Suddenly, a mechanical grinding sound Kaka rang out. The smiles froze. They turned their heads toward the Phantom Lord guild building like machines. Magic circles of various sizes were appearing all over the mobile headquarters.
A moment later, the guild building began to shift, gradually forming into the shape of a massive giant.
"W-what is that?!" Macao stammered, his eyes wide with shock. The others were equally stunned as they stared at the mechanical behemoth.
"Super Mage Giant Phantom MK II," Chen Fan answered.
He knew Phantom Lord wouldn't be destroyed that easily. The giant wasn't the most terrifying part; they were so focused on the mobile guild that they had forgotten that Jose Porla, waiting inside, was the true threat.
"Dangerous, very dangerous... I almost thought I was dead. I didn't expect you to be able to reflect magic," Jose's voice drifted out from the giant again, his tone dripping with mock amusement.
Chen Fan frowned, reminded of some unpleasant memories. He never understood why villains insisted on wasting so much time talking. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin.
He aimed it at the giant's head. Everyone looked at him in confusion, wondering why he was taking out money. Was he planning to bribe Phantom Lord? Given his wealth, he could actually afford it, but the timing was bizarre.
Jose, however, felt an intense surge of danger, cold sweat breaking out across his back.
Hummm! Chen Fan flipped the coin into the air with his thumb. The rapidly spinning coin let out a low, vibrating hum.
"Lucy is in my hands!" Jose shrieked, unable to restrain himself any longer just as Chen Fan was about to flick the coin.
"Whoosh!"
A streak like a falling star flashed across the sky, accompanied by the crack of a sonic boom as it surged toward the giant.
"Boom!" The arm of the Super Mage Giant Phantom MK II was torn clean off. The shoulder area where the coin had struck had been reduced to dust, vanishing into the wind.
Jose wiped the sweat from his forehead. If he had been a second slower with his shout, he might have been reduced to dust along with the giant's shoulder.
"Lucy?" Chen Fan said, turning back.
The guild members were still reeling from the power of Chen Fan's attack. Upon hearing his question, Natsu spoke up excitedly, "Yes! Lucy is still in their hands!"
"Then why didn't you go save her?" Chen Fan was confused. Knowing Natsu and Lucy's bond, Natsu wouldn't just sit by. Then, a thought occurred to him. "Did Erza stop you?"
Natsu nodded. He had wanted to rescue her, but Erza had knocked him out while they were escaping. By the time he woke up, the guild was already in crisis. He slammed a fist into the ground in regret. Chen Fan patted his shoulder but said nothing.
He turned back toward Jose. "How is Lucy?"
"She's fine, she's doing great. After all, her father is our client," Jose said. A holographic Thought Projection appeared in the air. It showed Lucy tied up with ropes, her mouth gagged, lying unconscious on the floor.
Seeing Lucy, Natsu moved to charge forward, but Chen Fan caught him by the arm. Natsu looked back at him, and Chen Fan simply shook his head.
"Tell me what you want," Chen Fan said to Jose.
"Good, straightforward. My demand is simple. Fairy Tail will provide four people to duel my Element 4. If you win, we return the girl."
Chen Fan thought for a moment, then looked back. "Natsu, Gray, Elfman you three come with me to play with them."
"Alright!!"
"A man never refuses a challenge!"
Hearing Chen Fan's words, Natsu's spirit returned. He slammed his fists together. "Good! I'm all fired up! Happy!"
"Aye!" With a shout, a pair of wings sprouted from Happy's back, and he took off with Natsu in the lead.
Chen Fan looked at Gray and Elfman. "You two find your own way over." As soon as he spoke, two small whirlwinds appeared beneath his feet, spinning rapidly and carrying him into the air. He left Gray and Elfman staring at each other in silence.
Chen Fan headed straight for Jose's location. Whether it was by Jose's order or not, no one moved to block his path. Before long, a massive set of doors appeared before him.
Chen Fan kicked them open with a "Boom!" Inside, Jose was sitting in a chair, watching Chen Fan walk in step by step with a smirk on his face.
Lucy was lying on the floor not far from Jose. A man stood behind her. She seemed to have been startled awake by the loud noise, mainly because Jose had released the Sleep Magic he had placed on her to distract Chen Fan. Seeing Chen Fan, Lucy's expression became frantic, but she couldn't make a sound through the gag.
"I'm here, Guild Master Jose. Should we continue where we left off? What happens if we lose?" Chen Fan's eyebrow arched as he saw Lucy bound.
"Hahaha, 'God's Hand,' you really are interesting. If you lose, naturally, Fairy Tail will be annihilated. Do it!" At Jose's shout, a magic circle appeared in the hand of the man standing behind Lucy, as if he were about to strike her.
Immediately after, a massive silhouette appeared silently behind Chen Fan. Wearing a hat and a giant green cloak, with white bandages covering his eyes and tears constantly streaming down his face, it was the leader of the Element 4, Aria of the Heavens.
Lucy's expression grew even more desperate. She let out muffled "Wuu-wuu" sounds, her body wriggling like a caterpillar as she tried to crawl toward Chen Fan.
"So... so... so sad!"
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