Hogwarts starts with stealing power.

It's possible that she learned in advance from the twins that her "wish would come true" soon.

So when Lin Xia learned that Professor McGonagall would apply for access to the restricted book section for her, she was very happy, but also had a feeling that she had expected it.

I've submitted the application, but I don't know how long it will take for it to be approved.

Lin Xia could only focus on the alchemical glasses for now.

Since she no longer needed to cultivate, she had a lot more free time.

As her energy needs increased, her practice sessions also became longer, gradually taking up 3 to 4 hours of her time each day.

Now that she has some free time, she spends it studying the structural diagrams of the alchemical glasses.

She could sense that the school was more eager to improve the alchemical glasses, as this was currently the most likely area for a breakthrough.

As for spirit potions, these are notoriously difficult to obtain, and many in the wizarding world have been researching them, but none have achieved effective results.

Time passed day by day, and the semester gradually came to an end.

Lin Xia's access to the restricted book area was granted last week, but she did not enter the restricted book area immediately.

Because she knew that once she entered, she would be in a long quarantine.

She needs to arrange her current tasks before she can focus on absorbing knowledge.

As for the mental potion, she doesn't plan to release the one she has on hand yet; she'll have to wait a while longer, preferably until she completes her advancement before releasing it.

She had already disassembled more than half of the alchemical glasses and was starting to get a sense of what was going on.

She also doesn't plan to write it down immediately, lest she be barred from entering the restricted book section.

Her research project is progressing steadily, and similarly, the Ghost Stories Sugar and the psychokinetic research project involving Neville have also made significant breakthroughs.

The "Ghost Stories" series is currently behind schedule and will be fully completed and published at the start of the next semester.

In another research project on a psychic potion, Nave's idea helped them take a big step forward.

Just as Lin Xia had predicted, Neville had a brilliant idea for a mental potion.

It was Neville who inspired the lab by reviewing information related to psychic abilities.

It doesn't necessarily have to be made into a potion; the potion can also be made larger.

Since enhancing mental power is intended to allow users to more smoothly integrate into the alchemical glasses, rather than for use in battle, it doesn't necessarily have to be designed as a potion.

Once freed from the drug's constraints, their thoughts become unrestrained and imaginative.

Some people think it can be made into the shape of a helmet, while others think it can be made into a huge rock and placed directly in the bedroom.

Some people think it can be made into a wristband that can be directly tied to the body to amplify mental power... There are all sorts of ideas.

After several discussions, everyone finally agreed that it could be made into the shape of a helmet and a boulder.

This way, the restrictions on materials are not so strict, and many special materials that can enhance mental power can be used directly.

They had just decided on the style they wanted when Neville, after reviewing information related to mental power, directly determined the materials.

This scene took place last week.

She can still recall the scene.

Neville was reviewing the documents, his brow furrowed, seemingly deep in thought.

She and Hermione sat opposite Neville, discussing methods to enhance mental strength.

They believed that in addition to using items to amplify mental strength, wizards could also train their mental abilities.

There is currently far too little training in this area within the wizarding community.

If there are no conditions, then create them.

Lin Xia agreed with Hermione's idea and suggested, "Why don't we go find Professor McGonagall today and talk to her about whether any wizards in the wizarding world have tried to improve their mental strength through training?"

Hermione thought for a moment and said, "Why don't we look up some relevant information first?"

Lin Xia shook her head: "Looking up information is not as quick as asking Professor McGonagall directly. Many books don't record details. Professor McGonagall is a high-ranking wizard, and there should be some information circulating within their ranks that wouldn't be shared outside."

“Okay.” Hermione nodded. “Then let’s go find it now.”

Just as Lin Xia was about to stand up, she suddenly noticed Nawei sitting opposite her.

She remembered that Neville had been wearing that pensive expression for several minutes.

Lin Xia casually asked, "Navie, is there anything you don't understand? Are you too tired? Do you want to go out and rest for a bit?"

Hermione also said, "You've been reading too much about psychic powers lately, don't push yourself too hard."

There is a reading threshold for materials on mental power.

Wizards who have never encountered spiritual power will find this part of the text very difficult to understand.

If you look at it for a long time, you'll feel an explosive sensation of information being forcibly crammed into your mind.

Neville first nodded to thank them for their kindness, then a conflicted look appeared on his face.

"Lin Xia, Hermione, I've been looking at some information these past few days, and there's one question I just can't figure out."

At first, Lin Xia and Hermione both thought it was a very simple question, so they casually asked, "What question?"

Neville took out one of the documents and asked with a puzzled look, "I don't quite understand this part."

Lin Xia and Hermione took it and started reading.

Lin Xia glanced at it casually, but managed to understand most of the contents, and couldn't help but frown and ponder.

To her recollection, she had never seen this page of information before.

She glanced at Hermione, whose reaction was equally serious, as if she had never seen this page before.

Neville shared his thoughts: "The information on this page says that the material with the strongest affinity to wizards and the ability to enhance mental power is the Shadow Stone."

However, the Shadow Stone cannot be ingested. Once ingested, the mental power will continuously increase, eventually becoming overloaded. The wizard will be unable to withstand the surge in mental power and will die.

Furthermore, once ingested by humans, the Shadow Stone cannot be excreted from the body. Many wizards either cannot withstand the surge in their mental power, or the Shadow Stone remains inside their bodies, leading to death.

Neville spoke at length, then swallowed nervously.

"I was thinking, since the Shadow Stone cannot be ingested, could touching it with my body improve my mental strength?"

If we only touch it, our mental strength will increase slightly. Would that be enough to satisfy our needs?
However, there's another problem. Because the spiritual power gained from consuming this stone is so immense, I worry that if we use the Shadow Stone in our products, it might tempt wizards to take risks in order to obtain this power.

Hermione frowned, completely absorbed in the shock. "This idea... no, this material, why have I never seen it before?" she murmured to herself.

Lin Xia quickly realized what was going on and said, "I don't know what Shadow Stone is, but I imagine that such a dangerous material should be on the list of prohibited trades."

I'm going to see Professor McGonagall later, so I can ask her about how easy it is to obtain Shadowstones and their potential for commercialization.

Neville nodded, then said somewhat embarrassedly, "Lin Xia, Hermione, I noticed you haven't mentioned Shadowstone in your discussion, and I'm not sure if this material would be helpful for our experiment."

I'm wondering if it's because this material is too dangerous that you've never considered commercializing it.

But I have a gut feeling that the Shadow Stone might be the best material we can find that can enhance mental power simply by touching it, so I still want to say it.”

Lin Xia thought for a moment and said, "Nawei, didn't I mention to you before that you have a strong affinity for mental energy potions?"

The reason we wanted to develop this type of drug was because you brought it up in our discussion at the time, which is why we specifically invited you to join this project.

I believe every wizard has their strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps your strength lies in mental abilities, so don't deny your intuition; your ideas might bring us unprecedented surprises.

Neville smiled shyly after being showered with praise by Lin Xia.

Since he served as Neville's assistant at the Weasley twins' paper presentation and completed the task flawlessly without any mishaps, Neville's confidence visibly increased.

This is why, after struggling with the decision for three days, he decided to tell Lin Xia his thoughts.

If it were me in the past, I probably would have hesitated for a week before finally blurting out my thoughts.

Hermione and Lin Xia left the laboratory, Hermione still looking somewhat dazed.

Lin Xia nudged her elbow and asked with concern, "Hermione, are you alright?"

Hermione snapped out of her daze and shook her head: "No, I just find it incredible."

But when this incredible thing happened to Neville, it seemed perfectly natural. Since we got involved with the psychic potion project, Neville had amazed me several times.

Lin Xia raised an eyebrow and asked with interest, "Was Neville this shocking to you before?"

Hermione nodded, lost in her memories, her expression turning serious.

"I feel like some of the materials are only available to him. I've already looked through the mental energy materials the school gave me at least three times."

I am very confident in my memory; I can remember everything I have seen.

But I just couldn't find the section Neville pointed out. It's like that content only unlocks when it's in his presence, and this isn't the first time this has happened.

Lin Xia suddenly smiled. "Isn't this great?"

A gentle smile played at the corners of her lips.

"Navi may have exceptional abilities in certain areas, especially in terms of mental strength. With him in our team, we might be able to develop a product next semester."

The school attaches great importance to this project and will open up all its resources to us.

I reckon when we report this to Professor McGonagall later, she'll readily pull out the Shadow Stone and conduct experiments with us.

Indeed, when McGonagall heard that they needed Shadowstone, she quickly thought of the material's properties.

The professor said, "The Shadow Stone, its properties are indeed very suitable for developing mental potions, but it cannot be ingested."

Lin Xia said, "We want to conduct contact research on it to see if we can enhance mental strength through contact, rather than taking it directly, which is too dangerous."

Professor McGonagall pondered for a moment: "Contact? No one has studied that."

Simply touching something is unlikely to significantly enhance mental power; otherwise, ancient wizards wouldn't have sought to ingest it directly. However, if you're interested in researching touch, you could try exploring that area; it might be a promising direction.

I can apply for a batch of shadow stones for you. If you need assistance, professors at the university can also cooperate with your experiments. I only have one request: I hope the product can be developed as soon as possible.

"As for your question about whether there are any training methods in the wizarding world to improve mental strength," McGonagall paused, her brow furrowing as if considering whether to answer.

"Yes," she finally decided to say, "but these methods are too dangerous. Only experienced and mature wizards can use those methods to train their mental strength. If used on a young wizard, it is very easy for their mental strength to collapse, resulting in death."

Lin Xia pressed further: "Isn't there anything a little easier, something that would give a junior wizard a chance to try?"

The professor remained silent for a long time, as if searching his mind for a simpler method that was also less dangerous.

After a long pause, she said, "Yes, you are practicing the Brain Sealing Technique, didn't you notice that this magic is a bit special?"
It allows wizards to maintain a calm state at any time and in any place. Maintaining a calm state of mind is a form of mental training, and if you persist in it for a long time, your mental strength will improve.

However, the extent of improvement varies from person to person; some people can benefit greatly from it.

At the same time, while consistently using the Occupation Meditation technique, constantly undergoing various nightmare trials will rapidly increase one's mental strength.

Lin Xia and Hermione exchanged a glance; they were so engrossed in practicing the Sealing Technique that they hadn't even noticed.

The scene shifts back to the present, and the flashback ends.

Lin Xia sat in her private laboratory, stroking a batch of stones that looked like pebbles.

These stones are called shadow stones; they look very small and inconspicuous.

Professor McGonagall brought the Shadow Stone over in just one night.

This shows that the school attaches great importance to research projects on mental strength.

Another point that shows is that Shadow Stone is a relatively easy material to obtain and is not a particularly precious material, so it can be transferred quickly.

Professor McGonagall came to the lab to see her personally. In addition to giving her the Shadow Stone, she also gave her a specially made business card.

The business card is entirely black, exuding a mysterious aura, and contains no text.

This is the pass to the restricted book area.

Professor McGonagall said, "This is a pass that only university professors can obtain to access the restricted book area."

Unlike students who can enter the restricted area, professors can enter directly by finding specific locations. Hogwarts has dozens of such locations, while students only have one entrance.

Lin Xia, once you use this business card to enter the restricted area, I will sense it. Whether you enter or leave, I will be able to contact you through this business card.

This is both a form of protection and a form of oversight for you; I hope you understand.

Lin Xia nodded: "I understand, Professor."

At this moment, Lin Xia kept twirling the black business card in her hand, pondering when to enter the restricted book area.

Once inside, she will undergo a transformation within the forbidden book section.

The chaotic atmosphere and environment of the forbidden book section made it a suitable natural training ground for her advancement.

There's no need to worry about being discovered by others in the wizarding world, and at the same time, it allows for a thorough examination of her unique heart. (End of Chapter)