chsdbacks Chapter 312 312: Etherion, Fire!
Chapter 312 312: Etherion, Fire!
Noah understood Jellal's meaning. He smiled and said, "Sure. I want to see your strength too. But right now, you have a Thought Projection at the Council, don't you? Missing that much magic power must affect you significantly.""Indeed. With the magic power from that projection, I was chosen as one of the Wizard Saints," Jellal nodded. Being selected as a Wizard Saint at such a young age proved his undeniable strength. However, splitting his power to maintain the projection did weaken him.
"But I still want to spar with you first. Once the projection returns, I'll fight you with everything I have," Jellal said seriously.
"Alright. Let's do it your way," Noah agreed.
Hearing Noah's agreement, a smile appeared on Jellal's face.
"Here I come."
Jellal stomped the ground, shattering the stone beneath his feet, and launched himself at Noah.
"Good!"
Noah crouched slightly and threw a right punch. His fist met Jellal's incoming strike in mid-air.
BANG!
A dull thud echoed as their fists collided, sending a shockwave rippling outward from the point of impact.
Jellal retracted his right fist and stepped forward, launching a left uppercut.
Noah extended his left hand to catch Jellal's fist, pulled back his right, and immediately threw a straight punch at Jellal's face.
Jellal's right fist swung toward Noah simultaneously. Their fists collided again.
BANG!
Another heavy impact. Both pushed off and leaped backward to create distance.
The moment Jellal landed, he kicked off again, cracking the floor as he charged back at Noah.
Noah did the same, meeting Jellal head-on.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The sound of fists meeting flesh and bone was continuous. They engaged in rapid close-quarters combat.
Every step shattered the floor; every punch generated a wind blast.
CRASH!
Jellal dodged a punch, and Noah's fist struck a nearby pillar, snapping it in half and sending debris flying.
"I'll be careful not to damage the critical parts of the tower. I already have the entire structure memorized," Noah said, noticing Jellal's glance at the damage.
"That's good."
Jellal nodded and continued to attack.
BOOM!
Noah snapped another pillar.
CRASH!
Noah stomped, shattering the floor for meters around.
BOOM!
This time, Noah punched a massive hole in the wall.
"Don't just dodge. Face me head-on," Noah said to Jellal.
"I can't. If I face you head-on, I'm afraid I'll lose very quickly," Jellal admitted bitterly.
He had thought that even if he couldn't beat Noah, the gap wouldn't be too large given their similar ages. But while Noah held back initially to match him, once Noah started getting excited and increasing his power, Jellal couldn't block the strikes anymore. He was forced to dodge continuously.
He realized Noah had been going easy on him from the start.
"Boring. Let's wait for your projection to return so we can have a real fight," Noah stopped. Jellal was just dodging, and Noah was hitting air. He could increase his speed, but since this was just a spar, it was better to wait.
"Alright."
Jellal stopped as well, regulating his breathing and preparing mentally for the all-out battle to come.
"About two minutes until Etherion fires," Noah checked the time.
"Sigh. My feelings are complicated," Jellal said, his expression conflicted.
Noah glanced at him. Given Jellal's history, feeling conflicted in this situation was natural. Not knowing what to say, Noah opened his Archive and began monitoring the surroundings and the tower's status.
Jellal didn't expect comfort. Noah agreeing with his plan and helping him was more than enough. His sins could only be atoned for by himself.
Silence fell between them, broken only by the tapping of Noah on his holographic keyboard.
"It's coming."
A brilliant light appeared in the sky. Noah looked up.
A beam of intense light pierced the clouds, illuminating the ocean below.
"Ah, it's here. Etherion," Jellal stood up, looking at the light. It was the precursor to the blast.
Noah expanded his senses to the maximum and erected his strongest barrier. Although he knew the Tower of Heaven would absorb the energy, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"What is that light? Is that Etherion?" Lucy asked, looking at the radiant sky from the distant island.
"Yes. That is definitely Etherion," Ultear confirmed solemnly.
"Just as expected. That bastard Noah definitely stayed in the tower," Sorano sighed helplessly.
"Eh?! Noah hasn't come back yet?" Lucy realized Noah was missing.
"He probably wants to experience the power of Etherion firsthand and monitor the tower's condition," Mirajane explained.
"Will he be okay? That's Etherion!" Lucy hadn't forgotten the description: magic capable of destroying a country.
"He'll be fine. We trust him. He wouldn't do it if he wasn't confident," Erza said firmly.
"Exactly. With Noah's strength, unless he wants to be hit, he can escape anytime," Ultear added.
"Brother Noah..." Wendy-kun and the others trusted him but still looked worried.
HUMMM!
The light in the sky grew blindingly bright. A massive sphere of light formed.
Then, a pillar of light descended from the sphere, shooting straight down at the Tower of Heaven.
The atmosphere tore apart with a deafening roar.
The surrounding ocean churned violently under the immense magical pressure, creating massive waves.
The sky and earth shook. The beam struck the tower directly, scattering endless white light in all directions.
On the distant island, Ultear and the others shielded their eyes, unable to look directly at the glare.
The tremors reached even their island, and huge waves surged toward the shore.
"Ice-Make: Rampart!"
Ultear cast her magic, erecting a massive ice wall along the coast to block the incoming tsunami.
The Etherion blast continued for over ten seconds before slowly fading.
A massive cloud of dust obscured the Tower of Heaven, hiding it completely from view.
"Noah..."
Despite their words of confidence, worry was evident in everyone's eyes.
"What is that?" Lucy shouted, pointing toward the tower.
Ultear looked closely.
The sea breeze began to clear the dust, revealing that the stone exterior of the tower was gone. In its place stood a structure made entirely of massive blue crystals.
"The outer walls crumbled... is that crystal inside?" Lucy asked, confused.
"That looks like Lacrima. But Lacrima that huge..." Ultear stared in shock.
She had seen large Lacrima before, like the one used for the Jupiter Cannon, but nothing compared to the sheer scale of the crystal structure now revealed.
"Noah..." Erza whispered, her anxiety rising.
"This is the true form of the Tower of Heaven. A giant Lacrima crystal," Jellal said to Noah, looking around at the transformed structure.
"Truly amazing. Collecting this much must have taken a lot of effort," Noah said, dismissing his barrier and typing on his Archive to monitor the tower. Since the tower successfully absorbed the energy, he didn't need the shield anymore.
"I only collected a small part. Most of it was provided by Hades," Jellal shook his head. Gathering this much Lacrima in eight years would have been impossible for him alone. Only Hades, the master of the top Dark Guild, had the resources.
"Thanks to the Council's Etherion, this tower has absorbed 2.7 billion Edea of magic power. The R-System is complete," Jellal said.
"Indeed. I'm reading over 2.7 billion Edea. You could say we're standing on top of Etherion right now. One wrong move, and we'll take a direct hit from all that energy."
Noah looked at the crystal beneath his feet, sensing the terrifying amount of magic stored within. Anyone with keen senses would be trembling just standing here, their instincts screaming danger.
~~~
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