Zatiel's plan was simple and highly effective. First, he took advantage of the explosion covering the group to possess a Divine Legend.
While he could have done this at any time, he chose to do it when Gilligan ambushed the group less than a kilometer away from Saint City, decreasing the amount of time he would be supplanting the Divine Legend.
He was the flash that pierced into the explosion of azure fire and possessed Orin, using his power to forcefully push the Divine Legend's cultivation to the Supernova Domain Stage.
From the beginning, his goal was to reach Limbo, so he needed to commit a sin grave enough that they would immediately arrest him, but not so great that they would kill him on the spot. Using a Demonic Path of Power was the best choice available.
Regarding Orin's partner's tragic death, that was his doing. When Zatiel detected the woman's feelings and read the Divine Legend's memories, he realized the woman could have seen past his facade.
That is why he broke Gilligan's azure beam and secretly used his Mind Force to send a portion to the woman, shattering her soul and killing her.
The woman's death also gave Zatiel an excuse to "overexert" himself, accumulating enough injuries so that he could pretend to fall unconscious the moment he entered Saint City, avoiding an initial interrogation.
Once inside Limbo, he rewrote the magic matrix and took control of it before forcing the prisoners to fight until only thirty-three of them were left.
That carnage had the goal of granting him enough life force, soul force, and blood to write the runes that transformed the prisoners into absolute killing machines.
As for the fact that none of the prisoners would survive more than thirty minutes once Zatiel activated the runes, it did not matter to him.
With all the pieces in place, Zatiel signaled Ezequiel and Roku to attack Saint City before releasing the thirty-three monsters.
Killing the Gods' Hero guarding Saint City was just a side mission. Zatiel would not have wasted his time going after him had the man been away from the Grand Castle.
The moment he was inside the Grand Castle, the first thing Zatiel did was to head at full speed toward the energy core located on the lowest level.
The energy core was the most secure location in the Grand Castle, so it would make sense that the King in Yellow would keep anything dangerous enough to threaten him there.
His instincts also guided him to that place, with a growing sense of urgency appearing in his mind.
There were still Legends inside different levels of the Grand Castle, but Zatiel did not care as they couldn't delay him for even a second.
Of course, that did not mean he completely ignored those Legends. He fired a wave of Mind Force whenever he reached a new level, killing everyone beneath the Primary Sun Domain Stage and stunning the rest.
The closer he got to the Grand Castle's energy core, the more powerful was the pull of his instincts to that place, urging him to move faster.
Zatiel began to frown as he got closer to the energy core. While trusting your instincts was extremely important, their exaggerated response made the Neo-Demon feel that something was wrong.
His instincts' response made sense if one considered that he was getting close to the threat gestating in that place, but he still felt odd.
The Neo-Demon stopped just as he was about to reach the level containing the energy core. He stood still for a few seconds before all the doubt in his eyes vanished.
Zatiel pushed forward as he fused with his Law Avatar, activated Doomsday Incarnation, and unleashed the All-Devouring Domain.
He prepared two years for this mission, creating trump cards that could allow him to get rid of anything they shot him inside the Transitional Plane.
Zatiel reached the final level, and in front of him appeared a massive gate. It was the last obstacle between him and the energy core.
It would take him several minutes to breach the defensive protocols without the access key and soul force of a Gods' Hero.
Zatiel had already spent ten minutes reaching this place and was unwilling to waste more time. After making his energy explode and coating his bone sword with Antimatter, he drove forward at full speed, generating incredible momentum.
"¡BOOM!"
A powerful explosion occurred in the Grand Castle's last level, unleashing a torrent of purple fire enhanced by Antimatter that rose through the floors killing everybody still alive.
The bone sword could have pierced a sun from one extreme to the other and even buried itself deep inside a Low World's Crystal Wall but failed to pulverize the gates in one go.
Zatiel's Eye of Life and Creation glowed as he used the power of the Life Origin Essence and burned some of his life force, making his energy explode once again.
"CRACK!"
Thanks to the increased destructive power, the bone sword managed to finally shatter the gates, allowing the Neo-Demon passage into the energy core.
Zatiel's pupils dilated as everything in the room entered his sight, and immediately a bad omen assaulted him. Other than the energy core, there was nothing else in this place, and if that wasn't enough, the pull of his instincts guiding him here suddenly vanished.
Without hesitation, the Neo-Demon triggered a blue ring in his hand, making the power of Space Origin Essence embrace him.
"Too late."
An ancient voice echoed through the room, and Zatiel saw how countless red threads emerged from his body and vanished into the distance.
Some of these threads were so small that he could barely see them even with his eyesight, while others were thick enough that even a mortal could notice them from a distance.
Zatiel frowned as he had no idea what these threads were and their use.
The ring in his hand finally shattered, and the power of Space Origin Essence attempted to bring him out of the Grand Castle.
Unfortunately for the Neo-Demon, the force that should overcome even the power of a Rank 7 spell could not defeat the red threads.
Zatiel's eyes widened as the red threads kept him here, completely ignoring the power of the Space Origin Essence. He could move his body but was bound to the room.
Although there was a great shock in his heart, Zatiel did not let his emotions get out of control and calmed his heart before focusing on the place where that taunting voice came from.
"So calm despite facing a force that you know nothing about. Of all the people I have fought in the billions of years of my life, you are indeed the one I like the most. Crushing your existence and devouring your destiny will be a transcendental experience."
An older man with a plump body walked out from the shadows. There was a kind smile full of love on his face, but Zatiel could see how tentacles moved beneath his skin.
Zatiel had read the memories of many Divine Legends and knew who this older man was, the Overgod's Supreme Pontiff. Still, he knew that was just a disguise, and his true identity was different.
"King in Yellow."
