Thick, dusky-yellow currents twisted and gathered wildly before Hermione, instantly transforming into countless savage, terrifying monsters.
There were gigantic maws of rock and earth lined with jagged fangs, Cyclopes brandishing stone hammers, dreadful fiends with lava coursing over their bodies, and earthy-yellow dragons spreading broad wings as they swooped down from the sky. There were all kinds of strange apparitions, and so on.
They roared soundlessly and struck all manner of pouncing and biting poses. Though no actual magical attacks came at her, those overwhelming, soul-piercing images of terror seemed ready to leap upon her and tear her to pieces the next instant!
When had Hermione ever faced such realistic and overwhelming mental intimidation?
It was as though an icy hand had clenched her heart, abruptly squeezing it into a knot. The blood throughout her body seemed to rush to the top of her head in an instant, then recede just as quickly, leaving behind a chilling cold. Extreme terror froze her in place and blanked her mind. Even the thought of flipping through her spellbook for a protective spell stalled, leaving her utterly motionless.
With no time to turn through her spellbook, she instinctively gripped the Karma Fire Jade Talisman hanging around her neck.
Bzz—
The jade talisman trembled slightly, and a gentle yet incomparably pure scorching aura surged rapidly into her body through the Laogong acupoint in her palm. The warm current instantly dispelled the coldness and stiffness in her limbs and bones, warming her considerably as her nearly frozen thoughts began moving again.
Then, the heat spread outward from her like invisible purifying flames.
Sizzle—
It was like a red-hot iron plunged into snow, or the rising sun scattering morning mist. When that scorching aura, capable of burning away Karma, swept over the terrifying phantasms formed from