The Return to Hogwarts

It was like being suddenly thrown onto a speeding train from a stationary state; the sudden dizziness almost caused him to fall into the dangerous and chaotic area on both sides.

Gryffindor reappeared in his field of vision, but instead of a solitary figure, he was presented with a series of overlapping, displaced figures, much like Amostella had been when they approached the temple.

Amosta turned his gaze to the narrow, clear sky on both sides, where time was as chaotic as an abyss. After thinking for a moment, he lifted the corner of his clothes and peered inside. Just like the stone, the feedback he received made him break out in a cold sweat.

As he traversed the barrier, all the outside world was obscured, and every passing second felt like an entire year. Amosta dared not be careless in the slightest, for carelessness would result in him turning to dust and vanishing into nothingness.

After an unknown amount of time, Gryffindor disappeared from sight again. Amostah was not nervous about this; instead, his anxious heart was much calmer because he deduced that Gryffindor had broken through the barrier of time and entered the inner space.

Another wave of dizziness, as if the world were spinning, washed over him. As the world regained its clarity, Amosta, suppressing his vertigo, suddenly realized that he had passed through the small door shrouded in the Time Domain and was standing in the simple, empty, yet magnificent temple hall.

He saw Vitia standing at the temple entrance, gazing with worried eyes towards the swamp that was once again shrouded in mist. Amosta thought for a moment that it must have been the commotion from his earlier battle that had attracted her attention, but trapped in the chaotic space, she dared not leave easily.

Amostra was within the time barrier, his magic and form perfectly concealed. Vitia was unaware that Amostra, whom she was waiting for, had silently entered the temple and was only one step away from the 'holy artifact' that the Druids had been longing for for centuries!

At the center of the circular altar built of gray stone is a strangely shaped scepter. The scepter stands upright, and endless 'death and decay' is poured into the earth from its tail end, which is embedded in the altar. This is the culprit that has turned the once vibrant Druidic holy site, the Path of Avalon, into the desolate, apocalyptic landscape it is today!

Even though Amosta had never seen it before, the moment his gaze fell upon it, Amosta knew its name.

The caduceus, in Greek mythology, is the staff of Hermes, the messenger of the gods, and it is only a few steps away from him!

Gollum—

Vast as a sea, yet exuding an aura of hell, Amosta's heart pounded, and he unconsciously swallowed.

If there truly are 'artifacts' in Harry Potter's magical world, then without a doubt, the Twin Serpents Staff must be one of them. His gaze was drawn to the two menacing black pythons entwined on a golden scepter, and he had forgotten to consider why this 'artifact' had inexplicably appeared in Morgan le Fay's hands, and how it could be a 'holy relic' belonging to the Druids!

"Oh, what an interesting staff!"

Compared to Amostella's stunned expression, Gryffindor, with a smile on his face, seemed much calmer. He walked up to the altar and circled the caduceus.

"I think Salazar would really like you!"

After saying this, Gryffindor suddenly reached out for the Staff of the Serpents, seemingly intending to take the staff back and give it to his dearest friend.

But Amosta's body trembled violently the moment he heard those words.

He stared wide-eyed at the two black pythons, the more he looked at them, the more familiar they seemed, and the more terrified he became. In the end, he was almost certain of his discovery—the two things entangled with the golden staff were not pythons at all, but two shrunken snake monsters!

Amostella had just dealt with a real basilisk a few months ago, right there in the Chamber of Secrets in Slytherin!

Thinking of the Chamber of Secrets, Amostella suddenly gripped her wand tightly, her dry lips moving slightly.

"Could it be that Slytherin built the Chamber of Secrets to breed basilisks and research the Twin Serpents Staff, and not at all to deal with some Muggle-blooded wizards!"

Chapter 121 The Gryffindor Sword and the Staff of the Two Serpents (Part 2)

The broader your mind, the wider the world you can see.

Ever since Amostall first heard the legend of Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets from a fellow young wizard when he was studying at Hogwarts, he had been puzzled by this: as the most powerful and enigmatic of the four great wizards, why would Salazar Slytherin be so narrow-minded as to build a secret chamber specifically to kill Muggle or half-blood wizards who came to Hogwarts in later generations?

Could it be that maintaining the purity of his bloodline is the belief that guides him on the path of magic?

This doubt persisted until a few months ago, when Amosta saw the Chamber of Secrets within the Chamber of Secrets with his own eyes, and he finally had reason to believe that Salazar Slytherin's purpose in building the Chamber of Secrets was probably not so simple.

The twin serpent staff before them, radiating a chilling aura, further proved this point.

Although Amostella still couldn't figure out what was hidden behind the door in the cave, Slytherin's purpose in leaving the basilisk in the outer chamber was clearly not as 'simple' as rumored.

boom!

The sudden explosion startled Amosta, who was lost in speculation. Looking closely, he saw that the dormant caduceus had suddenly erupted with a ball of gray plasma the instant Gryffindor's hand approached, accompanied by a powerful repulsive force. Gryffindor, whose hand was already burned, was knocked back several steps by the impact and almost fell off the altar.

"Just as Rowena said, the indestructible Twin Serpent Staff only submits to its master—"

Despite his humiliation, Fang Kuo, the Gryffindor student, showed no sign of dejection. He grinned and shook his hand, sporting a mischievous, grinning expression.

"No wonder they're the progenitors of those Gryffindor kids—"

Seeing this, Amosta's face darkened.

"Looks like I won't be able to bring you a gift, Salazar—"

Gryffindor blew on his smoking hand and said with a hint of regret. Then, he shifted his gaze to the edge of the altar, where a sword with a golden hilt and a gleaming blade was stuck in the steps.

"The sword of Arthur Pendragon, the valiant and fearless monarch of the Kingdom of Camelot—the Sword of Broken Steel!"

Gryffindor abandoned his obsession with bringing a gift to his best friend, took two steps to the Holy Sword, and knelt down, the sharp light emanating from his eyes sending chills down one's spine.

“Awesome warriors, what a pity—” Gryffindor said with regret.

"If we lived in the same era, we would be each other's strongest rivals and most appreciative friends."

Buzz--

As soon as Gryffindor finished speaking, the broken steel holy sword, which had suppressed the power of the caduceus for centuries with the power of faith and courage, suddenly trembled rapidly, as if it couldn't wait to break free from the earth!

"You want to follow me?"

Gryffindor seemed to understand the hum of the sword; his eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly added knowingly,

"Indeed, a sword like you should appear on the battlefield, not remain forever silent in this dark and hopeless world. However... your mission..."

Gryffindor looked again at the Twin Serpent Staff, which, even though suppressed by the Broken Steel Holy Sword and Merlin's magic, still continuously released an aura of death that withered all things, and showed a hint of difficulty.

"No way"

Gryffindor had not yet made a decision, but Amostella's expression changed subtly as he watched the scene unfold. He glanced at the silver sword that had originally belonged to him in Gryffindor's hand, and then at the Broken Steel Holy Sword that had been mentioned in both Muggle and wizarding legends, and a guess began to form in his mind.

"Alright, old friend, it seems I need to ask you for a favor—"

Sure enough, after a brief hesitation, Gryffindor looked regretfully at his sword.

Clang!

The broken steel holy sword, which had been dormant for centuries, floated into the air the instant Gryffindor uttered those words, bursting forth with a dazzling golden light. The empty temple hall and even the entire floating island of Avalon suddenly trembled violently. The two serpent monsters on the scepter began to writhe along the golden staff, their open, fang-filled, ferocious mouths spewing out streams of gray magic that repulsed life.

Gryffindor's red hair danced wildly in response to the restless caduceus. The powerful aura emanating from his robust body seemed capable of shattering the sky and the earth. He held his silver sword upside down, his gaze sharp, and plunged it directly into the hole in the ground. With his hands on the hilt, he channeled his magma-like, crimson magic into the earth.

Amosta watched as a scene unfolded long ago, unknown to anyone. Even though the separation of a thousand years prevented him from feeling the indescribable power of Gryffindor's magic, his heart was still filled with excitement.

Under Gryffindor's strenuous efforts, the trembling vision quickly subsided, and the scorching magic gradually spread along the cracks in the altar toward the caduceus staff, forming an alchemical array-like pattern around it.

hiss--

The two basilisks clinging to the scepter seemed to still possess life, their orange-yellow pupils revealing intense resentment. However, under the suppression of Gryffindor, they ultimately closed their eyes unwillingly.

Swish--

The broken steel holy sword, radiating golden magic and light, trembled continuously in mid-air before slicing through the air and falling directly into Gryffindor's outstretched hand.

"Is that famous sword of Gryffindor King Arthur's Sword of Broken Steel?"

Amosta looked on in amusement, as if his worldview had been turned upside down, but then he muttered to himself in confusion.

"The documents concerning the sword of Gryffindor clearly state that the legendary sword of Gryffindor was forged by goblins, and the two swords are not even the same in appearance."

Since entering this secret realm, Amostella felt as if he were reliving his first days at Hogwarts. So many things puzzled him, but his questions about the Gryffindor sword were immediately answered by what happened next—

The moment Gryffindor grasped the Broken Steel Sword, the golden and crimson magic immediately began to clash fiercely—like the Broken Steel Sword, a sword that carries the will of its original owner will not submit to anyone out of thin air; to possess it, one must first conquer it!

The endless golden and crimson light blurred Amosta's vision, even interfering with the traces of Gryffindor that had existed here for thousands of years. The figure of the man, as hot as magma, flickered and blurred like a television screen subjected to strong electromagnetic interference.

The sound of Gryffindor's hearty laughter echoed in Amostella's ears. In the blurry light and shadow, a Gryffindor figure, his back to Amostella, raised a piece of molten metal and said triumphantly,

"I will have the most skilled fairies reforge your body, and after that, you will have a new name and continue your legend!"

As Gryffindor's exploration of the secret realm was drawing to a close, he reached into his wizard's robes and then tossed a stone pillar with cracks crisscrossing its surface into the air. Amostah stared wide-eyed at the pillar, which was exactly the same as the one in Vitia's hand, and immediately thought of Gryffindor's initial words.

Gryffindor seemed to be able to locate the space inside and outside the secret realm through this stone pillar. Just like when he entered the secret realm, he squeezed half of his body into the hazy and distorted space, as if preparing to leave.

"Oh, right--"

Just when Amosta thought he was about to say goodbye to Gryffindor's time traces, Godric Gryffindor suddenly stopped his attempt to squeeze in, turned his head and 'looked' at Amosta with a smile.

Since Gryffindor's phantom appeared, their eyes had crossed many times on their journey together. However, Gryffindor's gaze had never been focused on Amostra, but rather looked through his figure to other things. But at this moment, his gaze seemed to transcend time and land on Amostra Blaine a thousand years in the future!

Amostella immediately realized this. His breathing quickened and his eyes widened in fear. Recalling Gryffindor's earlier words, "Don't be afraid, follow me," he was almost certain that Godric Gryffindor seemed to be able to "see" his future self a thousand years in the future through some means!

"The answers to all my questions lie in Salazar's secret chamber."

Chapter 122 Chess Pieces

Wow!

With Godric Gryffindor's departure, the space within the altar and the effects he had created vanished like phantoms, as if the world had changed in an instant. When the light and shadow became clear again, a thick layer of dust had covered the altar floor.

The time barrier still existed around them, and Vitia was still standing at the magnificent gate of the temple, gazing in the direction of the swamp, completely unaware that Amosta had quietly entered the altar and was only a step away from the Twin Serpent Staff that the druids longed for.

Amostella stared blankly at the silver sword stuck in the ground, the words Gryffindor uttered when they left echoing in his mind.

Salazar Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets. The answers to all my questions lie there.

Amostella's breathing became heavy involuntarily. Ever since he saw that memory he had sealed away, he knew that one day he would face the situation of having to open the Chamber of Secrets, but he really did not expect that the reason for having to open it would come from the revelation left by Gryffindor.

"All the doubts"

How many things puzzled Amosta? There were too many to list!

Before entering this secret realm, he only wanted to figure out why the Druidic prophecy had involved him, and what exactly the 'Land of Merlin's Eternal Rest' that Vitia mentioned was all about.