Chapter Summaries

Macao and Lin Yuan uncovered sabotage of the canyon’s signal towers and raced to stop an ambush on a caravan. They discovered the caravan was bait for the attackers, whose trap turned against them when the wagons revealed hidden armor.

• Macao had Tower One’s positioning dial corrected and ordered the canyon entrance to stop caravans while he and Lin Yuan investigated the sabotaged signals.
• At Tower Two, Macao identified a wind-gathering device, and Lin Yuan redirected its stored gale safely out through the tower roof.
• They found a list targeting a royal capital medicinal herb caravan and hurried toward Tower Three, where fresh tracks showed twelve wagons had entered the northern road.
• Macao sent a warning to the canyon entrance, and he and Lin Yuan followed the tracks to a valley where masked attackers had trapped the caravan.
• Macao and Lin Yuan realized the caravan drivers were ready to fight and that the wagons concealed armor; the covers were pulled back, shocking the ambushers.

Lin Yuan and Macao helped the guards defeat the bandits who had been sabotaging the signal towers and stealing from caravans. With the captives secured and Tower Two repaired, they headed toward the still-dark Tower Three.

• The guards revealed their hidden shields as the masked bandits attacked, and Lin Yuan redirected falling boulders away from the caravan.
• Macao trapped the bandits at the canyon entrance with Purple Flare while Lin Yuan pursued an ambusher carrying a pouch of Magic Crystals.
• Lin Yuan folded the distance between the ambusher and Tower Three, took the pouch, and left him tangled in his own wind magic.
• The guards captured all nineteen bandits, who had used the signal towers and wind-type magic devices to lure caravans and obstruct repairs.
• The repairman reported that Tower Two was fixed, and Lin Yuan led Macao toward Tower Three.

Lin Yuan led Macao and a technician in restoring the signal towers, adapting his spatial magic to transport supplies and stabilize Tower Seven during a storm. After the team completed the commission in nine days, Makarov approved Lin Yuan to lead his own team on future A-rank missions.

• Lin Yuan chose to repair Tower Five before Tower Four so its position could serve as a coordinate for transporting supplies.
• Lin Yuan refined his spatial magic to keep tools and parts in place during transfers, and the team restored Tower Four and Tower Six.
• When the wind season threatened Tower Seven, Lin Yuan fixed the tower’s position to its original coordinates while Macao burned incoming debris and the technician repaired the foundation.
• The seven signal towers came back online, and the team returned to Magnolia with three completion stamps after finishing the commission in nine days.
• Makarov reviewed Macao’s evaluation and told Lin Yuan he could lead his own team on his next A-rank mission.

Over the year, Lin Yuan and his Fairy Tail friends completed jobs and grew stronger, while Lin Yuan’s spatial magic improved. When Makarov posted the annual S-Class exam candidates, only Lin Yuan and Laxus had been selected.

• Lin Yuan led Natsu and Gray on a job, and the client complained about the trouble they caused while recovering the cargo.
• Lin Yuan, Mira, and Laxus completed jobs through the seasons as Mira stabilized her Satan Soul and Lin Yuan’s spatial perception grew.
• Lisanna and Elfman began learning Take Over Magic, and Lisanna teased Lin Yuan about his magic.
• Lin Yuan and Laxus fought four more times without either winning decisively.
• Makarov posted the S-Class exam list, naming only Lin Yuan and Laxus as candidates.

Gildarts returned to the Guild, accidentally destroyed a wall, and was named examiner for the S-Class promotion exam. As the candidates prepared, he announced the first stage: Lin Yuan and Laxus had to take his map and reach Black Reef Island before sunset the next day.

• Makarov announced that the S-Class promotion exam would begin in three days, with Gildarts overseeing the combat portion.
• Gildarts broke through the Guild wall by accident and met Lin Yuan, warning him about the danger of trying to analyze his Crush magic.
• Makarov named Gildarts as examiner, while Gildarts told the Guild that passing would take more than simply defeating him.
• Lin Yuan prepared for the exam with help from Mira, Erza, and Lisanna over the next three days.
• Gildarts told Lin Yuan and Laxus that they had to take his map and reach Black Reef Island before sunset the following day.

Lin Yuan and Laxus worked together to steal the map to Black Reef Island from Gildarts, then set off toward the coast after memorizing the route. Gildarts stayed behind with Makarov, who ordered him to repair the road he had destroyed.

• Laxus and Lin Yuan separately tried to take the map, but Gildarts stopped them with his Crush True Magic.
• Lin Yuan and Laxus coordinated their attacks, and Laxus used lightning to break the clasp while Lin Yuan grabbed the map.
• Lin Yuan and Laxus argued over who should keep the map before realizing they could both travel to Black Reef Island.
• Lin Yuan memorized the land routes, Laxus memorized the sea route, and they left together for the coast.
• Makarov told Gildarts to repair the shattered road, while Gildarts studied the map and watched Lin Yuan and Laxus race ahead.

Lin Yuan and Laxus raced to Black Reef Island for the S-Class Exam, but diverted to rescue fishermen in danger. They reached the island just before sunset, and Makarov stamped their records, affirming that saving lives mattered more than the deadline.

• Laxus and Lin Yuan reached the seaside town but missed the last ferry, so they rented a fishing boat to take them toward Black Reef Island.
• Laxus became seasick during the voyage, while the island came into view and the sun neared the horizon.
• After a distress flare appeared, Laxus and Lin Yuan redirected the boat and helped rescue three fishermen from a wrecked vessel.
• Lin Yuan folded the safe stretches of water to speed the boat to Black Reef Island, where they arrived just before sunset.
• Makarov checked that everyone was safe and stamped the exam records, telling Lin Yuan that the living mattered more than the sunset.

Lin Yuan and Laxus carried fragile magic lanterns through separate routes to the island fortress, where Gildarts tested their ability to protect the flames. Both passed the second round, and the flames illuminated stairs leading deeper into the fortress.

• Makarov explained that Lin Yuan and Laxus had to carry their lanterns to the fortress before noon without letting the flames go out.
• Lin Yuan avoided traps in the forest, crossed a bridge guarded by a giant crab, and reached the fortress with his lantern intact.
• Gildarts attacked Lin Yuan's lantern with Crush True Magic, but Lin Yuan distorted space to protect its flame and passed through the fortress gate.
• Laxus crashed through another entrance with his lantern broken but held together by lightning, keeping its flame lit.
• Makarov confirmed both candidates had passed and placed a second seal on each of their records.
• The flames on the platform rose and illuminated stairs leading deeper into the fortress.

Laxus faced Gildarts in the final combat judgment and used a carefully planned attack to make him step outside the white circle, earning his pass. Lin Yuan then entered the hall to begin his own test.

• Makarov set the final test: Laxus had to take the guild flag or make Gildarts move both feet outside the white circle within ten minutes.
• Laxus used lightning, decoys, and the terrain to attack Gildarts while avoiding damage to the fortress’s load-bearing walls.
• Laxus launched the flag into the air, forcing Gildarts to extinguish the lightning pillar and step one foot beyond the circle as he stopped Laxus’s final strike.
• Makarov stamped Laxus’s plaque with a third red mark and declared him passed.
• Laxus told Lin Yuan not to lose too badly, and Lin Yuan entered the hall to face Gildarts.

Lin Yuan faced Gildarts in the third S-class exam round and used his spatial magic to reach the Guild flag despite Gildarts's Crush magic. He passed the exam, leaving Laxus questioning how he had taken the flag.

• Lin Yuan tested Gildarts's Crush magic with folded space, then tried to slip past him and attack at close range.
• After their clashes revealed how Gildarts's magic worked, Lin Yuan marked pieces of rubble and used them to create several folding paths.
• Gildarts crushed the rubble and paths, but Lin Yuan swallowed a fragment of shattered space and erased the distance to the flag.
• Gildarts knocked Lin Yuan out of the circle, but Lin Yuan emerged holding the Fairy Tail Guild flag, which had vanished from its pole.
• Makarov confirmed Lin Yuan's shoulder was only bruised and stamped his third red mark, passing him; Lin Yuan told Laxus the ten steps to the flag no longer existed.

Lin Yuan and Laxus passed Fairy Tail’s S-Class exam and were promoted, earning access to jobs on the second floor. Their first trip upstairs ended with both reaching for the same job sheet and Makarov warning them not to fight over the work.

• On the boat back from Black Reef Island, Laxus suffered from seasickness and traded insults with Lin Yuan until Makarov kicked them apart.
• At the Guild, Makarov explained the three exam stages and declared that Lin Yuan and Laxus had passed.
• The Guild celebrated Lin Yuan and Laxus’s promotion to S-Class Mages, and Mira reminded Lin Yuan that their bet was still on.
• Makarov allowed the new S-Class Mages to take jobs from the second floor and warned them about the risks involved.
• Laxus and Lin Yuan reached for the same job sheet, sparked up for a fight, and heard Makarov order them not to fight over upstairs jobs.

Lin Yuan chose an S-Class mission to reopen a northern transport tunnel before winter and asked Mira to join him as his partner. Mira accepted, and they prepared to leave in three days.

• Laxus and Lin Yuan fought over a Golden-Horned Flying Lizard request, tore it in half, and Makarov assigned it to Laxus while charging them for the copying fee.
• Lin Yuan chose the lower-paying mission to escort repair crews, investigate tunnel collapses, and reopen the northern transport road before winter.
• Makarov reminded Lin Yuan that he would be responsible for mission decisions, casualties, and compensation.
• Lin Yuan refused to bring Lisanna and Elfman, then asked Mira to join him because her Take Over could hold off the Rock-Armored Beasts while he reinforced the tunnel.
• Mira accepted the mission and wrote her name down as Lin Yuan's partner.

Lin Yuan, Mira, and the repair crew entered Frozen Rock Mountain to reopen the transport tunnel and were charged by a herd of Rock-Armored Beasts. Lin Yuan discovered the beasts were fleeing something deeper in the mountain, and a stronger tremor left the hidden danger unresolved.

• Lin Yuan, Mira, and Elfman set out from Magnolia and reached Stone Hearth Town, where Boone questioned whether Lin Yuan was an S-Class Mage.
• Boone explained that repeated tunnel repairs had been disrupted by Rock-Armored Beasts, and Lin Yuan led the workers inside with safety ropes and spatial marks.
• Mira and Lin Yuan found claw marks pointing toward the tunnel exit before a herd of Rock-Armored Beasts charged them.
• Mira held the beasts back while Lin Yuan stabilized falling rocks and opened a passage so the herd could rush toward the exit.
• Lin Yuan sensed a quaking area deeper in the mountain and realized the Rock-Armored Beasts were fleeing from something; a stronger tremor shook the tunnel.

Lin Yuan and Mira discovered that an abandoned Magic Crystal mining device was causing Frozen Rock Mountain to shake, and Lin Yuan found that the whole mountain formed part of its magic circle. The device was still out of control as rocks fell around them, leaving Lin Yuan to find a way to break the circle’s connections.

• Lin Yuan and Mira followed the tremors through the tunnel and found a cavern containing a huge Magic Crystal and a still-turning mining machine.
• Mira pulled a magic-conducting wire, which broke but caused the device to accelerate and send more violent ripples through the mountain.
• Mira shielded Lin Yuan from falling rocks while he examined the damaged control console and traced the vibrations through the mountain.
• Lin Yuan used his spatial perception to map the resonance nodes and realized Frozen Rock Mountain itself was inside the device’s magic circle.

Lin Yuan and Mira tried to stop the mountain’s machinery, but discovered that cutting off one pillar redirected its magic power to the others. They left the still-functioning device for now and headed out to find a way to shut it down together.

• Lin Yuan stopped one pillar’s magic flow, but the neighboring pillars lit up and the machinery sped up, so he restored the flow.
• Lin Yuan and Mira found that the shutdown gate was held by a warped bracket and that magic power was pulling its axle back into place.
• Mira inspected the route to the distant node and found it blocked by a cave-in, forcing them to consider going around the mountain.
• Mira questioned why Lin Yuan needed to hold down all six pillars before they found a solution, and Lin Yuan agreed to leave the device running temporarily.
• Lin Yuan marked the entrance while Mira took an engraved iron plate, and they left to consult the repair crew.

Lin Yuan and Mira found a way to divert the machine’s returning magic power and bring down its gate. The drill bits stopped, but a bent bracket still held the gate slightly open, leaving Lin Yuan ready to dismantle the jammed mechanism.

• Boone identified the iron plate as instructions for a maintenance bypass, and Lin Yuan and Mira determined how to divert the return flow safely.
• Mira flew to the stone building, cleared the pressure relief channel, removed a locking pin, and turned the diversion wheel.
• Lin Yuan isolated the returning magic line and compressed the distance beneath the gate, bringing it down and stopping the drill bits.
• Lin Yuan saw that a bent bracket still wedged the gate open, then gathered magic power around his fist to dismantle the mechanism.

Lin Yuan, Mira, and Boone shut down the dangerous old mine machinery and repaired the tunnel route. As snow began to fall, they cleared an icy drainage ditch so the first grain cart could pass.

• Lin Yuan broke the bent brace, stopping the gears, and warned Boone's workers not to reconnect the old wiring.
• Lin Yuan and Mira helped Boone's crew shore up the tunnel, clear rubble, and seal off the old mine entrance.
• Boone inspected the icy slope and ordered the workers to clear the drainage ditch, spread sand, and test the road with an empty cart.
• Lin Yuan shoveled out the frozen ditch as the grain driver and others unloaded the cart, preparing to let the first cart through.

Lin Yuan and Mira completed the tunnel repairs, watched the first grain wagon pass through, and returned to the Guild with their payment and a sack of chestnuts. Makarov recorded the successful delivery as the Guild members gathered to share the chestnuts.

• Lin Yuan guided a grain wagon through the tunnel while Boone organized the caravan and confirmed the road was open.
• Boone inspected the tunnel the next morning, signed the acceptance form, and gave Lin Yuan the remaining payment and a sack of frost chestnuts.
• Lin Yuan and Mira returned to Magnolia by train, split their reward, and decided to share the chestnuts with the Guild.
• Natsu grabbed chestnuts to roast, while Lisanna took Mira’s scarf and the Guild members gathered the chestnuts that spilled across the floor.
• Makarov checked the acceptance form and payment receipt, then recorded that the first grain wagon had passed through.

After Natsu’s chestnut-roasting mishap, Lin Yuan asked him to demonstrate Fire Dragon’s Roar and studied how he gathered and released his magic power. The chapter left Lin Yuan believing he could apply the same principle to his own God Slayer Magic.

• Natsu’s fire-breathing ruined the chestnuts and Guild ceiling, so Makarov sent the roasting outside and forbade Natsu from breathing fire directly on them.
• Lin Yuan asked Natsu to use his roar, and Makarov directed them to the riverbank to keep the demonstration away from the Guild.
• Natsu used Fire Dragon’s Roar to destroy a large rock while Gray protected the onlookers with an ice wall.
• Lin Yuan watched Natsu repeat the roar and realized that gathering magic power into one point and releasing it in a fixed direction made the attack possible.
• Lin Yuan considered applying the technique to his God Slayer Magic and said he should be able to do it too.

Lin Yuan attempted to imitate Natsu’s roar and unleashed a devastating blast of compressed space that carved a trench through the river valley. Makarov stopped the attack from reaching the town and forbade Lin Yuan from using the magic again unless his life was in danger.

• Lin Yuan gathered his magic power and tried to release it in a roar like Natsu’s.
• Lin Yuan’s Space God’s Roar compressed and tore through the riverbed and rock face, continuing even after he tried to stop it.
• Makarov blocked the torrent and deflected it into the sky, preventing it from reaching the town.
• Natsu urged Lin Yuan to fire again, but Mira pulled him away from the warning rope.
• Makarov showed Lin Yuan the destruction and banned him from using the magic unless his life was in danger.