At David's enthusiastic invitation, Ryan also tried a Fire Snake Fruit. As he bit into it, sweet and sour juice filled his mouth. Although the taste was pleasant, Ryan initially felt that if this was all the fruit had to offer, it hardly deserved to be called "precious."
However, just as he was thinking this, the juice flowing down his throat suddenly ignited a burning sensation—as if a line of fire had traveled from his throat to his stomach. He felt the warmth spread through his entire body, flowing into his limbs and flushing out all the internal dampness and heat. It swept away the discomfort he had felt since arriving. Then, as a breeze swept by, Ryan felt a refreshing coolness he hadn't experienced in a long time.
"This is a good thing," Ryan said to Hermione and a second-year Hufflepuff student beside him once he had recovered. "It removes the body's discomfort caused by humidity and heat. It should also prevent heatstroke. You should try some too."
"Awesome." David gave Ryan a thumbs-up. "Not many people our age can perceive the special effects of the Fire Snake Fruit so accurately on the first try. If you can recognize it, you must be good at herbal medicine."
"Indeed," Hermione replied after taking a deep breath from eating the Fire Snake Fruit. She looked visibly more energetic. "Ryan sometimes assists Madam Pomfrey, our school nurse."
Using this as a starting point, the two sides began to discuss herbal medicine. Castrobruchuo Academy, famous for its herbal medicine and magical biology studies, lived up to its reputation. Even junior students were able to offer insights rarely found in textbooks.
Fortunately, Ryan had inherited Dave's lifelong research into magical plants. He had also gained valuable hands-on experience while cultivating Xiaoqing, which helped him keep up with David and the others in their discussions without feeling out of place. For the rest of the Hogwarts students, however, the conversation was a bit too advanced. Ryan did his best to explain various magical plant concepts to Hermione and the Hufflepuff student, but they still looked confused.
After all, the discussion revolved around detailed operational techniques—things that couldn't be found in any book. Many of these techniques could only be learned through practical experience. And while Hogwarts students were brilliant in theory, they lacked this level of hands-on expertise.
Nevertheless, as top students, at least they had the good habit of asking questions when they didn't understand. Ryan noticed both Hermione and the Hufflepuff student take out their notebooks and begin to record the important points from the discussion. Because everyone was speaking Spanish to facilitate communication, Ryan had to spend extra energy translating the content into English for his classmates.
As the afternoon wore on, Ryan began to feel a burning sensation in his throat from all the speaking. Thankfully, this was Castrobruchuo Academy—herbs were in abundance. Using his natural instincts, Ryan identified some suitable herbs nearby. After picking up a few medicinal fruits from the table and borrowing a crucible from the stove, he began preparing a potion.
Ryan's movements quickly caught everyone's attention. Most of the students had chosen to focus their discussions on herbal medicine because of the environment and available resources. As everyone knew, Castrobruchuo Academy had a huge advantage in the research of magical creatures and plants. This meant Hogwarts students had been on the back foot all afternoon. The smug expressions of the two professors from Castrobruchuo, seated on the stone platform, confirmed that this event had been designed to showcase their school's superiority.
The Hogwarts students were stuck. If they changed the topic, it would seem like they were admitting defeat and being sore losers. So they had spent the entire afternoon being outshined by their counterparts.
Ryan, however, remained unaware of this awkwardness. Thanks to his "cheats," his group was able to keep up in the conversation. So when he suddenly began brewing a potion, Hogwarts students finally saw a way out of their embarrassing situation.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Ryan processed the raw ingredients with practiced ease and maintained precise control of the heat. His actions left the onlookers stunned. While similar scenes had been witnessed before, they were usually performed by seasoned potion masters with over a decade of experience. Yet here was Ryan—someone with only two years of formal potion training—executing each step like a veteran.
The word "genius" naturally came to mind for the watching students, as they couldn't think of a better explanation for Ryan's skillful performance.
But Ryan knew better. He wasn't a genius. What he had was the inheritance of a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner from the Myriad Realms Store. Although that practitioner had only been slightly above average, he had studied medicine for decades under a master physician. During that time, he had mostly helped his master collect herbs and prepare decoctions.
Coincidentally, many steps in potion-making aligned closely with traditional Chinese medicine. So, after receiving this inheritance, Ryan was able to adapt those techniques to potion-brewing. Through small tweaks and adjustments, he acquired a complete set of effective tricks and hands-on knowledge.
Of course, the inheritance had its limitations. When Ryan was still at school, Professor Snape often criticized him for being too rigid and lacking the intuitive creativity that true potion-making required. Because of this, Ryan found it difficult to create truly perfect potions.
Still, for the onlookers, the ability to competently brew a good-quality potion was already a remarkable achievement. So when Ryan handed out doses of the potion he brewed—designed to reduce swelling and relieve heatstroke—he was met with admiration. Thankfully, he had anticipated the need and brewed a large enough batch so that everyone who needed a portion received one.
After drinking the cooling potion, the Hogwarts students naturally steered the conversation toward potion-making—a subject in which they excelled compared to their Castrobruchuo counterparts. After all, having a young and brilliant potion master as a professor was a luxury. With someone like Professor Snape instructing them, they were constantly being pushed to deal with challenging potion ingredients and techniques. This pressure had forged their high skill levels.
In the wizarding world, potion masters were always in high demand. Young potion masters in particular tended to focus on research and self-development, rarely opting to teach. It was usually only the older, more experienced potion masters who took up teaching roles after realizing that further breakthroughs in their own practice were unlikely. But their age often made them less effective instructors.
Snape, however, was an exception. For personal reasons, he chose to remain at Hogwarts and teach. As a result, the overall level of potion-making among Hogwarts students significantly improved. Consider this: even Neville—long considered hopeless at potions—was able to pass his OWLs. That alone spoke volumes about Snape's abilities as a teacher.
Sure enough, during the subsequent potion discussion, Hogwarts students held the upper hand. This shift in momentum helped them regain some of their lost confidence.
Later that evening, after the bonfire barbecue party had ended, the group returned to their carriages. Professor Sprout gave Ryan high praise, commending him for bringing honor to Hogwarts. Although Ryan modestly thought it was all just a coincidence and didn't feel he deserved the praise, the impact of his actions was undeniable.
FOR MORE CHAPTERS
patreon.com/STEPHENHART427