Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

A loud noise came from outside the window.

Lyle looked toward the source of the sound and saw a group of animals running across the grassland, like the wildebeest migration on the African savanna. But upon closer inspection, they were actually livestock such as cattle and sheep running frantically.

“Naslan has its own livestock, and we use a grazing method because my father had already changed the soil and water quality of Naslan before he died. This land of Naslan is one of the most fertile lands in the world.”

Lyle listened to Ms. Helena's explanation and still felt incredulous.

Even the most experienced herders wouldn't let their livestock run to that extent, as if they were risking their lives.

If livestock are slaughtered in fear, their bodies will consume glycogen and secrete more adrenaline instead of lactic acid to make the meat tender and delicious, reminiscent of the ghostly race of Nathran.

So, are ghosts used for herding livestock here? The cattle and sheep are running frantically because they're afraid...

Lyle looked toward the very back of the herd, as if trying to find the ghosts that were driving the flock.

Although he didn't see it, Lyle had determined its approximate location.

Behind the herd of livestock, there was a clearing, but the cattle and sheep preferred to huddle together rather than stay in that clearing.

Lyle guessed wrong again.

He is not a shepherd.

On that open ground, the grass was swaying slightly, and a blurry shadow slowly rose from the grass.

It was the size of a house, with smooth, ghostly fur, sinister eyes like two will-o'-the-wisps, claws as sharp as blades, and a mouth large enough to swallow a cow whole. Its eyes were fixed on its prey, and the terrifying beast let out a predator's roar!

"Wang!"

Lyle looked at the familiar face and stared at Helena's statue with a look of surprise and delight.

"That is……"

“Mr. Dragon and I are colleagues, so when Mr. Dragon wanted to find a habitat for his pet dog, I readily agreed.”

"Shiba Inu!"

Hearing someone call its name, the Shiba Inu's ears and tail perked up. It put down its toys and looked towards the castle, where it saw the figure waving frantically. It quickly recognized who it was.

"Wang!"

The Shiba Inu's tail began to wag, its mouth opened, and its tongue lolled out, making a loud "ha-ha" sound. Excitedly, it stretched out its front paws and slapped the ground, creating two more dents.

"Wang!"

The Shiba Inu leaped into the air. Its body floated up, its mouth wide open, drool dripping, barking happily as it rushed towards the window where Lyle was.

Just as Shiba Inu was about to embrace Lyle, who had his arms outstretched, it crashed into an invisible wall outside the castle with a thud.

"You can't bring Shiba Inus into the castle, Lyle. It once turned the kitchen into its doghouse. If you want to play with a Shiba Inu, please do so outside."

……

Lyle lay on the lawn, recalling his meeting with Shiba Inu.

It wasn't touching at all. That damn dog grabbed his trouser leg and went on a wild 100-meter sprint, almost knocking his lunch out of his mouth.

Now he could only lie listlessly on the lawn. Nia and Shiba Inu, on the other hand, were having a great time. Shiba Inu sniffed Nia's scent and happily let her climb onto its back, then playfully chased after the poor livestock. He'd heard that two sheep had already died of fright and would have to make up tonight's meal. Hopefully, Naslan's ghostly chef's skills were exquisite enough to cover up that wounded soul.

I played a game of throwing sticks with the Shiba Inu, and accidentally threw the stick into the lake.

Nia and the Shiba Inu have been in the water for a while now.

"La la la! La la la!"

"Wang! Wang! Wang!"

The two sent out a message announcing their return after completing their mission.

Lyle looked at what was in Shiba Inu's mouth and immediately jumped up.

"Let go, you stupid dog! That's Mercury Serpent Varim!"

Chapter 199 The Necromancer Figurine Shop is Under Construction

Rumble rumble rumble...

Four enormous skeletal creations raced across the ground, whipping up the grass and splashing mud into the air like rain.

The Andrei newcomers, draped in black robes, stood frozen in place as the massive, rampaging creation sped away, drenched in splashing mud and water.

The four spinal wheels stopped before Andrei's teleportation array, and the flesh at their center began to writhe, spitting out their controllers.

Lyle stroked the sharp beak of the blood-stained bird-beak mask, watching his fellow Necromancer figurine company members emerge from the other three spinal wheels.

"Aren't we being a little too flashy?"

“Showing off is the way to go,” Bian Tong said, putting away his spinal wheel. “After all, this is the product we’re going to promote. Think about it, a revolutionary means of transportation, a pure creation of spirits. There will definitely be many people who don’t like portals who will love these wild creations and pay for them. After all, it takes a lot of things to build a Gundam.”

“Can you feel a sense of pure joy? It feels amazing when your body and this big baby are moving at high speed, leaving everything else behind.” Mr. Shining touched his spinal wheel, which was covered with his favorite scales, on the inside of his deformed spine. “I mean, I feel like I’ve found the feeling of being alive again.”

“No,” the operator poured cold water on the idea. “I didn’t realize it during the test, but when I drove it myself, I found this thing was going way too fast. The Spine Wheel, built according to the blueprints provided by the Plague Doctor, is a bit out of control. We should probably add a speed limiter. Otherwise, we’ll have to change our advertisement. Spine Wheel, a one-way ticket to hell, you deserve it!”

"Great advertising slogan, Mr. Manipulator, we're sure to make a fortune. Those of our companions are probably wondering what death means. Besides, the most remarkable thing about this treasure is its speed and destructive power. Who would limit its strongest point? In Andrei, speeding isn't illegal."

“I’m not a salesperson, you idiot! Do you want to see our customers turn into a pile of dust and come to complain every day? And then listen to that pile of rubble grinding away all day long? This kind of full-speed driving won’t last much longer in Andrei. Soon, the executive committee will start enacting traffic laws and speed limits targeting speeders like us. The spinal wheel is just too dangerous; several times when I changed lanes, I almost crashed into a crowd.”

Lyle scratched his head, realizing that with Nia's help, avoiding pedestrians was easy.

"Huh? We're supposed to avoid crowds? Isn't the greatest fun in charging into a crowd and hearing the sound of bones cracking?" Mr. Shining looked surprised as he cleaned something from the gaps in the Spinal Wheel. The three of them fell silent, staring at the pile of broken bones beside Shining. "I thought we needed to test the defensive capabilities of our Spinal Wheel, and the result is amazing! Completely intact."

Shining produced a complete thigh bone. The gentleman he had never met was truly lucky; at least he didn't have to buy bone adhesive like the other victims.

"What are you planning to do with all this stuff?" Lyle looked at Shiny, who had never done anything related to humans.

Shining tapped the thigh bone in his hand, his gaze lingering on Mr. Faceless, who was diligently slacking off on the teleportation array. He had been watching the four of them for a while.

"Anle, Mr. Faceless."

"Anle, Mr. Driver who caused the accident."

"...Mr. Faceless, I remember there's a lost and found here at the teleportation array, right? It's where you store the parts left behind after a failed teleportation spell."

The faceless man looked at the shining light and said, "Ten years ago, the lost and found office was already practically useless because the teleportation spell had been perfected, and incidents of people losing limbs were rare."

“Few doesn’t mean none, right? Look, I’ve found a lot of missing parts here. I found them by accident. I think you wouldn’t mind setting aside a piece for those poor fellows who are looking for their lost items.”

Mr. Faceless stared at the pile of broken bones that Shining was pointing at, and black lines seemed to appear on his pale mask.

"So, should I leave the name of Mr. Shining, a member of the enthusiastic Andre Academy, so that the owners of the lost items will be so grateful that they'll beat you up?"

"No need for that. Doing good deeds should be done anonymously."

Mr. Faceless lost interest in rambling. He looked at the four people and began writing their names in the book.

"Where are you guys headed?"

"The City of Wandering. We're heading to the Black Abyss Arena to begin our clash between our guilds. The Necromancer Figurine Guild, please remember this name, Mr. Nameless. This will be the largest trading guild in Andrei's future, touching upon every aspect of Andrei's life. We have that confidence. By the way, in my illustrious personal capacity, and together with the three guild founders present, we can offer Mr. Nameless a 1% discount if you are interested in our products."

"I am a portal mage, and my movement ability does not require external aids."

“That’s not how it works, sir.” Mr. Flexibility began to instill something else in Faceless. “I’ve heard that Mr. Faceless has wanted to resign for a long time.”

"Yes, I wanted to resign and spend time studying magic, but they refused, saying that every teleportation mage is irreplaceable and we are one of the pillars that keep Andre running. Otherwise, they would join forces to throw my lounge into another dimension."

"What a sad story. Mr. Faceless."

"Yes, so I severely injured them and became one of the few teleportation mages who could actually do the work. I'm currently serving my term."

“Mr. Faceless, you should be one of our loyal customers.”

"I told you, I don't need it..."

“You need it! Mr. Faceless, if we grow stronger and the Spinal Wheel replaces the portal, making the portal unnecessary, wouldn’t you be free?”

"What you said seems to make sense," Mr. Faceless murmured. "Then what should I do?"

"Book our Spine Wheel transport vehicle with full payment upfront. We support Aurelius and all kinds of magical items, and offer an additional 10% discount on Aberration Consecration materials. Because our business is just starting out, your Spine Wheel order will take a long time to complete, and the timeframe is currently undetermined."

"It's alright, I'm a teleportation mage, the Spinal Wheel won't do me much good."

"In that case, why don't you donate it to us? We'll distribute it to those in need. It's all so that the portal business can no longer be monopolized!"

"Wait a minute? I spent money to buy creation, and then donated creation to you? What did I get in return?"

"A promise of immense value, a promise concerning your own freedom."

"Wouldn't it be such a waste if I spent money and got nothing in return?"

"It's alright, you haven't spent any money yet, have you? You can complain when you do spend the money. How about that? All your questions will be answered!"

"..."

Chapter 200: Gang Wars

The towering spires of Andrei still stood, filling the sky above the City of the Dead. Lyle noticed that the custodian mage guarding the portal had changed; perhaps guarding the dead community all day was indeed a great challenge.

"I was so close, so very close, to earning our first pot of gold!" Mr. Flexibility and Mr. Shiny encouraged each other, lamenting Mr. Faceless's last-minute pullback.

“Let me correct you, that’s a scam. And if our gang war is lost, then all of this is meaningless.” Lyle reminded his impetuous companions to prevent them from getting too excited.

This confrontation has been confirmed to involve Lyle and his three companions. The winner of each match will advance to the next arena battle; of course, if all four win, the match will be declared a victory. But right now, his teammates are all too active, as if victory is just around the corner.

"Manipulation? Who is our adversary?"

"The Monster Breeding Society is a group of people who study and raise monsters and like to hide in dark, enclosed environments with their pets."

"It sounds like a club that Professor Giant Dragon likes."

"Yes, that's why we invited Mr. Scarlet to be our supporter this time. The members of this club are too closed off. I searched through the huge roster I got from the executive committee and only found out about this club when I saw its name. It was established fifty years ago, and there have been no new members or any activities since then."

"Very powerful?"

"No, they are very weak. They are so weak that even we, who have just become necromancers, have the power to fight them. The long growth cycle of magical beasts limits their research speed. Simple magical beasts are still too weak compared to necromanced creations."

"Moreover, the potential of the magical beasts they raise is constantly diminishing, and now there are only a handful of powerful magical beasts left."

"Warcraft was once very powerful?"

"The great enemy of mankind, the beasts with miraculous powers that roam the wilderness. The fires that burned in the past, the remnants of the present. For a long time, monsters were the masters of the era, even in the age of dragons, they still held a place in the world."