Upgrade Examination (4)

Having learned from their previous experience, this time everyone acted first and joined forces to lock up Old Suo and his companion.

Looking at the various colored barriers around him and overhead, Old Suo laughed, "Hehe! I knew you'd pull this trick!"

"Earth Magic: Iwai - Quicksand Passage"

"Buzz!"

As Old Suo's magic surged into the ground, the hard ground instantly softened, forming an underground tunnel.

"Macao, let's go!"

Upon hearing Old Suo's call, Macao immediately followed and jumped into the passage.

"Haha! Everyone, we're going to be on our way again!"

Seeing the bluish-white windboat that had once again surpassed them and disappeared into the distance, everyone's faces showed surprise. Then they all sped up and chased after it.

High in the air, they were not only free from the constraints of the terrain, but also able to stealthily approach the school of flying fish and carefully search for targets. Therefore, Sordil and his team completed their capture mission in just half a day. However, instead of immediately leaving for Clowbar City, they wandered through the canyon, watching the spectacle.

"Macao, look! It's Gildarts and the others!"

Following the direction Old Suo pointed, he indeed saw two familiar figures.

"Wow! With Gildarts's violent demolition, won't they flatten this place? (Old Suo)"

"If he can't leave soon, it's not impossible!" (Macao)

"Ugh! That's too violent! Let's go look somewhere else!"

With that, Old Suo urged the windboat to fly in another direction.

"Hey! Macao, who do you think has a better figure, Sonia or Leena?"

Looking down at the two people passing below, Macao quickly blocked the two streams of blood gushing from his nostrils, then pointed to his right.

"Huh? I thought you'd choose Leena, but it's Sonia instead. You have no taste!"

Hearing Old Suo's complaints, Macao raised his head and retorted, "Although Leena's figure is also good, her skin tone is not as good as Sonia's, and Sonia's body proportions are more balanced, making her look more beautiful."

"Oh! So that's what you think. But I think Leena's tanned skin looks better."

After Sordil finished speaking, Macao shook his head frantically.

"No! No! Snow-white skin is definitely the most beautiful!"

"A wheatish color is better!"

"Snow white is best!"

"Wheat!"

"Snow-white!"

"Wheat!"

"Snow-white!"

"Call out"

"Smack!"

Just as their verbal battle reached its climax, a whooshing sound came from the southeast, followed by a blue light appearing high in the sky.

"That's... a distress signal? (Old Suo)"

The two exchanged a glance, then stopped arguing and headed in the direction from which the signal had come.

When the two arrived at the scene of the accident, a blue and white warship appeared in front of them, and Lyra and Holi were helping them into the cabin.

"Magic Critical Ship - Christina? (Old Suo)"

"Christina? Isn't that the prized possession of the Blue Pegasus (Macao)?"

"That's right!"

Hearing Old Suo's words, Macao carefully scanned Christina, then murmured, "The president is really amazing, she can even borrow this treasure!"

"Hehe! What's the big deal? If you like it, I'll borrow it after the assessment and take you for a drive!"

"Real?"

Looking at the excited Macao, Old Suo shook his head with a smile and said, "Of course it's true!"

"Yeah!"

"Alright! There'll be plenty of time for you to get excited later. Now, you'd better sit down and get moving, we need to get going!"

Upon hearing Old Suo's words, Macao immediately complied. The next second, a bluish-white light slid across the sky, and the two disappeared into the distance.

Three days later, apart from the eliminated Bohr group, the other four groups all completed the task on time.

After resting for a night at the hotel arranged by Makarov, the group went to the outskirts of Clowbar City to hold the third and final test.

"The third test is very simple. It involves you two battling each other to select the top two. In other words, only two of you can pass the test and be promoted to S-Class Mage."

Upon hearing Makarov's words, everyone glanced at Sordil, then exchanged a fierce look.

"As for the opponents... we'll decide based on the order in which you arrived in Clowbar City: the first place will fight the fourth place, and the second place will fight the third place."

After his opponent was announced, Ivan's face instantly darkened. (As for the reason... well! He was fourth place.)

"There's one more thing I need to clarify: when the battle ends, both of you must remain on the arena. Otherwise, regardless of the final outcome, you will be considered the losers."

The moment the additional rules were announced, Sordil and Gildarts frowned slightly, while Ivan and Sonia looked much better.

Is everything ready?

"Ready!"

After receiving everyone's response, Makarov nodded, then pointed to the two designated combat zones not far away and said, "Now that we're ready, let's begin!"

"Yes!"

After answering, everyone entered the combat area with their respective opponents.

"Macao, I'll cast Augmented Magic on you later, enhancing your speed, strength, and defense. Go and draw their attention, buying me time to set up the formation." (Old Suo telegraphed)

"Understood!" (Macao's reply)

Just as they finished formulating their tactics, the two entered the combat zone.

"Gale Force"

"The Steel Arm Strength"

"Armor Strength"

"God's Knight"

With a barrage of support magic applied to him, Macao instantly felt his strength increase rapidly.

"Whoosh"

After adjusting to his new state, Macao immediately executed a snake-like maneuver.

He first rushed in front of the enemy, and then, before Ivan and the other man could react, he circled around them and turned back.

"Hmph! This is outrageous!"

After speaking, Ivan threw a Paper Person Lasso at the moving Macao. At the same time, his partner kept a close eye on Sordil, ready to save him if the Old Suo intervened.

Just then, Sordil suddenly opened his eyes and gave him a strange smile.

"Gulp"

Before Versailles ' (Ivan's partner) saliva could even reach his stomach, he was stripped of control of his body by the silver-white Magic Array beneath his feet. Of course, this wasn't just his privilege; his partner Ivan also enjoyed this treatment.

"Whoosh"

After dealing with Ivan and the other two, Old Suo Teleportation behind Macao and dealt with the attack from behind.

"Let's go, it's time to claim the spoils of victory!"

Upon hearing Old Suo's words, Macao nodded, and then followed Sordil to Ivan and the other man.

"You take care of that guy, and I'll take care of Ivan. We'll stop attacking when they admit defeat."

"Clear!"

"Oh, right! Don't go too hard, and don't attack their vital points."

"Knew!"

After saying this, they began a brutal one-on-one duel with Ivan and his companion.

"Tsk tsk! Sordil is really ruthless. Ivan and the others are going to suffer this time!" (Holi)

"Heh! Holi, if you had stopped him back then, do you think you would have done the same thing as Ivan and the others? (Garpate)"

Hearing his old friend's sarcasm, Holi rolled his eyes at him and retorted, "As if things wouldn't turn out this way if you went!"

After Holi finished speaking, the three of them (Holi, Ridas, Garpate, three male S-Class Mage) exchanged glances, then stared at Lyra and said, "Thank goodness for Lyra!"

Whether it was because the three of them were too loud, or because Lyra's hearing was too good, the moment those words appeared in the air, wisps of white smoke appeared on Lyra's forehead.

"If you're bored, go outside and have a fight. Stop chattering here and disturbing the president's view of the match. (Lyra)"

After being hit on the back of the head by a flying iron pot, Makarov blinked in bewilderment.

"Ahem! Stop fooling around, watch the game carefully!"

Upon seeing the guild master offer them a way out, the three of them immediately stepped down without saying a word. However, their eyes were all focused on Gildarts, since there was really nothing interesting about the match there.

"Wind Sickle"

"Crush"

After deflecting Sonia's attack, Gildarts threw an uppercut at her abdomen.

"Sister Sonia!"

When Leena was about to come to her aid, Sonia quickly stopped her.

"Leena, don't come any closer, keep Wakaba occupied!"

Upon hearing this, Leena stopped and continued fighting with Wakaba.

"Wind Shapes - Storm Tower"

"Hiss hiss"

As soon as Gilkunis's fist approached Sonia's trench coat, it was torn in several places by the airflow emanating from it.

Realizing that a direct attack was futile, Gildarts changed his fist into a palm strike, unleashing a white grid of energy forward. The next second, his long, slender trench coat was sliced into countless small pieces, gradually dissipating into the air.

"Um?"

As Gildarts stared at the empty space ahead, his brow furrowed slightly. Just then, a delicate shout came from behind him.

"Flowing Wind Slash"

"Call out"

A whooshing sound rang out, followed by a crescent-shaped white Shockwave that slashed towards Gildarts ' lower back.

He twitched his ear slightly, then Gilkunis flicked it backhand, sending it flying into a Crush.

"Bang!"

A clear chirping sound arrived first, followed by a Clear Wind.

After dealing with the opponent's attack, Gildarts did not turn around, but carefully sensed the changes in his surroundings.

"Phew! He's really troublesome. No wonder he's that lord's close aide!" (Gildarts's inner thoughts)

Just as a ripple of emotion stirred within him, a Storm Tower enveloped him, and at the same time, several bluish-white crossbow bolts flew out from above and below.