Damned Healer-Chapter 135: Won Or Died

Niara and Darian moved through the academy, heading straight for the Library. When they got there, she showed her emblem to the Elder. He verified it and asked if she wanted to access C- or D-level martial arts.

"I want B-level," she said quickly.

The Elder stared at her coldly, but she stared right back without blinking. He snorted, shaking his head. Foolish kids popped up now and then, and he’d seen this kind of thing before.

"Just giving you a heads-up: there have been cases of Summoners dying on the test for these martial arts. The Spiritual Guardian doesn’t help much—95% of the test is on the Summoner who’ll use it. So your blessing or anything else is basically useless. You get that, right?"

Darian nodded, not bothered.

"I want to try the Divine Aura of Life Art," Niara said, eyes glowing.

That Dragon-blooded Elder nodded, understanding her reasons. He snorted and moved to a part of the library where a teleport inscription glowed.

"You’ll be sent to the central area—exactly where the test is. You get one shot. If you survive but fail, you’ll be brought straight back." The Elder activated the inscriptions.

*Vupt!*

The pair was whisked away to an extremely secure part of the academy. They found themselves in the middle of a forest. Niara looked around, searching.

Suddenly, to the south, the trees in her view started growing taller and taller, until she saw a stone mountain rising above the clouds.

From afar, clouds circled the mountain’s waist. It gave off a sense of grandeur and weight. Just looking at it felt like danger was looming.

At the base of the mountain were enormous stone steps, each one several meters tall. They looked like stairs for giants, winding up the mountain to the peak.

They approached the start of the staircase, stopping to look at the path that led beyond the clouds.

"This is the Stairway of Life. The test left by Lord Huelong to obtain the B-level martial art, Divine Aura of Life," Niara explained casually.

"Huelong was a survivor from Divine Dragon Academy. He managed to retreat and saved this martial art for future generations. He was the last Dragon-blooded Mannaz who had a partner with seven rings. Unfortunately, he died a few years later defending this very galaxy we live in now."

Darian nodded. In the old days, there were A- and S-level martial arts, but all were lost. Only a handful of B-level ones survived, by some miracle.

Niara clenched her fists and explained her choice.

The D-level art she’d picked before also came from Huelong. He left a set of martial arts, and if a Dragon-blooded Mannaz learned them all, their powers multiplied.

It was a five-tier set, from D up to S. Of course, the ones above B were lost, but mastering the three lower tiers was already amazing.

The D-level arts were Divine Fist Art and Divine Breath Art. They were simple, attack-focused martial arts. Dragon-blooded folks with great physical potential would choose the same one Niara did; the ones more talented at magic and not keen on direct combat preferred the other.

Since D-levels had no Bloodline restrictions—any Mannaz could learn them because they were so simple—their power was naturally limited.

The C-level art was called Divine Body Art. As the name suggests, it boosted the user’s defensive abilities. For Niara, the benefits were minimal, but for other Dragon-blooded, it was incredibly valuable.

The B-level one was what they were here for: Divine Aura of Life Art. It created an aura, using one of the user’s three life energies as fuel. It was a double-edged sword—sacrificing one of those energies to create an aura extremely effective against Risen corruption and miasma.

For anyone, those three life energies couldn’t be spent lightly. Every bit lost shortened one’s lifespan. That’s why this martial art had never been used since it was left behind. It could only be used in dire emergencies, and the consequences were severe.

Back in the day, only Dragon-blooded used it. Their Bloodline was known for having a much larger life force—they lived ten times longer than others. For them, burning life energy to a certain limit wasn’t a huge problem.

Of course, for most people in this universe, it was a real issue. Darian, for instance, had pills that could even restore those energies.

He listened and remembered when he’d resurrected Niara. She’d been completely depleted, but her Bloodline restored her fully.

Her mutation was special, and after being nurtured for a century, she had that ability. For her, this martial art was perfect—no side effects.

’Hmm... maybe this combos well with White Dragon Armor... at the very least, it’ll help you use it better,’ Darian murmured, and she nodded.

Niara took a deep breath and lifted her leg to start climbing.

The moment her foot hit the first step, countless runes lit up all along the staircase. It was like a beacon leading straight to the heavens.

At that moment, Niara felt an invisible force pressing down on her and pressed her lips together. Darian, on her shoulder, didn’t feel a thing. This was a test just for the Summoner—he could only lend her the ring’s power and stay by her side.

Niara took big, steady steps, climbing the stairs one by one. As expected, the pressure kept ramping up the higher she went.

Still, it wasn’t a problem for her, and she maintained a steady pace. It was only after she’d climbed a tenth of the way that she really started to feel it.

By three-tenths up, she could sense an invisible energy squeezing her soul, mind, and body.

Her will wavered. But then... she felt that little figure on her shoulder. She looked at him and saw his worried eyes.

She took a deep breath and calmed herself.

Then she gave him a quick nod and a small smile. She’d escaped tons of dangerous situations before knowing him. Now that she had a partner who could back her up, was she really going to rely on him for everything?

Her focus sharpened. No one— not even the heavens—was going to break her will.

When she hit four-tenths of the climb, the space around her twisted. A massive force pressed her down like she was carrying a mountain on her back.

The pressure jumped more than tenfold. She scoffed. Scales coated her body, her Bloodline firing at full power.

She was determined. She wouldn’t use his power. She wouldn’t ask for help. She wanted to climb this alone.

Biting her lip, she placed each foot on the next step as slowly as possible, treating every move like a victory.

The higher she got, the more the pressure increased—but her physical body still wasn’t threatened. She only felt pain, while her mind and everything around her spun, trying to make her stop climbing.

At one point, it started messing with her memories—making her recall the worst moments, even if she didn’t want to think about them.

Halfway up, the pressure exploded again. This time she tried to keep moving, but her legs froze.

"I’m here. Breathe," Darian murmured.

She parted her lips, panting. "No... I’ll climb... on my own..."

Her mind was a whirlwind, but she couldn’t allow herself to accept help. Ever since he’d returned, she’d sensed he was hiding something—silently judging her.

From the start, her partner had proven to be more than she ever imagined. Now that he was back, he was ten times stronger than before. And she? She had to prove she wouldn’t be a burden and could keep up.

"All right. I believe you," his calm voice sounded at her side. "But focus your mind only on me. You’re letting those bad memories bubble up—and that’s holding you back. Think only of the present... no, think of the days since I arrived. Forget the past."

She inhaled deeply and nodded.

He felt her focus shift.

"!"

Darian’s eyes widened as he saw a faint violet aura circling around her.

Immediately, her feet started climbing again.

When she hit six-tenths, Niara felt a violent, ripping force. It was like invisible hands were trying to tear her to pieces.

But this time, she didn’t care.

Darian, on the other hand, was thrilled. He felt it clearly: that immense mental power he’d sealed inside her was reacting—and supporting her.

She had actually managed to use it all on her own...

...

’Wait?!’

Darian’s eyes shot open—only now did he realize. This martial art consumed one of the three life energies. Niara had a colossal sea of mental power inside her. With this technique, she’d be like a dragon soaring to the heavens.

At eight-tenths, Niara’s body bent instinctively.

She felt the space above her tighten, making it impossible to stand fully upright.

With a snort, she forced herself to stand tall.

On that stone step, the runes pulsed with energy. In that moment, she felt as if she were trying to lift a planet. Her entire body ached; her scales cracked and her bones creaked.

"Fuck it!" she spat, refusing to budge.

Honestly, she didn’t have to do that. If she just crouched, she could keep climbing, almost like crawling. She wouldn’t have to bear such intense pressure.

But her pride wouldn’t let her. He was right there beside her. She would never do something so ridiculous, an obvious show of weakness. Even if she made it to the top, it’d feel like a failure.

Darian snorted. He could feel exactly what she was feeling. Niara was definitely proud and stubborn.

"Well... to be my partner, you’ve got to be at least this way," he thought to himself. He’d already been debating whether to tell her about his suicidal mission. Saving this universe was only one step—and it was scary enough. After that, he’d have to go even further...

But now he was certain: she would follow him—whether they won or died.