A Rooster Can't Be Kept as a Trump Card / The Basilisk Is Slain by the Lord of the Black Lake

"Hmph, that's a really boring story," Tom said with annoyance. "My diary has been filled with all sorts of childish musings from Ginny since last summer... about being teased by her brothers, having to wear old robes and carry old textbooks, and her idea of the infamous the Boy Who Lived Harry Granger ... Damn it, why did you have to change your surname to such a filthy one! Anyway, you know how boring it is to listen to her rambling on and on every day, worrying that you'll never like her..."

"You Pure-blood lunatic, can't you pick something up?" Seeing that the other person had insulted his surname, Harry retorted without hesitation. "But you're right about the last point, I could never like her! After all, I... uh, never mind, I have nothing to do with that."

'Hey, what are you after? Hurry up and tell me!'

At this very moment, inside the suitcase that Harry had patched open, the studious girl was pinching her arm with a troubled expression.

'...'

The magical girl beside her was also in a dilemma, because her arm was being pinched and it really hurt, but she couldn't even cry out...

"In short, you first used the diary to control Ginny Weasley, manipulating her to open the Chamber and release the Basilisk to attack Colin Creevey; as a result, I found out about Ginny the next day, so she had to throw the diary away, which was picked up by Gilderoy Lockhart; but what Ginny didn't expect was that even if she threw away the diary, she couldn't escape control, and as a result, Lockhart was also controlled by you, making her an accomplice for no reason... Is that the whole process of the case?"

After Harry recounted the entire crime in detail, his expression subtly relaxed.

"Absolutely right!" Tom nodded approvingly, but his gaze gradually darkened. "However, what surprises me is that you really don't care whether this girl lives or dies. You'd rather spend time analyzing the whole incident than save her immediately! Do you know she'll die soon..."

"She won't die, because I fed her Phoenix Tears as soon as I arrived!"

As he spoke, Harry smiled slightly and raised his arm, allowing Tom to clearly see the wand and letter hidden beneath his wide sleeves. "The reason I'm listening to your nonsense is so I can use Recording Charm to record your confession, which I'll use as evidence to exonerate Ginny!"

"You!" Tom's expression froze upon hearing this.

"So... young Voldemort, your attempt to force me into a state of anxiety by using Ginny's passing is simply not going to work."

"What did you say?!" Tom exclaimed in shock.

Harry not only kept trying to trick him, but he also figured out his true identity!

(P. S. This might be a personal motive, but I want Severus Snape to be a good guy from beginning to end, and not to do anything like a double agent, o(TヘTo)~)

Chapter 172 A rooster cannot be used as a trump card.

In fact, Harry was just trying to trick Tom, or rather Voldemort.

This trip to the Chamber of Harry isn't just about defeating Tom Marvolo Riddle, the Heir of Slytherin; it also involves finding evidence to confront the Pure-blood Family led by Lucius Malfoy.

If it were just a matter of solving the case, those Pure-blood Family would still relentlessly pursue the blame for Albus Dumbledore and the professors' negligence. Therefore, Harry had to recount the assistance the school teachers had provided in solving the case in front of the real culprit, so that those with ulterior motives would be silenced.

Finally, the same logic applies to helping Ginny record evidence. On the way there, Hermione told Harry that the Basilisk had petrified the Severus Snape in the corridor, and before that, it had glared to death the School Governor, Greengrass. The matter had become quite serious.

In this situation, Lucius would inevitably retaliate like a mad dog, especially since the diary was originally given to Ginny by Lucius!

Therefore, Harry's testimony alone is not enough to exonerate Ginny; he must prepare more solid evidence.

That's why he thought of using the Phoenix Tears given to him by Albus Dumbledore to temporarily help Ginny recover.

As a professional forensic pathologist, how could Harry possibly use a method like checking for breath, which is clearly misleading in TV dramas, to confirm whether someone is breathing? Besides, covering someone with his entire palm would suffocate even a healthy person.

He was just using that method to give Ginny her medicine.

As for the last one, Tom Riddle being Voldemort is indeed hard to guess, but thankfully Harry drank Felix Felicis before arriving.

When Harry first started school, he had a chat with Albus Dumbledore, and that's when he learned that Voldemort was Parseltongue, and that almost all Parseltongue were descendants of Slytherin.

Tom, who opens the Chamber of Secrets, is Heir of Slytherin and also speaks Parseltongue.

When Harry saw Tom just now, Felix Felicis seemed to have turned into a hand and shoved it at the scar on Tom's forehead. Therefore, Harry quickly realized that Tom Riddle was Voldemort from fifty years ago when he was in school!

"Hmph, I didn't expect you to have figured it out without me even saying it!" Tom... no, Voldemort's face suddenly filled with endless disgust and resentment. "The blood of Salazar Slytherin flows in my veins, so of course I will never use that filthy Muggle surname again..."

"Stop, stop! I don't want to hear any more of this," Harry interrupted Voldemort's complaints, while subtly beckoning to the box behind him with his left hand. "I have absolutely no interest in your sad stories. Anyway, if you don't release the Basilisk soon, I'm going to use the Obscurus steal the diary!"

"You... Harry Potter, you will absolutely regret your choice!"

Completely fearless, easily controlled in conversations, and most importantly, utterly contemptuous of himself... the young Voldemort felt as if he aged decades from anger when he faced Harry.

He turned around angrily and hissed at the tall stone statue at the end of the lost world. The statue's mouth grew larger and larger until it gradually formed a dark hole.

"Speak to me, Slytherin —the greatest of the Four Founders of Hogwarts." Harry easily understood the meaning of this Parseltongue.

Salazar Slytherin was quite narcissistic; not only did he build such a tall statue of himself, but he also made the key to activate the mechanism so embarrassing to say.

However, Harry was relieved when he thought about what he had seen in the school history that Hogwarts was originally the Slytherin family's castle.

After all... having a property ownership certificate makes you awesome~

"Hiss~"

The Slytherin Basilisk slowly crawled out of the statue, leaving a winding trail of blood and bodily fluids on the ground. Judging from the wounds on its body, although it had successfully petrified the Severus Snape, the Severus Snape had clearly also achieved considerable success.

"You asked for this... Kill him!" Seeing Harry 'fearfully' close his eyes, Voldemort roared with glee, commanding the Basilisk to rush towards Harry.

"This is the moment I've been waiting for!" Hearing the approaching, chilling hiss of the snakes, Harry flung his robes forward. "Guys, it's time to show yourselves!"

"Roar!!" *3

After a series of roars, three enormous creatures with their eyes closed pounced on the Basilisk that was within arm's reach, and the whole scene descended into chaos!

"This... it's actually Dragon, Occamy, and an unknown creature?"

The appearance of Zouwu and his companions left Voldemort standing there in disbelief. Quirrell, whom he had assimilated, had no memory of this scene, so he had no idea that Harry was also being assisted by Fantastic Beasts, and more than one at that!

What he found even more unacceptable was that, when facing his past self who had returned last year, this kid who was only a first-grader back then was actually holding back his true abilities?!

The fact that he possessed a body and returned only to be unable to defeat a first-year student who had held back his strength is undoubtedly Voldemort's second greatest humiliation since his Waterloo.

"Whoa!" Just as Voldemort was in shock, Harry had already heard Zouwu's warning.

Together with Norberta, it had pinned the Basilisk's body down, while the Occamy had already coiled itself around the Basilisk's neck!

"Well done! Basilisk, have a taste of this!!"

Harry waved his wand, and the briefcase behind him opened completely. The nine-square chicken coop, under the influence of the Levitation Charm, flew out rapidly and smashed directly into the Basilisk, shattering into Reducto!

Oh ho ho ho!!

"Hiss!!"

Four excited roosters crowed in unison, amplifying the noise's power, while the Basilisk simultaneously emitted a terrified and listless hiss.

It's true that the interrelationships between species are indeed mysterious. The ancient monster raised by Slytherin was afraid of a group of roosters that weren't even enough to fill its teeth. This is truly a classic case of one thing subduing another.

"Damn roosters, all of you, die!"

Seeing this, Voldemort hurriedly drew Ginny's wand and began casting a spell to kill the rooster, unaware that this was exactly what Harry wanted!

According to Hermione's description, the Basilisk was indeed afraid after hearing the rooster crow, but it still retained the ability to escape. This shows that the rooster can only be used to disrupt things, not as a trump card to make the final decision!

But for Voldemort, once Harry brandished the rooster, he would have to drive it away himself.

Firstly, he couldn't allow the rooster to continuously weaken the Basilisk's fighting power, and secondly, Harry's Fantastic Beasts companions all possessed extremely high resistance to spells, making them much harder to kill than the rooster!

But then Harry wouldn't be able to break the spell!

"Hermione, use the Conjunctivitis Curse together!"

"Knew!"

Upon opening their eyes for the first time during the battle, Harry and the girl who suddenly appeared from the suitcase simultaneously raised their wands and fired two dazzling beams of light, intertwined, at the Basilisk's large head!

"Hiss!!" The Basilisk let out an extremely shrill scream, its eyelids involuntarily closing tightly.

With the cores of the same origin stacked, the power of the spell is increased tenfold. Even if the Basilisk's magic resistance is already off the charts, this attack will definitely break through its defenses!

"Wingardium Leviosa!"

"Waddiwasi!!"

In another coordinated spellcasting session, taking advantage of the Basilisk's closed eyes, Harry swiftly threw the Sword of Gryffindor from his Space Ring, and with Hermione's perfectly timed Levitation Charm, it shot out abruptly!

"Oh no... Engorgio!"

Puff!!

Seeing the situation was turning against him, Voldemort immediately cast Engorgement Charm on the Basilisk, enlarging its body and preventing it from having its brain pierced directly by the Basilisk...

But even as blood splattered, the longsword still pierced one of the Basilisk's eyes!

(P. S. Fun Fact 1: Checking for breathing by feeling the nose is not scientifically sound, because breathing is too faint to be felt with your fingers. What you see on TV is misleading.)

Quick fact 2: According to statistics from the American Heart Association, even medical personnel make a significant number of misjudgments when checking the carotid artery during CPR (mainly mistaking their own finger pulse for the patient's carotid artery pulse, which can delay or even eliminate the opportunity for rescue). Therefore, checking the carotid artery has a high misjudgment rate and is also misleading.

In the AHA 2015 CPR guidelines, non-professionals are no longer required to check the carotid artery. Instead, they are advised to scan the patient's chest for 5-10 seconds to determine if there is breathing. If there is no response and no breathing (or only deathly sighing breathing), CPR should be initiated.

For professional medical personnel, if they cannot determine whether there is a carotid pulse within 10 seconds, they should immediately begin chest compressions.

Also included is a method for assessing breathing before CPR, which can be summarized in a mnemonic: Listen, look, feel.

You can hear the breathing sounds from your mouth and nose, see the rise and fall of your chest and abdomen, and feel the exhaled air hitting your face. If all three are present, you can be considered to be breathing voluntarily.

Sanmiao thinks this is a kind of common sense that you absolutely don't want to use but is definitely useful, so please accept it with a smile. That's all~)

Chapter 173 The Basilisk was slain by the Lord of the Black Lake

Seeing the Basilisk writhing in pain, Voldemort's young face was contorted with rage and rage.

From the moment they met, Harry kept coming up with all sorts of strange tricks, and he really felt he was finding it hard to keep up.

Especially after that series of attacks, he never expected that Harry would almost kill the Basilisk left behind by Salazar Slytherin in just one move!

If I hadn't reacted quickly enough to enlarge the Basilisk's body, that flying sword would have definitely shredded Basilisk brain!

However, Voldemort wasn't the only one surprised in the Chamber.

Luna Lovegood, who was carrying out a mission while wearing Invisibility Cloak, was also slightly surprised, but her surprise was directed at Hermione.

For some reason, Luna Lovegood felt that she saw a reflection of herself in Hermione.

Although the two looked very different and had completely different personalities, she felt a strange sense of familiarity when she saw the seamless teamwork between Hermione and Harry.

It felt as if I had stood beside him, fighting alongside him like that...

Hmm, maybe it's because of that mirror. Let's not worry about it for now.

After expertly ignoring the inexplicable thoughts in her mind, Luna Lovegood continued to spread out her Invisibility Cloak on the ground while Voldemort wasn't paying attention.

Meanwhile, Voldemort, wand in hand, watched in exasperation as the blinding Basilisk was surrounded and attacked by the three Fantastic Beasts.

Although the Basilisk was able to barely resist the attacks of Norberta and his two companions thanks to its enlarged size and fearsome fangs, everyone present knew that it would not last long.

"Hey! Voldemort, don't you think someone's missing here?" Harry suddenly shouted.

"Missing people... How is that possible?" Voldemort glanced around instinctively, then his expression turned to shock. "Ginny Weasley, when did you rescue her?!"

That's impossible!

How could that Pure-blood girl, who was just lying on the ground, be here right under my nose...?

"Expelliarmus!" Taking advantage of the moment Voldemort's clone was in a daze, Harry swiftly waved his wand, disarming Ginny's wand while it was still in physical form.

"You? You're despicable..."

"Just kidding~" Harry teased the enraged Voldemort, "Ginny is still there, but she's really gone now."

As soon as Harry finished speaking, a human-shaped silhouette suddenly rose from where Ginny had been lying. Luna Lovegood then managed to push Ginny, who was wrapped in Invisibility Cloak, into the suitcase, and then stood side by side with Hermione, wand in hand.

"Harry Potter..."

"Watch your hands before you get angry," Harry's smile grew even more mocking. "Your diary's going to be gone too~"

"What?"

Voldemort suddenly felt his hand go empty, and when he looked up, he discovered that his diary had been snatched away by a bat-like creature!

"There's Swooping Evil?!" Voldemort roared in fury as he watched the diary being tossed to Harry's feet.

After what just happened, I realized I was being made a fool of!

The second installment of their endless stream of ingenious tricks: using an Invisibility Cloak and some distraction techniques, Harry and Luna Lovegood worked together perfectly to not only disarm Voldemort and rescue Ginny, but also steal the most crucial diary!

"No matter how special you are, you are just a spirit that exists solely through this diary, so if I destroy this diary, I can completely destroy you, right?"

Although it was called sabotage, Harry's real intention was to preserve the diary as much as possible, because it was definitely key evidence that could be used to indict Lucius Malfoy!