Damned Healer-Chapter 686: Bad News

The two demons unleashed all the immortal power they could at once. At the same time, the skeletons of the two phoenixes moved.

Clearly, those skeletons had been refined and connected to the two demons through the Bloodline in their bodies. It was as if they were their personal weapons, and their power could, in fact, destroy heaven and earth.

Everyone in the army changed expression. Two "weapons" at that level, wielded by two immortals, while everyone there had at most nine rings, was something completely impossible to deal with. But...

None of them panicked. They quickly stopped advancing and focused their gazes on Darian.

"Get the hell out of here!" the red demon roared. His gaze was as sharp as an eagle’s as he stared at Darian.

"What? Run away? Why would I do that?" Darian replied calmly, a faint smile on his face.

"You’re being very kind by delivering these gifts to me. To show my goodwill... if the two of you kill yourselves right now, I’ll consider letting your souls reincarnate peacefully and let the Laws of the world deal with you."

Niara let out a light laugh. In truth, she felt like Darian was practically drooling as he stared at those two skeletons. He looked like a starving wolf staring at fresh meat.

Hearing that, the two demons narrowed their eyes, filled with hatred. They truly wanted Darian to flee, so they wouldn’t have to deal with him and risk damaging those skeletons.

All the elves and beasts in the army tightened their grip on their weapons, ready to fight at any moment. If Darian was calm and confident, they were certain he could handle anything.

The blue demon spoke coldly, "What a bad joke. You’re confident enough to be arrogant, but without your four Spiritual Sovereign allies, all of you will be wiped out. Now that you’ve come alone, I can guarantee that your reinforcements won’t even be able to enter the planet; the entire immortal inscription will activate the moment they enter the galaxy and block them."

The two took a deep breath, and the skeletons trembled.

"Well... I really hoped you’d refuse my generous offer. Great, then let’s settle our problems from the past once and for all."

Darian spoke calmly. Then, the dagger in his hand pulsed with a fluorescent yellow light.

"You think you’re invincible? Hahaha... you don’t even know your own power!" the red demon roared with disdain, trying to hide his anger and fear.

No one was crazy enough to underestimate Darian. He had already killed immortals more than once and had reduced the three Spiritual Sovereigns, considered invincible, to a miserable state. All of that... while he still only had seven rings.

But... they couldn’t retreat now.

The world changed color. Without hesitation, the two skeletons charged forward with everything they had.

The entire planet trembled. The power coming from those skeletons, used together with the immortal power of the two demons, was absolutely terrifying.

Even the Spiritual Sovereigns couldn’t afford to underestimate these two when they fought at full power. It was precisely because of their Bloodlines and this ability to manipulate the skeletons that Caliris protected them and helped them in the past. If they could grow, in the future, they could rival the most powerful Spiritual Sovereigns. Unfortunately for them, they picked a fight with the wrong person, and that sealed their fates.

*Rumble!*

The two skeletons moved their claws, which descended upon Darian, splitting the world between flames and ice.

But...

At the moment, they were about to hit him...

The space in front of him distorted, forming a gigantic black hole.

"Get in here!"

A female voice echoed from within that place.

At that instant, the Spiritual Inventory commanded by Ailik manifested in the world, like a doorway to another dimension.

The two skeletons fell straight toward the entrance.

The moment Ailik used his power, those two skeletons went from tigers to rabbits. That was because the power of the Nether could cut off the connection with the demons.

The ’black hole’ began to suck in the skeletons.

The demons were absolutely shocked. Fortunately, the skeletons were enormous. When half of them had already been pulled inside, they reacted with everything they had.

"Come back!" The panic in their voices was obvious.

The demons roared, and their immortal power embedded in the skeletons reacted. The connection they had was lost, but the power infused within them was still theirs. Their control wasn’t even 10% of what it had been before, but it was still enough to try to resist.

The immortal power was fully released. As a result, countless cracks appeared in the air, as if the world were about to shatter.

The demons also advanced, grabbing the bones and pulling with all the strength they had.

At that moment, both of them felt a cold sweat run down their spines.

They immediately turned, seeing a Dragoness attacking.

"Fuck!" The red demon released the skeleton and rushed forward to block her.

The blue demon moved his power, gripping the other skeleton as well.

*BOOM!*

With a violent crash, the red demon took a light punch and widened his eyes. He was forced to retreat and almost spat out blood.

"THEY ORDERED US TO GO ALL OUT!"

The blue demon roared, sending out those orders. At the same instant, the immortal inscription behind him rippled. Suddenly, several spatial rings emerged from within, shooting out like lightning.

The Alvs seemed to immediately understand what it was. They grabbed the spatial rings and took out black pills from inside. The altar guardians and those at the center of everything didn’t hesitate and swallowed them instantly.

Darian felt the aura of the pills and was surprised. That could only have come from some strange universe, made with an absurdly rare and unique material. In other words, those pills were one of the Alvs’ most powerful single-use trump cards, something the Spiritual Sovereigns preferred not to use unless it was a last resort.

In one second, everything suddenly changed.

Black auras surged into the skies. The power of more than a thousand Alvs multiplied several times over in an instant. Almost at the same time, they charged at Niara, Darian, and the army.

Everyone was shocked. Now, they possessed power similar to that of an immortal. That pill was truly absurd.

"Sea Emperor Barrier!"

Barod roared, and everyone of his race suddenly released everything they had.

That was one of the Magic Techniques Darian had obtained elsewhere, and the Zroot had managed to adapt it and learn how to use it together.

A colossal bluish barrier appeared, protecting the elves from the enemies.

*CLANG!!*

The Alvs, shrouded in darkness and power, struck the barrier with their weapons. It trembled, but it didn’t shatter right away.

However, as they kept attacking, cracks began to appear across its surface.

Meanwhile, Niara stood in front of Darian and, by herself, blocked more than two hundred terrifying Alvs.

They smiled sinisterly. Now, they were almost as strong as immortals. That state wouldn’t last long, and the cost would be nothing less than their own lives. Even so, they would make sure these idiots died in the worst possible way.

*Divine Dragon Possession*

Niara activated her Bloodline and armor. The darkness changed completely, purified by the draconic radiance of that beautiful Dragoness.

"Disappear," Niara spat, then threw a punch.

Space-time twisted and violently exploded.

Everyone was forced to retreat in fear, feeling as if their bodies were about to split apart. That was just a single move! How the hell was this Dragoness so powerful?!

Darian remained calmly standing still, watching the blue demon try to pull the skeletons of the two Phoenixes out. Obviously, he wasn’t succeeding, and the two skeletons kept being dragged in, centimeter by centimeter, slowly.

Darian could pull everything inside if he wanted. Or he could let Niara go all out and cause a true bloodbath. But... instinctively, he felt it was better to wait.

The Spiritual Sovereigns had something secret and powerful hidden inside those altars, something they were sure could deal with Darian. On top of that, they had those pills and possibly other hidden cards.

If he wanted to defeat them completely, he first needed to understand the full extent of their power. That way, he could guarantee a total victory.

Now, with their bodies still not fully prepared and without a real desire to fight, this was the perfect moment for Darian to force them to reveal all their cards.

Even if, inside that altar, a figure truly appeared that Darian couldn’t handle, he intended to face it. Someone at the level of traveling between universes couldn’t be summoned whenever the Spiritual Sovereigns wanted. Darian was sure the enemies could only summon it once; otherwise, it would be a massive interference with the laws of the world.

Darian didn’t care about pride. He could simply gather the entire army and retreat safely to Niara’s universe. The lives of his people wouldn’t be lost. That way, in the future, the enemies would no longer have that card to play.

Of course, there was the option of attacking with everything to try to destroy the altars and the central inscription. But the three enemies were watching everything, and they would only flee or attack if they felt they could gain something.

What good would it do to destroy the altars now? The three could simply create them again and summon that figure later. Because of that, it was better to let them use it now.

The three Spiritual Sovereigns didn’t intend to defeat him; they only wanted to buy time. Even while still weak, doing that using their resources wasn’t impossible. Unfortunately for Darian, he wasn’t strong enough to solve everything at once. His greatest weakness was his lack of time. He still had seven rings, but he couldn’t stay still to grow stronger, always moving from one major problem to another, even bigger ones.

The power of the Origin could overcome anything. But if Darian used it to destroy everything, Niara and the others could be put in danger afterward. That was why he didn’t release his full strength and was using only the bare minimum to force them to reveal everything.

"KILL!"

The Alvs roared and continued attacking. Their immense power made the ground tremble. All the city’s buildings collapsed, turning everything into scorched earth.

The red demon also joined the Alvs to attack Niara. But... she seemed like she was just warming up; with only a few attacks, everyone was miserably forced back.

"Ignore me! Stop those girls!" the blue demon shouted.

At that moment, the Alvs snapped out of their stupor and turned toward the distant altar. Awel and Eleri had already reached the location.

The bone whip struck the altar, and a thunderous explosion erupted.

Since several had already been destroyed, the defensive power of the inscription shifted, focusing there. Because of that, cracks appeared on the totem, but it managed to hold.

Awel’s offensive power was much lower than Eleri’s, so she joined her sister to help with mobility, without attacking directly.

The moment Eleri prepared for a second attack, hundreds of Alvs rushed toward them, their bodies pulsing with an imminent explosion.

It was a detonation like before. But now... their power was hundreds of times greater because of the pill.

’Fall back.’ Darian’s voice echoed in both their minds. ’That’s an order. I don’t want to see either of you hurt. Fuck that totem.’

They bit their lips, frustrated. If they stayed there, they would likely be seriously injured, and even then, they weren’t sure they could destroy the totem.

Awel grabbed Eleri’s hand. Then, the feathers on her dress glowed, making the two of them disappear.

**BOOM!**

The Alvs couldn’t retreat after starting the detonation. The destructive wave from the explosions swept across the entire battlefield.

Many Alvs with weaker defenses were gravely injured. The elves, on the other hand, were perfectly protected by the beasts.

That once-exuberant city, known as the greatest in the universe... had now turned into a sea of blood.

Minutes passed, with the Alvs fighting with everything they had, overflowing with power.

Niara was still in the skies, her arms crossed over her chest, coldly staring at the blood-soaked enemies on the ground. She was like an invincible Goddess of War, terrifying everyone. No matter how much they tried, she swatted them away like flies.

Meanwhile, Darian stared at the blue demon without any emotion. The skeletons of the two Phoenixes were already 95% inside the inventory.

The Zroot’s defensive barrier had already shattered, but those beasts still held formation, protecting the archers, even while covered in blood and one step from the end.

Darian was proud. Even with only nine rings, all of them kept fighting and stayed alive without major issues. The main reason was that the Alvs’ power came from an external source, something they didn’t know how to use properly.

Now, the army couldn’t destroy the final totems. Technically, that would be a defeat. But the power of the pills within the Alvs was starting to wane. In other words, they just needed to stay alive, and soon the game would turn.

The "bad news" was that the altar totem was growing brighter and brighter. A formidable aura began to emanate from it. It was as if some dreadful creature was about to arrive.

Until...

The red demon suddenly stopped as it sensed something, then began to laugh excitedly. "Hahaha, now everyone can die!"

**BUZZ**

The sea of blood on the ground suddenly converged toward one altar. It instantly turned red from all that blood.

Everyone’s hearts trembled. They immediately looked toward the altar.

At that moment, the totem absorbing all that fresh blood exploded. A gigantic blood-colored portal appeared above the altar.

With the portal open, a massive figure emerged.

It was a male humanoid figure over two meters tall. Neither skinny nor muscular. It had dark skin, short black hair, and blue eyes like the sea. But clearly, that wasn’t its true body.

Everyone froze. The entire universe seemed to freeze with its arrival.

Suddenly, a deathly silence took over the place.

Darian remembered feeling something similar when Remira had unleashed all her power in the past.

"Immortal Celestial Lord!" the Alvs shouted in euphoria.

At the sight of that formidable figure, everyone in Darian’s army felt as if they had fallen into an iceberg. An intense cold ran through their bodies, from head to toe.