Golden light exploded. Shockwaves spread in all directions, kicking up a spectacular pillar of surging energy.
"What do you think?" Chase stood calmly before the wall of fire, a magical barrier blocking the debris carried by the aftermath of the impact.
"A shallow frog at the bottom of a well. The abyss of magic is not so easily glimpsed or understood," Dark Magician of Chaos said, holding his staff with both hands, his expression cold.
The reason Chase had used Slifer's God Slayer Magic from the outset, aside from the fact that ordinary Magic Cards would have little effect on Hades with his Grimoire Heart, was another reason.
Through high-intensity magical clashes, he had been collecting data on Hades's magic for Dark Magician and Dark Magician of Chaos to analyze in depth, comparing the "black magic" of the Fairy Tail world with the system they practiced, identifying Hades's weaknesses while simultaneously refining their own abilities!
That was why Dark Magician of Chaos had been able to reverse Hades's Amaterasu magic the moment he appeared.
"Nevertheless, his black magic is worth studying. And—" Dark Magician of Chaos's gaze flickered. "—the location of the 'Heart' you wanted... can basically be confirmed."
Although Hades's advance hiding the "Heart" had caught them off guard, no matter how cautious or superb his concealment methods, one thing remained unchanged: the magical connection between himself and the "Heart"!
This magical connection was quite secretive. Ordinary mages, even Ten Wizard Saints like Makarov, would have difficulty detecting it.
But Dark Magician of Chaos, who was deeply versed in the ways of black magic, was a different matter.
"Faster than I expected. Where is it?" Chase asked curiously, a soft laugh escaping him.
Dark Magician of Chaos's handsome face still showed little emotional fluctuations. He raised a finger and pointed straight down.
"Underground, then..." Chase nodded, not particularly surprised.
Hades apparently could use spatial magic. At the very least, something like Erza storing her armors in a specific space for retrieval at any time wouldn't be difficult for such a learned man.
And from the fact that the "Heart" needed to be placed inside the magic airship, heavily guarded, it was clear that the "Heart" had to be in the same space as Hades to be effective!
Based on this judgment, the location of the "Heart" was actually quite clear.
Either somewhere in the dark castle, or deep within the Death Forest, or in the easily overlooked underground!
"Need me to destroy it? One Death Ultimate Curse will do the trick," Dark Magician of Chaos said, moving his staff slightly.
"Wait a little longer. This old man hasn't even shown his true abilities yet."
Chase looked up ahead. There, the heavily wounded Hades slowly rose from the thick smoke, his bodily functions rapidly recovering under the Grimoire Heart's enhancement.
His agitated magic power, carrying raging anger, gushing out, dispersing the sky-filling dust.
The battle had been quite satisfying so far. But since he hadn't gotten any new cards from the powerful Hades yet, he wasn't about to end it so easily.
"Good. Very good! Since I founded Grimoire Heart, you are the first to have pushed me this far!"
Although his injuries and magic power had been restored, compared to his initial arrogance and calm, Hades now had his white hair disheveled and his expression was terrifyingly dark, like an enraged hellish monster.
On the Ishgar continent, Hades had indeed encountered young people like Chase who could "injure" him, such as Serena of the Ten Wizard Saints.
"What truly stirred such intense emotions within him was Dark Magician of Chaos's ability to reverse light and darkness."
That had directly subverted his understanding of magic. Especially the chaotic aura, both light and dark, emanating from within that figure, which seemed as distant and unreachable as an abyss.
Regardless of magic power levels, standing before Dark Magician of Chaos, Hades felt like an ignorant child compared to the man who had painstakingly studied magic for over a hundred years.
Their levels of knowledge and understanding of magic were on completely different levels!
In other words, the things that brat Chase, with his card partner, had said earlier... were actually correct?
That the Great Magical World he had insisted upon and believed in was wrong?
That was the one thing Hades absolutely could not accept, and did not want to accept!
THUMP.
Deep underground, the massive Heart soaked in nutrient fluid beat violently.
Hades's right eye patch immediately fell off, revealing a terrifying, blood-red demon eye.
BOOM!
An endless surge of cold, evil magic swept across the battlefield, blotting out the surrounding bright light, bringing with it a thick, oppressive darkness.
Whether it was Natsu, Lucy, and the others fighting in the dark castle, or Makarov and the others on the Nirvana, they all felt this terrifying, despair-inducing aura in an instant. Their bodies involuntarily experienced intense discomfort.
"When one possesses the magic of the abyss, even the earth can spawn demons..." Hades seemed to have sunk into a sea of darkness, only his crimson-glowing pupils visible.
He formed strange hand seals and roared angrily: "Great Magic is the truth! I am the Heavenly Punisher!"
"Book of Zeref, Chapter Four, Verse Twelve, Forbidden Magic: Underworld Magic—Heavenly Punishment... ACTIVATE!!"
WHOOSH, WHOOSH, WHOOSH, WHOOSH.
The scattered debris trembled slightly. Thick purple mist spilled from within, rapidly coalescing into terrifying monsters with twisted faces and strange red lines flowing across their bodies.
Completely different from the creatures Rustyrose had materialized through Arc of Embodiment, these monsters all had physical forms. They were "demons" aggregated from highly concentrated magic power, each one's combat power rivaled an S-Class mage!
A dense army of stone demons stood behind Hades, creating a scene reminiscent of hell itself.
Even though Chase had mentally prepared himself, actually standing opposite this demon army still brought him immense pressure. Every hair on his body stood on end, every nerve trembling.
This long-lost sense of pressure... this excitement of having to give it my all... This is the battle I wanted!!
BOOM!
A sacred magical array forcibly tore an opening in the abyss of darkness. Crimson flames howled out, coalescing around Chase into the majestic phantom of Slifer the Sky Dragon.
"It's time to wake up from your boring dream, Second Generation Master. A world where you can abandon your comrades and family is fragile and pathetic."
"Let the partners I rely on... teach you this lesson!"
Amidst the howling wind and crashing thunder, Chase poured out all his magic power. He raised the blazingly radiant card high.
"All Cards: Summon!!"
Streams of light galloped out from the card, landing behind him and materializing into figures with firm gazes.
Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl, Chaos Soldier, Silent Magician, Summoned Demon...
Aside from a very small number that were still of great use, almost all of Chase's existing card partners appeared. The scene was quite stunning.
The combined magic power of the card spirits stood evenly against the stone demons on the other side, directly dividing the entire battlefield into two pure, distinct tones.
"Trying to contend with infinite magic power with limited magic power... I can already see your miserable defeat, you card brat!!"
Hades waved his hand. The stone demons all moved out, roaring as they charged toward Chase. Their terrifying momentum seemed capable of crushing even space itself.
The card spirits, of course, were not intimidated. At Chase's signal, they erected magical barriers and charged forward fearlessly.
CRASH!!!
The moment the stone demons and card spirits clashed, Chase and Hades, who had been watching from the sidelines, had already hurled their magic-power-packed heavy fists at each other!
***
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