Talk:Shinyaku Toaru Majutsu no Index Light Novel Volume 10/@comment-151.227.21.255-20140523025920/@comment-11571396-20140523035855

The Arcs are set up in a way to lead to another, bigger grand Arc thanks to elements hinted at in said arcs, helping solve major ot points in the series.

Old Testament: Touma's involvements in the Catholic Church's affairs (Orsola Aquinas, Croce di Pietro, Queen of the Adriatic Sea) lead to him being targeted by God's Right Seat, first taking action by invading Academy City, which serves to raise the tensions between the Science and Magic Sides, and everyone predict an all-out war. SS1 introduces Shiage would will be important later. Then, while Touma deal with the members of GRS and the Catholic Church preparing for war, Accelerator shows us his mysterious wings of volune 13 and gains hint to a certain DRAGON at the end of volune 15, and Shiage starts messing with Aleister's plans because he fell in love with Takitsubo (again, important later). After Touma defeats Terra trying to start the war early by riling up the believers of the Church in volume 14, he defeated Acqua in volume 16, volume which reveals the main villain behind the scenes, Fiamma, in the last chapter, who reappears to kidnap Index at the end of volume 18. Volume 19 reveals DRAGON, Aiwass, an important component to Aleister's plan (and Shiage keeps messing with them).

Then everything comes to an end in WW3, where many questions are resolved while new ones are raised:
 * Call back to as far as volume 4 with the reappearance of Gabriel + an explanation as to why Angel Fall was made possible
 * Call back to both Volume 3 and 6 with the use of the Network spread all over the world to manifest Kazakiri
 * Call back to volume 2 with IB reacting weirdly when Touma's arm is cut off, revelation of the "Invisible Thing"
 * Accelerator's mysterious white wings
 * The Parameter List is revealed, shedding light on the truth of the PPC, along the revelation that the only reason AC went to war is that Takitsubo could grow her special power under extraordinary circumstances
 * His plans are so thrown off course Aleister has to manifest, and his survival is now known, and reference to his plans and the Aeons.
 * Othinus hinted at in the epilogue

New Testament: NT1 seemed like a filler, but actually wasn't. NT2 introduces GREMLIN, which as of yet we don't know is lead by Othinus. The other arcs follow GREMLIN amassing the necessary to create Gungnir (lance revealed in a side-story), Touma is told that IB is a reference point, while Aleister seem powerless to do anything. In parallel, Science side, Accelerator gets a glimpse of the Plan in NT6, Takitsubo and Fremea use their powers gaining the interests of the Kiharas, who then put one plan in motion in NT7, revealing that NT1 was not totally unrelated to the plot. They seem interested in Takitsubo, and seem to have other plans as shown in the end. Finally, this 3 parter giving us more questions to the plot:
 * We are shown what the universe of ToAru is made of, the Phases, how they exist (similar yet different than the Artificial Heaven), and allusion to a Pure, untouched world of Science Aleister is trying to reach. Also, IB acting as a reference point.
 * This entire saga was to reveal the true Gremlin, living in a Phase, the concept introduced in NT9. Othinus was a failure compared to them, so is/will be Aiwass apparently, and Aleister wasn't actually powerless, he was busy trying to reach them,

I think you should pay more attention while reading, you would gain a better understanding of the series than "Touma punch, problem solved", which isn't actually the plot.