One Thousand and One Nights

Back in his study and into his spatial dimension, Tom stopped practicing his flight spells and alchemy and instead began concocting Elixir of Life for Astoria.

The ultimate secret of alchemy is equivalent exchange; the Philosopher's Stone is essentially a collection of immense magical power.

It can convert magic into life force, which is close to the concept of equivalent exchange.

This is why everyone says that the Philosopher's Stone is the culmination of alchemy.

However, it is only close, not perfect. The Philosopher's Stone has limited conversion capabilities, only able to convert specific substances, and lacks versatility.

Therefore, the Elixir of Life can only grant immortality, not prevent aging, because the life force derived from it lacks activity.

Nicolas Flamel achieved his anti-aging effects by combining pharmacological knowledge with various rare herbs.

The current Nicolas Flamel are probably more fragile than potato chips.

Astoria's situation is different; she doesn't need to slow down aging, she just needs to prolong her life, so her requirements aren't that high.

Even if the quality of the Elixir of Life is a little poor, it's perfectly fine. The first few batches that Tom refined were indeed not of satisfactory quality.

According to Nicolas Flamel, a normal Elixir of Life can last for three months, but the one he concocted was estimated to last only one and a half to two months.

After practicing a few times, I got the hang of it. The next few times I practiced, they were all in perfect condition and could last for three months.

After refining ten portions, Tom stopped. The Elixir of Life has no expiration date; he could refine more if needed later.

Consider this a practice session, and a chance to familiarize myself with the techniques for crafting more complex Potions.

He carefully collected the imperfect medicines, intending to use them to adjust the formula later.

The perfect potion was sealed in a magic bottle, labeled, and placed in a suitcase.

During the pharmaceutical manufacturing process, he jotted down many insights to use in future research papers.

He's really into publishing papers now, as long as he can consistently earn 3,000 credits every month.

Activating the Supernatural Mode once a day will double his growth rate—why not?

Usachi popped out of his pocket, sat cross-legged on the table, and stared intently at the Philosopher's Stone.

You can't eat this.

Usachi tilted his head, his gaze shifting from the Philosopher's Stone to Tom's face, then back to the Philosopher's Stone.

"I told you you can't eat it."

Usachi rubbed her head against the Philosopher's Stone. Tom put the Philosopher's Stone away and ruffled her hair. "Good girl."

Tom left the Study Space and returned to the bedroom. Daphne and Astoria were already in bed, one on each side, with an empty space in the middle.

The two sisters stared at him with their big, round eyes, looking like two kittens waiting to be fed.

Tom sighed helplessly, took a quick shower, lay down on the bed, and continued telling them the story of Sun Wukong.

Today we'll talk about Sun Wukong's battle against the White Bone Demon.

Astoria pulled the blanket up to her chin, her eyes sparkling. "Who is the White Bone Demon?"

"A dark sorcerer who could disguise himself, transforming into a young girl, an old woman, and an old man, tricked Tang Sanzang into eating the poisoned apple."

"Did Tang Sanzang get poisoned?"

"He hit the mark! Sun Wukong killed the White Bone Demon with one blow and revived Tang Sanzang."

Daphne yawned. "Did Tang Sanzang thank it?"

"No, Tang Sanzang recited the Tightening-Headband Mantra and drove Sun Wukong away."

"Why?" Astoria asked angrily.

"Because it doesn't obey."

Daphne muttered, "Tang Sanzang is so bad," and then fell asleep.

Astoria pulled the blanket up to cover half her face and fell asleep.

Tom felt that if he kept going like this, he could publish a book himself, titled "One Thousand and One Nights with the Greengrass sisters".

Who knows, I might even become a sensation in the wizarding world, earning another wave of credits and Galleon. Just thinking about it makes me happy.

Three days passed in a flash, Amelia Bones indeed brought good news: the Ministry of Magic agreed to purchase one hundred Galleon per item.

But two hundred weren't enough, so Tom was required to deliver three hundred by September, enough for the Auror, the Hit Wizard, and the Ministry of Magic officials.

Tom agreed without hesitation; he had already mastered the art of burning runes into the Anti-Disarm Bracelet.

If you have enough materials, you can make twenty or thirty in an afternoon. If you squeeze in two more hours each day, you can definitely finish them.

On Tom's last night at the Greengrass Family's, Daphne clung to his arm tightly, as if letting go would send her flying.

Astoria sat on the edge of the bed, dejected, her fingers twisting the corner of the blanket. The only sound in the room was the crackling fire in the fireplace.

"It's not like I'm not coming back," Tom said.

"If you go to United States, you'll still go to Paris; and if you go to Paris, you won't know where to go next."

Daphne buried her face in his shoulder, her voice muffled, "By the time you come back, summer vacation will be over."

Daphne looked reluctant to part, and Astoria hung her head, her eyes red.

Tom had no choice but to pretend to fall asleep instantly. When the two little girls saw that he was asleep, they could only close their eyes listlessly and curl up next to him.

The next morning, Tom planned to sneak away before the two sisters woke up, but even though he was on his tiptoes, he still woke them up.

Finally, having no other choice, he spent another half day with them, had lunch, and the whole family saw him off at the gate of the manor.

Seeing the two sisters with teary eyes, Tom gave Daphne a big hug.

He ruffled Astoria's silver hair again, and Astoria rubbed her head against his palm.

He picked up the Portkey that Mrs. Greengrass had prepared, along with a vintage top hat. Just as he grasped the brim, he felt a hook grab his navel and pull hard.

Tom secretly rejoiced: Luckily, the umbilical cord was cut cleanly at birth, otherwise it would definitely have been pulled out.

The world before my eyes was rushing past. At first, I could still make out the trees and clouds, but then everything was mixed together and turned into a white light.

The wind whistled in his ears, making it hard for him to open his eyes, Portkey was firmly stuck to his hand, requiring no conscious effort to hold it.

The magic shielded me from wind resistance and noise; aside from a slight nausea from the high-speed movement, I felt nothing at all.

Tom didn't know how long they flew; he even took a nap in the middle.

When he opened his eyes again, he was falling, the ground getting closer and closer, a few low houses and a lawn.

He adjusted his posture, his feet firmly planted on the grass, and the top hat settled in his hand, no longer hot.

A chubby, middle-aged male wizard emerged from the nearby wooden hut. "10:06, cross- Portkey."

"From Yorkshire, Britain, ID number 9288, how come he's an underage wizard?"

The fat wizard stared at him with wide, round eyes, looking at him with a surprised expression.

"These are my identification documents." Tom handed over the file Mrs. Greengrass had given him.

The fat wizard examined the file over and over for a long time before reluctantly handing it back to him, muttering under his breath.

"Sending a little kid abroad alone? Britain parents are incredibly careless! Aren't they afraid he'll be snatched away by Fantastic Beasts?"