Making the Philosopher's Stone! (Two-in-one long chapter)

Standing by the river, William pointed his wand at the water.

The river slowly parted, revealing a huge step that stretched all the way to the depths of the riverbed.

The two walked down the steps and soon disappeared from sight. The water that had parted flowed back again, concealing the passage.

This river is not the outermost cursed river, but the inner river that winds around the house.

The river also contains a large number of plump koi carp, as well as other edible fish.

However, William frequently served in the Air Force.

After all, as a level 15 expert in the fishing forum in his previous life, he actually knows everything except fishing... We should still respect this bit of mystical knowledge.

As for why the two came here, it certainly wasn't to fish... but rather, down here lies a laboratory for refining Philosopher's Stone.

The crafting of the Philosopher's Stone requires a large area to store various advanced instruments.

William initially placed it in his Safety Watch.

However, the failed experiment caused an explosion, and the powerful aftershocks directly affected the stability of the Undetectable Extension Charm.

William didn't want to destroy the Safety Watch, so he moved the laboratory to his home.

He dug a basement beneath the house.

Everything was going perfectly until one night, after William left the lab, he let the equipment run automatically.

He initially thought everything was fine, but then the crucible started leaking.

At that time, William was practicing dual cultivation with Hermione, trying to master a forbidden magical spell.

William, who had only been exercising for half an hour, was slightly sweating, and enjoying the climb and wading, heard an explosion.

That's right, the crucible leaked, causing the laboratory explosion.

William, whose spellcasting was abruptly interrupted, was not left with any permanent impotence, but he was still quite frightened.

Most importantly, a corner of my own house collapsed, and all the windows were shattered.

He made a complete mess of Hermione's beautifully decorated house, and in her anger, she kicked William off the bed.

He was also forced to sleep on the floor for half a month...

Since then, the laboratory has moved for the third time, this time to a more remote location deep in the riverbed.

William has implemented the most rigorous reinforcement measures to prevent any problems.

Because Hermione grabbed his ear and said that if problems still arose, he shouldn't sleep in bed for six months; he'd have to sleep on the floor...

Since then, William's laboratory has never had any problems again.

Therefore, you won't know how much potential you have until you push yourself!

As they descended the steps for a hundred meters, Nicolas continued discussing the topic they had just discussed.

Actually, the first young wizard I took a liking to wasn't Lily, but Snape.

He possessed an exceptional talent for Potions, but unfortunately, his mindset leaned towards that of the Death Eaters.

Albus gave me a suggestion: I could try contacting Lily Evans.

William marveled, never expecting that Professor Snape had missed such a great opportunity.

Therefore, becoming Death Eaters was probably the most regrettable thing he ever did in his life.

Not only did he miss out on his childhood sweetheart, but he also lost the chance to create Philosopher's Stone and gain immortality.

If you lived for hundreds of years, wouldn't you be able to go clubbing on your arch-enemy James's grave every hundred years?

How delightful!

Nicolas continued:

"In short, I started writing to Lily, teaching her a lot about Potions and Alchemy."

"Lily is truly talented. She's the most talented witch I've seen in decades, besides Hermione."

William nodded.

Professor Slughorn has praised this point on more than one occasion.

He even claimed that Lily was better than Snape at Potions.

William had always thought Snape was hiding his true abilities, but little did he know that Nicolas had also taught Lily quite a lot.

So the question is, why is there such a big difference in Harry's abilities?

If you're talking about a lack of wizarding family education, Lily is also Muggle-born, but Harry didn't seem to inherit much talent from her.

William suddenly remembered something and asked:

"The Prehistoric Mysteries that Lily used, you actually taught her, didn't you?"

"It's me." Nicolas sighed.

"I initially gave her that protective charm so that she could use the power of love to build a strong defense in her home to resist Voldemort's invasion."

That Prehistoric Mysteries centered on the "power of love" can not only protect people, but also serve as a defensive magic.

"Although it consumes some life force, the effect is excellent, and there's no possibility of leakage." Nicolas shook his head and said:

"Lily believed the Fidelius Charm was sufficient, and in her dying moments, she had no choice but to sacrifice her life to use the protective charm on her son."

Nicolas looked at William and sighed:

"After Lily died, I couldn't find a suitable replacement for all these years, until you came along."

Without William, he truly didn't know how many years it would have taken to train another wizard capable of creating Philosopher's Stone.

The two walked slowly forward until they reached a door, where they paused briefly.

There was a eagle emblem on the door, and upon seeing William, it flapped its wings and automatically opened the door.

The room behind the door was dimly lit, with red sandstone walls and obsidian floors.

The room was square and spacious, but it was now filled with various instruments.

It looks like a computer room from decades ago, with a volume that fills several rooms.

These are all tools used to make the Philosopher's Stone.

As the brightest jewel in the crown of Alchemy, the Philosopher's Stone is not something anyone can create.

Even if we obtain the refining method, it won't work.

It's like the atomic bomb; everyone can find the basic principles online, but why can't other countries develop one?

Once the five ROKS launch a program, forcibly implementing "end-of-life care" is one aspect, but most importantly, besides uranium mines, a complete industrial base is also required.

The same applies to the Philosopher's Stone; it requires a highly sophisticated set of alchemical instruments.

Without these, do you think you can create something out of thin air with just a few spells or some cauldrons?

Whom are you looking down on?

William has been studying these high-precision instruments for years.

All the instruments in this room were made by him.

In fact, the way Nicolas now concocts Philosopher's Stone is quite different from the original version provided in the Book of Alchemy.

Things became more convenient, and the Alchemy's skill was disregarded, with an emphasis placed on tools.

He was not only working on the crafting of Philosopher's Stone, but also on simplifying many other alchemical items.

Therefore, a wizard like him who pursues immortality does not actually want to live forever.

Instead, it has a greater goal that transcends base desires.

If we were to pinpoint the fundamental difference between him and other wizards:

First is the thirst for knowledge; second is the ability to conduct various experiments and hands-on activities.

Using these two abilities, Nicolas has been on a path of self-growth.

Given enough time, he could probably create the Deathly Hallows himself, even if he couldn't find the Snakewood Wand.

This is not difficult at all; rather, it should be categorized as something that "comes naturally."

For this goal, what he needs is not strength, but simply a long life.

This is why he keeps crafting Philosopher's Stone —simply to better understand the world and to transform himself.

Therefore, needs determine behavior and produce results. Nicolas's longevity stemmed entirely from his own needs.

After disinfecting, William lit the incense to purify the magical elements in the air.

Many laboratories require sterility and static-free conditions.

The crafting of Philosopher's Stone is no exception.

It requires a harsh environment; even the slightest interference from a magical magnetic field in the air will not work.

Next, the two changed into pristine white France- style work clothes, and after disinfecting themselves with Potions, they entered the laboratory.

In the center of the room was a golden crucible, inside which a liquid was being simmered.

The gas continuously overflowed, passing through a slender crystal test tube and falling into a pool of liquid nitrogen. After condensation, it flowed into an exquisite silver instrument.

Whenever liquid enters, the instrument immediately starts operating, emitting a rhythmic tinkling sound, like wind chimes colliding.

Wisps of pale purple smoke billowed from the small silver tube at the top, gathering and swirling in the air.

A few wisps of smoke transformed into a steady plume of smoke, growing thicker and thicker, swirling in the air;

Finally, it cooled down and floated in mid-air, forming a small, snowflake-shaped crystal.

This crucible had actually been simmering for half a year before accumulating a certain amount of crystals.

It's like mining Bite; once you mine it, you make a fortune.

This process is also incredibly dangerous, much like nuclear physics research, where seemingly minor issues can unleash tremendous energy at any moment.

Therefore, unskilled refiners risk being blown up.

William died many times during the time loop due to improper operation.

Nicolas came here to guide him and watch him complete this final, and most important, step.

William took out a considerable number of pink crystals and put them into another crucible.

After he stopped, he dripped the essence of the extracts from the seventeen magical materials onto the crystal.

The liquid droplets landed on the pink crystals and were absorbed without making a sound.

They are like hungry children waiting for their mother's nourishment, and William is that male mother.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the parchment book floating in mid-air.

He already knew the content by heart, but he still couldn't help but do a final check.

This is Nicolas's notebook, detailing his steps and insights in crafting the Philosopher's Stone.

It was written entirely in Runes and interspersed with numerous alchemical symbols he invented.

The book marks the final control temperature, which reads thirty-three.

If you naively believe that heating it to 33 degrees Celsius would destroy the laboratory, you'd be in serious trouble.

Temperature is the most fundamental catalyst in Alchemy, and it is generally not measured in Fahrenheit or Celsius.

The method of temperature measurement that Nicolas use here is an older one, created by the great Alchemy Isaac Newton.

Indeed, in Nicolas's more than two hundred years of life, his first student was Newton.

Although Newton was a wizard in the United Kingdom, he never attended Hogwarts; instead, he studied at home.

That was normal; it was the era when witches were most severely persecuted.

Newton's decision to abandon science and turn to alchemy was also thanks to Nicolas.

While studying with Nicolas, Newton invented and created a complete system of temperature measurement methods based on natural phenomena.

The melting point of ice is the baseline in Newton's system of measurement, which he called "zero degrees," while boiling water is 33 degrees.

Therefore, Nicolas thirty-three here refers to one hundred degrees Celsius.

Since the goal is to maintain a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, heating with boiling water is the best method.

The temperature can be easily controlled simply by placing the crucible in boiling water.

William waved his wand, controlling the crucible to fall into the gold wire strainer. Then, he carefully immersed the entire strainer into the boiling water.

He looked down at the crucible submerged in the water. Wisps of steam began to rise from the boiling water.

The hissing sound of the water evaporating was particularly noticeable, as the mixture of countless materials, due to the high temperature, took on a deep blue hue.

William waved his wand, and the liquid in the cauldron faded from azure to light purple, then to a faint red.

He began to mutter incantations.

With each word spoken, the wand made complex movements, constantly shooting out rays of light that filled the room.

In the end, a total of thirteen spells wrapped around the main cauldron and fell into the water.

The liquid first grew increasingly cold, then instantly became scalding hot—water and fire were of the same intensity—so it accelerated, finally turning a bizarre golden color.

It's still missing one last material: vitality.

Whether you're a contractor, a wizard, or an Alchemy, you have to lose something to gain something. They don't have to be equal, but there's always an exchange between gain and loss.

At that moment, after reciting the incantation, William gently took a knife from the soft silk cushion.

After wiping with a silk cloth soaked in clean water, make a cut on your arm.

Blood dripped into the crucible, and William grew weak, as if a small part of his life had been drained from him.

Suddenly, the crucible emitted a large amount of white smoke, which contained a strong life force and powerful magical fluctuations.

The smoke grew thicker, obscuring William and Nicolas's vision.

With a thunderous roar, crimson flames illuminated the room, and a thick plume of blue smoke rose into the air.

William narrowed his eyes, somewhat unwillingly asking, "Failed?"

"No, it worked!" Nicolas excitedly dispersed the smoke, and amidst the debris, a maroon stone bounced and buzzed.

William walked over and held the small stone in his palm.

This wasn't the first time he'd seen the Philosopher's Stone; he'd seen the one used for entrapment and law enforcement years ago.

It contains magic; compared to this, it's like comparing the lifespan of an old man to that of a newborn boy.

The difference between fireflies and the bright moon!

"Drink this." Nicolas pulled out Potions.

William took it, mixed it with several other Potions, and then drank it all in one gulp.

The headache lessened, and I immediately felt refreshed.

William reached out and grasped the Philosopher's Stone, immediately feeling a powerful surge of magic flowing into his body.

Only then did I realize that the magic power within my body was flowing and nourishing, and I seemed to have endless power.

William felt the urge to use the wand, but suppressed it.

The Philosopher's Stone not only provides lifespan but also powerful magic.

At this moment, he missed Voldemort terribly.