Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

Just as Lyle was about to knock on the door, it opened automatically.

A lich dressed in strange white clothing emerged from inside.

Wait a minute? A lich? Emerged intact from inside the Chapel of Holy Light?

Lyle's mind was already in a daze, and he numbly bowed and said goodbye to the lich he didn't recognize.

The interior of the chapel remained bathed in a light that seemed to stand still, as if time had stood still. Mr. Raymond stood on the pulpit, and upon seeing Lyle, he leaped forward and crashed into Lyle's face.

Mr. Raymond enthusiastically raised a ball of holy light.

"Lyle, why don't you return to the embrace of the Holy Light! The Holy Light's power has increased again!" Like a child being kidnapped, Raymond's behavior towards Lyle was far from his arrogant, top-tier combat power persona. Is this a case of unexpected charm?

“Mr. Raymond, there’s something I’d like to show you.”

Raymond didn't mind Lyle's polite refusal; he maintained his sunny enthusiasm. "Okay, see if there's anything you need my advice on. Since you've come to me for help, it must be something rather tricky. Don't worry, I'll help you solve it."

“It’s not a troublesome thing.” Lyle took the Lich Crown out of his pocket. The reason he had concealed the crown beforehand was mainly to create a sense of surprise. Just like now, the Lich Crown’s flashy brilliance had disappeared, leaving only a subtle radiance and a faint, leaking aura of a divine artifact. If it were only seen for the first time, one would probably think it was a high-level divine artifact. Unfortunately, Lyle had already learned about the crown’s sycophantic nature from the Dean’s memories.

This guy pretends to be reserved in front of Mr. Raymond; he's a cunning strategist.

"This is……"

Mr. Raymond's deep voice interrupted Lyle's elaborate and elaborate introduction.

"Andrei, the Lich King. I know this one."

Lyle and the Lich's Crown were both stunned for a moment. The Lich's Crown emitted a small burst of magical fireworks, which were quickly concealed. It must be extremely happy now, realizing that it still had an impression of its idol.

"That makes things much easier, Mr. Raymond. The Dean asked me to give you the crown." Of course, the Dean hadn't mentioned this; it was for the sake of the Lich King's happiness. What did you say? What about the crown? Go ask Raymond for it! Sorry, Dean, currying favor with Raymond is a very pleasant thing, and since it was Raymond who did it, I couldn't stop him.

Raymond lifted the crown with one hand, bringing it closer and closer to his helmet. Lyle could even feel the crown's restless movement; it seemed ready to leap onto Raymond's head at any moment.

“Please wear it on your head, Mr. Raymond. The Lich Crown is a sentient artifact; in fact, it chose you long ago.”

Raymond stared at the crown that was constantly glowing in his palm, and after a brief moment of contemplation...

"So, the Lich King will obey my commands, right?"

The Lich's Crown responded enthusiastically to Raymond, as if to prove itself. Delicate magical threads wove themselves onto the crown's gem tips, and Raymond's name even began to appear on the crown's surface. The pale blue magical glow was forcibly changed to the golden hue of holy light. The Lich's Crown truly tried its best.

"I see, it really is a useful and magical tool."

Lyle and the Lich King smiled together; the agreement was fulfilled.

“Lich Crown, then I command you in the name of your master.” Raymond placed the Lich Crown on Lyle’s head. “From now on, you will serve the Pure Ones as Lyle’s personal property!”

???

A bewildered Lyle removed the Lich King from his head.

The Lich King's Crown floated in Lyle's hand, slowly turning the gem-encrusted front towards him.

Lyle could even guess what it was trying to say.

How come this is different from the script?

Chapter 327 The Necromancer's Figurine Shop's New Business

In Lyle's hands, the Lich King's Crown began to tremble, and Lyle even suspected it would crack in his grasp at any moment. Lyle looked at Raymond's sturdy helmet without making any extra movement; Mr. Raymond was not joking.

He was actually planning to give the artifact, the Crown of the Lich King, to Lyle! If Lyle knew that Raymond had once casually given away his own holy sword, Thurmond, perhaps he wouldn't be so astonished.

"Mr. Raymond, why are you unwilling to wear the Lich Crown? Does it have some negative effect on the power of the Holy Light?"

Raymond shook his head. "No, Lyle. The Lich Crown is the crown of Andrei's clan. This clan power, which cannot be rejected by any force, can certainly bring me certain benefits."

“But I cannot wear it, not for myself, but for you, for Andrei.”

"For Andrei."

“The Lich Crown is the crown of Andrei’s king. Of course I know what its submission means.” Raymond tapped his helmet. “It means that I will ascend the throne. I will become Andrei’s Lich King.”

"What's wrong with becoming Andre's leader?" While managing Andre's chaos is necessary, isn't Mr. Raymond himself Andre's biggest source of chaos? As for the qualifications of a king, Mr. Raymond, you are already Andre's uncrowned king.

Raymond shook his head. "The king is chosen by the people, but the people of Andrei are those liches. Those liches who run away at the sight of me, do you think they have any chance of supporting me deep down?"

"The Dean holds the crown because the liches have tacitly accepted his leadership. Every lich, good or bad, respects the academy he painstakingly built."

"But do you expect them to bow down to me? It's not as easy as me tearing their bones apart. Not giving them a recognized leader will only lead to the decline of the tribe."

"As long as I wear the Lich's Crown, Andrei will gradually fall into ruin."

It turns out that Mr. Raymond really was thinking of Andrei's best interests.

“Mr. Raymond, if you start treating liches well from now on, will they eventually support you?”

Raymond crossed his arms.

"I'd rather die than see those bastards who I wouldn't mind being beaten ten times a day. Let me destroy Andrei bit by bit with my own hands."

"..." Mr. Raymond refused the Lich King, and he had good reasons.

Lyle left the Holy Light Chapel with the dimly lit Lich Crown in his hands. The Lich Crown, now aware of the reason behind this, knew it wouldn't be able to get on Raymond's head anytime soon and became dejected.

"Lich's Crown, I'll send you back to the Dean." There was no answer, nor any objection.

Lyle returned the crown to the dean, who had known this would happen, and took his leave.

The executive committee is recalling the original versions of the Hungry Flesh, and Mr. Crimson has been ordered to temporarily halt creation. The recalled flesh has been returned to the Necromancer's Figurine Company, awaiting Lyle's experimentation and adjustments.

Lyle returned to the clubroom and gently pushed open the club door.

In the dark room, Lyle stared wide-eyed.

A tsunami. A massive mass of purplish-red, writhing flesh with protruding knuckles formed a rolling, three-meter-high, ten-meter-wide tsunami of blood and flesh, which suddenly rushed toward him!

"Holy crap! Nia!" Nia emerged from behind Lyle like a black snake, her flesh instantly transforming into a pale, bony shield, the edges of her bone spikes piercing the ground like reefs, blocking the impact of the tsunami.

"What happened? In my club?"

Fortunately, the attack of flesh and blood lasted only a moment. The pile of minced meat on the ground returned to its "shell" like startled snails, a giant nautilus shell with a diameter of two meters that Shanliang and the others were holding.

"Congratulations, boss! The research on starving flesh and blood has been a complete success!"

In other words, the tsunami of flesh and blood just now was something like a celebratory cannon salute? But looking at the jerks' snickering and twitching jaws, they might have had the idea of ​​taking Lyle away.

"I'll accept your congratulations for now." The Necromancer Figurine Company was not bothered by the Lich Bane. This was related to the large order they had recently received from the Black Abyss Demons. Since the organizer of the academic gathering was their own president, and they were not interested in the new research, it was only a matter of time before they got the hungry flesh and blood. There was no need for them to squeeze the Lich Bane at the academic gathering.

"If we had known it would turn into the Lich Bane, we should have gone together!" Shining was always eager to stir up trouble.

Lyle wiggled his fingers, looking at the production records transmitted through the control panel.

"Manipulation, how could this part have such huge experimental expenses? The most outrageous thing is, why did they actually make a profit from these expenses? They made more money than the orders for the Spine Wheel!!!" Lyle looked at the business genius in the club in astonishment, very eager to understand the process.

Mr. Flexibility responded, “Andrei is evolving, and we must keep up with the times. We owe this to the boss’s hungry flesh and blood, which led us to new business opportunities. We manufactured new goods and sold them to those imposters.”

"What have you built?"

"denture."

False teeth? You guys are really something, selling false teeth to liches! Lyle thought about it carefully; liches really do seem to have very few teeth. Humans' teeth are located in the alveolar bone during life, connected by gums and other substances. After death, muscles decompose, the bone layer gradually dies, and eventually the teeth become loose and fall out. In starving flesh, there are no teeth. This means that those liches can only use their teeth, which are decades or even centuries old, on their upper and lower jaws to chew. Providing liches with false teeth might actually be very profitable.

"Don't worry, boss, we released a variety of powerful dentures during the Lich Bane. Forget eating, even drilling holes is a piece of cake! There are also multiple shapes to choose from: multi-layered shark teeth, spiral threads, and even conical teeth that can be moved! The sales were phenomenal; for days and nights, our guild was packed with imposters waiting to pry open the doors!!!"

"Necromancer Figure Company False Teeth! To help you devour everything!!!"

Lyle felt a cold sweat break out on his forehead. So, the fact that Andre had been gnawed beyond recognition by the imposters was indeed partly his gang's fault. If the executive committee were to break down the door now and arrest everyone in this room, none of them would be innocent.

As expected of a necromancer figure company aiming to lead a new era of necromancy, it has already begun to become the mastermind behind the Lich Bane.

Filled with guilt, Lyle touched the tons of Oriu gold coins he had earned from selling his dentures.

"I'm going to perform some restrictive modifications on the hungry flesh and blood. You guys need to help me."

"By the way, adjust the fit between the dentures and the starving flesh and blood a bit more."

"Since the customer has paid, we must provide him with the most attentive and high-quality service."

Chapter 328 The Three of Us

The liches' lives have indeed changed to some extent. For example, it's lunchtime now. This concept hasn't been fully implemented in the liches' minds yet, because the new camouflage of hungry flesh hasn't been released. But the liches have also changed their habit of hiding in laboratories; they're working diligently in Andri Castle... repairing the buildings they once devoured and destroyed under the strict supervision of the Executive Committee.

Lyle left the laboratory and walked toward the Cup of Extravagance.

As the current president of the Cup of Extravagance, Arianna, during her time as a lich, consistently maintained her pre-mortal habits, including various aristocratic tea parties. After obtaining the Hungry Flesh, these events became even more frequent. Perhaps due to her long-standing pursuit of understanding desires, Arianna, now experiencing hunger, behaved more consistently, only her appetite increased slightly. Her Hungry Flesh, for various reasons, was not reclaimed; the Law Master merely offered a friendly reminder.

Although Lyle himself could sustain himself using the nutrient solvents transformed from Nia's mucus, he would not refuse tea time led by his beloved Ariana.

Ariana Earl Grey tea, after her own continuous improvements, truly has a unique flavor. Especially when enjoying it while sitting next to the Lady of the Moon, Lyle felt as if he were drinking in Ariana's ethereal beauty.

As you approach the interior of the Cup of Extravagance, the beautiful woman who had remained indifferent throughout smiles. Her fingers, still shaking the spoon, continue to move, and her jewel-like eyes watch Lyle as he closes the door.

"Mr. Dragon is preparing for his consecration course and won't be returning to the Cup of Extravagance anytime soon. Lyle, would you like to enjoy these delicacies with me? Although, apart from the black tea, they were all prepared by my maid Monina."

“It’s my pleasure, Anna.” Lyle removed the Plague Doctor mask, and Andrei’s unique, eerie aura clung to his face, carrying a peculiar tactile sensation.

"Dining at Andre is a wonderful experience."

Ariana fed Nia a piece of pastry, glancing at Lyle who was drinking tea. "I thought you were used to it. Naslan isn't much warmer than Andrei; the ghosts steal the warmth from the air."

“As for my feelings, Anna, ghost maids are much more pleasing to the eye than moving skeletons, and I don’t have to worry about my safety in Naslan.” Lyle pulled the bent spoon out of Nia’s mouth.

"Where is the gentleman? I haven't seen him lately."

Ariana pulled Nia, who was still fuming atop Lyle's head, into her arms, stroking the newly formed smooth bone plates on her tentacles. "I don't know, the gentleman is always elusive. The night you held your academic gathering, I saw him leave the Cup of Extravagance with great enthusiasm, saying, 'Tonight the three of us are going to do something big!' That was the last time I saw him."

Lyle picked up a handkerchief and wiped the crumbs from Ariana's mouth. Her skin was so smooth and delicate, it was hard to believe he had created it. Perhaps he had been rubbing her for too long; Ariana held a knife and fork, her cold eyes practically devouring him.

"In other words, the gentleman may have attended the academic gathering, become an imposter, and made some big moves."

Ariana and Nia began feeding each other. "I heard the Executive Committee caught some overly excited imposters."

Lyle, who had witnessed the scene, nodded. "The members of the Literature Club filled an entire wall. I reckon the Literature Club room is empty right now; they're all spinning around like tops in the air. Mr. Gentleman might be mixed in there. At the time, the Literature Club president, Mr. Dark, had my attention drawn to him, so I didn't see him."

Ariana had a spoon in her mouth, as if she had thought of something.

"Speaking of Mr. Darkness, Lyle, have you met Mr. Raymond?"

Lyle put down his cutlery; he was already full. "Yes, I just met Mr. Raymond."