Divine Sword Palm
Skylar turned another corner. (Reading M)
What came into view was a vast expanse of misty fog. It was the kind of fog that you couldn't see even if you stretched out your hand in front of you.
Skylar dared not be careless at all.
His intuition told him that the magical field mice had been wiped out here.
While magical field mice aren't particularly skilled in combat, their small size, speed, and keen intuition and sense of smell make taking down 25 of them in one go no easy feat. Nundu capable of spewing poisonous gas or Basilisk that can kill with a glance might be able to manage it, but this maze was designed for seventh-year students, and the Ministry of Magic and the Hogwarts professors responsible for the project would never allow such dangerous monsters to be included.
This mist seemed to be filled with magical power; even with Skylar's Magic Eye and the profound mystery of Divine Insight of Amaterasu, he could not see through the mist's illusion.
But Skylar had experience facing the mist before. He first cast the Bird Conjuring Spell. His Transfiguration skills were far superior to what they were a year ago. In one breath, he conjured twelve white eagles the size of golden eagles. With a flick of his wand, the eagles stirred up powerful air currents and rushed into the mist.
As the fog dissipated, the view ahead gradually became clear. A look of surprise flashed in Skylar's eyes. Standing before him was a towering tree, its branches and trunk slowly revealed as the fog dissipated.
The tree's shape was somewhat similar to a palm tree, yet not quite the same. Even the well-read and knowledgeable Skylar had never heard of this plant. He was certain that it was not a magical plant commonly found in Europe, much less something that would be covered in Hogwarts' Herbology curriculum.
Unlike the stout, short palm trees, this tree has a straight and upright trunk, covered with silvery leaves that are like swords and make a rustling sound.
Skylar suddenly felt the air around him grow colder, and a terrifying killing intent surged from the direction of the silver tree.
"Killing intent" is an invisible and intangible aura that generally only appears on dark wizards, and only those dark wizards with blood on their hands and who have committed countless killings can possibly condense killing intent within them. To put it bluntly, it's because excessive killing distorts a wizard's soul, and while the power of magic originates from bloodline, it grows under the influence of the soul and spirit. A distorted soul is enough to make the essence of magic become extremely violent, that is, tainted by "killing intent."
What's going on with this mysterious plant radiating such intense killing intent?
At that moment, a piercing hissing sound rang in their ears, and countless sword-like leaves shot out through the air at incredible speed, like streaks of light. The white eagles didn't even have time to utter a mournful cry before they exploded in mid-air, turning into clouds of blood mist that permeated the area around the Swordleaf Palm Tree, creating a uniquely bloody beauty.
The sword-shaped leaves flew away, revealing countless holes on the tree trunk, resembling the opening and closing of an animal's mouth and nose. After the white eagles were slaughtered, the tree trunk shook violently, and the sword-shaped leaves flew back one after another, with their petioles pointing downwards, inserting into the holes.
So that's how all 25 magic field mice were wiped out. Magic field mice navigate by smell, not sight, so the fog had no effect on them. However, there were hundreds, if not thousands, of leaves on that Swordleaf Palm, so a mere 25 field mice simply weren't enough to get through.
Skylar did not receive any attacks, which means that the tree's perception has a limited range. Judging from the location where the white eagle was attacked, as long as one does not come within three feet of the Swordleaf Palm Tree, it will not trigger an attack from the sword-leaf palm.
That being said, with such a tree blocking the way, unless one is willing to give up and take another detour, one must endure the test of sword-like attacks.
This challenge is by no means easy for a 7th-year wizard. If they try to tough it out using the Shield Charm, it's impossible to emerge unscathed from the dense barrage of sword blades. Even if they use multiple Shield Charm to protect their vital organs, it's enough to seriously injure the young wizards, or even render them unable to continue the competition.
Of course, Skylar was no ordinary fourth-year wizard.
Spatial magic definitely won't work; he doesn't have the ability to redirect such a dense attack.
"Gods' Protection" can indeed withstand all attacks, but he cannot move while casting Gods' Protection. He created this magic to protect himself and those nearby over a wide area and to buy time to cast a counter-spell, just like he did against the Swedish Short-Snout in his first competition.
Skylar had once heard Zhang He mention that in the Magical Theory in China, Eastern wizards believed in the "Five Elements" rather than the "Four Elements". Among the Five Elements, "Wood" generates "Fire", so it is extremely easy to burn.
In other words, the fastest way to pass this level is to use fire to destroy the tree.
A regular Fire-Making Spell would be impossible to achieve. Even if Skylar used Blue Flame Potion to raise the flames to the temperature of blue flames, it might not be enough to destroy this magical tree.
So, the only ones left to consider are Demon Flame and Fiendfyre.
Both of these are incredibly destructive fire magic spells, and in fact, there is a great deal of connection between them.
In the Fantastic Beasts movies of his past life, after Grindelwald cast the Protego Diabolica and selected his followers to leave, he uttered "I hate Paris," thus releasing his control over the Flame of Destruction. Without the caster's control, the Flame of Destruction spontaneously transformed into Fiendfyre, nearly burning down the entire Paris.
It is thus evident that the Demon Flame is essentially a version of Fiendfyre that has been suppressed, weakened, and then controlled. Grindelwald, by combining his family's innate talent for "Heart-Stirring" with Legilimency, created the spell "Protego Diabolica".
Compared to the Demon Flame, Fiendfyre is more destructive, but also more difficult to control. Even figures like Dumbledore and Grindelwald dare not lightly cast the Fiendfyre Curse, or allow it to grow uncontrollably while burning continuously. They must maintain firm control over Fiendfyre at Fiendfyre times.
Skylar last used Fiendfyre Curse during the battle against the Acromantula. At that time, he didn't try to control the Fiendfyre; his goal was simply to let the uncontrolled Fiendfyre run rampant and burn the Acromantula to a crisp. Now, he's in the midst of a highly anticipated competition, and if he chooses to use Fiendfyre Curse, he's not sure if he might accidentally create a devastating explosion.
After much thought, the most suitable fire magic to be used at this moment is none other than Demon Flame.
"Protego Diabolica!" After chanting the incantation, Skylar, like a conductor of an ensemble, elegantly waved his wand, and a blue flame surrounded him, rising and falling like a long Fire Snake.
As Skylar continued to dance, the Fire Snake launched attack after attack on the Swordleaf Palm Tree.
The trunk of a palm tree belongs to the element of "wood" in the Five Elements theory, and it is extremely flammable. However, this cannot be applied to its silvery, sword-like leaves. Those leaves are completely unafraid of fire. As soon as the Fire Snake enters its sensing range, it will launch a fierce attack, piercing the Fire Snake with countless holes and sending sparks flying.
After Skylar controlled the Demon Flame and launched more than ten attacks, he gradually became familiar with the Sword Leaf's attack patterns, and his own fire offensive became increasingly smooth and skillful.
Suddenly, he felt a faint stirring within his blood.
A warm current flowed from the blood flowing through the blood vessels into every part of the body.
Feeling this incredibly familiar sensation, Skylar smiled.
[The Rosier Family's bloodline secret – "Elemental Affinity" awakens!]
At that moment, the blue Fire Snake burning around Skylar suddenly stood upright, and two egg-sized white flames appeared on its head, as if this mindless Fire Snake had suddenly gained sentience. Skylar only needed to think, Fire Snake would do whatever Skylar thought of, as if these flames were no longer just tools for Skylar to enslave and drive, but comrades who were in sync with him and had formed a bond with him.
With Skylar 'Fire Snake upper body suddenly split into two, then into four, then into eight, and finally split once more, becoming the nine-headed Fire Snake.
The nine-headed Fire Snake attacked nimbly, and no matter how dense or fast the Swordleaf Palm Tree's attacks were, they could not completely extinguish the flames. Finally, one of the Fire Snake seized an opportunity, opened its blood-red maw, and bit into the trunk of the Swordleaf Palm Tree. With a loud bang, the Swordleaf Palm Tree started to burn from the middle of its trunk, slowly spreading upwards until the entire tree was reduced to Ashes.
Once the sword-shaped leaves lose the holes in the tree trunk, they are like wanderers who have lost their home and have nowhere to go. First, they let out a sharp cry of sorrow, and then, with a whooshing sound, they all plunge into the ground and wither away at a speed visible to the naked eye.