Oh, no! I still couldn't get out of it! Zhang Xiao froze.
Everyone had heard something about Zhang's brief but spectacular battle with the Stone Dragon, and the young witches and wizards present had even tried the "Stone Dragon Challenge" themselves.
They simply hadn't witnessed it firsthand like Penelope and Percy.
Miles Bletchley pulled out the Azure Luan Society's standard-issue black notebook, ready to record his president's "insights."
The sight made Zhang Xiao's eyelid twitch. He had told Little Ma to get a different notebook, but Little Ma had misunderstood him.
He had gone straight ahead and given every member a premium notebook bound in lambskin, along with a Parker fountain pen with a gold-plated nib, just like Zhang Xiao's.
Hermione was even more decisive. She flipped her thick notebook to a fresh page and flexed her wrist and fingers, looking determined not to miss a single word Zhang Xiao said.
Under everyone's expectant gazes, Zhang Xiao felt panic rising. What was I supposed to say?
How exactly did you all study? Why was what I figured out completely different from what you learned?
It was like a math problem. Penelope was diligently working through it, while I was like that kid in the movie, grabbing a tortoiseshell to tell fortunes and getting the answer with a toss of copper coins.
What was I supposed to do with that? Tell them everything they studied was useless? Forget all that theory. Just imagine it. The more specific the image, the more powerful the spell.
Once it became instinctive, their spellcasting would improve?
"Zhang, what's wrong? Are you unsure how to put it into words?"
Flitwick waited a while. Seeing that Zhang Xiao remained silent, he assumed this was his first time sharing his insights and he didn't know how to explain