Chapter 686: Crossover: Sweet Dream and the Holy Grail (54)

The liquid from the Holy Grail overflowed, like some catalyst, splashing onto the center of the theater stage—suddenly, countless true cicadas began to flutter over everyone's heads, and Archer hurriedly drew bow and arrow to retaliate, but the swarm of insects seemed to keep multiplying, their numbers actually increasing.

"Hohohoho—!!"

Lao Ao Di kept laughing wildly, his body slowly rising into the sky amid a strange light, his body expanding and deforming rapidly, and under the encirclement of countless insects, he transformed into an even larger, more terrifying form.

When the swarm dispersed, what was no longer wrapped inside was "Lao Ao Di", but a gigantic king insect large enough to cast a shadow over the entire theater…

—Undoubtedly, this is Lao Ao Di's Noble Phantasm.

"Whether to seize the Holy Grail or crush it, if you can do it, then come at me!"

——

Blessings for a beautiful world.

Ahhh, more insects—! Why these disgusting things again!

Hui Hui's scream nearly blew the roof off. She curled up in a corner, tightly covering her face with her oversized witch hat, only a tear‑filled eye visible from extreme fear.

"Ah, aren't these insects great?" Although the tide of true cicadas in the sky made one's scalp tingle, Da Ke Ni Si's face still flushed as usual, "But being surrounded by so many insects, that dense, inescapable assault, especially that huge insect—if its claw pinches you…"

"Alright, alright, you pervert, go fantasize in your room yourself." He Zhen, with a disdainful look, pushed the soon‑to‑go‑strange‑state perverted knight aside and walked to the constantly trembling Hui Hui, "I'm telling you, Hui Hui, you weren't even scared of Demon King army officers, why do you crumble at the sight of insects?"

"What do you know?! No, no… you should know, right?"

"Know what?" He Zhen was stunned for a moment, then realized: "Oh, I get it… could it be the psychological scar left by the last Universal Locust Plague?"

Hui Hui nodded timidly.

"Although those insects are pretty disgusting, first, the Universal Locust Plague has ended, so no more sky‑covering, star‑devouring insects; second, these insects are merely Lao Ao Di's Noble Phantasm ability, they lack any 'breeding' traits."

Hui Hui slightly pulled both eyes out from under her hat.

"…That's also disgusting."

——

"So the one who intercepted us right from the start was the Servant summoned by Lao Ao Di?"

The Holy Grail's spurting spring water continuously turned into twisted, flying true cicadas, surging forward at the crowd; although these insects have average combat power, their endless numbers make up for it— even if the frontmost insect is crushed in an instant, a relentless, black‑mist‑like swarm keeps pressing on.

"It's endless!" Lancer spat, his lance dancing like the wind.

"We must dismantle the Holy Grail, otherwise everyone will be dragged down by this swarm." Saber swung her sword, scattering a cloud of flying insects, allowing everyone to barely see Lao Ao Di hovering in mid‑air.

"Alright, the insect cleanup is yours then. Riding alone against a thousand is surely a king's specialty, right?"

"Mm."

There was no time to hesitate; after planning, Lancer stepped forward, sweeping away the flying insects blocking Saber with a thrust. Archer followed, leaping into the air, his arrow blazing like a meteor to carve a fleeting narrow path for her through the insect tide. The next instant, a blue figure surged like lightning, the Wind King Barrier dragging violent currents, condensing onto the sword tip—

"Boom—!"

The Wind King Iron Hammer slammed hard onto the king insect's massive, snarling head, its mountain‑sized body emitting a painful screech; the blow not only cracked its heavy shell but also hurled it from the sky, raising clouds of dust.

——

fate/Wei Gong's meal.

Oh dear… the coordination among the three really is in sync.

Inside the Wei Gong family mansion, a large circle of people gathered around a low table, all eyes fixed on the decisive battle in the sky. When they saw Saber, Lancer, and Archer's exquisite coordination, successfully knocking the king insect to the ground, Rider couldn't help but widen his eyes slightly and exclaim in admiration.

"Hmph! Of course!" Yuan Sa Lin placed her hands on her hips, a hint of proud satisfaction on her face, "We did share a meal at Shi Lang's place after all, so coordination is no problem! Right, Shi Lang?"

Yuan Sa Lin raised her hand, habitually trying to pat Shi Lang's shoulder, but her palm hit as if striking a hard stone. She flinched slightly, seeing Shi Lang give no reaction, his brows furrowed, looking as if facing a great enemy.

"Shi Lang?"

"No…," Shi Lang murmured, "Even though that guy was solidly hit head‑on by Saber's Wind King Iron Hammer, the Holy Grail's link to him wasn't severed. The swarm keeps pouring, and Lao Ao Di's body is also recovering…"

When the smoke cleared, everyone indeed saw the overflowing liquid from the Holy Grail continuously flowing into Lao Ao Di; the liquid seemed alive, the damaged tissue regenerating and reorganizing at a visible speed, and more and more insects began to emerge around it, attacking the direction of Masters like Shajin.

"Is this guy… a cockroach type?!" Yuan Sa Lin gritted her teeth.

"No, that Holy Grail is acting as a 'magic furnace core', providing near‑infinite regenerative resources for Lao Ao Di and his swarm. Saber is right; if the Holy Grail isn't destroyed, it means Lao Ao Di could lose countless times, but they can't afford even a single loss."

——

"Although we guessed this guy wasn't easy to defeat, we didn't expect him to recover so quickly."

"We have no choice but to use this move."

Seeing the king insect about to re‑enter the battlefield and the insect tide beginning to threaten the Masters, Lancer was the first to decide.

He leapt gracefully into the air, raising the crimson lance high; in an instant, red mana surged from his body like ignited, boiling blood, enveloping Cu Qiu Lin entirely.

The Spear of Piercing Death… when used as a projectile, it becomes a more destructive anti‑military Noble Phantasm; though it lacks heart‑targeting accuracy, it's perfect for dealing with hordes of foes.

"But—"

Archer extended his right hand; the moment he activated the projection, hundreds of spears materialized behind Lancer, dense as a bow's arrows, all aimed at the entire theater stage.

""GáeBolg!""