Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

"Yingying, that's very rude."

The grass fairy-like creature jumped up, pulled down her trouser leg, bowed to Lyle, and then trotted behind Mumu.

"I'm just a little curious, about that black one..."

Lyle's plan was to subtly reveal Nia's presence, thus casually letting these shapeshifters know he wasn't alone. This would make them hesitate, waver, and become curious.

Shapeshifters are extremely curious creatures. They hide in the shadows, and only novel things can break their disguise and cause them to inadvertently expose themselves in the process of imitation.

Lyle needed to know the number of shapeshifters here. If there were more than fifteen, he would immediately jump over the wall and escape, then call on the academy's bigwigs for assistance.

Lyle, the Star of Andrei, will only act within his capabilities.

The nascent evil god stretched out its tentacles in the paradise, displaying the magnificence and terror of the god to the astonished horde of shapeshifters.

Chapter 676 Nia's Replica

The black body covered in bone fragments delivered a visual impact that shattered all notions of beauty and ugliness. In the throes of a collapsing visual center, it presented a posture transcending the mundane. The enormous evil eye on Nia's chest opened, dragging all gazes into an abyss of emotion.

Twisting, changing, collapsing, all happened in an instant.

The quiet paradise is stirring with restlessness. The shapeshifters have shed their disguises and are gazing upon the appearance of the evil god's larva. Unconsciously, they begin to imitate it, entering a transitional phase of distortion and deformation.

A red deer, a meadow fairy, pebbles by the stream, a rose in the garden, a falling wind, a small clump of clumps of alfalfa... This paradise began to come alive. Lyle looked around and saw eleven shapeshifters imitating Nia. They became indescribable, like a pool of boiling mud erupting in place.

However, the deformation process has not ended and appears to be going to continue for a long time.

Lyle breathed a sigh of relief; the shapeshifters' abilities hadn't exceeded his expectations. Shapeshifters needed time to analyze their target's body and memories, and a high-level being like the Evil God's Lava, with its structure so complex it defied the rules, required even more time. The shapeshifters couldn't transform into Nia's complete form in a short time; they could only make clumsy, one-sided imitations from the fragments of memories they had seized.

So, eleven exquisitely beautiful four- or five-year-old girls appeared before Lyle. They had faces as adorable as young Ariana, and they looked at Lyle with silly giggles. The shapeshifter couldn't comprehend Nia's existence and chose to transform into her simplest human form. The little girls stood beside the twisted monster, and a smile of relief unconsciously crept onto Lyle's face.

"There are more and more adorable Nia now."

In this way, Lyle not only drew out the hidden shapeshifter, but also accomplished his next step in the plan.

Becoming a clone of Nia would be an absolutely terrible choice for Vilimlow.

Nia has a very obvious flaw: Nia is stupid. This flaw stems from the separation of Lyle's talent. Nia is a juvenile individual separated from Lyle; her soul is immature, and her mind is only comparable to that of a five- or six-year-old child, perhaps even younger. And now, the shapeshifter has copied her personality and inner self.

To reiterate, Nia is a little fool. And she doesn't like to think, nor does she intend to change. Nia obediently follows her instincts, and has a very strong dependence on her other half, Lyle. Leave the thinking to Lyle; the need for hunger tells Lyle that Nia only needs to fight, to wield her strength like a child.

Therefore, the eleven shapeshifters became clones with Nia's childlike appearance and childlike nature, but without her godlike physique and power. These Nia were no different from mischievous little girls, and were quite attached to Lyle.

"Lyle!" "Lyle!" "Lyle!" Surrounded by shapeshifters, they tugged at their clothes, laughing as they hugged themselves.

Lyle thought he was a genius; this could be considered a successful defection. Eleven Nias held hands and circled around Lyle, who was surrounded by an impenetrable wall of little ones. Lyle glanced at Mumu; she was still the apple tree, not transformed into Nia, but simply smiling as she watched Lyle play with the children.

"Lyle!!!" Black tentacles slithered through the gap, and the twisted larva coiled around Lyle like a snake. The real Nia puffed out her cheeks and gently pushed her clone away. "Don't touch Nia, Lyle!"

"Don't touch Nia, Lyle!"

"Don't touch Nia, Lyle!"

"Don't touch Nia, Lyle!"

The Nias started arguing, glaring at each other with their hands on their hips. Their standoff didn't last long before they burst into laughter, hugging each other and patting each other's heads. "I'm Nia, you're Nia, Nia likes Nia."

Lyle was very touched and patted his tentacles teasingly.

"Nia, why don't you learn from yourself and not be so stingy?"

"Hmm..." The tentacles wrapped around Lyle tightened their grip even more. Nia's tone was sour, like an angry calf, "That's not Nia. There's only one Nia. I am Nia!"

Glug glug glug...

The rumbling of stomachs rose and fell like a continuous drumbeat. Lyle subconsciously pulled out the leather bag containing Nia's rations and looked at the faces drooling and dazed.

"Lyle, Nia is hungry."

"Lyle, Nia is hungry too."

"Lyle, me too."

They also mimicked Nia's abyssal appetite, swaying as they stepped over Nia's tentacles, tugging at Lyle's clothes, and looking expectantly at the half-empty leather bag.

"You know, other people's kids are always cuter," Lyle thought to himself. He knew Nia wouldn't be so polite, shyly tugging at his clothes and acting all cute. If it were his Nia, she would have already grown tentacles, pounced on his face, turned his leather bag upside down, and been feasting on his forehead.

Lyle, who had been tormented by the hungry ghost multiple times, was deeply moved. He understood perfectly the consequences of Nia's hunger. For the first ten seconds before being fed, she would whine and act spoiled. If she still hadn't been fed, Nia would break down crying, throwing a tantrum on the ground, rolling around. After ten minutes, she would start destroying the house and devouring everything around her. This had happened before. One day, Nia and her Shiba Inu got lost in the jungle of Naslan. Extremely hungry, she started throwing a tantrum, startling the ghost dog. Later, Lyle held Nia, staring in horror at the circular pit in the forest, listening to the vengeful spirit witness recount Nia's efficient drilling operations.

Lyle didn't know if the shapeshifter Nia would do that, but he didn't dare to gamble; he didn't want to see a dozen or so third-stage Nias.

His hand reached into the leather pouch, ready to share the cookies with the Nias. His hand was grabbed; the real Nia pulled at it, her chitinous head opening its gaping maw to reveal sharp teeth, its evil eye on its chest staring intently at Lyle.

If you dare to share my food rations with them, I'll get really angry with you.

Lyle understood this meaning.

Nia, driven by her desire for food, put her little brain to work. She stared at her huddled, wretched clones and feigned cuteness to deceive Lyle—something even she herself couldn't forgive!

"If you're hungry, turn into something that doesn't get hungry! Don't turn into Nia! Turn into stone or mud!"

Nia and the others froze, then looked on in realization, their smiles returning.

"Yes, Nia will go hungry, so let's not be Nia!"

"So clever, just as I thought, Nia!"

"Okay, okay, Nia will listen to Nia and won't be Nia anymore."

The shapeshifters, whose intelligence had been severely diminished by transforming into Nia, suddenly understood after Nia's prompting. They narcissistically praised Nia and then transformed into stone golems or grass fairies. Even so, the shapeshifters still rubbed their bellies with lingering fear.

"How terrifying! I almost thought I was going to starve to death."

"Being Nia is terrifying."

"Being Nia is terrifying."

Chapter 677 Paradise Illusion

The shapeshifters, having learned their lesson, abandoned their desire to transform into Nia. But their curiosity wasn't over yet; a real, seemingly uncomplicated ordinary human was now before them.

Lyle seemed easy to replicate. From the fleeting memories captured through replication, the shapeshifters knew that this human necromancer, who studied at the Lich Academy, had a close relationship with Nia. Half driven by a desire to learn more about Nia, and half by curiosity about Lyle, the shapeshifters began replicating him. Their bodies twisted and changed again, and an intrusive sense of invasion arose within Lyle.

Lyle had planned this all along.

Ominous signs chuckled in Lyle's mental world, writhing shadows concealing fragments of his memories. The malevolent embodiment of fear created numerous gadgets in this already inhuman mental space, enough to make any mental intruder cry out in agony. The last one to attempt to infiltrate Lyle's mind was a fallen angel, and that tragic angel is now dead. Nia is the evil god of the flesh, while Ominous signs are the evil god of the spirit.

Lyle's clones quickly reshaped themselves, but before they could even open their eyes, their bodies collapsed as if struck by a heavy blow. These little shapeshifters rolled on the ground, clutching their bodies and crying out in pain.

Mumu pulled long, thin roots from the soil and walked over, accompanied by two other similar tree spirits. They weren't lured by Nia and Lyle's information, but maintained their original forms. The older shapeshifter was more cunning—that was the explanation Lyle could think of.

Instead of attacking, Mumu and her companions approached the small shapeshifters who were crying out in pain. Mumu extended her hands, transforming them into willow branches that swept across their bodies. A bluish-green light emanated from the three tree-men, and the shapeshifters' screams gradually subsided.

Mumu patted the head of the grass fairy named Yingying, who glanced at Lyle and disappeared into the grass.

The tiny shapeshifters scattered in a panic, while the three tree-men standing side by side looked at Lyle.

"I'm so sorry, my companions forgot the habit of respecting personal privacy, and they have been punished for it. Please forgive them."

Lyle nodded silently, his eyes scrutinizing Mumu. He tentatively spoke, pointing to the little guy who had turned back into a pebble.

“I can understand that young organisms are very curious. Actually, I wasn’t very respectful of elders when I was a child.”

“Young?” Mumu shook her head. “Yingying and the others are not young. In fact, they are older than us. It’s just that the erosion of time has weakened them, and they have forgotten many things.”

Reverse aging? Lyle realized he was wrong.

“You are not shapeshifters. Velimlow records the memories of every person he replaces, and they only grow stronger; they do not age. What... are you?”

Mumu paused for a moment, "Vilimro? What's that? What are we?"

It looked at its companion with a somewhat blank expression, receiving the same bewildered look.

“We don’t know either, but Father calls us ‘Phantoms,’ just as we don’t understand what lies outside of Paradise, we don’t understand our own birth. We only understand the present…”

“We have the gift of change; we can learn and understand.” Mumu returned to the distance near the wall monster. “My father said that our birth is accompanied by a mission, and we have been searching for our own mission. Some became the wind, some became the water, and I became a tree. Perhaps this is my mission: to bask in the sunlight, bear sweet fruit, provide shade, and become a tree.”

"To be the guardian of the park and welcome every guest. This is the mission I feel right now, a very vague but pleasant feeling."

“This is paradise, dear Lyle. We will try to understand every guest who enters here, offer them help, solve their problems, and do our best.” Mumu smiled apologetically, “provided that the guest wants us to do so.”

He was terribly wrong. Mumu's sincerity made Lyle feel utterly ashamed. He had misinterpreted the goodwill of these phantoms like a paranoid. He should have realized it sooner; from the moment they encountered the wall monsters, they had been trying to alleviate Lyle's anxiety. And he had inadvertently become even more cautious, even treating those little phantoms who wanted to help as fools.

Lyle felt the shame that had been gradually buried in Andrei crawl out of its grave and put his face on the fire.

It's time to open our hearts to these illusions.

Weird.

The more genuine and tolerant these phantoms appeared, the more ashamed Lyle's dark and ugly thoughts became. The ominous sign, with a mocking smile, further concealed Lyle's spirit and ugliness, allowing him to maintain a facade of purity and stand with these purely virtuous individuals.

The secret provided by the reporter seems to be incredibly easy to obtain.

"Mumu, can I join you? I want to join the Phantom race." Although they are not Verimuro, these Phantoms are similar to Shapeshifters in their talents; they can also shapeshift. As long as Lyle is willing to be copied, they are also suitable for his race.

Mumu's body gradually blurred, slowly merging with Lyle's outline. It extended a finger, slowly approaching Lyle's forehead. Without flinching, Lyle accepted its copy. The ominous sign loosened its control, allowing the phantom to read the thought of joining the race and advancing.

Mumu, now just like Lyle—well, a brighter, more radiant Lyle—smiled and nodded. "Want to join our race to advance to the fourth level?"

Shame washed over Lyle's heart like a surging tide.

"Eh? Why should you be ashamed, Lyle? Isn't it a good thing to want to become stronger? Only by having power can you better protect the weak. We welcome ambitious people."

Lyle was overjoyed. "So I can join?"

Mumu didn't answer directly, but pointed to the red-roofed tower at the foot of the distant mountain. "This isn't something I can decide, Lyle. That tower used to be our father's residence. He's gone now, but he left behind a 'Book of Omniscience' in the tower for Paradise and for our future. His instructions are there. You need to go there and find them. The Phantom will follow Father's will."

Lyle bid farewell to Mumu and headed deeper into the park. He was in high spirits, and the surrounding scenery seemed dazzling. The white peaks in the distance, the cool, refreshing breeze, the shimmering water flowing downstream, and the brightly scaly fish bubbling among the pebbles at the bottom. The two red deer reappeared, standing on a stone platform chewing moss; one of them was an illusion. It led Lyle through the stone circle, rubbing its antlers against the bushes, soon leaving them laden with berries.

Before Nia finished eating the berries one by one, Lyle reached the bottom of the tower. Pushing open the somewhat aged wooden door, Lyle entered the dark tower. It seemed to have been uninhabited for a long time; cobwebs hung on the candlesticks, and a musty smell permeated the room. Lyle took out a crystal block blessed by holy light and used it to illuminate the stairs as he ascended. The first floor was a reception room, the second floor's former purpose was unclear, and the third floor seemed to be the father's living room. A bookcase in the corner was crammed with books, cold winds blew through the broken window, some antique-style robes were piled in the wardrobe, and manuscripts and some unidentified measuring instruments were scattered on the wool carpet in the center.

Lyle saw the Book of Omniscience. It was prominently displayed on the sole lectern, sunlight streaming through a broken window onto its red cover, and Lyle saw runes dancing two inches into the air. Nia's tentacles easily placed the Book of Omniscience into Lyle's hands. There were no mechanisms, no magical traps, no strange powders, no locks.

This "Book of Omniscience" is very thin; judging from the spine, it contains less than ten pages. Lyle opened the book with a sense of unease.

The very first page plunged Lyle's heart into despair.

"Whether you are a cunning villain with malicious intentions, a kind-hearted person with a heart set on good, or an impartial seeker of knowledge, I, Nurfa Sheen, will never share my achievements with you. You will never get what you want in Paradise, in the Phantom Clan I created!"