Chapter 1500

"Gaius Octavius..." Takegaya Masatake had just downed a few bottles of beer and was now drunk, casually patting Fafnir on the shoulder, "Fafnir, do you still remember this person?"

"... Shut up."

Fafnir didn't even lift his head, his red pupils fixedly staring at the flashing "YOUDIED" text on the screen, his fingers constantly rubbing the game controller.

"He's the hero Wandi mentioned before, the one who drove the mountain people out of the 'Cave'."

"Oh... I still have a bit of an impression of him."

Xiao Lin still remembered what Wandi had told Bai E back then; in the story, Gaius Octavius was a man of pure action, but he never expected that this figure, who only appeared in stories and legends, could actually be seen in person in this cycle.

"But Xiao Lin, although I planned to use Dan Heng as a sacrifice, I feel... Gaius Octavius himself isn't a bad person." Tuo Er's gaze was fixed intently on the giant in the sky curtain, "Huang Di is dead, right? According to Hai Se Yin, he also made a great sacrifice."

"But sacrifice is sacrifice, understanding is understanding, that doesn't mean he can treat Dan Heng as a sacrifice to offer to 'Earth'. If he wanted to save Huang Di, he should sit down and have a proper talk with Dan Heng, not resort to this kind of forcible seizure. Just based on this point... he deserves a good beating from Dan Heng."

—

"Gaius Octavius is no match for Dan Heng at all; after a few moves, he was defeated by Dan Heng."

""It's time to end the struggle, Gaius Octavius. You should face death with dignity." Hai Se Yin advised."

"Dan Heng: 'Before that, tell me: what deal did you make with 'Night Moon', and why did the great 'Mountain Opener' fall into this state?'"

""""

"Gaius Octavius fell silent, and instead of him answering, a mournful rumbling came from afar."

"Dan Heng followed the sound's direction and looked over: 'This is...'"

""Leave it to me. To expound the deepest past of 'Earth'..."

"As that hoarse, muffled voice sounded, Gaius Octavius's figure vanished. At the same time, Dan Heng suddenly felt a dull throbbing underfoot, stone fragments rolling down from the rock wall, kicking up swirling dust—a massive object was slowly walking toward them."

"In the dust, a colossal creature gradually revealed its form."

"It was... an Earth Beast? But it was completely different from any Earth Beast Dan Heng had seen before; Huang Di's body seemed draped in still-uncooled lava, with jagged bone plates like rock jutting from his surface, truly resembling a moving small hill."

""Sever its deepest delusion.""

""Huang Di... is that you?" Hai Se Yin was also astonished upon seeing this, "Your physique... has become so frail.""

""Even mountains grow old and eventually die.""

""But I can hear, your blood still echoes with a mighty resonance..." Dan Heng raised his head to gaze upon this 'frail' Earth Demi-God, "Surely, you are the true Earth Demi-God.""

—

Fate/Shirou Emiya's Family Dinner Today.

"For Na Ke Xia... the perfect Demi-God has appeared!!"

Rin Tosaka gazed at Huang Di in the sky curtain; this Earth Beast not only differed in appearance from other Earth Beasts, but his stature was also even taller. Moreover, he was actually in a 'frail' state according to Hai Se Yin? I can't believe how massive he must have been in his prime... that must be a true small mountain?

"Huang Di and Hai Se Yin are both retinues of the Titan, but their fates are utterly different." Saber set down a bowl of steaming hot rice, her gaze heavy as she looked toward the sky curtain, "But it's strange... just now Hai Se Yin spoke of Huang Di with a gentle attitude, believing he made the correct choice for Wengfaluo Si's tomorrow, while Caesar and Duan Feng Jué bluntly called him a traitor—this seems rather contradictory."

"So, Saber, are you curious whether he truly betrayed the path of Zhuohuo?" Rin Tosaka keenly noticed the confusion between Saber's eyebrows, slightly tilting her head to look at her.

"Yes." Saber put down her chopsticks, her expression quite serious, "I believe honor and glory are very important; if Huang Di has not forsaken the path of Zhuohuo, then he cannot be regarded as a traitor. One must never indulge any traitor, nor ever wrongfully blame any Demi-God who bears burdens and moves forward."

"Then, Saber, do you think he is the former or the latter?"

"Um... based on my personal experience, I believe Huang Di is the latter." Saber lowered her head in thought, "Previously, Laigushi also mentioned that this lifetime's calculation is the most outstanding model; if Huang Di were a faithless, oath-breaking golden heir, he could never pass Earth's trials and become a Demi-God."

—

""I have grown old; the taboo name of a Demi-God is meaningless. Standing here are merely the former comrades-in-arms of the 'Mountain Opener'... and the traitors who abandoned him.""

""Traitor?""

""Hai Se Yin explained: 'The name 'Huang Di' once belonged to Gaius Octavius's Dragon Cavalry. This unit was famed for their skilled riders and their brave Earth Beasts. And it, is the dragon that lived and died alongside the 'Mountain Opener', the King of Earth Beasts.'"

""In the Battle of Jiouliya, facing this insurmountable mountain, Caesar could only resort to internal collapse. Huang Di's defection became the key to victory for the Zhuohuo army.""

""The age of the gods has already ended." Huang Di's voice hoarse, "Living beings adapted to change in the earth's fissures and must also learn to survive in the interstices of epic poetry. Someone must come to guard 'Earth'. So, I accepted the pact. I received Titan authority, sank into the rock abyss, and with stone-forged flesh and blood, I mended the continent. But... there is one 'betrayal' I cannot let go of.""

""The 'Mountain Opener'... he never believed until his death that this was my choice. Faced with Caesar's urging to surrender, he clarified his aspirations through death.""

"Dan Feng gradually understood: 'So, this is why you conspired with 'Night Moon'.'"

"Huang Di continued: 'The stranger of 'Ages' descended before me. The extraterrestrial mighty force named 'Memory'... is unthinkable. As a 'Memory Spirit', Gaius Octavius was able to be reborn. He murmured in our shared battle times, just as this body bears all living beings (memory).'"

""The price offered by 'Night' is not high; as long as I perform 'Earth' authority, to conceal her tracks."""