Give Me Your Power!
Upon entering the cave, the faint light from the outside world completely disappeared, leaving only the glow of the magic wand and the dim red glow of the runes on the cave Runes.
The temperature dropped instantly, and breath turned to ice, but the chill carried a strange burning sensation, as if it could freeze flesh and burn the soul at the same time.
The black ice beneath their feet was exceptionally slippery, requiring extra caution to walk on. The Runes on the cave walls seemed to react to the entry of living people, flashing more frequently, and the whispers became clearer, like countless voices overlapping curses and wails.
The cave was deeper and more expansive than I had imagined, clearly greatly expanded by the Untraceable Extension Charm.
They proceeded along a main downward-sloping passage, with branching paths appearing from time to time on either side. Some led to smaller chambers filled with various magical materials and containers that exuded Grim aura, while others were dead ends, with even more sinister altar patterns carved at their conclusions.
They ignored the forks in the road and continued toward the source of the magic and the fluctuations of the soul.
After walking for about ten minutes, a light appeared ahead.
At the same time, a powerful, chilling magical pressure and an almost tangible stench of blood assaulted our senses.
After walking several dozen steps, the view suddenly opened up, and they entered a huge underground cave.
The cave is an irregular circle, over two hundred feet in diameter, and its top is nowhere in sight, hidden in swirling dark, magical clouds.
In the center of the cave is a Blood Pool about fifty feet in diameter.
The viscous, mercury-like, dark red liquid in the pool, constantly churning and bubbling, emitted a pungent, rusty smell and an even stronger stench of spiritual defilement.
On the surface of the Blood Pool Leviosa some unidentifiable debris, which appeared to be fragments of a Gundam.
It's alright, no Disco-Mee.
Above the Blood Pool, something was suspended.
It was a bizarre Holy Grail, about the height of a person, made of pale white bones.
The cup was engraved with thorn and Holy Grail patterns that were of the same origin as the Nott family Bone Fragment, and it was now emitting a strong dark red and pale green light.
The rim of the Holy Grail was pointing downwards at the Blood Pool below.
A solid beam of light shot out from the mouth of the cup, connecting to the center of the Blood Pool.
Countless agonizing, twisted phantoms of souls within the pillar of light were being drawn from the Blood Pool like a waterfall flowing backwards, and were being continuously absorbed into the Holy Grail!
The Holy Grail itself was held in place by countless the Chain formed from dark magic hanging from the top of the cave. The other end of the Chain seemed to connect to the endless darkness above the cave and the Ley Lines of the mountains.
Directly beneath the Holy Grail, at the edge of the Blood Pool, there was a raised Stone Platform upon which rested an item that made Harry's pupils shrink in shock—
It was a magnificent golden crown, inlaid with huge sapphires, its style both ancient and noble.
But at this moment, the crown was covered by a layer of writhing, dark red, blood vessel-like substance, and the gemstones were also covered with a thick layer of bloodstains.
The crown hovered a few inches above the Stone Platform, slowly rotating. With each rotation, a wave of madness and longing emanated from it, resonating strongly with the Holy Grail above, the Blood Pool below, and the magical field of the entire cave!
It looks a lot like Ravenclaw's Diadem, but it's definitely not the previous Horcrux.
It appears to have been modified with some kind of evil magic, becoming the Mind Control and battery for this massive ritual!
"Could this be his Horcrux?!" Ron gasped.
"He's using Horcrux as an anchor point and energy converter for his rituals!" Cassandra immediately understood. "The Horcrux carries a fragment of his soul, having the most direct connection to his physical body. Through this modified Horcrux, he can remotely control rituals, draw energy from Ley Lines and Blood Pool, and even remotely absorb soul power through the Horcrux's connection to the Holy Grail! His physical body doesn't need to be present at all!"
"You despicable, cunning bastard!" Tonks gritted his teeth.
Just then, as if sensing the intruder, the suspended Diadem abruptly stopped rotating. The dark red veins enveloping it writhed violently, and the sapphire on the Diadem emitted Grim, eerie Blue Light!
A cold, hoarse voice, filled with inhuman malice, rang out directly from the Diadem, echoing throughout the cave. "Harry Potter —you've finally—come—I've been waiting for you—for so long—"
It was Voldemort's voice, but it was hollower and more distorted, as if it were coming from a cheap magical amplifier, with metallic scraping and soul-tearing noises.
"Do you see it? My masterpiece—eternal—" the Diadem continued, "countless souls—gathered—into— the Ley Lines —drawing—soon—I will be—reborn—"
Beyond the mundane
"And you— Harry Potter —your arrival—is—the final—and most crucial—link—your soul—your power—and magic—of the same origin—the most perfect—altering agent—and—sacrifice—"
The Diadem's light locked onto Harry, and a targeted, powerful suction force came, attempting to pull at Harry's soul and magic!
"Protect yourselves! Destroy that Diadem!"
Harry yelled and raised his wand first. He knew he had to destroy the Horcrux as soon as possible to cut off Voldemort's remote control of the ritual, otherwise the entire cave's Magic Array might be detonated, or the Holy Grail might turn its full force against them.
"Avada Kedavra!"
A blinding green light shot out from the wand of an Auror behind Harry, striking the Diadem directly! This Auror was an elite member of the Confederation, and faced with an evil creation like Horcrux, he used the most direct Killing Curse.
However, the green light was blocked by a shield made of dark red vascular material when it came within about three feet of the Diadem.
The shield fluctuated violently but did not break. Instead, it absorbed most of the energy of the green light and transformed it into a more intense dark red glow around the Diadem.
"Useless—mortal incantations—how could they possibly harm—the immortal—fragments—" the Diadem uttered mockingly.
"Then let's try this! Reducto! Crushing Spell!" Ron and Tonks also attacked simultaneously, their Reductor Curse and Confringo Exploding Charm striking the shield and causing explosions. However, the shield was extremely tough and connected to the Blood Pool below and the Holy Grail magic above, seemingly able to draw energy from the entire Magic Array to repair itself.
The other Auror also began attacking the shield with various powerful spells, but the effects were not significant.
Harry didn't immediately join the attack. He carefully observed the Diadem, the shield, the Blood Pool, the Holy Grail, and the flow of magic throughout the cave. The Philosopher's Stone granted him magical vision and perception beyond that of ordinary people.
"The shield's energy comes from the Blood Pool and the Holy Grail, and is connected to the Ley Lines; a direct attack is too inefficient," Harry said quickly. "We must interrupt its energy supply! Cassandra, can you temporarily interfere with or cut off the energy flow from the Blood Pool to the Holy Grail and the Diadem? Even for a few seconds!"
"I'll give it a try!" Cassandra immediately understood what Harry meant. She waved her wand and began chanting a complex spell, from which a series of silver-blue Runic script symbols shot out and flew towards the pillar of light connecting the Blood Pool and the Holy Grail.
These symbols, like parasites, cling to the surface of the light pillar, attempting to analyze and disrupt its stable internal energy structure.
At the same time, Harry pointed his wand at the churning Blood Pool beneath the Diadem.
"FrigidireMaima (Absolute Freeze)!"
Laugh--!
With a piercing sound, a thick sheet of ice instantly froze on the surface of the Blood Pool, centered on the point where the beam of light struck!
The icy blue color spread rapidly, attempting to freeze the entire Blood Pool.
The dark red liquid churning in the Blood Pool resisted violently, emitting intense heat. Ice and blood, cold and heat clashed fiercely, causing large swaths of blood-red mist to rise.
The Blood Pool was partially frozen, which immediately affected energy output.
The brightness of the pillar of soul light absorbed by the Holy Grail above noticeably decreased, and it became unstable.
The dark red shield surrounding the Diadem also flickered violently, seemingly losing momentum.
"Now!" Harry shouted, turning his wand toward the Diadem. A torrent of energy, like the blazing sun, shot forth from the tip of his wand, tearing through the thick, dark magic in the cave like the first ray of light after the creation of the world. With a supreme rule of Purification, disintegration, and reshaping, it crashed into the flickering, unstable dark red shield!
The moment they made contact, the dark red shield seemed to have met its nemesis, emitting a sizzling melting sound as it rapidly thinned and became transparent, before bursting like a soap bubble with a "pop"!
The Platinum Light Beam shot straight at the suspended Diadem without stopping!
"No-!!!"
A shrill, angry scream, tinged with disbelief, emanated from the Diadem.
The beam of light struck the Diadem!
Time seemed to stand still.
The next second, dazzling pure golden flames erupted from within the Diadem! Holy, blazing, and filled with the power of life and Purification, this was a special flame capable of destroying Horcrux.
"Aaaaaah-!!!"
The Diadem trembled violently in the golden flames, the dark red vein material enveloping it instantly carbonized and peeled off, the Diadem's own gold began to melt and Transfiguration, and the huge sapphire exploded with a "bang," scattering fragments everywhere.
The fragments of Voldemort's soul that resided within it let out a final shriek in the Purification Flame was specifically designed to extinguish evil, before being completely annihilated!
Boom!!!
The Diadem exploded completely, turning into countless burning golden fragments that scattered like fireworks, turning to ashes before even hitting the ground.
The Horcrux has been destroyed!
However, destroying the Horcrux did not end the crisis; instead, it was like lighting the fuse of a powder keg!
Without the Diadem as its Mind Control and stabilizer, the entire cave's massive Magic Array instantly went out of control!
The Blood Pool boiled and exploded completely, with the unfrozen portion transforming into towering waves of blood that surged outwards. The Holy Grail above trembled violently, the pillar of light connecting to the Blood Pool twisted and broke, and the Holy Grail itself began to frantically and chaotically draw all the energy from within the cave. The light on the Grail became chaotic and dangerous, and countless cracks appeared on its surface!
The Runes on the cave walls exploded one after another due to overload, and the dark magic the Chain hanging from the cave ceiling snapped inch by inch, twitching like a dying python.
The entire cave began to shake violently, and huge rocks collapsed and fell from the top!
"The cave is collapsing! The Magic Array is malfunctioning and going berserk! Get out of here!" Harry roared, while erecting a huge protective shield to block the falling rocks and the violent energy turbulence.
"Go back the way you came! Quickly!" Tonks commanded the Auror to rush back through the passage they had come from.
Cassandra took one last look at the Holy Grail, which was radiating destructive energy fluctuations, and the rampaging Blood Pool and Ley Lines energy. Her expression changed. "No! If we go out like this, the out-of-control energy might erupt from the cave entrance, causing a magical explosion throughout the canyon, and even affecting the mountains! We must find a way to channel or neutralize some of the energy here!"
"What do we do?" Ron shouted as he smashed the falling boulders with Reductor Curse.
Harry realized the gravity of the situation. He sensed that the Ley Lines deep underground, which had been forcibly extracted and distorted, were losing their restraints, like a volcano about to erupt! Once it erupted, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"Direct the rampaging energy toward me!" Harry made a crazy decision.
"What?! No! It's too dangerous!" Cassandra and Ron objected simultaneously.
"Only I can withstand it! The power of the Philosopher's Stone can neutralize and contain them, at least some of them! Hurry! There's no time!" Harry roared, his eyes flashing Platinum Light from overusing his magic, his hair moving without wind.
At this moment, the out-of-control Holy Grail had expanded to its limit, its surface covered with spiderweb-like bright red cracks, and a teeth-grinding shriek came from within, as if it were about to explode completely at any moment.
Cassandra gritted her teeth, knowing this was the only way to possibly reduce the severity of the disaster.
She waved her wand, and a silver-blue beam of light shot towards the Holy Grail, while shouting to the others, "Strengthen the defenses around Harry! Help him channel the energy!"
Several Auror immediately stood around Harry, inserting their wands into the ground to create a multi-layered, reinforced protective Magic Array, shielding Harry in the center.
Harry stood at the center of the formation, arms outstretched, eyes closed. He no longer suppressed the power of the Philosopher's Stone within him; instead, he actively unleashed it, creating a massive, invisible vortex!
Cassandra's guiding beam, like a needle tip, pierced a crack in the violent energy field surrounding the Holy Grail.
The next moment----
Boom!
The Holy Grail finally exploded! But most of the destructive energy from its explosion was drawn towards Harry by the powerful suction around him, rushing towards Harry like rivers flowing into the sea!
A violent energy of various colors, mixed with the rage of the Ley Lines, the resentment of souls, and the corrosive power of Dark Arts, formed a terrifying Energy Pillar with a diameter of over ten feet, which poured fiercely into Harry's body!
Ughhhhhhh!!!
Even with Harry's current physical and Soul Strength, enduring such a massive, chaotic, and malicious energy shock still caused him to let out a painful groan. His body trembled violently, the blood vessels on his skin bulged, turning Grim dark gold, and his eyes snapped open, the whites of his eyes instantly stained dark red by the violent energy, with only a sliver of platinum light remaining deep within his pupils.
"Harry!" Ron exclaimed, trying to rush over, but was forced back by the violent energy flow.