Generally speaking, although the three major factions—Devils, Angels, and Fallen Angels—determine their hierarchy by the number of wings they possess, the actual number of wings does not have a direct impact on their strength. Or rather, the correlation is not that straightforward.
Just as it was with Leon in the past, and as it is with Rias Gremory and Sona Sitri now, they are already High-class Devils but still possess only a single pair of devil wings. This proves that the number of wings does not directly dictate the strength of their power; they can continue to grow and become stronger even without an increase in wings.
However, there is a reason why Devils, Angels, and Fallen Angels possess different numbers of wings.
The number of wings represents their "tier" as a Devil, Angel, or Fallen Angel; it is something tied to their "existence" or "status."
The more wings one has, the higher their status as a member of their respective race.
The higher the status, the larger the "vessel" known as a "Devil," "Angel," or "Fallen Angel."
The larger the vessel, the stronger the potential, limits, and essence of that individual. While this might not directly relate to raw combat power, it affects many other things, such as growth speed, training efficiency, adaptability to special environments, and even the recovery speed of one's power and injuries. These factors are directly linked to the level of one's life essence.
Therefore, whether for a Devil, an Angel, or a Fallen Angel, increasing raw strength might be relatively easy, but increasing the number of wings—thereby elevating one's status—is far more difficult.
Take Miyamoto Musashi, for example. He has been reincarnated as a Devil for hundreds of years, and his strength is only one step away from the Satan-class, yet his rank as a Devil remains at only four wings, equivalent to the tier of a Middle-class Devil. This shows that increasing one's wings is by no means an easy feat.
This is especially true for young generation Devils like Leon, Rias, and Sona. They may have been born with extraordinary magic power and attained High-class Devil strength by their late teens, but precisely because they are young, they generally lack the time and opportunity to settle their minds and elevate their status as Devils. Even if they try, it is a difficult task. Thus, young Devils of their generation usually have a very low status.
Under these circumstances, it would have been one thing for Leon to reveal Ultimate-class power, but for him to display four pairs of wings—the rank of an eight-winged Devil—the psychological shock dealt to the assembled Devils was even greater than when he revealed his Ultimate-class magic power moments ago.
Luffy's face twisted because of this, his heart filled with negative emotions of anger, hatred, and loathing that surpassed anything he had felt before.
He, the sole survivor of the Trix house, an Extra Devil whose bloodline nobility was no lower than that of the 72 Pillars of pure-blood Devil families, had been born with High-class magic power. He was hailed as a genius seen once in a thousand years, yet it was only after he turned twenty that he gained his first extra pair of wings to become a four-winged Devil. It was after forty that he gained his second pair to become a six-winged Devil, and he didn't become an eight-winged Devil until after he was one hundred and thirty years old.
He had once been proud of this because, as far as he knew, there were not many in the entire history of the Underworld who could become an eight-winged Devil at that age. Even in the ancient era before the old Satans passed away—during the golden age of Devils—someone like him would have been called a genius, let alone in this current era where the Devils' vitality had been severely depleted.
And yet now, a young Devil of only eighteen possessed eight wings?
What was this?
"Why... why is a half-breed mongrel of human and devil blood allowed to carry those eight wings—?!"
Luffy could no longer feel his previous anger, hatred, or loathing; all that remained was intense jealousy.
Yes, he was jealous of Leon, jealous to the point where he nearly lost his mind instantly.
"I will tear those wings off your back!"
Only then could he continue to feel his pride.
Luffy began releasing his magic power without regard for the cost, his entire body enveloped in a grand aura of magical energy. Like a violent meteor, he lunged toward Leon, who had spread his wings and taken flight.
Hum—
The atmosphere distorted around him as magic circles expanded around Luffy, turning into turrets that fired dazzling beams of light at the retreating Leon.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!—
The beams of magic hit the defensive magic circles that Leon suddenly deployed in front of him, triggering towering flames and thunderous roars. In the midair of the Dominion Chamber, scorched flowers of flame bloomed one after another, looking exceptionally beautiful.
Yet behind this beautiful sight was a pursuit filled with killing intent.
"Don't even think about escaping!"
Luffy allowed himself to be dominated by negative emotions, pushing his magic output to its historical peak. Flying into the air, he spread his arms, and massive magic circles immediately unfolded, completely locking down the space for hundreds of meters around Leon.
"Die!"
As the roar sounded, countless attacks flew out of the massive magic circles: magic bullets, beams, arrows, and even formless masses of magical energy. They bombarded the space within those hundreds of meters indiscriminately, swallowing Leon's small figure.
Rumble!!!
The commotion stirred up in this instant felt as if the sky was falling and the earth was rending. The entire Dominion Chamber shook violently, the interior filled with wild shockwaves like a category twelve hurricane, blowing everyone away as they struggled to maintain their footing.
"Leon!"
Sona Sitri's voice lost its calm, a rare occurrence, as she desperately resisted the incoming gale, seemingly wanting to fly toward Leon's direction.
"Don't go! It's dangerous!"
Rias quickly grabbed Sona, stopping her.
At this moment, the conflicting magic auras between Leon and Luffy were so powerful they had turned the area near the combat zone into a forbidden land. Anyone without Ultimate-class strength who blindly rushed in would be reduced to ashes.
"Die! Die! Die!"
Luffy completely ignored his surroundings, continuously venting his magic power, letting countless magic bullets, beams, arrows, and masses bombard Leon's position. He seemed to want to use this method to completely annihilate Leon, acting like a madman.
However—
"Your original appearance was annoying enough. Putting on this mindless act only makes people think you have even less class, you third-rate Devil."
A figure bearing eight devil wings appeared abruptly behind Luffy, uttering those words.
Bang!
Before Luffy could turn around or react, a fist wrapped in magical aura slammed heavily into his face, sending him flying.
"Magic isn't meant to be used like that, idiot."
Leon fully extended the four pairs of wings behind him. Unlike Luffy, he didn't frantically vent his magic. Instead, he condensed a single magic bullet.
This bullet did not grow larger with the magic output as it had before; instead, it was compressed with all his might until it was reduced to the size of a handgun bullet. Only then did Leon release it.
Psh!
The flying Luffy only saw a flash of magical light before his eyes, followed immediately by a sharp pain in his shoulder as a magic bullet pierced through him.
Psh! Psh! Psh!—
In the next second, Leon released several more magic bullets in quick succession, piercing Luffy's abdomen, thigh, and cheek. If Luffy hadn't desperately jerked his head to the side upon sensing the threat of death, it might have been his skull that was pierced rather than his cheek.
"Aaaaaah—!"
Blood sprayed from Luffy's body, and he let out a scream full of agony. In an instant, his entire body was covered in wounds and drenched in blood.
"Damn it!"
Luffy was overcome with both shock and fury.
He hadn't expected that after pushing himself to this extent, not only had he failed to cause even a scratch on his opponent, but he had also been instantly and severely injured.
Even if they both had Ultimate-class strength and eight wings, there was no reason he should lose so easily, was there?
He had become an eight-winged Devil over ten years ago; at that time, his opponent might not have even been born. Even if they were in the same class, he had over a decade more training—could he really not compare?
How was that possible?
Luffy had no way of knowing that although Leon had only recently become an eight-winged Devil, he had been only half a step away from Ultimate-class strength even before recruiting Mahiru Shiina as a servant. After recruiting Mahiru—a Longinus wielder ranked higher than Yukino Yukinoshita—he had not only crossed that half-step in one leap but had also advanced significantly within the Ultimate-class tier.
Therefore, his strength was not that of a newly promoted eight-winged Devil, but was comparable to those Ultimate-class Devils who had been promoted for a decade or even several decades.
In terms of raw power, he had already surpassed Luffy.
As such, Luffy was simply no match for the current Leon.
Bang!
Taking advantage of the opening caused by Luffy's severe injury, Leon released another invisible magical shockwave toward him. Luffy was sent flying as if struck by an invisible mountain, plummeting downward like a cannonball and crashing heavily into the ground, kicking up a thick cloud of dust.
"Curse you! Curse you, curse you, curse you—!"
Luffy felt immense pain throughout his body and spat out a mouthful of blood, causing his emotions to spiral even further out of control.
"Goodbye, moron."
Leon felt nothing toward him. Looking as though he had transformed into a heartless slayer, his usual playful grin was gone. Like a true Devil, he looked down upon Luffy from above with disdain. A magical glow flickered in his hand; one look was enough to know he was brewing a finishing blow.
Looking up at Leon, Luffy's blood-stained face became incredibly distorted.
"You forced my hand!"
Bellowing this, Luffy suddenly reached into his coat and pulled out a small vial.
"That is—"
Leon saw this clearly, and the movement in his hand paused.
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