Snape's words first stunned Ciel. Snape's original technique? Wasn't it Levicorpus and Sectumsempra? But then he realized. Those two spells, along with some potion processing techniques, were all products of Snape's student days. So many years had passed. How could Snape possibly remain stagnant? He must have created knowledge far more profound than what was in the Half-Blood Prince's textbook.
"Severus's Potion Transfiguration..." Ciel savored this name. His expression also became serious. Snape was a proud person. For him to name something after himself, one could imagine how proud he was of this technique. But Potion Transfiguration... this term made Ciel feel completely unfamiliar. He had never heard of such a concept.
Snape seemed to know what he was thinking. "Of course you couldn't have heard of it. Because this is an interdisciplinary field I've been researching all these years."
Then Snape explained the philosophy of this discipline. "The essence of potions is the collision and fusion of magical power between various materials, finally presenting a harmonious state. But current Potions is facing a serious problem. Too many materials have vanished from the magical world after years of upheaval. Countless ancient potion formulas have lost the possibility of being recreated due to lack of materials."
"But since matches can be turned into silver needles, why can't we use another material combined with Transfiguration to replace an extinct potion ingredient? As long as we know that material's magical properties, know what kind of reaction we want the magic to produce, and what state we want it to present in the end... everything becomes traceable. Potion Transfiguration was born from this need."
Speaking of this, Snape's eyes showed fanatical fervor. "If this technique is completely perfected, then I dare say, without any special potion materials... Give me enough of the most ordinary magical herbs, give me enough time, and I can use them as a foundation to create all the potions that have ever existed in the magical world."
He clenched his fists, biting his teeth hard. "Even the mythical potions that resurrect the dead would be no exception."
Hearing Snape's explanation, Ciel drew in a sharp breath. His scalp tingled. He suddenly understood the deepest reason why Snape created Potion Transfiguration. Snape wanted to brew the lost resurrection potion. He still hadn't given up on resurrecting Lily!
Even after all these years of research, Snape had achieved results. If not for the war that erupted in the original story, if not for dying at Voldemort's hands, perhaps Snape really would have successfully perfected this technique and rewritten Potions or even magical history!
At this moment, Snape gripped his wand and said quietly, "Watch carefully."
Ciel also entered complete focus. He stared intently at Snape's every movement, not daring to slack off or be careless. A brilliantly talented Potions master's technique created with over a decade of dedication... only a fool would be distracted at this moment!
Snape inserted his wand into a bottle of "crudely made" Devil's Snare potion. Then, the wand lightly touched the liquid surface. Just such a simple action. In Ciel's perception, the entire bottle of potion was like dry gunpowder ignited by a spark. Explosion. The magic inside seemed to be exploding. An incredibly intense reaction hidden beneath that calm appearance.
Snape's wand continued to lightly touch the liquid surface. Something incredible happened next. Ciel could feel that incredibly complex magical reaction being gradually tamed. By the time the potion finally calmed down, this originally poor-quality potion now emanated an aura far more harmonious than before. It could already be called a masterpiece!
Ciel, who already had some understanding of Potions, looked completely incredulous. Snape seemed very satisfied with his stunned expression. He wiped the sweat that had appeared on his forehead.
"Do you understand?"
Ciel smiled wryly and shook his head repeatedly. Understand? He didn't know if Snape was really asking him or mocking him. Just that intricate magical reaction was several orders of magnitude more complex than any potion he had ever brewed. Not to mention that during this process, Snape had also applied Transfiguration concepts to transform the potion's magic. He couldn't understand any of it.
Snape's lips curved slightly. "From now on, I can demonstrate this to you once a month."
Then he seemed to remember something. His voice suddenly became somewhat somber. "Learn as much as you can. I probably don't have many years left to teach you."
Hearing Snape's words, Ciel's heart also sank. The excitement he had felt from witnessing this incredible technique turned inexplicably melancholic. The Snape from the original story... the magical world's spy, a thoroughly tragic figure. He died in the end under Nagini's fangs. Until death, he never saw his beloved again. Severus's Potion Transfiguration also never had the day to be passed down and perfected.
Originally, Ciel wouldn't have cared about these things. He and Snape had originally been quite antagonistic. They had even had a conflict over Snape deducting points from Hufflepuff House. But unknowingly, he owed Snape too much. If possible, Ciel at least didn't want Snape to die like that.
"Professor..." Ciel spoke carefully. "If someday you have difficulties or danger, I'll help you. No matter who we have to face."
Snape raised an eyebrow. He felt like laughing inside. This little Hufflepuff had no idea what kind of beings he was dealing with. If things went as Dumbledore predicted, the Dark Lord would eventually return. Then as a double agent, Snape had clearly perceived his own fate. Either die under Dumbledore's arrangements or die at Voldemort's hands. No matter which ending, Ciel would be facing the most powerful wizards in the magical world.
But at the same time, seeing his serious expression, Snape felt some warmth stirring in his heart. However, his face showed none of this. Instead, he snorted coldly.
"Is that so? I didn't know young Mr. Sprout had become so confident. Then let me see... during this Christmas holiday, did you properly practice what I taught you before? Or were you completely focused on being a celebrity in the newspapers? Draw your wand!"
Ciel had long become immune to Snape's sarcastic, mocking tone. Hearing that Snape wanted to have combat practice, his eyes showed excitement. His mind filled with countless moments of being hung up and thrown down by Snape. Now was the chance to test how much his combat abilities had improved.
He slowly gripped his wand and moved away from Snape. "Professor. You better be careful."
Snape's eyes showed mockery. "After one holiday, luckily knocking out two Ministry employees, you really think you're impressive now? Seems I need to help you face reality..."
While talking trash, Snape's fingers made an extremely subtle hooking motion. Ciel cursed inwardly. When Snape fought, he truly used every dirty trick. Here it was again... trash talk followed by silent, wandless Levicorpus. He'd been thrown by this move countless times before!
But now, in combat, Ciel was completely different from before. Entrusting his body to magic, he immediately reacted instinctively. With one step, Snape's extremely subtle Levicorpus missed. And he returned the favor to Snape.
"Levicorpus!"
Snape's body swayed slightly, and this Levicorpus barely missed. But this couldn't hide the surprise on his face. "Hmm?!" Ciel's combat performance truly amazed him. Just one Christmas holiday, barely two weeks. He had really mastered combat? This kid, besides lacking innate magical talent, could he really be a genius in other areas?!
While Snape was slightly distracted, Ciel cast several more Levicorpus spells. Even mixing in dirty tricks like Lumos and Levitation Charms. Trying to pay Snape back. But after Snape came to his senses, he just laughed. For someone who had crawled through battlefields and experienced countless fierce battles, Ciel's little tricks were like children playing house. Still far too inferior.
Snape casually neutralized his various attacks. Then sent out subtle Levicorpus spells one after another. Ciel followed his magical senses, instinctively dodging. But the next moment, he was confused.
"I clearly sensed it was this direction. Feint? A magical feint?! Using feints to trick my reaction, then the real attack? This is possible too?!"
The familiar spinning sensation returned. Then Ciel was heavily thrown down again. But his face showed no dejection. Instead, he was even more excited.
"I learned it, learned it again! Professor, again!"
Seeing him like this, Snape felt puzzled. This little Hufflepuff was like a hungry sponge. At this rate, he didn't know how long he could teach him all his techniques. But even with some distraction, it didn't prevent Snape from repeatedly using the same feint tricks to "torment" Ciel.
Until late at night again, Ciel finally dragged his body, thrown countless times, out of the Potions classroom. Although he'd been "tormented" for so long, the feeling of learning something made him quite happy. And when he saw on the system panel that Legendary Vitality had brightened slightly more than before, he felt even better.
Getting beaten by Snape while learning combat, even having some tempering effect on advancing Legendary Vitality to Mythical... win-win!
Then Ciel began calculating in his mind. The Ministry's potions had arrived, solving his urgent problem. The experimental plot allocation should be coming soon too. He could first ask Professor Sprout for more Devil's Snare roots. Once the first-level nodes were mostly processed, he could directly plant them in the newly allocated experimental plots.
As he was thinking about these things and how he could continue cultivating Devil's Snare, a familiar voice came from the corridor.
"Ciel. What exactly did Snape do to you?"
He turned around in confusion. Then he saw Hermione suddenly appear from the corridor. After a moment of surprise, Ciel immediately realized. The Invisibility Cloak? His expression immediately turned ugly.
"You were following me?"
At this time, Harry and Ron also emerged from under the Invisibility Cloak. Hermione quickly explained, "We just wanted to see what Snape was making you do in the Potions classroom."
Ron also spoke up then. "But when we approached the Potions classroom, we couldn't hear anything. All buzzing sounds. But we saw!"
Harry was somewhat excited. "We saw Snape giving you potions. We also saw you being hung up and abused by Snape. Torturing you, then giving you some benefits... is this how he controls you, makes you obedient, and makes you so protective of him?"
Ciel, whose expression was already unpleasant, was somewhat speechless hearing what Harry and the others said. "Huh? What? What are you talking about?"
He looked completely torn between crying and laughing. He tried to explain to Harry and the others that it was just combat training. However, Harry and the others obviously believed their preconceived judgment, thinking Ciel didn't dare resist Snape and so kept protecting him.
In the end, Harry said with both sympathy and frustration at his lack of resistance. "Ciel. You have to resist! What are you afraid of?"
Ciel was speechless at this point. Tired of explaining. He had only one thought. Professor Snape, I told you to wash your hair more often and maintain your image. Look, no matter how you explain, people don't believe you. If you washed your hair and looked cleaner, would people have such prejudice against you?
He shook his head. He didn't want to get further entangled with the trio. "I'll tell you one last time... you've got it completely wrong. I have other things to handle. Bye."
Then Ciel was about to turn and leave. At this time, Hermione quickly said, "Ciel. Even if you don't want to confront Snape, or you're afraid of what methods Snape might use on you, at least tell us if you know Nicolas Flamel. We swear we won't tell anyone you told us. Once Snape's conspiracy is exposed, you'll be completely safe. Ciel, helping us is helping yourself."
Harry even gritted his teeth. "Ciel, I'll guarantee your safety. I have an Invisibility Cloak. After class, you can wear it, and Snape will never find you. I can lend you the Invisibility Cloak for this whole period, as long as you tell us who Nicolas Flamel is."
Ciel shook his head, about to ignore them and continue leaving. But hearing Harry's words, a flash of lightning suddenly crossed his mind. Invisibility Cloak? One of the Deathly Hallows? That was an incredibly rare treasure.
He wasn't interested in collecting all the Deathly Hallows, but he suddenly thought of a use for the invisibility magic on the Invisibility Cloak. Shadow Thorns, this sub-project of the Whomping Willow. Ciel had been very envious of it before. But its cultivation required casting the Disillusionment Charm, and his magical mastery was still far from sufficient.
But the magic on the Deathly Hallow Invisibility Cloak was probably far superior to the Disillusionment Charm. Since both made people invisible, could he use it to replace the Disillusionment Charm and help him cultivate Shadow Thorns?
Thinking this, his eyes suddenly lit up, and his steps stopped. He looked at Harry. "Harry, can you really lend me the Invisibility Cloak for a while?"
Hearing Ciel's change in tone, Harry was overjoyed. Although somewhat reluctant, thinking it was just temporary, he gritted his teeth and nodded. "That's right. As long as you tell me who Nicolas Flamel is and what Snape is plotting."
Ciel pondered for a moment. This matter would probably be known by Harry and the others in a day or two anyway. Revealing it now wouldn't have any impact. So after slight hesitation, he told them everything about Nicolas Flamel.
Late at night, Harry and the others returned to the common room somewhat disheveled and out of breath. Without the Invisibility Cloak, avoiding Filch was still troublesome. But this couldn't hide the excitement on their faces. At least they finally knew what Snape was plotting.
"The Philosopher's Stone. Snape must want it! We even know that the obstacles protecting the Philosopher's Stone were set up by the professors together. The three-headed dog must be Hagrid's work, so Professor Sprout must have made arrangements too. Snape's painstaking efforts to control Ciel make even more sense now."
Speaking of Ciel, even Ron, who had been sour and displeased before, felt somewhat sympathetic. "So he gets abused by Snape like that every night. No wonder. It's just too pitiful. Did you see how happy he was when he got the Invisibility Cloak? I bet tonight Ciel can finally sleep well."
At this time, in the greenhouse, Ciel looked at the specially made Invisibility Cloak in his hands, his face full of excitement. Sleep? Sleep my ass! He could only use this thing for a limited time. Borrowing it temporarily was fine, but long-term possession... forget Harry, even Dumbledore wouldn't agree. So of course he had to use it intensively during this period! Start planting!
Then he took out another Whomping Willow cultivation sub-project different from Devil's Snare. Shadow Thorns. This plant's rewards included Shadow Enhancement and Tearing Wounds. Both are very practical. Especially Shadow Enhancement... like Underwater Enhancement, it was a reward Ciel was determined to get. But even the initial cultivation of Shadow Thorns required the Disillusionment Charm. This made him completely unable to operate.
"Now, let's see if the Invisibility Cloak can work for Shadow Thorns cultivation."
Ciel slowly covered the Shadow Thorns root with the Invisibility Cloak. The Shadow Thorns instantly disappeared from his sight. Even under the Invisibility Cloak's concealment, not a trace of the Shadow Thorns' magical aura leaked out. If not for Ciel still holding a corner of the Invisibility Cloak and being able to see the reward orbs through the system, anyone else... even a Herbology master like Professor Sprout... probably couldn't find the Shadow Thorns' location.
He felt emotional. "Worthy of being the Invisibility Cloak among the Deathly Hallows. This effectiveness... probably even Dumbledore's Disillusionment Charm couldn't compare. The only question is whether the Invisibility Cloak can work for Shadow Thorns cultivation."
His gaze was now firmly fixed on the Shadow Thorns' reward information. But as time passed minute by minute, the Shadow Thorns' reward information showed no change. His face showed disappointment.
"Can't cheat? Seems I thought too simply."
Then he picked up the Invisibility Cloak. The Shadow Thorns root was exposed again. But just at this moment, the Shadow Thorns root suddenly began writhing frantically, as if it had lost something extremely important. Even the magical aura it emitted conveyed waves of longing. The reward orbs above it were also agitating.
Ciel was surprised. "Ah? What? When covered with the Invisibility Cloak just now, why didn't you react like this?"
He frowned. "You want me to...?"
The Shadow Thorns root paused. After a moment, it conveyed a feeling of grievance. I never thought I'd have a day when I could be covered by an Invisibility Cloak. If you hadn't taken away the Invisibility Cloak, I wouldn't have reacted... I thought I was dreaming.
Ciel was silent for a moment. Then he covered it with the Invisibility Cloak again. And in the next second, on the system panel, the Shadow Thorns' original reward information began to blur. The silver radiance instantly transformed into brilliant golden light!
He suddenly clenched his fists. The small silver bucket hadn't made Devil's Snare rewards reach the Gold tier. But Shadow Thorns, under the Invisibility Cloak's effect... his first mass-producible Gold-tier reward plant was achieved?!
[Chapter Complete]
***
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