Draco Malfoy is completely bewildered.
What was Morris Grawp about?
Although he couldn't understand it, there was one thing he was certain of.
That means Voldemort is inviting Morris to cooperate!
Then Morris refused.
I refused!
That's the Dark Lord, someone the Malfoy family once served!
Even today, his father speaks of that name with awe and fear.
And now, Morris actually dares to speak to the other party in such a tone?
Tom remained silent for a moment, his eyes gradually turning crimson as he stared intently at Morris.
Then he let out a sharp, piercing laugh.
"Very well, Black. Arrogant, incomparably arrogant. I've seen many self-important people, but you're the first."
Morris shrugged. "You haven't met enough people yet."
Upon hearing this, the crimson in Tom's eyes intensified.
"I don't know why you keep trying to provoke me," he said with a cruel smile, "but you did, and that's fine. As for the consequences—"
He squinted, "I will suck the life out of you, and that little mouse behind you, bit by bit."
Draco held his breath.
What does this have to do with him?
He was just out for a stroll at night, how could he have run into something like this?
It's over, everything is over.
The Malfoy family's pride, his father's expectations, his own future... will all be erased here in the most tragic way.
Despair gripped his heart, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
After making his harsh remarks, Tom stopped looking at Morris and Draco and turned to face the statue of Salazar Slytherin.
He opened his mouth and hissed, still in the language of snakes, just like before.
It seems that all the mechanisms in this Chamber of Secrets need to be activated using Parseltongue.
The Parseltongue echoed in the empty hall, sounding with a peculiar rhythm.
Draco felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively backed away, almost wanting to turn and run, but his legs felt as heavy as lead.
The hissing stopped.
The Slytherin statue's mouth was wide open, revealing a pitch-black hole.
Immediately afterwards, a rustling sound came from deep within the statue.
Without a doubt, this was the work of the Basilisk.
I'm about to climb out.
Morris calmly said, " Malfoy, if you want to live, close your eyes and find a corner to stay in."
These words jolted Draco awake, and he ran as fast as he could, disappearing behind a thick stone pillar.
Accompanied by the sound of scales rubbing against stone, a huge, dark green snake head slowly emerged from the statue's mouth.
Morris, of course, wouldn't be foolish enough to look directly into the Basilisk's eyes.
The Basilisk opened its eyes the instant...
" Shadow Concealment!"
He immediately chose to disappear into the shadows.
Tom watched as Morris disappeared from the spot, and quickly looked around, but couldn't find any trace of him.
What happened?
Is it Apparition?
No, this is Hogwarts; Apparition should be locked down here.
Damn it.
At this moment, the Basilisk had completely slid out of the statue's mouth and was coiled on the open ground next to it, its head held high.
Morris, lurking in the shadows, had already discerned the Basilisk's exact form: it was over five thousand feet long, incredibly thick, and its eyes emanated an unsettling aura.
We need to figure out a way to blind it first.
Morris reappeared a short distance from the Basilisk —with his eyes closed, of course.
" Weakening Curse! Wailing Curse! Pain Curse!"
In short, let's arrange the curse package first.
As the chanting began, three gray beams of light appeared out of thin air and entered the Basilisk's body.
He heard a painful and furious scream!
In that instant, he once again used the Shadow Concealment and disappeared into the shadows.
Morris held nothing back; he used all three curses without reservation.
Even after using it, he felt a slight headache – a side effect of expending too much magic power at once.
That was a bit too much force.
The Basilisk shuddered violently, its massive body thrashing wildly as it slammed against the ground, sending shards of rock flying.
Tom, horrified, cried out, "What have you done?!"
However, Morris knew that although his curse seemed effective, its effects were waning at an alarming rate.
The Basilisk is gradually adapting to his curse!
What a terrifying creature.
Curses alone are clearly not enough to defeat the Basilisk.
So Morris didn't waste the opportunity and reappeared.
" Bone Summoning Spell!"
Two enormous, pale white bone spikes appeared out of nowhere from the void in front of the Basilisk, like two cannonballs, and shot fiercely toward the Basilisk's eyes.
The Basilisk is in the midst of the intense pain and chaos brought on by the curse, and its perception and reaction are greatly impaired.
"Pfft! Pfft!"
Two sounds of bone spurs piercing eyeballs rang out almost simultaneously.
Precise hit!
The Basilisk's left eye was completely pierced and burst open on the spot, spraying out dark red blood mixed with an unknown viscous fluid. Although the situation was slightly better at its right eye, a large area of tissue was still torn apart.
"Hiss--!"
An indescribable scream of agony rang out as the Basilisk writhed madly on the ground.
"Kill him!" Tom screamed, "With your teeth, with your body!"
He started to panic.
Morris's abilities far exceeded his expectations.
Although the Basilisk was blind, it could still discern Morris's general direction.
It opened its gaping maw, revealing its venomous fangs, and pounced forward, its massive body tearing through the air, reaching Morris almost instantly.
That speed was nothing like that of a creature that had just suffered a severe injury.
Although Morris used the Shadow Concealment, the Basilisk still managed to sweep him out of the shadows with a flick of its head.
The Basilisk's attacks were actually able to disrupt the stability of the Shadow Concealment!
Fortunately, Morris reacted quickly enough, summoning his bone armor at the last second.
"Bang!"
Morris felt as if he had been hit head-on by a speeding car, and he was thrown backward, crashing into a stone pillar before sliding to the ground.
"Cough cough... I was careless... cough cough..."
He propped himself up and coughed a few times.
The bone armor was sturdy enough and also had cushioning capabilities, so he was unharmed, only suffering minor abrasions on his face—he hadn't had time to summon his helmet in the rush.
Coincidentally, he bumped into the very pillar where Draco was hiding.
Draco was curled up with his eyes tightly closed when he suddenly heard a whoosh and instinctively opened his eyes.
When he saw Morris in his bone armor and the true form of the Basilisk, he was so terrified that he fainted immediately.
"Tsk."
That poor kid.
Well, this is just right.
Anyway, this little incident today should have left a deep enough impression on the other party.