Everything happened so fast. When Darian used his white power to heal the beasts, one of them went berserk and attacked.
*BANG!*
Niara landed a quick, brutal punch right in the beast's face. It flew back, slamming into the dirt walls, making everything shake.
"Kuin!" the wolf leader howled, stunned.
Before the dust even settled, a pair of red eyes appeared at the far end of the cavern. The creature stood instantly—as if it felt no pain… or had completely lost its mind.
Then it locked eyes with Niara. Those were the sinister red eyes of a Risen. It roared, but then its gaze flicked away weirdly.
"That can't be! His corruption was only at eighty percent—how is this possible?!" the leader growled.
Niara whispered to Darian, "His eyes and aura changed. That means he's fully corrupted now. This is the stage right before becoming a Risen. When that happens, we have to kill him immediately."
Darian had read about this in the library. A newly corrupted being was in a state even Mannaz could take down. When they were still "turning," they were stronger than normal—but once fully corrupted, their minds went haywire and they temporarily lost control, making them technically weaker. If they survived that, they'd stabilize into a full-fledged Risen.
It was universal law: no newly corrupted could live. Corruption had no cure. But…
'Don't kill him.'
Darian kept his senses locked on that distant creature. He could clearly feel the Risen's black karma fused to its body. But this one… wasn't quite a complete Risen yet.
It wasn't just a temporary daze and weakness everyone believed comes right after full corruption… Darian could distinctly sense the difference inside him.
'He's not lost yet,' Darian said, seriously. 'On his forehead—where the mental sea is—that part hasn't been corrupted.'
A person's mental sea wasn't just where their mental energy lived. If it was attacked by external forces or ran dry, the person entered a chaotic state—confused and out of control.
'So that's it… the last thing corrupted is the mental sea. That's why they get weak before becoming a full Risen.' He'd figured out something only he could feel, thanks to his curse.
'Strike right in the center of his head… I can't heal the corruption, but I think I can stop him from becoming a full Risen.'
Niara didn't quite grasp this mental sea thing—it came from the book Darian read. Scales covered her body, and she moved her hand to tuck Darian into his safe spot.
That shape, until now, hadn't come near or attacked them. It staggered around, as if it couldn't walk properly, let alone think or fight.
She snorted, then with one quick step she was in front of the corrupted beast. Clenching her fists, she activated Divine Fist Art.
At that exact moment, Darian triggered a level 2 support technique called Essence Connection.
This technique lets a Spiritual Guardian share any type of energy or element. Sharing ring power was basic level 1 stuff, but transferring other energies was way more complex—hence this advanced skill.
Few could use it effectively. A Spiritual Guardian only had their ring power and their blessing; if that blessing didn't manipulate other elements or energies, the technique was useless.
Before learning this, Darian could only channel ring power to her. Now he knew how to send both white and black power—directly into her spiritual root. That meant… she could use it with her martial arts.
Niara's fists ignited like they were engulfed in flame—but it was a pure white flame. Her fist strikes now burned with white power.
She didn't have time to overthink—she just punched exactly where Darian had said. The beast didn't even flinch.
*BANG!*
It slammed into the wall again, making the whole cavern tremble.
But this time… it didn't get back up.
Darian was laser-focused. The strike hit the perfect spot, and he directed his white power toward the mental sea.
He couldn't cure the corruption, but as his power neared, it was as if the mental sea opened its doors in desperation to let the white light in.
Darian used the principles of one of the Healing Blessings he'd read about in the library: the Blessing of Purifying Light.
Darian opened his eyes and moved fast, crawling out from under Niara's clothes. He could clearly feel that body was still corrupted like before—or almost—but the difference was…
"His mental sea is completely sealed. In this state, he won't wake up. And he won't turn into a full Risen for a while."
The beast leader heard that and his eyes went wide. He sprinted over, hardly believing it.
Darian kept examining the fallen creature and grew more certain he'd done it. He could stop someone's transformation into a Risen—but he still didn't understand why he hadn't been able to fully purify that beast.
"Who is that? Why's he different from the others?" the slug asked the leader.
The leader took a deep breath, staring at his fallen brother. "That's my older brother… he was corrupted by a Risen Chief."
Darian looked confused. He'd only read the basics in the library, then researched his own power. He turned to Niara.
"There are five ranks among the Risen, each with very different power levels. On the Spiritual Guardians' entry test, you get dropped in a place full of Risen, right?" Niara asked calmly, and Darian nodded.
"Common Risen vary in intelligence, but at most match a Spiritual Guardian with one or two rings. Above them are Risen Chiefs—around three or four rings."
"Next are Risen Commanders, roughly five or six rings. The fearsome Risen Generals, seven or eight rings. And finally… the most powerful and considered unbeatable: the Risen Lords."
Darian took it all in. He'd only fought common Risen and thought he could heal corruption and beat every enemy… sweet illusion. In reality, a Risen Chief could already nullify his power. It made sense. If his power, as a one-ringed guardian, was enough to purify the power of a chief or higher, that would be just too ridiculous.
He sighed, but still hoped that as he grew stronger, he'd handle the bigger threats too.
As they talked, the beast leader knelt beside his brother. He was completely unconscious—his mental sea sealed.
Darian turned back and said, "Don't worry. He won't die or become a Risen for a while. Maybe one day I can fully heal him, like I did the others."
The beast leader glanced around at the other fallen beasts. They showed no trace of corruption anymore. In fact, their bodies—once covered in wounds—now looked magically healed.
"You…" the leader murmured, trembling as he stared at the slug. "You really saved them… the Ancestor… she said someone like you would come."