Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

How do you feel?

"I feel like I'm being offered as a sacrifice to an irresistible demon."

"Don't insult demons, manipulators. Demons are our clients now."

"Then... the meat patties offered to the dragon?"

"The Dragon Mentor will remember your performance request. He will let you perform the previous stage of the steak."

"..."

Before they could even begin to formulate a new metaphor, a large door on the second floor slammed open, revealing a gaping maw of darkness that seemed poised to devour everyone.

"...What do you think that is?"

Medusa swam onto Lyle's shoulder and watched the four people talking.

"Perhaps it's an invitation."

"I have never received such a rude invitation."

"Yes, but we are the guests."

"Medusa is right. It can open the door, and it can throw us out of the tower. Let's go, friends. Demons or dragons, we have to face them."

Lyle led his companions toward the darkness behind the door.

The straight, dark passage initially offered no light except for a glimmer at the other end. As one ventured deeper, points of light began to appear on the surrounding walls, accompanied by a gradually growing sound.

"When the three stars of Andromeda lit up the night sky, I was born at their intersection."

"The immense power gave me the halo of moonlight."

"To bewitch the mind, control the body, and dominate the soul."

"Even an arrogant king can become dejected, and an old woman in her twilight years can be admired."

"My enemies will wail and fall, while my master will forever be peerless in glory."

Pick me up, and I will bring you joy.

"Embrace me, and I will bestow upon you a dream."

"Lift me up, and I will give you strength."

"I am the greatest masterpiece in the world."

"I am a lovely, kind, and considerate playmate."

"I am a forbidden creation of the science of souls."

"I am the best Troy."

The voice rose to a high pitch at the end, and the low murmurs turned into a loud song. In the surrounding darkness, brilliant colors began to emerge, and a beautiful red pillow was placed in the middle of the road on a bronze stand. At the very center of the embroidered pillow, a perfectly round crystal ball emitted fantastic colors.

"Troy~~" The voice rose to a high pitch, and the crystal ball in the center trembled.

Shiny moved closer to Lyle.

"Would smashing that ball shut it up?"

The high notes stopped, and a clear, angry voice came from the crystal ball—a child's voice. It was so young that it was impossible to tell if it was male or female.

“Shining, you are delusional about something intolerable. I demand that you apologize to the mighty Troy immediately, otherwise the wise Troy will never teach you any advanced knowledge of soul science.”

Silence fell over the surroundings.

Shining walked up to the crystal ball and saw the face of an excessively cute little child inside.

"What did you say? You're teaching us about the soul?"

Troy snorted twice, and the image in the crystal ball smirked, "It's a powerful forbidden creation, the Mystic Soul Stone! Troy will teach you the most profound knowledge of soul science! Hurry up and bow your heads to thank me!"

Shining didn't bow to thank him; he turned around and looked at his companion.

“How about we smash it, then tell Mr. Astonishment that we couldn’t find a mentor and ask him to teach us?”

"Agreed!" "Agreed!"

"Alright! Most people agree, so we don't need to ask the boss's opinion. Let's begin."

Chapter 216 Mr. Shan

Shining wasn't just talk; he really dared to do it! He held the Trojan Soulstone high, as if he was about to smash it to pieces.

The crystal ball of Troy shone brightly, and its childlike voice now took on a sinister tone, tinged with a hint of mischief.

"I'm angry, you big bad guy."

A flash of light streaked across the sky, and even the manipulation and maneuvering that had occurred nearby without any direct contact vanished without a trace. A chill ran through Lyle from head to toe as he stared at the Soul Stone floating in mid-air, utterly bewildered. Without any warning, the ghosts of his three companions had simply vanished. What had it done?

"Plague Doctor, come to me, quickly!" Troy spoke in a new voice.

Faced with an invisible yet powerful threat, Lyle had no choice but to comply. Troy slowly descended through the air, the perfectly round sphere as light and thin as a feather, landing in Lyle's palm.

"Hold on tight, okay? I'm very fragile, the kind that breaks at the slightest touch," Troy gently cautioned, the Soul Stone spinning in Lyle's hand, the child inside the crystal ball tumbling and playing within. If Lyle had forgotten that it had instantly vanished three lich ghosts, it would indeed be quite adorable.

“Let’s go to the classroom, our students.” As Troy spoke, a door appeared in front of Lyle.

Lyle lowered his stance and carefully echoed the childish Soul Stone.

"Teacher Troy, my friends, what's wrong with your other students now?"

Lyle's way of expressing himself made Troy much happier. "The plague doctor is a good kid. We'll teach the bad kids a lesson. But since we're in a good mood, let's let them go."

The Soul Stone flashed with another light, and the three of them returned to Lyle's side once again.

"How are you guys doing, Shining?"

Shiny seemed to have just come to her senses, the scales on her face flaring as she looked at Lyle.

"Boss, do you know what it feels like for a flag to survive a Category 12 typhoon?"

"What? I don't know."

Shining awkwardly stared at the face in the Soul Stone.

"Yes, I understand how the flag feels."

Lyle carried Troy, followed by three others, and entered the room.

It was a small room, a small attic?

The ceiling was a pointed spire, perhaps the very top of the Tower of Souls, only it had been moved there by Troy using methods that defied the laws of physics. Most of the things in the room were hidden by a curtain, obscuring most of the attic.

On the seemingly empty side, a figure was drawing on the wall.

He was dressed in a long robe like Lyle and the others, but his clothes looked much more luxurious, made of a silk-like material, with a landscape embroidered in silver thread along the lapel. His sleeves fluttered, moving even without wind.

With his back to Lyle and the others, he traced lines on the wall with his fingers, the pure black ink flowing across it, creating a watercolor painting. Hearing footsteps, he suddenly turned around, revealing a mask resembling a fox's face.

Lyle looked at him, as if struck by lightning. There was a kind of charm about him, a charm nurtured by a different kind of landscape.

Lyle felt awkward, but still clasped his hands in a fist and greeted them.

"Hello, sir."

The masked man pulled his long sleeves together in front of his chest and bowed deeply to Lyle.

"good."

"Ok?"

"My code name is Shan. May I ask your honorable name, sir?"

"Ah, I am the plague doctor, Mr. Shan."

"good."

"???"

“I mean, the name of the Plague Doctor is really nice.”

Okay, let's just take it as a compliment.

"Mr. Shan, why did you come here?"

"Learned the art of Soulstone from the Trojan master..." I see, so he's a student just like us. "The Flattened Literary Society."

"???" Lyle hesitated for two seconds before finally speaking. "Mr. Shan, I didn't hear you clearly just now. Could you repeat it?"

"Having mastered the art of the Soul Stone, I will reform the writing style and wipe out the sycophants and opportunists in the literary society!"

Lyle thought back to the scoundrels in the literary society, and it seemed that everything Mr. Shan had said was true.

"Did the literary society offend Mr. Shan?"

"Upon joining the society, I was forced to submit to those in darkness. How could the integrity of a scholar be so easily broken! So I engaged in a verbal battle with them! Who knew that the gentleman, the reporter, and the delusional would spout nonsense and blather. Although I am eloquent, I was ultimately no match for their numbers and was defeated. After much painful reflection, I sought guidance from the Soul Society to learn the art of Soul Stones. With my innate talent of Ink Soul as an aid, I summoned two or three companions, and together we fought them to a standstill!"

Lyle thought for a moment. So, Mr. Shan had exploded during the Literary Club's juvenile ritual, but couldn't win an argument with them, so he came to the Soul Tower hoping to learn the crafting techniques for Soul Stones and then have a few assistants to help him retaliate. But Mr. Shan, if the Literary Club can't out-argue you, they'll resort to violence. This isn't something that can be solved with a few more words.

"The Ink Soul Talent. This must be it." Lyle looked at the landscape painting hanging on the wall. This was the Soul Tower, and the material was soul crystal; ordinary ink certainly couldn't be used here. In other words, Mr. Shan's ink could replace a soul.

Lyle whispered to his companion.

"Boss, this Shan seems like a very useful tool. Let's trick him into joining the Necromancer Figurine Company, then we won't need to collect souls anymore."

Lyle looked at the soulstone in his hand and felt a sense of dread; he'd forgotten to block Troy. Good was Troy's student; he definitely wouldn't agree to their plan.

"Great idea! You can use my experimental subjects then, I'm not in a hurry." Troy's childish voice sounded like a devil at this moment.

"Teacher Troy? Isn't Mr. Shan your student?"

"Yes, but that doesn't change the fact that he's also my experiment."

"Shan's body is very different from ours. He only has a layer of skin, possessing the characteristics of both flesh and soul, which can be touched and can also become ethereal. The way the power flows within him is also very different from ours. He is a very good experimental subject, no matter how much you torment him, he will recover. He himself said that he is the remains of a Celestial King from some place? I don't know what that means, but he works quite well. It's just that his brain doesn't work well."

Lyle looked at Troy, who resembled a devil, and said, "Teacher Troy, could it be that... about the Soul Stone..."

"You guessed right. Shan has been here for two years now. He's your senior, and he already knows how to make soul stones. But I would tamper with his graduation exams, so he's been repeating a year. I told him that your heart wasn't right, and he actually believed me. Now he's practicing mind cultivation through painting."

"What an idiot."

Lyle looked at the back of the man who was engrossed in painting on the wall. "It's so sad, Mr. Shan."