All Is Ready

Phoenix: the male was Feng, the female Huang.

Majestic in all four directions, sovereign of all birds. Nirvana in the face of despair, conquering death!

Dumbledore stared blankly at the sacred radiance, his eyes brimming with hope. "Only him... only him..."

No one heard Dumbledore's whisper, because everyone had been plunged into utter shock.

The glowing clouds that filled the sky were like the descent of a deity. The golden-red flames even pierced the protective barrier Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel had set up.

In the Muggle world, nearby residents were drawn by this heavenly phenomenon.

Only when the flames gradually receded and the glowing clouds returned to the heavens did the people on the ground seem to truly return to the mortal world.

"Albus, was that a phoenix? A Magical Creature Animagus, a phoenix?"

Professor McGonagall asked Dumbledore. Such a sight had far exceeded her imagination.

Since ancient times, there had never been an Animagus that turned into a magical creature, yet one had just appeared before her very eyes.

Dumbledore shook his head. "It was a phoenix, but it had nothing to do with Fawkes. It may have been a phoenix from the East, something that completely transcends the existing classification of magical creatures. Perhaps... it should be called a mythological creature!"

Fawkes was a phoenix of the Western Wizarding World.

The Dumbledore Family was a family followed by phoenixes. In the Western Wizarding World, phoenixes were five-star magical creatures, exceedingly rare.

Their tears could heal illness, their songs could raise morale, and they possessed immense carrying strength. When the end of their lives approached, they would choose nirvana.

Such magical creatures had chosen to follow the Dumbledore Family for generations. Their family had an old saying: whenever someone was in dire need, a phoenix would appear at once.

But the phoenix Eli had transformed into left Fawkes miles behind in terms of spectacle alone, with its golden-red flames and glowing clouds.

Ancient Eastern nation: You know nothing of power.

When every last flame surged back into Eli's body, his magic gradually settled, and the Animagus transformation was officially complete!

Humans possessed a mysterious yearning for flight. Hanging in midair, Eli excitedly looked over his magnificent wings, as though he were about to conquer the entire sky!

After circling excitedly through the air several times, he slowly descended to a low altitude.

He pictured his human form in his mind, and after a burst of transformation, the phoenix turned back into a human.

The remaining golden-red flames transformed into a faint golden-red robe.

His original clothes had all been burned away by the flames that erupted during the transformation.

Normally, during an Animagus's first transformation, all clothing and jewelry on their body would turn into fur or markings and become part of their body.

But Eli's Animagus was simply too outrageous. Before he had even transformed, his clothes had already burned away.

After all, no one else's Animagus transformation required the Philosopher's Stone.

Now, the Philosopher's Stone that had once been brimming with magic was extremely dim.

"Eli, how are you?"

Perenelle ran over and examined him closely. Fortunately, Eli did not seem to be injured.

"Truly incredible, Eli. You may be the first Magical Creature Animagus in history."

Dumbledore smiled.

Professor McGonagall could hardly contain her excitement. Her student had mastered Animagus transformation at such a young age, and had even become an unbelievable Magical Creature Animagus.

"I suppose we'll need to go to the Ministry of Magic to register it. Their jaws will hit the floor!"

"No, Minerva. Perhaps we should hear Eli's opinion first."

"Albus..."

Dumbledore shook his head at Professor McGonagall, and she seemed to understand something.

"Actually, I don't think now is the right time. It won't be too late when I'm an adult. I don't want to be interviewed by the Daily Prophet right now."

Eli's words made them laugh.

He had no intention of revealing his Animagus form now. This was one of his trump cards.

Dumbledore was probably thinking the same thing.

With Dumbledore covering for him, who cared whether it violated Wizarding law? Wasn't that Daily Prophet reporter, Rita Skeeter, an illegal Animagus too?

He had learned that from watching the movies in his previous life.

That woman often turned into a tiny, pitiful beetle, eavesdropping on others to get exclusive scoops.

That showed that there were quite a few benefits to being an unknown Animagus. Hadn't his dad been an illegal Animagus back then too?

What was that called? Like father, like...

With a thought from Eli, the golden-red robe on his body turned back into the clothes he had been wearing before.

This was much more convenient. He would not need to change clothes anymore.

After examining Eli and confirming that everything was fine, Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall left.

They were not people with nothing better to do.

After completing his Animagus plan, Eli threw himself back into alchemical research.

According to Nicolas Flamel, Eli had already mastered alchemical runes and could officially begin learning alchemical manufacturing.

Judging from the automatic quill Eli had made before, his talent and skill were far from poor.

Nicolas Flamel used the potion assembly line Eli needed as an example for his lessons.

Even if this thing were put outside and others were allowed to copy it, they might not be able to make it. Yet with Nicolas Flamel, it became beginner-level instruction.

Eli did not disappoint. He progressed rapidly and overcame many difficult obstacles.

What troubled him most now was connecting the runes.

The machinery on an assembly line had to be linked and controllable, otherwise it could not produce anything at all.

In the Muggle world, that could be solved with electrical circuits and networks. It was just a matter of a few wires.

But in alchemy, it was not so simple.

To connect the machinery, he needed to form magical circuits. Yet the individual work units were not physically connected, so he could only rely on the resonance between runes.

It had Eli scratching his head raw.

Whenever he wanted to ask Nicolas Flamel for guidance, he received only one response: "Learn it yourself. Think for yourself."

I, Eli, am a person of standing too. I don't need to ask anyone for help!

He shut himself in the laboratory all day, neglecting food and drink.

Because of this, Nicolas Flamel suffered Perenelle's domestic violence several more times.

Heaven did not disappoint those who worked hard. With the help of the Book of Abraham the Jew, Eli finally overcame this hurdle.

Rubbing his cool, bare scalp, Eli felt like crying.

Research was far too hard on his hair!

Still, it had all been worth it!

Eli had already completed the manufacture of all kinds of work units. Whenever he wanted to produce a potion in the future, he would only need to assemble them.

By this day, more than half of his potion factory plan had been completed.

All that remained was to build the factory grounds and put it into production.

Summer vacation was also nearing its end, and Nicolas Flamel ended Eli's holiday studies early.

The Hall couple had written to tell Eli that Ron Weasley had invited him to visit the Weasley family.

Eli had just finished his studies, so he might as well make the trip.

The Weasley family also lived in Devon, and it was not too far away, so getting there would not be troublesome.

"Remember to write back often. Take good care of yourself at school..."

Perenelle kept reminding him of one thing after another, until Eli's head was spinning from nodding.

"All right, all right, enough already. Let Eli set off."

Perenelle shot him a fierce look, and Nicolas Flamel lowered his head again.

Carrying pastries Perenelle had made herself, Eli set off.