With a sickening crack, dragon scales began to creep across Su Yan's skin.
His body swelled, muscle and bone reshaping. Two sharp horns burst from his forehead, and his hands and feet twisted, elongating into terrifying dragon claws. Whirlwinds coiled around his body, as if the air itself bent to his presence.
"AAAAOOOHHHH!!!"
The Underworld Beast wailed in agony, thrashing violently.
"Crack—!!"
Its titanic form began to bulge, then split apart with deep fissures.
"What?!" Mard Geer's expression finally twisted. For the first time, he was uncertain.
BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!
The Underworld Beast screamed as its enormous body ripped open.
From the rift burst a cyan dragon, tearing free and soaring into the sky.
"Wha—what is that?!"
"A… a dragon?!"
"Impossible!! How can a dragon still exist in this era?!"
The soldiers of Tartaros trembled. They all knew the legend—Acnologia had slaughtered every last dragon.
But there, before them, one roared defiantly against the heavens.
Su Yan's draconic gaze swept the battlefield, his Haki instantly locating every Fairy Tail member. With a single breath, he released a stream of flame, shielding his comrades and moving them aside.
Then he turned back toward Tartaros headquarters, gathering scorching energy in his maw.
"Heat—!"
"BREATH—!!!"
A devastating torrent of flame roared forth, engulfing the Underworld's fortress. The entire structure melted into bubbling magma, drowning everything inside.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The explosion of heat obliterated all in its path. Keyes, the Black Archbishop, was vaporized instantly, leaving not even ash.
Panic swept the remaining demons.
The Nine Demon Gates reassembled—what remained of them. Only Franmalth, Kyôka, Seilah, Torafuzar, and their king, Mard Geer.
"Lord Mard… who is this dragon?!" Kyôka demanded, eyes wide.
Torafuzar's voice shook. "Acnologia destroyed them all… how can there be another dragon?!"
Seilah, brows furrowed, whispered, "Perhaps not a dragon by birth… but a Dragon Slayer who has turned into one. The old texts warned of this fate."
Franmalth spat angrily. "It doesn't matter what he is! Think of how to kill him before he wipes us out!!"
Mard Geer sneered. "Do not fear. Dragons resist humans… but demons are different. Our magic still bites. We'll strike together."
But before they could act—
"BAD WIND!!!"
Su Yan's draconic maw unleashed a storm of wind blades, sharp as scythes, that carved the battlefield apart.
"UWAAAAHHHH!!"
The demons scattered as the earth split open under the assault.
"What monstrous power…" Torafuzar hissed. "One strike like that… I'd be killed instantly."
"White Serpent!"
Mard Geer conjured a shining serpent of diamond light, sending it lunging toward Su Yan.
The dragon raised one claw and crushed it with contemptuous ease.
CRUNCH!!! BOOM!!!
The serpent shattered.
Then Su Yan surged forward, his titanic body slamming into the demons.
"White Light Ball!!" Mard Geer countered, hurling a blinding sphere of destruction.
"Amaterasu—Twenty-Eight Forms!!" Franmalth unleashed a storm of magic circles.
"Five Senses Deprived!!" Kyôka cast her curse, stripping sight, sound, and touch.
BOOOOMMMMM!!!
The combined explosion shook the entire underworld.
"Did we… did we get him?!" Franmalth stammered.
But as the smoke cleared, Su Yan stood unscathed, eyes glowing with draconic fury.
"…Impossible…" Mard Geer whispered.
"Tornado!!!"
A storm of massive cyclones erupted around Su Yan, tearing across the battlefield.
"AAAAHHHHH!!"
The Nine Gates were flung like leaves in a hurricane.
Franmalth's voice cracked. "This—this isn't a man… it's a natural disaster!!"
Mard Geer's smile was gone. His eyes burned with grim resolve. "Enough. If we are to return to Lord Zeref's side, this creature must die. No holding back."
"ETHERIOUS FORM!!!"
Torafuzar's body twisted, becoming a monstrous abyssal murloc.
"COMMAND!! Restrictions—lift!!"
Seilah's horns sharpened as her skin blackened, her demon form unleashed.
Kyôka followed, her claws lengthening into deadly blades.
Finally, Mard Geer transformed—armored, winged, a demon king in full.
But before their clash could begin, the ground split apart.
From the earth bloomed a grotesque flower, its petals peeling away to reveal a figure—an old man, reborn in demonic flesh.
"Who is that?!" Kyôka hissed.
Mard Geer's smile returned. "My newest servant. Once the proud master of a human guild… now reborn as a demon under me. Jiemma."
The old man sneered, eyes burning with dark power. "Servant, you call me? You dare speak so low of Jiemma, whose might once shook the world?"