Chapter 164: The Five Characteristics of the Killing Curse!
In the days leading up to the holiday break, the atmosphere at Hogwarts was incredibly relaxed.
Dylan spent his days reading, listening to Harry and Ron chat and joke around, often discussing Karlsars.
From time to time, he'd slip into his briefcase space to research Obsidian Restorative Solution using the Basilisk's blood.
—After enduring Dylan's relentless 'training' for some time, including being forced to witness the plight of its owner—the supposed Heir of Slytherin—in Dylan's hands, the Basilisk had recently become much more compliant.
—Especially after Dylan had once unbound the Basilisk, wanting the creature to stretch its limbs so its blood would be more vigorous, the creature actually tried to ambush him from behind!
The natural result was Dylan directly glaring at it with his Eye of End Snake.
Straight into my eyes!
And then, a thorough, repeated "readjustment"!
The Basilisk had high magic resistance?
Then he'd summon a thousand birds, making them line up and peck its eyes one by one!
After all, these were just small birds summoned by the Flock of Birds spell. No matter how much force they used, they wouldn't be able to instantly blind it like a Phoenix such as Fawkes could with a single claw.
But, then again, it was still the Basilisk's eyes being pecked. Even if it wouldn't go blind, it would still hurt like hell!
It was roughly equivalent to repeatedly punching a male creature in those two things between his legs.
This level of attack wouldn't destroy the two "orbs," but the pain it caused was quite intense.
—Slytherin's Basilisk was a female snake. If it had been male, Dylan could have even had the birds perform a pincer attack, pecking both above and below.
At the same time, Dylan transformed a flock of birds into a group of roosters.
He then positioned them all around the Basilisk—above, below, left, and right—as if displaying offerings, placing the Basilisk in the center.
Then—
"Cluck, cluck, cluck, cluck!"
"Cock-a-doodle-doo!"
The Basilisk was once again under Dylan's control and could only endure the crowing of the roosters and the pecking of the birds.
Even though it trembled violently in pain, it couldn't even try to dodge.
Dylan simultaneously used Parseltongue and magic to activate chapters from the Worm Apocalypse.
And then he used the already activated Worm Apocalypse to inflict mental pollution on the Basilisk.
Plus, his opened Eye of Cthulhu.
In short, ever since that incident, the Basilisk, which had always been untamable and impossible for normal wizards to subdue, no longer even listened to Tom Riddle, the Heir of Slytherin.
Instead, every time it saw Dylan, it would cower timidly in a corner.
As for when Tom Riddle last spoke to it…
That would involve another person's painful experience.
Dylan wanted to test the difference between Tom's Parseltongue and his own, so he brought Tom out of the wooden cabin.
Who would have thought that both the master and his servant were quite opportunistic?
One tried to ambush him from behind.
The other tried to order the former to ambush him from behind.
After "disciplining" the Basilisk, Dylan turned around and took Tom Riddle back to the wooden cabin laboratory.
The fearless Horcrux gave Dylan more room for experimentation.
For example, he'd occasionally scorch the Horcrux with Fiendfyre—not too much force, but Tom would always scream frantically when burned.
After all, Fiendfyre could truly burn through Horcruxes, so this was just Dylan's conservative approach.
In addition, Avada Kedavra, Crucio, Spirit Expulsion, Eye of Cthulhu...
Were used in rotation.
Tom's screams barely stopped for an entire day.
During this process, Dylan completely maxed out all the spell mastery quests for Avada Kedavra.
And he also discovered some rather exciting good news.
—His spell, Knots, wasn't just limited to attacking physical entities!
This spell could even directly affect spirits and soul entities!
As long as the spell's target was a male creature, even if it died and became a soul, it could still be directly affected by the Knots spell on a spiritual and sensory level!
For Avada Kedavra and Crucio, Tom sometimes got used to them, even managing to endure them with just a grunt rather than howling.
But this spell was different.
Every time Dylan took a break from spamming the Killing Curse, he'd throw one at Tom.
For the next fifty Killing Curses, Dylan could hear extremely pleasant wails.
"Avada Kedavra!"
The last Killing Curse was cast.
Holy light burst forth, striking directly at Tom's Horcrux—the diary containing evil and dark secrets.
In an instant, the diary seemed to be thrown into a blazing inferno, turning black at a visible rate.
The pages curled and carbonized, and a pungent, burnt smell filled the air.
Tom's spiritual body was even more vulnerable.
He was instantly knocked to the ground by the powerful impact of the curse, prostrating himself at Dylan's feet.
His once handsome face was now contorted with malice and pain. His emerald eyes no longer held their former arrogance and malice, replaced instead with a deep numbness.
His heart was dead ashes!
He wanted to fight back, but he couldn't win.
He wanted to escape, but he couldn't get away.
He wanted to plot—but he had no power!
No matter how he struggled, he couldn't escape this pervert's grasp!
The other party actually did nothing but torment him every single day!
What a lunatic! A pervert! A scumbag!
Tom's hair stuck to his sweaty forehead, and his skin became translucent and ethereal; one could even vaguely see the distorted muscles and bones beneath.
At this moment, Tom lay twisted on all fours, his entire body trembling violently, each tremor accompanied by a painful groan.
His hands weakly clawed at the ground, as if trying to grasp a last shred of life.
His ethereal fingernails scratched traceless marks on the floor.
But his robes were already tattered, with wisps of black smoke rising from the edges, and he couldn't even lift his hands.
—He couldn't grasp anything at all.
Dylan ignored him and looked at his system panel.
—It displayed the spells he had already mastered.
[Spell]: Transfiguration
[Unlocked Trait]: Instantaneous Transformation
[Instantaneous Transformation]: When you use the Transfiguration spell, you can complete the transformation instantly, without any time delay. The moment you conceive the spell, the target will immediately undergo the form change you set!
[Spell]: Avada Kedavra
[Unlocked Traits]: Sky-Burning Malice, Corridor of the Dead, Annihilation Trace, Death Echo, Curse Resonance
[Sky-Burning Malice]: When you use the Killing Curse, you can, with yourself as the center and through this trait, autonomously activate or deactivate a circular domain of destruction with a radius of four meters, lasting for four seconds.
Within this range, the energy of the Avada Kedavra spell will permeate, attacking all living beings who enter: one second for sluggishness, two seconds for paralysis, three seconds for reaping life.
[Corridor of the Dead]: After you use the Killing Curse, a corridor will form between the Killing Curse and yourself, allowing you to instantly teleport—the displacement distance will not exceed the range of the most recent Killing Curse.
[Annihilation Trace]: When you cast the Killing Curse, an annihilation rift will linger along the spell's path for 4 seconds. This rift will cause a soul-burning effect on enemies who touch it, making them feel the pain of their soul slowly annihilating.
If they escape in time, Annihilation Trace cannot directly kill enemies but will torment them for a long time.
[Death Echo]: When your Killing Curse misses its target, you can control the already cast spell's energy to explode, forming a Death Echo area with a radius of 4 meters, lasting for 4 seconds.
Within this area, enemies will take magic damage per second and have a chance to trigger a fear state, causing them to interrupt their casting, leading to spell backfire, or developing a desire to flee.
[Curse Resonance]: After you use the Killing Curse to kill a target, the target's dying resentment (part of their soul) will condense into a Curse Mark.
As more marks accumulate, your Sky-Burning Malice and Death Echo domain will gradually expand, your Corridor of the Dead and Annihilation Trace paths will progressively widen, and your Dark Lord aura will become even more terrifying.
[Spell]: Crucio
[Unlocked Traits]: Endless Pain, Cruciatus Inferno, Spreading Agony
[Endless Pain]: When you use the Cruciatus Curse, unlucky individuals struck by your Crucio will, in addition to immediate excruciating pain, have a pain curse left on their bodies.
For a period afterward, the victim will continuously experience periodic pain—angina.
Though the intensity of the pain is slightly less than when the curse was first cast, it will still severely affect their movement and mental state.
[Cruciatus Inferno]: When you use the Cruciatus Curse, you will no longer be limited to a single target. Instead, with yourself as the center and through this trait, you can autonomously activate or deactivate a circular energy field with a radius of four meters, lasting for four seconds.
Within this range, the energy of the Cruciatus Curse will permeate, and all targets will simultaneously be affected by Crucio.
[Spreading Agony]: When you use the Cruciatus Curse, the unlucky person struck by your Crucio will transmit their angina to three enemies within a four-meter radius.
For a period afterward, the unlucky trio around the victim will, along with the victim, experience the delightful sensation of a twitching heart.
[Spell]: Sectumsempra
[Unlocked Traits]: Shadow Blade Disguise, Fated Tracking
[Shadow Blade Disguise]: When you use Sectumsempra, you can autonomously choose whether to conceal the traces of the spell!
[Fated Tracking]: After you cast Sectumsempra, no matter how your target dodges or teleports, your spell will follow the path of destiny, tracking the target and accurately hitting them.
[Spell]: Occlumency
[Unlocked Trait]: Can You Even Read This Clearly?
[Can You Even Read This Clearly?]: When you activate Occlumency, this trait will automatically analyze the logic and structure of invading magic. Any magic attempting to invade your mind will fall into disarray.
Key information you wish to hide will be scrambled and reassembled, and magic invading your mind will be trapped in a mental labyrinth.
These were all the spell mastery traits Dylan currently possessed.
They weren't many.
In fact, only the recently completed Killing Curse had all its traits unlocked.
—No matter what, a quest costing ten thousand Galleons was a bit pricey.
Especially when Dylan currently had no time to go to Diagon Alley to exchange Pounds for Galleons.
Dylan had mostly spent his Galleons recently either on purchasing medicinal ingredients or on expanding the capacity of his space.
And after completing all four mastery quests for the Killing Curse, Dylan was amazed to find that the Killing Curse had unexpectedly unlocked an additional trait for him!
This was why one of his spells had five traits.
And none of these five traits of the Killing Curse were useless.
Sky-Burning Malice could directly open a domain, turning his surroundings into a killing field.
Corridor of the Dead was even more exaggerated; it could create a corridor between the Killing Curse's range and himself, allowing him to perform a cost-free teleportation!
This meant he could fly as far as his spell could reach!
What if he cast fifty Killing Curses directly?
Wouldn't he be flying all over the place?
Of course, Dylan had already tested this after unlocking the trait—it couldn't be done.
After all, the corridor formed between him and the Killing Curse's established range. If Dylan cast fifty Killing Curses in quick succession, once he used one teleportation, his position would change.
The corridor, being fixed, naturally couldn't allow him to teleport again.
However, this ability was already sufficient for use in combat.
Especially when in pursuit!
Dylan even felt that this was more effective than Voldemort's flying charm!
Either they'd be killed by his Killing Curse, or they'd be constantly pursued by him, only to eventually be killed by his Killing Curse!
In short, once he targeted someone, if he wanted them dead, they had to die!
As for Annihilation Trace, it would create an annihilation rift within the path of the Killing Curse.
Even if his attack missed, anyone who later encountered this rift would have their soul scorched.
This trait was more suitable for sneak attacks or for use in crowds.
In a one-on-one situation, its threat was less significant.
However, if this trait was combined with Dylan's Spell Chain x50.
Then it would be different again.
His Sky-Burning Malice domain was only four meters in radius—what could that achieve?
But Annihilation Trace had a considerably long range!
Fifty Killing Curses later, each spell's path would create an annihilation rift. If in an enclosed space, he could turn the entire area into a death domain in an instant!
Furthermore, if the Killing Curse missed and the Annihilation Trace didn't harm the enemy, the next trait could come into play.
—Death Echo specifically allowed Dylan, when the Killing Curse missed, to control the spell's energy to explode directly.
Although the exploding energy field didn't have the power of the Killing Curse like Sky-Burning Malice, it would still cause damage to enemies.
More importantly, it had a chance to trigger a fear state in enemies.
This could not only cause their casting to be interrupted but also make them abandon resistance out of fear, thinking only of how to escape.
—It's important to remember that having a spell interrupted is no small matter.
At best, it could lead to spell backfire; at worst, it could cause magical disturbance within the body, leading to more severe consequences!
So, merely causing spell backfire was the milder outcome.
As for the last trait, Curse Resonance.
This trait was directly rewarded by the system after Dylan completed all four spell mastery quests.
It could turn targets killed by Dylan with the Killing Curse into a Curse Mark.
This mark could not only continuously expand the range of Dylan's already mastered trait domains, but also widen the Annihilation Trace and the range of the Corridor of the Dead.
It essentially encompassed all four previous traits.
Dylan was naturally quite satisfied with these traits.
This also meant he had increasingly more ways to torment people.
"At least my forty thousand Galleons weren't wasted."
Classes resumed in the afternoon.
It was Charms class with Professor Flitwick for Gryffindor and Slytherin.
Since old Dumbledore had credited Harry and Ron with resolving the crisis, the Gryffindor lions' attitudes towards them became even more enthusiastic.
—After all, the people who could solve such a crisis were from their house, Gryffindor!
And it was the rumored Savior!
Who had saved them once again!
Saved Hogwarts!
Rescued the school from the brink!
Being in the same house, even the same year, as Harry made these little lions so excited they almost wanted to worship him.
However, compared to Gryffindor's pride, Slytherin's enthusiasm was quite lacking, especially Draco Malfoy's.
That guy's face was ridiculously long.
—This was understandable.
Previously, he would threaten or intimidate other students for no reason.
Now, his father not only failed to depose old Dumbledore as Headmaster but was also kicked off the School Board.
This made Draco afraid to stick his neck out at all recently.
Even so, he still had to occasionally endure the scornful glances from passing students.
Time flew by.
The holidays were approaching again.
And before that, the final ownership of the House Cup also needed a formal ceremony.
Dylan and Neville walked into the Great Hall together.
The Great Hall had been redecorated once again.
However, since the previous year's House Cup belonged to Gryffindor, the moment they entered, there was a flamboyant display of red.
Above the High Table, a proud, rearing lion was displayed.
Dylan casually found a seat.
"The color won't need to change for the next few years."
Last year, because the House Cup of the year before last belonged to Slytherin, the Great Hall had been predominantly green at the start of the end-of-year feast.
Eventually, after old Dumbledore announced the House Cup winner, it transformed into a brand new red.
This year, since Gryffindor won the previous year's House Cup, neither the banners nor the colors needed to change.
Once all the students were present, old Dumbledore stood up at the High Table, his voice filled with emotion.
"This year, we've had many magical experiences. I already explained the situation in detail during our all-night party last time."
"So today, here, on your last day before leaving school, I won't dwell too much on anything."
"I hope that the hardships and pains of this year will all serve as building blocks on your path to growth, becoming one of your most important experiences!"
Dumbledore waved his wand.
Immediately, golden, brilliant words appeared in the air.
They displayed the scores and rankings of the four houses.
First place, undoubtedly, was Gryffindor, which had already received extra points previously.
A staggering eight hundred and eighty-eight points!
They were far ahead, vastly surpassing the other three houses, almost creating a chasm!
Second place went to Ravenclaw. Although they had tried their best to earn points for their house, a whole year of upsetting events left everyone feeling unwell.
They only managed to secure three hundred and twenty-five points for Ravenclaw.
Third place went to Hufflepuff, with a modest score of just over two hundred.
Last place was Slytherin, with sixty-nine points.
The reason for this outcome was primarily that Harry and Ron, in the latter half of the year, were so focused on resolving the Chamber of Secrets crisis and saving Hermione that they had no time for any major rule-breaking.
—Or perhaps the professors just didn't catch them doing anything.
In any case, without these two continuously losing points, the points Professor Snape occasionally took from Harry in Potions class could almost always be earned back by Dylan in the same lesson.
It wasn't even impossible to earn double or triple the points.
Not to mention the all-night party before, where old Dumbledore blatantly gave Harry special treatment, adding five hundred points to Gryffindor in one go.
It was outrageous!
Additionally, Slytherin lost many points due to Malfoy's constant arrogance and bullying, which many professors penalized.
—Especially during the period when old Dumbledore was temporarily dismissed from his position as Hogwarts Headmaster.
Malfoy had truly treated the school as his own home.
He even completely disregarded Deputy Headmistress McGonagall and the other professors.
The only one Malfoy showed even a slight respectful attitude towards was Professor Snape.
Therefore, during Malfoy's rampant period, Slytherin's score plummeted.
It was already good they managed to reach sixty-nine points in the end.
Old Dumbledore allowed the students to discuss for a while, then let the golden words float in the air, moving before everyone's eyes.
He then raised his voice: "Let us congratulate Gryffindor on finally winning the House Cup!"
As his words fell, both Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff houses applauded generously.
Slytherin's applause was sparse, and many of the little snakes kept their heads bowed, lacking the courage to look directly at their score, which hadn't even reached a hundred.
Malfoy's expression was stiff, his head almost buried in the bowl in front of him.
His two cronies beside him wanted to comfort him but didn't know how. They raised their hands, then lowered them, finally just sitting awkwardly on either side of Malfoy, glaring at anyone who looked their way.
After dinner, back in the dorm, Dylan began packing his belongings.
Neville and Seamus had already finished packing long ago.
—The things they had packed last time were mostly left unpacked.
This time, they just casually added some personal items they needed to take home, and then they could close their trunks.
Harry hadn't packed his luggage yet, and compared to Dylan's normal speed, his movements could be described as dragging and dawdling.
—He absolutely didn't want the holidays to begin.
"Ugh," Harry sighed.
Dylan looked at him and chuckled.
"Don't want to go back?"
Harry nodded. "Of course not. That's not my home."
"Then why don't you come back with me? Or you could still go to Ron's house; Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley would surely welcome you."
Ron also nodded in agreement. "Yeah, instead of going back to be bullied, just come home with me."
Faced with this tempting offer, Harry hesitated for a moment, then shook his head.
"Forget it. If I don't go back, they'll definitely cause trouble for the school. Then they might use all sorts of excuses to stop me from continuing my schooling."
Dylan tossed his sleeping robes into his trunk.
"You're right. After all, your guardians are your aunt and uncle. As a minor, you have to consult with your guardians for anything you do, otherwise the school can't do anything either."
Harry nodded helplessly. "That's why I said I have to go back first."
Dylan didn't have much to put in his trunk—anything he needed to take, he just threw into his inventory.
Including the trunk itself.
So Dylan just tidied up quickly, then began organizing the books in the dorm.
As he placed the books from his bedside table or desk into his portable magical library, he said—
"How about this? Give me and Ron your home address and phone number, and after you've been home for a few days, we'll call you."
Upon hearing this, Harry's dispirited expression instantly brightened.
"That's right! The wizarding world doesn't use phones, but Dylan, your parents aren't wizards, so it's perfectly feasible for you to call the Dursleys!"
Harry's eyes sparkled. "Then you can just say you need to talk to me about something. They definitely won't dare to offend wizards! Just tell them your family are adult wizards and they really miss me!"
Ron blinked. "Call? But I don't think my house has a phone, do we?"
Dylan shook his head. "No, you should have one."
Ron was confused. "Huh? Then why haven't I seen it?"
Dylan chuckled. "I vaguely remember, near the end of last summer, before I left you all, I noticed Mr. Weasley secretly brought a landline phone home."
Dylan thought for a moment. "That phone should be hidden in that small storage cupboard on the second floor."
Ron's eyes widened. "What? He actually got a Muggle phone and hid it from us!"
Dylan shrugged. "Actually, when I suggested leaving, Mr. Weasley was even more reluctant for me to go than you were, because I told him I could help him turn that phone into a magical phone."
"But I never had time to do it, so I don't know if they've already connected the phone line, or if Mr. Weasley did it himself and turned it into a magical phone."
Dylan shook his head. "I don't know, but you can ask him when you get back."
Ron pouted. "Alright, but anyway, if my family has a phone, Harry, you should give me your phone number."
Harry immediately nodded. "Writing letters is too much trouble, and the Dursleys might even refuse to accept them, so calling is better."
Harry remembered the Dursleys' phone number clearly and quickly wrote it on two slips of paper, handing them to Ron and Dylan.
"Please! Preferably the day after tomorrow, you should call me. I truly don't want to stay in their house for another moment!"
Harry rubbed his hands together like a fly. "The thought of enduring two whole months of only talking to them if you don't call me just makes me feel like I'm breaking down!"
Dylan couldn't help but chuckle. "I know you're breaking down, but don't break down yet. I'll call you."
Ron also nodded repeatedly. "Don't worry, Harry, I'll call you too. But the day after tomorrow... might that be a bit too soon? Your aunt and uncle definitely won't let you out."
Harry paused slightly, then nodded in agreement. "You're right. Then in a little while—but please, as soon as possible!"
Ron made an 'OK' gesture.
Neville and Seamus exchanged glances, both feeling sympathetic towards Harry's home situation.
But they couldn't do anything either.
After packing, they slept through the night.
Dylan woke up early.
Not just him, but Harry and Ron were also awake.
They all grabbed their personal belongings and luggage and left the dormitory. Led by Percy, they departed Hogwarts.
Finally, Hagrid took them to board the Hogwarts Express.
Hagrid was later released. The first thing he did, it goes without saying, wasn't even to report his safety to old Dumbledore, nor was it to express comfort to Harry.
Instead, when Harry went to visit him, he asked Harry to relay a message to Dylan: could they meet in the Forbidden Forest that night?
Dylan also hadn't collected rent from Hagrid—oops, no!
He hadn't collected Norberta's food fund from Hagrid in a while.
Dylan had heard that since Hagrid had been wrongly accused by Tom and had carried the blame for fifty years, and then the Ministry of Magic had arrested the wrong person again this time, he had received a large sum of money as compensation from the Ministry upon his release.
Dylan wasn't after the money; he just wanted Norberta to see how much the person who had meticulously cared for it since it was an egg at Hogwarts loved it.
One could say Hagrid had given Norberta a second life!
After so long without seeing the person who gave it life, they should get reacquainted, lest they become strangers.
Sure enough, when Dylan secretly made his way to the Forbidden Forest under the cover of night, using Soot's abilities, Hagrid handed him a whopping fifty thousand Galleons!
And a large bag of fresh, high-quality meat!
Enough for Norberta to eat for a whole month!
Dylan was so envious… no, he was so touched he almost cried.
He thanked Hagrid profusely on Norberta's behalf, then cheerfully accepted the money and meat.
When the Hogwarts Express arrived at King's Cross Station, before they parted ways, Harry once again told Ron, "It's best if Mr. Weasley calls me. Adults are always treated more cautiously than kids."
Ron nodded.
Harry added, "As for how to make a call, you've learned it by now, right? Do I need to explain the method again?"
Ron shook his head. "No need, I've got it. Besides—they might already be using the phone by now; I might not even need to teach them."
Harry scratched his head.
"Anyway, Dylan can call me first. If they don't agree, then it's all up to you and Mr. Weasley."
Ron thumped his chest, guaranteeing, "Don't worry! I've got everything covered!"
Dylan glanced at him, said goodbye to the others, and got into the car heading home.
(End of this chapter)
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