Hogwarts: A Chinese-Style Professor

Chapter 274 The Plague of Ideas (4K)

By the time all the gifts were unwrapped, it was already seven o'clock.

Li Wei and his entourage went out to the auditorium for a meal.

The morning activities were overseen by the class leaders from the four colleges. Starting at nine o'clock, the students essentially had their activities behind closed doors, and it didn't matter how much noise they made, so Li Wei didn't interfere.

Otherwise, starting now is already a bit too late.

Merry Christmas, Levi!

As I approached the entrance to the hall, a vibrant voice rang out, carrying a warmth powerful enough to melt ice and snow; anyone who heard it would feel uplifted.

It's Professor Flitwick—he looks like he's decorating the auditorium.

Under his command, hundreds of gilded bells and holly wreaths flew in batches to their designated positions, arranging themselves into complex and symmetrical celebratory patterns.

"Merry Christmas, Professor Flitwick. Do you need any help?"

"Thank you, but no need. Don't you have a lot of work to do today? Please go do your own thing. Besides..."

Flitwick winked at Levi.

"I need your help to check if there are any modifications to the duel maze I designed, so you'd better come early."

"I will."

Li Wei nodded, ending the small talk.

Professor Sprout's voice rang out from not far away—Levy saw through the hall that she was leading a group of Hufflepuff upperclassmen.

One by one, magical seeds radiating a halo were buried under the snow or planted on bare branches.

As Professor Sprout tapped his wand, the ice-blue roses bloomed, and glistening, grape-like berries condensed on the branches.

"Fuck-"

Several huge "snow cedars" rose from the ground in the open space, their branches and leaves made entirely of fluffy, shiny snowflakes, which looked very beautiful. Some students hung up Christmas decorations and began to decorate.

Professor Sprout seems to be planning an outdoor winter plant exhibition combined with a maze treasure hunt?

Li Wei withdrew his gaze and entered the auditorium for a meal.

I thought it was still early and there wouldn't be many people in the auditorium, especially the children, who would probably sleep in for quite some time.

When Li Wei walked into the auditorium, the warm and enthusiastic atmosphere startled him.

Even though it's a holiday, most of the students' seats are already occupied.

Did these students also get up early to open their gifts? They've become more prescient.

Li Wei's expression remained unchanged as he walked to the professor's seat amidst the noisy atmosphere.

It was the same spot as always—Snape, dressed in a formal suit, was already sitting to the side of the empty seat.

Good morning, Snape.

Li Wei greeted them subconsciously—he was indeed in a good mood today.

Moreover, now that Snape has changed his image, he probably won't get angry at the slightest provocation like before.

Sirius Black sat on the other side. When he saw Levi and Snape greeting each other, he pursed his lips but didn't say anything.

When Snape heard Livy greet him, his expression froze for a moment.

He instinctively turned his head and saw that Levi had already lowered his head to eat—Snape's neck stiffened for a moment, and he just stared blankly at Levi's black hair.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment, returning to the past, but then it started turning again in the next moment.

"Merry Christmas—cough—Merry Christmas, Li Wei."

Snape gave Levi a somewhat awkward smile—he'd been practicing smiling in front of the mirror occasionally lately, but he wasn't quite good at it yet.

His facial muscles had long since become stiff from years of anger and indifference, making it impossible for them to curve upwards.

"Merry Christmas, Snape."

Levi didn't expect Snape to respond to him, and gave a vague reply.

Nevertheless, Snape felt instantly better! As if he had smelled a sweet floral fragrance, his chest and back straightened instinctively, a large amount of oxygen entered his brain, and he became clear-headed.

Snape licked his lips, wanting to say something more—but he didn't know what to say, so he also forked a piece of fried egg, put it in his mouth, and chewed it slowly.

If only they had this kind of relationship during their student days.

For the first time, Snape regretted what he had done at school.

As for Lily—Snape still believes it was James's problem, even though Levi had pointed it out several times: Lily leaving him wasn't because of James.

But Snape refused.

After finishing his meal, Li Wei officially began his work, with two assistants following behind him, serving both as mentors and companions.

As for Sirius and Lupin, Li Wei dismissed them, otherwise their unit would have seemed too bloated.

A piece of parchment, densely marked with the entire program of the celebration, materialized out of nowhere and appeared in Li Wei's hand.

There will be an event organized by the deans in the afternoon.

Professor Flitwick created a miniature dueling maze himself—he would shrink each participating student with a shrinking spell and throw them into the maze model, thus allowing them to fight in a complex environment.

As 'God', Professor Flitwick would occasionally create unexpected events.

By altering the weather and terrain, or setting traps, the entire duel becomes suspenseful, rather than relying solely on the students' dueling abilities, as is the case with Duel Tower.

The overall idea is good, and Professor Flitwick had already discussed it with Levi several times before deciding to do it.

Li Wei made a suggestion—since the goal is to increase randomness and fun, why not add a treasure system?

For example, the invincible Elder Wand from the Three Deadly Holy Relics, or the Resurrection Stone that can save a student from one 'death', or the Death Cloak that can conceal one's appearance.

This is just the most basic level.

Looking at the list of Duel Dungeon contents, Professor Flitwick directly applied the same principle to add a large number of buff and debuff items—which means that some handcrafted items may have problems.

It was still early, and Levi guessed that Flitwick hadn't finished making arrangements yet—he traced a line on the list with his finger and set a one-hour countdown.

With that in mind, he simply categorized the list, postponing all the scenes that were still being set up and instead looking at some simpler things.

For example, the fortune-telling teacher, Sybil Trelawney's fortune-telling shop?

To be honest, Li Wei wasn't interested in that place.

Because of the other person's special circumstances, he probably still remembers this person.

Although she teaches divination, she actually knows nothing about it. On the contrary, her grandmother was a renowned prophet who was incredibly accurate.

But perhaps it's a family inheritance, or something deeper, but at certain times, Trelawney can also display a grandmother-like talent, making accurate prophecies—though she forgets them afterwards. Like that prophecy about the 'savior':

The Savior will be born into a family that has defeated the Dark Lord three times—born in the seventh month, only one of them can survive.

Really great.

But the fortune-telling sessions she held for her students were clearly more like casual chatter—Li Wei didn't see the need for confirmation.

Despite this thought, he still went to take a look.

After all, it's not his style to arbitrarily determine something unknown.

If something unexpected were to happen, it would disappoint Professor McGonagall, who trusts her—a scenario Levi would absolutely not want to see.

For him, Professor McGonagall, who was willing to continue to guide him through letters after graduation, was someone he cherished and valued greatly.

"Professor—do you believe that divination has a theoretical basis?"

As the three walked toward the North Tower, Jia Meier unusually took the initiative to start a conversation.

Joey stared at her in surprise—then quickly received a glare from her—and awkwardly turned his head away, giving an embarrassed laugh.

It's no wonder he was surprised; Camille would never have done this before entering Hogwarts.

Unless she encounters an unsolvable problem, she won't ask questions, let alone discuss a somewhat rambling topic like this.

"Theoretical basis?" Li Wei pondered. "If we measure it by the standards of observability, repeatability, and quantifiability that we usually understand, most behaviors called divination are untenable."

"It lacks a unified axiomatic system, and the results are highly dependent on the interpreter's subjective interpretation, and it is difficult to rule out the influence of coincidence, psychological suggestion or selective information reception."

From a methodological perspective, it is riddled with flaws.

Joe listened silently, thinking carefully—he had little experience with divination, but he trusted Professor Levi's opinion.

"But in the magical world, facts often precede theories and even mock our existing cognitive frameworks."

You have also read the history of magic—some of the most significant and inexplicable events were indeed touched upon by some form of foresight or prophecy.

For example, the famous *Axley Prophecies* contains many core images that remarkably coincide with later events.

"Therefore, I do not believe in divination in the general sense, and I especially do not trust those who use it as daily entertainment or as a tool for mystification."

But I respect those phenomena that cannot be easily denied and are called prophecies.

As the three approached the floor of the fortune-telling shop, the scent of spices began to fill the air, and Li Wei drew his conclusion.

"It's like we're facing an unknown magical phenomenon."

We may not be able to explain it with existing theories for the time being, but that doesn't mean we can arbitrarily declare it nonexistent or a hoax.

Joe appeared thoughtful, while Camille stared intently at Levi's retreating figure, a subtle ripple in her eyes.

Upon arriving at the fortune-telling room set up by Trelawney, Levi stood in front of the tent draped with beaded curtains.

The curtain was made of stained glass beads and faded bird feathers. As the three approached, a magical object hidden on the top of the tent sensed their arrival and blew out a gust of air.

The curtains made a soft, rustling sound, like some kind of creature whispering.

She might have thought that a little trick would fool the students—it might have worked before, but it certainly wouldn't now.

Li Wei lifted the beaded curtain and entered with two assistants, bowing low.

Although it was still daytime, the light inside was very dim, with only a few hanging oil lamps covered with dark gauze for illumination.

A faint blue smoke floated in the air, coming from unknown herbs burning in a small brazier in the corner. It smelled a bit pungent, yet also had a strangely soothing quality.

A huge round table occupies the visual center, covered with a deep purple velvet tablecloth, on which are scattered several tarot cards, a crystal ball covered with cracks but with nebulae swirling inside, and several copper bowls filled with sand of different colors.

Professor Sybil Trelawney was seated behind the round table.

Today she was wearing an orange robe adorned with sequins and metal rings, and thick, round glasses that made her eyes look somewhat vacant and unfocused.

Li Wei looked at her strangely and was about to greet her when she suddenly shouted!
“Ah—!” Trelawney let out a soft gasp, her voice more ethereal than usual. “I sensed a clear, calm trajectory, yet shrouded in mist.”

It traversed the castle's clamor and arrived directly at this forgotten corner of truth.

Li Wei ignored what she said and simply said:

“Professor Trelawney, I’m just here to confirm whether the ‘divination session’ this afternoon is ready, not to do any divination.”

Trelawney didn't seem to be fully listening to Levi's words.

Her gaze, through those enormous glasses, was fixed on Li Wei's face, but her focus seemed to be on some distant point behind him.

Her hand, resting on the table, twitched nervously, knocking over a small bowl of silver sand. The fine sand flowed silently onto the dark velvet, forming a blurry, irregular shape.

"Confirmed? No—it's fate, fate has led you here."

Before I could offer the lost lambs a taste of fleeting entertainment, it insisted that I first act as their guide, glimpsing a true path to destiny.

Upon seeing this, Li Wei subconsciously frowned.

Although he rarely saw Trelawney, she always looked timid and wary whenever she saw him, as if his book had damaged her authority.

Her current state is completely different from usual; something is clearly wrong.

But soon, Li Wei sat cross-legged opposite Trelawney and said calmly:

"In that case, I'll trouble you to perform a divination for me."

Trelawney did not respond, but continued:
“I see the thread of truth you have woven, which is about to break free from the spindle of this ivory tower.”

Her empty gaze pierced through Li Wei and looked out of the castle.

"The plague of ideas, the winds of enlightenment, will sweep through every corner where a magic wand is hidden, through the tools you have crafted."

The fireplace in the home will whisper tales of distant lands, the underground gatherings will no longer hold true secrets, and the ancient library will be forced to open its dusty bookshelves.
For the first time, knowledge will flow equally to everyone who reaches out their hands, regardless of bloodline or political stance.

At that time, turmoil will follow!

Seeing Trelawney's serious expression, and having nothing else to do, Levi decided to ponder what she had said.

If it's just about ideas and enlightenment, then it represents many things—such as students, professors, alchemists' associations, and the Ministry of Magic.

But since it involves tools, could it be a treasure trove?
Li Wei's expression shifted, and he asked seriously:

What kind of turmoil are you referring to?

"Huh—what?"

Trelawney looked up, her gaze suddenly becoming exceptionally clear.

(End of this chapter)