In the dim basement, with damp walls, an extremely thin man was sitting in the corner with his head lowered. His eyes, one black and one gray, were dull and lifeless. At first glance, it was hard to tell whether he was a human or a ghost.

The man maintained his stiff posture, sitting quietly in the damp corner.

Until some point, the man raised his head slightly and looked at the dark wall in front of him.

“Rider… is he dead…”

The man muttered to himself, and his dark right eye finally showed a hint of movement.

But soon, he lowered his head again and returned to his previous numb state.

"boom--"

The wall of the basement exploded, and three figures, one tall and two short, appeared in the large hole in the wall covered by smoke and dust.

The man's expression changed slightly, he glanced at the three figures appearing behind the smoke, and then cast his gaze towards the ceiling without any concern.

"Let's stop here..."

The man muttered to himself, and seemed to have the intention of dying.

“Uncle Kariya!”

A strange voice came from the big hole in the wall.

Matou Kariya's expression moved slightly, and he turned his head in shock to look at the strange boy with an excited face.

The young man had blue curly hair, a tall figure, and a handsome face. He seemed to be a familiar figure in his memory, but the boy's mental state was so good that Matou Kirei was a little unsure for a moment.

It was not until the young man squatted in front of him excitedly and checked his physical condition that Matou Kariya spoke uncertainly.

"Shin... Shinji?"

Matou Kariya stared blankly at the blue-haired boy in front of him and uttered these two words weakly.

Tong Shen nodded quickly and said without hesitation: "It's me, Uncle Yan Ye, I'm back to save you!"

“But my name is Tong Shen now, not Matou Shinji. I never want to hear the name Matou again. Uncle Kariya, you should change your surname with me. When the Holy Grail War is over, I will take you away from Fuyuki City…”

Looking at the blue-haired boy who was chattering in front of him, a glimmer of light finally appeared in Matou Kariya's gray eyes.

For him now, there is no better news than hearing about the current situation of those two children!

Wait, Shinji is back, doesn't that mean...

"Where's Sakura?"

Jian Tong Yanye interrupted Tong Shen's words despite his fatigue.

Tong Shen was stunned for a moment, then immediately replied with a smile: "Don't worry, she is still in China, it is the safest place. Since I promised you that I would spend the rest of my life protecting her, I will naturally not let her come back to risk herself."

"……That's good."

A relieved smile appeared on Jiantong Yanye's face. He raised his skinny right hand slightly and patted Tong Shen's arm lightly.

"In the blink of an eye, you have grown up... Rider's death was caused by you, right? It seems that you have become a Master. The Heroic Spirit in red behind you is your Servant, right?"

"No, Archer is my Servant."

Toosaka Rin and Hong A walked out of the big hole in the wall and looked at Matou Kariya with complicated eyes.

Matou Kariya stared at her face in a daze, and suddenly asked with certainty: "You are Xiaolin, right?"

"..."Tousaka Rin nodded silently.

Matou Kariya chuckled and said, "You look exactly like your mother."

Looking at the smile on his face that came from the heart, Tong Shen couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

If he had to say who he felt most sorry for after traveling to this world, it would be the person in front of him, Matou Kariya.

As the most rebellious man in the Matou family, Matou Kariya made a decision that was difficult for ordinary people to understand. He resolutely severed his relationship with his family and magic, and wanted to live as an ordinary person.

But because of himself and Ying, Tong Shen dragged him back from the peaceful life of an ordinary person to the abyss of the Matou family.

Of course, Tong Shen knew that even without his interference, Jiantong Yanye would return to the family for one reason or another.

As for the reason why Matou Kariya cannot escape this fate no matter what, it is naturally because of the woman he loves deeply, Zenjo Aoi.

Zenjo Aoi and Matou Kariya are childhood sweethearts and grew up together. Matou Kariya has liked her since he was a child, but this feeling was not noticed by Zenjo Aoi, who is three years older than him.

The latter only treated Matou Kariya as a younger brother and did not develop any feelings between a man and a woman.

Later, the Tousaka family, also a famous mage family, noticed the excellent genetic qualities of the Zenjo family.

Toosaka Tokiomi, the heir of the Toosaka family at the time, showed up and won the heart of Zenjo Aoi. From then on, Zenjo Aoi became Toosaka Aoi and gave birth to two extremely talented daughters for Toosaka Tokiomi, Toosaka Rin and Toosaka Sakura.

In this love war for Zenjo Aoi, Matou Kariya actually withdrew on his own initiative.

On the one hand, he felt that Tōsaka Tokiomi could make Aoi happier than himself, and on the other hand, the magic form of the Matou family was too deformed, and Matou Kariya would never bring his beloved Aoi into Matou Zouken's insect warehouse.

But even so, he still loves Tousaka Aoi and protects her and her daughter in his own way.

Tong Shen relied on Matou Kariya's feelings for Tousaka Aoi and his love for Aoi's daughter Sakura to convince this man to return to the family and help himself and Sakura escape from the clutches of Matou Zouken.

Of course, in the original plot, even without Tong Shen's interference, Matou Kariya still participated in the Fourth Holy Grail War in order to save Sakura.

However, in this world line, Matou Kariya was indeed pulled back by Tong Shen himself.

Tong Shen had no way to refute this point, nor did he intend to refute it.

"Sakura and Rin are both doing well now, you don't have to worry."

Tong Shen said softly: "Compared to the two of them, I want to know more about what you have experienced in the past ten years."

Matou Kariya withdrew his gaze from Toosaka Rin with some reluctance, looked at Tong Shen, shook his head, and chuckled: "Knowing that you and Ying are living well now, I am already satisfied. As for those disgusting and dirty past events, let them go to hell with me..."

“…”

Tong Shen couldn't help but feel a sinking feeling in his heart when he heard Jian Tong Yan Ye's words which were tinged with death.

He was about to cheer up Matou Kariya with words when he found that the other party seemed to be unable to bear the fatigue and slightly closed his eyes.

Tong Shen was slightly startled, then he opened his eyes wide and called out anxiously: "Uncle Yan Ye, Uncle Yan Ye!"

“Stop yelling!” Hong A came from behind, squatted beside Matou Kariya, and said calmly, “He just overdrew his magic power and passed out. He is not in any danger of life for the time being.”

As he spoke, Hong A looked at his master, Toosaka Rin, and said calmly, "First use the magic gem to protect his life, and then take him back."

Toosaka Rin hesitated for a moment, nodded, took out a magic gem and walked forward.

…

…

Not long after, Tong Shen, carrying the unconscious Matou Kariya on his back, walked in the empty and gloomy mansion of the Matou family with Toosaka Rin and Hong A.

Suddenly, a tall figure appeared in front. It was Lu Bu holding a Fang Tian Huaji.

Looking at the skinny man on Tong Shen's back, Lu Bu raised his eyebrows: "It seems that you really came back to repay your gratitude."

“Of course.” Tong Shen forced a smile. “Uncle Yanye said that Rider is dead... Uncle Bu, you are indeed the strongest!”

Lu Bu said proudly: "Of course!"

The two groups gathered together and turned to walk out of the Matou family residence.

"Are you just leaving like this?" Lu Bu asked with a frown. "This place is filled with ghostly spirits and resentment. There might still be monsters controlled by that old bug. I suggest you conduct a thorough investigation and eradicate them completely!"

Tong Shen smiled and shook his head, saying, "It's too much trouble... Uncle Bu, please help me raze this place to the ground. Uncle Yan Ye and I will never be able to come back here again."

“…”

Lu Bu was slightly startled, then a smile appeared on his face.

"As you wish!"

Three minutes later, Tong Shen, Toosaka Rin and Hong A were standing on the road in the mountains, looking at the Matou family's mansion from afar.

Suddenly, a silver light curtain instantly unfolded with the mansion as the center, covering the entire forest within a three-mile radius.

Tong Shen was stunned for a moment, and then he realized that the magic power in his body was dissipating madly.

His face turned pale and he quickly took out the magic gem to replace the magic power consumed in his body.

Soon, the silver light curtain disappeared, and the Matou family mansion, which originally existed in the mountains and woods, was razed to the ground by some force.

Within a radius of three miles, all the grass and trees were crushed into powder, presenting a desolate scene.

Seeing this scene, Hong A frowned slightly, feeling secretly surprised.

"Is this... an inherent barrier?"

"Yes, compared to single combat in front of the battlefield, Lu Bu is best at leading troops in battle."

"He was one of the most outstanding cavalry commanders in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. It is not difficult to understand why he has an inherent barrier..."

Hong A frowned, constantly analyzing the abilities displayed by Lu Bu in his mind, trying to find Lu Bu's weaknesses.

Not long after, a tall figure holding a Fang Tian Hua Ji walked from the road ahead and nodded to Tong Shen among the three.

Tong Shen smiled and said, "Let's go, Uncle Bu."

"Um."

…

…

In Fuyuki City, on the second floor of the villa rented by Tong Shen.

Tong Shen sat on a chair beside the bed, looking at the tall figure in front of him with a strange expression.

On his right, Toosaka Rin and Hong A were leaning against the wall and the door respectively, also looking at Lu Bu with strange expressions.

Not long after, Lu Bu turned around, with his back to the unconscious Matou Kariya, and said calmly: "The situation is not optimistic!"

"The flesh and blood in this person's body was completely eaten by a worm-like monster. About two-thirds of his spine was crushed. The nerves in the left half of his body were completely paralyzed. The vision in his left eye was completely gone, and the muscles around his eye were completely paralyzed..."

Halfway through his words, Lu Bu frowned and faced everyone's strange gazes, saying in surprise: "Why are you all looking at me like this? Haven't you heard that medicine and martial arts have been inseparable since ancient times? As a martial artist, I naturally understand medicine. Is this something to be surprised about?"

“…Of course not!”

Tong Shen shook his head, came back to his senses from the strange emotion just now, and said seriously: "Please continue."