The White Divine Shirou / The Gate to the Divine Realm

"Senior!" Sakura broke free of the insect's shackles and lunged at Shirou, only to miss her. The Black Mud, upon encountering the girl, acted as if it had encountered an insulator, avoiding her like an S pole avoiding a N pole. She could only lie on the ground, tears of resentment streaming down her face.

Zouken Matou chuckled and said, "Sakura, are you really that infatuated with this kid? Well, to be honest, I'm also looking forward to seeing how he performs. Although he's reckless, he certainly has good qualities. If I had known that back then, I might have adopted him. Sakura, just you wait and see how Shirou Emiya is swallowed by the Holy Grail!"

Now all was silent. As the Black Mud dragged the boy down, the hole that had been formed was quickly filled in.

The purple-haired girl just stared blankly at the Black Mud swamp, hoping for a miracle, but the surface of the mud remained undisturbed, and Shirou showed no sign of coming up.

Zouken Matou shook his head and gave a sarcastic smile.

"Alright, since that kid's only capacity for magnanimity is this, then Sakura, you can rest assured and help me with my work. Continue to help me complete the work of transforming the Black Mud World in this world," Zouken Matou said, looking at the purple-haired girl.

In fact, he didn't intend to inject the Black Mud into Sakura's body. After all, the ethereal nature of Magecraft had too many unknowns. He wouldn't take risks, but it was a rare and powerful talent, so he would use the modified Crest Worms to regain control of Sakura.

"..." The black-haired girl was unmoved by the old man, only staring at the Black Mud swamp, her eyes becoming empty and lifeless, suddenly losing all hope of being alive.

'Senior... it was so hard to finally meet you, but you're gone like this. You died trying to help me, but what's the point of me living then?'

Zouken Matou's black pupils looked at his palm. Controlling his body, something was moving inside him, crawling all the way to the center of his palm and piercing a hole. An insect crawled out, and Zouken Matou pinched it in his hand and handed it to the purple-haired girl.

Just then, a hand suddenly emerged from the Black Mud swamp, scrambling upwards through the Black Mud. Finally, Shirou's head appeared in the mud pit, spitting out a mouthful of Black Mud and opening his mouth wide.

"Unlimited Blade Works!!!" Shirou raised his head and let out a final roar.

He could fail, and he could be defeated. In the past, even when he fought for justice time and time again, he was not perfect. Each time, various powerful enemies appeared, and unpredictable desperate situations arose. Many times, even if he risked his life, he could not change anything.

Even after passing the trials of the Holy Grail War, studying at the Clock Tower, and becoming a qualified Magus, he was not the strongest, never was. There were opponents in this world whom he could not contend with.

After every battle, something irreversible happens, leaving behind regrets. He fell down again and again, filled with pain and remorse, only to rise again and forge an iron will.

But the one person I must protect is the one who is important to me—this purple-haired girl, my lovable junior, Sakura! This is the one thing I absolutely cannot allow to be harmed.

That's the only thing! I will never give up! Even if I fall into the abyss of hell, I will climb out and protect her.

In the boy's heart, a lamp was lit, a sword-shaped mark of light, an unprecedented Inherent Domain was released, filling and covering the entire dark world.

Chapter 408 White God Shirou

The power of the Inner World fully blossomed at this moment. Shirou experienced things he had never experienced in his previous life, witnessed the past of his counterparts in various parallel worlds, and merged with another version of himself. The Inherent Domain, which is the manifestation of his mind, is no longer just that wilderness.

Of course, the scale is completely different! If this Inherent Domain, which is several times larger than the original imagined world, were to be completely detonated now, even the immense magical power of the Greater Holy Grail would be unable to withstand it.

This was Shirou's final effort to fulfill his promise to protect the girl.

The fully deployed Inherent Domain covered this black world. On the black swamp, there appeared a wilderness filled with various weapons, a sword mound, a forge, a spire guarding one side, and the Camelot of the Knights of the Round Table. Everywhere, it was like a gorgeous decoration, yet it possessed power close to the original.

At this moment, all the Noble Phantasm in this world responded to Shirou's summons, rising into the air and flying to every corner of the barrier.

The next moment, Shirou detonated all the weapons within his Inherent Domain. With a deafening roar, as if the most powerful weapon in human history had been detonated, the interior of the Black Holy Grail was turned upside down, and the entire Reality Marble violently shook, like an unprecedented super earthquake. Even the sky seemed to be shaking, and the Black Mud swamp was overturned.

The sky seemed to shatter, with fragments of black curtain falling. Through the gaps, light could be seen shining into the outside world. The black humanoid zombies and the animals controlled by the Black Mud all lost their power and dissolved little by little.

All of Zouken Matou's plans ultimately failed.

Shirou's shirt was burned off in the explosion. He lay on the ground, looking at the girl who was completely unharmed and surrounded by layers of Sakura Shield, and a relieved smile appeared on his face.

"You brat! You actually dared to do such a thing!" Zouken Matou was so angry that he could barely stand, and all sorts of insects kept crawling out of his body. The old man's body was so thin that it looked like he was just a piece of paper.

Zouken Matou summoned his Mage of the Insects familiar, waved his hand, and pointed in the direction where Shirou had fallen. More than a dozen Winged Blade Insect flew over, aimed at the boy's head, and pounced on him, slicing their fangs.

"Senior!" Sakura rushed forward, spreading her arms wide, using her small body to shield the person she loved from the fatal attack.

Insects—leeches that can drain a cow's blood in seconds, Winged Blade Insect sharp enough to cut through steel, and mosquitoes whose bites can kill—all swarmed toward the girl's slender body.

But Sakura didn't even flinch. She spread her arms, opened her eyes, and vowed to protect her senior from the swarm of insects, just as her senior had protected her before!

At that very moment, a dazzling white light shone from the sky, and a halo of light emitting a faint white glow descended upon the girl, protecting her within a pillar of light filled with shimmering particles.

When the Black Mud, poisonous insects, and man-eating worms rushed up and were about to touch the girl...

The beam of light flickered, and the particles of light, in the form of waves, created ripples, like water splashing on a lake, forming a halo that expanded outwards.

When the insect touched the halo, all the external poison was instantly wiped out, as if it had evaporated, leaving no trace in this world.

"What!?" Zouken Matou was startled and immediately transformed his body into an insect, scattering in all directions in an attempt to escape.

However, the presence of that halo didn't give him any chance.

The halo instantly spread out, covering the entire city. At that moment, all insects related to the Black Mud were destroyed by this strange light wave, with no chance of resurrection.

Above the sky that had just lit up, a portal of light appeared out of nowhere. A man with an ethereal aura arrived there.

Sakura raised her head and looked in that direction.

A young man with long white hair, fair skin, and dressed in white robes, his face was exactly the same as the fallen Shirou. Yes, the white god, a being that was originally isolated, had appeared here.

Boom! Black lightning struck the ground, and the black tower moved to stand in front of the white-clad man.

Because of the arrival of the white god, the balance of this place was broken. Facing its mortal enemy, the corrupted Holy Grail could no longer hide and revealed its true form. A huge black pillar stood on the ground, like a towering building. In the void above the building, a chaotic and bottomless black abyss unfolded.

"Shirou Emiya, even if it's just a replica of the Holy Grail created by Magecraft, even if this body has been stained black, the Holy Grail will never disappear."

The white deity said mercilessly, "Shut up! You are nothing but a facade created by Magecraft to reach the Root, a malevolent entity filled with deception and slaughter, which ultimately developed its own consciousness due to corruption. However, as a harmful object, your fate is to be disintegrated. I hereby assert that humanity has no need for something like you. Vanish!"

"Shirou Emiya!!!" The towering Black Holy Grail emitted a hoarse whistling sound, like the world's most hated curse.

A black beam of light shot from the circular hole atop the black tower. This beam was formed from the energy gathered and synthesized by the Greater Holy Grail, surpassing the realm of grand Magecraft and reaching the highest level of destructive power within True Magic. The Black Mud, the evil of the world, is itself a void substance, so it cannot be blocked by any physical shield, but once touched, even the soul will be assimilated.

The white light absorbed the pillar of light from the Black Mud, and then, like a comet hitting the earth, it struck the black tower in return.

"Ughhhhhh!!!" The Black Holy Grail let out a painful howl. It had been defeated, utterly defeated. From the very beginning, it was not even in the same league as the white god.

At that moment, the entire world was enveloped in white light. The white-clad man unfurled his long white robe and embraced the purple-haired girl. The world outside of the two of them was swept away by the white light and vanished without a trace.

Whether it's nothingness or a tangible existence, as long as it's valid, it means it can be created. Since there is darkness that can cover all light, then light that can engulf darkness is also possible.

The black tower was gone, the swamp was no more, and the entire city had been razed to the ground by that comet of light.

Sakura peeked out from under Shirou's white cloak, staring blankly at the completely different scene around her. Suddenly remembering something, she quickly pushed the man away and crawled out, nervously looking around.

"Senpai! Emiya- senpai! Where are you?" Sakura called out anxiously.

But the surrounding area was empty, like a flat, endless white desert.

At that moment, the ground behind them lifted up the stones that had been pressing down on them, and Shirou crawled out of the ruins. The white-haired man had exhausted his magical energy from destroying the Black Holy Grail, and Shirou, who was lying on the ground, was also blown away. Everything around them, whether buildings or the ground, exploded into pieces, which directly crushed Shirou on top of him.

Shirou thought to himself with frustration that although he hadn't been swallowed by the Black Mud and had his consciousness distorted, he had almost been buried alive and suffocated to death.

"Oh, you're still alive? Another me," the white-clad man said with a cold laugh.

"Don't underestimate me! This little bit of Black Mud is nothing to me." Shirou propped himself up with one hand and staggered to his feet. He was now starting to suspect that the other party had done it on purpose.

"Senior! We need to find a place to treat your injury as soon as possible!" Sakura quickly stepped forward to support Shirou.

"Thank you, Sakura, but don't worry about it. His presence here means my power has returned." Shirou said, using the Creative Power of the gods. White light emanated from his body, instantly healing all his wounds.

At the last moment, he desperately unleashed Unlimited Blade Works, shattering the barrier created by the Black Holy Grail. Naturally, the White God would seek out the Black Holy Grail for disrupting the God's plans. However, the White God's timely arrival was somewhat unexpected.

"So, shall we start fighting here?" Shirou pulled Sakura behind him and said to the white-clad deity.

"Huh? What's going on, senpai?" Sakura was pulled behind her and asked in confusion, her hands cupping her face as her mind raced with wild thoughts. Could it be true that in the urban legend, there are three versions of herself in the world, and when they encounter each other, one of them will inevitably die?

However, Shirou didn't have the energy to explain anything to the girl at that moment.

As for the odds of winning, they were probably infinitely close to zero. The moment Shirou saw his opponent, he understood that it was not as simple as encountering a god's clone as before, but the real entity named Shirou Emiya, that is, the god himself.

She possesses an approachable and all-encompassing aura, with elegant movements and long, white hair that shines even brighter than the hair of a woman who has just had a beauty treatment. It shows no signs of aging, but rather is lustrous, smooth, and silvery like a work of art.

Yes, it was as if Shirou at that time was completely immersed in archery, or rather, when he was wholeheartedly devoted to blacksmithing, he could resonate with Muramasa Shirou.

This is the kind of temperament that only appears when a person is completely immersed in something, reaching a profound state of mind, where they are in harmony with the bow and sword, and with nature—the so-called unity of Unity of Heaven and Man and nature. (Monthly fee group 694936135)

However, the being before us is in this state at all times; perhaps this is what is meant by a god. When a being ascends from human to god, it is not merely an increase in power; one's spirit, will, wisdom, and temperament will all undergo earth-shattering changes.

"Don't be so wary, my other self. No matter what, I would never hurt Sakura," the white-haired god said calmly. His demeanor was unique, and his voice was elegant yet convincing.

It was as if all of Shirou's virtues as a person had been elevated to the extreme; his words and actions conveyed the message that he was at his most perfect.

"Senpai? So you're Emiya too. But why are you fighting?" Sakura looked at the white-haired man with a puzzled expression, then at Shirou, the black-haired Shirou who had protected her earlier. She was completely confused.

"Don't worry, Sakura, I have no intention of fighting here," Shirou, with his white hair, replied with a gentle smile.

Yes, the black-haired boy was an unexpected creation. He was a newborn being born from the collective aspirations of all Shirou Emiya, and also the origin of the so-called Shirou Emiya, a being reincarnated as the aspiration of all Shirou Emiya.

In other words, he is an unexpected product of Shirou Emiya's subconscious actions as a god, and also the ideal aspiration of the gods, like a beautiful dream that has become reality due to the Creative Power.

They are beings longed for by perfect gods.

Logically speaking, dreams will eventually face reality, and illusions will eventually shatter.

However, this ideal self actually exists in a very real way. It rebelled against the original self as a avatar of God and successfully persuaded the avatar of God to absorb it.

Perhaps in my ideal self, I can find things that even an absolutely rational god cannot do.

When he realized this, the god changed his mind and didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

In fact, many people have fantasized about having a clone, so that their clone can study, run errands, do housework, and take care of all the troublesome things for them, while they can focus on resting and playing games.

As long as this clone doesn't cause trouble or conflict of interest, it's definitely a capability many people would want.

At least for the white god, having a different version of himself in another world isn't necessarily a bad thing. Why must he kill himself?

"Now that the Black Holy Grail issue has been safely resolved, there will be no more problems in this world. Sakura, you can live in peace now," Shirou in white said softly to the girl.

"Yes, thank you, senior." Sakura was still a little overwhelmed by the current situation. After all, she was flanked by seniors on both sides, and she couldn't quite adjust. She didn't know which side to look at. The senior on the white side seemed to have achieved something; his temperament and appearance seemed to be at their most perfect. Although his face hadn't changed, he looked like he had gained a kind of sacred beauty.

"Well, this is my problem, Sakura doesn't need to worry at all," Shirou said.

"Yes, Emiya- senpai," Sakura replied.

On the other hand, the senior exuded a strong Yang energy. Because of his Berserker transformation, he was shirtless at this moment, and his muscles were even more muscular than he remembered. It made me blush and my heart race.

The girl is now surrounded by two men, one on Emiya left and one on her Emiya.

Sakura shook her head, feeling her cheeks burning and flushing, caught in a state of unprecedented chaos since arriving in this world.

Chapter 409 The Gate to the Divine Realm

Sakura, with her gentle and considerate nature, can't be too forceful in demanding things of her seniors. However, if her seniors go off and misbehave, she has her own way of doing it: secretly following and observing. But now that her seniors have suddenly split into two, which side should she follow?

Two images appeared in Sakura's mind: an angel and a demon.

The purple-haired little devil, wearing Magecraft's cape, grinned mischievously and said, "Kukuku, those two seniors are enjoying themselves like they're in heaven. Quickly find a way to get them to stay and keep me company!"

On the other side, the gentle and kind-hearted nurse clasped her hands together and placed them on her chest, saying sincerely, "There's nothing to worry about. Just treat them sincerely. Two seniors, and you have two joys!"

Sakura's little head was in a complete mess, and she was lost in confusion.

"No... Senior? That's not what I meant! Waaah, what should I do?" The purple-haired girl shook her head, looked to the left, then to the right, waving her hands, completely confused.

"I know, I know what you mean, so calm down, Sakura." Shirou pressed down on the girl's shoulders to make her stand still, then cupped her face in his hands, looked into her eyes, and said calmly.

"Um... um. I understand, senpai." Sakura blushed, finally calming down.

The white-clad Shirou turned to look at his other self and said, "No need to rush. Come over when you're ready! I'll be waiting for you over there."

"..." Shirou frowned slightly, but nodded nonetheless. He knew exactly which place the other person was referring to. Although he didn't want to admit it, they were indeed the closest of friends—the same person from different worlds.

The moment the white deity uttered those words, the image of that frozen snow-capped mountain naturally appeared in his mind, as if they were telepathically connected, or perhaps their souls were linked.

Shirou asked, "What will happen to the people here?"

"Yes! Senior, can you save them?" Sakura looked anxiously at the white-haired man. Although she rarely interacted with others, there were many people in this city she often saw. Like her neighbors, the shop owners in the shopping street, her classmates and teachers at school, their faces were still vivid in her mind. But the city they lived in had now become a desert.

The white-haired man shook his head and said, "Unfortunately, while I can relocate people who have suffered catastrophic disasters to a safer place, I cannot resurrect the dead. This goes against the laws of nature, and violating it will cause even more terrible things."

"Is this all there is to it? This is an entire town! Sakura's house has disappeared too," Shirou said, frowning.

The white-haired man calmly said, "For the people of this world, memories will be restored. This city, destroyed by a force that never existed, will become a matter of course in people's memories. For example, this place has always been like this. As for Sakura, she will probably be regarded as a girl who suddenly reappeared after disappearing. Her bank accounts, ID card, and assets here can all be recovered."

"Or, I can create a new residence and a new identity for you, Sakura. Whatever identity you want, I can fulfill it for you, like the sole heir of a real estate tycoon, Princess from a foreign land, or something like that," the white-haired man said to the girl, as if he had just remembered something.

Sakura shook her head, saddened by the reality she had to accept, and lowered her head. After a while, she spoke, "No, there will always be a way for me. But compared to my situation, everyone else... at least let me build them a grave."

The white deity said, "That's meaningless. Souls no longer exist. Their existence was defined as superfluous by the world, and all traces they left behind have been completely erased by this world."

"Senior...?" Sakura looked up at the white-haired man in a daze, seemingly not recognizing him at all.

"Don't you ever consider Sakura's feelings? You've really gone beyond humanity!" Shirou frowned and glared at the white-haired man.

"Yes, after all, I am a god now, and what I said is true. Some sacrifices are unavoidable, and sometimes even necessary for humanity as a whole. Otherwise, we wouldn't be the humanity we are today," the white-haired man said matter-of-factly.

When someone looks at a problem from God's perspective, they often get a completely different view from the person involved, even if their choice seems perfectly correct from God's point of view. But even if you tell the person involved this correct choice, they won't willingly follow it. They'll still act according to their own thoughts, doing things that seem foolish and irrational from God's perspective.

Human reproduction is built on various sacrifices, such as those of extinct animals, and even humans themselves.

Without the bloodshed among the Seven Warring States, without the collapse of the Qin Empire, without the Chu-Han Contention, without the chaos of the Three Kingdoms, or even without the Five Barbarian Invasions, perhaps many, many people on Earth today would not exist.

After all, eternal emperor Dugu clan of Tang (Li Shimin), one of the greatest emperors in Chinese history, was very likely of mixed Han and non-Han ancestry. His ancestors were Han Chinese who were subordinate to non-Han Xianbei tribe during the Han Dynasty.