Pursuit

Wherever the beam of Charms passed, the air was pushed aside to form a vacuum channel, and the chaotic magic power floating in the air was instantly dispelled.

Boom!

The silver beam of light collided head-on with unstoppable force with the Stone Guardians charging towards them from the left, who was snatching the sword.

The massive impact was like a landslide. The dark green Thorn Pattern on the guardian's chest instantly burst forth with piercing light, seemingly in resistance. However, under the onslaught of the silver beam, the light vanished as quickly as a candle flickering in the wind.

The guardian's massive rocky body was blasted off the ground, flying backward and crashing heavily into the ice wall behind it with a deafening cracking sound.

A dent several feet in diameter appeared on its chest, and countless spiderweb-like cracks spread from the dent to its entire body. The eerie green flames in its eye sockets flickered violently a few times before going out completely. The stone sword in its hand flew out and stuck in the ice in the distance, its blade also covered with cracks.

With a single strike, the Stone Guardians that had baffled the Auror was completely repelled and rendered incapable of movement.

The other two guardians seemed to be stunned by this power, their movements freezing for an extremely brief moment.

Harry didn't stop; Cleansweep the room.

The silvery-white beam of light, like a nimble giant python, traced a semi-circle in the air as he moved, sweeping towards the guardian in the center who had just regained his footing and was about to attack again.

The central guardian attempted to block with its stone sword, but the moment the sword came into contact with the beam, the dark magic attached to it was Purification and dispelled. The hard rock blade could not completely withstand the impact of this power containing the rules, and the part that was hit by the beam shattered inch by inch.

The beam of light, still powerful, slammed into the guardian's waist and abdomen.

"Crack--Boom!"

Another loud bang, and the central guardian was struck in the waist. His upper body was thrown backward with tremendous momentum, almost separating from his lower body, with only a few rocks connecting them.

It staggered a few steps, then collapsed to its knees with a thud. The cracks on its body spread rapidly, and the flames in its eyes dimmed quickly.

Then, his upper body seemed to break off, crashing heavily to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

Now only the guardian on the right remains. It seems to have sensed a deadly threat, so it stops attacking and instead takes a half step back, holding the stone sword horizontally in front of its chest in a defensive stance. The dark green patterns on its body flash wildly, trying to draw more dark magic from the surrounding area to reinforce itself.

"Harry! Watch out behind you!" Tonks suddenly shouted.

The Guardian, slammed against the ice wall by Harry's first blow, had its chest and abdomen caved in and its body covered in cracks, but a faint green flame had managed to flicker in its eye sockets. With its remaining arm, it slammed it hard against the ice wall.

Buzz--!

The ancient sacrificial reliefs and Runes on the ice wall suddenly glowed with a scarlet light! A chilling and resentful spiritual shock swept over everyone like an invisible tide!

At the same time, the ice platform began to shake, and countless sharp ice spikes burst out from under the ice, indiscriminately piercing everyone!

"Protego Maima (Protego Maxima)!" "Aegis Frigoris (Shield of Ice)!"

Kingsley and another Germany Auror skilled in Protective Charm immediately joined forces to cast a powerful group protective spell, enveloping the team in a semi-transparent pale blue light shield that blocked the mental impact and most of the ice spikes.

However, the sheer number of ice spikes created an extremely powerful impact, causing the light shield to fluctuate violently.

Several exceptionally thick ice spikes pierced through the weakest points of the light barrier, heading straight for Harry, who was dealing with the guardian on the right!

"Harry!" Ron exclaimed.

Harry didn't even turn around. His left hand remained pointing his wand at the Patronus on his right, while his right hand flashed behind him!

What he unleashed wasn't some kind of Charms, but simply the release of pure magical power. A soft, platinum-gold halo emanated from him, spreading outwards like an expanding sphere of light.

The ice spikes that pierced through the light shield melted and vaporized instantly upon contact with the halo, just like ice and snow under the sun, leaving not a trace behind.

The chilling spiritual impact struck the halo of light as if hitting an impenetrable wall, unable to penetrate even a fraction.

"Depulso!" Pushing Charm Cassandra the opportunity, pointed her wand, and a precise blue beam shot towards the shimmering crimson Runes core on the ice wall.

The beam of light struck the Runes, causing a small disturbance in magical energy, temporarily interrupting the energy supply to the sacrificial relief, and significantly slowing down the generation of mental shocks and ice spikes.

"It's done, Harry! It's powering the whole defense system!" Kingsley shouted, directing the Auror to reinforce the defenses and using the Reductor Curse to clear away the ever-growing ice spikes.

Harry's gaze sharpened, and he no longer held back.

The silvery-white beam of light at the tip of the staff suddenly contracted, its color changing from silvery-white to a purer, more understated white-gold, like a scorching spear.

"Finitelncantatem (Finite Incantatem)!"

He thrust forward lightly.

The platinum-gold spear shot out Silencio incredible speed, leaving a scorching trail in the air.

The guardian on the right, holding a stone sword across his chest, attempted to block, but the moment the spear of light touched the sword, the entire stone sword dissipated into countless tiny specks of light from the point of contact.

The spear of light pierced through the stone sword without any hindrance, striking the core of the guardian's chest where the dark green patterns were most dense.

The guardian's massive body froze, a hole the size of a bowl appearing in its chest where the spear of light had struck.

The dark green Thorn Pattern around the hole turned gray and peeled off as if they had lost their life. Cracks spread across the entire body instantly, centered on the hole.

Splash----

The massive rock body collapsed like a sand sculpture, turning into a pile of rubble Magic Fluctuation, and the flames in its eye sockets instantly went out.

Having solved that, Harry twirled his wand, pointing it at the broken guardian still trying to reactivate the Runes on the ice wall. Another slender but concentrated beam of platinum light shot out, striking its head precisely.

Crack! The skull exploded, the remaining body stiffened completely, and turned into rubble.

Finally, he looked at the guardian in the middle, which had been completely broken in two, and added a simple Diffindo, causing the guardian to shatter completely.

The fierce battle on the ice platform was quickly quelled by Harry's overwhelming intervention. The Runes lost their activation source, their light dimmed, the mental shock stopped, and the ice spikes ceased to generate.

A few suppressed gasps and low gasps rose from the ranks. Although they knew Harry's current power was unfathomable, witnessing him so easily deal with these Stone Guardians, who even elite Auror found troublesome, still brought an indescribable shock.

"Check for casualties and get them to rest quickly," Kingsley ordered immediately, while vigilantly observing the surroundings and the area below the plank road.

Apart from two Auror being grazed in the initial ice spike attack and the group expending a considerable amount of magic, the team maintained its full fighting strength. The Concentrated Essence of Dittany and Pepperup Potion that had been prepared beforehand quickly came in handy.

"Well done, Harry." Ron walked over, patted Harry on the shoulder, his eyes full of admiration. "Merlin couldn't describe you; you're like a human dragon."

Harry shook his head slightly, but his expression was far from relaxed. "That's just a gatekeeper. The real trouble is down below. And the fighting was quite loud; Voldemort must have found out. He's waiting down there, ready to pounce."

"Our movements were exactly what he expected." Cassandra approached, examining the rubble closely, especially the remaining Dark Green Shards. "These patterns contain a heavy resentment and earth magic. It's not entirely Voldemort's work; it's more like he utilized some kind of guardian pact or Bound Spirit power that originally existed here. He's cooperating with, or rather, making some kind of deal, with something deep within this land."

This confirms Bill and the scroll's speculation.

"No time to delve into this. Focus on recovering. We'll move on in five minutes," Harry ordered.

Five minutes later, the team set off again, stepping over piles of rubble and continuing along the boardwalk towards the deepest part of the canyon.

The rest of the journey was unexpectedly peaceful.

There were no magical traps, no animated guardians, and even the mournful sound of the wind seemed to have lessened somewhat, leaving only a thick, Dark Purple Mist and Pale Lightning flashing silently within it.

The plank road became increasingly steep and slippery, and dark red veins could be faintly seen beneath the ice, pulsating slightly like blood vessels.

This calm, however, is all the more unsettling, like the stillness before a storm, or the prey already inside a trap, with the hunter patiently waiting in the shadows for the perfect moment.

Finally, the plank road came to an end.

Ahead lay a vast open area covered by black ice, at the edge of which rose a menacing Black Rock Peak.

At the bottom of the rocky peak, there is a huge, deep cave entrance. The edges of the cave entrance are covered with Dark Red Ice Crystals that writhe and pulsate like living creatures. A dense dark magic mixed with the filthy aura of blood and souls continuously spews out from it like a tangible column of smoke.

The rock wall above the cave entrance is naturally twisted, forming a cup-shaped wall that curves inward, perfectly corresponding to the inverted Holy Grail magical field above the canyon. This is the core of the Thorned Holy Grail, the altar for the ritual.

However, contrary to expectations that Voldemort and his men would be waiting in full force, the open ground in front of the cave entrance was deserted.

There were no rows of black-robed wizards, no guardian chanting, and certainly no eerie figure in a dark green dress.

There was only deathly silence and the dark magic that kept pouring out of the cave entrance.

"Something's not right—" Kingsley gripped his wand tighter, gesturing for the group to spread out into a defensive formation. "It's too quiet."

Even if he knew we had breached the outer perimeter, he shouldn't have been completely unprepared.

"Unless... he's not here," Cassandra said in a low voice, her gaze sweeping across every inch of the surrounding ice. "Or perhaps this place itself is a much larger trap."

Harry closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on the throbbing of the scar on his forehead.

The throbbing intensified to its peak, like the resounding beat of war drums, clearly pointing towards that deep, dark cave entrance.

However, this throbbing seemed somewhat hollow, unlike before when one could vaguely sense Voldemort's emotions or will; it was more like a strong and fixed signal source.

"He's inside—but it doesn't feel like he's there." Harry opened his eyes, full of confusion. "Scar's reaction points to the depths of the opening, but it doesn't feel like a living soul core."

"Could it be Horcrux?" Ron blurted out suddenly, his voice trembling slightly. "Like those lockets or diaries from before? He's using a Horcrux here to conduct the ritual, while the real one is hidden elsewhere?"

This speculation startled everyone.

If that's the case, then their arduous journey might have been nothing more than a trap! Voldemort's true form might be carrying out the real, crucial steps of the ritual elsewhere, or preparing an even more deadly conspiracy.

"We'll find out once we go in." Harry took a deep breath, suppressing his unease. "This altar must be destroyed, no matter what. Kingsley, you take half the men and stay outside to set up defenses and guard the surroundings and the air. Cassandra, Ron, Tonks, and the four of you, come with me."

He ended by mentioning several powerful and experienced Auror.

"Harry, this is too risky! What if it's a trap—" Hermione's voice came through the encrypted communication earpiece, filled with anxiety.

She was constantly receiving any new intelligence from Bill and Lupin, and monitoring the overall situation.

"We have no choice, Hermione," Harry replied calmly. "Even if it's bait, it's part of the ritual, and destroying it will at least interrupt the process. And if it really is a Horcrux, destroying it will bring Voldemort one step closer to his true death."

Leaving Kingsley and the others to defend the perimeter, Harry led his seven-man squad cautiously onto the black ice field, approaching the cave that resembled the jaws of a giant beast.

The closer you get, the stronger the oppressive feeling from that dark magic becomes. The air is filled with a sweet, cloying smell of blood and a painful whisper that seems to tear your soul apart.

The Dark Red Ice Crystals at the cave entrance seemed to be alive; as they approached, they writhed more violently and emitted an eerie light.

Harry stopped about thirty feet from the cave entrance.

He raised his wand, its tip glowing softly in an attempt to illuminate the cave.

But the light pierced through the thick darkness, as if swallowed up, only illuminating a small area at the entrance. The ground there was also covered in black ice, but beneath the ice, something huge and distorted seemed to be sealed away.

The cave walls were covered with Runes that were more complex and sinister than those on the outer walkway, and they were now flashing a dark red light in sync with the pulsation of the ice crystals at the cave entrance.

"No signs of life, at least not near the entrance," Tonks whispered, her Moody's Magical Eye spinning rapidly in her hand. "The source of the magic is deep within, highly concentrated, and extremely unstable, like a Volcanic Crater about to erupt."

"I can sense a very strong soul fluctuation, like imprisoned fragments," Cassandra added.

Harry nodded; his senses were now clearer.

Deep inside the cave, there was indeed a signal source filled with Voldemort's aura, but just like Scar's senses, it lacked the vivid and cunning soul of Voldemort himself, and was more like a pre-programmed magical device.

"Hold formation and follow me. Report any unusual activity to me immediately," Harry said, taking the lead and stepping into the darkness of the cave.