Today, they too are going to their deaths.

Cui Xun wasn't sure whether what he had just heard was an automatic counterattack by the Royal Academy of Sciences or the real dean trying to silence the demon, but in any case, the power of the Royal Academy of Sciences was undeniable.

Based on his accumulated knowledge over the past few days, the seventh new district of the Royal Academy of Sciences should be a "temple".

In an era when gods have disappeared, "temples" no longer serve the function of worshipping deities; they have become synonymous with the highest-level positions.

Countless rituals have been piled up here, to the point that spells from other systems are weakened to the extreme. Only the systems related to the temple can function normally, making this place almost impossible to defeat by supernatural means.

However, the temple cannot suppress pure physical power. For the Kingdom of Albion, as long as they seize the gap when the enemy temple activates its physical defenses and launch a few rounds of artillery bombardment, they can wipe out the temple and its host from the physical level.

Unless the temple is of an unusually large size, as vast as a mountain, and made of extremely sturdy materials.

Given the current situation, even if Dunling were to launch an attack on the Royal Academy of Sciences, it would probably take several hours of bombing to break through its physical defenses without the intervention of supernatural forces. As for using supernatural means to tear open the temple from the inside, it would be an impossible task.

Fortunately, the Royal Academy of Sciences did not show hostility; otherwise, the aftermath of Cui Xun's struggle with it could have resulted in massive casualties.

Cui Xun briefly recounted what had just happened to the dean and asked for his opinion on it.

"Me?" The dean pondered for a moment before replying, "I cannot guarantee that the information you obtained from the Imaginary Demon is accurate. It's possible that it, like me, was 'programmed' into existence."

"Gottlieb's intelligence makes it entirely possible for him to create several sets of memories that appear completely self-consistent to the individuals involved. If I have memory problems, that so-called 'imaginary demon' would not be spared, and it would most likely be a fake created by Gottlieb to create a god, and would be under close surveillance."

"It's even possible that it only ever made one deal with Gottlieb in its entire career."

Tessa's lips twitched, and she couldn't help but complain, "What a miserable demon! Born to be a laborer, struggling to earn the promised rewards from the contractors, but never actually receiving what she deserves."

The dean said calmly, "That's normal. In my memory, most spells that summon demons also come with methods to humiliate and torture them, including using a more powerful being to coerce the demon into doing something impossible and punishing it, deceiving the demon, trapping the demon and directly torturing it."

"Therefore, those demons that would betray their summoner were assumed to be capable of betraying their summoner and were discarded after use."

Tessa was speechless for a moment. Thinking back carefully, it seemed that it was the same in novels. The demons in modern stories, despite having evil background settings, could only do bad things in the background stories, and were manipulated or killed by the protagonist in the main plot.

Ge Li, who was standing next to her, also came to her senses, stepped out of the robot, and sighed, "Some students have been trying to summon demons and stuff them into the machine as engines, but they have never succeeded. It turns out that demons have become extinct."

Cui Xun denied it, saying, "Not necessarily. It's also possible that they dare not enter the extremely fortified temple of the Royal Academy of Sciences."

"I don't believe that demons have been completely eradicated."

The dean did not support Cui Xun's idea. He said with certainty, "Her Majesty the Queen's power covers the entire kingdom. The remaining power systems of other countries are still manageable, but these life forms born from collective spirituality must have been wiped out."

"Their extinction is the first step Her Majesty takes in controlling supernatural powers."

Cui Xun asked curiously, "Speaking of which, what do you think is the reason the Queen controls the supernatural forces within the country?"

The dean remained silent for a moment, trying to figure out how much of his memory was real, and whether his current answer was something Gottlieb had instilled in him, or a conclusion he had drawn himself based on the available information.

But it didn't take him long to sort out his thoughts, completely casting aside his falsehoods, and answer with his own will: "First, reduce cases caused by supernatural powers and strengthen public security. Second, promote social transformation, reduce the worship of power, and emphasize the power of the collective. Third, reshape people's collective cognition, allowing geniuses to focus more on natural sciences, preparing for future developments."

"The extent of spirituality largely depends on wisdom. Therefore, in the past, the wisest people often embarked on the path of the extraordinary, exploring their own potential and looking down on other ordinary people. Although there were a wealth of original texts and extraordinary knowledge was accumulating, people could hardly imagine ways of civilizational progress other than becoming stronger themselves. It was only after stricter control that the Royal Academy of Sciences was born."

Cui Xun suddenly asked, "You seem to have a very high opinion of the Queen. So, what do you think the real Gottlieb would think of the Queen, and what was his ultimate purpose in faking his death?"

Let's assume for now that all the events so far have been orchestrated by Gottlieb, and that, according to the information from the Imaginary Demon, his purpose might be to renege on his debts.

But shortly after Valencia gave him the mission, on the day Cui Xun was about to visit, he used the secret technique of feigning death to shed a part of his spirituality, and used special means to tamper with the memories stored in his spirituality, and then sealed them in his old body. Was it really for this kind of thing?

If Gottlieb hadn't considered the possibility that Grief might put her spirit back into her body, there would have been no need for him to deliberately preserve her spirit and alter most of her memories. This pseudo-resurrection was definitely part of Gottlieb's plan.

Even after the fake resurrection, the Royal Academy of Sciences' security department did not lower its guard; instead, it continued to close the Royal Academy of Sciences, which was probably part of his plan.

The dean speculated, "If my view of the Queen is the same as the real Gottlieb's, then all the experiments must have been to help the Queen escape, and reneging on the deal with the devil would have been a convenient step."

"Personality Upload, Spiritual Pseudo-Human, and Shedding Skin and False Death—these three projects, under normal operating conditions, should be able to send a person's consciousness into a new body, creating an almost identical individual and freeing the person from their original predicament."

"Any real success is a good thing for the Queen and the Kingdom."

As if realizing for the first time the significant impact of her research, Ge Li held her head high, a proud expression on her face, before that pride instantly crumbled. Her personality upload wasn't a complete failure, but it was far from a success.

"A good idea." Cui Xun affirmed the dean's idea, then pointed out a crucial flaw, "But there's no need to hide such a purpose. He can come out right now, clapping and marveling at his experimental results, and then evaluate us."

"Faking his death must have been necessary for him. Blocking the Royal Academy of Sciences was probably also part of his objective."

The dean's expression turned serious: "Then we need to consider the worst-case scenario."

"The enclosed temple is also the best place to hold ceremonies. The Seventh District of the Royal Academy of Sciences has gathered a lot of materials from the kingdom's conquests over the years, including countless relics with a thousand-year history, as well as many wise minds."

"Even if the students and researchers here do not awaken their own spirituality, the spirituality they have accumulated still exists. Considering the issues of impurities and quality, the tens of thousands of people in the Royal Society are comparable in material value to millions of people."

"Gottlieb has mastered the highest secrets of alchemy, and in theory, he can materialize spirituality, transforming it into something like the Philosopher's Stone. If he were to transfer his consciousness into the Philosopher's Stone, he could become a super-powerful being who possesses the spirituality of millions of people in his normal state. Combined with the knowledge he has acquired, the consequences would be unimaginable."

"Gottlieb can't be that bad," Grace retorted softly.

Duke Sari, who had been lost in thought for a long time, came to his senses and angrily denied it: "That cold-blooded monster, he will definitely act as long as he calculates the cost-benefit ratio! Besides, wasn't the zombie-stealing wave a while ago indirectly caused by him?"

"While Lord Cui Xun is still thinking about how to find a new path for those who have been eliminated by the machines, Gottlieb has probably already planned to expand the elixir factory, turn all those useless people into elixirs, and save him a lot of resources, thus avoiding the construction of countless shelters."

The dean tried to refute this, arguing that, according to his memory, he had simply ignored those who had been eliminated and focused on the more distant future. However, if the conjecture that Gottlieb was a villain was true, then the Duke of Surrey's conjecture might not be wrong.

"Let's assume for now that Gottlieb is a heinous madman about to carry out a ritual, intending to turn everyone in the Royal Academy of Sciences into material, and then fake his death to escape. In that case, he will definitely go to the central area next."

"In my memory, the Royal Society of Sciences was at the very center of the world, located at the very bottom of the main elevator shaft, inside a bottomless abyss."

"It was dug out by self-replicating robots to explore the wonders of the deepest parts of the earth. Even I had no information about it until the robots returned to report. Of course, my ignorance could very well have been orchestrated by the real Gottlieb; he himself may have known the true situation there."

"Aside from the waste being discharged towards the Sun Tower, the other forces of the Royal Academy of Sciences would theoretically converge and sink there."

Ge Li remembered the place, but she had a different perspective: "Why isn't the key point the Royal Academy of Sciences' central control center? The entire Seventh New District is a giant machine, and many parts of it are changeable. What was a residential area a few days ago might be swapped with an experimental area along with its pipelines a few days later. Only the central control center, no matter how the Seventh New District expands, its significance will not change."

Duke Sari suggested, "How about we split into two groups? The two ladies and I will seek help from members of other factions who are investigating the Dean's death, and investigate the central control center. Lord Cui Xun will investigate the giant cave with the Dean."

Cui Xun refused, saying, "No way!"

Not to mention that Duke Sari has not yet revealed his true identity, even if he only has a head left, he is still better than an illegal girl who is just strong and a legal loli who pilots a robot. Cui Xun is not sure what Duke Sari will do when he leaves.

Moreover, Cui Xun felt that this personnel arrangement was not good.

"The Dean is more familiar with the Royal Academy of Sciences. He is more suitable to go to the central control center. Even if no anomalies are found, he can control the situation there. Moreover, he has more experience."

"As for the giant hole, if even the Dean doesn't have any relevant information, then it's most reasonable to leave it entirely to me, the strongest one."

Tessa looked at the headmaster, who was in a sense less than an hour old, and felt that something was off.

The dean did not object to Cui Xun's arrangement, but he thought of a few dangerous possibilities: "Although I am not good at fighting, I still have a spirituality far beyond that of ordinary people, and I have the advantage of the position. My strength should not be underestimated."

"The real Gottlieb might be able to control me, who comes from the same source as him, through special means. At that time, I might be able to launch a surprise attack and wipe out everyone in the central control center, and then I could take control of the Royal Academy of Sciences from there."

"According to my intelligence, Mr. Cui Xun, you seem to be less adept at handling overly complex situations. If the giant hole is a trap, you might be caught off guard and get trapped there."

The enemy is in the dark while we are in the light, and our opponent is a powerful figure with an unknown number of cards to play. This situation is truly difficult to handle. What's worse, they haven't found the real culprit yet, only speculating that the real Gottlieb is involved. The truth could very well be that everything was orchestrated by the real mastermind.

Unless Cui Xun can create clones, he will face considerable risks no matter what choice he makes.

Cui Xun could indeed create multiple identities, but he realized a possibility: could the real mastermind be guessing that he had the ability to play multiple roles because of his simultaneous appearance with the Snake Worship Cult mentor, and was preparing to use this opportunity to verify it, and then use it as a breakthrough to attack him?

It's very likely that he's overthinking things, but Cui Xun feels that he can't be too wary of someone who has climbed to the top of the kingdom through strength and wisdom.

So, what methods can help him break out of this predicament?

Cui Xun proposed, "Are you willing to make a vow with me and pledge your allegiance to me?"

The dean guessed Cui Xun's thoughts: "You want others to become your eyes, to bear your power? But as far as I know, leaving a mark on others requires an extremely high level of Oath Power, and to receive a mark also requires considerable power."

Cui Xun took out four refined blood coins. Upon seeing them, the dean was shocked and exclaimed in disbelief, "Materialized spirituality? This is a Philosopher's Stone! No, it doesn't have that kind of spiritual density, but it's easier to form than a Philosopher's Stone, and its usage requirements are much lower, so low that anyone can use it."

"And this taste... Could it be that dragon's blood was used as an ingredient?"

The dean determined almost instantly that this item could be used as a form of exchange that did not exist in many extraordinary kingdoms in the past. The only drawback was that the dragon blood it contained, while strengthening the body, would also cause the user to lean towards dragons.

He speculated, "Mr. Cui Xun, are you perhaps going to use this treasure to help us fulfill our oath?"

Cui Xun nodded and affirmed, "Yes."