allendalepharm Chapter 261's difficulty increases dramatically.
Chapter 261's difficulty increases dramatically.
Chapter 261's difficulty increases dramatically.
How powerful are Muggle rocket launcher grenades?
The young wizards, born into three pure-blood families, felt this very clearly.
In that instant, they felt they were going to die. Their past lives flashed rapidly through their minds, and all the emotions in their lives seemed to burst forth in that moment, shining with their final brilliance as they passed away.
Voldemort once discovered this extremely strange phenomenon of death, a phenomenon that is difficult for non-magical Muggles to perceive directly: the scream of the soul at the moment of death.
Of course, without exceptional talent, even an ordinary wizard would find it difficult to sense or even utilize this "soul cry" in such a short moment.
unless……
Someone is secretly providing assistance.
When a serpent of indescribable size and length traverses the river of time, when a soul is drawn into the river of time, everything becomes long in an extreme instant, and every extremely subtle change in oneself becomes so real.
Thus, Crabbe's "Soul Bonfire" descended from the sky like a raging river of fire, sweeping across the land. The two-colored flames resembled two intertwined pythons writhing in the river.
It lacked the scorching heat of Fiery Blaze; it even healed the physical injuries of everyone present, including enemies.
With the inclusive embrace and gentleness of Mother Nature, it holds every living creature in its arms, pats them softly, and lulls them to sleep.
The Muggles who were brandishing weapons visibly calmed down, and the giant stone statues that had been moving returned to stillness, exuding an indescribable tranquility.
In this brief moment that felt like an eternity, everyone's emotional outbursts were strikingly vivid.
Cedric remained in the same position, forcefully urging his flying broomstick and fire bolt to rush in front of Crabbe and Luna, the two younger students, to protect them. He gripped the flying broomstick in one hand and waved his wand vigorously in the other.
A silver-white shield vaguely appeared in front of me.
This is a spell similar to the Ironclad Charm, belonging to the summoning spells within Transfiguration, and is a defensive spell with powerful magical and physical defense.
(P.S.: During the battle at the Ministry of Magic, Voldemort used this spell to block Dumbledore's attack magic.)
This magic possesses the most prominent characteristic of ancient witchcraft—it is both evil and beautiful.
It is beautiful because it symbolizes 'love' and 'protection', and evil because it symbolizes 'sacrifice'.
It can be the power of sacrifice exerted through the love and protection of others, or it can be the power of love and protection released by sacrificing oneself.
It all depends on the individual.
As death approaches, the soul roars and cries out in the river of life, revealing the individual's true nature.
Cedric yearns to be a hero; he is a born leader and possesses an innate capacity for self-sacrifice.
All these emotions are neither good nor bad in the face of time. It is difficult for people to distinguish whether they are willing to sacrifice because they want to be a hero, or whether they are willing to sacrifice to create the image of a hero.
But this is the unique and wondrous essence of an individual's soul.
Such a soul essence blossomed with the most powerful force in the face of death. The shield began to unfold, not growing much larger, but protecting Crabbe and Luna, whom he wanted to protect, behind it.
Its essence doesn't even have the concept of space.
What followed was a barrage of exploding grenades in front of him, accompanied by the "Stop Curse" cast by the black wizard, and even body-binding spells and sniper bullets fired from behind on flying broomsticks.
Everything was kept out by this magical shield.
Then it transformed into an indescribable force, dully striking his soul.
Such an impact is painful. Cedric doesn't yet possess such a particularly unwavering belief and will, and he will feel pain. However, this pain is countered by the magical power that erupts from the joy of protecting his companions and becoming a hero, and it seems to transform once again into this spiritual power of 'sacrifice,' 'love,' and 'protection.'
Its transformation is so wondrous.
Luna was the most caught off guard among the three young wizards. As a second-year student, she had to realize the importance of Professor Lockhart's earnest teachings about building a solid foundation. High in the sky, she was at a loss as to what kind of magic to use to fight, or how to defend against Muggle firearms.
She was somewhat anxiously urging the flying broomstick forward, but she had to find that she couldn't withstand the excessive force of the powerful fire bolts.
Someone like her is not suited for fighting.
Death was inevitable. The grenade exploded in front of her, shrapnel flying everywhere. Her eyes were wide open, and it seemed as if the fragment flying towards her head was still reflected on her retinas.
Then, time seemed to stretch out to an extremely long period.
She immediately felt the wondrous power of 'time' at work. She seemed to see a great serpent running across the river of time, or a dilapidated pirate ship swaying on the river, or countless strange and wonderful colors blooming before her.
The colors blended yet repelled each other, squeezing and twisting, and her eyes became hazy as she stared intently at the changing colors.
In a daze, she saw a delicate pink hue detach from the colorful surface, fluttering and dancing like a butterfly.
She stretched out her finger, watching it fall in front of her, feeling the unimpeded and uninterrupted communication between it and her soul.
It's called Good Luck.
She caught a stroke of good luck.
The pink wings flapped rapidly, their delicate pink color seemingly filling her vision in an instant, instantly engulfing her entire world.
Good luck is coming.
So all she had to do was wait for good luck to come and leave everything to this wonderful magic.
Thump thump~
Thump thump~
Thump thump~
During this extended period of time, she seemed to become extremely quiet, so quiet that she could hear her own heartbeat so clearly. She did nothing but stare blankly at the pink color, waiting, waiting for change.
The change came so abruptly.
A powerful force instantly swept into this world, disrupting the flow of time. As a result, she saw the sky again, heard explosions and roars again, and felt the tugs of her clothes being pulled by the high-speed movement. All of this clearly pulled her back to reality.
The whole world twisted and spun.
She felt as if she had been transported to a chaotic world, where everything was twisting and turning wildly, making her feel like vomiting.
boo~
She stumbled and fell to the ground, broom and all. She frantically waved her hands, one hand touching the solid ground and the other touching a foot.
Then she felt a pair of warm hands gently lift her up, and when she looked up, she saw Professor Lockhart with a bright and gentle smile.
"Children, you did a great job!"
Luna quickly looked around and saw Cedric and Crabbe; they were on a grassy hillside.
Beside him, Dumbledore put down the Elder Wand and said with a hint of reproach, "Giddro, I do not agree with you subjecting your students to such a near-death experience!"
Lockhart released Luna and shrugged somewhat innocently. "I think we're capable of taking care of her, right? Just like you took care of Harry and his friends as they braved the obstacles to protect the Philosopher's Stone."
Grindelwald chuckled beside him, while Dumbledore's lips twitched, too lazy to say anything more.
He knew that Professor Lockhart understood the difference.
Harry Potter is different.
It's really different.
Take, for example, the battle the young wizards just faced. It was the same Muggles and firearms, the same dark wizards, and the same stone statues. If Harry Potter were in that battle, he might not even need their help.
This has nothing to do with strength.
It's a very peculiar state.
but……
Dumbledore glanced back at Luna Lovegood. He had just sensed a similar power emanating from the little witch—a magical power akin to divination, prophecy, or curses, operating within the rules of the entire world.
Equally wondrous.
Oh, so such magical power and such magical experience can actually be replicated?
Dumbledore found it very amusing.
The three young wizards found it far from amusing; they were terrified. As they emerged from the influence of the River of Time, the temporal dislocation subjected them to a rapid onslaught of real-world information, and the near-death experience continued to assault their minds.
Time travel is not something that ordinary wizards can experience; its impact is far more complex than simply walking from a room to the street and then back to the room.
Lockhart led them aside, offering them chocolates to comfort them. "Eat some, it will make you feel better. Then, try to recall the feeling of releasing magic after your soul completely transcended the bonds of the mind. That will be of great benefit to you."
The three young wizards looked somewhat bewildered, yet thoughtful.
Magic can sometimes be quite simple.
It doesn't even need any complicated theories, it's just a feeling.
Once you grasp that feeling, even if you know nothing, you can become a powerful wizard.
This adventure will pave the way for their future magical journey, as long as they savor its rewards.
Their professor Lockhart has done all that can be done; the rest is up to them.
The battle that just happened seemed dangerous, but there was a safety net that the young wizards overlooked: the defensive system built by Boggart, Little Golden Hair, and Hakimi.
Boggart can shield them from almost all magical attacks, Little Golden Hair can shield them from almost all enemies attempting to approach, and Hakimi can shield them from almost all cannonball attacks.
But this is a last resort.
If their friends had intervened, the three young wizards wouldn't have had that wonderful experience.
"Enjoy it!"
Lockhart offered them a few words of encouragement, then let the sack covers flutter overhead to shield them as he walked toward Dumbledore and Grindelwald. What followed was their battle.
"How is it?" He looked at Grindelwald with some urgency.
"This place has been completely sealed off by my magic." Grindelwald smiled and looked at the young wizards behind Lockhart. "That's Voldemort for you, isn't it? He looks down on these young wizards, but his attention is inevitably diverted."
The area in front of us, located on a farm in North America, has been enclosed by magic, with only a Floo Net fireplace for entry and exit. While this seems to have the effect of defending against external enemies, it has also turned this place into a forbidden zone.
In the realm of "castle magic," Voldemort was no match for veteran dark wizards like Grindelwald. The ocean of magical knowledge was so vast that even Voldemort, whom Dumbledore feared, didn't know everything.
Leaving this place using methods such as door keys, apparition, or fireplaces will be prohibited!
Then, let's close the door and beat the dog!
Their battle has begun.
In fact, Voldemort had already been alerted when Lockhart cast time magic on the three little ones and Dumbledore used Apparition to pull them out of the danger zone.
A plume of black smoke rose rapidly from a corner, exploded in the sky, and transformed into a giant skull. The skull opened its jaws, and a huge green serpent snaked out.
Black Mark!
Lockhart's original self also used similar magic during his student days, recklessly releasing his giant head towards the sky at school, but in reality, the two spells were completely different in nature.
The original user used normal marking magic.
Voldemort's Dark Mark, however, possesses powerful magical abilities.
The power comes from Horcruxes.
This is an extremely unique magic system.
These dark marks, branded on the arms of the Death Eaters, are not static; they change depending on Voldemort's state.
The Dark Mark on the arms of the Death Eaters fades with each previous death of Voldemort; it grows stronger upon his return; and after his complete death, it becomes a powerless lightning bolt scar.
It will change to varying degrees depending on Lao Fu's physical condition.
The dark magic mark on the arm can also be used for apparition to locate enemies, to unleash searing pain to punish subordinates, to distinguish friend from foe in a large-scale spell like Grindelwald's gas stove, and even to send messages when necessary.
Correspondingly, the "Reappearance of Bones" magic, which releases a Black Magic Mark into the sky, will also have some of the functions of the Branded version.
This has an extremely subtle connection to Horcruxes, so subtle that Lockhart suspects the Dark Mark was actually created by Voldemort using fragments of his own soul.
He didn't know the specific principle behind it.
The book "Deciphering the Dark Arts," which contains all the knowledge about Horcruxes, does not contain this information. It is clear that the Dark Mark was developed by Voldemort based on the Horcruxes.
The methods of casting high-level magic in this world are not a secret; in fact, they are effects that will naturally be produced when one reaches the appropriate stage.
That is to take a certain magic as the core, integrate one's understanding of all other magic into it, use this magic to sort out the other magic, and thus connect them into a powerful system.
The most eye-catching item is Grindelwald's gas stove.
Lockhart was alright; his exploration of memory and time also helped him sort out and digest many magical concepts, but he didn't manage to unify them into a new magic as stably as Old Man Gertrude and Old Man Voldemort.
"Dumbledore..."
The skull in the sky looked down at the figure on the hillside, and a huge echo reverberated between heaven and earth, booming like thunder.
"Lockhart..."
"Grindelwald..."
"Oh, they're all here!"
Dumbledore gripped the Elder Wand, coldly staring at the Dark Mark before him. "Tom, you're always so disappointing!"
Behind him, Grindelwald didn't bother to communicate with Tom at all, and instead waved his wand, releasing strange spells that resembled black satin, obscuring everything in the area.
The Muggles who were covered up panicked instantly, dropping their weapons and scrambling to find places to hide.
This spell clearly possessed the power of a 'Muggle Expulsion Charm,' instantly dissolving all threats posed by Muggles.
Just kidding. No matter how powerful Grindelwald and Dumbledore are, their bodies are still human flesh and blood. If they were hit by a bullet, they would get a big hole in them. This is something that their magical power can't prevent.
Therefore, Muggle weapons are dangerous, and we should still take precautions.
As the silk ribbons covered the sky, the wizards who were not affected by the banishment spell fled in all directions. However, the fog that had appeared out of nowhere made them lose their sense of direction and feel heavy.
For a moment, the whole world seemed to fall silent, leaving only Voldemort, who was standing high in the sky above the Dark Mark skull, and Dumbledore and his companion on the hillside.
There were also faint hissing sounds of snakes coming from the surrounding factory buildings.
(Kill them!)
(Attack from behind!)
(We are basilisks, let's stare them to death!)
The snakes were making noises as they slowly crawled out of the factory.
It's quite subtle. Dumbledore, Grindelwald, and Lockhart all understand Parseltongue. Hey, it's practically like they're plotting something over the top.
Then, Dumbledore waved his wand, and the surrounding mist instantly became exceptionally thick, leaving only the green light emanating from the giant skull high in the sky, so conspicuous.
Within the green light, the green smoke snake that crawled out of the skull seemed to be writhing and flying towards them.
boom!
In an instant, a large hole was blasted open in the hillside.
The three people who were originally standing in the large hole have quietly disappeared into the mist, each searching for their own place.
This operation is extremely difficult. Facing Voldemort, who is so powerful, we cannot kill him and turn him back into a ghost, as that would be a waste of such a good opportunity.
Capture him alive; this is the only way to deal with Voldemort, whose Horcruxes have not yet been completely removed.
Grab him!
The difficulty level has increased dramatically.
Lockhart loved these kinds of adventures; they were so much fun.
This time, he's going to go on a rampage with Dumbledore and Grindelwald!
(End of this chapter)