In Type-Moon, it all starts with adopting Sakura.

—Thump thump thump thump!

Above the dark ocean, a deep and powerful bell suddenly rang out, followed by a sudden appearance of a black arc of light, which then flicked gently in mid-air.

Boom!

In the blink of an eye, a jet-black, ancient greatsword pierced the head of the foremost eleven-headed beast without any resistance. As blood splattered, countless white feathers of light fell like celestial maidens scattering flowers, and finally, a blazing, eerie blue flame appeared before their eyes.

The next moment, a huge, pale white skull mask with bull horns emerged from the blue flames. Immediately afterward, a true death knight, the Death Angel who tolls the evening bell, appeared before Luo Wei, leaning on his sword. His tall figure stood silently in the center of the remaining eleven sons.

His sudden, unannounced appearance, coupled with the sudden death of one of the eleventh sons, caused the other magical beasts to become enraged and astonished, emitting hoarse and piercing roars.

Upon seeing King Hassan's appearance, Rowe showed some surprise, but not much. After all, he had met this strange old man many times before, and the old man had said that he would lend a helping hand with his longsword when he felt he needed help. Now it seemed that this was the most appropriate time for him.

only--

"This is too slow, old man. Do you really have to wait until the crucial moment to make your appearance?"

He complained to King Hassan, who had appeared as agreed.

"—"

However, in the face of Lovi's complaints, the aloof King Hassan did not take the initiative to answer. Instead, he continued to lean on his sword and looked at Tiamat not far away, reciting his cold and solemn opening remarks to himself.

"Without death there is no life; only through death can life be attained. The eternity you speak of is not walking, but slumber. O beast of calamity, evil born of humankind, the very foundation that longs to return to compassion is the very basis that rejects you."

"Though I am a creator god fallen to beast, as the Mother of Origins, I must also give my name—rushing forth from the abyss of darkness and death. I am Hassan-i-Sabah, the Old Man of the Mountain. The evening bells have tolled on your name. By divine decree, I will strip you of the foundation for your return; entrust your insignificant offspring to my sword—!"

Before King Hassan could finish speaking, the surrounding monsters had already lost patience with him. To them, this grim reaper who had suddenly appeared and killed one of them was an enemy they had to defeat. So a monster floated out of the ocean and then attacked King Hassan from the flank, but it was easily blocked by the longsword he casually raised. Then King Hassan stretched out his armored hand, lifted the monster high with his wrist, and twisted its neck in mid-air, piercing its heart with his sword.

—The Delusion of the Heart, Wang Hassan Version.

He carelessly tossed the monster corpse in his hand into the mud below as if it were trash. The black mud of the Origin Sea intended to heal it, but the eerie blue flames brought true death, meaning that if these eleven sons, who were said to be immortal, died at King Hassan's hands, they would truly die and could never be restored.

He then summoned a massive black shield, holding a sword in his left hand and the shield in his right. The eerie blue flames in his pale white skull eye sockets flickered wildly. His enormous body stood in front of him like an unshakeable mountain, intimidating the other magical beasts so much that they dared not move an inch for a moment.

A few of the eleven sons still refused to believe it and charged toward King Hassan, but they were directly pushed back by the giant shield in the latter's hand. King Hassan did not even take a step back.

boom! !

The enormous shield, like a wall of sighs, crashed down on the attacking monster. The powerful force and heavy impact sent the monster flying with even greater force than its opponent. Just as the monster lost its balance, King Hassan raised his longsword and delivered a vertical slash, instantly severing the monster's body in two.

At this moment, the Mountain Elder demonstrated to the many magical beasts present, with his overwhelming strength, what the absolute power of the Root Choice [Grand Assassin] truly is; he alone can serve as a defensive line guarding this side.

In a mere instant, three of the eleven Tiamat's ultimate protective monsters died. The remaining few finally understood that the figure before them was not an ordinary enemy, but rather a manifestation of the concept of death. This was the absolute overwhelming power that King Hassan displayed when he had not relinquished his Grand rank.

(After discarding the crown: discard one piece of the crown.)

He leaned on his longsword, glancing at Tiamat, who was still battling Goetia in the distance, and the remaining Eleven before him. Flames ignited on his sword, and his dark blue, flickering eyes seemed to be deep in thought.

The crown rank that should have been relinquished still exists; the calamity dragon that should have had its wings stripped and be imbued with the concept of death is now fighting another calamity beast. So many things have changed that even King Hassan is unsure whether the guidance of fate he has heard is correct.

So he chose to trust his own eyes and his own judgment, entrusting himself, like a sword, to the chosen one who could truly use him well and make the right decisions. Now, all he could do was offer his trust.

"O one who has been reborn by divine decree, your journey has been fraught with hardship and unexpected events, which even I could not have foreseen. The road ahead is shrouded in mist, and you cannot discern the direction. But you should know that these are all trials from God. The time has come, and the final moment is approaching. I hope that you will obey God's will, think carefully, and act steadfastly."

"Since things have come to this, though I wield the sword of destiny and follow divine pronouncements, the road ahead is uncertain, its fortunes unpredictable, and the mysteries of fate difficult to fathom. All I can entrust to you is my skill. I only wish that you will not be misled by external things and strive forward. Therefore—"

"Hold your head high and stride over these insignificant obstacles with your own two feet, for what you seek is near! With faith and redemption as your foundation, gather all cause and effect, sin and guilt, and bring them to an end here! At this moment, the sword in my hand will be wielded with all its might for you!"

It was the same familiar tone, but this time anyone could hear a special emotion or excitement mixed in.

Wang Hassan raised his black longsword and swung it sharply towards the sea beside him. In an instant, a wall of dark blue flames rose from the sea, transforming into an insurmountable blazing wall that blocked the path of all the demonic beasts and Rahmu. He stood alone, leaning on his sword, his tall figure standing between the only open doorways, like the legendary gatekeeper of the abyss of hell, silently watching everything before him.

"—The evening bell has rung; anyone who crosses this boundary will be executed without mercy!!"

Wang Hassan gazed at the monster ahead and spoke in a low voice, his posture like that of a grim reaper proclaiming his divine decree.

“You are so reliable, Wang Hassan. Thank you for your help this time.”

Seeing that the pursuing enemies had been held off by King Hassan alone, and that even the last threat had vanished, Lovi nodded, withdrew his magic, and immediately passed through the fire barrier through the door behind King Hassan, continuing his run toward Tiamat.

Although when he contacted this man before, except when he hoped that the man would imbue Gorgon with the concept of death to completely help Anna, or rather, when Medusa killed this side of him, King Hassan responded to his call, the rest of the time he told himself: "The time has not come yet, and my sword has not yet been drawn."

However, King Hassan is still King Hassan. Someone whom countless Gudako call "Grandpa" must be extremely reliable. As for why he's so cold to me, it's probably because of his heretical beliefs and the fact that he's not a girl. Regardless, King Hassan finally arrived when we faced Tiamat and played a crucial role.

Originally, Lovi was worried that King Hassan might continue to fulfill his mission this time, wielding the sword that sacrificed his Grand rank against Tiamat after his appearance, and then trying to kill her completely. But now it seems that although King Hassan keeps talking about destiny, he is by no means a sword that obeys the Counter Force. The destiny he believes in and follows must be what he sees before his eyes.

It was precisely because he saw Tiamat's hidden nature, and because Goetia, with whom reconciliation was impossible, had actually sided with humanity, and because Solomon, who should have faced certain death, had truly abandoned his past and was living a new life—so many possibilities led King Hassan to agree to let go and leave fate to the Chosen One. This is likely why King Hassan is considered the most beloved Grand Servant. At least his sense of responsibility is far better than that of a certain guy who claimed to be there to target Goetia but hasn't shown up yet.

Although there are still many things that are not clear, since King Hassan was willing to entrust the sword to him, he naturally cannot let King Hassan down!

With her head held high and chest out, she quickened her pace and finally arrived at a position less than five meters away from Tiamat. Her enormous body and the purple beam of light bursting from her mouth, which was confronting the starlight erupting from Goetia, were already within arm's reach. The light alone was almost enough to make one unable to look away, not to mention the terrifying temperature.

Under this intense heat, if it weren't for Lovi, a powerful Servant, or a divine creation, an ordinary human would probably be burned to ashes in an instant.

Seeing Tiamat so close, Lovi continued to advance. As if sensing that unforgettable aura once again, Tiamat's eyes lowered slightly, and for a moment she abandoned her attack on Goetia in the sky, instead focusing her attention on Lovi.

"Mudamudamuda! No matter how powerful your breath is, it can't withstand my strongest light wheel. Besides, I'm not a man-made thing, and I'm not affected by your anti-genesis. So Tiamat, your ability is the most useless!"

In mid-air, Goetia, who was locked in a fierce battle with Tiamat, burst into laughter when she saw Tiamat's beam shrink. Without hesitation, she gathered more heat in her hand and unleashed a devastating meteor shower on Tiamat, seeking revenge for Tiamat's sneak attack. She was completely unaware that Tiamat's attention had shifted elsewhere.

Rumble, rumble, rumble—!!!

Tens of thousands of golden meteors erupted from Goetia's body, like a meteor shower, and began to violently strike Tiamat's body or bombard the surrounding area.

Each of these meteors possesses a fraction of the power of the light wheel, easily comparable to the A+ rank Noble Phantasm released by a Heroic Spirit burning their Spirit Origin. Therefore, anything touched by Rahmu, the Sea of ​​Life, or rocks would be blasted into fragments. In an instant, the already chaotic battlefield was completely cleared by Goetia.

Of course, there were also friendly forces that were affected.

Ishtar, as if she had seen a ghost, rode her horse Anna around dodging, afraid of being hit by the golden meteor, especially after seeing the group of Rahmu who had been a troublesome opponent in front of her blown up.

Although she was possessed and not her original self, she was naturally not afraid of death at all, but dying like this would be too shameful.

If she were to be killed by Goetia's AOE attack, and when she returned to Asgard, if Grandpa Enki asked her how she died, and she answered that she was killed by friendly AOE fire, she would be utterly ashamed. Therefore, she had no choice but to dodge quickly.

Not only Ishtar, but Kingu and Quetzalcoatl also retreated from the area to avoid it, and at the same time couldn't help but sigh, "Is this the power of the Demon King who instigated the Burning of Humanity? It's no weaker than Tiamat at all..."

At the same time, Quetzalcoatl glanced elsewhere, where Smoke Mirror, looking troubled, was staring at Goetia in the distance, seemingly talking to someone.

"You mean this is the opponent I'm supposed to face? Don't be ridiculous. Even a Grand Spirit Origin couldn't possibly defeat an enemy like this. My true form would be more capable! What? You're saying that once I get the Grand title, I have to work? Well, sorry, normally a Perfect-level Beast should be hunted down by seven Grand Spirit Origins together, right? How am I supposed to handle this alone? I don't want this Grand title anymore. You should give it to someone else."

Hearing the urging of the suppressor in his ear, and glancing at Goetia who was firing at full power, Smoke Mirror said impatiently.

Although he knew he was filling in for the now-vanished Solomon, he hadn't expected to be in this situation. Just coming to take a look and lend a hand would be enough. As a Grand Spirit Origin, he could only exert a little more power. He couldn't imagine how he could defeat Goetia one-on-one unless his true self came.

That's why he didn't pay attention to the urging of the suppressive force in his ear and didn't choose to take action.

I made a decisive choice—if I can't win, I'll take my leave.

Fortunately, due to special circumstances, Goetia is now an ally and has deliberately controlled the Meteor Shower to avoid the Servants as much as possible; otherwise, this Meteor Shower attack would have wiped out the entire field.

Anna was somewhat at a loss as she watched the Rahmu shatter into pieces, along with the Netherworld army that Ereshkigal had entrusted to her, being destroyed.

Tiamat, on the other hand, was struck by a cluster of meteors, which caused her to stagger and fall into the Sea of ​​Life.

Upon seeing this, Geitia burst into laughter and began to mock Tiamat's incompetence.

But the next moment, he heard Jingu shouting in his ear.

"Idiot! Take a good look at the others! Observe carefully who else is over there!"

"Ok?"

Goetia was about to punish the doll who disrespected him, but upon hearing her words, he immediately used his clairvoyance to look at Tiamat's side, where he saw the figure most important to him was not far away.

He then realized that he had gotten so engrossed in the fight that he had forgotten about the king. Moreover, Tiamat hadn't been powerless to fight him; she had chosen to endure his attacks to capture Lovi, which fueled his anger even more.

"How dare you!"

With a roar, Goetia charged toward Tiamat.

At this moment, before Lovi, Tiamat, who had fallen, was controlling the black mud of the Sea of ​​Life, which, carrying the power of anti-Genesis, transformed into a giant black mud hand, trying to engulf and devour him.

Facing the black tide, Luo Wei neither dodged nor avoided it. He had long been prepared. The spell of the Temple of Time was ready to be unleashed. His Holy Grail could counteract the power of the anti-Genesis, and he himself was not afraid of the transformation by the tide of life. Therefore, the outcome was already decided.

A black wave several meters high transformed into a giant hand of black mud, grabbing towards him. His eyes, and the final incantation, were already prepared. Just as the two were about to collide—

"I finally made it."

"Have you missed me, darling?"

The giant black mud hand, and the entire black mud wave beneath its feet, transformed into countless flower petals, scattering in the air.

Two flower magicians appeared together, a man and a woman, descending from the sky with great elegance. They had slipped out of their respective Avalon and personally arrived at the final battlefield.

"You actually came?"

Upon seeing Merlin and Mary snuggling into his arms, Rowe smiled.

"Of course I'll come, after all, this is our honeymoon!"

Merlin smiled playfully, while Merlin gave a helpless smile.

"Now that things have come to this, there's no need to say anything more trivial. You have now received the mandate of heaven, the will of the Lord, and the expectations of everyone in the entire Seventh Singularity, and even the approval of the Demon King. Your final test has arrived. Do what you want to do—perform the impossible miracle, save the people you want to save. You can do it now!"

As soon as they finished speaking, the two flower magicians waved their wands together, dispelling the last of the black mud. In an instant, flowers from the underworld fluttered down, and even the muddy swamp that the Land of Shadows had transformed into vanished. What appeared before Luo Wei was only a broad road covered with flowers.

Amidst a sea of ​​fluttering flowers, a colossal dragon of calamity gazes down at the tiny human figures below, its eyes revealing a mixture of reminiscence and more complex emotions.

The tiny person also looked at her and gently extended his hand.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

However, I am here now.

Let me take you where you need to go.

He spoke softly, his palm touching the cold scales at that moment.

next moment--

[Noble Phantasm Released: Grand Time Temple.]

Chapter 308: Becoming a Fairy

Looking up at the starry sky, at the primordial sea.

A place that no detector can find.

This is a hollow, empty world, a special place isolated from the rest of the world, and a temple built by a great king and his children through his life's experiences. Its name is—

Grand Temple of Time.

If you look up, you will see a vast expanse of darkness overhead, with exquisite white jade carvings floating around you, as if they were made by the hands of the gods. Everything here is so magnificent and yet perfectly logical.

As the broken meteorites swirled around, it was as if they were proclaiming that the gravity that belonged to this place had completely disappeared.

The entire world seemed to have been completely shattered, with only giant, columnar monsters made of flesh and blood of different colors writhing or communicating within them.