The instant the door opened, the scene that greeted him was so grand that for a second, Char almost thought he was genuinely looking at the legendary World Tree. But after a moment, he blinked and understood. It turned out to be a huge, extremely ancient and lifelike oil painting that almost took up an entire wall of the library. In the oil painting, occupying most of the space, was a colossal tree that reached from the sky to the very earth, standing tall at the end of the horizon. At the bottom of the picture rested a large ship. Upon its decks stood several rows of wizards in robes of various colors, their faces alight with fanatical expressions, as if they were about to embark on something truly grand.
Char stared at the painting, a gleam in his eyes. The artist behind this was definitely no ordinary person. Every wizard in the picture was vivid and lifelike. Although no magic was cast, no thoughts were retained, and it was impossible to move, the superb painting skills made it truly seem as if they were still alive. But what surprised him the most was the feeling conveyed by the World Tree in the oil painting. Heavy. It seemed to really carry the whole world. This was similar to the root of the World Tree that he had in his hand. They were exactly the same. If you had never seen the World Tree and were just relying on imagination, it would be impossible to draw something with such verve.
His eyes flickered, the doubts in his mind simply overwhelming. What was the background of this painting? Was that world tree that reached from heaven to earth real? But hadn't it collapsed as early as the Olympus era, thus leading to the end of the mythological era? For a moment, too many mysteries were churning in his heart.
Lucius, on the other hand, showed a hint of pride and admiration, and began to introduce the origin of this painting to Char. "Shocking, is it not? A painting this large, this ancient, and this full of charm… I dare say there is no other like it anywhere in the world. This is the scene from the first World Tree expedition of the magical world. It was so ancient back then, even Hogwarts hadn't been built yet, and the History of Magic doesn't even include this action. This oil painting in our family can be said to be the final piece of information."
Char frowned. "World Tree Expedition?"
Lucius nodded. "That's right. Because it happened so long ago, I don't really know the specific situation. I only learned about it through the letters that the Malfoys kept. Suddenly, a rumor spread across the sea that a gigantic World Tree, supporting the heavens and the earth, lay at the end of the horizon. It shocked almost all wizards at the time, especially the herbalists. They all dropped everything they were doing and set out to search for the World Tree. This is the earliest record of the World Tree appearing. In the two or three hundred years that followed, there were two more. But that never happened again. In the magical world, this pursuit of the World Tree at the end of the horizon is called the World Tree Expedition. Of course, most wizards haven't even studied the history of magic properly, let alone something like this. There are probably only a few wizards who would believe in it."
Char was a little surprised. It seemed that the oil painting in front of them recorded the scene of the first expedition. Lucius then said with pride, "Look at the majestic and magnificent World Tree. And this beautiful ship. Every wizard on board is a leader in the field of herbalism. If they were included in today's textbooks, it would be something that even the masters would bow down to in admiration. You can imagine how sensational this expedition was at the time. It is because our Malfoy family has a close relationship with this expedition that we have the opportunity to preserve this unique painting."
Listening to his sighs, Char's expression also became a little solemn. That being said, the Malfoys were worthy of being a pure-blood noble family that had been prominent for so many years. So many years ago, they were actually related to the World Tree Expedition? "I didn't expect that the ancestor of the Malfoy family was so famous in the field of herbology that he was able to participate in the expedition. I wonder which one of them is on this ship?" Char glanced at the herbalists on board, but there was no sign of the family's signature golden hair.
Lucius couldn't help but feel a little confused, but he raised his head proudly. "How could our family personally embark on such a dangerous expedition? I'm talking about the boat. That boat was built with money from our family. Theoretically speaking, without us, the first World Tree Expedition would have been in vain."
Char paused, his expression a little weird. All right. This was consistent with the character of the Malfoy family.
At this time, Lucius changed the subject, then he rejoiced. "Fortunately, this time, our ancestors did not get involved. Otherwise, there would probably be no Malfoy family now."
Char raised an eyebrow. Speaking of which, he also didn't know the outcome of this expedition yet. When mentioning this, Lucius shook his head heavily. He drew a circle with his finger among the high-spirited and enthusiastic herbalists on the big ship. "Dead. Basically, they're all dead. In the end, only two people came out alive." His fingers finally pointed at the two wizards. One of them was wearing a black robe, and he looked thin and pale. "This is Spirm Robinse, heir to the Robinse family, a renowned herbalist family at the time." The other one was a young man with brown-black hair and bright eyes. "This is Thompson Dorohoy, an equally renowned herbalist who was hailed as the pinnacle of herbal medicine at the time."
Lucius shook his head regretfully. "Everyone believed that this twin star, leading so many outstanding herbalists on an expedition, would definitely be able to find the legendary World Tree. Perhaps, the wizarding world would usher in an unprecedented heyday. But soon, tragedy struck. Overnight, the entire World Tree disappeared. The great ship that had set out in pursuit of it was now nothing but a pile of broken wood. People found Spirm and Thompson alive on the wood chips. As for the rest, no trace of their remains was left. And when Thompson woke up, he excitedly revealed a horrific crime. They had indeed entered the World Tree area, but Spirm Robinse, he had used some kind of magic of his family to try to monopolize the World Tree. Because of his actions, almost everyone on the ship was killed. When this incident was reported, public opinion was in an uproar. Spirm Robinson's behavior also confirmed this. He was almost at the end of his rope, his mind had gone insane, and he was screaming that he had to kill everyone. He died the night the rest of his family took him back. Afterwards, the Robinse family was removed from all positions in the herbal medicine community, and their residence was attacked by some excited wizards, and eventually it was deserted. Now, this once-famous family should have disappeared. The Robinse name has long been completely nailed to the pillar of shame."
After telling this old story, Lucius seemed to remember something. Then he pointed at Thompson Dorohoy. "Thompson was also quite unlucky. After this incident, his prestige reached its peak. He founded the International Herbology Association and served as its first president. But the good times didn't last long. It seems that he had some serious injuries from this expedition. Less than three years after establishing the association, he fell seriously ill and disappeared overnight. Only his statue remains, standing outside the Association, commemorating this legendary first president."
After listening to this story, Char felt a subtle feeling in his heart. Between his eyebrows, the pupil of his spirit was throbbing. His sixth sense seemed to be telling him something. And this bad feeling all pointed to one person: it was Thompson Dorohoy, the first president of the International Herbology Association. "International Herbology Association—this sudden change to the examination being held in London is sponsored by this association." Although it was hard to explain, he always felt that this shouldn't be a coincidence.
Lucius looked at his suddenly ugly expression and asked cautiously, "Young Mr. Sprout, what's wrong with you?"
Char waved his hand, then asked, "Information about the Robinse family. Is there any in the library?"
Lucius nodded repeatedly. "The first gallery still preserves the correspondence between our families. Our ancestors left them behind in case the Robinse family became powerful again in the future. Maybe I can use them to build some new relationships." Char paused, took a deep breath, and walked towards the direction mentioned by Lucius. Lucius was constantly contacting various pure-blood families. It meant there were ways to deal with those dark magic items.
At the same time, at the entrance to Borgin and Burkes, people from all the pure-blood families gathered. The look in their eyes when they looked at old Borgin was as if they wanted to eat him alive. "We sell you things and we give you change? What kind of logic is this?!"
Borgin grinned. "Muggles also have garbage disposal fees. The situation is so tense right now, it would be great if I could help you deal with these things. As you can see, with so much stuff, we might not even be able to process half of it. You still want me to pay? Does that make sense? You could just give me some processing fees. That would be reasonable, right?"
These wizards from pure-blood families were almost furious. Just a word from Borgin made their faces turn blue and purple. "Everyone, you don't want to be sent to Azkaban, do you? You don't have much time left." Some of the families were already gritting their teeth. They planned to pass this level first. Even though Borgin clearly wanted them, there was nothing they could do about it.
But at this moment, accompanied by a loud crack, Lucius appeared in Knockturn Alley. The people from the pure-blood families immediately became alert. After all, the Malfoys were definitely a big name in the dark arts. If he dumped his items here, it was possible that many people present would not be able to dispose of all the contraband in their hands.
Borgin, on the other hand, showed a smug expression and said loudly, "Mr. Malfoy. Don't you have a way? Why do you say you don't need it? What's going on? I half expected that you weren't here just now, so you might not have heard the quote. The price I gave you before is no longer available. Now, for every case you handle, you have to pay at least twenty gold Galleons!" Among his three thoughts, if they consulted Lucius again, there would definitely be no solution. No matter how much he offered, Lucius could only endure it. He was a man with a family and a career. That meant there was a weakness. He couldn't really be sent to Azkaban, right?
But the next moment, what Borgin didn't expect was that Lucius actually sneered. "Do you think you're the only one who can handle these dark magic items? Haha, old Borgin, you think too highly of yourself." Then, he took out a prohibited item that had been completely disposed of and showed it in front of all the pure-blood families. "Look. Half of the contraband in the house has been cleared of all traces of dark magic. Even in front of the Aurors, there's no way they could find out it was once a Dark Artifact. Since we are all relatives, I am willing to buy your things. The price is definitely much fairer than old Borgin's. I will buy as many as there are generations."
Hearing this, these families were shocked at first, then everyone was overjoyed. Malfoy's words had finally solved their urgent problem. Only the Malfoy family could find a way. How could they find an expert on dark magic items other than Borgin? On one side was Borgin, who was clearly trying to get them. On the other was the Malfoy family, who had a great reputation and offered generous prices. How to choose? Was there any need to explain it? For a while, everyone hurriedly handed the lists in their hands to Lucius and rushed back to their families immediately. All those hot potatoes should be sent to the Malfoys. It was a pity to sell it like this, though. But at least they could avoid jail time. Some families were even secretly delighted. After all, they had been increasingly unable to make ends meet in recent years. But selling the family's heirloom collection was somewhat embarrassing. Taking this opportunity and selling it with confidence, the gold Galleons they got in return would be enough to last for several years. Wasn't that the best of both worlds?
In the blink of an eye, Borgin and Burkes, which had been originally crowded with customers, immediately had not even a single figure in sight. Lucius didn't even bother to look at Borgin. He snorted coldly, turned around, and left. Borgin's face was now dark as if he was going to kill someone. It was extremely difficult to see. It looked like he could make a lot of money, but in the end, someone had intercepted it. This tone... how could he swallow it? "Who is it? Is there anyone else in the British wizarding world who has this ability? Who dares to compete with me for business? It must be someone from other magical circles. It seems like it's time to teach you a lesson. My things are not so easy to touch!" Then, Borgin changed his mind and walked out of his shop cautiously. He pulled out a beautiful opal necklace, tore off the label that said "Extremely Dangerous," and a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Do you know how powerful the dark magic curse is that comes with this necklace? I bet even Dumbledore would die if he came into contact with this thing. I'd like to see it. How capable are you?!"
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