Chapter 170: Second Stage, Passed
Chapter 170: Second Stage, Passed
Rod's form suddenly grew to over ten feet tall, with his hands, feet, head, and entire body transforming into stone.
His joints looked human, but intricate patterns adorned his forearms and thighs, and a glowing blue gemstone rested on his chest.
From a distance, he resembled something akin to an anti-Hulk armor.
Thud, thud!
Rod took two heavy steps forward, each one producing a dull thud. The surging magic power emanating from his body was noticeable even without trying to sense it.
He raised his hand and swung a horizontal punch.
The mountain wall opposite him trembled violently, cracking and splitting open. Rocks of various sizes tumbled down the mountainside.
This hulking stone figure looked anything but easy to provoke.
"Hmm?" Largassas seemed intrigued. "That’s a bit more impressive."
"Try taking this punch before you talk big!" Rod rumbled, sprinting forward a few steps and swinging his massive fist at Largassas's head.
With Rod's words still ringing in his ears, Largassas made no move to dodge, instead countering with a direct punch of his own.
Lightning flashed, and the ground around Largassas cracked like a spider web. He bent his knees, then straightened up, a smile curling at the corners of his mouth. "Not bad! But—"
His figure vanished from under the punch, and he kicked Rod squarely in the chest.
Rod staggered back two steps, then was struck again from behind.
"You’re too slow!" Largassas nimbly dodged Rod's retaliatory punch, moving like a bolt of lightning and striking various parts of Rod's body in quick succession.
Rod, however, felt... nothing.
Largassas’s attacks were fast, but after receiving the magic golem, Rod's defenses were formidable. These ordinary punches and kicks were nothing more than a mild annoyance.
Largassas seemed to realize this as well. After putting some distance between them, he raised his right fist. "A turtle shell won’t get you past me! Summon! Thunderous Roar, lightning from the heavens..."
As he chanted, terrifying lightning gathered around Largassas, preparing for a powerful attack. But...
Casting magic with an incantation?
Rod loved skills with long casting times. He raised his hand. "Azure Floating Cannons!"
Two protruding stones emerged from the mountain walls, glowing blue and detaching to become small golems that hovered in the air.
At Rod's command, the two small golems fired blue beams of light at Largassas.
The beams were incredibly fast, forcing Largassas to interrupt his incantation to dodge.
Two small craters appeared where he had been standing, with deeper, narrower holes at the bottom, showcasing the extraordinary penetration power of the attack.
"These things..." Largassas shot two bolts of lightning, shattering the floating cannons.
But new ones immediately emerged from the rock walls.
Rod continued, "You can break as many as you want; I can always make more!"
Is this the same kind of magic as Bickslow's? Largassas made a preliminary judgment. "Then I’ll break you along with them!"
"Can you do it?" Rod seemed to rise to the challenge, commanding the small golems to bombard Largassas relentlessly.
The sound of the golems firing their beams was constant.
Largassas leapt nimbly to dodge the attacks, and when he got close enough to Rod, he waved his hand, sending two bolts of lightning to destroy the floating cannons.
Before new ones could appear, he swung a fist charged with lightning.
Rod swung his own fist to meet it,, Largassas’s fist suddenly transformed into a massive lightning fist, even larger than his own.
Boom!
The two fists collided, lightning danced, and rocks flew. The ground shook, and the mountain walls seemed to tremble.
For a moment, Rod thought he saw a glimpse of Natsu's punch in Largassas's movements.
Then his stone arm shattered, followed by his shoulder, chest, and helmet...
Finally, he was sent flying, landing and sliding out of the passage.
Due to insufficient magic, the golem transformation was forcibly dispelled.
Rod, back to his normal form, didn't even have the strength to sit up.
Lying on the ground, he gazed at the sky, reflecting,, What the how,. he.. a serious battle, L serious L Largassas,'s attack, how long he I lasted against a serious Largasss?
.
"A minute?"
He laughed heartily. "You win!"
Largassas turned his head abruptly.
looked back.
A golden beam of light shot into the sky, exploding into a brilliant firework.
"Lagrasus!"
Kana stood in the magic circle, leaning on the flagpole, as two stone beetles vanished from her side.
She smiled and waved at Lagrasus and Rod, shouting, "We made it!"
"When did you...?" Lagrasus suddenly remembered the bug that had emerged from the mountain wall, which he had split in two. It looked exactly like the two that had just disappeared.
"That's right, they were the same ones. They used earth magic to tunnel over while you and Rod were fighting."
Kana's voice was strong, showing no sign of the weakness she had displayed earlier. Her magic was indeed almost depleted, but thanks to Rod, she had recovered a fair bit.
Her injuries were mostly an act—she was hurt but not to the point where she couldn't walk. The anger, frustration, and stubbornness were also mostly for show. However, the tears were real. She had been so engrossed in her role, and the near-miss earlier had been too painful, bringing back memories of previous failures that made her want to cry.
As for Rod's "final move"—showing just enough power to pique Lagrasus's interest and then secretly sending Kana over was the real "final move."
Charging in recklessly was never about defeating Lagrasus; their goal had always been the flag.
Actually, there was another stone beetle underground, originally meant as a backup to slow Lagrasus down if needed. It had been dispelled along with the earth magic.
They used Lagrasus's dismantling of the pride to feign defeat and appear weak, then held him off for a moment to let Kana slip through undetected. Anyone who had read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" would understand.
Rod struggled to sit up and said, "Sorry, finding your weakness was too hard. I had to use this method to achieve our goal."
He was a bit worried about the emo youth's emotional outburst.
But when Lagrasus finally understood what had happened, his emotions did indeed explode. "You... tricked me!"
Zzzt... Zzzt... Lightning crackled around Lagrasus, his tattered upper clothing bursting open to reveal his exaggerated muscles.
Kana shouted, "Hey! Lagrasus, what are you doing? We passed the exam!"
"I don't accept it!"
"Enough, Lagrasus. They have passed this test."
Makarov walked over, with Erza following behind him.
The lightning around Lagrasus subsided slightly, but he still raged, "Old man, I'm the examiner here. I don't approve of this cowardly way of passing!"
"If you're the examiner, you should be fair," Makarov said, walking up to him. "Magic, intelligence, courage, and teamwork are all forms of strength, and none are inherently superior or cowardly. Kana and Rod achieved the exam's objective despite your obstacles, so they have passed."
Erza stepped forward to help Rod up, smiling. "I saw part of your battle. You did very well. You're strong, Rod."
"Thank you." Rod leaned on her to stand up. Winter's armor was not only hard but also cold.
But the warmth of his comrades' concern was undeniable.
"We passed!" Kana dropped the flag and ran over, hugging him tightly and including Erza in the embrace.
Erza wrapped her arms around both of them. "Congratulations!"
Clang! Clang!
"Ouch!" Kana complained, laughing.
Rod's head, already not in the best state, buzzed, and he couldn't even muster a complaint.
Lagrasus and the guild master had a brief argument before both turned and left without looking back, leaving behind the words, "Don't make me do this boring stuff again!"
The atmosphere was a bit tense.
Tomorrow, I have to meet up with [White Dove], so I'm putting out this chapter early to save you the wait.
The next chapter's release is uncertain.
...
...
If I haven't updated by tonight, I might be having too much fun.
If there's no update by the 27th... please call the police for me. O(∩_∩)O Haha~
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
