The Shrine.
When Laxus, led by Gedatsu, finally arrived, he saw the self-proclaimed 'God,' Enel, sitting alone on his throne. One leg was crossed over the other as he nonchalantly munched on an apple, a look of arrogant and utter indifference on his face.
"Big Brother Laxus, this is the Shrine," Gedatsu explained. "And the man sitting on that throne is the 'God' we serve, Lord Enel."
"Gedatsu, as one of my priests, you should be well aware of the fate that befalls traitors, shouldn't you?!"
Hearing this, Enel slowly put down the green-and-red apple in his hand. His gaze shot past Laxus, locking onto Gedatsu, who was deliberately half a step behind to show deference. The threat in his voice was loud and clear.
"This..."
Gedatsu's face went pale. It was clear he knew exactly what happened to those who defied Enel.
"Forget it," Enel sneered. "I'll deal with you later."
After shooting Gedatsu a vicious glare, Enel's eyes finally fell upon Laxus, who stood at the very front.
A smirk played on Enel's lips. "So, you're the amusing Blue Sea dweller who invaded my great divine nation?"
"And you're the tyrannical 'God' who rules this place, Enel?" Laxus crossed his arms, a hint of indifference in his eyes as he asked, "I heard that as a god, you can use your ability to extend your senses to their maximum, blanketing the entire island. Is that how you know everything that happens here?!"
"It seems you're quite familiar with my abilities~"
"But of course! That big-mouthed Gedatsu must have told you everything, what he should have and what he shouldn't have."
"He has, for all intents and purposes, become your new servant."
A flash of fury colored Enel's eyes, but it vanished as quickly as it appeared. He maintained his faint smile and said to Laxus, "So, now that you know about my power, what do you plan to ask me? You didn't come here just to confirm these boring details, did you?"
As Enel spoke, a flicker of curiosity appeared in his eyes.
"Heh heh~"
"I do have a question for you..."
"Since you used your special sense to know of my arrival in advance, why didn't you run?"
"Could it be that my power scared you so much your legs went too soft to even try?" Laxus chuckled softly before finally posing his question.
"You... You've got some nerve!"
"Do you really think I won't kill you?" Veins bulged on Enel's forehead. He pointed a hand at Laxus and said coldly, "BEGONE! 30,000,000 VOLT: RAICHO!!"
As Enel's voice fell, a bird formed of pure lightning immediately shot towards Laxus... The terrifying electrical force disintegrated countless particles in the air into their base elements.
"BOOM!!"
However, when this devastatingly powerful attack struck Laxus, it had no effect whatsoever!
Instead, Laxus swallowed it whole, eating it in a single gulp.
"Is that all?!" Laxus yawned, looking at Enel.
"IT'S NOT OVER!"
"30,000,000 VOLT: KITEN!"
Enel roared, unleashing another incredibly thick bolt of lightning. It morphed mid-air into a rampaging beast, lunging at Laxus with bared fangs and claws.
"Ssshp~"
Laxus remained motionless. He simply opened his mouth slightly and sucked the thunder beast into his stomach, converting it into energy.
"Is that all?!" Laxus asked again, looking at Enel.
"You bastard..."
"Hah! Fine!"
"Let's see just how many of my attacks you can eat!"
"60,000,000 VOLT: RAI-RYU!!"
Enel roared, striking the large taiko drums on his back. From them, an immense amount of lightning gathered. With his hands, he molded it into a roaring dragon of electricity and hurled it directly at Laxus.
"A Thunder Dragon?"
"You dare?"
Laxus couldn't believe Enel's audacity!
Calling a bolt of lightning the size of a python a 'Thunder Dragon'?!
This was an insult to real Thunder Dragons. More importantly, it was an insult to Laxus himself.
"BOOM!"
This time, Laxus couldn't even be bothered to devour it. He gathered dazzling golden lightning in his right fist and punched the "Thunder Dragon" directly, shattering it to pieces.
"Hahahaha..."
"I see, I get it now!"
"So that's your limit, isn't it?!"
"Your limit is sixty million volts!"
Seeing that Laxus didn't eat his sixty-million-volt Rai-Ryu but instead punched it, Enel's anger turned to joy. Believing he had finally figured out Laxus's limit, he roared with excitement, "In that case, your doom has come!"
"Next up is my ultimate technique, far surpassing sixty million volts!"
"TAKE THIS! 100,000,000 VOLT: EL THOR!!"
As Enel spoke, he transformed his entire left arm into lightning and threw it into the sky, where it gathered into a pitch-black thundercloud. He then manipulated the lightning within—surpassing one hundred million volts—to crash down upon Laxus.
"DISAPPEAR!"
Enel roared with glee. He could already see the scene of Laxus being utterly destroyed by his divine punishment, and it made him laugh manically. "Hahahaha!! I AM GOD!"
"Ssshp~"
Unfortunately, before Enel's laughter could fade, he saw Laxus open his cavernous mouth towards the sky and swallow his one-hundred-million-volt El Thor in a single gulp.
In an instant, the smile on Enel's face froze. He couldn't laugh anymore. He roared in utter disbelief, "IMPOSSIBLE! How can you withstand even one hundred million volts?! Is there NO LIMIT to how much lightning you can devour?!"
"Fool!"
"I am the Lightning Dragon!"
"I am the master of lightning, its very incarnation."
"When have you ever seen the ocean drown in water? The land buried by earth? The sky burst from too much air?!"
As Laxus spoke, his body transformed into golden lightning, flashing directly in front of Enel. He roared as he swung his fist, "Lightning Dragon's... BREAKDOWN FIST!!"
"Useless!"
"Mere physical attacks can never harm me!"
Enel watched Laxus's fist fly towards him with a twisted grin. The reason he hadn't run was his absolute confidence: his body was made of lightning. Even if Laxus could eat lightning, he could never physically harm him.
"BOOM!"
However, all of Enel's meaningless thoughts vanished the moment Laxus's fist slammed viciously into his face.
"Why?"
Feeling the searing pain on his face and the agony of his features being deformed by the punch, Enel's eyes filled with confusion...
And so, as he was sent flying by Laxus's punch, becoming a shooting star in the sky, he shouted his final question: "How can my body of lightning... be hit by a mere mortal?!"
"BOOM!!"
As for Laxus, after sending Enel flying, he calmly stated towards the azure sky, "Because the scales of a Lightning Dragon can grasp all lightning."
"The old god has been defeated!"
"A new god has been born!"
"From this day forward, the new god's name is... Laxus."
Meanwhile, the priest Gedatsu, who had witnessed the entire 'Battle of God and Dragon' with his own eyes, announced the truth, despite the shock and disbelief filling his heart.
~# Every 30 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter