Early next morning.
Magnolia station.
"Why should I follow you too..."
Lucy was carrying a huge mountaineering bag and followed the team at the back with a grimace on his face.
"Because you said you wanted to see how S-Class Mage works." Natsu held the back of his head with his hands and smiled evilly, "And one more person means more power!"
"I was just saying polite words!" Lucy was about to cry without tears.
Erza, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped and turned around to look at everyone.
"Listen up, this mission is no small matter."
Erza took out a map and pointed to an area circled by a red mark on it.
"The place we are going to is Forest of Delusion, which is located on the border of the Fiore Kingdom."
"Forest of Delusion?" Gray frowned, "I heard that it is a forbidden area, and few people who go in can come out."
"That's right." Erza nodded, "In the past month, anomalies have suddenly appeared in this forest. The magic power inside the forest has become extremely disordered, and many Mage who passed there have disappeared. The client requested us to investigate the cause and solve the source."
"Magic disorder?" Natsu sniffed, "No wonder I feel a little uncomfortable."
"In short, everyone should be careful." Erza put away the map, his eyes became sharp, "Let's go!"
After half a day's drive and two hours of hiking, the group finally stood at the edge of Forest of Delusion.
The scene here is completely different from the outside world.
It was clearly daytime, but the forest was as dark as dusk. Thick white mist filled the trees, and the visibility was less than ten meters. The trees grew in strange shapes, with twisted trunks, and branches and leaves showing a strange purple-black color, like ghost hands with teeth and claws.
The air was filled with a rotten smell, and it was eerily quiet, not even the chirping of birds or insects.
"So... so eerie..." Lucy clutched Erza's clothes tightly, feeling cold all over.
"Everyone, follow me closely and don't get separated."
Erza walked into the forest first, with a long sword in his hand.
Not long after entering the forest, a sudden change occurred.
Swish, swish, swish--
The surrounding bushes suddenly shook violently.
"Something is coming!" Gray shouted, his hands instantly posing.
The next second, countless thick vines shot out from the mist, whipping towards everyone like long whips. These vines were covered with sharp barbs, and there was a mouth full of sharp teeth at the top.
"It's Demonized Plant!" Erza's eyes turned cold, "Meet the enemy!"
"Just a good time to warm you up!"
Natsu roared, his fists igniting fire.
"Fire Dragon's--Iron Fist!"
Boom!
The flames exploded, and the first few vines were instantly burned to ashes.
"Ice Make--Lancer!"
Gray clapped his hands, and countless Ice Spear burst out of the air and pinned the vines coming from the side to the ground.
Erza is more direct.
"Requip·Heaven's Wheel Armor!"
With a flash of light, four pairs of steel wings spread out behind Erza, and countless magic swords floated around her.
"Heavenly Wheel·Blumenblatt!"
Brush brush brush--
The rain of swords fell, cutting the surrounding vines into pieces.
However, these monsters are endless. As soon as one is chopped down, more emerge from the ground, and their attacks become more crazy, and some even start to spray purple venom.
"This will never end!" Gray shouted loudly as he created an ice wall to block the venom.
Lucy, who had been hiding behind, suddenly pointed at the root of a vine and shouted:
"Look there! That glowing thing!"
Everyone looked in the direction she pointed, and saw a crystal glowing red in the soil dug out by the vines.
"That's Magic Core!" Lucy shouted, "They are driven by that!"
"Well done, Lucy!"
Natsu's eyes lit up and he rushed over.
"Fire Dragon's--Wing Strike!"
The huge flame wings swept across, not only burning the vines, but also directly shattering the core.
Click!
As the core shattered, a large area of surrounding vines withered instantly, turning into black ash and dissipating.
"It turns out that the weakness is at the root!" Erza immediately adjusted his tactics, "Natsu, Gray, focus on attacking the glowing places on the ground!"
Once you find the trick, the battle becomes easier instantly.
The three of them were like bulldozers, clearing away the monsters and advancing into the depths of the forest. Although Lucy was not strong in combat power, her observation skills played a huge role, constantly guiding everyone to the location of the core.
Finally, after clearing the last wave of vines, everyone came to an open space.
The concentration of magic here is suffocatingly high.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Heavy footsteps came from the depths of the mist, and the earth trembled slightly with the footsteps.
A terrifying coercion enveloped the entire place.
"Coming."
Erza stopped, clenched the sword in his hand, and his expression became very solemn.
The fog cleared.
A huge figure appeared.
It was a giant Tree Demon that was a hundred meters high. There was a ferocious human face on its trunk, and its eyes were shining with scarlet light. Countless thick branches were waving like arms, and Mage's broken clothes were hung on each branch.
This is the source of Forest of Delusion.
"That's our real goal."
The giant Tree Demon tree that was 100 meters high made a deafening the Roar sound. The sound wave carried the aura of corruption and blew away the surrounding fog in an instant. Its ferocious human face growing on the trunk twisted, and countless branches as thick as ancient dragons danced wildly in the air, bringing with it a shrill sound of breaking wind.
"Coming!"
Erza shouted sharply, and the long sword in his hand was instantly covered with magic power.
"Boom--!!!"
A huge branch with a diameter of several meters swept across. Wherever it passed, the ground cracked and gravel flew.
"Requip·Giant Armor!"
A golden light flashed, and a huge yellow armor covered her whole body, and there was a Spear of Evil-Breaking in her hand. Instead of retreating, she advanced, holding the gun in both hands, and stabbed the branches that were sweeping across.
Dang!
The metal collided with the hardwood, making a loud noise like hitting steel.
A huge repulsive force came along the barrel of the gun, and Erza groaned, plowing two deep ravines on the ground with his feet. He was knocked back several steps before he could barely stabilize his body.
"So hard!" Erza frowned, "This guy's bark is harder than steel!"
"Since it's not hard enough, then use burning ones!"
Natsu roared, his fists wrapped in blazing fire, and his whole body shot into the sky like a cannonball.
"Fire Dragon's--the Roar!!!"
A huge pillar of fire spurted out from his mouth and headed straight for Tree Demon's face. The high temperature distorted the air, and the red flames instantly engulfed Tree Demon's head.
However, the next second.