"Alright! We can go now!" Sirius ran back again.
Holding a photo of Regulus Black in his hand, he beamed with immense satisfaction.
Apart from Basil, nobody knows what Sirius did.
Basil didn't have the mischievousness to point it out or make fun of it.
At this moment, a tremendous change is taking place within his body.
After equipping the "Black Lord - Broken Soul" weapon, his Magic Field became even more active.
It's like turning from solid ice into water.
He could understand the thoughts of Sirius, Lupin, Kreacher, Dobby simply by paying attention.
Even without the Sword of Truth and Good, or the Core of Good and Evil and Immortality, he could sense Dumbledore and Flume's emotions.
That metaphysics, that which is called the self, is beginning to emerge in the chaotic ocean of thought and is being grasped by Basil.
He can decide the state of 'I' just as he can decide how his hands and feet move.
He can decide when to give birth to, immerse in, or cease all emotions, including sadness, joy, and anger.
Even without Echo: Sorcery Doctor, the 89.17% Killing Intent carried by his talent Killing Intent will not turn him into a madman who only knows how to laugh.
He has now become his own true master.
Voldemort, who had to endure countless near-death experiences to reach the level of Archmage, dismantling himself, splitting his soul, and attaining enlightenment, obtained it all through a single echo.
Without manipulation, the Magic Field rotates automatically in a more complex form.
On the data panel, [Magic Power: 11+12] suddenly changed to [Attack Power: 11+12].
Then, the subsequent value changed from 11+12 to 22+12.
The wizard's everlasting magic transformed into a conceptual existence, something far larger than it could be described by size, mass, or shape.
"Could this be considered a second-level Magnetic Field Rotation?" he couldn't help but wonder.
He now truly hoped that a few Inferi would emerge from the mirror-like lake in front of him, so he could test the waters.
Unfortunately, the reality is that they are currently gathered in front of the green-glowing stone basin, discussing the Winky, phosphorescent emerald-green liquid inside.
The two House-elf were trembling and didn't dare to speak.
Sirius frowned. "Regulus Black clearly drank it all and even replaced the locket inside, so why is it—"
Lupin speculated, "Perhaps this is the potion of Eternity. This stone basin, or the entire island, is the source of its creation, allowing it to be replenished indefinitely."
"Yes, that is it." Dumbledore smiled faintly. "How interesting, I can't touch it."
His hand was reaching towards the stone basin, trying to touch the liquid.
But he encountered an invisible resistance, and his hand could not get close to the liquid.
No matter how hard he stretched his hand downwards, his fingers seemed to touch only the air, which was incredibly hard and unbreakable.
"I'll give it a try," Flume said.
He raised his wand and made some complex movements on the surface of the liquid, muttering something silently.
But nothing happened; the only difference was that the light emitted by the liquid seemed to be a little brighter.
"I roughly understand. This kind of Potions cannot be put in with your hand, cannot be made to disappear with Vanishment Charm, cannot be separated, scooped dry or drained, cannot be Transfiguration, or its properties can be changed by casting a spell on it or by other methods."
"There is only one way: use your own body as a container and drink it all up."
"It seems that Regulus Black wasn't just acting stupid."
This drew angry glares from Sirius and Kreacher.
Sirius snorted and said, "Of course, that's my brother."
Basil stroked his chin. "I have a question. Does this Potions have its own consciousness?"
"If we bring a goat over and feed it water, wouldn't that break the trap?"
Dumbledore looked at Basil in surprise. "You'd better not let Aberforth hear that. You know how much he loves goats."
"Okay, I was just joking. Your method probably won't work."
"Kreacher was an accident."
"Based on my understanding of Tom, there will be traps in place when he finds the cave and crosses the lake from the entrance to the island, which will force intruders to weaken themselves, but not so much that they will give up."
"For example, donating blood to weaken the body so that one can only come to the island alone."
"And if Kreacher hadn't informed us beforehand, what normal intruder would have thought to bring a living creature to drink the Potions in his place?"
Basil: "So this method works?"
Flume shook his head. "It's not feasible."
"Albus not use magic to test the properties of the stone basin and the Potions like I did."
"Therefore, he could only speculate about Voldemort's thought process and make logical deductions."
"The reason this Potions can only be reduced by drinking it is..."
"It is because the premise for its disappearance is that it must have an effect, react with the mind that takes it, and lead to despair."
"Therefore, only intelligent beings can make it disappear by drinking it."
"A goat won't do, unless he is Aberforth."
Basil: "I see. Then I'll ignore this Potions."
"Couldn't I just unleash a Fiendfyre to destroy the Horcrux along with the stone basin?"
Flume shook his head again. "This stone basin is part of the black stone slabs that cover the island."
"Under the influence of magic, if you use Fiendfyre, the first thing it will burn is the Lake of Inferi, then the island, the stone slab, Fiendfyre finally the stone basin."
"Voldemort will sense that something is wrong here and then have plenty of time to get there."
Basil: "Not even that?"
"By the way, I noticed that the air around the stone basin is very dry."
"I'm afraid we won't be able to produce the liquid on this island either."
"I estimate that this Potions, besides making people lose their minds and feeling as if their internal organs are being burned, will also make them thirsty."
"But the only water source is that lake full of Inferi."
"A wizard who is so mentally unstable that he loses his ability to cast spells will eventually become one of the lake's inhabitants."
"But Voldemort's previous arrangements seemed more like an attempt to render the intruders incapable of resistance."
"Let them live a little longer, figure out how they managed to get through his defenses, and most importantly, figure out why they were so eager to empty the stone basin. After all, Voldemort believes he is the only one who knows about his Horcrux."
"Otherwise, he could have easily turned this Potions into poison."
Flume nodded. "That Voldemort guy might really think so."
"He sacrificed a great deal for the magic model on this small island in order to maximize the protection of the Horcrux."
"The biggest sacrifice was his ability to keep track of real-time information about the cave."
"Voldemort will only receive the signal if a living wizard lies by the stone basin for more than three hours, or if the cave is destroyed."
"That's why Voldemort was completely unaware that Regulus Black had changed the locket."
"Because, according to normal logic, this is simply not reasonable."
"Voldemort never imagined that a House-elf would come down and be able to reach the island directly."
"I've checked it."
"Based on my experience."
"A normal wizard's mind can probably only accept one-tenth of the power of Potions."
"In other words, the person collapsed to the ground before finishing the drink."
"Without a second person present to assist, there would be no chance to finish the Potions."
"Even if I finish drinking, I won't have the energy to climb to the lake to drink more water."
"Then the Inferi was disturbed."
He didn't continue speaking.
He raised his wand, twirled it in the air, and conjured a tall Crystal goblet in his hand.
The cup passed smoothly through the air wall on the surface of the stone basin, disappeared into it, and was filled to the brim.
He drank it down as if it were a glass of wine, "Just as I calculated."
He looked at Dumbledore, "You can probably only handle three cups without breaking down. By the fifth, you'll probably need help from others."
"However, for me, who has been worn down and numb by the years, it is actually a good medicine."
He scooped up another full glass, drank it down in one gulp, and exclaimed, "I feel like I've come back to life!"
Just as he was about to scoop down a cup, Sirius stopped him.
"Can I have a drink? This Potions doesn't have a rule that it can only be drunk by one person, right?"
Flume raised an eyebrow. "Of course there's no such rule. Voldemort must have some magic that guarantees only one wizard will arrive here."
"There are still 8 cups left. Drink as much as you like, but leave some for me."
Lupin wanted to speak up to stop them, but he remained silent.
Sirius took it, scooped out a full cup, and drank it down.
His eyes closed suddenly, and his breathing became heavy.
Flume looked him over and said, "You're too fragile, just average."
"Give it to me!" Flume snatched the cup away.
Lupin rushed forward and helped Sirius, who was about to fall.
Sirius seemed to be both crying and laughing, "I... I really am a coward. Regulus Black drank 10 cups."
Then she buried her face in Lupin's chest and began to wail.
Lupin comforted him, "You're not a coward. Flume said this is the level of an average person."
He was about to add that Regulus Black also had Kreacher assisting him.
Kreacher, with tears in his eyes, added smugly, "Young Master Regulus Black drank three times the amount of the spendthrift on his own!"
Sirius cried even louder.
And Flume also enjoyed his last cup.
After downing the drink in one gulp, he smacked his lips, tears welling in his gray eyes, but his face was filled with satisfaction.
It felt like I had just had a full massage.
"It's decided! I'm keeping these coordinates."
It seems that Flume intends to make this a regular bar.
Kreacher had already retrieved the locket, seemingly about to clutch it to his chest, when he shrieked, "Regulus Black's locket!"
This shout managed to calm Sirius down.
He held out his hand. "Give it to me!"
Kreacher reluctantly took his steps, the locket in his hand seeming to weigh a ton.
"Kreacher was unwilling to hand over Young Master Regulus Black's treasure to a spendthrift. But Kreacher had no other choice."
"Mistress of Kreacher, if you were still here, how heartbroken you would be!"
"She wouldn't!" Sirius snatched it away and eagerly stuck it to his face.
It sniffed like a dog, as if trying to detect the scent of its younger brother.
This locket is not made of gold, and it is much smaller, without any fancy decorations or the distinctive Slytherin "S" mark.
But in Sirius's heart at that moment, it was the most precious treasure besides his younger brother's corpse.
Click! After some hesitation, the lid of the locket opened.
"The smell of Regulus Black!" In an instant, Sirius turned into a dog's nose.
He has achieved a level of localized animalization that no Animagus could ever accomplish.
It was a piece of parchment, folded up where the portrait was placed.
He carefully unfolded it and read it with trembling hands:
To the Dark Lord:
I died long before you read this. But I want you to know that I discovered your secret.
I stole the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as possible.
I am willing to risk my life in the hope that you will be killed when you encounter an opponent.
RAB
Tears instantly blurred his vision.
He let out a wolf-like howl and embraced Kreacher, who suddenly pounced on him.
Lupin was left out.
Right now, they seem to have forgotten their mutual dislike.
Dumbledore wiped away his tears. "Regulus Black is a hero!"
Under the influence of the despair potion, Flume also shed tears again, "Amazing. I have never seen such a heroic Blake."
"He's really not a descendant of Gryffindor?"
Basil: "Have you forgotten something? We only have one hour."
"Getting Regulus Black's body is the most important thing."
"Yes!" Sirius wiped away his tears, shook hands with Kreacher, and stood up.
He carefully tucked the parchment and the locket back into his bosom.
"What should we do? Kreacher has come here many times but hasn't found it."
"It's very simple." Flume waved his wand, and a stone coalesced in the air before disappearing into the dark lake with a thud.
The lake surface began to churn violently, no longer smooth as a mirror.
Looking up, one could see white heads and hands emerging from the dark water everywhere—men's, women's, children's—all with sunken, sightless eyes, floating towards the rocks—a vast expanse of corpses floating in the pitch-black lake.
"What do you take life for, Tom!" Dumbledore's angry aura began to radiate, and his reddish-brown hair seemed to turn fiery red.
Everyone around felt as if the air itself had come on fire.
Flume's cold, rational aura also radiated outwards, overlapping with Dumbledore's. "Don't forget our purpose. If you do this, no Inferi will dare to approach."
The scorching heat in the air dissipated instantly, and the Inferi had been resting by the lake began to climb again.
Their withered hands gripped the slippery rocks, their hollow, misty eyes stared at them, their tattered, water-soaked clothes trailed behind them, and their sunken faces exuded Evil Qi.
They, too, gazed at the faces of the Inferi.
Trying to find familiar faces in them.
Before coming, Sirius showed Regulus Black's photos to people who didn't know Regulus Black, such as Basil, Flume, and Dobby.
"Impedimenta!"
"Wingardium Leviosa!"
Dumbledore casually waved his wand twice.
The air in front of the Inferi turned into a viscous, swamp-like substance.
As they moved slowly, they were lifted upwards by the power of the Levitation Charm.