Chapter Summaries

Chen Fan joked with Macao and Wakaba while they discussed the younger guild members, until Mira and Erza interrupted their lewd conversation. The chapter ended with Erza acknowledging Lili’s superior swordsmanship.

• Chen Fan told Macao and Wakaba that friendship mattered far more to him than love, and they celebrated being his closest friends.
• Chen Fan, Macao, and Wakaba began making lewd remarks about the guild’s young women while Lisanna, Wendy, and Charle listened nearby.
• Mira threw a fork and a sword into the table beside the three men and claimed her aim had been a little off.
• Erza praised Lili as a formidable swordswoman and admitted that she was no match for her.

Charle explained that she could not foresee Chen Fan directly or change what she saw, while the guild prepared for a major announcement. The next day, Fairy Tail gathered in the hall as Makarov and four others appeared onstage, leaving the announcement unrevealed.

• Erza continued sparring with Lili after dismissing his claim that she had thrown her own sword.
• Charle told Wendy and Lisanna that she could not see Chen Fan directly or alter what she foresaw.
• The Fairy Tail members gathered in the guild hall the next day to hear Makarov's announcement.
• Makarov appeared onstage with Erza, Mira, Chen Fan, and Gildarts as the guild members cheered for the news.

Makarov announced the candidates for Fairy Tail’s S-Class Mage Promotion Trial, which would take place on Tenrou Island. Natsu, Gray, Juvia, Elfman, Cana, Fried, Levy, and Mest were named as the eight candidates.

• Makarov announced that the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial would be held on Tenrou Island.
• Makarov named Natsu Dragneel as the first candidate, and Natsu celebrated with Happy.
• Makarov named Gray Fullbuster, Juvia Lockser, and Elfman as candidates, and Elfman vowed to become S-Class.
• Makarov named Cana Alberona and Fried Justine as candidates.
• Makarov named Levy McGarden and Mest Gryder as the final candidates, and Levy celebrated with Draer and Jet.

Fairy Tail announced the partner rules and challenges for the S-Class Mage exam, with Chen Fan joining as the final assessor. After the chosen candidates were told to gather at Hargeon Port within a week, the guild returned to normal, and Lucy questioned why Chen Fan had joined their gathering.

• Mira announced that the eight candidates had to choose Fairy Tail partners who were not S-Class Mages.
• Makarov revealed that Erza, Mira, Gildarts, and Chen Fan would take part in the exam, and Chen Fan said he would decide whether candidates passed the final assessment.
• Makarov ordered the candidates and their partners to meet at Hargeon Port within a week.
• The guild returned to its usual routine, and Lucy complained when Chen Fan joined a gathering with Gray, Juvia, Wendy, Natsu, and the others.

Chen Fan teased the Fairy Tail members about the S-Class exam while they chose partners, and Natsu set off to train with Happy. Lisanna revealed that Chen Fan had never intended to let Natsu pass because Natsu believed becoming an S-Class Mage would let him see Igneel.

• Lucy accused Chen Fan of spying for information about the S-Class exam, and he said he might let the candidates pass if they met his goals.
• Elfman tried to bribe Chen Fan with Mira’s private photos, but Mira overheard and quietly left.
• Chen Fan asked whether everyone had chosen partners, and Natsu picked Happy despite Gray and Elfman objecting.
• Natsu declared that he would become an S-Class Mage and rushed off with Happy to train.
• Lisanna told Lucy that Chen Fan had never planned to let Natsu pass because Natsu hoped the rank would help him see Igneel.

The guild members chose partners for the S-Class exam, while Chen Fan reflected on how he might alter the future. The group then sailed toward Tenrou Island aboard Chen Fan’s luxurious cruise ship, where the exam felt more like a vacation.

• Gray revealed that he had chosen Loke as his partner, and Loke returned to the guild and showed his guild mark.
• Lisanna paired with Juvia, Elfman teamed up with Evergreen after Chen Fan encouraged him, and Gajeel offered to partner with Levy.
• Gray told Lucy that Chen Fan had bought his S-Class rank, and Chen Fan insisted the matter was still a secret.
• Chen Fan considered how his presence might change the course of history as snow began to fall that evening.
• The group sailed toward Tenrou Island on Chen Fan’s private cruise ship, and Lucy relaxed on deck while complaining that he had never shared it with the guild.

Chen Fan and Lucy traded teasing remarks aboard the ship as the group approached Tenrou Island, where Fairy Tail's S-Class Mage examination would take place. Makarov introduced the island and announced that he would reveal the first stage of the examination.

• Lucy questioned Chen Fan's lack of muscles, and he embarrassed her with a crude joke about what measured a man's strength.
• Happy revealed that Chen Fan had tried working out to build muscle, then quickly praised him after Chen Fan threatened him.
• Levy, Wendy, and Evergreen commented on their swimsuits and Chen Fan's wealth.
• The group spotted Tenrou Island and excitedly admired its unusual shape.
• Makarov explained that Tenrou Island was Fairy Tail's sacred ground and the resting place of First Generation master Mavis Vermillion, then began announcing the examination's first stage.

Makarov explained the S-Class exam’s first stage, a test of strength and luck on the way to Tenrou Island. When the exam began at sea, Fried trapped most of the candidates with a spell formula while Bickslow raced ahead, and Levy and Gajeel swam toward the island.

• Makarov described eight routes to Tenrou Island, with Erza, Mira, and Gildarts guarding some paths and one route leading directly to the destination.
• Natsu and Happy tried to fly ahead, but Fried’s spell formula blocked the candidates; Bickslow rode a doll toward the island.
• Fried said the spell formula would last five minutes and would not affect Chen Fan, while Makarov remained silent when Gray questioned whether it was allowed.
• Lucy asked Levy to rewrite the spell formula, but Levy said she could only free herself and Gajeel, so the two jumped into the sea and headed for Tenrou Island.

Levy and Evergreen broke Fried’s spell, allowing the guild members to leave the ship and head for Tenrou Island to begin the S-Class Mage exam. Chen Fan stayed with Makarov, then carried him toward the island, where the two continued talking about the exam and the First Generation.

• Evergreen rewrote Fried’s spell formula with Levy’s help, and the two left the group; Elfman thanked Chen Fan for introducing them.
• When the five-minute spell expired, the ship was freed, and Natsu, Gray, Rocky, Lisanna, Juvia, Lucy, and Kana set off toward Tenrou Island.
• Lucy and Kana noticed that Mest and Wendy had disappeared and hurried after the others.
• Chen Fan stayed behind with Makarov, who worried about the exam participants and the threat to Fairy Tail’s sacred ground.
• Chen Fan lifted Makarov and flew toward Tenrou Island, joking with him before asking whether Fairy Tail’s First Generation was a beautiful little girl.

Lucy and Kana entered the final passage of the S-Class trial and faced Raijinshuu members Bickslow and Fried. After their first attacks failed, Lucy used Kana’s water to prepare a stronger Celestial Spirit summon.

• Lucy and Kana entered the last passage, where Bickslow and Fried confronted them.
• Bickslow defeated Lucy, while Fried restrained Kana with enchantments and insisted that he would inherit Laxus's legacy.
• Kana exploited Fried’s embarrassment to trap him among summoned women, while Lucy summoned Virgo to fight Bickslow.
• Bickslow’s dolls defeated Virgo, and Kana’s Wish Fountain failed to stop them.
• Lucy used Kana’s water to summon Aquarius from the Zodiac Twelve Palaces.

Lucy and Kana used Aquarius’s magic to open a passage, while Fried and Bickslow pretended to be defeated so the two could continue. Natsu and Happy entered another path and encountered Gildarts.

• Lucy summoned Aquarius, whose wave swept away the attack and opened the passage for Lucy and Kana.
• Aquarius insulted Kana, and Lucy noted how similar the two women were.
• Lucy and Kana saw Fried and Bickslow fall, then celebrated when the passage opened and continued onward.
• Fried and Bickslow revealed they had only pretended to collapse, and Fried said he believed Laxus would return to Fairy Tail.
• Natsu and Happy searched for Erza and entered a room where they encountered Gildarts.

During the first stage of the S-Class Mage exam, Natsu and Happy encountered Gildarts, while Erza defeated Lisanna and Juvia and Mira confronted Elfman and Evergreen. Chen Fan and Makarov visited Mavis's grave, where Makarov asked Chen Fan to accept responsibility for Fairy Tail; after they left, Mavis watched them from above her gravestone.

• Natsu and Happy ran into Gildarts, and Natsu eagerly prepared to fight him.
• Erza defeated Lisanna and Juvia after they attacked her together, eliminating them from the first stage.
• Mira confronted Elfman and Evergreen in her Satan form, while Chen Fan and Makarov continued toward Mavis's grave.
• Makarov asked Chen Fan whether he could shoulder the responsibilities of Fairy Tail's guild master, and Chen Fan said he could while urging Makarov not to retire yet.
• Chen Fan and Makarov left the grave to return to the exam, unaware that Mavis was floating above it and watching them.

Natsu challenged Gildarts in the S-Class Mage examination, but Gildarts repeatedly countered his attacks without moving from his spot. Gildarts said Natsu had grown strong enough to pass, but Natsu refused to accept that without defeating him, and Gildarts became serious.

• Natsu charged Gildarts, who caught his attacks and knocked him down with ease.
• Natsu used Fire Dragon's Roar, but Gildarts's severing magic broke apart the attack and scattered Natsu.
• Natsu split into tiny copies and rushed Gildarts, but Gildarts restored him to one body.
• Natsu unleashed Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Crimson Lotus Exploding Flame Blade, but Gildarts emerged unharmed and had not moved.
• Gildarts told Natsu he could pass the examination, but Natsu insisted on defeating him, prompting Gildarts to turn serious.

Natsu passed Gildarts’ trial after confronting his fear, but still needed to earn Chen Fan’s approval to become an S-Class Mage. Makarov and Chen Fan gathered the first-stage passers, while Elfman’s fate remained unknown.

• Gildarts overwhelmed Natsu with his magic, and Natsu stopped his attack and admitted defeat.
• Gildarts praised Natsu for recognizing his weakness and declared that he had passed, then warned him that Chen Fan’s approval was still required.
• Gray and Loke emerged from the cave after defeating Wendy and Mest, while Kana, Lucy, Gajeel, and Levy had also reached the gathering point.
• Makarov announced that Kana and Lucy, Natsu and Happy, Levy and Gajeel, and Gray and Loke had passed the first stage.
• Chen Fan warned Gray and Loke that Gray would fail if they had harmed Wendy, and they hurriedly assured him they had not.

Elfman and Evergreen passed the first stage after defeating Mirajane, completing the five qualifying groups. Makarov announced the second stage, and Natsu rallied the other candidates before demanding to know what the test would be.

• Makarov revealed that Juvia and Lisanna had encountered Erza, while Lucy concluded that Evergreen and Elfman had faced Mirajane.
• Elfman and Evergreen returned battered and announced that they had defeated Mirajane by exploiting a small opening.
• Makarov declared that five groups had passed the first stage and announced the second stage of the exam.
• Natsu shook off his depression and challenged Gray, Kana, Levy, and Elfman to compete for S-Class qualifications.
• Natsu confronted Chen Fan and demanded to know what the next test would be.

Chen Fan and Makarov argued over who would oversee the S-Class exam before agreeing that Chen Fan would handle the next steps. As the candidates searched the island for Mavis's grave, monstrous creatures chased them through the wilderness.

• Makarov told the candidates to find Mavis's grave within six hours, while Mest persuaded Wendy to search for Fairy Tail's hidden secret.
• Chen Fan and Makarov argued about who would manage the exam, then headed toward the shore together.
• Chen Fan told Makarov he wanted the exam to assess Natsu, Gray, and the others for both S-Class promotion and the guild master role, and Makarov agreed to leave the next steps to him.
• Lucy and Kana fled a giant lizard, and Lucy outran Kana after the monster nearly caught her.
• Gajeel and Levy hid behind a rock while a tall monster searched for them.
• Gray and Loke ran from a flock of giant birds.

During the S-Class Mage exam, Natsu and Happy searched for the First Generation Guild Master's grave and decided to climb Tenrou Island's summit. At the temporary base, Mira's claim that Elfman and Evergreen were getting married sparked talk of marriage that flustered Erza and Mira.

• Gray ran from a gigantic wild boar while Elfman and Evergreen fled from another one.
• Natsu defeated a monster, tried to make it reveal where the grave was, and learned it did not know.
• Natsu and Happy decided the summit looked suspicious and set out to climb it.
• At the temporary base, Mira told Erza that Elfman and Evergreen were getting married, then suggested it might have been a tactic to unsettle her.
• Lisanna asked Mira and Erza when they planned to marry Chen Fan, and both women blushed and denied it was possible.

Juvia, Lisanna, Erza, and Mira discussed Chen Fan’s relationships while waiting for Wendy and Mest. Elsewhere, Elfman and Evergreen escaped a monster and fell into a hole, where their conversation was interrupted by Zeref.

• Juvia fainted after declaring she would marry Gray, and Lisanna teased Erza and Mira about Chen Fan’s feelings for them and his rumored connection to a princess.
• Erza and Mira reacted angrily to hearing Chen Fan had been involved with a princess, while Chen Fan felt a sudden chill far away by the sea.
• Erza, Mira, Lisanna, and Juvia wondered where Wendy and Mest were, and Juvia and Erza went to look for them.
• Elfman and Evergreen, drained of magic after fighting Mira, fled a spotted wild boar and fell into an underground hole.
• Elfman told Evergreen he was grateful to have her as his partner, while privately crediting Chen Fan’s advice for his words.
• Zeref appeared in the woods and interrupted Elfman and Evergreen.

Natsu, Elfman, and Evergreen encountered Zeref on Fairy Island, where his deadly magic nearly struck them before he vanished. Zeref learned Chen Fan was on the island, while Hades and Demon's Heart set out to awaken Zeref and attack Fairy Tail.

• Elfman warned Evergreen that Zeref seemed dangerous, but Zeref's Death Hunt magic spread toward them until Natsu knocked them out of its path.
• Natsu struck Zeref, who wondered whether he needed to find Chen Fan; when Zeref's magic erupted again, he disappeared, leaving Natsu's scarf blackened.
• Zeref realized Chen Fan was on the island and searched for him, while Happy arrived and Elfman concluded that Natsu's scarf had saved his life.
• Natsu and Elfman decided to continue the S-Class Mage exam despite the danger.
• Urutia told Hades that Demon's Heart had found the sleeping Zeref, and Hades ordered the guild to head for Fairy Island and awaken him.
• Zancrow dismissed Fairy Tail and Chen Fan as threats and vowed to burn them to ashes.

Chen Fan and Makarov prepared for Demon's Heart’s arrival on Tenrou Island while the dark guild’s members approached by aircraft. As Chen Fan launched an attack at the aircraft, Hades realized the danger and ordered his people to scatter.

• Caprico warned the Seven Kin of Purgatory not to underestimate Chen Fan, while Hades declared that Demon's Heart would show Fairy Tail the power of darkness.
• Chen Fan urged Makarov to search Tenrou Island in case the enemy had already infiltrated it, then began to explain something about Hades before spotting the approaching aircraft.
• Zancrow, Caprico, Rustyrose, Kain Hikaru, Meredy, and Urutia saw Tenrou Island from Demon's Heart’s aircraft.
• Hades abruptly stood and shouted for everyone to scatter, startling the Kin with his alarm.
• Chen Fan flicked a coin into the air as the aircraft approached, while Makarov watched without knowing what he intended.