A hissing sound came out of Char's mouth as he recited the incantation of the invisible sword in Parseltongue. Following the process Harry had demonstrated earlier, he estimated that it should be able to significantly increase the power of dark magic such as Sectumsempra. But at this moment, he sensed the invisible edge emanating from the tip of his wand and shook his head slightly. Compared with the normal release of the spell, it had not only not gotten stronger, but had become weaker. Getting to the bottom of it, it seemed that his Parseltongue was unable to trigger the gathering of magical particles of a dark magic nature. Then, using the less proficient Parseltongue to cast spells would, of course, be less powerful than usual.
"Parseltongue wasn't working?" His mind flashed back to the image of Harry using it. With his mastery of Occlumency, his utilization of the mind was far superior to what it used to be. This meant that his learning ability and memory were greatly improved. He was certain of it. His mouth shape, breath, and so on were exactly the same as when Harry had spoken. But it was obvious that the difference between their Parseltongues was as great as the world. What caused this?
"An imaginary question? Because I'm not enough of a snake?" He frowned and started trying again. This time, in his mind, he imagined the slippery, cold, crawling feeling, as if he had really become a snake. And this time, he chose to cast a different spell. "Serpensortia!"
In the smoke, the seven-headed black snake condensed again, letting out a long roar towards the sky. But it only took a moment for him to disperse it. "It's having some effect, but it's not even better than nothing. If I hadn't been paying attention, I probably wouldn't have noticed the improvement Parseltongue brought. Although some dark magic particles did gather here just now, it's nothing compared to what happened when Harry cast it."
He frowned, thinking for a long time, but he couldn't find the problem. Harry didn't seem to be using any magic when he used Parseltongue, so it shouldn't be due to any magic-related reason. Could it be some aspect that he had not touched upon yet? Or maybe it was simply because Parseltongue required special innate qualities, and the imitated version only had the form but not the spirit? Many uncertain guesses flashed through his mind. He shook his head. Don't think about it anymore.
The effect of using Parseltongue to assist in spellcasting was certainly good, but for him, it was just the icing on the cake, not timely help. It would be better if he could master it, but he wouldn't force it if he couldn't. As for Demeter's oracle, he had the same attitude. If he learned a few ancient languages like Parseltongue, he would be able to decipher some information from the next oracle, which he naturally wouldn't refuse. But he would never invest too much time and energy in this regard. Things like oracles were illusory. Even if it was interpreted, he didn't know if it would be useful to him, or when. At least in the original Harry Potter novel, there would be no connection with any oracle in the next few years. If he invested too much time and energy in these secrets and delayed important things, it would be more trouble than it was worth.
Taking a deep breath, he shifted his attention from elsewhere back to the system panel. Compared to when he had first entered school, after this year, his system panel had undoubtedly become much more luxurious, even far exceeding his own estimates. Originally, he had estimated that if he could have one or two magical abilities reach the platinum level by the end of this year, he would have achieved his goal. And now, his magical abilities, except for Transfiguration and Dark Magic Transfiguration, which were extremely difficult and obscure areas, were basically all at the platinum level. Some magic had even reached the diamond level. It could be said that his current level of magic had far surpassed that of a first-year student. Even among the seventh-year graduates, there were very few who could surpass him in magical attainments. If they were talking about actual combat, the gap would be even greater.
But he wasn't too excited. With the system in hand, such achievements were a given. It was far from time to be complacent. After all, the battle in the Forbidden Forest trial had already given him a clearer understanding of his own magical strength. If he relied solely on magic to fight, he could use all his skills and barely reach the level of an Auror. Calculated based on one year of enrollment, the progress had been extremely fast. He could even be called a genius. But in the wizarding world, that was still far off. Not to mention wizards of the level of Dumbledore, Grindelwald, Voldemort, and Nicolas Flamel. Those elite Aurors, elite members of the Order of the Phoenix, and even elite Death Eaters... without using legendary power or life, they could easily suppress or even defeat him with magic. Even if it had happened to be when Snape's generation had entered school, even then, he might not be able to claim to be invincible in Hogwarts. In terms of magical attainments, the value of that generation was indeed not comparable to that of Harry's. Thinking of the abnormal school behavior of the students of Snape's generation, he just shook his head. Those top magic geniuses were still too unreasonable.
"Talent..." he sighed softly. If he were given Dumbledore's talent, or maybe Snape's, the increase in strength that the planting system brought to him would definitely be much more exaggerated. It wouldn't be so difficult now to take every step forward. "It's just that there's nothing I can do. Instead of complaining, we should accept the reality, plant trees honestly, and keep a low profile. The initial bonus period of magical abilities is basically over. If I want to continue to improve the magical abilities I have, especially to the diamond level and above, I'm afraid it will take semesters or even years to complete. The growth in strength from now on won't be as fast as this year. We have to be patient."
Fortunately, he had experienced this situation before when planting in the Muggle world. The first few levels could be quickly advanced by harvesting rewards, but the further he went, the slower the improvement. For example, when he was promoted from epic life to legendary life, he was stuck at the promotion node for almost two years. And the current magical ability, even if it improved slowly in the future, was at least accumulated using reward light balls of silver level and above. At least it would be smoother than the previous time when he had planted Muggle plants. It would be much easier than for most wizards to improve their magic. At least before reaching Legend, he could rely on the reward light balls to get there. "I don't want to think about so much nonsense. Plant trees! Planting trees is the hard truth!"
Then, his eyes fell on the small greenhouse. Before he knew it, the greenhouse was fully planted. When he had first entered school, the variety had been quite singular. After exploring this academic year, he could say that there was a wide variety of options. Some had even overflowed. Taking advantage of this time, it was necessary to make some new plans for the small greenhouse. Some plants no longer needed to be grown there. Like those huge water tanks. These were originally used to cultivate piranha algae. The rewards provided by the algae had indeed brought a lot of help to him. But now, with the increase in his water holdings and the blessing of cutting spells, they had reached a higher level. It was obvious that relying on these dozen or so water tanks to grow the algae was not enough to meet his needs. He didn't know how many rounds of harvesting it would take to accumulate these two abilities to the diamond level. It would be better to vacate the space occupied by the water tanks, and there should be a large area that could be reclaimed for planting. As for the piranha algae, he planned to designate an area near the coast of Sprout Island specifically for growing it. He had planned this before, but at that time, he had felt that his attainments in herbology were not enough to support it, so he had taken no action. And now, he felt he could give it a try. If it could be done, the production of piranha algae might increase further. For him, it was all good.
Then, he looked again at the various blood jades that occupied nearly one-third of the land in the small greenhouse. He also planned to move this plant out. After all, no matter whether it was currently made with the blood of three magical animals or the subsequent preparation of the blood of seven, they all fell into the category of dark magic transfiguration. According to the laws of the Ministry of Magic, once the dark magic of Transfiguration was involved, although it was not as serious as the Unforgivable Curses, it was still enough to be thrown into Azkaban to stay there for life. Planting this plant at Hogwarts hadn't caused any trouble yet, but given that in the next few years, Hogwarts was also in a turbulent period, especially the year after that when the Ministry of Magic sent in Dementors, the small greenhouse probably wouldn't escape inspection either. Rather than transplanting it later, it was better to make plans early. Just to be on the safe side, it was moved to Sprout Island for cultivation. As for whether leaving the small greenhouse would extend the maturation time of the blood jade, of course, it had an impact, but it was not significant. For Blood Jade, the longest time was spent on each transformation node. His blood could allow it to quickly skip this stage. In comparison, the environmental impact of the small greenhouse was not that great. However, after leaving it, the blood jade could continue to expand its cultivation and increase its yield. For him, it would bring greater benefits than growing it in the small greenhouse. It might even become his main growth point for a long time to come.
"In this way, nearly half of the area of the small greenhouse is empty." He breathed a sigh of relief. The land resources of the small greenhouse had already been stretched thin. He would feel a lot more comfortable all of a-sudden. This would allow him to expand the production of plants that had strict environmental requirements but offered higher levels of rewards, for example, the mutant Devil's Snare and the mutant Shadow Thorn. After this round of harvest, the yield could be increased significantly next year. As the plan gradually became clear in his mind, he also seemed to see a vast amount of work beckoning towards him in the future. But this kind of busyness was not like when he was doing scientific research in his previous life, when his supervisor had suddenly given him a cross-disciplinary project and asked him to work for a company. When he was working, he was not only busy to death but also doubted his life because he knew clearly that he was just working for his supervisor and it was of no benefit to his growth or graduation. Every moment of busyness now was for himself. This actually made him feel more at ease.
At last, his eyes fell on the mature guardian tree, especially the silver seeds that had already grown on it. His eyes were also quietly filled with a hint of heat. "The seeds have finally grown." The guardian tree had been mature for some time, and even the rewards had been harvested by him. But he still kept these in the small greenhouse. The reason was that it took some time for the guardian tree to mature, bear fruit, and produce seeds. This batch, due to the influence of Dumbledore's Patronus Charm, was of a much higher quality than usual. The seeds produced by them might also have extraordinary quality. This would undoubtedly save him a lot of effort. After all, he had experienced the rewards brought by the guardian tree. In addition to the very practical resistance to dark magic, the key was to gain insights into Defense Against the Dark Arts that could increase practical experience. When the magical strength on paper had become difficult to improve quickly, the actual combat level was particularly critical for improving strength. That's why he had been waiting until now, just to get a batch of high-quality guardian tree seeds.
Now, he waved his wand cautiously, casting a pruning spell to pick the seeds from the tree. This process was certainly not easy. It was necessary to cleanly cut off the magic node connecting the seed and the tree. This was the only way to avoid the seed quality from falling or even becoming inactivated due to improper operation. Fortunately, compared with the first time he had planted the guardian trees, his attainments in herbology could be described as a leap forward. The diamond-grade pruning spell simply had a touch of mastery. In a moment's effort, more than thirty silver guardian tree seeds fell into his hands. As soon as he got them, he could feel the rich, sacred magic contained in them. A hint of joy appeared on his face. The quality of this seed was slightly higher than he had expected. Although it was certainly not as good as the mother plant, which could approach the diamond level, if it was grown, there was still hope that it could approach the platinum level. It was much better than most varieties of guardian trees.
However, the seeds obtained could not be planted immediately. Because it had just been plucked from the tree, the sacred magic power inside had not yet reached a stable and balanced state. At this time, it had to be immersed in an external sacred magic power. Through the magic of careful blending, it could not only speed up the process but also balance the magic power within the seed. Even in this process, the sacred magic power of the seed itself could be enhanced, making the cultivated tree have a higher quality. This set of operating procedures had been perfected by herbalists of all generations. Each step had detailed instructions. Even the potions used to soak the seeds had several mature recipes to choose from. Certainly, it could only slightly enhance the sacred magic power of the seeds. After all, if there was any magic potion that could greatly enhance it, the value of the potion itself would definitely be much higher than the seeds. Just like before, if it weren't for a wizard of Dumbledore's level who had wanted to repay him a favor, the guardian trees he had planted would not have been cast under the Patronus Charm. It was also impossible to soar to a level close to the diamond level. He wanted to significantly improve the level of this batch of seeds, and even change their fate. It was unlikely to rely on these potions, unless Dumbledore summoned the Phoenix Patronus again and took action.
However, this thought only flashed through his mind for a moment before being suppressed. He wasn't prestigious enough to have Dumbledore work for him. As for the favors left over from the Forbidden Forest trial, maybe they would be useful in more critical places in the future. It really wasn't worth it to spend it on a guardian tree that was at most close to the diamond level. After all, Dumbledore had connections in the wizarding world. If he was willing to help, it might be difficult to obtain mythical plant seeds, but as for legendary ancient plant seeds, there was still hope. There was no need to consider which was more important.
There was a hint of regret in his eyes. He was just preparing to prepare the potion according to the established process. The corresponding materials were stored in the small greenhouse. With his attainments in potions, it wasn't that difficult. But just as he was about to take action, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind like lightning. "Dumbledore's Patronus Charm... that's really powerful. The Phoenix Patronus, combined with Dumbledore's own magical attainments, is probably a Patronus Charm that approaches the mythical level. But... there's a world of difference between legend and myth. No matter how weak a myth is, its essence far surpasses the legendary level. What a coincidence. The nature of my Patronus Charm is indeed mythical."
His gaze fell on the system panel and on his own Patronus Charm that was gleaming with mythical light. Although due to insufficient magical talent, even if the guardian of the World Tree was condensed, it could not be successfully summoned. Even with all his strength, he could only summon a wisp of silver smoke. But the mythical nature was real. Then perhaps his own Patronus Charm could also have some effect on the guardian tree seeds.
Once this idea came into being, his face also showed anticipation. Immediately, his wand pointed at a guardian tree seed, and he chanted the spell. "Expecto Patronum!" Then, a familiar feeling as heavy as a mountain came from the tip of his wand, making his whole body creak. A wisp of extremely light silver smoke, like real silver thread, also slowly flowed out from the tip of his wand, falling on the seed. The next moment, a clicking sound was heard. A crack immediately appeared on the surface of the seed. He was startled. Failed? But his gaze fell on the sky above the seed, and he found that the reward information did not disappear. Instead, it flickered and brightened. It was a symbol of some kind of transformation brewing. A flicker of surprise and uncertainty appeared in his eyes. But a moment later, his gaze turned firm. Even if it failed, it would only be the loss of one seed. But if he could really gain something, maybe it would bring some surprises.
Immediately, continuing to bear the weight that was pressing down like a mountain, he cast the spell again. Another wisp of light silver smoke emerged from his staff and fell on the seed again. Click. Another crack appeared on its surface. The reward information above flashed faster and faster. He narrowed his eyes. "Isn't that enough?" A moment later, a smile slowly spread across his lips. "Then let me see how much of the Patronus's magic power you can absorb."
Then, his muscles and bones were crackling all over his body. He released the Patronus Charm again and again. There were also continuous cracking sounds coming from the seeds of the guardian tree, and cracks were appearing one after another. Time passed by every second. In the blink of an eye, exactly two days had passed.
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