Recaps

Neinhart summoned phantoms of the dead, including Wahl, after Zeref destroyed Wahl’s core. As Fairy Tail’s allies gathered on the cliff before the final battle, Mirajane told Erza that her mother was among the enemy, leaving Erza overwhelmed and then chasing Riyao in embarrassment.

• Zeref crushed the vial containing Wahl’s core, allowing Neinhart to summon Wahl’s phantom alongside God Serena, Bloodman, and Jacob.
• Erza surveyed the imperial army from a cliff and explained that Neinhart had summoned four dead Spriggans as phantoms.
• Riyao arrived with the All-Creation Giant Dragon and said the enemy was waiting for Fairy Tail to gather before the final battle.
• Mirajane told Erza that Riyao had seen her mother among the enemy, and Riyao confirmed that their life essences matched.
• Erza reacted to learning she had a mother, called Riyao “Mom” by mistake, and chased him with swords as he fled carrying Mirajane.

The allied forces and the Spriggan 12 faced off for the final battle until Natsu’s attack sparked a full-scale charge. Zera, still trying to help Mavis, revealed herself to Riyao and the others, who recognized her as Fairy Tail’s founder.

• The allied forces arrived at the basin and formed up opposite the Spriggan 12 and the imperial army.
• Zera watched from behind a tree, frustrated that Mavis had not remembered her, while both sides waited in an awkward stalemate.
• Natsu opened the battle with Fire Dragon King's Roar, and Makarov led Fairy Tail and the allied forces into a charge.
• Zera hid again, then decided Riyao seemed dependable and called to him from behind the tree.
• Riyao spotted the transparent Zera, and Makarov, Erza, and Wendy turned to look as Makarov recognized her as the founder imagined by the first master.
• Zera tried to act like a senior and vowed to protect Mavis’s guild.

Riyao met Zera, who urged him to rescue Mavis, and tried to create an opening by launching the All-Creation Giant Dragon at the mountain guild. After Brandish shrank and caught the dragon, Riyao unleashed a forest that scattered the advancing forces, leaving Zera caught in a tree above him.

• Zera appeared to Riyao and explained that Mavis had forgotten her, so they needed to rescue Mavis.
• Riyao launched the All-Creation Giant Dragon at the guild, but Brandish shrank it and caught it.
• Zeref ordered the Spriggan 12 and soldiers to advance down the mountain.
• Riyao cast Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence, covering the plain with towering trees and scattering the armies.
• Riyao noticed Zera was missing and found her dangling from a branch with her skirt snagged.

Riyao used his tree magic to reshape the battlefield and direct Fairy Tail’s fighters toward their opponents while Zera urged him to focus on rescuing Mavis. He encountered Larcade Dragneel, who mistakenly took Riyao’s knowledge of his identity as recognition that he was Zeref’s legitimate son.

• August observed that Riyao’s transformation of the forest was more than simple tree-growing magic, while Riyao assigned opponents within the separated battlefields.
• Zera questioned whether Riyao was acting like a villain and urged him to take Mavis’s rescue seriously, but Riyao said he was going to find his wife.
• Riyao sensed Gildarts charging through the forest, opened a path for him to the imperial infantry, and sent Cana flying upward with a vine.
• Riyao brought Zera to a clearing and confronted Larcade Dragneel, identifying him as Natsu’s nephew and one of Zeref’s creations.
• Larcade believed Riyao had recognized him as Zeref’s legitimate blood descendant and regarded him with newfound warmth.

Riyao fought Larcade in the forest, persuading him to avoid lust-based magic before overpowering his attacks with time magic and the Iron Fist of Space. Larcade then unleashed Gluttony, leaving Riyao overwhelmed by hunger and Zera biting his arm.

• Riyao persuaded Larcade not to use lust-based magic by offering to speak to Zeref and the First Master on his behalf.
• Larcade fired a barrage of light blades, but Riyao halted them in midair with a snap.
• Larcade attacked with Touch of Gluttony, and Riyao erased the tentacles with Sands of Time.
• Riyao battered Larcade with the Iron Fist of Space, sending him crashing through the ground.
• Larcade used Gluttony, filling Riyao with extreme hunger and causing Zera to bite his arm.

Riyao subdued Larcade with a forest of vines, ending the soul-deep hunger that had made Zera bite his arm. Invel froze Gray with Iced Shell, prompting Juvia to unleash a furious water assault that forced the Winter General to defend himself.

• Riyao trapped Larcade inside a wooden cocoon, causing the illusory hunger to disappear.
• Zera regained her senses after biting Riyao’s arm, then fled in embarrassment as he laughed at her.
• Gray, Ur, Ultear, and Silver attacked Invel with ice, but Invel froze their magic before it could reach him.
• Invel cast Iced Shell on Gray and froze him completely.
• Juvia erupted in rage and attacked Invel with high-pressure streams of water.
• Invel raised three thick ice barriers to deflect Juvia’s water blades and was driven back three steps.

Invel tried to force Silver to kill Natsu, but Silver instead freed Gray to fight alongside him. Gray used Riyao’s advice and a life-infused ice blade to break Invel’s defenses, leaving the family to beat him down.

• Invel controlled Ur and Juvia with ice chains and offered to release them if Silver killed Natsu, but Silver refused and trapped the women in ice coffins.
• Silver freed Gray from his ice shell, and the two warned each other that Invel’s magic could freeze emotions and slow their reactions.
• Riyao told Gray to eat Invel’s ice, and Gray broke the chains on Ur and Juvia while they covered him with ranged attacks.
• Invel donned his Ice God's Robe and struck Silver, but Gray wounded him with Ice Demon: Spring Tachi, whose life-infused blade pierced the armor.
• Silver attacked Invel’s wound, and Gray joined him as they knocked Invel down and pummeled him.

Mavis escaped Irene’s separation magic and followed Zeref, August, and Brandish into Riyao’s forest labyrinth, where her memories of Zera returned. After learning the Black Dragon remained a threat, she panicked, and Riyao took her away to enact a mysterious plan.

• Mavis used Phantom Magic to fool Irene, slipped out of the hall, and secretly followed Zeref, August, and Brandish onto the forest bridge.
• Riyao’s spatial magic split the bridge and sent the three travelers into separate labyrinths, while Mavis arrived in Riyao’s part of the forest.
• Riyao told Mavis that Zera had been searching for her, and Mavis regained her forgotten memories as Zera’s apparition vanished.
• Mavis analyzed the battle and realized the Black Dragon still had to be dealt with before he returned, leaving her overwhelmed by the lack of viable tactics.
• Riyao proposed a plan requiring Mavis to make a small sacrifice, then touched her head and transported them both away.

Lucy fought Brandish, but Brandish's size-manipulating magic overwhelmed her until Aquarius intervened. The chapter ended with Brandish and Lucy kneeling side by side as Aquarius scolded them both.

• Lucy challenged Brandish after being transported into the forest clearing, then bowed and apologized when Brandish unleashed her magic.
• Brandish shrank Taurus and Lucy, but Lucy used Gemini as a substitute and struck Brandish with her whip.
• Brandish grabbed Lucy and rubbed her head furiously until someone slapped Brandish into the mud.
• Aquarius appeared and made Brandish kneel and apologize by calling her Master.
• Aquarius scolded Lucy for failing to summon her, and Lucy immediately knelt and apologized too.

Irene discovered that the figure she had extracted was only a magical phantom, while Zeref sent her to retrieve Mavis. Riyao appeared on the cliff, beat Zeref, and stuffed him and Mavis into his magical tree before setting off to capture August.

• Irene learned that the figure in the dining hall was a phantom and confronted Zeref about Mavis escaping and the Spriggan 12 losing to Fairy Tail.
• Zeref dismissed the Spriggan 12 as pawns and ordered Irene to bring Mavis back from the forest.
• Riyao appeared beside Zeref with Mavis, then punched Zeref and resisted the death magic that erupted from him.
• Riyao stuffed Zeref into his magical tree, then captured Mavis in the same way when she tried to escape.
• Riyao decided to go into the forest and capture August, mentioning Natsu as another person for his planned family portrait.

Natsu fought August with Igneel's Spirit Fusion Form, but Riyao interrupted and sent Natsu back to Fairy Tail. Riyao then confronted August and tried to put him in the Parasol Tree to reunite the family.

• August's momentary distraction let Natsu land a powerful attack, and Natsu activated Spirit Fusion Form with Igneel.
• Natsu and August exchanged devastating attacks, but August copied magic to reflect Natsu's Crimson Lotus Phoenix Sword and send him crashing back.
• Riyao arrived carrying the Parasol Tree, watched while eating sunflower seeds, and argued with Natsu about who could claim August.
• Riyao declared Natsu's trial over and sent him through a tree-hole portal back to Fairy Tail's main position.
• Riyao approached August and tried to force him into the Parasol Tree.

Erza faced her mother Irene in a fierce battle after Irene revealed she wanted to take Erza’s body. Riyao empowered Erza’s wooden sword with Dragon Force as the fighting across the battlefield turned in favor of the guild, and he said it was time to end the stage built by the tree world.

• Irene confronted Erza and demanded that she surrender her body, while Erza rejected her and prepared to fight.
• Irene attacked with fire and ice magic, but Erza switched Requip armor to counter each element.
• Irene used the Sage Dragon’s roar to break through Erza’s Adamantine Armor and hurl her into the forest.
• Riyao watched from a treetop, then enchanted Erza’s Edgeless sword with Dragon Force after she called out for help.
• Erza charged Irene in Pure Heart Clothing, while Riyao surveyed the battlefield and noted that the imperial army had fallen and Neinhart was being beaten by Laxus and the others.

Riyao ended the battle in the Forest Sea of All Creation, leaving Irene as the only Spriggan 12 member still standing. He took Irene into a sealed subspace and used the Parasol Tree to draw out her vitality, asking her to enter the tree without attaching her soul to him.

• Erza repeatedly attacked Irene, while Riyao watched and teased them from a tree.
• Riyao ended the forest domain, revealing that the imperial army had been routed and Irene was the only one still standing.
• Mirajane reunited with Riyao, who joked with her before leaving to deal with Irene.
• Riyao gave Mirajane a dark book for Lucy and took Irene into a sealed subspace.
• Riyao thrust the Parasol Tree into Irene's heart, and Irene agreed to trust him and follow its pull.

Riyao refined the Parasol Tree into a weapon while Lucy tried to save Natsu with the Book of E.N.D. As Acnologia arrived, Ichiya and Anna lured him toward a spatial rift, but a frantic scream from within suggested he had been sent somewhere unexpected.

• Riyao began combining the powers inside the Parasol Tree to forge a weapon against Acnologia, worrying that Lucy might not save Natsu in time.
• Mirajane gave Lucy the Book of E.N.D., and Natsu collapsed as Lucy hurriedly read its demonic writing to keep him alive.
• Mini Igneel sensed Acnologia approaching, and Ichiya piloted the Christina toward a spatial rift while Anna explained that it could banish the dragon into the void.
• Ichiya and Anna avoided the rift as Acnologia pursued the dragon-scented airship, and Acnologia plunged into the spatial distortion.
• Someone inside the rift screamed, asking who had led the enemy into the village, leaving Ichiya and Anna stunned.

Riyao sealed the spacetime rift, then resumed forging the Parasol Tree while Anna and Ichiya tried to keep Acnologia occupied. On the battlefield, Anna revealed that the Dragon Slayers had been pulled into another space to fight Acnologia’s soul, while Riyao prepared a weapon and Fairy Tail received a surge of healing magic.

• Riyao sealed the spacetime rift and boarded the Christina, where he kicked Ichiya away before speaking with Anna Heartfilia.
• Anna thanked Riyao for protecting her descendants, and Riyao returned to forging the Parasol Tree as Anna stood guard.
• Acnologia broke through the sealed rift and chased the Christina, so Ichiya accelerated the airship while Riyao asked for more time.
• Lucy mourned Natsu’s apparent death until Levy noticed that the Dragon Slayers and their dragons had all disappeared.
• Anna told the battlefield that Acnologia’s body and soul had been separated and that the Dragon Slayers were fighting him in another space.
• Riyao sent healing and replenishing magic to the Fairy Tail members, then urged them to do their best.

Riyao and the Dragon Slayers were pulled into the Rift in Time to fight Acnologia’s spiritual body. Their combined attack briefly gained ground, but Acnologia overwhelmed them and began targeting Riyao, leaving the battle in grave danger.

• Riyao explained that the group had been drawn into the Rift in Time to face Acnologia’s weakened spiritual body.
• Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel, Sting, and Rogue used Soul Fusion with their dragons, while Laxus joined the fight without transforming and Cobra stayed back to warn them.
• Riyao transformed with Life Mimicry: Azure Dragon and joined the six Dragon Slayers in attacking Acnologia.
• Acnologia unleashed a shockwave that blasted the attackers away, then singled out Riyao and punched him through crystal pillars.
• Natsu and Gajeel attacked Acnologia with their roars, but he swallowed both blasts and showed no sign of harm.

Riyao empowered the Dragon Slayers as they fought Acnologia, but the Black Dragon overwhelmed them and tore out Riyao’s emerald heart. Cobra followed Riyao’s plan by taking the heart and making Natsu swallow it as Riyao’s spirit body dissolved.

• Riyao healed and strengthened the Dragon Slayers, then forced Cobra to join the fight by giving him Dragon Force.
• Acnologia overpowered Natsu, Gajeel, Laxus, and Cobra, then absorbed the combined attack from Sting, Rogue, and Wendy.
• Acnologia targeted Riyao, struck him down, and tore his heart from his chest to consume its life force.
• Riyao held Acnologia in place while Cobra took the heart, and Riyao’s spirit body began dissolving into green light.
• Cobra stuffed Riyao’s heart into Natsu’s mouth and told him that Riyao had left the rest to him.

With Riyao unconscious and Acnologia rampaging, the allied mages tried to trap the Black Dragon with Fairy Sphere by luring him onto a rocking ship. The plan briefly made him seasick, but his point-blank roar shattered the sphere, leaving Acnologia free again.

• Acnologia attacked the allied mages, and Lucy proposed using Fairy Sphere to seal him away.
• Gildarts lured Acnologia away while Lucy, Levy, and Makarov studied Fairy Sphere and the mages prepared the spell.
• Mirajane and Erza carried the unconscious Riyao on the All-Creation Giant Dragon to draw Acnologia toward Gray's ice ship.
• Gray, Ur, Silver, and Lyon made the ship from ice, while Juvia pushed it out to sea and Lucy's group completed the sealing formula.
• Mirajane and Erza escaped as Acnologia landed on the ship; the rocking waves made him seasick, and Lucy cast Fairy Sphere around both dragons.
• Acnologia smashed the ship, recovered from his seasickness, and broke the golden sphere with Black Dragon's Roar.

Riyao descended onto Acnologia and overwhelmed the Black Dragon after Gray, Erza, and their allies failed to stop his advance. The others survived the Black Dragon’s attack through Riyao’s teleportation, then watched as Mirajane explained his newfound power and admired his transformed appearance.

• Acnologia devoured the All-Creation Giant Dragon and pursued Mirajane as she carried Riyao toward shore.
• Erza, Gray, Lyon, Ur, and Silver attacked Acnologia with ice magic, but their combined assault barely scratched him.
• Acnologia unleashed his roar and devastated the coastline, but Riyao teleported Gray and the others to safety.
• Riyao descended from the sky, struck Acnologia’s head, and stomped him into the ground.
• Mirajane rejoined Gray and the others, explained that Riyao had fused life, death, space-time, and desire into the Parasol Tree, and praised his transformed appearance.

Riyao fought Acnologia across the coast and sea, using Dragon Force to pierce the black dragon’s defenses. He combined his powers with Mavis’s magic and awakened his perfected Azure Dragon Force, declaring himself the Complete Dragon as an enormous Azure Dragon appeared in the sky.

• Makarov and the Fairy Tail members watched Riyao battle Acnologia while Macao noticed that the sun had not moved from noon.
• Riyao summoned a rain of sunlight spears that drove Acnologia beneath the sea, then pursued it and struck its jaw to stop its roar.
• Riyao unleashed the seven-colored Dragon Force and repeatedly pierced Acnologia, while his life essence healed the wounds its claws inflicted.
• Riyao and Acnologia met each other’s dragon roars above the sea, unleashing shockwaves that battered the coast and forced the watching guild members to brace themselves.
• Riyao stopped suppressing his power, merged his life force with the seven kinds of Dragon Force, and received Mavis’s magic.
• Riyao’s armor and spear transformed with green dragon scales as an enormous Azure Dragon appeared behind him, and he declared himself the Complete Dragon.

Riyao used his Azure Dragon Spear of the Dark Firmament to cripple Black Dragon and turn its destructive beam back against it. He continued evading the wounded dragon while waiting for Natsu to attack from the Rift in Time so they could finish it together.

• Riyao condensed his Azure Dragon magic around his spear and pierced through Black Dragon’s right wing, sending the dragon crashing into the sea.
• Gildarts marveled that Riyao had wounded Black Dragon, while Cana teased him and Makarov about their ages.
• Black Dragon fired its destructive roar at Riyao, who redirected the beam back into the dragon’s forehead.
• The reflected blast stripped away Black Dragon’s scales and left it with severe wounds across its body.
• Riyao dodged Black Dragon’s frenzied attacks and waited for Natsu to strike from the Rift in Time.

After Riyao’s death, Natsu awakened END and absorbed the magic of five Dragon Slayers, pushing his power and dragon transformation to new heights. He struck Acnologia hard enough to drive him into the ground, but Acnologia counterattacked, and the two resumed their battle in midair.

• Natsu ate the heart Riyao had left behind, and END fully awakened within him as Riyao’s power of life contained the conflict inside him.
• Cobra the Venomous Snake told everyone to pour their magic into Natsu, and Laxus, Gajeel, Wendy, Sting, and Rogue unleashed their Dragon Slayer roars.
• Natsu swallowed the five roars, fusing them with his own power and developing dark red scales and crimson horns.
• Acnologia charged Natsu, but Natsu caught his punch and headbutted him into a deep crater.
• Acnologia fired a point-blank roar into the ground to blast Natsu back, then leaped from the smoke and clashed with him again in midair.

Natsu fought Acnologia in the unstable Magic Crystal cavern, using Riyao’s life heart and the magic of five dragons to match the Black Dragon’s power. After Riyao’s voice reached him through the heart, Natsu pierced Acnologia’s heart with the Crimson Lotus Phoenix Sword.

• Laxus warned that the cavern’s unstable Magic Crystals might explode while the exhausted Dragon Slayers worried about escaping.
• Natsu and Acnologia traded powerful punches and roars, shattering the cavern around them.
• Natsu used a trick Riyao had taught him, kicking Acnologia into the clash of their roars.
• Natsu gathered his power and launched the Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Shiranui Style: Crimson Lotus Phoenix Sword at Acnologia.
• Riyao’s voice answered Natsu through the emerald-green heart, and Natsu pierced Acnologia’s heart.

Riyao defeated Acnologia and used Rebirth to transform him into a Parasol Tree, giving up his immortality and magic in the process. Exhausted after the battle, Riyao was caught by Mirajane, who took him home.

• Riyao unleashed True Yin Wood Divine Lightning and blasted Acnologia until the Black Dragon could barely stand.
• Riyao told Acnologia that he was sick and that Riyao would take responsibility for him, then drove the Azure Dragon Spear into his heart.
• Riyao used Rebirth to grow the golden Parasol Tree through Acnologia, enclosing his body in an emerald cocoon and returning his destructive magic and resentment to the cycle of heaven and earth.
• Riyao's dragon traits faded, and the magic and immortal divinity sustaining him drained away, leaving him an ordinary person.
• Riyao collapsed from exhaustion, and Mirajane caught him and told him they were going home.

Riyao woke after three days of recovery and learned that Ishgar had defeated Alvarez, while the Magic Council arranged the troops’ return and reconstruction. Though he reassured Mirajane that his magical power sources remained, Riyao suddenly collapsed into sleep just before reaching the guild, leaving her alarmed.

• Riyao woke to find Mirajane sleeping on his chest, and she checked him anxiously after realizing he had been unconscious for three days.
• Mirajane told Riyao that Alvarez had been defeated, its remaining troops had returned home under treaties, and Ishgar was rebuilding after Irene’s Universe One spell.
• Riyao learned that Porlyusica had slapped him while he slept and that Jellal and Crime Sorcière had received pardons.
• Mirajane worried that Riyao had lost his magic, but he explained that his three sources of magical power remained and joked about learning Take Over Magic from her.
• As they neared the Fairy Tail guild, Riyao abruptly collapsed into Mirajane’s arms and fell asleep again, so she rushed inside with him.