Combat Training (2)

Fred and the other students waiting outside swallowed hard when they saw him in such a disheveled state.

After George left in a mess, the atmosphere in the group noticeably became much more somber.

When Lin Du called out the next name, almost all the students' spirits lifted.

"Cedric Diggory."

Cedric, a Hufflepuff Prefect known for his integrity and strong abilities, took a deep breath and walked out calmly.

He gave Lin Du a slight nod of acknowledgment, then resolutely pushed open the door.

The scene inside the door was completely different from what George had faced.

It was no longer a murky pond, but a body of water shrouded in chilling mist, with jagged black reefs along the shore. The air was filled with a faint, decaying scent.

The water was dark, almost pitch black, with no visible ripples on the surface. The stillness was unnerving.

Lin Du followed him in and calmly explained, "The objective this time is to deal with 'Ghouls' in the water."

Cedric's eyes sharpened. Ghouls!

He had read about them in the advanced texts of Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection. They were corpses twisted and controlled by Dark Magic, possessing immense strength, no sense of pain, and were extremely dangerous. He immediately raised his wand, fully alert.

He tentatively fired a red light (Expelliarmus) into the water. The spell hit the surface, creating only a small ripple before vanishing without a trace.

He then tried Impedimenta, and an invisible barrier rose before him.

However, just as he thought he was prepared, the pitch-black water suddenly broke open silently!

Four or five pale, swollen, hollow-eyed humanoid figures lunged upright from beneath the water!

Their movements were stiff yet swift. They directly extended their cold, rigid arms, reaching for Cedric!

Cedric remained calm under pressure, quickly retreating while shouting, "Petrificus Totalus!"

A beam of light struck the foremost Ghoul. Its movement visibly paused for a moment, but only a moment!

The other Ghouls swarmed forward, the chilling aura of death washing over him.

He continuously cast Obstruction Charms and Stupefy, even attempting an Explosion Charm, but these spells had minimal effect on the Ghouls. They were only slightly impeded before continuing their advance.

Soon, Cedric was forced into a corner. Several cold, slimy hands grabbed his arms and robes, and immense strength dragged him towards the icy water.

He struggled fiercely, his wand nearly slipping from his grasp, but facing Ghouls without fear or fatigue, his resistance seemed utterly futile.

The biting cold and the nauseating stench of decay almost suffocated him.

"Enough."

Lin Du's voice rang out, and he waved his wand simultaneously.

The several ferocious-looking "Ghouls" instantly froze, then their forms began to twist and melt, finally transforming back into several rotten logs and water weeds floating on the surface—

This was merely an advanced Transfiguration and a magically animated construct, not a true product of Dark Magic.

Cedric leaned against the wall, utterly spent, gasping for breath. His face was pale, his eyes filled with shock and unwillingness.

He thought he had been thoroughly prepared.

Lin Du didn't let him leave immediately. Instead, he walked up to him. "Mr. Diggory, your spells were standard, and your reactions were quick. However, you made a fatal mistake—you merely used all the spells you knew to 'attack' without stopping to think about what you were facing and what its weaknesses were."

Cedric looked up, somewhat bewildered.

Lin Du turned and spoke towards the doorway. "Everyone come in."

The students waiting anxiously outside filed in. They were startled to see the eerie waters and Cedric's disheveled state.

Lin Du stood before all the students, his gaze sweeping across their tense or confused faces.

"Just now, Mr. Diggory faced magically simulated 'Ghouls'," Lin Du's voice was exceptionally clear in the silent space. "He demonstrated excellent spellcasting ability and combat courage, using Impedimenta, Petrificus Totalus, and even an Explosion Charm. But he failed."

The students looked at Cedric, who pursed his lips, his face showing unwillingness and confusion.

"Why do you think he failed?" Lin Du's gaze swept over the crowd. "Were the spells not powerful enough? Or not numerous enough?"

No one dared to answer.

Lin Du stopped asking questions and turned to face the dark waters.

He gently raised his wand, not uttering any offensive spell, but quietly whispered, "Lumos Maxima."

However, what erupted from the tip of his wand was not the usual soft orb of light, but a searing white light like a miniature sun!

The light was so intense that it instantly dispelled the cold mist in the classroom, illuminating every corner as bright as day. It even caused some students to instinctively squint.

As the light shone on the floating "Ghoul" simulations, an incredible sight occurred—

The rotten logs and water weeds, emitting a chilling aura, began to emit faint "sizzling" sounds, like ice cubes thrown into a raging fire. The dark magic entwined around them, like shadows scorched by sunlight, rapidly receded and disintegrated.

The classroom fell silent, all the students dumbfounded.

Lin Du retracted his wand, and the intense light disappeared with it, but a sense of warmth and cleanliness seemed to linger in the room.

"Ghouls," Lin Du turned around, looking at the faces filled with shock, "and many similar dark constructs are born and thrive in darkness and cold. Intense light and heat are their natural nemeses. A fully empowered 'Lumos Maxima' is far more effective than ten hastily cast attack spells."

His gaze finally settled on Cedric. "Diggory, you are proficient in various complex attack spells, which is good. But true Defense Against the Dark Arts is not just about waving your wand and casting spells; it's about using this,"

He pointed to his temple, "to think about what you are facing, understand its nature, find its weakest point, and then deal with it in the most suitable, and often the simplest, way. Knowledge is only power when it is applied correctly."

Cedric suddenly understood, his previous unwillingness replaced by deep thought and respect.

The other students also fell into contemplation. For the first time, they intuitively felt that a calm mind and an understanding of the essence of magic were far more important than blindly pursuing powerful spells.

"Remember this feeling," Lin Du said to all the students. "When facing unknown darkness, fear and brute force will only lead you astray faster. Stay calm, use the knowledge you've learned, and find the most effective path. This is the true meaning of Defense Against the Dark Arts."

As the practical training rounds continued, the students of Hogwarts, especially the older ones, truly experienced what "Lin Du-style" teaching pressure was like.

Complaints and wails could be heard endlessly, but it was undeniable that through these almost brutal practical exercises, their understanding and application ability in Defense Against the Dark Arts were improving at an astonishing rate.

The accuracy of spells, on-the-spot judgment, psychological fortitude when facing danger... these were things textbooks couldn't provide.

Lin Du stood outside the classroom, listening to the sounds of various spell explosions, students' exclamations, and occasional cheers of success coming from within, his face expressionless.

He knew that this kind of training couldn't directly find the Chamber of Secrets, nor could it fight the Basilisk.

But at least, it could give these children a better chance of survival when real danger struck.

At the same time, this high-intensity, school-wide practical exercise was, in a way, a "startle the snake by beating the grass" tactic. He was observing, waiting to see if the "Heir" hidden in the shadows would reveal themselves when faced with a castle that had suddenly become "alert" and "difficult to deal with."