Downright Madness*

For the first few seconds, time seemed to halt. All sounds ceased to exist as though the earth itself was holding its breath. The angels' eyes widened in shock and astonishment, still unable to process the sudden turn of events. 

W–What's going on? Kalliēl, the great seraphim, descended… in mortal form?!

Atop the altar, Rui Ye, too, abruptly stopped his struggle. He lay motionless like a corpse, and it was only his faintly beating heart that betrayed the feeble breath still clinging to his body. His torn lips struggled to open, trembling as he whispered in a voice thick with disbelief, "X–Xiao Bai…?" 

Alas, that little hint of vulnerability vanished in the next instant as though it was nothing but an illusion, and his hatred seemed to have found a definite target, directed right at Kalliēl.

"What? Are you here to force me too?" he spat out, each word dripping with vitriol. "Hypocrite!" 

An indescribable sadness struck the depths of Kalliēl's soul.