Chapter 23: Chapter 23 Changes in the Third Holy Grail War
[The Talisman is from Jackie Chan Adventures. Each Talisman possesses its own magical power which can be harnessed at the will of its user. Combining certain Talismans together can grant entirely new abilities. For instance, using the Rabbit Talisman (Super Speed) in conjunction with the Rooster Talisman (Levitation) allows for supersonic flight.]
In a workshop guarded by androids, Darnic glanced at everything around him with a cold look.
Nutrient tanks are scattered throughout the workshop like chess pieces, and one man-made person after another is quietly placed into the tank to serve as a source of magic power.
This was one of his greatest gains from founding the Yggdmillennia. Although that family had fallen on hard times, their technology for making artificial humans was still very complete and outstanding. With Darnic's funding, this technology was soon reproduced and would become one of his biggest trump cards in this Holy Grail War.
With Darnic at the center and eleven androids assisting in the chanting, a huge amount of magical light began to shine in this workshop.
Without taking into account the consumption of androids, the magic power supplied here in a short period of time is enough for a first-class hero to fully unleash his full strength to fight with some room to spare.
With the help of the power of the workshop barrier, Darnic struggled to control this huge amount of magic power, but if an outsider saw Darnic at this moment, he would definitely be very surprised.
Because this color magician, who is well-known in the Western magic world, is now making the Far Eastern Rooster Seal gesture and reciting fluent and authentic Chinese.
"Open the door quickly, open the door quickly..."
Faced with this spell and foundation that was completely contrary to the common sense of magic, the huge amount of magic power naturally had no reaction. Darnic's face turned dark, and he could only proceed to the next step helplessly, infusing the huge amount of magic power into the object in the center of the magic circle.
Until the magic light began to explode and completely dissipated, after using magic power far beyond the limits of his ability, he could not help but groan, and blood flowed from the corners of his mouth.
But even so, the thing at the center of the ceremony still did not react at all and looked like an ordinary stone.
"It's been sixty years, and it's still like this... I did it easily back then."
Darnic's expression became more and more gloomy. Sixty years ago, during the Third Holy Grail War, with the help of the power of his heroic spirit Finn's treasure, he accidentally discovered the existence of the Greater Holy Grail and wanted to take it for himself.
But just as treasures often have guardians, when he tried to go deeper, the old monster from the Matou family appeared and fought with him several times. As a result, on the last occasion, when he was almost on the verge of victory, the Holy Grail was shattered in the melee outside.
No one had expected such a sudden accident. The souls of the Heroic Spirits returned directly to the Holy Grail, triggering the huge magical power accumulated in Fuyuki City for sixty years. In the vortex of magical power, he established an invisible connection with Matou Zouken and the Holy Grail.
Then, the two of them seemed to be possessed. Suddenly, a lot of confusing and strange knowledge appeared in their minds, and they chanted the strange spell in pure Chinese.
Then, the sixty years of magic power of the Holy Grail was exhausted, and with the help of the spell, he and Matou Zouken each obtained a strange object.
It was an octagonal rune stone, each of which was engraved with a different animal pattern. Darnic had never heard of it at the time, but later, he discovered its wonderful uses.
Darnic kicked away the weakened androids around him and carefully picked up the rune stone in the middle.
After years of hard study of Chinese culture, he already knew the name of this prop.
"Sheep Talisman, why won't you show me your true power!"
He held the talisman in his palm and growled angrily.
Just by carrying this talisman with you, you can protect yourself from mental attacks and stimulation and stabilize your soul.
It was precisely by relying on the power of the sheep spell and the messy knowledge left in his mind that Darnic was able to make continuous progress in the study of the soul and was evaluated as having the potential for the crown.
But Darnic knew that the power of this prop was far more than that, and what he stimulated was not even a tiny bit.
During these sixty years, Darnic gradually discovered the problem.
The power of this talisman is very weak. To use a metaphor, it is like a state where it has just sprouted. To stimulate its power, it requires almost special and almost infinite magic power.
Alternatively, the original owner of the amulet could provide it with magic power to stimulate and nourish the power within the amulet, just like those precious holy relics.
But even if a large amount of magic power was infused into the talisman through various means, the sheep talisman remained motionless. After all, the power of the Holy Grail could not be simply summarized by the accumulation of spiritual veins for sixty years. Its real core was not these things.
After many attempts, Darnic finally came to the conclusion that it was unlikely to find the original owner of the talisman. He didn't know what kind of miracle created it. So, he could only seek help from the Holy Grail.
To do this, he must do it at all costs.
——Because he didn't have much time left, and he was too arrogant when he first got involved in the soul, so while he was extending his life by devouring other people's souls like a heroic spirit, his personality was also being worn away. If he didn't get the Holy Grail quickly, in another hundred years, his personality would probably have been diluted, and he would really become a magician named Yggdmillennia.
But it seemed as if fate was against him. As a contestant last time, he was bound to face a lot of hostility. When he was giving his men orders, he accidentally provoked a guy of the same level like Kenneth.
Moreover, aside from those masters, there is another even more troublesome guy in Fuyuki City.
That person was extremely talented and had created a method to prolong life before him, and he was most likely Zouken Matou, the ancestor of the Matou family.
"It's too bad that guy also has a talisman whose effect is unknown."
When Danic thought of this, he felt a headache. Unlike himself, Matou Zouken, who had lived for five hundred years or even longer, might not care about temporary gains and losses. He would give up the Holy Grail this time and only ask to kill himself, waiting patiently for the next opportunity.
"But I have no way out."
Darnic gritted his teeth, his eyes full of determination born out of fear.
"Stand up, you defective pieces!"
He was no longer prepared to wait, and began to summon the Heroic Spirits. This time, no matter what, he had to win!
With the help of the workshop's power, Darnic easily drew the magic circle and took out the holy relics he usually used, ready to use them one last time before these artificial humans whose lives had been drained were discarded. In an instant, overwhelming magic power once again filled the workshop, announcing the master's determination.
——
"Master, this is the latest information from my father."
"Oh," Tohsaka Tokiomi looked at the fax that Kotomine Kirei handed over, "The second person to manifest is actually Lancer. I wonder which company did this, but it doesn't matter anyway."
Seeing the undisguised joy on Tohsaka Tokiomi's face, Kotomine Kirei seemed to have thought of something.
"Has that been delivered?"
"That's right, Kirei, you are still as smart as ever," Tohsaka Tokiomi walked to the table with elegant steps, turned sideways and showed Kotomine Kirei the full appearance of his holy relic.
——It was a fossil that looked very ancient and twisted like a snake.
Even though he was filled with excitement, Tohsaka Tokiomi still restrained himself, picked up the red wine beside him, and handed the other glass to Kotomine Kirei.
"Although it's a little early to celebrate, it's already certain, Kirei, that this Holy Grail War is our victory!"