Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

The dragon noticed the Dean, bent its spine, lowered its head, and expressed its gratitude to the leader.

“Fantastic, Mr. Dragon, your new appearance is even more…beautiful than I remember. Just looking at you gives me the illusion of time flowing backward. Dragons are such exhilarating creatures, and now, you are one too.”

The dragon was pleased with the Dean's praise, and he laughed happily as he discussed the arrangements after the transformation with the Dean.

The change in its form made the dragon no longer suitable to stay in Andre. The dragon's purpose in coming this time was to bid farewell to Andre. It would integrate into the Dragon Priest Council, completely resign from its work in Andre, and only retain some interpersonal relationships.

The dean did not hold Mr. Dragon's series of actions, which resembled betrayal of his race, against him.

“You will always be one of us, Dragon. You can use Bone Forest as your private airport; it was originally your carefully managed teaching ground. Andrei’s doors are always open for you. You will need them, Mr. Dragon.”

The dean looked around; it was still early.

"Could you share your feelings about your new body, Mr. Dragon? To be honest, I'm also quite curious about the structure of dragons. We still have plenty of time..."

“I am certainly happy to share this with you, Dean. In fact, my dragon priest friend will also need some time to reunite with me.”

"Dragon Priests? They'll be here too?" The Dean was delighted with the news that the Dragon Priests would be appearing in the Andrei territory. "That's wonderful news. In fact, I've already extended invitations to some club members to hold an academic gathering here about the dragonification experiment. What do you think?"

"That would be my honor."

Chapter 580 Andrei's Presidential Group

Colorful giant mushrooms grow in the dreamy bubbles, and inside these beautiful mushrooms lives a black-clad man in a pointed hat, surrounded by... a dark president!!!

A member of a literary society successfully won praise from his peers with this opening remark, and his dark story was successfully included in "Andrei's Fairy Tales".

Andrei Literary Society, today is another peaceful day.

"Roar!!!" A roar that was neither human nor ghost came from the nearby mushroom house. A monster with half a skeleton and half covered in fungi tore through the spore wall and ran out. He roared and howled. All the club members who were writing articles stopped writing and glanced at him.

Then I continued writing. It's nothing new now; that's Mr. Fungus's farm, so it's not surprising that anything could pop out of there.

Soon, two more mushroom-shaped figures covered in black mycelium emerged from behind the monster. They roared and charged at the fleeing monster.

"You're not getting away!!! You'll suffer the same pain as us!!!"

Mr. Fungus stood inside the mushroom, and through the wall, one could see the glowing spores that his fungal community had spread, and his pair of cold, sinister flames.

Eventually, the poor man was captured by his companions and taken back. He cried out for help to the surrounding gang members.

"Help me! I don't want to become a mushroom person!"

Indifference is the mark of a cold and indifferent society.

"What kind of act is Mr. Acting putting on this time?"

"I don't know. I guess she's playing the captured Blackwood Princess, who will be turned into a little mushroom by the terrifying Mushroom Queen so that she can become the most bizarre woman in the world."

"Don't want to become a mushroom person? We've all become mushroom people before, what's the big deal..."

Feeling bored, the members of the literary society started writing again, hoping for some interesting developments.

Just then, the three of them passed through the club's bubble wrap.

He is a gentleman, a journalist, and a delusional man.

They brushed aside their companions’ enthusiastic greetings and went straight into the largest mushroom house, Mr. Dark’s dwelling.

Just as they expected, Mr. Dark sat atop his bone throne, lost in thought. The bandages made his body appear both tall and comical, his hands clasped together at the fingertips in front of him, and his eyes burned with orange-red flames, fiercely blazing in the sealed darkness.

The three people who barged into the room attracted the attention of the fallen angel, who shouted at them.

"Now that you have seen the true deity, why not pay homage?"

Upon hearing this, the three men, who were about to bend down, straightened their knees immediately, exchanged glances, and bowed to Mr. Darkness.

"Supreme Lord of Darkness, please forgive your servant's fear, we have found a precious... mount for you."

The gentleman presented the letter bearing the death knell emblem with both hands. Darkness accepted it, and the void seeping from his palm directly corroded the envelope, revealing an enchanted and reinforced invitation inside.

"An academic gathering?" Mr. Dark raised an eyebrow and glanced at the contents.

"Dragons have been created? The power of the dead bones has already... no, the evil of the abyss has begun to run rampant."

"Lord of Darkness, that dragon... does it meet your standards?"

“I don’t like crude things, so I’ll just wait and see.”

Mr. Darkness stood up, his right hand clenching in mid-air, feeling something was missing. He ripped the curtain hanging on his right side, tossed it behind him like a cloak, and shouted with what he considered utmost style.

"go!"

Mr. Dark strode forward, followed closely by the gentlemen. Because the three gentlemen were distracted by the curtain lying on the ground, no one noticed that Mr. Dark's eyes narrowed for a moment.

"Dragon, the old dean called me over, most likely for that reason. I really don't want to go, but I owe him a favor. These old fogies are all incredibly shrewd."

……

Magic Research Club.

"Mirror! Mirror! Let me out! My detention time is over!!!" Mr. Miracle looked at the desk behind the mirror, which was empty.

"Stop arguing, Miracle. Mirror went to an academic gathering. Your confinement has been extended."

"Damn it! This isn't the first or second time he's shirked work! Why is he being so enthusiastic this time? Why should I have to stay in jail for a few more hours!"

"Well, you'll get into trouble and go back to jail sooner or later anyway, so consider this an advance punishment! Jing has to go there with the invitation signed by the dean."

"..."

……

Advanced Magic Research Club.

Mr. Gravity was like an old father, watching the nameless man bustling about in the laboratory.

"Nameless, how's your research on your new subject going?"

"Progress is rapid." Wuming didn't even turn his head.

The mentor, who was struggling to think about the topic, wanted to offer some help.

"What stage have you reached? Research has commonalities, so maybe I can give you some experience."

Wuming paused for a moment, looked his teacher up and down, and gave him a suspicious look.

"I'm currently in the 'friend to best friend' stage, busy building my fiefdom. Teacher, do you have any quick ways to increase my favorability with young men?"

"???"

Gravity felt he was getting old, or going mad. Or perhaps Nameless had gone mad, because of his intuition, he decided not to continue the conversation.

"Actually, President Tianqi just received an invitation to the Dean's academic gathering. He can bring one apprentice, but the president didn't have anyone in mind. It's not because I think you're the most free or that I think you have some kind of problem with your thinking. I just thought that the academic gathering would be helpful to your research, so I applied for it for you."

"Teacher, did you die alone...? I don't think academic gatherings are helpful to my metaphysical research. I want to focus more on my research. By the way, who is the host of the academic gathering that both Professor Tianqi and the Dean are paying attention to?"

"Mr. Dragon, and his student, Mr. Plague Doctor. Mr. Plague Doctor has already held two academic gatherings; he's truly an outstanding young man. Perhaps you could..."

Nameless grasped Mr. Gravity's hands, maintaining a respectful expression in his indifferent gaze.

“Oh, teacher, I understand your good intentions. I will definitely cherish this opportunity! The doctor is exceptionally talented and virtuous, and I will definitely strive to learn from him.”

Mr. Gravity breathed a sigh of relief and smiled with satisfaction.

"President Apocalypse is waiting for you at his Tranquil Base. You can quickly return to Andrei through the portal."

Faced with the nameless chick nodding like a pecking rice, Mr. Gravity said a few more words.

“Nameless, I believe in your sensitivity to fate, and this ability can help you turn bad luck into good to some extent. But don’t rely too much on your talent, and don’t become arrogant because of it. This academic gathering is different. The dean personally extended the invitation, which means that there will be many… monsters among the colleagues attending the academic gathering, monsters that even fate cannot stop.”

After a moment's thought, Wuming nodded cautiously.

"But can such an academic gathering really attract so many monsters? I feel it's more like... deterrence? Does Andrei have guests?"

Gravity shrugs.

"I have never denied that this is a deterrent."

Chapter 581 Dragon Calamity

The crater created by the dragon's fall had been filled in with earth and stones by the elementalists. The dragon, which had presided over the gathering, hadn't provided tables and chairs for the participants; in fact, apart from Lyle, no one cared whether they stood or sat. The liches' attention was entirely focused on the dragon's skeleton, and they followed the dragon as it circled in place, slowly rotating its skull. The executive committee used runes to demarcate the venue, driving away liches without invitations.

"This is for your protection." No one cared about the veracity of the executive committee's words; the liches only knew that their curiosity had not been satisfied. Outside the fully opened barrier of the Word of Power, they expressed their concern in their own way.

Some liches used magic to create high platforms, while others used skeletal constructs to support themselves. Some even formed skeletal scaffolds with their companions, completely unconcerned that their bodies were crushed at the bottom. They tossed their skulls to their companions at the top, and soon a dozen or so skeletal totem poles, hardly more normal than the deformed constructs, were erected. The lich at the very top spread his arms, with the skulls of his companions hanging neatly on his arms, like colorful lanterns hanging on a festive night, a sinister celebration.

"Move a little to the left. I want to see that big, thick tailbone inside the keel. Do you see the diamond-shaped cuts on both sides? It's so beautiful. If it pierces through me, I hope it will leave me with some notches or marks. I will keep it forever."

The magnificent dragon bones always reminded the lich of their destructive power, and this destructive power, in turn, led to thoughts of the harm they could inflict upon him. The destructive impulses fueled by the brainstorming session kept the academic gathering in a frenzy, and coupled with the awe-inspiring legend of the dragon bones, there was no reason to stop this feast of knowledge.

Andrei's colleagues, waiting within the barrier, looked more like liches; their reaction to the dragon was far more indifferent, their amazement merely sealed within their eye sockets. The dragon and the dean continued their conversation, while Lyle was caught by the literary club members and joined by Mr. Zhiyan.

After a long and indescribable series of twisted rituals, Mr. Dark and the three members of the Literature Club finally let Lyle go and turned their attention to Zhiyan.

"Long time no see, Mr. Zhiyan."

"Long time no see, Gentleman, Reporter, and Delusional." The three liches smiled and slowly approached Zhiyan. As the most unsociable field member of the literary society, Zhiyan had never thought about how to face them. He had heard that they were more troublesome than any of Professor Andrei? Bones above, save me.

The three men reached out their hands and, under Mr. Zhiyan's flustered gaze, gently patted his shoulder, as if they were close friends.

"Congratulations, Mr. Zhiyan. How was your first time participating in an academic gathering? Even if you were just an assistant, it's still an achievement worth celebrating. How about we go celebrate together later? I know a bar in Wandering City with good food that you'll like."

This is what it feels like to be welcomed. The gentleman's friendliness surprised Mr. Zhiyan, and this much better-than-expected response turned his surprise into joy. He seems quite approachable. That Lyle, he's been talking badly about these gentlemen behind their backs, what a rascal!

After chatting for a while, he discovered that the three members of the literary society shared the same interests as him. Mr. Zhiyan's loneliness, which had been caused by his long-term solitary life, was greatly relieved. He even regretted meeting these three so late in life.

"Okay, I will definitely be there on time tonight." Zhiyan happily accepted the gentleman and the others' invitation.

The reporter smiled and said, "I'm afraid you'll have to break your promise, Mr. Zhiyan."

"what?"

Mr. Delusional suddenly said something.

"The enemy will arrive on the battlefield in thirty seconds."

Upon receiving the instruction, the three members of the literary society suddenly bowed in unison to Zhiyan and shouted.

"Mr. Zhiyan, we are very sorry that we have let you down. Our recent activities have not met your standards, and we are ashamed. If possible, please forgive us!"