Infinite Horror: The Strongest Zhongzhou Team

The words written on it in a flamboyant, dragon-and-phoenix-like style were:

"Perfect blood, capable of healing werewolves who have lost their madness, Harry Potter, take it."

After reading it, both Harry and Ron were puzzled.

"What does it mean?"

As Ron spoke, he lowered his head and held the crystal ball right in front of his eyes, practically sticking it to them.

However, it was precisely because of this that Ron was able to see the special discovery in a certain location.

The man excitedly patted Harry next to him:
"Oh, Harry is Santa's hat, no, it's not a hat, it's actually a drop of blood."

"It's the one in the middle."

Harry Potter followed Ron's finger and looked down, only to find a snowflake among the snowflakes.

That distinguishes it from all other shades of red.

"This is so unremarkable, but why did you give it to me?"

Ron scratched his head: "Harry, shouldn't the focus be on werewolves? Are there really werewolves in this world?"

Harry nodded as he listened:

"Of course there are. I saw in a book yesterday when I was looking for Nicholas in the library that there are werewolves, vampires, centaurs, mermaids, and all of those."

"Didn't your brothers tell you?"

Ron shrugged: "They never discuss this at home."

Harry nodded, then said thoughtfully:

"But I'm wondering, who sent this?"

Ron thought for a moment and said, "Maybe they're one of your father's friends or something?"

Harry couldn't think of any other possibility, so he nodded and put it away, casually placing it on his bedside table as a decoration.

The fourth gift, when opened, was a rough yet exquisite handmade piccolo, this time signed by Hagrid.

It's rough because the holes on it are of different sizes and the edges are even a bit rough.

It is considered exquisite because this thing, which is no bigger than a child's palm, was made by the giant Hagrid.

To him, such a gift was like carving a landscape painting on rice.

It's clear that this person put a lot of effort into it.

"Hagrid?"

Harry happily lifted it up.

"Yes, it's Hagrid's Christmas present to me."

Although Harry couldn't play the flute, he still carefully put away the gift Hagrid had given him.

"There are four gifts in total: a sweater, a cloak, a crystal ball, and a piccolo."

“Ron, believe me, this is the happiest day of my life.”

Ron was overjoyed and broke off a piece of the chocolate he had received, handing it to Harry.

The two of them ate and then went to bed early.
-
Midnight, early morning.

In the first-year dormitory where the lights were already off, two pairs of eyes opened at the same time.

"Harry, do we really have to do this?"

"Quick, get dressed, pajamas will do, you can become invisible anyway."

They rustled and whispered, like two mice.

But they forgot that there were only the two of them in the entire dormitory, so there was no need to be careful at all.

The two wrapped the invisibility cloaks around their left and right sides.

Ron asked worriedly:
"Harry, are we really going to the forbidden library?"

Harry nodded earnestly from behind his cloak:
“I think Hermione is right. Anything that Headmaster Dumbledore could hide must be recorded in the forbidden books.”

"Moreover, today is Christmas, which is also the time when there are the fewest people in the academy."

"I heard from Hagrid that many professors have gone out."

Ron understood that now was the opportunity, so he could only nod in agreement.

With the help of the invisibility cloak, the two entered the forbidden library without any hindrance.

As the sound of the wooden door opening echoed down the corridor, both of their hearts leaped into their throats.

Fortunately, once inside, the two immediately closed the door and breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that nothing unexpected had happened.

Harry and Ron patted their chests and looked up at the bookshelf.

"The Famous Soul Eater".

"The Nightmare of the Fifteenth Century"

"A Detailed Explanation of the New Generation of Demons"

"The Medieval Witches' Records".

“Harry, look, there’s also a book called ‘The Evolution of the Wand’. My dad has told me about it.”

"Ron, Ron, Nicolas Flamel, OK?"

Harry suppressed Ron's excitement.

The two split up and continued their search.

"Roar!"

Harry was startled when he heard the sudden sound and turned around.

Ron quickly closed the book in his hand.

The black monster inside then shrank back.

Seeing Harry's wide eyes, Ron said awkwardly:

“Harry, let me explain. I just wanted to see what a demon looked like, and it seems like there’s one here.”

Ron quieted down, but then Harry accidentally broke the oil lamp while reading.

These two voices, one after the other, finally alerted some people.

The sound of footsteps pattering quickly echoed down the corridor, finally reaching the room outside the Forbidden Books Room.

"Who?"

"Who's in there?"

Ron and Harry immediately hugged each other upon hearing the voice.

Then he covered himself with an invisibility cloak and shrank into a corner.

That's when the sound of the door being pushed open was heard.

"I know you're inside; you can't escape."

"Who is it? Show yourself!"

Upon hearing these two sentences, the two people inside the cloaks covered each other's mouths.

Then they saw Mr. Felzy come in carrying an oil lamp.

When Ron saw the patrolman enter the inner room, he pointed to the open door, and Harry nodded.

The two then began to move very carefully, only feeling a little more at ease once they were outside the door.

But it was at this time.

A cat's meow almost made the two of them jump.

Fortunately, they covered each other's mouths, so no sound came out.

The two looked over and saw a tabby cat standing still, its green pupils staring straight at them.

It's as if this cat can see through an invisibility cloak.

The two people and the cat stared at each other awkwardly for a few seconds through the invisibility cloak.

Judging from Mr. Felzi's voice behind me, it was clear that this path was a dead end.

Ron and Harry turned and walked toward the opposite corridor.

Mr. Filch's tabby cat did nothing except meow a few times.

The two tiptoed into a slightly dilapidated corridor.

Only after letting go of each other's hands did they dare to start breathing heavily.

"Hoo, hoo!"

"You scared me to death, Harry! I thought I was going to die!"

“If I’m found out, my parents will really be called in. My mother will definitely come to the college to deal with me personally.”

"And my brothers, they were my mother's best hunting dogs."

"They will tear me to pieces."

Ron's words became increasingly exaggerated, and Harry was sweating profusely as he listened.

Because in comparison, it seems that even if one is discovered, it won't be a big deal.

After all, there are advantages to not having parents.

Their hearts pounded, then they exchanged a knowing glance and smiled at each other.

Sometimes that's how it is; friends can strengthen their bond by doing bad things together.

For example, right now, in Li Xiao's words, this is a bond.

In the quiet darkness, the two were preparing to return to their dormitory when...

"Shh, Ron!" Sensing something, Harry covered Ron's mouth again.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"

Ron was still struggling, but then he fell silent.

Two dark figures suddenly shoved out of an abandoned classroom.

Ron immediately stopped speaking.

The conversation between the two figures in black also reached their ears.

"What did you see in the Mirror of Erised?"

"What are you looking for?"

Snape, dressed in a black wizard's robe, pressed down Quirrell's right hand as he prepared to draw his wand.

The force of the movement was so great that the two figures were pressed against the corridor railing.

There was no lighting magic cast on the castle corridor on the fourth floor.

Therefore, this place, shrouded in shadows and darkness, appears mysterious and solemn.

Professor Quirrell, who was pinned beneath him, stammered in response, perhaps due to nervousness:

"I-I don't know what you're talking about?"

Upon hearing this answer, which was not an answer at all, Snape's expression became more serious than ever before.

Professor Quirrell was still trying to explain: "Severus, I really don't know..."

Snape interrupted, "You don't want to go against me, do you, Quirrell?"

"I do not know what you're talking about."

"No, quite the opposite, you know very well that you are..."

Snape wanted to say something more.

But in the darkness, he keenly sensed that he was being watched.

The hand that was gripping Quirrell's collar suddenly reached out to his right and swung it sharply.

Unfortunately, there was nothing on the right side except for air.

What Snape and Quirrell couldn't see was...

Harry and Ron, hidden in the Invisibility Cloak, were already so weak in the knees that they slumped against the wall.

Harry even put his hand in Ron's mouth so that Ron wouldn't scream in terror.

And that's how she managed to dodge Snape's outstretched hand.

Otherwise, they really don't know what would happen after they were exposed.

Snape looked and saw that there was nothing there.

He suddenly looked up and said, "Professor Quirrell, let's talk another day."

"We'll have a good talk then, to find out who you're really working for!"

After saying that, Snape let go of her hand.

Because on the left side of the corridor, a slouching figure was already walking quickly towards us.

It was Mr. Felzy, carrying an oil lamp.

"Good evening, professors."

"I found this in the forbidden library."

Felzi showed the two of them a broken lamp.

Felzi continued with a stern expression:

"The oil lamp is still hot to the touch. It's obvious that some students have sneaked out of the dormitory on Christmas Day."

After Felzi finished speaking, both professors immediately realized something and ran towards the forbidden library.

Seeing this, Mr. Filch had no choice but to follow.

After the sound of hurried footsteps faded into the distance and there was no further movement, the sound of footsteps gradually disappeared.

A dark corner of the corridor.

The old wooden door that Snape and Quirrell had previously pushed open was opened again.

Then slowly close it.

However, no one appeared throughout the entire process, making the scene, especially in the shadows, extremely eerie.

After closing the door.

Harry and Ron finally lifted their cloaks and breathed in the air called freedom.

"Huff, huff, Harry, I'm about to suffocate."

"My heart was pounding so hard it almost jumped out of my chest."

Harry, sitting next to him, was also breathing heavily; although he wasn't hot, his forehead was already covered in sweat.

"Just now, when Professor Snape reached out, I almost forgot I could breathe. And Ron, your teeth are too hard."

Harry pointed to the teeth marks on the back of his hand.

The two of them slumped down on the dusty ground, one on each side.

Ignoring everything, I took deep breaths of the not-so-fresh air.

“Ron, you saw it too, those two professors just now, they…”

Harry also wanted to talk about what he had just seen.

But Ron's eyes were already drawn to something.

He interrupted Harry abruptly, pointing behind him.

Harry turned his head to look.

Only then did they discover that behind the wooden door on the fourth floor was an abandoned lecture hall.

Right now, in this lecture hall.

Under the Christmas moonlight.

A straight mirror stood out conspicuously in the center of the classroom.

The silver mirror did not reflect any moonlight; instead, it was dominated by darkness.

The two first-grade students who witnessed this scene both swallowed hard.

"Hey Harry, why don't you go back to sleep? I feel like tonight has been exciting enough."

After Ron finished speaking, he looked at Harry with hope in his eyes.

But to Ron's disappointment...

Harry patted his chest and said, as if hypnotizing himself:
"It's alright, Ron, everything will be fine here."

Seeing this, Ron could only grit his teeth and pat himself on the back, beginning his self-hypnosis.

After speaking, the two exchanged a glance and carefully got up.

They walked down the steps hand in hand, hugging each other.

As you get closer to the mirror, a sentence is inscribed on the top frame of the mirror.

A mirror image of a statement.

"What I show you is not your face, but your desire."

Harry and Ron rubbed their eyes upon seeing this, because they both seemed to see something in the mirror.

But it's not clear.

I could only instinctively keep walking forward.

As Harry moved forward.

In Harry Potter's eyes.

Behind his shoulders, two silhouettes became increasingly clear.

So much so that when they stood in front of me...

Two middle-aged men and women with gentle smiles appeared clearly in Harry's eyes.

Harry had seen the photos his father and mother had left behind.

So he knew that the people standing beside him were his parents.

But it was at this moment that Harry felt a pain in his arm.

He then realized that the person next to him should be Ron.

But now Ron isn't in the mirror.

But in Ron's eyes, the scene in the mirror was entirely different.

In the Quidditch arena where thousands cheered, he, as captain, led the Gryffindor team to a ten-game winning streak.

He became the greatest figure in the history of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Looking at his future handsome and dashing self in the mirror, Ron excitedly exerted himself.

It was this exertion that brought Ron back to his senses.

Harry should be by my side, but now...

The two of them simultaneously woke up from their own reflections, turned around, and grabbed each other's hands with their backs to the mirror.

Then their eyes met.

"What did you see?" (End of Chapter)