Secrets of the Darkest Art

"Parseltongue?!" Newt asked in surprise upon hearing Dumbledore's words. "Wasn't that the Herpo the Foul's signature ability? And what's the background of that little wizard you mentioned?"

"I'm not sure who Tom's parents are either. All I know is that he comes from an orphanage in the Muggle World and is Half-blood," Dumbledore said, shaking his head.

"But isn't Parseltongue a symbol of dark wizards?" Kama asked, frowning. "Is there really nothing wrong with that child's identity?"

"Yusuf, the problem is never a person's origins or bloodline, but rather his thoughts and character," Dumbledore said earnestly, looking at Kama.

Kama looked into Dumbledore's deep eyes and nodded helplessly.

"At this point, let's not worry about the child's identity. He's just a child; how much trouble can he cause?" Aberforth said somewhat impatiently. "Isn't our main goal to help Aurelius find Nagini?"

"So, do you need me to call Riddle for help?" The Young Wizard Xiwen, having guessed Dumbledore's intentions, stepped forward and asked.

Dumbledore nodded and smiled, "Thank you for your help, Xiwen."

On the fifth floor of the Main Tower Hogwarts, deep within the library.

It was already evening, and the afterglow of the setting sun slanted in through the library window, casting a reddish hue over half of the bookshelf in front of it.

A handsome young wizard with black hair, wearing a worn-out secondhand wizard's robe, was leaning against a cabinet, intently reading a thick book with a brown cover by the light of the setting sun.

He was so engrossed in reading that he didn't even notice someone approaching him.

"Riddle, so you were here." Xiwen said softly.

Riddle was startled and instinctively tried to hide the book behind his back. However, the large volume was too heavy, and Riddle's thin frame simply couldn't conceal it.

He only breathed a slight sigh of relief when he saw that the person who came was Xiwen.

"Rozier, how did you get into the Restricted Section?" Riddle asked.

"That's the question I should be asking you," Xiwen said, a smirk playing on his lips. "As far as I know, lower-grade students aren't allowed in the Restricted Section."

"Of course I was able to come in with a library card from Professor Slughorn," Riddle replied calmly, silently placing the book he was holding face down on the empty shelf next to him.

However, Riddle's actions did not escape Xiwen's notice.

As he turned the large, brown-covered book upside down, Xiwen caught a glimpse of the large black words on the cover: <The Secrets of the Darkest Art>.

Xiwen remembered this book.

That was the first night he arrived at the castle, and it was the first time Xiwen had acted as a ghost. It was then that he discovered this book, which exuded a strong aura of Dark Magic, in the Restricted Section.

After the book was opened, a black skull suddenly burst out from the pages, screaming as it charged at Xiwen's Soul Body. The skull's scream disturbed Helena, who was pretending to read nearby, and their connection began from that moment.

"This isn't a book you should be reading at your age," Xiwen said seriously, looking at Riddle.

Upon learning that Xiwen had seen the book's title, Riddle no longer bothered to hide it, and said with a smirk, "I've already passed the test of this book, so why can't I read it?"

"The test of this book?" Xiwen asked in surprise. He had always felt that Riddle wasn't the type to make up arguments, so he didn't understand why he was coming up with such an absurd reason this time.

Riddle noticed Xiwen's skepticism, so he took the large book back from the shelf and handed it to him.

"Take a look, the first page is the test of this book," Riddle said, arms crossed, with a look of schadenfreude.

Seeing Riddle's amused expression, Xiwen's lips twitched.

"If you can pass the test, why can't I?" He glared at Riddle with annoyance and casually flipped open the book, <The Secrets of the Darkest Art>.

Of course, although he appeared relaxed on the surface, his left hand was already behind his back, secretly preparing to cast a defensive spell.

As I turned to the first page of the book, a piercing scream rang out, and the black skull appeared as expected. Luckily, the depths of the Restricted Section were soundproofed, otherwise it would have attracted the librarian's attention.

Xiwen formed a hand seal behind his back with his left hand, and the pre-prepared Raggatego pressed against his cheek, blocking the black skull.

"This test isn't meant to be resisted," Riddle said, watching Xiwen's actions with some curiosity. "You should open your mind and let it enter your brain to test whether your strength can withstand the influence of learning the magic in the book."

'So this skull is the so-called test?' Xiwen looked at the skull spinning around him but couldn't find a way to approach it, and suddenly its terrifying appearance became comical.

Xiwen shook his head and snapped the book shut. The skull vanished into thin air as the pages closed.

"No need. I'm not interested in letting anything of unknown origin get inside me," Xiwen said, Riddle.

"Suit yourself." Riddle shrugged and took the book back from Xiwen's hand.

"Wait, I haven't finished." Xiwen pulled the book back, dodging Riddle's hand, and continued, "Although this book sets up a test, it can probably only detect whether your strength is sufficient to learn the contents, but it cannot determine whether your temperament is suitable for learning."

"What do you mean?" Riddle frowned, beginning to sound impatient.

"I mean, the power of Dark Magic can easily influence a learner's mind," Xiwen said earnestly. "And you are still too young. You could very well be unknowingly influenced by the power of Dark Magic in your personality, behavior, and way of thinking."

"Hmph, when did you pick up Dumbledore's ways? You've got quite the lectures now," Riddle scoffed, completely unconcerned. "As far as I know, the Rosier family's Dark Magic is quite famous."

"You even know this much? Looks like you've been researching a lot about Pure-blood families lately." Xiwen shrugged and continued to advise him. "But I must say, even in my own family, my mother never let me learn Dark Magic at this age."

Riddle glanced at Xiwen with surprise, then suddenly changed his attitude and nodded indifferently.

"Alright then, I'll be more careful in the future." He agreed without hesitation. This made Xiwen swallow the words he wanted to add.

Looking at Riddle's nonchalant gaze, Xiwen knew that his promise this time was just to appease him, and that he would definitely continue to study the Dark Magic in the book after he left.

Indeed, guiding Riddle onto the right path is a long and arduous task.

"Forget it, let's not talk about that." Xiwen shook his head helplessly and said to Riddle, "I came here mainly to ask you for a favor."