tenrou Island.
Earth-shattering explosions echoed across the sky one after another. Though Slifer flawlessly blocked each one, its solid form gradually grew dim.
Dead leaves fell Like snow. Tenrou Island shook. The lush greenery of the Tenrou Tree, which had covered the entire island, all fell away, leaving only bare branches.
Lucy and the others soon felt the strain. Happy, Carla, and others with weaker magic power had their legs give out. Symptoms of backlash had already begun to appear.
If they were like this, then Chase, as the connecting bridge, was even worse off. His Exodia armor had completely shattered. His entire body was covered in blood.
The magic power stored in his Heart was rapidly decreasing.
The Tenrou Tree's supply was beginning to fall behind!
The situation had reversed in an instant, from initial suppression to absolute passive!
Just then, whether by instinct or with some special intention, Natsu suddenly released Lucy's hand. Ignoring the strange burning sensation in his body, he rushed to the shore. Braving the tearing storm, he raised his hand and pointed at Acnologia in the distance.
"For a dragon to use such cowardly tactics... you bastard—"
"Are you afraid?! "
Though it came from a "human" mouth, this roar faintly carried a sharp dragon's cry, penetrating deep into Acnologia's ears with extremely strong penetration.
Me? Afraid?
A mere dragon cub dares to say I'm afraid?
Acnologia was momentarily stunned. Then, veins bulged on its bloodied dragon face. It instantly flew into a rage.
WHOOSH!
A sacred aura rushed toward it like a towering tidal wave.
"I should correct you. I am not a lowly creature like a dragon. I am... a god!"
Endless lightning suddenly exploded. Slifer slowly opened its tightly closed lower jaw.
Golden light flashed. Within it, an explosive energy sphere, crackling with dancing electric arcs, condensed and compressed.
"A god?!"
Acnologia's crimson pupils contracted sharply. It had obviously heard of the legends about gods.
For example, that little toy of the Black Mage was apparently cursed by a god and couldn't be broken.
So that's why it couldn't eat that damned lightning. But so what if it was a god? As long as it looked like a dragon, it was something Acnologia had to destroy!
Influenced by Natsu, it no longer targeted Tenrou Island. Instead, it turned its breath back toward Slifer.
"Maximum Output: Black Dragon's Roar!! "
"Divine Punishment: Superconducting Wave!! "
On the left, the world-ending evil of the apocalypse.
On the right, the divine judgment of thunder.
The two world-tearing energy breaths collided above the churning sea, entering a final struggle to determine the victor!
The stalemate didn't last long.
Soon, the faltering Superconducting Wave was forcibly pushed back by Acnologia. Slifer and the island of Tenrou Island behind it were both engulfed by the light of destruction.
On the island, Makarov and the others all spat blood. More and more people suffered backlash. The tearing pain from their magic power spread throughout their bodies.
Despair came again. But this time, everyone gritted their teeth, refusing to give up. Their expressions were unwavering as they faced forward.
"GO! FAIRY TAIL!!! " Chase, covered in blood, shouted with all his might.
"OOOOOHHHHH!!! " xN
Everyone gave their most passionate response.
Pillars of light, one after another, emitted from the Fairy Tail
emblems, shooting skyward. They converged into a torrent, crazy surging into Slifer's body.
Its gradually fading form became solid once more. The sky-covering Tenrou Tree snapped in two and crashed to the ground.
"The power of human belief? This magical world is quite interesting..."
Slifer, having never experienced such a hot and intense power, inwardly remarked.
And then—
BOOM!!!
A stronger, larger Superconducting Wave broke through with unstoppable force, instantly crushing the Black Dragon's Roar right before it, and shot forward toward the opposite side.
Amidst Acnologia's unwilling, terrified roar, divine judgment—or rather, Fairy Tail's Judgment—pushed it across the sky, exploding violently on the distant horizon!!
The terrifying energy shock spread for tens of thousands of meters, completely evaporating that entire area of the sea.
Its power was so great that it even caused earthquakes of varying magnitudes across Ishgar!
A warm sea breeze blew over the now-ruined Tenrou Island. The sound of waves crashing against the reef came from the shore.
Only when the heart-palpitating commotion gradually subsided did the people on the island snap out of their daze.
After a brief silence, cheers erupted, breaking the dead silence.
"W-we won? We won!!"
"Did you see that, you bastard Acnologia?! That's the power of Fairy Tail!"
"That Sky Dragon Uncle is amazing! Just like Igneel!"
"Thank goodness!"
Elfman and Evergreen happily hugged each other, then quickly pushed each other away. "Get away from me!" x2
"Boo hoo! Even the Tenrou Tree was brought down! How am I going to explain this to the successive masters?! No, wait. The first master is right here!" Makarov looked at the collapsed island and wept.
The joy of victory filled the air.
In the rubble, Chase pushed the boulder off his body. Having been standing at the highest point when the Tenrou Tree fell, he had taken the worst fall.
Unlike the others, whose emotions had instantly relaxed, Chase's expression was serious. His gaze remained fixed on the distant sea.
The biggest villain in the original story—the Black Dragon Acnologia—had it really been defeated just like that?
***
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