A deafening roar ripped through the Forbidden Forest as dazzling lightning struck from the heavens. Even though it was just for a fleeting moment, a pale imitation of the thunderstorm scene Char had witnessed in his vision of ancient weather magic, the feeling of it made his heart hammer in his chest. To command thunder and lightning with one's own body… he was certain that few wizards in the entire magical world had ever experienced such a sensation. And the tremendous power that had erupted in that single instant was truly, utterly shocking.
The Serpent-Summoning Charm, which had just wreaked such havoc among the eight-eyed giant spiders, seemed to pale in comparison to this raw, celestial power. Ancient magic, utilizing the very will of nature, was indeed on a completely different level from modern spells.
At this time, the Acromantulas in the Forbidden Forest were trembling uncontrollably. The greedy and bloodthirsty light in their eyes from before had been entirely extinguished, replaced by a raw, primal terror. The sight of Char now filled them with an instinctive fear. The wizard who controlled lightning was only eleven years old? Dumbledore or the Dark Lord were definitely not this monstrous when they first entered school.
Aragog, the ancient leader of the Acromantulas, spoke with a trembling voice, pleading with Char. "Please… put away the magic! What exactly is it that you want to do?"
Char also came to his senses at this time. Looking at the trembling giant spiders, he felt quite emotional. There was a time when he had to plan meticulously just to kill a single Acromantula. But now, he was enough to make these 5X-level magical creatures tremble in fear, unable to even muster the will to resist. Although the Acromantula was among the weakest of the 5X-level magical creatures, the improvement of his own strength was still plain to see.
A moment later, a strange look flashed across Char's eyes. The Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts had existed since the days of the Four Founders. There were many secrets hidden within its depths, and many precious herbs. Some were not even included in Professor Sprout's collection. It was just that the forest was too dangerous. Trying to collect herbs here was undoubtedly a life-threatening venture. So before, Char had not dared to make a move on the Forbidden Forest. But now, as his strength increased, and even a swarm of Acromantulas trembled and crawled before him, he thought that this matter could be started now.
After all, it is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. After experiencing the power of Diamond-level magic, looking back at his Platinum-level spells, the gap was truly unbearable. But to upgrade his Platinum-level abilities to Diamond, even with the plants currently grown in his small greenhouse, he would still need to harvest them many times. After all, most of the plants in the greenhouse were generally around the Silver level. Starting from the Platinum level, the effectiveness of their reward light orbs would gradually decrease. It was far from easy to make the leap from Platinum to Diamond. But it would be great if he could find a few more plants of a higher level in the Forbidden Forest. If they could be mass-produced, the benefits to him would be huge. It was possible that after one or two harvests, he could accumulate another Diamond-level ability.
Such a thought flashed through his mind. Char looked at the group of Acromantulas crawling in fear. It was impossible for him to waste all his time searching the vast Forbidden Forest. But these creatures could act as his eyes and ears. The magic he had just cast had already shocked them, but to make these cunning and insidious dark creatures obey his orders, strong military force was certainly indispensable. But there also needed to be tangible benefits.
Then, Char cut his palm. He slowly squeezed out drops of blood. The rich breath of life once again spread through the air. An instinctive desire emerged from the bodies of the eight-eyed giant spiders. But remembering how Char had summoned lightning just now, they shivered, not daring to show any abnormality at all.
And at this moment, Char said quietly, "Now, you have two choices. One is to drink my blood and do things for me in the Forbidden Forest. The other one…" There was no fluctuation in his voice, but the Acromantulas all felt the chill. They felt even more miserable in their hearts. A scary guy had just left. Why was there another one? They were 5X-level dangerous magical creatures. Could they please be given some respect and not be treated like domesticated animals? And thinking of the miserable days when they were domesticated and bled, the eyes of the eight-eyed giant spiders flickered.
Aragog was silent for a moment. He asked cautiously, "Excuse me, what do you want us to do?"
Char said expressionlessly, "Search the Forbidden Forest for some herbs for me."
This request was made, and Aragog was stunned for a moment. The members of the Acromantula tribe, who were already hesitating whether to flee separately, determined to never be enslaved again, also froze. "Herbs? Just… that's it?"
Char looked at them with a bit of disgust. "Otherwise, what use are you? It's not like a fire dragon that can fly and breathe fire, nor does it have such a strong mass-killing ability as a Nundu. As for the Quintaped and the thousand-year-old Basilisk, let alone them, which one wouldn't hang you up and beat you? Besides being able to speak human language and looking a bit scary, you're still ranked at 5X. Don't you know how much water is in that rating? Are you going to do it or not? Tell me now. If you don't want to do it with such good pay, there are plenty of magical animals who would love to!"
Hearing his mocking words, the Acromantulas also lowered their heads in shame. They felt quite ashamed. Then, Aragog and his tribe exchanged glances. He gritted his teeth and nodded. "We'll do it. We'll do it!"
Hearing this, Char's stern expression softened slightly. Aragog gritted his teeth, rubbed his front legs together, stared at the blood drops on Char's palm, and said in a rather humble and flattering manner, "Then, sir… can you give us a little advance on your payment first? It's been a long time since the tribe has… eaten."
Char raised an eyebrow. "Hmm?"
Aragog's heart skipped a beat. Just when he thought he had angered Char, he saw a scene that made him dumbfounded. Char cut the artery in his arm cleanly and decisively. With a sudden squeeze, blood immediately gushed out like a fountain into Aragog's opening and closing claws. Gurgle. Gurgle. An extremely rich life force spread within Aragog's body, making the already old and frail creature feel a little more energetic. The previous weakness and fatigue were swept away.
Char asked, looking at Aragog, "Have you had enough to drink?"
Aragog's eyes were filled with shock. He nodded hurriedly. Then he saw Char frowning. "It's a bit troublesome to pay wages this way. Forget it, let's open the hole a little wider." The next moment, Char widened the wound on his arm. He squeezed blood out of the Acromantulas behind Aragog and waved his wand. The blood immediately split into dozens of streams, continuously pouring into the mouths of the giant spiders.
Aragog saw this and was stunned. This… what's going on?! He had originally thought that it would be good enough for his group of spiders to drink a small bottle of blood while working for Char, enough to sustain their lives for a while. But he never expected him to be so generous. This blood was as strong as a high-pressure water gun.
Suddenly, in Aragog's mind, Char's image became even taller and more majestic than Hagrid's. The well-fed Acromantulas felt a sense of satisfaction that they had never experienced in their lives. Looking at Char, they were also full of admiration. There were not two suns in the sky. Char was the sun in their hearts. Loyalty!
Noticing their expressions, Char also showed satisfaction in his eyes. Although the Acromantula was cruel and bloodthirsty, in the original book, they had faced Hagrid, who had raised them, and surprisingly, they had not shown much ferocity. Even in the final battle, when Hagrid fell into the surging group of spiders, and Harry had already cried out in grief, instead of being eaten, he was thrown onto their backs and taken out. This showed that gratitude was something that many humans might not remember, but the Acromantulas actually remembered very clearly. His use of both kindness and force might be useless against humans, but it should still be effective in subduing these creatures.
Right at this moment, Aragog hesitated. Suddenly, he said to Char, "Sir. Are you trying to collect some rare herbs that are only found in the Forbidden Forest? I happen to know of one." His eyes flickered. He said something that even Char had not expected. "Speaking of which, the reason I can live this long, longer than any other Acromantula, is also inseparable from this herb."
Char paused. A strange light suddenly flashed across his eyes. An herb that could prolong life?