After the Spring Festival period passed, by the following Sunday, daily box office numbers for holiday films dropped sharply. Even 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie', which still held the highest screening share, saw its daily box office fall to just 92 million.
'Breaking Formation' performed even worse, with a daily box office of only 79 million. Essentially, during the first week of release over the holiday, these films had already earned more than 60% of their total box office.
Most people who wanted to watch Spring Festival films had already seen them.
Those going to theaters after the holiday were either repeat viewers or people from rural hometowns who didn't have access to cinemas during the holiday and were catching up afterward.
But these groups were relatively small.
Given the current situation, 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' was leading the Spring Festival lineup with a total box office of 1.92 billion, more than 50 million ahead of 'Breaking Formation'. At this point, there was little suspense left regarding the box office champion.
For the Spring Festival market now, the only question was whether 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' and 'Breaking Formation' could slowly grind their totals up to the 3 billion mark over the next month.
The hype of the Spring Festival film market came quickly—and faded just as fast.
After all, 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' didn't have much depth in its plot for discussion. While Su Yan's action scenes were stunning, after a week of praise, even fans had mostly said their fill.
In the Xia Nation, Su Yan's fans began shifting their attention back to the currently airing TV drama 'Fate/Zero'.
During the Spring Festival, its popularity had been temporarily overshadowed by the films.
But once the holiday ended—
The popularity and discussion around 'Fate/Zero' skyrocketed.
The influence of films typically lasted only one or two weeks, but a truly breakout TV drama could sustain heat for an entire season or more.
Even though most viewers were busy enjoying the holiday, 'Fate/Zero' quietly reached a viewership rating of 5.72%.
At this rate, it was very likely to become Su Yan's third TV drama to surpass a 6% rating.
Starting from Sunday, discussions about 'Fate/Zero' surged across major forums and fan groups.
["Another Sunday! Can't wait!"]
["That Three Kings meeting last week left me upset for a whole week. Even though I admit Alexander made some valid points, the way he talked about Artoria's ideals really pissed me off."]
["It's just a clash between idealism and realism. Artoria is a noble person—strict with herself, strict with others, law-abiding, selfless. But someone like that… no one would want to be her friend. Alexander understood that, which is why he said those things. If a moral saint becomes king, what happens to her subordinates? Seeing her would be like looking into a mirror, constantly reminded of their own flaws."]
["Exactly. I had a college classmate who was extremely upright. When her dormmate cheated on a final exam, she reported it on the spot. I admit she wasn't wrong—but someone like that, whether as a friend, lover, boss, or subordinate… just thinking about it feels scary."]
["Yeah… both Gilgamesh and Alexander saw her problem immediately. How could wishing on the Holy Grail restore a fallen kingdom? As long as she remains king, that country is bound to fall again."]
["Stop it. Alexander is one thing, but the Gilgamesh played by Su Yan is just awful! I seriously find that character annoying."]
["He's way too arrogant. Makes me uncomfortable."]
["Looks like nobody likes these overly pretentious characters."]
["For the first time, I actually want a character played by Su Yan to die soon."]
["Hope episode 7 tonight helps Artoria recover. Don't want that old thief to make this sweet girl suffer again."]
["Exactly. She's just a girl trying to fix her mistakes—why is everyone targeting her in this show?"]
["Maybe the only one who truly understands Artoria is Lancer, Diarmuid. After all, they're both knights."]
At 8 PM, episode 7 of 'Fate/Zero' aired.
All the conflicts built up since episode 1 exploded in this episode.
Gilgamesh, dissatisfied with his ideological differences with Tokiomi Tohsaka, began tempting Tohsaka's disciple, Kirei Kotomine, to consider thoughts that defied rules.
And strangely, those very thoughts—crossing boundaries—gave Kirei, who had always lacked emotions, a sense of excitement.
Meanwhile, the friendship between Artoria and Irisviel, Kiritsugu Emiya's wife, continued to deepen.
Gilles de Rais and his Master, the serial killer Ryuunosuke Uryuu, found mutual understanding—almost like kindred spirits.
Waver felt inferior due to his weakness holding Alexander back, but Alexander encouraged him, saying that inferiority could be the starting point of the kingly path.
Sola, now Lancer Diarmuid's new Master, harbored affection for him and urged him to fight freely.
As for Berserker and his Master, Kariya Matou—they were still spiraling in madness.
The grand spectacle foreshadowed since episode 1 finally erupted in episode 7—
As Gilles de Rais summoned a massive monster from the lake in the city center.
The seven Masters and seven Servants gathered.
A chaotic battle was on the verge of breaking out.
And then—
The episode ended abruptly.
["What's wrong with that old sadist?! Cutting it off right here again?!"]
["So much dialogue this episode… but it was so satisfying."]
["The visual effects were insane. That scene where Gilles summoned the giant tentacle monster was incredible."]
["I thought Gilles and Ryuunosuke were just comic relief in the Holy Grail War, didn't expect them to be this strong."]
["By the way, Hassan is definitely the weakest Servant, right? Totally useless—got wiped out instantly by Alexander."]
["He just ran into the wrong opponent. Others would've had a hard time dealing with him—too many clones."]
["Alexander might be the strongest Servant in this war. That Reality Marble summoning an entire army—how do you even fight that?"]
["Not necessarily. Artoria probably hasn't shown her full strength yet. And that Gilgamesh guy definitely has hidden cards."]
["Ugh… that cliffhanger is disgusting."]
["You'll get used to it…"]
["Am I the only one who thinks the pacing is too slow? Seven episodes in, only one Servant—Hassan—is dead, and none of the Masters have died. How long is this going to drag on?"]
["Maybe there'll be a second season?"]
["Nope. Check the official site—'Fate/Zero' is a single-season winter show. It'll just have more episodes, probably around 13 or 14."]
["So we're only halfway through?"]
["Looks like it."]
["Alright, guys, see you next week. I'm going to sleep early."]
["I'm gonna rewatch the 'Rurouni Kenshin' TV drama."]
["By the way, since the 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' blew up, the TV drama is getting popular again too."]
["Of course. It's currently the top-selling TV drama on SakuraNet, even surpassing the ongoing 'Fate/Zero'. After all these years, it's popular again—at this rate, average paid views per episode hitting 20–30 million isn't a problem."]
—
The first Sunday after the Spring Festival.
With the combined buzz from the 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie', its TV drama adaptation, and 'Fate/Zero', Su Yan once again became the absolute center of public attention in the Xia Nation's entertainment industry.
At this point, he was both the king of TV drama ratings and the box office champion of this year's Spring Festival film season—pending final confirmation after the theatrical run ended.
It could be said that in both television and film, Su Yan had reached the very top, unifying discourse across both industries.
For the Xia Nation's entertainment world, this was nothing short of an earthquake.
Su Yan's influence and historical standing surged dramatically.
—
The next day at noon, episode 7's viewership rating was announced: 5.79%.
Taking advantage of the current wave of popularity, Su Yan posted an update on his creator account:
[From this moment on, 'Fate/Zero' enters its main storyline.]
At this point in the broadcast, Su Yan finally let out a long breath of relief.
The series was undeniably excellent—but it had a very slow start. Most of its highlights lie in the latter half.
But now—
The buildup was complete. The Servants and the beauty of the Holy Grail War had all been introduced in the first half.
What followed next—
Would be relentless conflict… and despair.