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

Emiya's heart was shocked. He thought of Eiry's past experiences and suddenly realized that this story actually fits Eiry's predicament in an extremely clever way!

Eri has been raised as a captive, or rather, trapped within her family's cage. She is both the vessel and prisoner of "God," living in constant fear of losing control, terrified that she will one day transform into a monster that destroys everything.

"Yeah, it's okay," he ruffled Eri's hair gently, "It doesn't matter even if you're a natural-born monster. As long as you keep a righteous heart, one day you'll be able to defeat your past self and embrace your future as a hero."

After a moment of comfort, Eri's lips finally curled up, and the darkness within her heart seemed to be defeated, dissipating into a faint sneer. Then, the haze in her eyes gradually dissipated, replaced by a bright smile.

"..."

Xia Mi, who was watching the whole process, frowned more and more.

She always felt that there was something wrong with the atmosphere between the two of them, and the air was filled with a familiar sour smell of love - just like when Emiya and Nono were together.

Xia Mi realized that she was inevitably becoming a light bulb and was really unwilling to accept this unfair fate. She spoke up and forcibly interrupted the sour atmosphere that was brewing.

"Wait! Brother Emiya, I have a question I don't understand. The beginning of your version of the legend mentions that Ushigozen was 'born as the son of Gyuto Tenno's heavenly gift.' Does this connect the Gyu-Oni to the Buddhist deity Gyuto Tenno?"

"That's right. Actually, the '丑' in Ugly Gozen corresponds to the '牛' in the Chinese zodiac, so the correct name is '牛御前'. At the end of the story, Ugly Gozen transforms into a gigantic bull-shaped monster. This monster is none other than the great messenger of the god Bull-Headed Deva."

He paused, "And the Bull-Headed Deva is Indra, or the incarnation of Indra."

"what?"

Xia Mi's eyes widened, and she nearly dropped the information in her hands. The first half of the story about the relationship between the Bull Ghost and the Bull-Headed Heavenly King was acceptable, but was the Bull-Headed Heavenly King the incarnation of Indra? What kind of illogical logic was that!

"This is a bit complicated. It involves the local manifestations of Japanese religious deities and Buddhas, and so on. I'll look for it..."

Emiya spewed out a bunch of academic terms that sounded very profound, and at the same time he searched for records in the classics on the table.

Xia Mi wanted to complain about Emiya—how could this guy know so much when he wasn't like her, studying all day? …In the end, she forced herself to hold back the time-wasting rant and stood up to search through the sea of ​​books with Emiya.

"Found it! Lord Qingming's 'Golden Crow and Jade Rabbit Collection' records that the Bull-Headed Heavenly King is the Mahada King of the Northern Sky, the reincarnation of Tianxing, who once served Indra. This means that the relationship between the Bull-Headed Heavenly King and Indra is that of a subordinate and a superior."

"The Golden Crow and Jade Rabbit Collection also mentions that the Bull-Headed Heavenly King has a story framework that is basically the same as the Shinto god of the North, Buta (who is considered to be the same god as Susanoo)."

He then flipped open another copy of the Gion Shrine Record. "Coincidentally, the Gion Shrine Record records that Bull-Headed Deva is the son of the Goddess of the Tower, and the incarnation of the Medicine Buddha. This means that Bull-Headed Deva is the son of Susanoo."

Here, Yakushi Tathagata is obviously equated with Susanoo.

This is the "synthesis of Shintoism and Buddhism," a system formed by the fusion of Japanese Shintoism and imported Buddhist beliefs. Within the synthesis of Shintoism and Buddhism lies a theory called "Dongbenkaiji," which holds that all eight million gods are incarnations (kōgen) of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and celestial beings.

For example, Izanagi is Shakyamuni and Amitabha; Izanami is Thousand-armed Guanyin; Amaterasu is Mahavairocana and Eleven-faced Guanyin; Tsukuyomi is Amitabha; Okuninushi is Daikokuten; Nirgei is Shakyamuni; Inari Daimyojin is Chachiten; Ebisu is Bishamonten and Acala...

In short, by matching one thing to another, Susanoo became the incarnation of Medicine Buddha.

"Gyuto Deva is also known as the 'Guardian Deity of Gion-no-Tsukuji Temple,' and the shrine dedicated to him is also called 'Gion-no-Tsukuji Temple.' In the view of the integration of Shinto and Buddhism, Gyuto Deva is an incarnation of Indra, and Gyuto Deva himself is integrated with Susanoo."

And as we all know, Indra and Indra can also be equated, so the Bull-Headed King is equivalent to the incarnation of Indra.

Of course, "Indra" is not a combination of Japanese gods and Buddhas, but the result of the mutual influence of Hinduism and Buddhism...

"Later, during the Meiji period, there was a movement to 'abolish Buddhism and destroy Buddhism,' and these Gion shrines were converted to shrines dedicated to Susanoo. However, this policy failed to change public perceptions, and the traditional belief in the combination of Shinto and Buddhism has not completely disappeared to this day."

Xia Mi, who had listened to everything, was already dumbfounded. According to this theory, as long as the heroic spirits of Japan were related to mythology, they could be extended all the way to Buddhism and Hinduism. The more aliases were opened, the more endless it would be!

Emiya closed the book. "Anyway, after all this rambling, the final conclusion is that Uzumaki, who transformed into a cow-o-ghost, was given a son by the Bull-Headed Heavenly King, and the underlying relationship is Bull-Headed Heavenly King → Susanoo → Indra!"

Xia Mi opened her mouth, unsure what to say. Suddenly, she realized that if this line of thought continued, could Heroic Spirits from other regions also be forced to establish various mythological connections? This game of disguises would never end, right?

Emiya expressed his approval of Xia Mi's "learning from one example and applying it to other situations". Yes, that's exactly the idea!

Chapter 170 Humans connect to the World Tree Magician?

"Compiling myths? Mass-producing sock puppets? Jörmungandr, are you here just to pick a fight with me?"

Norton's voice carried through the mercury curtain of the alchemy array, carrying a cold, hard texture like metal. His figure emerged against a shimmering silver laboratory backdrop, surrounded by countless precision-operated alchemical instruments. Mercury occasionally flowed, flames danced, and refracted dazzling light.

"The implementation of the Heroic Spirit System's design plan was originally the responsibility of you and Constantine, and I am responsible for providing all the design proposals! My requirements are both reasonable and legal, and will significantly increase the upper limit of the Heroic Spirit System!"

Xia Mi fought back without showing any weakness, her golden pupils flashing a tiny but stubborn light in the dim cave.

"You call this raising the ceiling?"

Norton's voice suddenly rose, and in the background of the laboratory there seemed to be a crackling sound of burning fire.

"You've essentially grafted a mythology system onto the Heroic Spirit system! Do you understand the difference in workload and feasibility?"

Inside the large cave, the conversation between the two Dragon Kings was filled with tension, and there seemed to be crackling lightning in the air.

Fenrir on the side had already retracted his huge dragon body. Before that, he carefully picked up his beloved small TV with two fingers on his claws and hid it in the corner quietly.

Fenrir's entire dragon just stared wide-eyed, staring blankly at the giant alchemical array and the Holy Grail in the center of the cave, as if he was deaf to everything around him.

This was not the first time that Fenrir had heard his sister arguing with the King of Bronze and Fire. In order to avoid being implicated by a topic he did not understand, Fenrir had become a master at pretending to be innocent.

"Okay, okay, Norton, you think you have a lot of work to do, right?"

Xia Mi waved her arms angrily. She got angry when she thought about how she was busy day and night in Japan and had endless experiences!

"Does that mean my workload is lighter? Do you know how many creative ideas I copied and researched, and how many brain cells I burned just to provide you with the design?"

Norton's voice rang through the mercury curtain, trembling like metal. "That's enough, Jörmungandr. You still don't understand the fundamental difference between these things!"

At the other end of the alchemy circle, Norton hurriedly handed the work to the boy beside him—his younger brother, Constantine. As the boy took over, a hint of worry flashed in his golden eyes. Norton finally took a moment to approach the Mercury Curtain, his voice low and filled with suppressed anger:

"Jörmungandr, I'll be honest. You've already given me the design for Minamoto no Raikou, and your new proposal is essentially telling me that the previous one is scrapped and needs to be redone. Furthermore, when I redo it this time, I'll need to pair this Heroic Spirit with a fantastical, unfeasible mythology system!"

"How can this be considered a redo?"

Xia Mi's voice echoed in the vast cavern, and she spread her hands:

"We're not going to start over from scratch. We're just adding a whole new aspect to Minamoto no Raikou—'Ugly Gozen'! And then designing a power system for 'Ugly Gozen' based on the incarnation of Indra..."

She spoke faster and faster, like a rapid-fire cannon: "According to the alchemy you are proficient in, adding a 'Great Gear' system similar to wearable alchemy machinery will definitely be no problem. And there is also the Bull-Headed Heavenly King Great Envoy..."

However, as she continued her description, Norton's expression grew increasingly gloomy. Within the mercury curtain, his figure trembled slightly, and the alchemical instruments around him emitted an uneasy hum.

"Shut up!"

Norton's voice was as loud as a bell. "The 'Bull-Headed Heavenly King Great Envoy' you designed in your plan must be able to attack at super-high speeds and release lightning. The destructive range must reach a kilometer wide and more than ten kilometers long..."

His fingers crackled. "Where would I find the time and energy to build you such a ridiculously large toy?"

Xia Mi curled her lips and was about to refute, but was interrupted by Norton:

"If you really have the time, why don't you just place a World-Destroying Word Spirit right there? That would be much easier. And don't forget, the Holy Grail War is about to begin. It's too late to reforge it now!"

There was a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "If the Holy Grail War is held in Japan, I remember that Minamoto no Raikou is also a Heroic Spirit with a very high reputation. He will definitely be a popular summon, right? By then it will be too late. What are you going to do as the operator?"

The newly designed Heroic Spirit system utilizes the advanced alchemical technology of "Spirit Reforging." "Spirit Reforging" uses fantasy as its core and human legends and beliefs as its raw materials. The fame of the legend and the strength of belief will affect the strength of the condensed fantasy...

From this perspective, there is nothing wrong with the popularity bonus mentioned by Emiya before.

However, Xia Mi shrugged nonchalantly:

"It's too late, then. There's indeed a Genji in Tokyo who's suitable as a lord candidate, but there's more than one Minamoto no Yorimitsu in the thousand-year-old Genji clan, and more than one person has used his relics. Wouldn't it be okay to just pick one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Genji?"

Norton shook his head silently. He couldn't understand the "evil-hearted operation" mentality that Jörmungandr insisted on. It seemed that the King of Earth and Mountains regarded every Master who came to participate in the Holy Grail War as a sucker who was willing to spend huge sums of money to acquire intelligence and holy relics, and came from afar to serve as a subject for the Master's experiment.

However, Norton was too lazy to argue. He just focused on collecting experimental data. He would be thankful if Jörmungandr didn't make too many requests and add unnecessary workload to his workload.

"The wearable alchemical machine 'Dajuzo' you mentioned is not a big problem," Norton's voice came through the mercury curtain.

"But the 'Bull-Headed Heavenly King Great Divine Envoy' will probably have to wait. Unless we can truly develop a 'Mythology System' track, developing such a large-scale toy in such a short period of time is simply a fantasy."

"Is that so? Seriously, Norton, do you think the mythology system is really impossible to realize?"

Xia Mi still didn't give up, and there was a hint of unwilling persistence in her voice.

"Since we can use the White King's authority to transform ordinary human souls into heroic spirits, then aren't the myths created by humans essentially just fantasy legends? Ultimately, shouldn't this still be considered 'spiritual reforging'?"

Norton snorted coldly, his voice full of obvious sarcasm. "That's easy for you to say. But since you've studied human mythology, you should be aware of the level of 'divine power' that those myths extol, right?"

His words were full of contempt for Xia Mi's layman's statement of "ignoring the magnitude and only talking about the principle", as if he was listening to the nonsense of a layman who didn't understand alchemy.

"Also, Jörmungandr, have you forgotten? The only reason we can create Heroic Spirits is because that person (Lu Mingze) connected to the World Tree and opened up the Throne of Heroes for us!"

Xia Mi's eyes suddenly lit up, as if she had caught some key clue. "Wait! Now that I put it that way, doesn't that give me an idea? To realize the mythological system I mentioned, we just need to connect to the World Tree and open up a new throne of God..."

Norton scoffed. "How is that possible? How do you plan to carry it out? Count on that person to be kind enough to help us again? Or do you think that people like you and I are capable of accomplishing such a feat as 'creating a human myth'?"

"..." Xia Mi was choked by Norton's words and was speechless for a moment. Her originally complacent momentum was like a balloon that was punctured, and it instantly deflated. She curled her lips and muttered softly:

"If dragons really don't work, why not humans?"

Humanity?

"Wait!" After hearing this, Norton's pupils suddenly contracted, and a memory suddenly flashed through his mind. It was the "truth" of the Holy Grail War that Emiya had explained to Old Tang.

The Holy Grail's ability to grant wishes is merely a veneer to attract outsiders. Its true nature is a grand ritual that uses the souls of seven Servants as a sacrifice, using the Greater Grail to open a path to the outer world, attempting to delve into the origins of all things! Anyone who can accomplish this feat will become a legendary magician!

"Humanity... magic... the path to the root... the true nature of the Holy Grail War, could it really be possible!?"

Norton's thoughts raced through his mind like lightning.

Everything in the world originates from the World Tree, even the Black King, the ancestor of the dragon race. Therefore, the World Tree is not only the source of the birth of dragons, but also the source of the birth of mankind.

After all, the Black King's supreme position is only the highest throne of dragons. Do humans have a similar "throne"?

No one knows this at all.

"It seems a bit difficult," Xia Mi's voice was filled with uncertainty.

"When they connected the World Tree to create the Throne of Heroes, even the Black King's flesh and blood disappeared. Can humans really do that? Wouldn't they just disappear the moment they enter, never to return? And then we finally had the chance to connect to the World Tree, and it was all wasted like that?"

The "World Tree" is the origin of the world. If humans really step into it, they may behave like the Black King's flesh and blood, and will directly dissolve into it as if returning to the mother's womb.

"Perhaps, but this is also the only chance for humans to become gods and ascend to heaven in one step..."

Norton sighed. However, before he finished speaking, he suddenly noticed that Xia Mi's expression changed suddenly.

"What's wrong?" Norton asked with a frown.

Xia Mi's eyes were filled with surprise. "That guy (Lu Mingze)... actually sent me a message saying he wants to take a Master position."

----

Pier No. 4 of Tokyo Port was as dark as ink at night and so quiet that it was heart-wrenching.

This should have been a bustling moment - the rough shouts of dock workers, the roar of tug truck engines, the hurried footsteps of customs officials, and those behemoth merchant ships going in and out of the locks, the rumbling of gas turbines stirring the salty sea breeze.

However, at this moment, this place seems to have been forgotten by time.

Metal-clad shipping containers stood neatly in the darkness, like silent tombstones. Dim streetlights cast mottled shadows on the damp ground. The air was filled with the unique salty smell of seawater, but not a single sound of waves lapping against the shore could be heard.

Rei and Jude Mai stood side by side, their eyes fixed on the dark water.

Zero's light golden hair swayed gently in the breeze, and Jude Mai's fingers unconsciously stroked the hilt of the sword at her waist.

Sudden--

A deafening roar ripped the silence apart. The surface of the water exploded, and huge waves shot up into the sky, as if a sleeping beast had awakened from the abyss.

In the flying mist, a huge piece of ice broke out of the water. Its crystal clear surface reflected the cold moonlight, like an iceberg rising from the bottom of the sea.

Looking closely, the interior of the huge ice was faintly illuminated by the dim moonlight, revealing a terrifying black outline.

Like a giant shipwreck.

Chapter 171: Finger: I'm fighting in the Holy Grail War? Is that true?

Jiude Mai stared at the huge ice, a hint of amazement flashing in her eyes.

"Is this the power of the Heroic Spirit?"

She murmured softly, her voice filled with barely concealed shock. "How convenient! Ignoring the limitations of physics, I can dive directly into the abyss of thousands of meters. I can freeze a shipwreck that's almost impossible to salvage and bring it directly to the surface."

Everything before him was thanks to the heroic spirits summoned by Zero earlier.

Just this morning, the boss issued a new mission, codenamed "Extreme Abyss Plan Speed ​​Run Version".

The boss didn't explain what speed pass meant, but only said that he had arranged for Su Enxi to temporarily take over and block Pier 4 of Tokyo Port for one night, and asked Jude Mai to bring Zero, who had summoned her servant, to come here to salvage a sunken ship named "Lenin" in the "Abyss" trench.

Jude Mai was still muttering in her heart at the time, Boss, we don't even know if we can get the Master spot, so what the hell is the point of speed running?

As a result, within a few minutes, a strange bright red mark appeared on the back of Zero's hand, as if it were the mark of fate.

Following his boss' instructions, Zero drew a summoning circle, muttering an ancient incantation. With a dazzling, multicolored halo, a young woman in a Russian-style robe, her silver-white hair reaching her waist, slowly emerged from the summoning circle, stepping from illusion into reality.

Anastasia, the last princess of Tsarist Russia.

Time returns to the present.

"—Just reborn from the world of the dead, and yet I'm being ordered to do such menial work. The so-called Master is truly so high and mighty."