Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

Regulus had a rather dangerous idea.

A fatal blow that would be effective against all carbon-based life forms, even wizards.

What compounds are almost universally deadly to all carbon-based life forms and can be quickly generated locally using shapeshifting techniques?

Cyanide.

Both hydrogen cyanide gas and cyanide ions are highly toxic, rapidly inhibiting cellular respiration. The lethal dose is extremely small, and the effects are very rapid.

Air contains nitrogen and carbon, while water vapor provides hydrogen.

In theory, if the control of magic is powerful enough, it is possible to instantly and accurately capture nitrogen, carbon, and hydrogen atoms from the surrounding environment.

They were forcibly combined into hydrogen cyanide molecules and directly delivered into the target respiratory system...

This requires not only control over molecular arrangement, but also the delusion of manipulating at the atomic level, and real-time element identification and synthesis path calculation capabilities comparable to supercomputers.

At present, it seems like nothing short of a fantasy.

But the magical world is never short of miracles that turn the impossible into the possible.

At least, this direction points to the heights that transfiguration can potentially reach in extreme cases.

It will no longer be an aid in combat, but will become the most covert and deadliest weapon.

If caught in the trap, a skilled wizard might not be able to save himself effectively, but a mediocre wizard is almost certain to die.

Of course, that's extremely far off, and may never be possible.

However, we can strive towards it.

Hermes struggled to his feet, gripping the bedpost, head bowed, unable to look at Regulus again.

His inner arrogance was completely shattered, replaced by deep apprehension and fear, as well as a twisted curiosity about that unknown power that he himself was unaware of.

His initial confidence in turning the tide with dark magic now seemed utterly ridiculous.

He needs to reassess everything, including himself, and... how to deal with this awful roommate.

The dormitory returned to silence. Regulus smiled faintly, picked up a new piece of graphite, and began a new round of practice.

......

While the exploration of the nature of matter through Transfiguration is fascinating, Regulus knew that it required years of accumulation and could not be accomplished overnight.

Currently, he needs some more immediate and critical defensive capabilities to deal with the increasingly imminent and enormous threat, Voldemort.

Brain blockade is the first procedure to be performed.

The original text mentions that Severus Snape used this method to become a spy for Voldemort, the master of Legilimency, without being detected.

Mastering the Occupation Technique can not only effectively defend against Legilimency, but may even be effective against Imperishable Curses.

It is also an indispensable survival skill when dealing with Voldemort.

However, simply performing a brain shut-off procedure is not enough.

He thought of passive magic, which is magic that can remain effective without being actively cast, or that can be automatically triggered to protect the wizard.

These are rarely taught in Hogwarts' regular curriculum; they are often regarded as advanced or obscure magical techniques, scattered in the heritage of ancient families or in certain high-level magical books.

The most crucial passive mental defense mechanism is the brain shut-off technique.

For Regulus, entering the forbidden book section without permission was either a one-time thing or an endless series of times.

Tonight, a Wednesday night before Halloween, the castle was unusually quiet, and he decided to sneak in again.

The process was smooth and familiar.

He didn't linger long; with a clear goal in mind, he quickly browsed and memorized the core information of the relevant books using his powerful mental scanning ability.

He saw quite a few book titles:

The Mind Fortress: Essentials of the Art of Mental Defense

Ancient Protective Ritual and Everlasting Magical Imprint

The Nature of Magic: On the Shaping and Disguise of Personal Magic

An Introduction to the Detection and Countermeasures of Black Magic

Soul Resilience: On Combating Soul-Stealing and Seduction

The Hidden Path: Tracking, Counter-Tracking, and the Magical Mist

The vast library at Hogwarts was unfathomable, which outlined a huge field of knowledge that he would need to explore in the future.

Back in his dorm room, Regulus immediately began practicing Occlumency.

According to the book, the core of brain shut-in lies in strictly controlling the leakage of thoughts and emotions, and constructing a complex and false or fixed mental maze deep in the consciousness to confuse intruders.

The exercises are divided into several levels.

First, there's the basic barrier: concentrate your mind and build a simple wall around your consciousness to prevent your surface thoughts from wandering aimlessly and being read.

Secondly, it involves organizing and categorizing thoughts, classifying different memories, knowledge, and emotions, and storing them in different rooms.

Then there's the generation of false memories or thoughts, which actively creates seemingly reasonable but irrelevant or misleading thought fragments. When an intrusion occurs, these baits are automatically pushed to the intruder.

Finally, there is deep solidification and automatic defense, which trains the defense mechanism into instinct, so that even without active maintenance, the subconscious will automatically operate the basic barrier and decoy deployment.

Only the deepest and most core thoughts are strictly protected, and the access path is extremely complex.

With Regulus's current level of mental and spiritual stability, honed through Star Orbit Meditation, far surpassing that of his peers and even many adult wizards, he encountered almost no difficulty in mastering the Occlumency Technique.

He quickly mastered the construction of basic barriers and managed the division of his thoughts in an orderly manner.

However, he felt that to reach the level of completely deceiving a Legilimency master of Voldemort's caliber, he might need more practice and honing of higher-level skills.

But the door has already been opened to him; what remains is more of a gradual process and adaptation to the situation.

He even conceived the idea of ​​using the dynamic model of star trail meditation as the core of a special mental maze.

The most important secret is hidden in the constantly running and complex calculations of the changing patterns of star orbit models.

Even if the invaders manage to breach the outer defenses, they would likely be disoriented and unable to find truly useful information in the face of this vast, ever-moving starry sky, which requires extremely high computing power to comprehend.

Over the next two days, while consolidating his brain-sealing technique, he also began to explore other passive magic.

He understood the prototype of the Constant Iron Armor Spell as shaping his own magic power, allowing the magic power to form an extremely thin but evenly distributed protective layer on the body surface.

This requires continuous and subconscious magical fine-tuning, which is very demanding on concentration and can currently only be maintained for short periods of time.

His sense of danger combined with his already keen magical perception led him to consciously train himself to be aware of even the slightest signs of malice directed at him in the environment.

Learning and mastering any passive magic is not easy.

They do not pursue instantaneous bursts of power, but rather require wizards to have extremely subtle control over their own magic and spirit, and to undergo long-term, gradual transformation.

But the benefits are also obvious.

Once successful, they become truly integrated into our instincts, even operating 24/7 as armor and radar, providing early warnings before danger strikes.

It automatically provides the first layer of buffer when attacked, and protects the deepest secrets when being spied on.

For him, who needed to navigate the dark side, these abilities were just as important as any powerful offensive magic.

......

On Friday afternoon, Potions class ended early.

Regulus went to the library as usual, but in a secluded corridor connecting the underground classrooms to the main staircase, he heard the familiar clamor and laughter.

It was James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pediru, and Remus Lupin, who seemed to be trying to dissuade them but to little avail.

They surrounded Severus Snape.

Snape's robes were splattered with some kind of sticky potion residue, which continued to emit a strange smell, and his hair was wet.

His face was so dark it seemed to drip water, and he gripped his wand tightly in his hand, but he appeared isolated and helpless in the face of the four people, especially James and Sirius flanking him from the left and right.

"Look who it is! That dear snotty-nosed devil is conducting his potion experiments again? Is he planning to create a new stench attack this time?" James laughed loudly.

"Let me go, Potter," Snape said in a hoarse, resentful voice, as if squeezed out from between his teeth.

"Let go? We were just trying to help you clean the unidentified object off your robe. It's really dirty, just like you."

Sirius leaned lazily against the wall, a rebellious and mischievous smile on his face.

Regulus stopped in his tracks, not immediately approaching, but simply watching quietly.