Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 610 - 563 Eternal Shine

"Is this the soul of the Giant Dragon... the Giant Dragon’s love for its kin..." The Giant Dragon reached out his fingertip and gently touched the mask on his face, performing the action with such care and caution as if any stronger touch might break that beautiful mask.

"Congratulations, Giant Dragon, you have achieved your desire, and I, I have gained a powerful ally." Mr. Scholar stepped forward, with Mithril Chains crawling on the ground, their tips already at the feet of the Giant Dragon, "The soul of the Giant Dragon is a fierce and conflicting power, newly born Dragon Priests often need some time to adjust... I can assist with mitigating those conflicts..."

"Is that so? But I feel very good, better than I ever have." The Giant Dragon turned his head, and the phantom image of the dragon nestled on his shoulder, its wild breath bringing forth Mr. Scholar’s magical dragon.

With bated breath and concentrated spirit, Mr. Scholar regained his composure, still with a hint of surprise. "The compatibility between you and the Giant Dragon is astonishing, my old friend. You are as if... born for the Giant Dragon."

"I am," replied the Giant Dragon bluntly.

"For me, today is a reason to be joyful."

"For me as well," said the Giant Dragon as he looked at the remains of Kolosis, whose pieces began to crystallize, turning into a gem, "A tormented soul has found forgiveness, and I will carry on his responsibilities."

Turning his body, the Giant Dragon faced the Gemmatus Manu that had assembled at some point. His words resonated powerfully, like a deep dragon’s roar reaching the ears of every Manu. The Giant Dragon had killed their Mad King, Kolosis.

The Gemmatus Manu knelt around him, and Marcelo, picking up the fallen Mercury Stone staff, knelt on one knee before the Giant Dragon, offering up the crown.

"My king."

It was a promise, an acceptance. The Giant Dragon, having obtained the power of the Dragon Priest from Kolosis, had also gained something new. He picked up the staff, no larger than a toothpick, and returned Kolosis’s crystalline remains to them.

"I will inherit everything from Kolosis and Koranac, and love you as I love animals. Ah, I’m an animal protector, so that’s actually a very precious oath."

"The Manu Clan will follow your will." Fortunately, the Gemmatus Manu didn’t pay too much heed to Mr. Giant Dragon’s emphasis, although Lyle felt it was quite informal.

"Dragon Mentor, this..." Lyle, fully healed, stepped up with the glowing Dragon Crown in hand, drawing everyone’s gaze with its most brilliant treasure.

"This is a treasure of the Manu..." The Giant Dragon directly decided the fate of the Dragon Crown, looking to Mr. Scholar.

Mr. Scholar bowed slightly, a gesture of deference to the new king.

"We only need the knowledge of the Dragon Bone, and you, as the Dragon Priest. The Dragon Crown... I’ve crafted one before, crafting another would not be any trouble."

"Very well." The Giant Dragon handed the Dragon Crown to Kate, the overseer of Gemmatus Manu, whose hands fumbled with the precious gift.

Since the arrival of the Giant Dragon and his companions, the Manu Clan not only solved their survival crisis, and received a batch of precious gems but also ended the reign of terror of Kolosis, and now, even welcomed back the Dragon Crown. This was something the Manu could not have achieved; the Dragon Crown should belong to the new king. But the new Dragon Priest, the Giant Dragon, was much more imposing than Kolosis, at least Kate now dared not defy the will of the Giant Dragon.

"Seek the advice of the Gem Sage Destan," Kate whispered, carrying the valuable Dragon Crown back to the clan. Little Chacha, brimming with curiosity, stared at Kate’s crown, but the sensible girl also obediently crouched in her spot.

Having become the leader, the Giant Dragon swiftly issued a series of directives to the Manu People, including gathering the tribespeople, moving back to Ashpurin, and post-war cleanup. The brave Marcelo and the modest Kate became his aides, and without surprise, these two were poised to be the Manu Clan’s new Gem Sages.

Kate went to arrange the Manu Clan’s return, while Marcelo approached with a large floating crystal inside which Mr. Zhiyan was sealed.

The Mercury Stone staff lightly tapped the crystal, and Mr. Zhiyan immediately fell out of it, cheering for regaining his freedom while piecing together his skeleton and at the same time issuing his observation plan for Ashpurin for the next month. Mr. Zhiyan wanted to have a thorough look.

"There is something more important that requires you, Zhiyan," the Giant Dragon laughed heartily, lifting his hand into the mound of dirt.

"Roar!!!!" The Gem Dragon, taken over by the Spirit Summoning Master, directly tore through the scholar’s rock seal and stood behind the newly appointed Dragon Priest. Mr. Zhiyan’s gaze became fixed, and the crystal slag hanging from his jaw resembled his drooling saliva. The Giant Dragon turned around and instructed Marcelo.

"I will requisition a section of Koranac’s Dragon Bone for a while, and later, I will return it to Manu."

"No, no, King, what you have bestowed upon us is already enough..."

"This is not a bestowal. I promised Kolosis I would ensure the brilliance of the Dragon’s Firstborn shines eternally on Manu’s crown. This is an order, Marcelo."

Maslo knelt and placed his hand on his chest.

"We shall follow your will, without fail."

From then on, the Manu Clan’s hardships came to an end.

The terror of the Mad King ended, and the Giant Dragon became their new king. Lyle felt his mentor had changed significantly, as the soul of the Giant Dragon altered a part of him, enabling him to shift some of his affection from animals to the Manu People.

Mr. Zhiyan remained engrossed in the Gem Dragon Bone, hanging himself on it day and night; occasionally, when Lyle passed by, he would hear him involuntarily shouting in ecstasy.

The scholar continuously assisted the Giant Dragon in his work related to the part about the Dragon Priest. The Manu Clan’s population was now too small, and they still needed humanitarian aid from the City of Wandering—their ties to the Dragon Priest Council’s campaign were reinforced. They also had a grand plan, and the support of an additional group was welcome.

Lyle suddenly found himself with spare time, frequently using the scholar’s teleportation portals to travel between Naslan and Ashpurin, mainly because Nia missed her new playmate, the silly dog Chacha, whose range of activities had expanded. The Giant Dragon had been busy managing Manu lately, and Andrei’s classes were on hold. About this, he specifically asked about the recent status of his classmates, such as Shiny. It turned out that they were having a blast lately; classes on Dragon’s Beatdown were canceled, and the other White Bone Spirit Summoning Studies professors didn’t have the same propensity for violence as the Giant Dragon. Some itchy-skinned Lich apprentices even played a game of jumping from the Soul High Tower, seeking the thrill of being crushed, though the pleasure was brief.

Besides the serious trouble caused by the liberated White Bone Spirit Summoning Studies apprentices in the City of Wandering, Lyle’s life was calm and smooth. William had a rough patch since he suffered from a headache caused by the runaway Black Abyssal Demons and Andrei Liches’ Spine Wheel.

One month later.

In the Underground City of Ashpurin, bathed in the light of the gem sun and within the send-off from the Manu Clan.

Lyle, the Giant Dragon, and Mr. Zhiyan stepped into a new portal.

"Teacher, where are we going?"

The Dragon Priest Giant Dragon let out a hearty laugh.

"Home, to my home."

"To my final resting place."