Chapter 219: Legendary Ranking
An excited heart, trembling hands.
"Double Gold! Double Gold!! Hahahaha!!"
"It's Double Gold!! Hahahaha!!"
Ren had not been this excited in a long time. He was practically bouncing off the walls of his room, unable to contain the surge of adrenaline coursing through his veins. The holographic projection of the System hovered before him, bathing the dimly lit room in a luxurious, auspicious golden glow.
[...]
Even the System seemed momentarily stunned by this stroke of luck. Two Gold Legendary cards in a single ten-pull? Did this kid save the world in his past life? Or perhaps he was the illegitimate child of the Goddess of Luck?
The probability of drawing a Double Gold was pitifully low. Statistically speaking, it was rarer than being struck by lightning while winning the lottery. Of course, the odds were technically better than the grand prize of a five-million-jewel lottery ticket, but considering how many people bought those tickets without ever winning a single cent, the comparison only highlighted the absurdity of Ren's luck.
"Calm down! Calm down! Deep breaths..."
Ren slapped his cheeks with both hands, the stinging pain helping to ground him. He forced himself to stop jumping like a child on a sugar rush.
"Let's not get ahead of myself. Quality matters more than quantity. Let's first see who was drawn this time."
Ren forcibly calmed his excited heart, sitting down on the edge of his bed. He wasn't a novice anymore; he knew that the golden glow was just the first step. To him, based on his extensive experience and knowledge of anime lore, [Gold Legendary] characters were unofficially divided into four distinct Ranks.
First is the [Low-Rank Gold Legendary].
This is the Rank occupied by the likes of Yoriichi Tsugikuni from Demon Slayer and Fushiguro Toji from Jujutsu Kaisen.
Gold Legendary characters of this Rank have mastered a specific specialty to the pinnacle of perfection.
Take Yoriichi Tsugikuni, for example. He is the progenitor of all Breathing Styles, the wielder of Sun Breathing. In terms of pure swordsmanship, he has no equal. He could likely cut through anything in Earth Land that has a physical form. Similarly, Fushiguro Toji possesses a Heavenly Restriction. His physical constitution is pushed to the absolute limit of biological possibility, granting him invisibility to magical sensors, immunity to most domains, and strength that rivals dragons.
However, Gold Legendary characters of this Rank have glaring shortcomings in a high-magic world like Fairy Tail.
Yoriichi, despite his skill, is still human. His "stats"—durability, magical resistance, regeneration—are too low. If a Dragon were to unleash a Breath Attack that covered an entire mountain range, Yoriichi would struggle to survive purely on sword skills.
Fushiguro Toji faces a similar issue. He has the ultimate physical body, but he possesses zero Magic Power. He has no ranged energy attacks, no defensive barriers, and no way to counter conceptual magic that doesn't rely on physical targeting.
When facing special circumstances—like a curse that targets the soul, or a spell that manipulates time—they lack sufficient countermeasures. They are terrifyingly effective when dealing with opponents they can blitz, but it is difficult for them to gain an overwhelming advantage against the true monsters of this world who can reshape the landscape with a thought.
Next is the [Intermediate-Rank Gold Legendary].
The representatives of this tier are Ulquiorra Cifer and Gojo Satoru.
Gold Legendary characters of this Rank possess extremely strong overall strength. They are the total package: offense, defense, speed, and utility. Besides possessing powerful base mechanics, they also have "Ultimate Moves" kept hidden as trump cards.
For example, Ulquiorra, the Fourth Espada. He possesses Sonído, a movement technique comparable to instantaneous teleportation, and Hierro, skin as hard as steel that can shrug off most magical attacks. His speed and raw power are immense. But his true terror lies in his hidden Second Release, Resurrección: Segunda Etapa. His ultimate move, Lanza del Relámpago, creates an explosion so massive it dwarfs the gargantuan structure of Las Noches. Even considering the power scaling in the late stages of the Bleach anime, that level of destructive power is catastrophic.
As for Gojo Satoru, he is a walking cheat code. The Limitless Cursed Technique ensures he is virtually immune to over ninety percent of attacks exists. It brings the concept of "infinity" into reality, slowing down anything that approaches him until it stops completely. Coupled with the Six Eyes, which grants him atomic-level perception and infinite magical efficiency, he possesses ultra-high mobility and super strong offense.
Simply based on mechanics, Gojo Satoru is the strongest character Ren has drawn so far.
His ultimate move, Domain Expansion: Unlimited Void, is a guaranteed win condition against most living beings. It floods the target's brain with infinite information, forcing them into a state of catatonic paralysis.
However, Ren's recent spar with Gildarts Clive had served as a wake-up call.
He discovered that this Move wasn't truly invincible in the Fairy Tail world. In this universe, Magic Power itself has physical properties. When Magic Power is dense enough, it can distort space and ignore concepts. Gildarts' Crush Magic didn't just hit the barrier; it shattered the very space the Limitless occupied.
Furthermore, the stronger the opponent's magic power, the higher their mental resistance to the Domain's effects. If his Domain is broken from the outside, or if he is forced to drop it, he suffers from Cursed Technique Burnout, rendering him unable to use his main abilities for a short period. If that happens in a death match against someone like Acnologia, he would be dead.
Of course, Gojo's ability allows him to use the Reverse Cursed Technique to heal his burnt-out brain circuits and restore his technique, but that is a high-risk gamble.
In short, Intermediate Legendary characters have strong overall strength and good mechanics, sufficient to handle 99% of situations in Earth Land. This is why Ren always defaults to using Ulquiorra and Gojo Satoru. They are reliable.
Going further up is the [Advanced-Rank Gold Legendary].
The representatives are Whitebeard (Edward Newgate) and the Fourth Hokage (Minato Namikaze).
Whitebeard goes without saying; his existence is a natural disaster. He wields the Gura Gura no Mi (Tremor-Tremor Fruit), which allows him to create earthquakes capable of tilting the seas and skies. Even Kaido, the so-called World's Strongest Creature, respected the power of the "Old Man of Monstrous Strength." In terms of sheer destructive output, even the Giants of Elbaf or the Demons of Zeref's books are no match for a serious punch from Whitebeard.
He is a master of all three types of Haki—Observation, Armament, and Conqueror's.
Ren recalled the events of the Paramount War. Whitebeard was old, sick, dying, and hooked up to life support. He was stabbed through the chest by his own ally before the battle even truly began. And yet, the entirety of Marineford—the headquarters of the Marines, housing three Admirals and the Fleet Admiral—dared not underestimate him. He nearly sank the island while half-dead.
Although Whitebeard received the title of "World's Strongest Man" after the death of Rocks D. Xebec, Ren believed the title was genuine.
Of course, there is a caveat. Even if Whitebeard at his absolute Prime had arrived during the Paramount War, he might still have had to kneel if he marched on Mary Geoise, as Imu, the mysterious ruler who sits on the Empty Throne—and whom Ren suspected to be the "World's Strongest Woman"—was watching from the shadows.
Despite this, Whitebeard represented the pinnacle of raw power.
Then there is the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
The Yellow Flash. The most handsome man in the Naruto world. With his Flying Thunder God Technique (Hiraishin), he is a mechanical marvel. He doesn't just move fast; he teleports instantly to any marked location. Combined with his genius-level intellect and calm combat mindset, this allowed Minato to be invincible throughout the Third Great Ninja War. A "flee on sight" order was issued for him—a testament to his lethality.
Normally, Minato's only drawback is his lack of large-scale destructive moves. He has the Rasengan, but he hadn't completed the change in chakra nature to create the Rasenshuriken. It wasn't that he couldn't develop it, but without the massive chakra reserves and regeneration of a Jinchuriki, the recoil of the technique would have destroyed his own arm.
If it were just the standard living Minato, he would only count as an Intermediate Gold Legendary.
The reason Ren classified him as [Advanced] is simple: the Minato Namikaze character card he received was the Reanimated (Edo Tensei) Version—Minato at his theoretical peak.
This version possesses the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode (KCM). Infinite chakra, high-speed regeneration, and the ability to spam the Flying Thunder God without fatigue. He is a strategic nuke with the precision of a surgeon.
Above this, Ren classified one more Rank.
[Top-Rank Gold Legendary].
Those who reach this Rank can no longer be called human; 'God' is a more accurate term. Beings like Kaguya Otsutsuki, Yhwach, or perhaps characters from even higher-tier universes.
Ren had a few candidates in mind. If he could draw them, he would truly be invincible, capable of challenging even the Dragon Gods or Zeref himself without breaking a sweat.
"But dreaming won't get me there."
Ren shook his head, clearing his thoughts. Now was not the time to daydream about hypothetical draws. He needed to see what reality had gifted him today.
Ren looked at the System panel floating in the air.
The animation played out. The preceding character cards were flipped over one by one.
[White Common]... [Blue Rare]... [Blue Rare]...
As usual, he didn't recognize any of the fodder characters. They were likely background extras from obscure slice-of-life anime. They were uniformly categorized as Experience Cards and recycled immediately into Magic Power Points.
Soon, the first gold character card trembled and flipped open.
Whoosh!
A burst of golden light faded to reveal the illustration.
"It's him!"
Ren wasn't overly surprised or excited to see this character. After all, he had drawn quite a few gold character cards now. Unless it was an Advanced Gold Legendary or a Top Rank Gold Legendary, it wouldn't make him lose his composure.
But drawing a gold character card was still a massive boon.
His Magic Power had already reached [Six and a Half Stars]. Merely using Blue or Purple cards was no longer enough to move the needle. It was like trying to fill an ocean with a spoon.
Once he upgraded to [Seven Stars]—the level of a casual Spriggan 12 member or a high-tier Wizard Saint—the difficulty would truly skyrocket.
According to the System's calculations, going from Seven Stars to Eight Stars requires three times the effort of going from Six Stars to Seven Stars.
To put it in perspective:
6 Stars -> 7 Stars: Requires approximately 10,000 Magic Power Points.
7 Stars -> 8 Stars: Requires approximately 30,000 Magic Power Points.
Recycling one Gold Legendary character card grants 3,000 Magic Power Points.
This meant that if he wanted to reach the Eight-Star realm—the realm of true monsters like August or Irene Belserion—he would need to recycle roughly ten Gold Legendary cards.
"Ten cards..." Ren felt his heart tremble just hearing that number. That was ten potential legendary fighters he would have to sacrifice.
He focused his attention back on the card in front of him.
The character depicted had light purple short hair, narrow, squinted eyes, and a pale, almost sickly complexion. His face was gaunt, giving him a skeletal appearance, but it was his smile—a constant, mocking, snake-like grin—that defined him.
He wore the standard black Shihakusho (Shinigami uniform), draped with a white Captain's Haori. On the back of the Haori, a large Kanji for 'Three' (三) was written in calligraphy. At his waist hung a short Zanpakuto.
This was none other than Ichimaru Gin, the Captain of the 3rd Division of the Gotei 13 from the Bleach anime.
Ren stared at the image. In his eyes, Ichimaru Gin was a tragic figure, a man who walked a path of solitude for over a century.
For the sake of Matsumoto Rangiku, the woman he loved, he infiltrated Aizen Sōsuke's inner circle when he was just a child. He played the role of the villain, the snake, the traitor, solely to find the one moment where he could kill Aizen and reclaim what was stolen from Rangiku.
Aizen, with his god-complex, knew that Gin approached him with ulterior motives. But his arrogance was his blind spot; he kept Gin close because he found the boy's killing intent amusing. He thought he was the master of the game.
However, because of this arrogance, Aizen nearly died. If not for the Hōgyoku initiating its evolution at the last second, Gin's betrayal would have succeeded.
Although Ichimaru Gin committed many sins and cut down many innocents in his quest to get close to Aizen, after learning of his true purpose and his unwavering dedication, one couldn't help but respect his resolve. He was a man who waited a hundred years for a single strike.
Combat-wise, Gin is terrifying. His Shikai, Shinso (Divine Spear), extends at high speeds to impale enemies. But his Bankai, Kamishini no Yari (God-Killing Spear), is the real threat. It isn't just fast; it turns into dust for an instant during extension and contraction, allowing it to leave a fragment of the blade inside the opponent. That fragment contains a deadly poison capable of dissolving cells from the inside out.
"Ichimaru Gin's strength should be counted as [Intermediate-Rank Gold Legendary]," Ren mused.
He lacks the world-ending power of Whitebeard, but his lethality in a one-on-one fight is supreme. One scratch is all he needs.
"Not bad!"
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