*BOOOM!*
A violent sound echoed in all directions. Furious winds ripped through the skies like blades. But that wasn't the result of two physical forces clashing.
That Celestial Dragon shadow was just that — a shadow. It didn't have real power, it was just leeching off its bloodline, sustained by the inscription to suppress others from afar.
Of course, if any Mannaz tried to fight it, they'd get crushed easily. Its offensive power came from the accumulated energy of the inscription. But that place was built to boost its suppressive roar — not to help it fight.
Even so, its ethereal body couldn't be damaged by normal attacks. That's why Divine Fist Art, and other martial arts like it, were the only things that could touch it.
That martial art was pretty simple and straight to the point. It channeled the ring's power into the fists, increasing the damage of every strike. Each hit pushed that energy into the target and made it explode from the inside. It was a power made for fighting the Risen.
Niara beat her wings and twisted swiftly through the air.
*Woosh!*
A massive tail, fast like a whip, missed her by a hair.
"FALL!"
She spun and attacked without mercy.
*BANG!*
The shadow roared in fury, but its ethereal body was now full of massive holes. It wasn't fully physical — it was partly made of runes. Each of her strikes damaged the runes of the inscription within it, which were connected to the ground.
She just had to keep breaking it down.
One minute had passed since they entered the valley.
Even hidden under her clothes, by focusing on their link, Darian could see everything she saw and feel everything she felt.
**ROAR!**
The draconic shadow made a smart move, using its huge body to trap the annoying little ant. It was like a snake trying to coil around its prey.
But it was Niara who led it into that move. She knew time was precious, and instinctively guided it toward the trap.
"Partner, give me everything you've got," Niara said.
Darian nodded. Immediately, he moved all the ring's energy from his forehead and channeled it into her spiritual root. He had no idea what she was about to do, but fighting was her thing.
She huffed as that power surged through her. Now she had a unique potential that no other summoner—well, she wasn't really a summoner, or even a Spiritual Guardian.
In that moment, the bloodline inside Niara pulsed at her command.
All of her scales lit up with an intense green glow. Her amber eyes were like two blazing beacons.
Darian felt it all, stunned. She'd barely had time to feel her strengthened bloodline — and she was already using it? Learned how to use it mid-fight?
The shadow froze in midair.
Actually... it had been completely suppressed now.
"Tables have turned, huh?"
A fierce smile spread across her face.
Her fists slammed together, letting out a sharp crack.
"DIE!"
She punched.
**BOOM!**
Alongside the violent explosion, a shower of runes burst out in every direction.
'To the bones, quick!'
Darian sensed something in that skeleton stuck in the ground. After the shadow's destruction, a flaw appeared in the inscriptions — it was like a wide-open door to a hidden place.
Niara dove toward the ground, landing in the middle of those bones. At the center, a glowing sphere rose up.
As she got closer, it was like billions of tiny dots were packed together, forming a pulsing, ten-meter-wide sphere.
No doubt, these were the purest bloodline runes of the Celestial Dragon.
'You can absorb it, right?' Darian asked casually.
She took a deep breath. "Yeah."
Her mutation was pretty unique among the Mannaz. The runes in her blood could devour the bloodline runes of other Dragons. But the process wasn't fast — and it was insanely painful.
'Don't worry. Trust me, this'll be smooth and won't take long,' Darian said.
She didn't hesitate and moved toward the sphere.
As she reached out her hand... a third of the runes inside the sphere trembled.
Then they moved on their own, drawn toward her.
Took about two seconds... and everything vanished into her, quietly merging into her blood.
She opened her eyes. It had been fast — no pain, no agony.
But... a wave of exhaustion hit her hard. It felt like her whole body had been drained. It took a lot of effort to absorb all that.
Darian sighed: 'You were absorbing bloodlines from others like you before, but they were all humans who inherited it over generations. With time, the bloodline gets contaminated and impure. That's why it hurt so much.'
She was surprised by how much he knew. That thing inside her was now completely under her control, like she'd been born with it. The benefits would come with time — and there was no way to predict how strong she'd become in the future.
Her eyes turned to the rest of the runes ahead.
'You only drew a third because that's your limit. Instinctively, your body didn't take it all in. You need to assimilate what you've already absorbed—since you're half-human, you can't handle that much,' Darian said softly. 'And besides... if we take everything, it'll cause a massive mess.'
He calculated the time. They'd been there for two minutes.
They'd spent too long in that valley, which should've been impossible. The Elders would investigate and realize the inscription had been compromised. That would explain how they were able to stay there—since the suppressive force had pretty much vanished.
Would anyone believe Niara was responsible for that? A young Summoner with no talent, paired with a rookie Spiritual Guardian? Just thinking about it was ridiculous.
It'd be more believable if they thought someone had sabotaged it. Maybe an Elder stole something, or something weird happened. Things were definitely going to get messy.
Of course they'd investigate Niara and question her. But that energy had merged perfectly into her because of her mutation. Everyone else already had a weaker bloodline than hers, so they wouldn't notice anything strange—and she supposedly didn't have the power to beat that shadow.
They'd just say they got there, heard an explosion, and things got easier.
They moved in out of curiosity and stepped into that weird place. But they didn't actually see what happened—only felt a huge danger. Then left two minutes later.
'Let's head back quick,' Darian said, and she nodded.
She took a deep breath and pushed herself to run. Within seconds, they were out of that graveyard.
Everything in the valley was just as it was before. Darian activated the inscription on the ground, and immediately, the two of them vanished.
...
Everyone in the hall was dead silent, eyes wide.
The duo had returned.
Niara was breathing heavily, her eyelids heavy and her aura completely worn out. It was clear to everyone that she'd been through hell—just as expected.
Darian, perched on her shoulder, slowly looked around, then at the Elder.
He was watching them intently.
He was certain something really wrong had happened in the Valley of the Celestial Roar—but now wasn't the time to bring it up.
"There's no doubt who the winner is," he said flatly.
Niara and Darian turned to the man and woman in the corner.
Their faces went from pale to a shade of blue-purple.
The woman swallowed hard and shouted, "This is impossible! They did something to—"
"Shut up." The Elder lost his composure and roared. "Are you accusing Celestia Academy of cheating? Want me to have you executed for treason?"
"No... I..." she stammered.
"This isn't fair! Clearly something weird happened!" Her Spiritual Guardian snapped, furious.
The other Guardian shouted too: "I don't accept this result!"
The Elder replied coldly: "Yeah, it's strange they lasted that long. But you two were there before, and nothing happened. Only after they entered did everything change?"
He stared them down. The two tried to argue, but he cut them off: "Life isn't fair. Luck and fate count as personal ability. No matter what happened, I'm the supervisor. If you dishonor the bet, I'll charge you with treason and have you locked up. The deal was simple. Whoever stayed the longest wins. You lost."
The two Guardians had red eyes. Their Summoners were panicking.
"Hand over your—actually, my crystals, now," Darian said calmly.
When the two turned toward him, the slug's tiny antennae moved like a hand waving at them to hand it over.
"What?! Don't disgrace my partner's bloodline, you bastard!"
"YOU!" the woman screamed, her face twisted.
Darian looked at her and gave a pitying wave: "Aww... you're not gonna cry now, are you?"
"You bastard... I'll never—"
"Hand over your rings. I'll check the Chaos Crystals," the Elder cut in, shutting them all up.
They stared at the Elder speechless. He was glaring daggers at them. Both trembled as they slowly removed the rings from their fingers. The rings floated toward the Elder.
They were spatial rings, made from a special mineral of that universe. They could store non-living things—nothing rare to own.
"Three hundred thousand. You really brought everything. Good. The debt's settled now," the Elder said. The two tried to speak, but no words came out.
The Elder waved his own ring. A flash appeared for two seconds. Then he turned to Niara and tossed a ring her way.
"Two hundred thousand of the fine was deducted. I'll send the rest to the Academy and register everything," he said quickly. "You'll also get to use the five elemental fields—three times each."
He stared at the man and woman. "Everything's done. The bet was fair for both sides. The outcome depends on individual ability. Anything can happen in battle. Don't cry or rage about it—just be ready to overcome whatever comes next. Let this be a lesson."
The two Guardians glared at the Elder with blazing hatred, but didn't dare say a word.
He didn't care and waved his crystal, vanishing... obviously toward the valley.
The couple didn't look back and rushed off...
"Hey! What's the rush?"
The mocking voice rang out, making them freeze in their tracks.
"Just wait..." the woman growled, teeth clenched, and stormed off.