Facing the crowd's siege, Xia Yu first swept up the Energy Cape behind her, then raised her dual swords. With a burst of acceleration, her entire body crashed right into Medea's Great Fireball!
"Wait, this is..." Seeing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka's pupils shrank. Before she could finish her sentence, she saw the massive fireball shatter upon impact, a blinding explosion instantly flashing through the entire cave.
"Watch out!" she shouted loudly, but unfortunately, just as the words left her mouth, the sound of armor clashing rang out.
Fujimaru Ritsuka knew she had spoken too late.
Facing the obscured vision left behind by the shattered fireball, Artoria could only rely on her Instinct to barely dodge Xia Yu's dual swords, but she couldn't dodge the flying kick that followed. She was sent flying, smashing heavily against the edge of the cave.
And the next one was Medea, who was right behind her.
With a single dash, Xia Yu arrived by her side. She didn't use her swords; instead, she reached out and grabbed Medea by the collar. Spinning around, she hurled Medea towards Tohsaka Rin. The latter had already charged up the Jeweled Sword Zelretch, but seeing this, she had no choice but to stop helplessly.
Just as she dealt with Medea, Cu Chulainn's crimson Magic Spear flew over like a lingering ghost. She raised her dual swords again, knocking it away with a horizontal slash. In the next moment, True Assassin activated his Noble Phantasm once more from her blind spot.
[Zabaniya: Delusional Heartbeat]!
That Evil God's arm reached straight for Xia Yu's heart, but Xia Yu paid it no mind. She simply stood her ground and swung her sword down in a straight cleave, yet the arm dodged her attack at an inconceivable angle, looking as if it were about to touch her chest.
Unfortunately, Sam wasn't some clunky suit of armor. The thrusters on her body opened, and she dodged that hand by a hair's breadth at an equally inconceivable angle. Then, looking at the arm exposed right in front of her, she smashed down ruthlessly with the hilt of her sword.
No matter how flexible your palm was, your forearm couldn't possibly bend at an acute angle too, right?
Obviously, True Assassin couldn't do that. Therefore, under Xia Yu's forceful blow, his arm suffered heavy damage, leaving him with no choice but to cancel his Noble Phantasm.
One could only say that True Assassin was quite tactful, not forcing himself to continue activating the Noble Phantasm. The main reason was that the opponent could have directly slashed down with the blade, but still chose to use the hilt.
Since the other party was giving you face, it was best not to push your luck, otherwise you really would die.
Compared to Tohsaka Rin and the others who were eager to save someone, True Assassin clearly understood the situation. The two sides seemed to be fighting fiercely, but in reality, the opponent was holding back the entire time.
Otherwise, just look at Archer. Since this person could beat him into losing his combat capability in a dozen seconds, she definitely didn't lack the time to land a finishing blow. But what about now? He looked miserable, but for a Heroic Spirit, it was entirely just superficial wounds.
The kind that could be recovered with just a bit of rest.
Seeing True Assassin tactfully retract his Noble Phantasm, Xia Yu nodded in satisfaction. Then, standing on one leg, she arched her other leg upward to gather power.
Mash, whom she had just thrown into the sky, was huddled entirely under her Great Shield, about to smash down towards her.
"Get back up there!" Facing that strike descending from the sky, Xia Yu's right leg sprang up high, sending Mash and her Great Shield flying back into the sky with a single kick.
And right at that moment, a Scarlet Spear thrust out like a roaming dragon from behind her, aiming straight for her back.
Cu Chulainn also understood that his Noble Phantasm could probably only serve as a distraction, and at most, it could only distract her for a second or two. So he immediately made a judgment: rather than caring about this tiny bit of distraction time, it would be better to charge in directly with his spear.
It was better than observing from the sidelines. He had been watching for so long, and his blood had been pumping with excitement for ages!
Unfortunately, his attack couldn't slip past Sam's Battlefield Perception Module. This was equipment from the Interstellar Era; did someone really think her back was a blind spot in her vision?
So, after kicking Mash back into the sky, Xia Yu didn't stop. Instead, she turned around and delivered a rapid combination kick onto that crimson Lance. Cu Chulainn's hands went completely numb from that tyrannical force in an instant, and the Lance deviated from its attack trajectory.
But he didn't have time to think too much about it. In the next moment, Xia Yu planted her feet firmly and charged over with her two energy swords.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Where the spear and swords clashed, dazzling sparks continuously erupted. Cu Chulainn was steadily forced back by the fierce and rapid offensive.
Fortunately, Artoria had recovered her bearings and charged back in from behind her once again.
"Good timing!" Xia Yu felt extremely exhilarated. The dual swords in her hands danced ceaselessly, clashing blades with the two of them simultaneously. Cu Chulainn's ruthless spearmanship and Artoria's fierce offensive made her increasingly excited.
"Tch," Tohsaka Rin spent a long time aiming the Jeweled Sword Zelretch in her hand, but she just couldn't find an opportunity...
There was always someone fighting right next to Miss Firefly, and she wasn't the type of person who could backstab her teammates. Moreover, she had plenty of self-awareness; if she fired a shot from the Jeweled Sword Zelretch, the opponent would probably be fine, but her own Servants might not be.
"I refuse to believe it..." Medea seemed to realize that she had just messed up, so she stopped charging up that ostentatious Great Fireball and obediently started planting Dragon Tooth Warriors.
Seeing the Dragon Tooth Warriors pop out of the dirt one by one, Tohsaka Rin couldn't exactly say she was slacking off. After all, their side already had a finishing move charging up, and they were just missing fodder like this to hold the line.
"Miss Medusa," Fujimaru Ritsuka looked at Rider behind her, who was charging her Noble Phantasm. "We'll leave the rest to you!"
"Mhm." Rider was ruthless and spoke little; the Pegasus in her Noble Phantasm had already been mostly materialized.
Boom!
Xia Yu found an opening and threw a punch at Cu Chulainn's Lance, knocking him back. She then kicked Artoria away, followed by another upward strike with her sword, sending Mash flying into the sky once again.
Then she turned her head to look in their direction.
"I won't let you have it that easy!"
She raised her hand, the gun barrel hidden beneath her gauntlet unfolding. After a brief charge, she fired a blast straight at them.
"Leave it to me!" Seeing this, Archer barely managed to stand up. Gritting his teeth and reaching out a hand, he pushed his heavily injured body to its limits and shouted loudly, "[Rho Aias]!"
In an instant, a crimson Noble Phantasm blocked the space between Xia Yu and Rider. Xia Yu's blast only shattered two of its petals.
And just as she was preparing to fire again, Cu Chulainn charged forward fearlessly once more. "You've still got me here, don't go ignoring me!"
He wielded his Lance using an almost suicidal fighting style, all just to stall Xia Yu.
"Are you throwing your life away?" Xia Yu cleaved him aside with a sword and raised her eyebrows, saying, "Once her Noble Phantasm is complete, you're going to suffer too, you know."
"To be able to take down a powerful enemy like you with me," Cu Chulainn grinned, "that would be an absolute honor!"
After saying that, he entangled her in combat once more.
"[Zabaniya: Delusional Heartbeat]!"
It was True Assassin! He had also seized the right moment and activated his Noble Phantasm again!
The sheer value of the Jeweled Sword Zelretch was still rising!
Like Cu Chulainn, True Assassin didn't expect his Noble Phantasm to deliver any decisive blow; it was purely to stall for time!
"You guys don't honestly think that the reason I've been crossing blades with you is because I lack confidence in this armor, do you?" Seeing this, Xia Yu completely ignored them. She boldly turned around, exposing her back to them, and simply launched another bombardment at Archer's Rho Aias.
Cu Chulainn could only watch helplessly as his usually infallible crimson Lance thrust toward her armor, only to slide right off without leaving even a single scratch.
And True Assassin's Noble Phantasm had also reached her back, but under the shroud of that cyan-blue Energy Cape... he sensed that his Magical Energy hadn't touched her heart at all. Instead, it crashed directly into something as thick and heavy as a mountain...
Even Magecraft had to follow basic logic.
From quality to quantity, you're inferior to me in every aspect. What makes you think you can rip out my heart by relying on a mere curse?
It was no exaggeration to say that Xia Yu's current state, while not quite invincible in the Type-Moon universe, was at least at the Ultimate One tier, no weaker than the Great Spider. She truly couldn't shatter stars like Firefly, as that power was too idealistic, but even so, the fraction of power she could utilize was sufficiently formidable.
Moreover, as she fought more battles, she became increasingly proficient in using that power. Once her plan succeeded...
To fight her head-on, one would at least have to pull in a Lostbelt King, such as Arjuna, the Giant of Light Kukulkan, or the Great Spider as opponents.
For True Assassin to want to secure a sure-kill with his Noble Phantasm was no different from a fool's dream. He couldn't even reach Xia Yu's heart before being completely blocked by the cape made of cyan-blue energy behind her.
"What?!" Faced with the failure of his Noble Phantasm, True Assassin's face was full of disbelief.
On the other side, Archer's Noble Phantasm only had a single petal left, while Rider's Noble Phantasm was still just a little bit away...
Boom!
Finally, that brilliant petal was shattered as well. The tiny bit of stamina Archer had just recovered was completely wiped out, and his entire body collapsed weakly onto the ground.
Seeing this, Medea waved her Staff. The Dragon Tooth Warriors she had just created swarmed towards Xia Yu, but in the face of Xia Yu's dual swords, these Dragon Tooth Warriors were incredibly fragile!
In just a few breaths of time, they were completely dismantled!
And right at this moment, unexpectedly, Emiya Shirou stepped in between Xia Yu and Rider.
"[Rho Aias]!"
In an instant, the seven-petaled Noble Phantasm once again stood between Xia Yu and Rider.
Although its scale was smaller than Archer's, it would be enough for Rider to finish unleashing her Noble Phantasm before Xia Yu could shatter it.
"Tch," Seeing this, Xia Yu didn't continue her attack. "You're quite capable, Emiya Shirou. To reproduce it after only seeing it once."
As she spoke, she cast a deeply meaningful glance at the collapsed Archer.
Emiya Shirou didn't reply. His entire mind was focused on maintaining this Noble Phantasm. His whole body was trembling, and after just a few tense seconds, unable to hold on any longer, he dropped to one knee.
But fortunately, Rider's Noble Phantasm was finally ready.
"[Bellerophon]!"
With her loud shout, a pure white Pegasus materialized beneath her. Gripping the reins, she urged her Noble Phantasm forward.
In a flash, a streak of light barrelled towards Xia Yu with the speed of a thunderbolt.
Seeing this, Xia Yu's face filled with excitement. The cyan-blue flames on Sam surged even higher, and she raised her swords, choosing to confront it head-on!
Boom!
As the two clashed, Xia Yu was momentarily forced back continuously by the immense impact, her feet plowing deep trenches into the ground.
But it only lasted for a moment. With the continuous eruption of energy from behind her, she gradually stabilized her body until she was evenly matched with Rider's Noble Phantasm!
"You've gotta be kidding me..." Seeing this, Tohsaka Rin's expression turned grim. "This is a Noble Phantasm... and the Noble Phantasm of a mythological Servant like Medusa at that... It actually only forced her to take a few steps back?"
"Wasn't this expected..." Fujimaru Ritsuka shook her head and sighed.
"Regardless, this is far too astonishing," the Doctor's voice came through the Communicator. "She hasn't even used a Noble Phantasm. She's doing this purely with her physical body..."
At this moment, Rider's face was also filled with astonishment. She clearly hadn't anticipated this outcome, but for Sakura's sake... I absolutely will not retreat!
Following her resolve, the white streak of light shone brightly once again. The situation that had just been evenly matched shifted, and Xia Yu was actually slowly being pushed back once more.
But even worse, a chanting voice could be heard from behind her again.
Xia Yu turned her head and saw Artoria holding the Holy Sword high in her hands. Specks of Golden Light continuously materialized from the surroundings, converging onto her sword.
Seeing this, she decisively freed up one hand, preparing to fire a blast in that direction once again, even if doing so would put her at a greater "disadvantage" in her clash with Rider.
"Don't even think about getting past!"
But right then, a voice brimming with resolve rang out from the air.
Mash crashed down with her Great Shield, landing directly between Xia Yu and Artoria.
"[Pseudo-Deployment of Virtual Noble Phantasm/Foundation of the Human Order (Lord Chaldeas)]!"
The young girl's resolve materialized into a fortress wall, blocking the path in front of Artoria. The latter stared blankly at Mash's familiar yet unfamiliar back before her, and for some reason, she felt a sudden sting in her nose.
Then, as if she had received some kind of buff, the already shining Holy Sword became even more radiant!
"[Excalibur]!"
In an instant, the torrent formed by that Golden Light surged over the high walls of 'Camelot,' blasting toward Xia Yu with world-cleaving momentum.
In front of her was Rider's Bellerophon, and behind her was Artoria's Excalibur. Seeing this, Xia Yu smiled in relief.
Boom!
A white and a golden stream of light converged, catching Xia Yu in the middle. The explosion generated in that instant nearly knocked Masters like Fujimaru Ritsuka and Tohsaka Rin off their feet.
"Cough, cough," Tohsaka Rin constantly waved a hand over her mouth, fanning away the dust in the air as she said with full anticipation, "Did it work?"
"Miss Tohsaka," hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka retorted weakly, "When you say things like that... it usually means there's smoke but no damage..."
"Huh? What does 'smoke but no damage' mean?" The electronic idiot Tohsaka Rin didn't understand any of this at all.
"It means exactly what it sounds like." Right then, a teasing voice rang out from the center of the explosion. "A massive spectacle, yet it failed to leave a single scratch on me."
She slowly walked out from the smoke and dust, the armor on her body lacking even the slightest scratch.
"How could this be..." Seeing this, a look of despair appeared on Tohsaka Rin's face.