They've already fought their way through the Holy Grail War, and you still call them dragons?

"How does it compare to the Ibuki-douji who appeared at the end of the Holy Grail War I experienced?"

In his mind, Emiya kept estimating the strength of the snake god evolved from Shuten.

According to the records of the Holy Grail War, the snake god Shuten-san's divine power is currently rising, but it hasn't significantly surpassed the other party. However, due to consuming the entire Holy Grail, the opponent's spiritual power has expanded dramatically, far surpassing... Hey, it's actually accelerating again! It's about to surpass the original Ibuki god!

"Tsk!... What's going on?"

Emiya could hear the surprise in BB's tone, and his mood sank. It was true that he wanted to use the Snake God to hone new martial arts and powers for his opponent, but he also didn't want to get into trouble suddenly because of some inexplicable accident.

"Why is she so much bigger than Ibuki Douji?"

"I understand!" BB exclaimed, a flood of data flashing across the virtual screen in front of her. "It's the Dragon Vein! It's based on the Dragon Vein and the Night Food Source!"

"So that's it!"

After BB's reminder, Emiya once again realized a blind spot in his thinking that he had not noticed before:

In reality, the Nibelungen "Night Food Field" had actually been in a semi-destroyed state before the arrival of Ibuki Douji because of the joint efforts of Emiya Natsumi and Norton and others outside, which had damaged the dragon vein to a considerable extent.

Therefore, Ibuki Douji did not have the opportunity to use this Nibelungen, after all, she came to the world after the Night Food Source was damaged.

In this singularity, without the involvement of external factors like Xia Mi and Norton, the Night Food Field remains intact, and the White King, or Yamata no Orochi, is the undisputed primary controller. Just like Leviathan, controlling the Zero Viaduct, he manipulates this world in various ways...

No, Leviathan wasn't even the owner of the Nibelungen on Skyway Zero; he merely borrowed the authority from Odin. And now that Shuten's evolved Serpent God had devoured the Holy Grail, he was no different from the White King's highest authority!

But having said that, what exactly is this snake god doing in front of us?

Without Emiya asking, BB quickly came up with the answer, "Amazing... She's expanding the dragon veins!"

"Wait, expansion?"

[That's right!] BB's virtual display screen revealed a map of the dragon veins beneath Tokyo in the real world.

The dragon vein was originally located in a shallow underground layer, but it is now advancing vertically at an astonishing speed into the asthenosphere, approximately 80 kilometers below the surface. It is also spreading horizontally like a net. Currently, Yamanashi and Gunma prefectures are fully covered, and it is further expanding into Nagano and Aichi prefectures, and Nagoya is about to be included...!

The so-called asthenosphere is the location where magma is generated underground, usually due to plate tectonic movements. The depth of the asthenosphere varies globally, generally being deeper on land and shallower in the ocean.

BB nervously checked each data stream, but it was obvious that the snake god's actions were beyond their expectations.

It shouldn't have been this smooth, but this island nation is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire. Plate subduction has led to frequent asthenosphere activity, and the asthenosphere is generally shallow, with the shallowest being only 60 kilometers deep! They've already reached this depth...! —They've further accelerated the lateral expansion of the dragon vein!

Emiya quickly understood the situation, repositioned himself, and swung his sword forward, saying, "So, Shuten-douji wants to maximize the effectiveness of the Holy Grail by expanding the dragon veins!"

According to the understanding gained through the Holy Grail War, the Holy Grail system would be connected to the local dragon veins. The higher the quality of the land and the higher the magical power content of the dragon veins, the more magical power the Holy Grail could absorb, and the greater the effect it could exert.

Of course, in this dragon world, dragon veins or earth veins are essentially super-large alchemical matrices, and the asthenosphere with active magma is an area where underground metal elements frequently move and migrate, which is indeed suitable for the expansion of earth veins, thereby easily exerting the role of the alchemical matrix to a greater extent.

From this perspective, the effectiveness of the Holy Grail has indeed been enhanced to a considerable extent.

Boom! Before he could finish his words, a raging tide of fire erupted. BB looked up and saw that the snake god opposite him had been engulfed by a huge ring of scorching fire in the blink of an eye.

This is the Fire Type of the Crimson Lotus Dance of Niten Ichiryu, which uses the divine sword Ama Murakumo as the basis for activation, and at the same time applies the destructive and killing power of Ama Murakumo of Steel. The combination of the two actually forms a black flame that seems to burn and kill living things and is difficult to extinguish!

Amatras!

Puff! The surging water evaporated in the blink of an eye. The snake god's scales burst out, but were also surrounded by the wide ring of fire and swallowed up completely in the blink of an eye. Then, the dark flames climbed up the snake god, which had grown to the size of a mountain range, like a cancer.

"——!" A sharp and piercing hissing sound penetrated the eardrum, revealing a new blue scale that seemed to have some characteristics. It looked like the new scales were replaced to resist the tide and thrive in the raging waves, but this water resistance was ineffective in front of the black divine flame.

So, the snake god had to stop expanding, and it was forced to start a new round of "scaling" - taking advantage of the fact that the black flames did not seriously burn it, it first shed the scales on its body, and then, the blue scales wrapped in black flames were all thrown away, and the new crimson scales sparkled.

The crimson scales caused high temperatures to evaporate the seawater as the snake swam. It seemed that these were new scales with fire properties and resistance.

[Wow! What a shame! I was hoping to see a barbecued snake feast!]

BB felt the heat of the air blowing in his face and whistled.

She knew that Emiya was trying to interrupt the expansion of the Snake God. Although Shuten-douji's original purpose was to "play games", who knew how many lives would be paid for this "game" in the concept of inhuman existence?

Emiya's eyes became more focused. Since you have changed the scales again, I will change to sword skills with other attributes to fight with you.

Do you think you are the only one who can switch? You are stupid, I can also switch in the same way, and I don’t make the same switch twice.

Niten Ichiryu was originally born out of the concepts of the "Gorinsho" (The Book of Five Rings). Emiya mastered all of the "Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind" elements, except for "Sky." In a sense, the snake god's scale-changing technique was simply countered by his Niten Ichiryu! Of course, the prerequisite is that Niten Ichiryu has reached the realm of the gods.

Emiya had… for who knows how many times he'd changed his stance when something suddenly struck him. He quickly asked, "Minamoto no Raikou and the others have arranged for the people to be evacuated to the shelter, right? The tides and waves are pretty strong here, but is everything okay over there?"

He and the rest of the Chaldeans hadn't yet learned what the shelters the Eight Snake Clan had prepared in the Night Food Plains looked like and what level of protection they possessed. They hoped to remain unscathed during the massive tsunami unleashed by the Serpent God.

[Hmm, let me see... Hey, senior, don't worry. Minamoto no Raikou and the Snake Eight Clan are very clever. Their shelter is actually a passage leading to the outside world of Tokyo. By this time, I'm sure most of the people have been relocated.]

"That's good."

Emiya nodded, and immediately prepared to attack again.

At this moment, he suddenly felt a shadow above his head rapidly expanding.

Mountain?

Emiya looked up and saw an entire mountain rapidly flying towards him!

...There's no sign of divine power. Is this a trick played by Takeda Shingen and his gang?

"Earth Form! Acala!"

Emiya changed his stance in an instant, and his fierce momentum suddenly subsided. He swung the blade in a tight and smooth arc, and at the same time caused Susanoo to rotate. Then, pieces of ochre - no, almost black sword energy collided with the flying mountain like a group of rocks, and in an instant, the mountain collapsed!

Then, out of the corner of his eye, Emiya caught a glimpse of the direction those heroic swordsmen were heading. They were riding flame-wrapped horses away from the side of the Serpent God. Mixed among them were a large number of Flame Cavalrymen and Takeda generals, creating a deliberate maze to confuse the viewer. In addition, the huge amount of steam rising from all around made it even more difficult to distinguish them.

So that's what it is. It's Takeda Shingen's treasure, "Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain". They walk on the "wind", form their own "forest" position, move with the momentum of "fire", and finally move the "mountain" to smash the enemy. The mountain is at the end, which is of course an effective way to divert attention. By the time Emiya reacts, they are already very far away.

"Hmph! Want to escape?"

There are no doors!

Emiya remembered that they still had several mass-produced divine swords in their hands. Although their strength was just so-so, they couldn't let them get away.

It was one thing for him to not care about or look down on these people, but it was another thing for them to escape on their own while they were still on the chopping block. This was unacceptable. In Emiya's eyes, they were just tools to keep the swords safe. Although they were useless, they couldn't just run away. If they did, they would be easily killed and their power taken away.

I believe that Takeda Shingen also saw this clearly, so he decided to give it a try.

"Earth Form! Vajra Tripod!" Emiya's Steel Ame Murakumo was wrapped in a dark and shiny aura of power. He raised both swords high, and the next moment he slammed them into the ground under the waves.

Rumble!

The sea suddenly surged with exaggerated waves, and endless tsunamis were set off, even revealing the shaking surface of the earth - this was because Emiya used the sword as the hub to input divine power into the ground, thus creating a strong seismic wave!

Want to run? Can you escape?

Chapter 322 So, what should you do with the second one?

The shape of the earth! The Vajra Tripod!

Beneath the shaking sea, the ground was rumbling violently. Under the influence of the shock waves, countless hills rose up, and endless cracks sank into canyons.

The propagation speed of this solid shock wave is much faster than that of the case where air is the medium. Therefore, once it is released, the soldiers and horses in the distance, where flames of war are burning and thick mist is rising, are madly swallowed up by the huge waves and tsunamis that are shaking under the indirect effect.

"not good!"

When Takeda Shingen and others sensed the sudden madness of the sea, their hearts began to beat wildly.

"Don't look back, keep running! Speed ​​up! Charge!" Takeda Shingen probably still wanted to continue struggling. He stopped some of his teammates who couldn't help but want to look back. At this time, they must concentrate on their work, otherwise they would think they were not dying fast enough!

All the heroic swordsmen galloped on their horses, the wind element surged faster and faster, even causing the horses' legs to leave dazzling afterimages.

Boom! Without any warning, a dark, round sword wave with a yellowish ochre hue descended from the sky. It was Emiya's sword wave, like a ruthless falling Feilai Peak!

No, the destructive power of that sword wave is like a meteorite impact like the "Heavenly Shocking Star". Once it lands, it will cause the annihilation of the entire army!

Takeda Shingen felt the shadow looming, looked up at this horrifying scene, and couldn't help but reveal a momentary look of bewilderment. Wasn't this exactly the same as when he had just thrown a mountain?

What goes around comes around, it really is retribution.

"Is this the end for me?"

Takeda Shingen raised the "Earth of Murakumo". This action was his strategy to escape from the battlefield. Now that the strategy was about to fail, he had no choice but to sacrifice himself and exert his last bit of energy to save the situation. "Everyone, I am not qualified as the temporary leader. Therefore, I am afraid that my journey ends here. See you later!"

Whoosh! Takeda Shingen, riding his warhorse "Black Cloud", turned in another direction and soared into the air!

"Hahaha! Burn my blood!"

In an instant, a blood-red torrent of magic power rose from Takeda Shingen's body, like a cloak of red flames. This was the magic circuit that allowed him to burn his own blood to dramatically increase his output!

The next moment, Takeda was heard chanting loudly: "Hold high the banner of Fenglinzan! Ride across heaven and earth, crimson warriors!"

Countless Burning Cavalry Regiments appeared again around Takeda. Their number was far greater than the troops summoned before, numbering over ten thousand. They were like an invincible king's army in the Warring States Period, riding on the gust of wind, burning with red flames, and merging into a collective with Takeda, who was at the vanguard.

Tomoe Gozen couldn't help but turn around and exclaimed, "Is this the former Takeda army...?"

Hijikata Toshizo nodded calmly, "Although it is completely different from the path and style of my Shinsengumi's 'Eternal Loyalty' banner, I accept it!"

This is the effect of Takeda Shingen maximizing the release of the Noble Phantasm "Wind, Forest, Fire and Mountain", which is enough to summon the Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda and the Takeda Army in its heyday. However, the price is that Takeda Shingen needs to overload and burn his own spiritual base.

If nothing unexpected happens, this will be the only peak attack!

"Ohhhh, experience the majesty of the Tiger of Kai galloping across the battlefield!"

With his back to his teammates who were going away, Takeda Shingen led the entire army without hesitation and launched a desperate counterattack. Wearing the artifact "Shield Armor", he was like a moving fortress. Holding the divine sword "Earth of Murakumo" in his hand, he swung the earth-colored sword light, giving the entire Takeda army a considerable degree of protection.

Thus, the vast army, surpassing all its past strength and reaching its peak, burned with blood-red flames and harnessed the fierce wind, like a massive fireball hurtling backwards, crashing into the dark meteorite falling from the sky! This time, even if it was a complete divine-level attack, they would fight to the death to block it!

Boom!

At the moment of the head-on collision, an almost visible circular shock wave spread rapidly along the point where the two touched.

Shingen Takeda, bearing the brunt of the impact, felt his entire body tremble violently as he collided with the dark, round sword wave, followed by an overwhelming sense of heaviness pressing down from above. Even with the protection of the Earth Sky Murakumo, the Shieldless Armor still creaked and groaned under the weight.

"Charge!" he roared with all his might.

All around Takeda, countless cavalrymen charged forward, charging into him with their flaming bodies. However, unlike Takeda, they had less protection, so the collision was like an egg hitting a rock, shattering them instantly.

But tens of thousands of people, tirelessly and fearlessly, charged forward, following Takeda's command. The sheer scale of the scene was so overwhelming that it grieved Takeda's heart.

But anyway, hard work pays off. After all of Takeda's soldiers sacrificed their lives in the physical charge and Takeda's own artifact, the Shield of No Armor, was permanently damaged, Emiya's attack was finally successfully blocked and failed to land.

"Hahaha!"

Takeda gasped and forced a smile. His face was pale and blood was oozing from his facial features. This was a sign that his body's circuits were out of control and his spiritual foundation was severely damaged. In fact, he was at the end of his rope and was about to retire.

However, he was happy that he had effectively blocked Emiya's attack, bought time for his teammates to escape, and barely maintained the results of the operation.

"interesting……"

The vast and distant sound, accompanied by the rumbling thunder, made Takeda's expression freeze.

"—So, what are you going to do about the second shot?"

Before he finished speaking, the sky was once again shrouded in a larger shadow, and an even larger dark sword wave, which completely blocked out the moonlight in the sky, came crashing down from the sky.

Despair enveloped the faces of the four heroic swordsmen.

----

In the burning city of Tokyo, the air was inevitably filled with a lingering smell of burnt and sulfur. This extremely poor air quality, full of toxic components, was definitely not a "livable" refuge, even for a short stay.

But the people had no choice. If they stayed in the Night Food World where the Supreme War took place, it was likely that none of the people who had fled here would survive.

"Mr. Abbas, can you hold on? We'll soon find an area with better air."

Mashu, carrying a massive shield, stepped steadily and powerfully, standing out from the crowd. After all, she was a legitimate Sub-Servant, and even the best hybrids couldn't match her.

In contrast, Abbas was only recovering from a serious injury. His body was sweating profusely in the scorching Tokyo environment. "It's okay, I can hold on."

He shook his head. Theoretically, he shouldn't be so weak, but for some reason, after leaving the Night Food Plain and arriving in the burning Tokyo, overlapping illusions always appeared in front of his eyes.

It seemed as if countless dead people had turned into translucent ghosts, looking hideous and howling in a trance. After Abbas received the hallucination, he felt dizzy and sweating frequently.

Burning... The overwhelming heat and the fiery red burning background, coupled with the illusion of truth or falsehood, is simply a waking nightmare.

Abbas couldn't help but recall his childhood in the war-torn town on the edge of the Middle East. The orphanage where he lived as a child was also destroyed in a raging fire, and even the director who adopted him died there. It was almost his biggest nightmare.

“…We’re almost there! Great…”

Abbas heard Minamoto no Raikou and Mashu, who were leading the crowd, communicating with each other. Only the faint sound of their conversation could be heard, and he subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

But a new illusion suddenly appeared in his vision - hordes of hideous and roaring ghosts rushed out from the dark mouth of the ruins and attacked the group of survivors!

"Be careful! Right!" Abbas shouted subconsciously.

Mashu turned her head and looked back with a puzzled look on her face. She didn't find anything over there. There was only the whistling hot wind that passed through the gaps between the empty collapsed buildings, producing a whimpering and chaotic echo.

"Eh? Mr. Abbas, did you hear wrong?"

"Huh? Sorry... maybe it's an illusion--" Abbas rubbed his eyes, and after realizing that there was nothing, his voice dropped.

"..."