Infinite Horror: The Strongest Zhongzhou Team

Barty took a deep breath: "Alright, whatever the case, I will report this to the International Ministry of Magic."

Dumbledore's voice rang out:

"Wait, Barty, there's one more thing!"

"I want to request the suspension of the Goblet of Fire!"

"Because no matter what, one person has already died!"

Before Batistuta could respond,

A fourth male voice rang out from inside the room:

"No, Albus."

"The Goblet of Fire cannot be stopped halfway."

Dumbledore:

"One person is already dead, Fudge!"

"Moreover, several warriors suffered injuries of varying degrees in the previous level!"

“An escaped Death Eater has infiltrated the college disguised as a professor. He won’t be the last. We must take action.”

Upon hearing this, Harry suddenly remembered that Fudge was the name of the Minister for Magic in England.

"You" here likely refers to the Ministry of Magic.

Dumbledore's office.

Barty and Fudge, representing the Ministry of Magic, firmly rejected Dumbledore's proposal.

"Albus, the Goblet of Fire cannot be stopped, much less canceled."

"At times like these, the entire magical world must draw strength from its leader!!"

Hearing such high-sounding words, Dumbledore stood up and said expressionlessly:

"Then show some courage, Minister Fouché."

"A true leader only needs to do the right thing; he doesn't need to care what others think!"

Fudge was equally agitated upon hearing this.

"Dumbledore, do you know what you're saying?"

"I also wanted to ask you, what's the situation with Harry Potter?"

"First, the Death Eaters attacked the Quidditch World Cup camp, and then they appeared at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"Don't tell me this is all a coincidence!"

Dumbledore nodded:

"Yes, I also believe that none of this is a coincidence, which is why I am requesting the suspension of the Goblet of Fire!"

Seeing that Albus was unmoved by reason, Fudge wanted to say something more.

"Gentlemen, may I interrupt for a moment?"

"There's someone listening outside the door."

Professor McGonagall, who was at the very edge, walked between the two of them, spoke, and then waved her wand, causing the door in front of Harry to open automatically.

The people in the room all had different expressions when they saw this person.

Before Harry could speak, a figure walked over with a smile from in front of the desk.

"Oh, Harry Potter, it's been a long time!"

"It's so nice to see you again."

If Harry hadn't overheard Minister Fudge talking about himself inside, he wouldn't have known that the man's face could be so radiant.

Faced with this seasoned veteran, Harry nodded awkwardly and then looked at Dumbledore:
“I can come later, Dean.”

Dumbledore got up and came out from behind his desk.

At this moment, a smile also appeared on his face.

"No need for that, Harry. The minister and Barty have already spoken with me."

"Please wait a moment, I'll see them off. Please, Minister!"

Dumbledore seemed to remember something before leaving.

"By the way, Harry can have some licorice if he gets bored in the office."

"However, people who try it for the first time may find the taste a bit strong."

Dumbledore led Fudge and Barty straight out, with Professor McGonagall following behind.

The door is closed.

For a moment, Harry was the only one left in Dumbledore's office.

No, there's another parrot.

Harry clutched his heart as he watched Fawkes appear behind him without him noticing.

"You scared me, Fox! Why didn't you make a sound?"

As Harry spoke, seemingly wanting to find something to do, he reached for the black licorice candy on the side table.

However, Harry sensed something was wrong as soon as he grabbed it.

Because these licorice candies that he hadn't looked at closely actually "came to life" in his palm.

By the time he realized something was wrong and tried to let go, it was too late.

The original black candies transformed into tadpoles with two legs, and then jumped out.

A table full of tadpoles were jumping all over the office.

Harry was startled by this sudden change and leaned against the wall, shaking his hands.

I don't know what I touched during this process.

The sound of gears turning came from one side of the room, followed by a click.

Harry then saw the wall next to him begin to rotate and slowly open, revealing a mysterious space.

This space contains a stone basin that emits blue light.

Because it was right next to him, the distance was very close, and the blue light reflected on Harry's face made him subconsciously squint.

Harry, regaining his senses, realized he had done something he shouldn't have.

The person looked around anxiously.

There was no one there, and Fox didn't react at all.

Harry then realized that Dean Dumbledore's last words might have been a hint to him to open this secret compartment.

Harry had no idea what the stone basin in that compartment was.

"Fox?"

"So, this is Dean Dumbledore's hint?"

"What does the dean want me to do?"

Faced with Harry's question, the parrot looked up at him, then flapped its wings and flew straight out the window.

Seeing this, Harry looked around again and cautiously walked closer.

Harry walked to the edge of the stone basin and looked at the liquid in it that was filled with blue light.

It was at this moment that Harry seemed to lose his soul, and his body began to bend over and bow uncontrollably.

So much so that his face got closer and closer to the blue light in the stone basin.

In the end, Harry even buried his entire face in it.

The cold touch on his face jolted Harry awake, and he instinctively tried to lift his head.

But just as he was trying to get up, supporting himself with both hands on the stone basin.

The world suddenly turned upside down in his senses, and Harry just collapsed headfirst.

Once inside the stone basin, Harry felt as if he were back in water.

This time, however, the blue water was filled with countless images.

The problem was that Harry fell so fast that he didn't have time to see the surrounding scenery clearly.

The fear of falling made Harry start screaming.

Facing downwards, he suddenly saw a group of people standing and stuck together appear directly below him.

Before Harry could react, he plummeted straight down.

Once Harry regained his footing, he realized he was back in the castle of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

But this college seems a little different from the school I know.

Before he could figure out what was going on, a nimble figure quickly walked past him.

“Professor McGonagall? I…”

McGonagall, dressed in a green robe, looked at where Harry was and said, "What are you doing here? Come with me!"

As soon as Harry finished speaking, he saw Professor McGonagall reach through her body and pull someone over.

Harry looked down at his own body and then at the back of the figure that had passed through him.

“This person is…” Professor McGonagall pulled the student away quickly, as if they were in a hurry.

But Harry soon found out who this person was.

He ran into a classmate he knew, and the two greeted each other and exchanged a few words.

"James, where are you going?"

The figure with his back turned shrugged and said, "It must be about the Quidditch match. Professor McGonagall wants me to be the Seeker."

After they finished speaking, the two figures brushed past each other.

Harry's gaze fell on the girl who had spoken.

But before Harry could even take a second look, the girl's friend pulled him along.

Amidst the laughter and chatter, the girl also revealed a shy expression.

It was at this moment that Harry understood something and murmured aloud:

"Mother………"

...............

Harry lifted his foot, wanting to follow, but before he could react...

The scene changes.

On the shore of the Great Lake, Harry saw two figures lying on the grass chatting.

One is Lily from earlier, and the other, Harry, can't make out who this person is no matter how he looks at it.

However, it should be a boy, and Harry is certain it's not his father.

The blurry figure reached out, and a paper crane made of licorice root in its palm seemed to come alive as it gently flapped its wings and flew towards young Lily.

Teenage Lily was overjoyed to see the paper cranes flying around her.

Harry moved closer, wanting to get a better look.

Unfortunately, this scene did not give him time.

The screen rotates again.

Compared to the two bright scenes just now, this third scene is shrouded in darkness.

Only the streetlights along the roadside flickered with an inconsistent light.

Harry was absolutely certain he had never seen this street or intersection before.

But the moment he saw it clearly, Harry couldn't stop the tears from flowing.

He didn't know why, and could only touch his cheek blankly.

The next moment, the scar on my forehead, which hadn't hurt for a while, started burning again.

This time, the pain was so intense that Harry knelt on the ground and curled up in a ball.

It hurts, it hurts so much!

At that moment, a figure emerged from the darkness, passed through Harry's limp body, and ran quickly toward a destroyed house.

Harry looked up, got up, and stumbled after him.

The further Harry went, the more familiar it felt—the entryway, the front door, and the layout of the living room inside.

All of this was very familiar to Harry, but he just couldn't remember it.

It wasn't until the figure that rushed into the room pushed open the door to the innermost bedroom that the situation became clear.

A figure with disheveled blond hair, lying face down on the ground, came into Harry's and the figure's line of sight.

At this moment, Harry, with tears streaming down his face, finally realized where he was.

Because there was a crib right next to this woman.

The baby sleeping in that bed was myself fifteen years ago.

The black figure who pushed open the door froze at the entrance.

They seemed unable to believe what they were seeing.

Then he rushed over.

He knelt down and hugged the woman who had collapsed to the ground.

However, the woman's chest had long since stopped rising and falling, and her body had already gone cold.

Even so, the figure in the black magic robe still clung to her tightly.

Harry covered his forehead with one hand.

I want to move forward.

That's the time.

The man, who had been silent since entering the room, suddenly screamed uncontrollably.

He cried loudly, muttering something under his breath.

It seems like a curse against the world, or perhaps a self-reproach for past cowardice.

this moment.

Everything around Harry was becoming more and more real, as if it were within reach.

Harry walked behind the figure, enduring the excruciating pain as he reached out his hand to touch it.

But at the very moment they were about to touch.

The physical pain, the tears on her cheeks, and the outstretched hand were all rapidly separating her from the world.

At that moment, Harry understood something.

Because everything now is just like the "virtual world" that Cheng Xiao had them experience back then.

False and real.

Having learned from his previous experience, Harry forced himself to suppress all his emotions and began to calm himself down.

When he regained his sense of touch, Harry jerked his head up, took two steps back, and then fell flat on his backside.

Once he could see the surrounding furnishings clearly, and the stone basin not far away, Harry relaxed and began to take deep breaths.

"came back!"

"I'm back."

After muttering to himself, Harry realized that there was already someone else next to the stone basin.

It was the owner of this room, Dean Dumbledore.

Looking at the recovered Harry, Dumbledore sighed with a complicated expression and said:
"Curiosity is not a sin, Harry."

"But you must be careful not to get caught up in other people's memories, or you'll never be able to come back."

Harry quickly composed himself and slowly got up, supporting himself against the wall:

"I'm sorry, Dean Dumbledore, I was just getting the licorice and then..."

"No, no, it's okay, Harry. I was just reminding you."

Harry nodded, subconsciously touching his cheek, before asking:
"Dean Dumbledore, so what is this?"

Harry looked at the stone basin filled with blue liquid and asked.

Dumbledore looked down:

"It's called the Pensieve, a very useful magical item."

"If you're like me and feel your brain isn't working properly because you've lived too long, you can store some memories here."

Harry asked blankly:

"So what I just saw was a memory?"

"But how come my father and mother are in here, and... and... me from that time?"

"Dean, do they have their memories here too?"

Looking at Harry's eager eyes, Dumbledore shook his head.

"The memories you see do not belong to Potter and Lily."

"It's Severus's."

Harry was stunned when he heard the name, and it took him a while to come to his senses.

"Professor Snape?"

Dumbledore looked at Harry and remained silent for a moment.

He seemed to be thinking.

Harry just watched the other person and waited.

Dumbledore looked at the blue light in the Pensieve.

Finally, he spoke: "Black is your godfather, if you say Black is your father James Potter's best friend."

"Severus Snape is Lily's, your mother's, best friend."

"He almost became your godfather too, Harry."

“Severus has known Lily longer than you have known Ron Hermione.” (End of Chapter)