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Relying on the invincibility frames of his Flying Kick, Noah roughly and directly kicked Jose away.
Before Jose could stabilize himself, Erza grabbed her Purgatory Greatblade and unleashed a furious barrage of slashes. The heavy weapon, taller than a man, was wielded effortlessly like a toy in Erza's hands.
Erza, who had developed her Haki to 'Armament Haki Infusion,' caused endless trouble for Jose with her immensely powerful weapon.
Whether it was Laxus' earlier relentless assault, Noah's unreasonable Flying Kick, or now Erza, the 'Purgatory Knight,' getting close, all deeply challenged Jose's understanding.
Why do all you brats practice your physical combat skills so well?
We are Mages; we use Magic!
Don't you understand elegant, cool Magic clashes?
Though he cursed in his heart, Jose now understood that he absolutely could not continue a close-quarters battle with the Fairy Tail Mages. He immediately channeled all his Magic Power, and the instantly erupting dark current forced Erza to temporarily halt her attack and retreat.
In terms of Magic Power, even Laxus couldn't compare to Jose, who had accumulated his power through sheer seniority, let alone Erza, who was younger than Laxus.
"Damn Fairy Tail brats! Watch me—"
"Watch what? Have a taste of my punch first."
Before Jose could finish his sentence, the white-haired youth's figure leaped past the retreating Erza. As the youth punched, a phantom evil whale, formed by converging Magic Power, seemed to break through reality, opening its blood-filled mouth toward Jose.
Jose didn't expect young people nowadays to be so dishonorable. Didn't they know that the trash-talking part of a fight couldn't be skipped?
"Dark Erosion!"
His hands quickly rose, and the surrounding air seemed to be eroded by darkness. Shadows spread from Jose's feet, transforming into an endless abyss, attempting to swallow the incoming Magic.
Noah exerted more force, and as the punch whistled, the roar of a giant whale seemed to truly echo in the air, "Whale Slayer Punch!"
The momentum of the punch, like a giant whale's tail, stirred up monstrous waves. It was the same move, but the power of this punch was far greater than when he defeated Ultear previously.
As the two forces collided, even the air was compressed, emitting a sharp popping sound. The already dilapidated Super Mage Giant Phantom MK II immediately developed countless cracks, yet it stubbornly held on without collapsing.
The whale's momentum broke through the darkness, and the youth's punch, with only 10% of its power remaining, landed on Jose's chest, pushing him back a step.
Jose's face was filled with shock, and cold sweat seeped from his withered palms. He stared at Noah in disbelief, "Your Magic Power... How is that possible!"
In Jose's perception, the intensity of Noah's Magic Power just now had actually surpassed his own.
Although his previous battle with Laxus was a draw, due to age, Jose still had a slight edge over Laxus in terms of Magic Power.
How could a young man suddenly appear out of nowhere, with no previous displays of power, yet possessing Magic Power stronger than his own, a Ten Wizard Saint?
And this youth was also a Fairy Tail Mage. What was happening to this world? Why were all these prodigies from Fairy Tail? Jose began to doubt his understanding of reality.
'Life-Magic Interdependence': The stronger the life force, the stronger the Magic Power; the stronger the Magic Power, the more vigorous the life force.
This was an ability Noah obtained after completing the Wish quest of making friends with the Magical Beast, Snow. Simply put, it was a talent that allowed for a continuous, upward spiral of power.
"Life force" is a mysterious concept. It might refer to lifespan, or perhaps physical functions or recovery ability, but in any case, it significantly boosted Noah's Magic Power.
As for the growth in "life force" itself, Noah hadn't felt anything so far, but he could confirm it wasn't related to recovery ability.
After repelling Jose, Noah chose not to pursue further. Laxus' gaze, filled with fiery fighting spirit, lingered on him, making him feel awkward.
He shouldn't have impulsively tested his strength on Jose. Now he was marked as a strong opponent by Laxus, landing on his list of competitors, which was truly unlucky.
"Laxus, don't just stare at me, let's beat him up together."
Laxus snorted, "Noah, hiding your strength won't do you any good. I won't give up the title of the Guild's strongest to you!"
Noah helplessly made a sweating emoji face. When did he ever want to be the Guild's strongest? Laxus must have fried his brain when he was getting electrocuted.
A clap of thunder forced Jose to shift his attention.
After witnessing Erza relentlessly chasing and hacking at Jose earlier, Laxus also developed an interest in using weapons, though he would never use those fragile metal blades.
Lightning surged like a raging dragon, and the air was filled with piercing electrical crackles. Magic Power converged in Laxus' hand, gradually solidifying into a halberd made of Lightning Magic.
Looking at the lightning weapon, wrapped in spiraling thunder patterns, Jose felt his scalp tingle. If he got hit by that, it would surely blow his head off.
How did Makarov train these brats? Each one was more ferocious than the last.
Seeing his companions taking their stances, Mystogan also felt awkward just standing there. He then stuck five Magic staves into the ground, preparing to cast a spell.
This action alone greatly startled Jose, who almost thought Mystogan was going to swing his staves too.
Noah sighed inwardly. It was a pity his older brother, to prevent Anima, was constantly running all over the continent, leaving him no time to learn Haki. Otherwise, he could truly swing a staff to bludgeon people.
"Jose, surrender. We, Fairy Tail, always treat our captives well. 'Purple eggs,' 'Enqin,' and such, in large quantities, will keep you full."
Noah's persuasion turned Jose's face dark and made Erza and the other two exchange bewildered glances.
Purple eggs? Enqin? Do we have such food in our Guild? We've never heard of it. Could it be that the devious Mira has concocted some new prank dark cuisine?
Jose's unwillingness to surrender was expected. Noah had only asked casually; if he really surrendered, how could they beat him up?
"Everyone, it's almost dinner time."
"It's time to end this fight."
Without Noah needing to say more, Laxus launched his attack. For him, this battle was already boring. It would be better to end it quickly and fight Mystogan and Noah.
The Lightning Dragon's Halberd slammed down fiercely, pulverizing the floating debris with electricity. Jose unleashed several purple-black light beams to block Laxus' lightning halberd, but the young man's fierce strength made him struggle to parry.
The sharpness of the Purgatory Greatblade tore through the dark curtain. Erza's red hair flew as her weapon, enveloped in Armament Haki, struck three consecutive slashes.
Although Jose defended in time, he was not fast enough for Erza's blade. He was struck on the back by the red-haired girl's horizontal slash, and the sound of his ribs breaking was clearly audible.
Rolling away in disarray, Jose saw a faintly glowing fist mark on his chest. He then realized it was an explosive mark with multiple Magic attributes. He wanted to use Magic Power to erase it, but it was too late.
The five Magic elements of wind, lightning, water, fire, and earth instantly exploded, tearing Jose's Mage robe to shreds and leaving his upper body covered in blood.
His body groaned under the strain, and Jose's face was filled with unwillingness. He, a Ten Wizard Saint who had traversed the continent, was now forced to have his Mage robe shattered and pushed to the brink by a few young people.