On the other side, Marco had already arrived on Underworld Island. He planned to lock Ignia up there.
Boom!
He threw Ignia onto the ground and immediately struck him with Sekishiki Meikai Ha.
Accumulated Corpse Qi surged out and knocked the Fire Dragon God's soul straight out of his body.
Marco was going to imprison Ignia's soul and body separately. With his Accumulated Corpse Qi suppressing and controlling it, Ignia's soul had no room to resist.
Buzz.
Marco sealed Ignia's body inside Crystal Wall, then had Plutogrim swallow the cube-shaped barrier into its body.
As for Ignia's soul, that would be locked inside a special prison made from Accumulated Corpse Qi.
If Ignia wanted to escape, he would first have to get past Accumulated Corpse Qi, which could destroy souls, and then break through Crystal Wall before returning to his body.
Put simply, even if he had several lives, they still would not be enough to burn through.
"Master Marco, this is..."
Silver Fullbuster had been beside Marco the whole time, and his face was full of shock.
Marco had actually brought back a dragon!
Gray had been the most shocked at first, because he had mistaken Ignia for the Fire Dragon King Igneel.
After taking a closer look, he noticed the differences between them and quietly let out a breath of relief.
After all, Igneel was basically Natsu's father.
Gray had only just reunited with his own father, so he understood Natsu's feelings better than anyone. If his father had done something wrong and been captured by Brother Marco, he would definitely feel awful too.
Even though he and Natsu were always bickering, Gray did not want to see Natsu go through something like that.
"This is Igneel's son..."
While finishing his work, Marco explained the situation to Gray and Silver.
"Huh?"
Gray froze.
This was even more shocking than if the dragon had been Igneel himself.
Seriously, where did this biological son suddenly come from?
Silver listened with a heavy sigh.
Standing in Igneel's position, he could only feel bad for the father.
His son had ended up walking a path completely opposite to his own. There were few things more painful than that.
At the same time, it made Silver even more grateful to Fairy Tail. They were the ones who kept Gray from going down the wrong path.
After finishing Ignia's imprisonment, Marco did not stay long on Underworld Island.
Buzz.
After saying goodbye to Gray and Silver, Marco disappeared.
"Northern Guiltina... the Five Dragon Gods..."
After Marco left, Gray repeated the words Marco had mentioned, his eyes slowly lighting up.
He was tempted.
Training behind closed doors was boring. Since he had learned new magic, of course he needed to find an opponent to test it on.
Otherwise, what was the point?
And the Five Dragon Gods sounded like perfect opponents.
Most importantly, once his training was over and he returned to the guild, he could brag about his experience in northern Guiltina in front of Natsu.
That idiot would be jealous to death!
"You want to go take a look?"
Silver understood his son's thoughts immediately.
"Yeah. I want to test my new power."
Gray nodded, he really did want to go.
He wanted to fight those Five Dragon Gods and see what they were like.
If he defeated a dragon before Natsu did, Natsu would definitely go crazy with jealousy.
"But Gray, I have to stay here and guard the island. That is my responsibility."
Silver looked helpless.
He wanted to go with his son too, but the situation did not allow it. He had promised Marco that he would remain on Underworld Island and protect it.
"It's fine. I can go by myself."
Gray shook his head. He had no intention of asking his father to abandon his duty.
He was not a child anymore, he could go on his own.
"You should have asked Guild Master Marco to take you just now."
Silver still shook his head. He felt there was no point in Gray going.
"By the time you reach northern Guiltina, those Five Dragon Gods will probably be long dead. Don't you know Guild Master Marco's strength by now?"
Seeing Gray's confused look, Silver reminded his son.
They were still quite far from northern Guiltina, and neither of them had any teleportation ability.
To put it plainly, by the time Gray actually made it there, the corpses of the so-called Five Dragon Gods might already be starting to stink!
"Oh, right! I forgot about that!"
Gray clapped his hands, looking annoyed with himself. Marco coming and going so freely had made him forget just how far they were from northern Guiltina.
He did not have Marco's ability and could not get there in a short time.
"But I can call Marco and ask him to take me!"
Although he had forgotten earlier, Gray still had a way to contact Marco.
Buzz.
Gray immediately called upon Cygnus.
He could use the Cygnus constellation to contact Marco, an ability only Marco's disciples had.
Buzz.
Space rippled, and Marco suddenly reappeared.
"What's wrong, Gray?"
Once Marco sensed a call from one of his disciples, he could teleport straight to them. This meant every one of them could call Marco for help if they ever found themselves in danger.
"Ahem. Marco, I want to go to northern Guiltina too and fight some dragons!"
The moment Marco returned, Gray said what he wanted.
"Sure. It's good to broaden your horizons."
Marco agreed without thinking much about it.
With him there, it did not matter if Gray came along. He could bring a few burdens and still beat up the so-called Five Dragon Gods without much trouble.
Buzz.
After Gray said goodbye to his father, Marco took him back to northern Guiltina.
The two of them appeared at the Magia Dragon guild.
Since he had brought in someone new, Marco had to report it to Elefseria. He had accepted the man's request, so he should at least try to keep the client satisfied.
That much professional courtesy was necessary.
Besides, he could also let Elefseria know the current results.
Once Elefseria heard what Marco had already done, even if he had any objections, he would probably keep them to himself.
...
A faint ripple passed through the air, and Marco appeared in the middle of Magia Dragon's vast, dust-covered hall.
Gray arrived with him, his eyes already moving over the ancient ruins with open curiosity.
This was the legendary first wizard guild, after all. Even in its ruined state, it was enough to make his blood stir a little.
The moment they appeared, another wave of space magic stirred nearby, and Elefseria emerged as well.
The silver-haired, white-bearded old man looked at Marco with surprise he made no attempt to hide.
"Master Marco? You're back already?"
Confusion was clear in his voice.
Marco had left for Ermina to find the Water Dragon God less than half a day ago!
"Did something happen?" Elefseria asked, concern creeping into his tone. "Or was the mission more troublesome than expected? Do you need to rethink your approach?"
He clearly thought Marco had run into trouble and retreated for the time being.
That would not have shocked him.
Every previous team had failed, so failure was something Elefseria had long since grown used to.
Besides, a quest was voluntary. If someone chose to give up, he could not force them to continue.
"Nothing happened, Mr. Elefseria. The mission is going smoothly."
Marco answered with an easy smile, looking completely relaxed.
He then gestured to Gray beside him. "This is one of my guild members and also my student, Gray. I brought him along to broaden his horizons."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Elefseria."
Gray was young, but standing beside Marco, he carried himself calmly enough as he nodded in greeting.
"Mr. Gray will also be taking part in the 100 Years Quest?" Elefseria asked, quickly understanding Marco's meaning.
"That's right. Young people need more real experience. He wanted to come take a look, so I brought him."
Marco nodded with a smile, making it clear that Gray would be joining the mission.
"That is fine, but he must also follow the agreement."
Elefseria did not make things difficult and simply agreed.
Once that was settled, Marco spoke again, his tone so casual that the words almost failed to register at first.
"As for the mission progress, two of the Five Dragon Gods have already been dealt with."
"What?!"
Elefseria's calm, masterful air shattered on the spot.
His mouth fell open, and for a moment, he looked as though he suspected he had heard wrong.
"You're... not joking, are you?"
The old man stared at Marco, trying to tell whether this was some sort of absurd joke.
Half a day.
Only half a day, and two Dragon Gods said to rival the Black Dragon had already been dealt with?
That was beyond unbelievable. It sounded like a story made up by a drunk bard!
"Mercphobia, the Water Dragon God, and Ignia, the Fire Dragon God."
Marco nodded and gave the names.
"The Water Dragon God and the Fire Dragon God..."
Elefseria repeated the names under his breath, then his eyes suddenly sharpened.
"Did you take advantage of them fighting each other...?"
That was the only possibility he could think of.
Perhaps Marco had caught Mercphobia and Ignia in the middle of one of their battles, waited until they were both badly weakened, then struck from the side and took them down through a surprise attack.
"No. Mercphobia has turned back from the wrong path and agreed to help me deal with the remaining Dragon Gods. Right now, he is struggling with the consequences of his own uncontrolled power and the guilt of his past sins. He's willing to assist us in solving Guiltina's problems and find a way to atone. He's currently in Ermina gathering information on the other Dragon Gods."
Marco gave him a brief explanation of the current situation.
Mercphobia was a variable neither of them had expected.
And since Elefseria and the Water Dragon God clearly had personal hatred between them, Marco felt it was better to tell him about the cooperation early.