allendalepharm Chapter 200 The Mind Snail's Tunnel
Chapter 200 The Mind Snail's Tunnel
Chapter 200 The Mind Snail's Tunnel
Professor McGonagall could no longer tolerate Grindelwald and Lockhart's antics in front of the entire school. She walked to the podium...
Death stared at the two men, forcing them back to their seats, and then began to introduce the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
Remus Lupin!
Compared to Grindelwald, the Boggart who forced Dumbledore to restrain himself from casting a spell, Lupin seems to have nothing to do with refinement and elegance.
He looked somewhat down on his luck.
My hair is a bit messy; it's the kind of frizzy, uneven hair that hasn't been properly styled and remains messy even after I've tried my best to comb it.
His face was tired and ashen, with an indescribable haggardness that lingered on his face, as if he hadn't had a good night's sleep in years.
His clothes had several patches, making him look more like a homeless person.
In the past, let alone Slytherin kids like Draco, even Harry would have thought the other party was unreliable.
However, after Lockhart's year-long teaching, the young wizards learned to observe others from a "wizard's" perspective, and Lupin's image made everyone wonder if he was another powerful wizard.
To paraphrase Professor Lockhart, some wizards are so powerful that they don't need an image to define themselves; in fact, some seemingly terrible appearances are simply means for them to embark on their magical path.
Lockhart's former online friends called these kinds of people "hidden masters," the most sophisticated kind of people, the epitome of playing dumb to fool others.
Yes, Lupin is indeed very strong, but he is actually a homeless man.
Because of the fact that the werewolf transforms every month, he finds it difficult to find a good job to support himself. Also, because of his werewolf identity, some people suspected him of being an undercover agent sent by Voldemort during the Order of the Phoenix's battles, and he was unable to get help from his former comrades.
Anyway, all these years, he has been wandering, enduring countless hardships.
Everyone is struggling through their own life—this was Lockhart's reflection after meeting Lupin before the dinner.
Lupin has really had a tough time.
This gentle, even somewhat mild-mannered wizard, while pleasant to be around, always maintains a noticeable distance from you.
He was infected with wolfsbane at a very young age and became a werewolf. This sense of distance can almost be considered Lupin's camouflage, not to mention his wandering life over the past ten years.
McGonagall clearly felt pity for the child she had watched grow up, so she made arrangements.
Let Lupin and Lockhart live in the Forbidden Forest together, hoping that these two young people who are not far apart in age can influence each other. It would be better if Professor Lockhart were more composed, and if Lupin were more cheerful.
Having made this arrangement, she naturally began to consider more. Taking advantage of Dumbledore's absence from the school, she decided to banish Grindelwald to the Forbidden Forest as well, to prevent him from causing trouble on campus. Dumbledore had also mentioned assigning Lockhart to watch over Grindelwald.
And so, after the dinner, the three of them, carrying their own suitcases, began to walk towards the pitch-black Forbidden Forest. Grindelwald, still annoyed at how he had become Lockhart's teaching assistant, walked ahead with his suitcase, saying nothing.
Lu Ping was the kind of person who kept quiet and wouldn't say much unless someone tried to talk to him.
Lockhart had no choice but to shut his mouth as well.
Fortunately, a new member joined soon.
Professor Kettleburn, who only has one and a half limbs left, was on his way to inspect the adventure area at the edge of the Forbidden Forest when he saw Lockhart and his companions. After learning the reason, he excitedly expressed his desire to join them.
"This place is much closer to the adventure arena than the castle. I'm in charge of this area now, so living here is definitely a good choice."
Professor Kettleburn and Lockhart were discussing their plans to expand the adventure area, which quickly caught Lupin's attention. Since this concerned the upcoming lessons, he began to take careful notes of what the two professors were talking about.
"Playing house?" Grindelwald scoffed, interrupting their conversation. "Do you really think this will produce real warriors?"
Lockhart shrugged. "Adventures at school aren't about sending young wizards on adventures, but about cultivating a habit of embracing adventure, encompassing everything in life, and giving them more possibilities in life."
"Adventure drills are still very useful," Professor Kettleburn countered. "We've really seen the young wizards grow; it's a great way to improve their overall abilities."
Zhanping stood by, seemingly lost in thought, but offered no comment.
And so, as they discussed, they arrived at a corner of the Whomping Willow, where Hagrid was already waiting for them.
When the group arrived, Hagrid, covered in mud and looking tired, stood on a large rock, holding a shovel as big as an excavator, panting heavily.
"here--"
Lockhart looked at the boulder at Hagrid's feet, estimated its location, and then thought, "The path to the Screaming Shack is blocked?"
"You know?" Hagrid paused for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, it's been sealed off. Professor Dumbledore ordered me to seal off all the secret passages leading out of the school."
Oh wow, this is a change Lockhart never expected.
As the secret passages leading from the school to the outside world are sealed off one by one, the security of Hogwarts will be greatly improved, and Dumbledore's attitude has clearly changed.
Lupin looked at the scene before him with some emotion. He knew that the secret passage and the Shrieking Shack were actually built by Dumbledore for him when he was studying at Hogwarts.
Even the name "Screaming Shack" comes from the fact that he transformed into the werewolf Ghost Howl on the night of the full moon, causing many residents of Hogsmeade to believe that the place was haunted and thus they dared not approach it, hence the name "Screaming Shack".
This secret passage was frequently used by their small groups of raiders in the past.
Dumbledore's decision to have Hagrid seal the secret passage was likely partly due to Sirius Black's potential escape.
"Is blocking it with a stone enough?" Lockhart looked down at the large stone at his feet with some curiosity. Yes, it was a very large stone, but there was no magical power on it. It didn't seem to be a magical seal, but a purely physical seal.
"This is a 'snail tunnel for the soul.'"
Grindelwald suddenly spoke up, and seeing everyone looking over curiously, he casually explained, "You've all seen snails, right? They constantly extend their tentacles outwards. Those tentacles are filled with various sensitive nerves that help them analyze information such as air, moisture, humidity, and temperature. They are actually an extension of their minds."
"The extension of the mind leads to the transformation of the body, thus growing tentacles?" Lockhart pondered.
Grindelwald raised an eyebrow and nodded.
No wonder Dumbledore values this young man so much; he's truly a clever man who knows what he's going to say as soon as he starts speaking.
"The characteristic of the Mind Snail Tunnel magic is that it is created by walking. It is an extremely profound constant transformation. When someone in a group walks out of the rules, the path naturally extends in front of them."
Grindelwald stomped on the stone beneath his feet. "When it is blocked, and more people in the group believe that it is no longer passable, the passage will lose its support and collapse."
The fact that matter influences mental cognition and ultimately causes magic to take effect or become ineffective undoubtedly contradicts Lockhart's own theory of magic, yet there seems to be some common logic to it.
Lockhart's expression turned strange as he wondered why Grindelwald was telling him all this. He suddenly remembered that Dumbledore had promised to let Grindelwald teach him the magic and knowledge to repair Nurmengard Castle, and he hadn't expected that Grindelwald would actually be teaching him.
It's quite interesting that Grindelwald, this seemingly mystical prophet, actually follows a magical path that focuses more on existence and reality.
This, in turn, runs counter to Lockhart's philosophy, which places greater emphasis on spiritual experience.
Lockhart was very suspicious that Grindelwald was deliberately teaching things that contradicted his own magical philosophy.
That old baby is really naughty.
He was truly wicked, but he was also incredibly capable of doing what he said he would do; Grindelwald was actually teaching Lockhart how to construct such a magical passage.
The incantation was very complex and long, written in ancient runes. It was a complex and nested incantation with various intonations, and it sounded like a song. The strange and unique reduplicated sounds made Lockhart feel that it was not a snail spreading its tentacles, but a loach swimming and sliding in the mud.
"Castle-type magic requires talent," Grindelwald said with a mocking smile, watching Lockhart silently recite. "For those who know it, it's simple; for those who don't, it's incredibly difficult. Young man, take my advice: you're not suited for this path of magic. You—"
However, before he could finish speaking, a very unique light appeared on the two young men in front of him at the same time.
The light, like that of a torch, flickered and shone incessantly, illuminating the damp, dripping cave and refracting strangely shaped spots of light everywhere.
"!!!" Grindelwald looked at Lockhart with some surprise, then at Lupin, who was almost ignored by him.
This young man?
How could they so easily cast castle-like magic?
For a moment, he seemed to begin to understand why Lockhart was telling him that this was actually a more wonderful era. Perhaps the future of wizards and Muggles really wasn't going to be about fighting anymore?
Grindelwald fell into deep thought, his heterochromatic eyes gleaming as if trying to glimpse the possible future.
When Lupin saw Grindelwald looking at him, he quickly loosened his grip on his wand and somewhat embarrassedly dispelled the magic. His actions could actually be considered stealing, even though Grindelwald hadn't kept it a secret when teaching Lockhart.
He wasn't deliberately stealing the knowledge; the secret passage and the screaming shed in front of him always reminded him of his happy school days, and what Grindelwald was saying also reminded him of the wonderful experience of his small raider team researching and creating Marauder's Map together.
So, as I listened, I inadvertently became engrossed in it.
He always had some moral burden.
Lockhart, on the other hand, did not have this burden.
He was so excited, shaking his wand and feeling the unique magical power surging through him, shouting excitedly, "Let me try!"
Lockhart's attempts to use magic were never simple.
Magic is life, and magic blossoms in adventure. This has almost become his philosophy of magic, and he always follows this line of thinking when casting spells.
Now, all they need to do is find a suitable place to live in the Forbidden Forest.
He had originally planned to set up a soul bonfire and make do for the night, but now, with this magic, he suddenly had other ideas.
So he looked around for a while, his eyes lit up, and he called to everyone, and ran towards the hole under the willow tree.
Following the partially blocked passage, they arrived at the large rock that Hagrid had blocked, and continued forward, waving their wands.
It's really interesting. A glass corridor is inlaid on the original stone slab passage and appears in front of us. Not far ahead, there is a bend, and the path ahead is vaguely blocked by mud.
"Where are we going?" Hagrid asked nervously. "Dumbledore doesn't want any secret passages leading to the outside world from the school."
"The Forbidden Forest—" Lockhart thought for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. "Our destination: the lair of the Eight-Eyed Giant Spider!"
Boom!
The passageway vibrated, as if the entire secret passage had become completely unobstructed.