Hogwarts starts with stealing power.

Today's transformation lesson will still focus on practice.

There are no shortcuts to training for the Transfiguration Charm; it depends heavily on talent. Those with good talent can achieve it quickly, while those with average talent can only rely on persistent effort over time.

Without talent and perseverance, one will not make any progress in transfiguration.

During the Transfiguration class, Harry, Ron, and Neville once again felt that their Transfiguration talent had improved.

Harry and Ron both handle details quickly enough, but Neville is different.

Neville experienced a dramatic transformation.

At first, Neville could only transform the turtle into a strange shape, but at least it was recognizable as a turtle, which was much better than those that weren't even turtles.

During class, Neville kept making improvements and somehow managed to conjure up a seemingly normal turtle before the get out of class ended!

The reason it appears normal is because this turtle only looks like a turtle on the outside; it's completely useless inside.

This turtle cannot run or move, nor does it make any subtle changes; it is a completely silent construct.

Even so, this progress is still remarkable.

Neville was also amazed by this extraordinary performance, watching it several times and even grabbing Mikel to ask:

"I'm not seeing things, am I? My Transfiguration has actually reached this level! It's like I've suddenly had an epiphany!"

Mikel took a closer look and nodded in agreement, saying, "Although this turtle can't move, it already has the spirit of a turtle. The next step is for you to anthropomorphize it and make it more lifelike, and you'll be able to meet the requirements for this semester."

"Navi, your Transfiguration has really improved a lot. Last week you couldn't even conjure a turtle's shell."

Neville chuckled sheepishly and said in a low voice, "I don't think this is my achievement, but the professor's. If Professor Snape hadn't let me participate in the study, I certainly wouldn't have had this opportunity."

Upon hearing this, Mikel silently used a transformation spell on the teapot.

His Transfiguration skills were relatively weak compared to his other subjects, but he was still better than Neville before.

But this time, he couldn't compare to Neville, and was only slightly better than Ron.

He conjured up the turtle's shell and head, but not its tail; however, overall it looked very much like a turtle.

It seems that he is only one step away from meeting the graduation requirements for this course.

But only Mick knew that it was much simpler for the details to resemble a turtle than for the whole to resemble a turtle.

It is extremely difficult to piece together the whole thing into the shape of a turtle and make it move. Compared to him, Neville is only one step away.

This puzzled Mikel. Ron, Harry, and Neville's mental strength had been tempered and had all increased.

He directly absorbed Professor Snape's mental energy, so his growth should be greater than that of these three people.

He did indeed feel the expansion and fullness in his mind, and his handling of the details of many spells was better than before.

However, he could not match the transformations these three people performed.

His transformation skills had only improved slightly compared to before.

But this kind of progress, even if mental strength doesn't increase, can still be achieved through diligent study and practice this week.

Compared to the effects of the increased mental power of these three people, the mental power he gained through absorption seemed far inferior.

Time flew by, and this transformation lesson came to an end.

"Lin Xia, could you stay behind for a moment?" Professor McGonagall's voice came from the podium.

Lin Xia paused in her action of pulling up the chair, stopping in place.

Draco greeted Hermione and Lin Xia; they had no classes afterward and needed to head to the lab to finish their unfinished research.

Harry and the others were all led away by Hermione; she needed their help to analyze and collect data for some of her research.

As for Mikel, he originally wanted to stay where he was and listen to what Professor McGonagall had to say to Lin Xia, just like Harry and the others had done in the past.

But since even they had left this time, Mikel had no reason to stay, so he quietly left as well and headed to the laboratory.

The professor only restricted his use of the lab for research, but did not restrict his access to the lab.

He could take advantage of the quiet environment of the laboratory to contemplate the two forces within his body.

How can we achieve a balance between these two forces and utilize them effectively, rather than becoming a medium for their struggle?

The classroom was soon empty, leaving only McGonagall and Lin Xia.

McGonagall walked up to Lin Xia, her expression slightly serious, and said, "Do you have any ideas about alleviating the dizziness caused by excessive mental strain?"

Lin Xia raised an eyebrow and quickly said, "I discussed this with Professor Snape before, and we both agreed that developing a targeted potion would be more practical."

“However,” she changed the subject, “the development of mental potions is very difficult, and the side effects of treating excessive mental energy depletion such as dizziness are very niche and cannot attract established potion masters to research them at this stage.”

McGonagall asked, "Is your lab capable of conducting this type of research?"

Lin Xia hesitated for a moment and said, "Yes, but it can't be the focus of our work right now. The lab's goals for this year have already been set. Only after we achieve those goals will we consider tackling the next stage of new goals."

In short, she can research mental energy potions, but that's not her main focus, and she's unsure when they will be available.

McGonagall pondered for a moment and said, "If the school wants you to focus your work on the research and development of mental potions and is willing to provide you with some resources, could you change your research direction this year?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xia was somewhat tempted, or at least outwardly seemed quite interested, but she was still hesitant.

"Professor, our research is actually starting to take shape. Once we determine the main materials, we'll be able to develop a prototype."

If the research continues according to schedule, it should be completed by the end of this semester. This topic is quite interesting, so let's stick to the original timeline.

She refused.

The next second, Professor McGonagall said, "What if the school were willing to provide you with a lot of resources related to mental potions?"
Besides resources, we can also provide you with certain knowledge, even authorizing access to books from restricted areas.

"Books in the forbidden section?" Lin Xia asked in confusion.

Professor McGonagall said calmly, "Not every time you read a banned book, you have to go to the restricted area."

The forbidden book zone is extremely dangerous. Some wizards only need to read one book, so a designated person can enter the forbidden book zone, take the book out, and place it in the wizarding world for reading.

However, because the reading environments are different, the effects also differ. Reading in the forbidden zone carries greater danger, but allows for rapid knowledge absorption. Reading in the wizarding world, on the other hand, slows down knowledge absorption but reduces risk. However, reading in the wizarding world also has a downside: it accelerates the wear and tear of the books.

A book that would normally be read dozens of times in a restricted area might only be read ten times before becoming a blank book, its contents disappearing.

A thoughtful look flashed across Lin Xia's eyes as she asked, "Professor, I have a question. Will all those blank books that have lost their content really disappear and never come back?"

Professor McGonagall gave her a look of great admiration.

Lin Xia is always so perceptive.

"You guessed right, these blank books are not permanently gone. As long as they are put back in the restricted area, after a period of recovery, the contents of the books will reappear."

However, no one can say for sure how long it will take to recover. Some only need a few months, some need half a year, and some need several years or even decades.

Moreover, even if the text in the book is restored, it may not be the original content; it is very likely to be replaced with entirely new content.

A wizard once conducted a test, placing a blank book that had lost its contents back into the forbidden library. Ten years later, the book's contents reappeared, but they were no longer the original book.

Lin Xia thought for a moment and said, "If the school is willing to support our research on this type of drug, providing resources and knowledge, the laboratory will fully cooperate with the school."

However, Professor, the development of psychotropic drugs has always been a difficult problem, as the field of mental health is extremely complex and challenging.

As you know, many patients at St. Mungo's suffer from mental illnesses. They are unable to recover and remain in a state of madness, only occasionally regaining their senses for a period of time, but soon becoming confused again.

Moreover, besides these special patients, many low- to intermediate-level infected individuals also require psychiatric medications to control their condition.

She paused, then said bluntly, "I'm worried that the school has invested so many resources in us, only to find that all we're doing is researching a drug to relieve headaches caused by mental exhaustion. Other people at the school will have something to say about that."

McGonagall smiled lightly and said calmly, "Go ahead and do your research, they won't have any objections."
-
After finishing her conversation with Professor McGonagall, Lin Xia left the Transfiguration classroom and went into the corridor.

It was recess time, no classes were in session, and the corridor was crowded with lively and active little wizards.

She walked through one long corridor after another. This area was where the younger wizards were active, and Lin Xia did not deliberately avoid them.

During breaks, the young wizard prefers to chat.

Wherever she went, she could hear the opinions of these little wizards about the knowledge-based puzzle games, with criticism outweighing praise.

"I really don't know what the point of having us participate in the research is. Is it just to let us experience what it feels like to have our mental energy exploited?"

"This isn't a learning game for ordinary students; only outstanding students can master it!"

"Forget about entering mini-games, I can't even enter the virtual world that the glasses provide. My head hurts terribly as soon as I put them on. Is the school using us as experiments?"

Lin Xia silently added in her mind: You guessed right, the school is using you as guinea pigs!

However, the school did not want to test whether the knowledge-based puzzle game was easy to use or whether students could adapt to it.

The purpose of having so many students wear the Alchemy Glasses to enter this game was essentially to test whether the Alchemy Glasses were widely available to the general public.

As it turns out, it is absolutely impossible.

To meet the requirements for using the Alchemy Glasses, one needs a very high level of mental strength.

From this perspective, it doesn't seem like a game designed for underage wizards.

Many wizards reach a stable period of mental strength after reaching adulthood, and most of them can meet the requirements for using these glasses.

From what she observed, there were many older but underage students who were able to enter the virtual world created by the Alchemist Glasses.

So it depends on how the school decides to proceed.

The goal is to further lower the requirements for using the alchemy glasses, allowing underage wizards to enjoy the convenience, unparalleled information interaction, and entirely new learning modes they offer.

The alchemy glasses are still only available to adult wizards, while the school uses a more traditional desk-based learning method.

This approach is far inferior to the realism and immersion provided by the Alchemy Glasses.

Although Professor McGonagall did not mention the school's plans to Lin Xia, judging from her willingness to strongly support the laboratory's research and development of psychotropic drugs, the school should be leaning towards the former and want to lower the requirements for using the alchemy glasses.

In addition, a series of related medicines will be developed to reduce the dizziness and other weakness caused by underage wizards using these glasses.

From this perspective, the laboratory's "temporarily enhancing mental strength potion" and "reducing the side effects of excessive mental strength depletion" both hit the school's right track.

Lin Xia had a premonition that once she submitted these two research topics, she would receive strong support from the school.

This brings her one step closer to her plan to gain long-term access to the restricted book section.
-
"I can't find them, I can't find any of them!"

Inside a sealed laboratory at Hogwarts.

On the empty floor of this laboratory, there were many mutated human corpses transported from the world of evil gods.

These corpses had many organs dissected, and the blood of some deformed people flowed onto the ground but no one cleaned it up.

However, Ken Nicholson, the head of the laboratory, turned a blind eye to this scene.

He stared at a petrified quill pen directly in front of him, his crazed eyes filled with bewilderment.

“I’ve tried every method I can think of, but you refuse to break the petrification. I even obtained a petrification potion specifically for objects, but it has no effect on you.”

"What do I have to do for you to unveil the mystery around me?"

"You were once Slytherin's quill. The fact that you've survived to this day means your abilities are truly extraordinary. My little lamb, show me your abilities, and I promise I'll treat you well, even become your slave!"

Ken Nicholson suddenly realized something, and a glint of madness flashed in his eyes.

"Perhaps you want to leave Horowitz, the place that has imprisoned you for countless years?"

“That’s right,” he muttered to himself. “It must be this environment that’s making you uncomfortable, which is why you’re hesitant to show your true face. Find an opportunity… Please wait a moment, I will definitely take you out…”

"Knock knock!"

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Before the person inside could reply, the door was opened.

Professor McGonagall walked in, saw the scene on the ground, a hint of pity flashed in her eyes, but then her expression returned to blankness.

"Nicholson, the school has a task for you." (End of Chapter)