I, Hogwarts Second Time Around.

Chapter 352 First Encounter with the Gods—Friend Saintly Stone

A lush, green landscape stretched before me.

The towering peaks pierce the sky.

The sky remained overcast even after the heavy rain.

The mountain peaks pierced through the clouds, obscuring their summits.

"There's no valley floor; there's a forest ahead," Owen said, pointing to the mountains in front of them. "I was here this morning."

"Could it be that the giant is lying?" Sirius frowned. He had heard about Moody's interrogation methods, and he didn't believe that those simple-minded, physically strong giants could be as eloquent and full of lies as the kid next to him.

"Or perhaps, the mountains and volcanoes before us are a mirror image?"

"Ha—I think you're insulting my intelligence," Owen said irritably. He had spent quite a bit of time probing around here that morning. If it were a mirror image, wouldn't he have noticed?

The two stood atop the canopy of a giant tree, gazing at the mountain range stretching before them with awe.

The forests on Sky Isle were simply astounding to wizards.

It's perfectly normal for a tree to be several tens of feet tall.

The animals in the forest were all enormous; Irving had even seen lambs as big as elephants.

However, he had never seen any giant centipedes or giant caterpillars. He figured these enlarged creatures were probably reserved as food for the giants, so there were only cattle and sheep.

"It's a place with good feng shui, but unfortunately, it's already been targeted." Owen sighed. The trees under his feet had trunks several feet wide, like a road, with vines and moss wrapped around them. At first glance, it looked like a city in the forest.

If a wooden house is built here, a slope is made with planks in that place, and ropes are used to control the vines so that they grow where they should.

This place could absolutely be transformed into a unique forest city.

Just like the legendary elven capital.

"Wait a minute—" Suddenly, Owen's sharp eyes pierced through the lush greenery and landed on the tree trunk fork beneath him, where vines, leaves, and planks were piled together to resemble a small wooden house.

"Someone's there!" Sirius noticed it too. Light was seeping out from the cabin.

The two exchanged a glance, then each found a secluded corner and hid.

It's best not to alert them.

After all, they were unfamiliar with this place, and no one knew what kind of conspiracy lay ahead.

Therefore, waiting passively for the rabbit to run into the tree stump is the safest option.

Time passed slowly, about twenty minutes later.

Finally, the small wooden door was pushed open.

Both Irving and Sirius were extremely familiar with the people who appeared.

She wore a long black robe and black boots, her loose hair was tied up in a bun, her face was pale but exquisite, and her eyes were filled with an inescapable sorrow.

"Huh? Wow—it's your cousin!" Owen waved at Sirius.

The other person's face, however, looked as if it had been painted with black ink, and his eyes were filled with hatred as he stared at his cousin.

"We're on the same side, we're on the same side!" With that, Owen swaggered out, completely ignoring Sirius's shocked expression.

"Oh! What a coincidence? Senior Tom sent you here to negotiate with the giants?"

The sudden shout made Bella instinctively draw her wand.

When she looked up at Owen, she put her wand away expressionlessly.

She already knew that a group of wizards had come to the island, and she had seen Owen and his group from afar, but she never expected to run into them here.

"Do you remember our promise? So, have you thought it through?" Owen jumped down from the tree and strolled over leisurely. But as he got closer, he inexplicably said something.

"I can't get into Gringotts right now!" Bellatrix said in a deep voice.

"Hmm? Aren't all fairies on your side? How come Tom and the Outer God are having a falling out?" Owen continued to ask, his contempt evident in his words.

"This information doesn't seem to be within the scope of our deal!" Bellatrix said quietly, her gaze towards Owen becoming increasingly dangerous. "You wouldn't be trying to get some secrets about the Dark Lord from me, would you?"

"Oh! Am I that obvious?" Owen blinked. "Given the current situation, destroying the current madman Tom would be a pleasure for you, wouldn't it? As long as he's alive, as long as his soul hasn't completely dissipated, you'll never achieve your goal, won't you?"

Owen's words caused Bellatrix's expression to change several times, and she looked at the boy in front of her with uncertain eyes.

She felt a fear in him that far surpassed that of Dumbledore and the former Voldemort.

Compared to Dumbledore, he was even more shameless. Compared to Bourgeois, he was better at controlling people's desires.

She couldn't believe how the wizarding world would change if this person in front of her ultimately won the war!

It may be far beyond her imagination.

For a moment, Bellatrix began to doubt her partnership with Irving.

"By the way, your Occlumency has improved rather quickly!" Bellatrix fell into thought, while Owen continued to press, "The Legilimency Spell is exceptionally powerful. When did you gain such a deep understanding of these two spells?"

"Could it be about Azkaban?" he pressed, curiously. "Did you steal my spellcasting techniques?"

Bellatrix didn't reply, she just stared at him coldly.

"Oh! That's true." Irving smiled, then waved his hand. "That's good. A small, unintentional gesture has yielded excellent results."

Irving and Bellatrix were having a very pleasant conversation, which made Sirius Black frown repeatedly, as he appeared behind Irving at some point.

"You—" His eyes revealed shock; he couldn't believe that Owen would be associating with Voldemort's most loyal henchman.

Moreover, judging from their conversation just now, this woman in front of me actually wants to betray Voldemort?

In an instant, Sirius felt a chill run down his spine to his feet. He knew Bellatrix better than anyone what kind of person she was; she was a madwoman.

Owen's ability to trick such a madman into betraying Voldemort is beyond terrifying. Even Dumbledore didn't possess such power. What exactly did he do? Was it some kind of ancient magic? A way to correct a person's consciousness? Or some magical artifact that could influence a person's mind?

If Owen really had that ability, why didn't he just change Voldemort's mind directly? Wouldn't that have solved everything?

The Godfather of Dogs was having a frantic brainstorming session, but he didn't just blurt things out without thinking. He's matured now; in the past, he would have made a few sarcastic remarks first, no matter what.

"What's your cousin doing here?" Owen glanced at the dog godfather and then asked mockingly.

They were somewhat surprised that he didn't say anything sarcastic or like, "You're trying to change your master."

"Waiting for you—you all," Bellatrix said bluntly.

"Huh?" Irving was now completely baffled.

The next second, Bellatrix pulled a piece of white jade from her pocket and tossed it to Irving.

"What is this?" He looked down at the jade in his hand.

It was a very strangely shaped jade stone, like a command arrow, with two inverted triangles on the top and a bright yellow gemstone inlaid in the middle. The gemstone had an engraving he had never seen before, possibly runes, primordial runes, or something similar.

Below is the shape of a longsword, an inverted triangle, which becomes sharper towards the bottom.

It is about five feet long (12.7 centimeters).

"The stepping stone," Bellatrix said. "It's the key to unlocking the sacred mist."

"Holy Mist?" Owen flipped through his memories for a while. Neither the knowledge of the successor given to him by Dean Bridged nor the ancient magical artifacts he knew about had ever heard of anything called Holy Mist.

"That's an ancient protective magic, a spell offered by a fairy who received enlightenment to the gods to deal with their successors," she explained, then gave Owen a meaningful look.

"To reach the place protected by the holy mist, there must be a path; otherwise, you will never be able to get close to that place."

"Where is the place protected by the holy mist?" Owen asked again.

This time, Bellatrix didn't speak, but instead looked up at the sky.

Following her gaze, Owen shifted his attention to the dark, cloud-shrouded area ten thousand meters in the sky, and in the next second, he understood the location of the sanctuary.

“There’s one more thing!” Irving looked down at Bellatrix. “Why are you giving us this? It wasn’t part of our deal.”

"This is the Dark Lord's order."

"Huh?" Bellatrix's answer shattered Owen's worldview. "Wait—has Tom lost his mind? He buried the key and then had you guard this place so he could tell his enemy where he buried the key and give him the key?"

Honestly, you're not trying to trick me, are you? Did you already have axemen lying in ambush in the sky? You think you can just surround me the moment I get up there?

"You—you've got one thing wrong." Bellatrix's expression remained calm as she spoke methodically, "The Dark Lord and that so-called god are not in a cooperative relationship, nor are they allies. We are merely using each other."

Simply put, the Dark Lord also didn't want to see the gods become powerful.

"You think that the volcanic giants coming to cause you trouble was just an accident?" A sneer appeared on her lips. "We arrived on Giant Island a long time ago. If it was just about contacting the giants, it would have been over a month ago. What do you think we've been waiting for all this time?"

"Hehe—Speaking of which, I have to thank you for killing that deity's follower, that giantess named Amin. With her as our informant, our activities on Giant Island have always been restricted."

"."

Only after Bellatrix said that did Irving realize what was going on.

For Voldemort, what he wanted was to rule the world!

If Outer Gods were to truly descend upon this world, it would be questionable whether anyone would be there to rule over them!

As long as Voldemort's mind is not completely controlled by the Outer God, he will certainly try to trip him up and create obstacles.

This tactic of using someone else to do one's dirty work is nothing new.

Owen, who understood everything, gripped the road stone in his hand, a slow smile slowly forming on his lips. "It seems that even dark wizards are not an insurmountable force? To the gods, we are all just grass."

Even the smallest blade of grass, when united, and a single spark, can burn a hole in the sky.

He spoke softly, but his tone was firm.

"Shall we go into the Holy Aura together?" Owen turned to Bellatrix and asked.

"No—I don't know if there are any members of the cult there. I can't let them find me." As she spoke, she took out a magical artifact from her pocket. It was called the Devil's Hand, and it was said that anyone who was touched by it would die within a few days. It was a terrible black magic curse artifact.

"Remember our promise, I will fulfill it as soon as possible." With that, Bellatrix grasped the demon's hand, and then her body began to distort, space twisted, and two seconds later, she disappeared from the spot.

It seems that the demon's hand has been transformed into a door key.

Owen chuckled softly as he tossed the stone in his hand. It seemed that our Sister Bei was getting impatient and quite anxious.

Hmm—that's good, very good!

"What's going on between you two?" Sirius finally spoke, his face more serious than ever before, his gray pupils staring intently at him. "She betrayed the Mystic?"

"How could that be?" Owen smiled faintly. "She's a madwoman, she has a doctor's certificate. Tom is her pillar of support. Betrayal? Unless you kill her."

"Then she—"

"Bellatrix Strange would never betray Tom!" Owen smiled mysteriously. "But who said there's only one Tom?"

"What do you mean?" Sirius's heart sank, and he asked urgently.

"It's a secret!" Owen said, shaking the road stone in his hand. "All you need to know is that she would never betray Senior Tom. That's the cornerstone of our cooperation."

If Bellatrix really betrays Tom and stops loving him, I'll be very troubled, because then she'll have no value.

And where are the worthless dark wizards?

He chuckled and drawled, "In the graveyard—"

Sirius stared at Irving, his eyes revealing a strange and wary look.

This child has completely exceeded his expectations. He doesn't know how Dumbledore views him, so evil—so unscrupulous.

The two stopped talking and went to the treetop to summon Bakal.

The dragon carried them, soaring high into the sky. Their destination was the mountain peak above the dark clouds.

The wind howled, taking away the little heat their bodies had left.

They unconsciously tightened their clothes.

Just then, the stone in Owen's hand suddenly emitted a faint light.

The mysterious symbol emerged, connecting heaven and earth. In an instant, the clouds churned and split open, as if cleaved by a knife or axe.

Looking through the gap, the scenery was indeed quite different.

The once uninteresting mountain peak has disappeared.

Instead, there was a valley.

A valley of considerable size.

They saw a city.

It was a magnificent city built of white megaliths and decorated with gold, a city of great prosperity and beauty.

Almost every building there is comparable to a palace in the outside world.

The city was well-ordered, with banners erected every few feet along the streets. These banners were decorated with gold, silver, and jewels, and were composed of interlocking arcs forming a golden symbol.

At first glance, it is a perfect city, except for the complete lack of life.

The architecture is very solemn, with a strict geometric layout, like a meticulous design by the gods, with all the elements arranged in a regular and symmetrical manner. It doesn't resemble human design, much less something intended for human habitation.

"Fall down, Bakal." Owen stroked the dragon's neck.

Immediately, they slowed down and, after carefully observing their surroundings and confirming that there was no danger, the two people and the dragon landed in the city square.

"Merlin! There's actually a city here." Sirius looked around in astonishment as he stepped on the pure white marble.

Although there was no apparent danger in the surroundings, he still quickly waved his wand in different directions, casting the Prototype Charm in turn.

A golden light flashed by, but nothing was sensed.

"Be careful," he said.

"No need." Owen caught the shrunken Bakal again, and the little guy nestled on his head again, making his head his nest.

The moment he passed through the holy mist, his magical perception spread outwards.

To him, there were only faint magical fluctuations around him.

Those fluctuations are mostly caused by the natural friction of magical flow, or by the flow of things like nearly ineffective magical items.

Because even an eleven-year-old wizard can generate more magical fluctuations than he can perceive.

Unless—it's a five, six, or seven-year-old wizard who's just experienced a magical outburst and is currently in a slump, it's possible for him to unleash such a low level of magical power.

Composing himself, Irving focused his attention on the square where he was standing.

The square in front of us is not huge; it is about the size of three auditoriums.

The square is paved with huge, white, jade-like stones.

The surface appears to be coated with some kind of wax, shiny and glossy, even reflecting a person's image.

Intricate circular patterns are carved on these megaliths, exuding a geometric beauty.

Each of the circular joints is inlaid with a blue crystal.

Directly in front of them stood a huge stone tablet, arranged in a row, the tallest in the middle and decreasing symmetrically on both sides.

There is a huge golden disc on the central stone tablet.

Behind the stone tablet is a waterfall cascading down, the water flowing from who knows where, falling into the abyss with a roaring sound.

Irving walked slowly, carefully observing the rings on the ground.

Initially, he thought it was just some kind of aesthetic symbol, an artistic mark.

However, upon closer examination, it becomes apparent that the arrangement of these rings resembles a constellation.

Furthermore, all the rings are densely covered with ancient runes (primordial runes).

As he stepped onto the steps and arrived at the foot of the stone tablet, all the circles intersected here.

Here is an inverted cone-shaped base, pointed at the top and wide at the bottom.

A golden bowl rests flat on its pointed top.

Despite the extremely small contact area between the golden bowl and the sharp corner of the conical base, the bowl remained perfectly stable without the slightest wobbling.

Owen observed it for a long time but couldn't discern anything of value from the base. There were no magical fluctuations; it seemed to be something built by Muggles.

He then turned his attention to the stone tablets.

(End of this chapter)