Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 586 - 539 Giant Dragon and Dragon Priest

The tomb they had broken into was built by the mermaid tribe’s Dragon Priestess Princess for her beloved, and although Lyle hadn’t reached the scene, only gaining a vague understanding through Mr. Zhiyan’s trembling narration, there was one thing he was very certain of.

Mr. Zhiyan and Mr. Giant Dragon must have run into big trouble.

"Plague Doctor, do you know what sound it makes when ice crystals grow inside a skull? It’s like there are five or six rats gnawing inside your brain, the relentless squeaks of rodents. You might even feel that being encased in ice wouldn’t be so bad, at least sparing you from the worry of that swelling sensation bursting your head open the next instant..." Mr. Zhiyan placed the tips of his right-hand fingers to his lips, gnawing at them, leaving one unable to determine if the chattering of his teeth was due to a chewing habit or simply pure fear.

Princess left quite an impression on Mr. Zhiyan.

"That woman stood at the entrance of the main tomb, with ice crystals reflecting light floating behind her, the cold wind howling through the tomb, and in her hand, she held Zhiyan’s skull, frozen in ice, like someone carrying a lantern. The chill emanating from her ethereal body made me realize she wanted to turn me into an ice lantern as well." The Giant Dragon took over the storytelling from Mr. Zhiyan, "So we had a brief clash..."

"Teacher, did you win?" It must have been Mr. Giant Dragon who won, otherwise, how could you have survived fully intact until now.

The Giant Dragon shook his head, "We were at a stalemate. I had just entered the Six Locks, while Princess was firmly at the Seven Locks level in both magical power and output. She was one of the Dragon Priests, a guide from the era of the giant dragons. I found myself at a disadvantage from the get-go, but the lich’s calm soon helped me find a way to restrain her. She could have obliterated me with one strike, but she was cautious and careful not to let the rampant ice crystals damage any bit of soil or stone on the walls."

That was the tomb of Princess’s beloved, so of course, she would do everything to protect it. Lyle looked at his mentor, this upstanding elder who, aside from his peculiar interests, had no apparent flaws since they had met.

"Teacher, did you..."

"I dismantled the thigh bone of the deceased to use as a weapon, and that woman dared not collide with me, only glaring at me with murderous eyes... Plague Doctor, whether to utilize some despicable means is our personal choice, but you should prioritize survival above all. We might not fear death, but high-ranking spellcasters possess means to transcend it. Had I not done so, maybe I would have ended up like Zhiyan, frozen and turned into a collectible under the deep sea."

Regaining his senses after some tea, Mr. Zhiyan lightly tapped the tabletop, "To correct that, at that time the woman intended to make the two of us part of her husband’s funerary objects, so we wouldn’t be dragged underwater to see the mermaids, but instead, spend the eternal years watching that human skeleton until the end of the world." Mr. Zhiyan spoke with ease because Mr. Giant Dragon’s actions had completely attracted the wrathful Female Dragon Priestess’s enmity, and even now, the Frost Mermaid only remembered that damned Lich Andrey who had toyed with her husband’s remains, not Zhiyan who was subdued from the start. "If you ask me, she must utterly hate you, Giant Dragon."

"She has merely forgotten you for the moment, Zhiyan. If she recalls your mockery of her love poetry, that mad woman would not hesitate to freeze you once more. During my battle, you mocked her to no end, the freezing couldn’t silence your mouth as you disrupted her spellcasting with your taunting, well done Ancient Literature Scholar."

"I might have a foul mouth, but it’s better than you upturning someone’s coffin lid. I still remember you dancing with that poor man’s bones, the mad woman’s screams nearly shattered the ice."

Lyle, watching the two constantly mock each other, could only interrupt them by asking a question.

"So what happened after that, Mr. Giant Dragon, how did you reconcile or at least temporarily halt the conflict?"

"The woman called for her brother, another Dragon Priest, also known as the Scholar." Giant Dragon’s expression darkened as if recalling something terrible, "We had met briefly at the academy, and that was the first time I was introduced to his Dragon Priest side."

"Eight Locks, a humanoid magic network node. The Scholar’s arrival always leaves a profound first impression. Like a tidal wave of abyssal magic power..."

"The Scholar is a dignified but gentle man. As an intermediary between a Dragon Priest and Andrey, he mediated the conflict between Princess and me."

...

"Brother!!! They are damned tomb raiders!!! If they invaded your tomb and meddled with the bones of your wife, Quray, would you negotiate peace with them!!!!" Princess’s eyes were icily fierce, and the entrance to the tomb had already been sealed by ice.

Morocoy’s bizarre mask was flowing with magical ripples, and his gaze rested upon the Giant Dragon, which lay prostrate on the ground, suppressed by magic.

"I would tear them apart mercilessly, assuming they don’t have the capacity to completely destroy the tomb. Mr. Giant Dragon, may I ask you to put down the skull in your hands, and also rescind the sigil of the Skeleton Gate, we all wish to avoid further deterioration of the situation."

"Morocoy, Brother!!!!"

"That is my judgment, Princess. Mr. Giant Dragon is more dangerous than you imagine."

"Heh, just because he’s also called ’Giant Dragon’?" Princess snorted coldly, but still threw the skull of Zhiyan back to the feet of the Giant Dragon.

"No, because his taboo creation has just passed the Salvation Association’s certification, Mr. Giant Dragon has become a member of the Nation Destroyer level, your tomb is in jeopardy, my sister."

Princess clenched her fists, remaining silent.

The Blue Dragon Priest removed the restraints from Zhiyan and the Giant Dragon, shifting the tone of the conversation.

"But gentlemen, breaking into a tomb is a discourteous act, after all. I hope you will express your apologies to my sister and offer some form of compensation..."

"I want them crushed to dust!" Princess let out a roar like that of a Giant Dragon.

"Crushed to dust? No problem!" the Giant Dragon responded even quicker than the Blue Dragon Priest, and under the surprised gazes of Zhiyan, Princess, and the silent Morocoy, the Giant Dragon easily snapped every bone in its own body, and from the constantly regenerating skeleton, he extracted another set of shattered bones.

"Do you want more? I can give as much as you want."

Princess left in a huff.

Morocoy removed his mask, revealing a skull face identical to that of the Giant Dragon; the pin on his robe was a Black Dragon Badge. The scholar extended his hand to the Giant Dragon.

"My codename is Scholar, and I am also a member of the Salvation Association, a Law Enforcer. Mr. Giant Dragon, congratulations on becoming a member of the Salvation Association. Although our first encounter was not perfect, like you, I am also one of Andrey’s faculty, currently a professor of Magic, and I believe we will have much to discuss."

"By the way, I am also your supervisor, ’undying and indestructible’."