Wooooooh—!!!
The solidified Gray-black sound wave tore through the air, carrying endless despair as it crashed down.
Target: Christian! Lucy! And the fragile crowd behind the barrier!
"Lucy! Chris!" Natsu and Gray didn't have time to rescue them.
Happy covered his ears!
"Open! Gate of Horologium! Crux!" Lucy shrieked, summoning a defensive Celestial Spirit in the nick of time!
Clang—!!!
A massive, ancient Gray clock appeared out of thin air, blocking the path of the sound wave!
Boom—!!!
The despairing sound wave slammed into the clock face, and temporal ripples spread out!
The clock body vibrated violently! Cracks spread!
"Lucy... I... can't... I can't hold on!" Crux's voice trembled!!
The sound wave pierced through the clock, its power slightly diminished but still lethal, heading straight for the blue barrier!
"Target locked... high-concentration cursed mental shock..." Christian's core alarm screamed wildly!
"Barrier... cannot fully defend... carrier Lucy... in danger!"
He made a decision instantly.
He contracted the barrier, focusing its defense.
The deep-blue water curtain rapidly retracted, abandoning the periphery. It tightly protected Lucy and the core group, and his gelatinous body expanded to meet the sound wave.
'Predator'! Overload!
Target: The core of the cursed sound wave!
Buzz—!!!
The devouring field, like a black hole, forcibly pulled at the Gray-black sound wave.
Pfft—!!!
As the sound wave energy surged in, Christian's whole body trembled violently. His blue gelatinous body was instantly stained with large patches of Gray-black, his core light flickered wildly, emitting a sharp wail as the mental curse impacted his logic core.
[Alert! Excessive mental curse influx! Logic firewall overloaded! Core unit... damaged!]
[Alert! Absorbed part of the 'Despair Curse'... analyzing... acquired 'Mental Interference Resistance (Weak)'... Status: Severely Damaged!]
"Ugh ah ah—!" A simulated cry of pain erupted from Christian's mouth for the first time!
His volume shrank, and Gray-black contamination spread within his body.
"Christian!" Lucy was terrified!
"Bastard!!!" On top of the clock tower! Erza was enraged! Witnessing her companion injured! Her Adamantine Armor burst forth with dazzling light! "Erigor! You're asking for death!!"
Her greatsword, carrying the power to split mountains, ignored the cutting wind blades and ruthlessly chopped down.
Erigor dodged in horror! His playing of the demon flute was interrupted!
"Requip! Purgatory Armor!" Erza roared!
Requip!
Golden light flashed again! Heavy dark-red armor covered her! Flame patterns burned! Defense doubled! She withstood Erigor's storm attacks head-on!
Her greatsword danced wildly! Forcing him to retreat repeatedly!
"Protect Chris and Lucy!" Gray shouted from below, solidifying ice barriers layer by layer to block the residual sound waves and poisonous mist!
"Fire Dragon's... Roar!" Natsu's flames spread out.
Clearing the poisonous miasma in the air to create an opportunity for Erza.
Erigor was suppressed by Erza's berserk offensive, unable to play his demon flute. Erigor was both shocked and furious.
"All members of Eisenwald! At all costs! Destroy that Slime!"
The remaining Eisenwald members, like rabid dogs, ignored Natsu and Gray's interception, burning their lives as they rushed towards the Gray-blue Slime.
"No way!" Lucy resisted the dizziness from continuously opening gates! "Open! Gate of Cancer! Keisa!"
Golden light shone! Keisa, the trendy man with scissors, appeared!
"Shrimp!"
"Quick! Keisa! Stop them! Protect Christian!" Lucy pointed at the rushing enemies.
"Understood! Behold my 'Hairstyle Destroyer'!" Keisa swung his large scissors, and several flashes of light met the enemies!
Puff! Puff! Puff!
Keisa's scissors flew! Precisely forcing back several people! But there were too many enemies, and one slipped through. A small thief, holding a poisoned dagger, grinned menacingly as he stabbed at the shrunken, Gray-black mottled Christian!
"Chris!"
A blue shadow flashed! 'Water Flow Movement'!
Christian instantly liquefied, merging into the water on the ground, and the dagger missed!
Water condensed behind the enemy! 'Water Blade'! Burst!
Whoosh! A highly compressed line of water! Precisely pierced the enemy's wrist!
"Ah!" The dagger flew out of his hand!
"Aye! Watch out above!" Happy shrieked!
On top of the clock tower, Erigor, taking a sword strike from Erza, forcibly raised the demon flute and aimed it downwards.
"Die! lullaby—Final Sigh!"
Wooooooh—!!!!
An extremely concentrated! Pitch-black destructive sound wave, like the spear of the God of Death, tore through space, shooting directly at Christian. Its speed and power far surpassed before.
There was no escaping!
Lucy and Keisa couldn't rescue him in time!
Natsu and Gray were entangled by other executives!
Erza was too far away!
Death! Descended!
"Target locked... ultimate curse impact..." Christian's core was icy cold! Data flow froze! Memories of his previous life's death flashed... darkness... coldness... "Is this how this life ends!?" Chris was lost in thought.
"No!" Lucy screamed.
A torrent of data broke through the darkness, faces of companions flashed by, Natsu's flames, Gray's ice, Lucy's tears, Erza's favor, the guild's clamor... "Devour... everything!" The core erupted with light beyond its limit, the Gray-black curse was forcibly suppressed, the blue gelatinous body spun wildly, transforming into a deep-blue, almost black vortex to meet the deadly sound spear.
'Devouring Magic: Predator'! Extreme Overload!
Boom—!!!!!!!!
The pitch-black sound spear slammed into the vortex!
There was no sound, only the distortion of space and the collapse of light.
The deep-blue vortex was instantly stained inky black, expanding and contracting wildly, like a dying heart!
Its surface was covered in cracks, the gelatinous body vaporized, and the core light flickered, as if it would explode the next second!
[Warning! Ultimate Curse Impact! Analysis impossible! Energy overload! Core collapse risk: 99%!]
[Forced isolation... storage... seal...]
"Christian!!!" Everyone let out a heart-wrenching cry!
Just at this critical moment!
"Requip! Ten Commandments Lances!!!"
Erza's furious roar. She abandoned her defense, taking a wind blade from Erigor head-on. Blood splattered, but her movements did not stop!
Golden light flashed! The Adamantine Armor disappeared, replaced by... ten giant firearms of various shapes, inscribed with sacred runes and wreathed in holy light.
"Holy Spear... Purify!!!"
Erza waved her hands! Ten holy spears roared simultaneously, spewing out ten incredibly thick, pure white, scorching torrents of holy light, carrying the power to purify all evil, fiercely blasting onto the pitch-black death sound spear!
Sizzle—!!!!!!!!
Holy light and curse annihilated each other like fire and water, erupting in blinding light and destructive shockwaves.
Boom—!!!
Half of the entire clock tower's top was blown off, and smoke and debris shot into the sky.
The light faded. Erigor spat blood and flew backward, the demon flute slipping from his hand, holy light scorching his body.
Christian's inky-black vortex, under the impact of the holy light, was like a nemesis, the cursed energy forcibly purified and dispersed. His volume shrank back to the size of a basketball, and his entire body appeared a weak, faded, pale blue. His core light was faint, and he fell from mid-air.
Lucy rushed forward and caught the falling Christian. His touch was icy cold, and she could barely feel any life in him.
"Christian! Hold on!"
"Did... did it succeed?" Gray looked at the destroyed clock tower.
"Erigor!" Natsu locked onto the falling enemy.
"Cough cough..." Erigor struggled to get up, his body charred, looking in horror at Erza, who held the Ten Commandments Lances and was wreathed in holy light.
"Impossible... the power of lullaby..."
"Your sins... shall be judged by holy light!" Erza aimed her gun at him, and holy light condensed again!
"Don't get cocky... Fairy Tail..." A flicker of madness crossed Erigor's eyes, and he suddenly crushed a black scroll!
"'Shadow' Lord... Plan... B..."
A black flash! Erigor's figure vanished! Only... the skull demon flute "lullaby" remained in his place!
"Teleportation scroll?!" Erza frowned. She put away the Ten Commandments Lances, and her holy light armor changed back to a trench coat, as she descended to Lucy's side. Looking at the pale-blue Slime, barely breathing in Lucy's arms, her heroic brows furrowed.
"How is he?"
"Core... damaged... energy... depleted... regeneration... slow..." Christian's weak voice was intermittent.
"Hmph, it's good that he's not dead yet." Erza's tone was stiff, but her eyes softened slightly.
"Your barrier... saved many people, you are a qualified companion."
She looked at the skull demon flute on the ground, emitting an ominous aura.
"Now... it's time to deal with this."