387. Still One-Sided
The one-sided game gets even more one-sided when Ben starts getting offensive. He covers his body with his Sun Dragon Slayer Magic's solar energy and attacks the Mages. His first targets are the ones closest to him, the Wizard Saints.
Ben moves at a very high speed toward Fabian the Blade Mage. He arrives almost instantly and takes Fabian by surprise. Fabian tries to get away, but Ben has caught his shoulder, stopping him from escaping.
"How many times should I tell you, buddy? Big blade isn't sharp and fast enough. Ultimate spell doesn't need to be big and flashy. It just needs to be deadly. Even a punch can be an ultimate skill if it's deadly," says Ben before punching Fabian's stomach very hard.
Fabian's body arches as he flies back very fast until he crashes onto a boulder. He coughs some blood but he is still quite fine. This guy didn't get the Wizard Saint title for nothing. He defeated one of the previous members in the competition, so he is very tough.
His reflex is also very fast and he could actually block Ben's punch using his Blade Magic. He made a blade hastily to block Ben's punch. It broke easily because he didn't make it properly, but it could reduce the punch's power even if it wasn't much.
The same thing also happens to the next Wizard Saint, Elrich the elemental mage. He gets punched in the face though, but he can also block Ben's punch a little. His block is better than Fabian's because he was ready for it as he isn't the 1st target.
But he still gets considerable damage, especially because he gets hit in the face. Jura the 3rd target handles it better than the 2 of them. He is more experienced and his magic is also better for defense, after all.
Even so, Jura still receives a lot of damage because Ben also uses more power to attack him. He only reduces his power when he attacks Jessica and Ellie. Ben doesn't differentiate males and females as enemies, but this is just a game, so he holds back his power because he doesn't want to kill them.
After the Wizard Saints, his next targets are the S-Class of every Guild including Fairy Tail. Laxus, Erza, Freed, Cana, Bacchus, Ichiya, Minerva, Orga, and Kagura become his next victims. They get punched and kicked in different areas and no one can defend well enough.
Then he goes for the rest including his sisters who also get punched hard enough. They have sparred against Ben the most among everyone in this world. So they used to get hit by Ben and it never became a problem.
Everyone has gotten hit by Ben now, but they still don't give up. They could reach this stage with their power, so a punch won't take them out yet. Ben is quite satisfied seeing them standing up again after receiving his punches.
"That's how this should be. It won't be fun if you are done after getting just a punch each. Now, unleash everything you have because only then will you succeed to hit me," says Ben while grinning widely.
The Mages grit their teeth before they start attacking Ben again. Ben grins and covers his palms with golden solar energy before facing their attacks using his palms. He blocks, parries, and counters their attacks only using his palms covered by golden solar energy without evading any of them.
Sometimes, he even redirects their attacks to hit others or even themselves. There's a very satisfying feeling when he uses their attacks to attack them. Also, Ben wants to show them that they don't always need to use their own power to fight.
They can use their opponents' power to be used on those opponents instead. It will save them a lot of energy so they can fight for a longer time. Such a strategy is also quite efficient to be used against stronger opponents and if they face multiple opponents at once.
It's also very entertaining because the spectators are in awe of Ben's battle skills. They hoped to see him use strong magic spells, but such a show of skills is welcomed too. Most Mages only exchange magic spells in their fights, but Ben is fighting differently, which is refreshing for them.
The Mages get tired quite fast because of Ben's battle strategy. Although he has a lot more energy than them, the reason they get tired this fast is that they are forced to use more power in each attack. They can't damage Ben without doing that, after all.
But even them going all-out is still not enough to defeat Ben. In fact, none of their attacks land a clean hit on Ben's body even after a rather long time. He is like an adult fighting babies. It's very overwhelming that even the spectators feel sorry for the Mages.
"Are you done?" asks Ben while looking at the tired Mages who slumped on the ground while panting hard.
These are the top Mages on this continent, but they are being played by just one man. Now everyone can see why he could become the Strongest on this continent. He is just too strong for anyone on this continent, a man standing above all.
The Mages try to stand up, making Ben grins widely because their spirits haven't been crushed. They know the difference between their power and Ben's, so they have expected this kind of result and are prepared for this. That's why they won't get dispirited even though Ben crushed them effortlessly.
They try to continue fighting even though it won't change the result. But they don't want to just give up before doing everything they can. Even if they will get defeated, they will still give it their all and fight until they squeeze out the last drop of their power.
Ben just lets them get up and attack him again even though their attacks have gotten weaker. He knows this is a crucial moment for them because this situation is the best chance for Mages to surpass their limits and grow stronger.
Going through hardships like fighting strong opponents is the best way for Mages to grow. That's why he always tried to make all his battle difficult even when he has gotten stronger. He also kept training relentlessly because he can do it every day, unlike facing strong opponents.
Now, these Mages are facing the most difficult opponent they can find who won't kill them. So they need to use this chance well and surpass their limits. Ben wants to see them do that too, so he lets them struggle even more.
Unsurprisingly, the first one who surpasses such a limit is Wendy. Ben isn't surprised at all because he knows how hard Wendy worked and he is the one who trained and taught her everything since they were kids. So he knows what she is capable of very well and seeing her growing like this is not shocking to him.
He is just so proud of his sister who suddenly activates an imperfect Dragon Force. Yes, she activates Dragon Force on her own will as a 1st Generation Dragon Slayer, even though it's still not perfect. Still, it's a great achievement for her to activate it without an external source of magic power.
The only one who succeeded to do it so far was Ben when he fought the Dragons. It's just that his power at that time wasn't enough to defeat Acnologia even when he used Dragon Force. So he transformed himself into a 3rd Generation Dragon Slayer by forming the lacrima inside his body.
The others are shocked though, especially the Dragon Slayers. They never thought that Wendy would be the first one who gets closer to Ben's level. But they forget that she is raised by the man himself.
The only one holding her back all these years was just her hate of fighting. But now she has changed that. She still hates fighting, but only if it's not for a good reason. Her strong will to protect those precious to her has pushed her this far that he surpassed many people.
Ben smiles happily and says, "Our little crybaby has grown a lot, Gramps."
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