Dumbledore knew perfectly well that Voldemort was trying to lure him into coming closer, but he could not stand by and watch Voldemort destroy the Castle. So he flashed in front of the Giant Basilisk anyway.
It had to be said that no one knew whether the layer of golden light around Dumbledore was a Holy Spirit Barrier. It looked like one, yet not quite.
Other people's Holy Spirit Barriers, such as Harry's, flickered violently when subjected to the basilisk's death gaze, showing that they were under attack.
Dumbledore's did not. It appeared exceptionally stable.
Standing in front of the Giant Basilisk, Dumbledore had clearly already thought of a countermeasure. Just as the Giant Basilisk was about to reach him, the ground beneath it suddenly sank.
Yes, both in front of it and beneath it.
The Giant Basilisk slithered forward, its body undulating. Just as its open jaws came within a meter of Dumbledore, a huge pit suddenly opened beneath its body.
The pit seemed tailor-made for the Giant Basilisk, swallowing its entire body with a perfect fit.
And that was not all.
The next moment, under Harry and the others' shocked gazes, the entire stretch of ground shook violently, and ten Mud Giants rose from the earth.
Each giant stood twenty meters tall, three times the height of a real giant.
Moreover, these giants were even more powerfully built. The instant their earthen bodies rose from the ground, a gleam flashed across their surfaces, turning them into blue-gray stone.
The ten Rock Giants held the even larger basilisk firmly in their arms. Then, in two groups of five, they made to pull in opposite directions, as though they intended to tear the Giant Basilisk apart like a tug-of-war rope.
Harry's eyes went wide.
Transfiguration. Exceptionally advanced Transfiguration.
Mud Giants