Harry stared at him curiously.
"Since everyone's here, let's eat."
Chu Yang gestured for everyone to start.
Clang, clang, clang~~~
The sounds of knives, forks, and plates clashing rose and fell, as everyone buried their heads, stuffing food into their mouths.
"This vegetable stew is so delicious, it's just as good as my mom's!"
Ron mumbled as he ate with his head down.
"Comparing it to your mother's cooking, that's very high praise, thank you, Ron."
Chu Yang said with a smile.
Hermione was about to praise the food's deliciousness, but hearing Chu Yang say that, she immediately shut her mouth, glaring at Ron without speaking.
Feeling Hermione's murderous gaze, Ron was a bit bewildered.
After Hagrid finished his bowl of vegetable soup, he forked a piece of roasted bacon into his mouth, chewed for a while, and then wiped his mouth contentedly.
Sirius had already finished the food in front of him and didn't know what to say, feeling a bit awkward.
Chu Yang lightly kicked Hagrid's leg.
Hagrid understood, cleared his throat, and began to introduce Sirius's identity to everyone.
Clang!
The soup ladle in Ron's hand fell to the ground, and he pointed at Sirius, saying in disbelief, "He's that… from Azkaban…"
Hermione clapped a hand over Ron's mouth.
Sirius smiled, not minding at all.
Hagrid explained, "Black was framed; he didn't kill anyone, nor did he betray Harry's parents."
Then, Hagrid told the whole story, and Ron and Hermione looked at Sirius with a newfound sympathy.
How much grievance must one feel, being imprisoned in Azkaban for over ten years on a baseless charge?
Sirius noticed their expressions and laughed heartily, "Before coming here, my heart was indeed filled with resentment, but after seeing Harry, nothing else matters."
Sirius gazed at Harry gently, "You look so much like your father, and those eyes are exactly like Lily's."
For some reason, when he heard this, Harry suddenly teared up and choked.
Sirius got up and gently embraced Harry.
This was a moment Harry had yearned for countless times in his dreams… for his father to hold him tightly with strong, firm arms.
Gradually accepting Sirius, Harry displayed an innocence he had never shown before.
He circled around Sirius, asking childish questions, and Sirius answered patiently, creating a scene of considerable paternal affection.
In fact, it was almost too much paternal affection, a little sickening…
Even Ron and Hermione couldn't help but hide in the small wooden hut, helping Chu Yang wash dishes.
"I hope they can get along just as beautifully when Harry hits puberty."
Hagrid squeezed through the doorway, walking in helplessly.
Ron complained, "Didn't you consider yourself when you built the hut?"
Hagrid patted the dust off his body and said, "Time was short, you know…"
Chu Yang and Hermione placed the washed dishes aside to dry, and he wiped his hands, asking Hagrid, "Where is Dumbledore?"
"He's resting." Hagrid said worriedly, "It's not good for him to be traveling around at his age; I finally managed to persuade him to go back and get some sleep."
Chu Yang nodded.
But unexpectedly, just after noon, Dumbledore appeared in the small wooden hut.
"You came right after Hagrid left; you weren't intentionally avoiding him, were you?"
"He keeps nagging me to rest, but my mind is full of Horcruxes right now; I can't sleep at all."
"You mean?"
"Have Black come with me; I need to get the last Horcrux."
The last Horcrux was the locket hidden in the Black ancestral home, but it required a member of the Black family to lead the way to enter there.
Dumbledore suddenly sighed, "Besides the Horcrux matter, the truth about Regulus Arcturus Black must also be known, especially by his brother, Sirius…"
As the two talked, the door to the small wooden hut was pushed open, and Sirius walked out.
"I've taken up most of Harry's day; it's time to return him to his friends." Sirius bowed slightly towards Chu Yang, "I didn't get a chance to express my gratitude earlier; if not for you, I might still be stuck in the darkness of Azkaban."
Chu Yang waved his hand, "No need to be so polite; never mind that for now. Dumbledore needs your help."
Sirius looked at Dumbledore with some surprise, wondering what could possibly make the great Dumbledore seek his help.
Dumbledore said, "I need you to take me to the Black family's ancestral home; Voldemort's Horcrux might be hidden there."
Black subconsciously shook his head and said, "Impossible. Although the Black family believed Voldemort's ideology was correct and all advocated for maintaining the purity of wizard blood, they never truly became Death Eaters, except for…"
(Note: Narcissa and Bellatrix are not considered Black family members after marriage)
At this point, Black paused, a hint of sadness in his eyes, "Except for Regulus, but he was already killed by Voldemort!"
Dumbledore sighed, "His death was indeed related to Voldemort, but he did not die as a Death Eater."
After saying this, Dumbledore recounted the cause of Regulus Black's death in detail.
Sirius was trembling all over; if the person in front of him wasn't Dumbledore, he would probably have cursed the other person as a liar.
"Regulus, he…" Sirius's eyes gradually welled up.
"He was a hero!" Dumbledore said sincerely and firmly.
Sirius closed his eyes, too choked up to speak, nodding constantly.
After a long while, he let out a long breath, "I understand. I will take you to the Black family's ancestral home and help you find Voldemort's Horcrux."
Dumbledore reminded, "Preferably now."
Sirius turned to glance at the small wooden hut; he still wanted to spend more time with Harry.
Dumbledore, however, thought he was worried about Harry's safety, so he patted Chu Yang's shoulder and smiled, "Don't worry, he will protect Harry's safety."
Sirius was half-believing, half-doubting, and couldn't help but say, "He looks to be about Harry's age."
Chu Yang smiled, "Harry and I are in the same year."
Sirius shook his head with a laugh, "With all due respect, let alone protecting Harry, you probably can't even protect yourself. As for Peter Pettigrew, he can't be called a qualified wizard."
"Defeating him is not something worth boasting about."
Just as Dumbledore was about to explain, a figure suddenly rushed in front of Sirius, its two front hooves rearing high as if to stomp, scaring Sirius into stumbling and falling.
"Firenze, stop!"
Chu Yang immediately stopped Firenze's actions.
In his shock and anger, Sirius looked up to find a handsome Centaur in front of him, who was staring at him coldly, his expression extremely displeased.
"Human wizard, I hope you show Mr. Chu Yang sufficient respect!"
Firenze retreated a few steps.
Dumbledore stepped forward and pulled Sirius up; the latter asked confusedly, "Why are Centaurs here?"
Dumbledore explained, "Mr. Firenze is Yang's friend; he is very friendly and does not reject humans."
Sirius muttered, "His attitude towards me can hardly be called friendly…"
Dumbledore narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Didn't he say it? To show respect to Yang—that's the secret to getting along with him."
Sirius: "…"
On the other side, Chu Yang whispered something to Firenze, then walked towards Sirius, "Mr. Black, besides Firenze, I also know other friends in the Forbidden Forest. If you are really worried about Harry's safety, I can let them come out and meet you."
Sirius, having learned his lesson once, raised both hands in a gesture of surrender, "Alright, alright, I know you have many friends; I don't want to meet them just yet!"
Dumbledore laughed heartily.
Then, he pulled out his wand, placed a hand on Sirius's shoulder, and asked, "Are you ready?"
Sirius nodded.
Dumbledore performed Apparition, and the two suddenly vanished in front of Chu Yang.
With Sirius's help, Dumbledore would have no problem getting the locket; with that, all the Horcruxes would be gathered.
"Time to prepare the tools to destroy the Horcruxes."
Night.
After Harry and the others fell asleep, Chu Yang rode a Unicorn back to Hogwarts and quietly went to the girls' lavatory.
The entrance mechanism to the Chamber of Secrets required Parseltongue to activate, which Chu Yang didn't know, so he chose a simpler method.
Chu Yang formed hand signs and performed Earth Release, then merged into the ground, swam for a while, found the pipe leading to the Chamber of Secrets, drilled into it, and slowly flew to the bottom.
After walking for a while through the labyrinthine stone passages, Chu Yang arrived in front of a stone door, on which was carved Slytherin's characteristic snake pattern.
This was it. Chu Yang placed one hand on the stone door and pushed with all his might, causing the surroundings to shake. The stone door shattered like a broken mirror, continuously fragmenting until it finally collapsed.
Chu Yang stepped into the Chamber of Secrets.
94. Chapter 94: War and Voldemort's Finale
94.
Unlike the rough corridor outside, the stone passage inside the Chamber of Secrets was finely polished, with exquisite and eerie Basilisk statues on both sides.
Below the statues were flowing pools of water, like two moats, flowing slowly.
The air was damp and cold, exactly the environment snakes preferred.