Damned Healer-Chapter 535: Extra Power

Darian looked around and felt something strange. The Tribe’s gratitude toward him seemed impossible to express in words.

He took a deep breath. Maybe Thulon was more important to the Golems than he had imagined. In the next second, he received confirmation.

Even Gaddol approached Darian respectfully and apologized, bowing with genuine regret. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Even though he was close-minded and intolerant, Golems had a nature inclined toward peace. They were born from the earth and from nature, so even with strong personalities, once they understood their place, they wouldn’t cause trouble.

Besides, he was still a member of the Tribe. The Tribe’s glory was his own glory. Maybe, in the future, he would become a capable subordinate of Thulon.

After that, the Tribe began celebrating.

Darian sighed, feeling that everything was safe now. Then he waved, and Awel, Eleri, and Tir came out, using metamorphosis.

"Party! Party!" Eleri smiled and ran excitedly toward the Golems, with Tir running after her.

They had never seen Golems in their lives, and ever since the day they were reborn, Darian never stopped showing them new things. Even though they weren’t as free as before, they didn’t mind and preferred to stay by his side all the time like this.

Inside the inventory in Darian’s soul, when they were stored, the entrance remained open, and they could see everything around them without difficulty, as well as communicate with him. So everything he did and experienced was being seen by them.

Awel stopped beside Darian, smiling slightly as he watched the other two interacting with the Golems in the distance.

The opposite was also true: on that planet, there were no Heavenly Elemental Spirits. And somehow, the Golems didn’t feel any discomfort when Eleri approached.

***

The next day, Thulon woke up.

He looked refreshed and radiant, without the fragile, weakened appearance he had before. Even his gaze had become sharper and carried a faint glow of power.

When Thulon came out, a tall woman who looked around thirty also appeared. She was the one Thulon called Aunt Thulina and considered a mother.

She had already used the Star-lotus to heal the wound in her mental sea, and so had awakened from her semi-conscious state. When Thulina found out Thulon had risked his life to ease her pain, she was pleased and furious at the same time. First, she scolded him harshly, then softened.

The two went out together to show their gratitude. When they found Darian outside, she saw him surrounded by dozens of young Golems. A little girl with a human appearance and blue clothes was running between the Golems, playing excitedly with them.

Those youngsters were from the same generation as Thulon, but extremely weak.

Darian asked about that and learned a bit. Not all Golems had the talent to improve their power through this universe’s Celestial realms. In fact, only 10% of them reached the fifth Celestial realm.

That happened because transforming part of their body into flesh and bone was a requirement for them. Golems who didn’t make that transformation and kept their natural bodies needed to sleep for hundreds of years just to become a little stronger.

On that planet, where invaders appeared every three hundred years to hunt them, they would be easily found underground and killed without being able to react.

According to the Golems, in the distant past, only around 1% of them chose to have a body half flesh and bone — that was the race’s average talent for rising like other races. The rest, if they could, would keep their natural bodies and live their lives sleeping, as a Golem likes to do.

That’s why, even without talent, having a body half flesh and bone still allowed them to obtain the minimum strength more quickly. Even being weak, when united, they could be useful to protect the race, unlike what happened when maintaining their original form.

Thulina and Thulon approached Darian. She watched Eleri playing, then shifted her gaze to Tir and Awel, feeling something strange.

Darian nodded, also already understanding that point.

The Golems of that planet were born from nature and also received the Golem God’s blessing, which granted them a connection with the world’s laws. Those three exuded the same connection, giving the Golems a sense of familiarity, as if they were of the same race. That’s why Eleri and the others fit in so well with them.

"Sir Darian, I don’t know how to thank you for saving this immature boy," Thulina said with an emotional voice.

Darian replied softly, "You’re very kind. All of this was thanks to Thulon. I only gave a hand at the right moment. He’s the one who has grown and now knows how to make decisions and take responsibility for them."

"That’s right, Aunt Thulina. Big brother Darian said I’m an adult, so you don’t need to scold me anymore," Thulon said with a slight smile.

She snorted, but seeing the completely different look in that young man she had cared for all his life, she felt the time had really come.

"Master, Master, I have an idea!" Awel murmured, tugging on Darian’s sleeve.

He turned to her and nodded. That girl had already become a second brain for him, helping him think and notice things he didn’t see.

"Eleri, make a bit of that," Awel said quickly, then looked at Tir. "Tir, you still haven’t shown the Master, right? I think now it might be useful."

Darian grew curious. At that moment, Eleri ran in front of him.

She brought her hands together like an open bowl and took a deep breath. A blue rune appeared on her forehead, pulsing intensely.

Quickly, her hands filled with a bluish, glowing liquid. The air around them changed immediately, as if that thing released a pure sacred power.

Darian narrowed his eyes. "It’s way denser than before..." Eleri could always create that, but before, it didn’t reach even one percent of the current level.

Awel replied, "Yeah, now that we’ve gotten used to this new body, we’re learning to use the extra power we got. Actually, we haven’t even explored ten percent of the maximum capacity. Tir also learned something new... as for me... sorry, Master, I’m the slowest and barely changed at all."

She lowered her head, so Darian gently patted her hair, comforting her. Awel wasn’t the type who liked to fight, but to study and observe everything around her. That’s why she was slower in these areas, even though she helped Darian in many other things.

"Show me what you have in mind."

Awel nodded and turned to a young Golem. "Little Guiza, can you try it? The Master will heal anything if it goes wrong."

The Golem nodded without any fear; to them, it was as if the three were part of their own race. She approached Eleri and gently touched that sacred water with the finger of her rock-made hand.

The liquid moved and was absorbed by the Golem in just a few seconds. Then...

"!"

A bluish light pulsed through the Golem’s entire body. Everyone widened their eyes, feeling a pure vital energy flowing inside her. Less than a minute later, everything faded.

Thulina ran to the young Golem and examined her, stunned. She swallowed dry and murmured with a trembling voice:

"The body... the impurities were almost all removed... and also her earth-heart, it’s bigger and can absorb more energy... how is this even possible?"

Darian took a deep breath. The effects of Eleri’s sacred water before were only truly effective on the Heavenly Elemental Spirits, helping them heal faster.

Now, with the improvement she had reached... those Golems, who had a connection with nature and with the world’s laws similar to the Heavenly Elemental Spirits, could absorb it directly and gain a lot too.

"As far as I know, to rise through the Celestial realms, you need to remove the body’s impurities. And also absorb Qi in your earth-hearts to improve them and store more energy," Darian murmured seriously. "So..."

"Yes," Thulina replied, stunned. "Guiza, can you try?"

The young Golem nodded, confused. Then she took a deep breath and focused.

Darian felt an energy coming from the heavens move toward her. That was Qi, which existed in good abundance in that universe.

She absorbed a bit and...

*CRACK*

A muffled sound echoed from inside the Golem.

"Sixth... Celestial realm..." Thulina confirmed, completely shocked.

Darian breathed. Eleri could create as much of that water as needed, as long as she received living food to devour.

"Tir, show yours too," Awel said with a radiant smile.

The boy sighed and stepped forward. He crouched and touched the ground gently. A yellow rune pulsed on his forehead.

Suddenly...

The soil within a ten-meter radius began to shine. Then... all the ground turned dark, very dark. At the same time, a vital energy flowed from that soil as if it were something alive.

Everyone was startled. Darian, out of curiosity. The Golems...

They trembled from head to toe, scaring Darian a little.

He looked at Thulina, confused. She stuttered, "T-that... t-that looks like the life soil... w-where all of us are born!"

Darian grew serious, while Awel smiled and gave a thumbs-up to Tir, something she had learned on Earth.

"In the Golem God’s Temple, when the life tribulation ends, all the soil in the vast region becomes like this..." Thulina continued, still with a trembling voice. "Then, within a year, the life-soil gets consumed, and new siblings are born."

Darian nodded, because he already knew that. After the event, for one year, the planet’s protection stayed fragile, and the invaders could remain for some time... but during that period, they dug through the temple’s soil, looking for the newly formed earth-hearts. Because of that, the Golems always had to fight to save as many as possible.

Normally, over ninety percent of the earth-hearts were taken in that battle. Aurix knew this but didn’t stop it, because it made the Golems fight and grow stronger. And also because, in that initial state, there were no souls inside yet, so they couldn’t be considered lifeforms. But... that obviously prevented them from forming afterward, being practically half a murder.

Darian turned to Eleri and Tir, excited about those new discoveries. "Do you two have a lot stored?"

They both nodded. Since they were reborn, Darian had fed them well, and they had accumulated a lot of energy.

Darian felt delighted. He had six days until the event; in that time, he could do many things...

"!"

Suddenly, a commotion exploded inside the tribe, drawing a lot of attention.

Darian turned and saw the leader running toward him.

"Sir Darian! The Ember Vein Tribe! They’re being invaded and slaughtered by the invaders!"

All the Golems widened their eyes. As for Darian, he felt a fury erupting inside his chest.