Xinxin frowned, staring at the destruction in front of her.

Elio’s attack was meant to clear the way and reveal any forces that might be lying in wait in the forest. After all, if the goddess that sent them here had anything in planned, it was better to reveal any hidden cards before they stepped into enemy territory.

But an unexpected variable occurred. No, should it be called an expected complication?

The attack that should have been unrivalled against anyone but herself or her Sifu was stopped. Not completely, that much could be seen from the cinders that replaced the ancient trees.

But it was still stopped. And then, when the light died down and the darkness blocking it vanished…

“I see,” Xinxin muttered. “So this is her game.”

A familiar but foreign young man in dark clothing. Beside him, a woman with blonde hair and pointed ears. A woman who should have been on her side instead of that fake’s.

While a tinge of anger welled up in her heart at seeing the pair, a surprised voice echoed beside her.

“Dad?” Nero blinked, staring at the last person in the group that blocked the attack. He glanced over at his sister and said, “That’s… That’s Dad, right?”

Eve frowned, quietly examining the man with crimson eyes standing off to the side of the other two. “It… appears to be, Brother. But…” She mumbled, trailing off. “Why does he have the Heart of Darkness with him? Did he not say that he would never use it?”

So their father was with the fake as well… Realizing that, Xinxin began to understand.

This was a setup. A means to get rid of the major obstacles on both sides through mutual destruction.

That goddess… The one that Elio mentioned. It seemed that she wasn’t one for direct confrontation like Serena. Instead, she was throwing around these events like a puppetmaster instead of stepping upon the field herself.

“How cowardly.” Xinxin muttered.

Either way, it didn’t change what they had to do.

The only way back was to retrieve the Heart of Yggdrasil.

Even if there were enemies in their path that were placed their against their will and without knowledge of the greater events, it didn’t change the fact that they were still enemies.

The problem was in that fake. The one that was but a fragment of her Sifu.

She didn’t know how much was left behind, but she knew that he carried at least a portion of her Sifu’s powers. Because of that, she had to be cautious.

And then there was that blonde woman as well…

Narrowed emerald eyes stared across the open field, glaring at Xinxin.

Meeting that gaze, Xinxin felt it. A person that looked the same, but was different from the girl that her Sifu revived. Yet another ‘fake’.

Before Xinxin could do anything else, malevolent darkness and an oppressive aura flared in the distance. That man that Nero called his father.

“EMPEROR!” He roared and stepped forward, swinging his arm down. “What is the meaning of this?!”

Elio shrugged.

There was no way the Emperor had any actual intentions for having Nero and Eve with him considering that they were all dragged here against their wills. Even so, he put on an irritating smile and shrugged. “It is what it is, Demon Lord Krozma.”

Was that part of his plan?

The Demon Lord took the provocation and growled. “You…!” He roared and charged forward, darkness flooding from his chest and wrapping around his body. At once, the man began to morph, his body twisting into a demonic creature that was more monster than man. At the same time, pure malice radiated off of him.

Xinxin narrowed her eyes and exerted pressure, forcing the Demon Lord to the ground.

“Kuh!” Demon Lord Krozma staggered, the shadows wavering and revealing the man beneath it.

But before Xinxin could force him back to normal, an oppressive force pushed against her, trying to eject her entirely.

“Tch.” She clicked her tongue and then released the Demon Lord.

Immediately, the shadows spilled out again, turning the man back into a monster. But it seemed that Xinxin’s actions were enough of a shock as he stopped his charge, cautiously looking over instead.

Seeing that, Xinxin turned her attention to the last person, the one who had yet to act since the barrier fell.

The one who looked like her Sifu, the man that they called ‘Nazin’ the last time she was here…

He stared at her with a confused expression. As if he couldn’t understand why she was there. And at the same time… a hint of affection and nostalgia?

Xinxin narrowed her eyes.

Elio tilted his head slightly towards Xinxin, but kept his gaze forward. “That man and that woman.” He tilted his chin towards Nazin and Aria and said, “I presume those are the imposters I met in the capital?”

Xinxin nodded, forming a sword from qi in her right hand. “Fakes, the both of them.”

The shell left behind by her Sifu. A man that became a puppet not only for Serena, but now that Celeste that pulled strings from behind the shadows. A pawn.

And then there was that elven woman, the one whose identity was veiled even to her sight. A person only pretending to be the young elven princess that was saved be her Sifu in the past.

Then… Now that Xinxin was focused on the enemy forces, she could see ‘her’ too. In the distance, an elf with honey-colored hair and twin swords sheathed at her side. Titania, who gazed at Nazin with concern and affection. A Titania who was more naïve and less jaded.

A world that made no sense. One turned on its end.

Elio nodded and said, “In that case, I suppose you do not mind if I go all out, do you?”

Xinxin nodded, rotating her cultivation base and drawing out power.

Immediately, the world responded, suppressing her.

Half. That was the amount she could freely use. But… it would be enough.

Nero spoke up. “Miss Faith?”

Xinxin didn’t respond. Instead, she dashed forward, light gleaming around her sword as she charged towards the pair of fakes.

Elio dashed alongside her, breaking off towards the Demon Lord.

Then, from behind…

“Dammit, dammit!” Nero cursed and ran forward as well, drawing his sword. He turned back and said, “Eve! Stay-!”

Before he could finish his sentence, the beautiful young demon ran after him. “I will go with you, Brother.” She glanced at Demon Lord Krozma and said,  “After all… It appears that father is not in a proper state of mind.”

Seeing the Emperor and his children approach, Demon Lord Krozma let out a guttural roar. “TRAITORS! BASTARD!” With it, inky blackness spilled forth from his chest, wrapping around his limbs to form monstrous tendons and muscles to enhance his strength.

Nazin’s eyes widened at the sudden shift in battle.

Xinxin narrowed her eyes, preparing to cut the man down.

Not long after that-

“For the Emperor!” Roars erupted from behind as the Imperial Forces charged alongside the Braves.

“For Yggdrasil!” An elf with short white hair and a wooden crown called out, charging forward from within the forest alongside a platoon of elves.