Start in Terra, immortal

Arad, the Celestial Realm, the palace of Tyrant King Bakal.

After listening to his dragon-man subordinates' report on recent events in Arad, Bakal, the ruler of the Celestial Realm, fell into deep thought.

"That Xilin who's recently risen to fame in Arad, and the one accompanied by him... is that... the Holy Vanguard—Zhao Xin?"

Bakalmo stroked the back of his scaly hand, his thoughts drifting back to many years ago.

The figure appeared silently inside his palace and, with overwhelming power, kept the item in his hands.

"Golden armor, long braid like a blade; possessing great strength yet with a compassionate heart; spear piercing the sky, invincible in all directions."

Looking across the entire Arad, he's the only one who fits this description.

Even now, he still feels that he cannot match Kahn, let alone Zhao Xin and Rosso, who put even more pressure on him than Kahn.

He looked down at the pale golden, faintly visible magic circle on the back of his hand. Although the magic circle was usually dormant, Bakal could sense that it was constantly and slowly absorbing the free-floating energy of the celestial realm, maintaining its own activity, like a sleeping coordinate.

"An escape route..." Bakal muttered to himself, a complex light flickering in his dragon eyes.

"Let me act according to my own will, even if the price is my death, as long as Hilder doesn't succeed. Now, Zhao Xin is so active in Arad, first eliminating the imposters, then nurturing that kid named Xilin, yet he hasn't touched the elite troops I sent out. Is this also His will behind it?"

He stood up, walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window, and looked down at the Celestial Continent, which was shrouded in his magical ban and was thriving in technology.

"Hilder wants me to be a testing ground to hone my 'sharp edge,' to give birth to a 'hero' capable of fighting against the apostles from my despair."

Bakal's lips curled into a sneer, revealing sharp teeth. "She thought everything was going according to plan. But she probably didn't expect that I, this 'testing stone,' had already been marked by another hand."

Zhao Xin's appearance, and his power system, which is different from that of Arad and originates from the magic circle on the back of his hand, made Bakal sense something unusual.

"Lord Rosso didn't intervene directly, but instead went through Zhao Xin. Is he intervening in Arad's fate in a gentler, more covert way?"

Bakal pondered, "Purge the imposters and weaken Ozma's chaotic power; this in itself is destroying the 'nutrients' for Hilder's 'Dark Holy War' aspect of her plan. Is nurturing that Sirin a way of sowing new seeds?"

He recalled Rosso's words from years ago: "Sharpening the blade is no problem. What I want is a blade with great strength and its own will," and that profound statement: "This universe still needs you."

"Need...us?" Bakal's dragon eyes narrowed slightly. Could it be that that person's goal wasn't simply to sabotage Hilder's plans, but rather that there was a massive crisis, so great that that person had to unite all available forces to fight against it?

The thought made Bakal's heart race slightly. As an apostle, he naturally had no fear of sacrificing his life to disrupt Hilder's plans. But what if Rosso could offer another possibility…

Perhaps it's the magic circle on the back of his hand. Maybe it's not just an escape route, but also a "passage"? An entrance that, at a crucial moment, can transfer his power and his soul to another place.

He turned and summoned the dragon-man guards who were waiting for him, ordering, "Strengthen surveillance of the Arad continent, especially the movements of 'Holy Blade' Zhao Xin and his followers. But do not make contact, and do not show hostility. Simply observe, record, and report to me regularly."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The dragon guards acknowledged the order and withdrew.

Bakal sat back on his throne, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the armrest.

"Zhao Xin... Xilin..." he murmured, "What kind of game are you playing? And what role should I, Bakal, play in this game?"

Is he going to continue playing the role of Hilder's "villainous trial officer," only to have his heart pierced by a "blade" one day in the future, and then travel to another world through a magic circle?

Or... could we be more proactive and fight for a more significant position in Rosso's game?

He looked at the gloomy sky outside the palace, the effect of the magical severing order he had placed. He had cut off the connection between the Celestial Realm and the Demon Realm, as well as Arad, delaying Hilder's plans, but also limiting the Celestial Realm's own development.

"It's time to make some changes." A resolute glint flashed in Bakal's eyes.

While he didn't fully trust Rosso, he hated Herder even more. He had to choose between the two. And it seemed that Rosso had at least given him a "choice" and a visible "way out."

He decided that while continuing to carry out his plan to fight Herder, he would begin to consciously observe and assess the movements of Zhao Xin and the forces that the being he represented.

If the time is right, he doesn't mind providing some "favors" in secret and engaging in some limited "cooperation" without revealing himself.

After all, the enemy of my enemy may become a temporary ally. And a "future" planned by a being powerful enough to rival Kahn is certainly more worth looking forward to than Hilder's "prophecy" that would require all the apostles to perish.

"After all these years, you still haven't changed your tastes!"

A voice suddenly rang out in the palace, where the guards had retreated and silence had returned.

"Who?" Bakal suddenly sprang up, his aura so powerful that the wind he stirred up lifted the fabric decorations in the hall high into the air.

"See, you're in a hurry again." Rosso swirled the wine glass in his hand, and with a gentle wave of his other hand, the gust of wind instantly subsided.

"Who? — It's you?" Upon seeing who it was, Bakal's imposing aura faltered, like a deflated balloon. "What do you want from me?"

"Look at what you're saying! Can't I come to see you for no reason?" Rosso laughed angrily. "No wonder you were chosen by Hilder to be the first sacrifice. With your personality, if I were Hilder, I'd be the first to deal with you!"

"All these years, apart from our first meeting, you've never come to see me. Forgive my bluntness, but your words are not very convincing." Undeterred by Rosso's power, Bakal remained unyielding in his words.

"I don't even know your name. I only know about your subordinate, the famous Zhao Xin who is renowned throughout Arad, from the dragonmen under your command."

"Since you've given me a way out, at least tell me your name, so I know whose chessboard I'm ultimately on, right?"