Damned Healer-Chapter 666: Nothing Worked
The moment Darian saw the Celestial Shadow flee, he snorted. Then he took out a small artifact from that other universe he had passed through.
Alear felt the message reach her artifact. At the same time, Niara received it mentally; being in the same universe, Darian could talk to her normally, even across an absurd distance.
Niara smiled. "That bastard… I really wanted to see him run away with his tail between his legs."
She and Alear were fighting outside the galaxy's inscription, against endless hordes of powerful Risen, led by Risen Lords.
They didn't have the Celestial Shadow's strength to smash and destroy the barrier in minutes, but thanks to the celestial corruption slowly eating away at the defenses, if they kept attacking nonstop, they would drain the barrier's energy faster than it could recover. In just a few hours, they would deal enough damage to invade.
There were only three galaxies left, out of the dozens Darian had saved in the past. Still, everyone who lived in the others managed to return to these three in time and survive. Howlyn was a meticulous commander and had evacuation plans ready, which she taught to everyone.
Without delay, Niara raised her hand. In that instant, her entire existence pulsed and burst into a blinding glow.
The battlefield froze. It was as if a green sun had ignited in the middle of everything and kept expanding, covering all. In just seconds, everything was swallowed by that light.
*Resurgence of the Divine Dragon!*
Niara's shout tore through the void, transforming into a bestial roar that made the cosmos itself tremble.
The Risen froze. The light stabilized, and then they all found themselves trapped inside a draconic domain.
At the epicenter of it all, the Dragoness stood motionless. Behind her, however, space bent. A colossal shadow writhed, radiating a presence so overwhelming that reality itself seemed to beg for mercy.
When they stared at that silhouette, the enemies felt a piercing pain at the core of their very existence. That wasn't just a technique; it was a manifestation of the soul. The power, the will, and the gaze pouring out of that shadow were no illusion.
It was as if the Primordial Dragon itself had broken through the chains of time to look at them… and they had no idea how right they were.
"Disappear."
Niara said coldly.
The shadow of her past, manifested behind her, twisted and roared. Its jaws opened, and the world lost its color.
Everyone's eyes went wide.
It was a Dragon Breath!
**Wooooooosh!**
Far away from there, in another galaxy.
Alear beat her wings and made graceful movements with her hands. Countless Yin blades, each dozens of meters long, sliced through time and space, like she was inside a slaughterhouse.
Every few seconds, thousands died. With the Yin from their deaths, the number of blades multiplied, creating a cycle that was impossible to deal with.
Her original blessing had strict limits on the blades, both in quantity and in their maximum power. But in Alear's hands, those limits simply didn't exist.
The Risen Lords were the only ones who could withstand the blades. Even so, they found themselves surrounded, unable to retreat or attack Alear.
This young woman was now an experienced General. In the years she lived in the Primordial Empire, she commanded multiple battles against frenzied beasts. She won every single one and learned, through practice, all the teachings her adoptive fathers and mothers had passed down to her throughout her life.
She memorized everything, but knowing theory and living through practice were completely different things.
Now, she could handle an entire army on her own and still prevent the leaders from even dreaming of reacting. They could barely think, fighting only to avoid being brutally killed. And all of this without her even having started to practice her Manifestation.
Minutes later, Niara, who had finished everything on her side quickly, arrived at the galaxy where Alear was fighting. Only half a dozen Risen Lords were left alive, still resisting.
At that moment, Alear roared, and her body pulsed. The opening she had been building finally appeared.
All the enemies were gathered in a nearby region. Suddenly, all the Yin blades merged and began to spin, forming a gigantic tornado of blades.
That filled the enemies with overwhelming despair. But since they were close together, they exchanged quick looks and joined forces.
So, with their combined power, they managed to escape in the opposite direction as a single block… and it was at that exact moment that the Dragoness appeared on the other side of the group, with a malicious, bloodthirsty smile on her face.
Niara let out a soft laugh. That smile was very familiar to her. It was the smile of someone who had led their enemies into an abyss with no way back.
After everything ended, Niara turned around.
Coming from a very distant galaxy, Darian arrived, moving using only space; because of that, it took him some time.
When she looked at his face, Niara felt that something was deeply bothering him.
Alear also noticed something was wrong. Darian shot a quick glance at the two of them and nodded, entering the galaxy.
The one Alear had come to protect was the very first galaxy Darian had saved, exactly where the central Shadows of Heaven Academy was located.
The three of them went in, passing straight through the army of people and quickly reaching the planet Shadowheart.
The planet hadn't changed much, except for the fact that its population was now a hundred times larger. All the ancestral races Darian had brought to populate the universe had multiplied as much as possible to fulfill his request.
They crossed the Academy like a raging wind.
Darian didn't stop to breathe. His senses were locked onto a single point, a trembling flame that threatened to go out at any second. At the highest point of the tower, he flung the doors wide open.
The room was bathed in a soft light. Lying on the bed was a small black she-wolf.
Her body was marked with purple lines — scars from a past she refused to erase; memories that reminded her of her mission and of what defined her existence.
All her suffering and effort, throughout her entire life, had been placed on the day Darian would arrive. She never regretted it or lamented it; in fact, every time she met Darian, she had a smile on her face and joy for being alive.
She was breathing so faintly that her chest barely moved. The life energy that was once vast was now a silk thread about to snap.
Darian had never seen something so fragile still breathing.
But, hidden from everyone's perception, something far more serious was completely corroding her, little by little.
"Howlyn…" The name came out like a broken breath. Alear and Niara also sensed something terrifying.
As soon as Darian approached, the three of them saw the wolf tremble subtly. She twisted slightly, as if she wanted to see him one last time, but… she no longer had the strength.
All three felt that she was suffering an indescribable pain, even though her fluctuations were only those of someone close to dying from old age. That was definitely not just old age.
Darian analyzed her meticulously for several minutes. If the problem were only the death of the body, he could do the same as with Rhea, using the power of his curse to keep her in the world.
But… unfortunately, Darian's suspicions were correct. The problem was far, far worse than anyone could possibly imagine.
Darian acted as fast as he could.
Artifacts containing the three powers of life were pulled out in a frenzy. He began channeling vital essence, moving mountains of energy into her body with desperate delicacy.
Behind him, Niara and Alear watched in funeral silence.
They knew. That Abyssal Corrupted Wolf was the pillar of that universe; without her wisdom and work, Darian would never have reached his current level so quickly.
Seconds turned into minutes.
At that moment, Alear's eyes went wide. The realization hit her like a punch.
"The laws of the world…" she stammered, her voice failing as terror spread across Darian's face.
She didn't even need to finish. Darian already knew that cruel truth because of Alirio, but his mind refused to process it.
He stopped using life energies and began using his white power without restraint. Even so, desperation started to leak through Darian's expression. Cold sweat ran down his face, and his hands trembled. He poured in more and more power, but…
Nothing worked.
No matter how hard he tried, Howlyn seemed destined to disappear forever. Not even her soul would remain to be saved.
