Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

Chapter 321 Everyone's a Traitor, Backstabbing in the Dark

Raymond stood calmly among the imposters, while the mushroom-like beings hesitated to approach due to their photophobia.

Mr. Darkness looked at the man bathed in light, and his maniacal laughter pierced through the five fingers that covered his face, reaching everyone's ears.

"Finally out, Angel of Light! Holy Calamity! My nemesis! Merok Raymond!"

Raymond sighed. "George, did the power of darkness take your mind along with it? You were perfectly normal when you were alive."

In response to Raymond's sarcasm, Mr. Dark changed his posture, grabbing the bandage on his left hand with his right and trembling with excitement.

“I know you can’t hide it from me, Raymond! You’re afraid of me, afraid of my power to unseal the seal, because that would easily destroy you and your holy light!”

Raymond looked at Mr. Darkness.

"Leaving aside your defection halfway through, George, where do you get the audacity to provoke me? Have you forgotten? The only time you ever beat me since you died was in the popularity ranking of the Andrei Society. I was last, you were second to last. Apart from that, you've always been getting beaten by me."

"Pah! It was clearly an evenly matched contest; I was just at a slight disadvantage!"

"If you think that rolling me into a ball is an even match, then there's nothing I can do."

Mr. Darkness snorted, "Don't be so smug! This time, I've been away for three days! Do you see behind me? These resilient warriors! These loyal members! My literary society members have been transformed! Although I didn't expect you to recruit a bunch of comical liches from somewhere, but! My enemy Raymond! How can your bunch of cooks possibly fight against my Dark Legion!"

Raymond looked at the so-called legion of darkness, those fat and bloated mushroom men, huddled together head to head and butt to butt, like a large rotten plantation.

"I think it's a perfect match. The chef's army versus the ingredient army, I'm bound to win no matter how you look at it."

Darkness realized it couldn't gain any verbal advantage.

"Further words are useless! Dark Legion, attack!"

Driven by the dark, passionate energy, the mushroom man roared and charged forward, engaging the imposter in close combat.

Due to the magical restrictions imposed by Andre Academy itself, the intensity of the fighting was very low, more like a shoving and brawl.

An imposter who stayed by Raymond's side acted as his strategist.

"Lord Raymond, although we have received your encouragement, they are not simply mushroom ingredients. They possess flesh and blood that have undergone a mutation from the mushrooms, making them stronger than us overall. Moreover, our flesh and blood have endured prolonged hunger, and our muscular strength is no match for theirs... I'm afraid..."

Raymond thought to himself, "I never expected anything from you anyway."

Following Ellian's advice, the missionary work should proceed step by step. First, gain a group of followers, then establish Raymond's authority. Finally, in this environment of worship, continuously demonstrate the mysteries of the Holy Light, ultimately turning the lich back to the right path.

It is indeed very troublesome.

"Your Majesty Raymond, please remember that there is no distinction between noble and lowly in the use of Holy Light. As long as it can absorb believers, even if it is used for cooking, it is the right method."

Damn it, I'm really going to be a chef now. Raymond complained inwardly. He originally planned to use holy light to cook in order to win over Lyle, but he's ended up getting himself into this mess.

Forget it, I am Raymond, and I absolutely cannot let down the expectations of the Holy Light.

Raymond raised his head again, divine light shining through the gaps in his knight's helmet, and looked at the lich beside him with feigned mystery.

Do you know what the essence of cooking is?

The imposter's heart skipped a beat, and his hands began to tremble. "Lord Raymond... I don't know, please... please teach us..."

Raymond nodded. Facing the admiring gazes around him, he felt as if he had returned to his former life, to the way the paladins, priests, and nuns looked at him in astonishment when he had defeated the other bishops.

"True deliciousness often requires only simple processing to preserve the most natural flavor of the ingredients. This cooking method places very high demands on the quality of the ingredients themselves."

"I'll show you what I'm made of!"

Raymond raised his hands, and a dazzling light gathered in them, covering his hands with holy flames, but the flames flickered a few times before going out.

"The droplets of the Holy Light Sea, with their supremely pure energy, are as sweet as water and as delicious as honey, satisfying both the palate and the spirit. Simply scald them with holy flames to bring out their aroma!"

As a tantalizing aroma emanated from Raymond's hands, the liches who were biting each other stopped what they were doing.

"A glowing dish, Sheng Hai's nourishing soup dumplings!"

With a light tap of Raymond's fingertip, the glowing water ball splashed onto the head of a mushroom-like creature.

Good grief, they're pouring boiling water in someone's face!

Although all the liches looked on with envy.

The mushroom-like creature that had been soaked underwent a dramatic transformation. Its fungal body swelled up like a balloon, constantly growing, evolving, and dividing its spores. Just as it was said, it was a powerful tonic, promoting the growth of all living things and providing excessive nutrition.

This is a good thing in itself; however, mushroom people are not a naturally occurring species. The power of holy light possesses the most powerful exorcising ability in the world, and its impact on evil is devastating.

Now, the deadly spores of the fungus master are exactly what Mr. Raymond considers filthy.

In an instant, flesh shattered, spores burst open. A translucent skeleton detached itself, its white bones stained a golden hue. Before the starving flesh dissipated, a blissful, intoxicated smile graced its face; clearly, the pool of soup had brought the lich immense pleasure.

However, the pleasure is fleeting.

Having lost the mushrooms and the flesh and blood, this member of the literary society returned to normal.

who am I? where am I?

Holy crap! Raymond is right across from me!

Holy crap! The boss is right behind me!

Holy crap! They're fighting! I'm in the middle of the battlefield!

What to do! What to do! What to do!

With the boss watching from behind, I can't afford to offend him! But I also can't afford to offend this plague god in front of me!

After much thought, an idea came to him.

The lich collapsed to his knees with a thud. He turned and stretched out his limp, boneless hand towards the Dark Lord. At that moment, as if possessed by an Oscar-winning actor, the lich uttered a hoarse voice.

"Lord Darkness, I have failed. The Holy Light has shattered my body and broken my soul. I am about to fall, but please take my will and continue to crush the light. Because..."

"Darkness is immortal!!!"

*Thud*, the literary club member started lying on the ground pretending to be dead.

Darkness was unaware of his acting skills; he was completely absorbed in the thrilling scene of the underling sacrificing himself to ask the boss to pass on his will, coupled with his own catchphrase.

"Aaaaaaah! Darkness is immortal!!"

As Raymond listened to his roar, another ball of holy light slammed into the face of another mushroom man.

"Awesome!!!" The exclamation of purifying flesh and blood and experiencing delicious food.

"Huh?" Coming to her senses, she realized the crisis she was in.

"Ahhh! Darkness is immortal!" He collapsed to the ground.

This scene keeps repeating itself.

Raymond even took the time to ask a question.

"George, you've been howling for so long, aren't you going to come up and get a beating?"

Mr. Darkness gave him a cold look.

"The main character always appears last."

"...You are still alive, it is truly my mercy."

Finally, the ground was littered with the "corpses" of the literary society. Mr. Darkness trembled in the air as if having an epileptic seizure, and he raised his hands.

"Power, I can feel it. The will my subordinates are passing on to me, their resentment towards the Holy Light—I truly feel it!!!"

Raymond saw that the "corpse" lying behind the darkness twitched noticeably, as if it was trying to suppress a laugh.

Mr. Darkness transformed into a gust of wind and charged over.

"I will defeat you today, Raymond! The Holy Light will be extinguished at this moment!"

Raymond's palm burst forth with intense light.

"What's being extinguished is your intelligence, George, my stupid little brother!"

Chapter 322 The Lich Bane, The End

The conflict had subsided, signaling the imminent end of this lich calamity. Raymond stood outside the chapel, gazing at the orb of light in his hand; its bright, pure surface reflected his face.

A gust of cold wind swept through Andrei's passageway, causing ripples to appear on the surface of the glowing liquid sphere.

“You’re back, Lofdi.” Behind the pillar, a gaunt figure emerged from the darkness—the Protoss, Lofdi. He knelt on the ground, his dull body making him look more like a zombie.

“I’m back, Bishop Raymond. I apologize for the time it took.”

Raymond looked at the Protoss's body; his skin had darkened once more, and the metal armor covering his body had turned black. "The Void's influence on you is greater than I imagined."

Lofdi lowered his head, tilting the back of his head high. "I used the holy light given to me by Lord Raymond to do something else. It's alright, the erosion of the void is still very slow, and I can withstand this level."

“I cannot bear it.” Raymond stood before Lofdi, looking at the Protoss’s hunched body. His bodily functions were distorted and deformed; his joints were bent, and his spine was arched. He could no longer straighten his chest, yet he still stood about 1.5 meters tall. “I cannot bear to see a warrior of light tainted.” A ball of light coalesced in Raymond’s hand, its gentle glow causing Lofdi to involuntarily close his eyes.

Mr. Raymond was a generous bishop, and his radiance was the most intense Lofdy had ever seen. Lofdy thought with pleasure, bowing his head to await Raymond's favor.

"Lofdy, would you like to learn how to cook?"

"???" The abrupt question made Lofdi look at Raymond with confusion.

However, his answer puzzled Raymond as well.

"Your Excellency, what is cooking?"

"Cooking is...the act of processing food to make it easier to eat."

Lofdi suddenly realized what was happening, and with a serious expression, he answered the bishop's question earnestly.

“I can’t cook, Your Grace. Nor do we need to learn to cook, because our way of eating may not be what Lord Raymond thinks.”

While surprised, Raymond then realized that the Protoss race did not have lips.

“Our skin can absorb liquid nutrients and secrete metabolic waste. The digestive cells under the skin allow us to eat at any time. Every breath is a meal.” Lofdi stretched out his palm, and that three-fingered palm became illusory in Raymond’s vision.

"A ball of energy?"

“Yes, sir. Protoss are half-energy beings. We can convert parts of our bodies into energy, fusing the energy we need. Absorbing energy is our most efficient way of eating. Even with matter, we can absorb the energy it carries, although the conversion rate is much lower.”

Raymond condensed a ball of holy light and gave it to Lofdi.

“I understand now. The Holy Light is not only your faith, but also the foundation of your existence.”

“No energy is purer than Holy Light. High Templars can even assimilate the Holy Light generated within their bodies to achieve self-sufficiency, or even immortality.” Lofdi absorbed the Holy Light, and a bright Holy Energy flowed through his skin, illuminating the Protoss's body one by one.