Damned Healer-Chapter 724: Turning Point

"Who’s there!"

One of the men quickly stepped back a few paces and raised his head, looking toward where the voice came from. After all, what they were doing was not something that should be seen in public, and they certainly did not want strangers to witness it.

However, the voice was so close it seemed to brush against his ears, yet he hadn’t sensed anyone approaching. Naturally, he became alert.

One of them was the more active one, clearly a servant of the other. This servant had short golden hair and a very muscular build. The other, who stood farther back and was the leader, was extremely tall, well over two and a half meters, neither thin nor particularly bulky.

Darian, wearing a simple red training outfit with golden details, slowly descended from the sky and landed beside Emina.

Among the sect’s older disciples, almost none had seen Darian before. But sensing his cultivation at the elementary level of the Celestial Soul Realm at such a young age, he could only be someone at least from the Infernal Flames Hall.

Within the sect, it was not uncommon for highly talented disciples to reach the Celestial Soul Realm before the age of twenty. The next realm was already much harder and more time-consuming. Even so, the first three realms were relatively simple for people in the sect. A rare few even reached the peak of the Celestial Tribulation Realm before five hundred years of age.

As for these two, they had been in the sect for over twenty years, and both were in the first realm of the Celestial Soul Realm.

Sensing Darian’s slightly lower cultivation, all the vigilance in the muscular servant turned into disdain. "So it was someone who came courting death...!"

His voice suddenly stopped when he saw the mark on Darian’s clothes that represented the status of a Golden Crow Hall disciple. He stared blankly for a moment, then connected the dots with the rumors from a year ago. "You... You’re Darian!!"

"Senior..." Upon seeing Darian land beside her, Emina’s lips trembled slightly.

She, who had not yielded under cruel oppression and humiliation, now had tears welling in her eyes. In the Celestial Plane, where the law of the jungle was even more brutal than in the Mortal Planes, she had not expected that Darian, who had already entered the Golden Crow Hall, would actually come to help her.

Hearing her confirm his name, the tall man in the back narrowed his eyes.

That figure snorted dryly, then walked toward Darian. "So you’re the renowned Senior Darian... how admirable and wonderful. I didn’t expect to be lucky enough to meet you in person. I really am fortunate, huh?"

The tall man’s face was filled with caution. Even if Darian’s cultivation was lower, only a complete idiot would underestimate him after everything he had done in the sect’s admission test.

However, although there was respect in his expression, there was definitely no fear. In fact, deep in his eyes, there was an obvious trace of disdain.

Darian crouched down and examined Emina’s injuries. Then he raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the two as he asked in a monotone voice, "Were you the ones who beat her?"

"That’s right." The muscular man nodded with an indifferent smile.

Darian nodded. "Reason?"

"Teaching a lesson to juniors who don’t understand the rules is a duty within the sect. What does Senior Darian think about that?" the same muscular man said, still smiling.

"They... they wanted to steal my Scarlet Seed, cough... cough, cough... and also my money," Emina said while coughing blood, her voice trembling.

However, as soon as she finished speaking, her expression changed again, and she spoke in panic. "Senior Darian... I, Emina... am already extremely grateful... that you came... But these two people... even though I know that to you they shouldn’t be very powerful... that taller one is the son of the 8th Palace Master... we can’t... afford to offend him... your Master won’t help you now... please, let’s leave..."

Emina had called for Darian when they started chasing her because she wanted to use his status to scare them off, but she hadn’t known exactly who they were at the time. If she had known earlier, she certainly would not have asked Darian for help, because she did not want to drag anyone into her big troubles.

"Don’t speak." Darian said softly as he placed his palm on her back, quickly sending his white power into her body.

Emina’s face revealed shock, almost disbelief at the sensation she felt. It was like a stream of cool, refreshing water slowly flowing through her entire body, instantly easing her pain and suddenly clearing her mind.

Upon hearing Emina mention his father, the corner of the tall man’s mouth instantly widened, and his expression grew even more arrogant. His father was an honored and illustrious figure in the sect; with his backing, he was certain that someone from the Mortal Plane, like Darian, would not go far.

After stabilizing Emina’s condition, Darian slowly stood up and looked at them expressionlessly. "You’re here to rob a little girl, is that it?"

Emina felt strange. She should be almost the same age as Darian, so his calling her a little girl felt odd. But... his voice and aura felt like someone absurdly experienced, who had seen more of the world than anyone could imagine.

"Hahaha," the tall man laughed loudly. "So, what will you do if I say yes? Surely Senior Darian doesn’t want to make things difficult for us because of trash like this, right?"

"Very simple." A dangerously cold glint appeared in Darian’s indifferent eyes. "Hand over everything you two have and break your own left arms, then you can scram."

The moment those words were spoken, the tall man’s expression instantly froze, while the muscular one’s face also changed abruptly.

Even Emina, who had been about to tell them to leave again, was completely dumbfounded, not daring to believe what she was hearing.

"Hahaha... HAHAHAHA!" the tall man burst into thunderous laughter. "You really are an interesting person, making such a huge joke at our first meeting."

"It doesn’t matter if you want me to do it personally. But in that case, what breaks won’t be just an arm." Darian said without any emotion.

The tall man’s expression turned gloomy, and his tone grew cold. "I called you Senior to give you respect, you’d better not be ungrateful! Do you really think that after becoming a Golden Crow Hall disciple, you can act disrespectfully in front of us? In the entire sect, there are many people you can’t afford to offend... Besides, you’re nothing but an insignificant worm from the Mortal Planes. Do you think your master will come save you like before?"

Darian said nothing further. Extending his arm, his scarlet dagger appeared in his hand. His steps were neither fast nor slow as he walked straight toward the two.

The moment he drew the dagger, a pressure as heavy as a mountain fell upon them, pressing down and making their bodies tremble.

"Senior Darian!" Emina hurriedly reached out, wanting to stop him. But Darian merely turned and looked calmly into her eyes.

That gaze made her freeze in place, stunned.

Seeing that Darian was truly about to attack, the tall man’s eyes turned completely dark. "You’re asking for it! Yammar, break one of his hands!"

Darian was a disciple of a Palace Master. Although this man did not fear him and even despised him a little, he certainly did not dare be too brutal with him. Thus, he sent the muscular man to teach him a lesson while simultaneously sending a request for help to his father within the sect.

But...

The moment he took out the communication crystal and tried to send the message—

Darian’s eyes flashed, and the power of his Celestial Bloodline was activated.

The entire surroundings froze for a second. Then, Darian easily dispersed the call to the sect. That request for help would never reach its destination. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Of course, the tall man sensed that something was wrong, but not even in his wildest dreams would he imagine that Darian could do this. In fact, not even the Sect Leader would be able to.

"Heh, just thinking about breaking the hand of a Palace Master’s disciple already gives me a nice, refreshing feeling!" The muscular man let out a sinister laugh.

He roared, and his body began to shine with a metallic light. Behind them, Emina’s eyes widened; that was a variation of the earth element, known as the power of metal.

It was more flexible and lighter than earth without losing much of its defensive power. The muscular man knew Darian was strong, but he had absolute confidence in his defensive ability. His goal was only to buy time, but he thought he might actually be able to cause some damage.

He drew a longsword and, with a single step, appeared in front of Darian. "Kneel!"

"Senior Darian, careful!" Emina shouted in alarm.

*BOOM!!!*

With a massive explosion, the ground shook as if the sky itself had been covered.

The muscular man’s longsword shattered instantly into five pieces. The man who had been howling arrogantly just a second ago was now sent flying like a kite with its string cut, spraying a long arc of blood through the air.

This scene, something the tall man would never have dreamed of witnessing, made his face turn pale instantly.

Even Darian was stunned for a moment. The Celestial cultivation had greatly increased his overall power, and he hadn’t tested it yet. He hadn’t expected that idiot to be completely defeated with a single casual strike.

After the brief surprise, Darian’s gaze immediately locked onto the tall man, whose soul seemed to have left his body. He had thought his servant would at least buy a few minutes so his father could send someone to help. Now, he had to hold on by himself.

Darian moved. The scarlet dagger shot forward at high speed.

With the extremely terrifying aura of death suddenly approaching, the tall man’s pupils shrank as he let out a loud shout, gathering all his energy to protect his front.

*CRACK!*

But under the casual power of Darian’s attack, all the Celestial power of his cultivation lasted only an instant before shattering like glass.

"Ah!"

He was also heavily injured and sent flying backward, coughing up blood.

Emina, in the back, was completely dumbfounded, unable to say a single word. That was because...

...she had finally sensed Darian’s cultivation. Since he was now above her, it was difficult for someone inferior to accurately sense a superior’s cultivation.

In just one year... she simply couldn’t believe what she was feeling.

Darian put away his dagger and walked unhurriedly toward the tall man, stopping in front of him.

Even though it had been only one strike, that idiot felt as if all his organs had been displaced. His blood flow and internal energy were so chaotic that they felt ready to burst out of his body.

Seeing Darian standing before him, he could no longer maintain the arrogance on his face. Instead, shock and fear took over his expression. "You... you..."

Darian extended his hand toward him. "Now, give me everything you have. Listen carefully, I mean everything. Don’t make me waste time. Otherwise, forget your hands, your feet won’t be spared either."

The tall man gritted his teeth hard. "You dare! If my father wants to kill you, it’ll be like crushing an ant. If you dare—"

*Bang!!*

"ARGHHHH——"

With a stomp, Darian mercilessly crushed his foot amid screams of agony that sounded like the wail of a tortured spirit.

"Tell me, would I dare? Hehe..."

Darian’s eyes narrowed, emitting the most chilling and terrifying glint the tall man had ever seen in his life. The cold, devilish laugh, the extreme pain in his leg, and the sound of his bones breaking made him clearly realize that the Darian in front of him was a madman with no scruples.

True terror grew wildly in his heart as the tremor in his body, under the sharp pain, turned into shivers of fear.

He reached out and touched the communication crystal again, roaring, "Father... save me... someone wants to kill me... save me... save me!! Ahh!!"

*Crack*

Darian made a simple motion before the crystal could send the message, causing it to explode.

Staring at that figure, he spat coldly. "I’ll repeat one last time: give me everything you have, or else..."

"I’ll give it... I’ll give it..."

The tall man was afraid, very afraid. He knew he couldn’t buy time, so it was better to let him take it and seek revenge later. Enduring the pain in his leg, he touched his spatial ring, removed his mark from it, and extended it toward Darian with a face full of terror.

All spatial rings in this universe carried their owner’s mark. It was possible to remove it after stealing, but if the person was alive, it could take some time, and they could use their mark to locate the thief.

Darian reached out and took the ring. After seeing the contents, he let out a cold laugh. "Looks like your ears don’t work very well. I said I wanted everything, but you only took out this little bit to brush me off. If you don’t obey, the consequences will be quite severe, you know?"

"N-no." He shook his head in fear. "I already had very little. This is really all I have on me..."

"Senior Darian," Emina said hurriedly. "We disciples of the Flaming Hall really receive very little, and we usually use it as soon as we get it. Since it’s the end of the month, it’s normal for him to have little on him..."

"Ah!!!!"

Emina hadn’t even finished her sentence when a piercing scream suddenly rang out. Darian’s foot stomped down hard on that poor guy’s leg, mercilessly breaking the bone.

"Now, do you want to hand everything over or not?" Darian asked slowly, looking at his pain-twisted face.

"I... I really... only... have this... even if you kill me... I won’t have... anything else..." Every word he spoke was accompanied by deep pain as his entire body convulsed in spasms.

"Heh," Darian sneered.

Darian extended his hand, and a broken piece of sword flew from the ground into his grasp. Holding it between his fingers, the sharp blade was slowly lowered toward the space right below that idiot’s abdomen.

The man’s eyes went wide, and his body froze.

"Let me help you remember one last time. Is this really all you have on you? If you remember correctly, great. But if you don’t..."

Seeing the broken blade just one centimeter away... the man’s face instantly lost all color. He never feared other people’s threats, because no one ever dared to seriously harm him. But the person in front of him... he was completely insane!

"N-no... no, no... don’t do it... I remember, I remember!!" he said in terror. He reached toward his chest. Then a subtle spatial power flowed, and a space opened.

That was a high-level inventory technique he used to hide the most important things that couldn’t be shown.

His hands were already trembling uncontrollably. As soon as he opened it, half a dozen spatial rings flew out, all stuffed with items. He hurriedly removed his mark from every single one.

Emina was completely dumbfounded, utterly speechless. How did Darian know that?

"This... this is really everything..." After taking out those rings, it was like all the strength in his body had been drained. He went limp on the ground, only able to make trembling, pleading sounds.

Everything inside those rings—he had stolen from many people and also obtained through some very dirty means. Of course, all done in secret. He was actually rich, but he couldn’t use everything, or it would attract his father’s attention.

Darian sensed that the man’s inventory was truly empty and nodded.

"Heh, looks like you’ve done plenty of shady business." Darian waved his hand and stored everything away. Then he flicked his fingers, and a thread of black power flowed out, entering the man’s body.

A chilling scream, like a pig being slaughtered, echoed out.

By that moment, Darian had already turned around without even bothering to look at him again and walked toward the muscular man.

Darian’s cruelty and the miserable state of the other guy scared the muscular man so badly his guts nearly burst. He struggled on the ground and, at top speed, pulled out everything he had, shouting:

"I really only have this, please let me go... let me go, I’ll never dare do something like this again."

He also had a hidden inventory. After removing his mark from everything, Darian took his six spatial rings and then... violently stomped on his left arm.

"Waahhh————"

He did that and also added black power, completely invading him.

Darian infected them with his power, and it inflicted indescribable pain on both of their souls.

The tall man kept roaring, while the other rolled on the ground, suffering endless pain and screaming as well.

They weren’t going to die. Darian had no pity whatsoever because both carried extremely dense black karma from this very life. They had definitely done more than just rob people.

If they weren’t disciples of the sect, he would have killed them outright without wasting time. But now that his black power had invaded them, he could kill them whenever he wanted later.

Then Darian approached Emina, who was still on the ground, and calmly extended his hand toward her.

She swallowed hard, not knowing what to say.

But under his gaze, her heart started racing, and she felt that this was a complete turning point in her life. After taking a deep breath, she almost jumped forward and grabbed his hand.