"When you landed on the island, I noticed you. And since you were here to take the S-Class Mage exam, I looked for someone on Tenrou Island with powerful magic. He happened to be close to us just now, so I chose him."
"..." Mavis's explanation left Xi Feng thoroughly impressed. She truly deserved the title of "Fairy Tail Strategist."
"Go on, then."
"Right." Xi Feng nodded and walked out. At the same moment, Gildarts opened his eyes.
"Ah!!" Gildarts stretched, then stood up and said, "Finally, someone's here. I was bored to death."
"Hello, Gildarts," Xi Feng greeted him.
"Hmm?" Now fully awake, Gildarts spotted Xi Feng and said, "You're Xi Feng, right? The master told me about you. You're a pretty impressive newcomer."
But just as Gildarts finished speaking, a boom rang out from elsewhere on Tenrou Island. Hearing the explosion, Gildarts's lips curved slightly. "Looks like the master's started too. Get ready for your exam, Xi Feng."
"I've been ready for ages." As Xi Feng spoke, his aura kept rising.
Chapter 16: Battle with Gildarts
Watching Xi Feng's magic power surge, Gildarts grew interested. Not to be outdone, he unleashed his own immense magic power. An equally powerful white aura poured from his body.
For a moment, the magic power radiating from Xi Feng and Gildarts clashed fiercely between them. Under the collision of those two forces, rocks on the ground and the surrounding trees were destroyed one after another.
"Wow, they're strong." Sitting nearby to watch the fight, Mavis held down her skirt.
But Xi Feng was still weaker than Gildarts, after all. As their magic power clashed, Gildarts gradually gained the upper hand. The two forces had initially been evenly matched, but Gildarts's magic power steadily pushed toward Xi Feng's. Meanwhile, the area occupied by Xi Feng's power shrank until it was pressed back right in front of him.
With no advantage in the clash of magic power, Xi Feng attacked first.
"Projection, Blade of Gale, Whirlwind Slash!"
The instant the Blade of Gale appeared in Xi Feng's hand, he swung it, sending a small tornado sweeping straight toward Gildarts.
Facing the oncoming tornado, Gildarts made no attempt to dodge. He simply clenched his right fist and swung, scattering Xi Feng's tornado with a single punch.
"Not bad, but it's still a little weak. You can skip the usual probing attacks."
After dispersing Xi Feng's attack with one punch, Gildarts spoke in a rather lazy tone.
"..."
Xi Feng wasn't surprised in the slightest that Gildarts had scattered his attack so easily. As Gildarts had said, he might as well forget these ordinary probing attacks. He took a deep breath, and his magic power climbed again.
"Projection-Boosted Gear!"
A red gauntlet instantly covered Xi Feng's left arm.
"Boost."
A mechanical voice rang out, and Xi Feng felt his strength double.
"Hmm? Requip Magic? No, it doesn't look like it." Gildarts's eyes filled with interest as he studied the dragon-claw-like gauntlet on Xi Feng's left hand.
In a flash, Xi Feng appeared before Gildarts and swung his left fist at him.
"!!!" Xi Feng's speed startled Gildarts, but he reacted quickly and threw a punch of his own. Their magic-charged fists collided, sending a fierce shock wave bursting outward between them. The powerful gust swept up clouds of dust from the ground, and both men were forced several steps back.
"Boost." Once again, a mechanical voice sounded from the Boosted Gear, doubling his already doubled strength.
After retreating a few steps, Xi Feng quickly steadied himself, gathered a great deal of magic power into his left fist, and punched at Gildarts again.
Bang!
Gildarts quickly crossed his arms in front of himself, blocking Xi Feng's attack once more. This time, however, something felt wrong. When he caught Xi Feng's attack, he realized its force was considerably greater than before, and he frowned.
"Boost." Just then, another mechanical voice rang out from the Boosted Gear.
"What?!" After the voice sounded, Gildarts distinctly felt Xi Feng's strength increase again. The sudden change forced him to slide backward, carving two furrows nearly a meter long into the ground.
Once he stopped, Gildarts looked at Xi Feng with considerable interest, his gaze settling on the Boosted Gear on his left hand.
"Your strength doubles at regular intervals during battle. Is that the gauntlet's ability? How interesting."
After blocking the attack, Gildarts didn't wait for Xi Feng to strike again. He charged straight at him and drove a fist hard into his stomach. Gildarts was too fast for Xi Feng to react. The punch sent him flying more than ten meters before he crashed heavily to the ground.
So this is Gildarts's strength? That instantaneous burst of power and speed is beyond an ordinary S-Class Mage.
Xi Feng slowly stood up, an indescribable excitement in his eyes. This was the strongest person he had encountered since coming to this world.
"Boost."
Accompanied by another mechanical voice, Xi Feng stepped forward and charged again.
"You're still standing? You're not bad, Xi Feng. I like you." Seeing Xi Feng charge again, Gildarts raised an eyebrow and moved to meet him. From their earlier exchanges, he knew Xi Feng's strength increased at regular intervals. Although he didn't know whether it could keep stacking indefinitely, he still had to be careful.
Bang!! Their next collision produced a tremendous crash, and their raging magic power once again devastated their surroundings.
"Explosion Dragon Shot."
A mechanical voice rang out again. A sphere of magic light appeared in Xi Feng's left hand, and with a swing, he sent it hurtling toward Gildarts.
Gildarts showed no panic. He calmly extended his right hand and said in a low voice, "Crush."
Xi Feng's attack stopped instantly, then disintegrated before his astonished eyes.
So this is Gildarts's True Magic?!
Although he had seen Gildarts's True Magic in the manga, it was far more shocking to witness it firsthand. Watching from a distance, Mavis frowned and murmured to herself, "Ultra-class destruction True Magic-Crash. It looks like you're in trouble, Xi Feng."
Seeing Xi Feng's expression, Gildarts assumed he was frightened and said lightly, "Scared? This is my True Magic, ultra-class destruction True Magic-Crash. It can instantly shatter the bonds between the atoms of any substance it touches."
"Scared? Not a chance." Xi Feng smiled, but he knew he couldn't keep pushing himself much longer. The Boosted Gear wasn't an ordinary weapon. It was a God-Slaying Sacred Gear, and projecting it consumed an enormous amount of magic power.
"Welsh Dragon Over Booster!!!"
After a mechanical voice rang out, Xi Feng's magic power erupted skyward, whipping up fierce gusts of wind.
"Hmm? This magic power... Are you going all out?" Feeling Xi Feng's magic power, Gildarts was slightly surprised. Then he unleashed his own tremendous magic power.
Meanwhile, on the other side of Tenrou Island, Makarov and Laxus stopped their fierce battle when they sensed Gildarts's and Xi Feng's magic power.
"This magic power..." Makarov looked in Xi Feng's direction, his thoughts unreadable.
"Xi Feng!!" Those two surges of magic power spurred Laxus on, and his own magic power welled up.
"Lightning Dragon's Roar!"
Laxus's attack snapped Makarov out of his thoughts, and he met it head-on without fear.
After the gale subsided, Xi Feng stood before Gildarts in a suit of red armor.
"Boost!!" Accompanied by a mechanical voice, Xi Feng charged straight at Gildarts.
"That's more like it!!" Gildarts was just as excited as he watched Xi Feng rush toward him, and he threw a punch at him.
Boom! Their fists collided, producing a tremendous crash.
(Updates will be fixed at one or two a day, since I have quite a lot to do. Sorry. The power went out last night.)
Chapter 17: Father and Daughter Reunited (Please Send Flowers and Bookmark)
"Hmm?" Xi Feng slowly opened his eyes, only to discover that he was no longer on Tenrou Island. He was aboard a ship.
"You're awake," Makarov's voice sounded.
"What happened to me?" Xi Feng slowly stood up and looked at Makarov in confusion.
Seeing Xi Feng's expression, Makarov understood his confusion and said, "You passed out while fighting Gildarts."
Makarov's words instantly brought it all back to Xi Feng. During the battle, his magic power had run too low to sustain the Boosted Gear's Balance Breaker form, and he had eventually passed out.
"Then my S-Class Exam...?"
"Your exam..." Makarov drew out his words, making Xi Feng inexplicably anxious. He hurriedly said, "Tell me already, Master."
"What an impatient child." Watching Xi Feng, Makarov shook his head and said, "Congratulations, Xi Feng. You're an S-Class Mage now."
"Yes!!!" Makarov's words instantly made Xi Feng cheer.
"Based on your strength, Gildarts and I have awarded you the title of S-Class Mage." Makarov looked at Xi Feng and said softly, "I never expected you to put Gildarts in such a sorry state. I haven't seen that in years."
"Thank you." After nodding to Makarov, Xi Feng seemed to remember something. He hurried to the stern and looked toward Tenrou Island. Just as he had expected, he spotted Mavis standing by the largest tree, watching them. He quickly waved at her and shouted, "I'll come back to hang out with you when I have time!"
On Tenrou Island, Mavis froze briefly when she heard Xi Feng's words, but quickly recovered, a smile appearing on her face.
"What are you talking about, Xi Feng?" Gildarts, who had just stepped out of a room, looked at him in confusion.
"Hmm? Oh, Gildarts. Nothing." Seeing that it was Gildarts, Xi Feng shook his head and hurriedly changed the subject. "By the way, Gildarts, there's something I need to tell you."
"Hmm? What is it?" Gildarts looked at him, his face full of confusion.
"What I'm about to tell you is extremely important to you. You need to prepare yourself."
"Extremely important to me? Then tell me already." Being kept in suspense was unbearable for Gildarts, and he hurriedly urged him on.
"All right." Seeing Gildarts keep pressing him, Xi Feng paused, then said, "Gildarts, you have a daughter."
"Oh, so that's it. I have a..." Gildarts was dismissive at first, but then his jaw dropped.
"I have a daughter!!!"
"That's right." Xi Feng nodded.
Before you continue