Hogwarts: From Selling White Peppers to Becoming a God

Chapter 242 Enchantment

Even Ron didn't object this time. Professor Murphy was different from other professors. He never deducted points or anything like that. In his classes, he never stifled his students' curiosity. He encouraged them to take risks.

He would even proactively cover up their mistakes.

He never lectured any student from a professor's perspective. Even if you made the dumbest mistake, he would tell you, "Oh, this is a very innovative approach. Let's see what happens next."

He didn't seem like a professor at all; he was more like their friend.

If it were him, he might plead for them even if they actually stole the Philosopher's Stone.

"Why don't we just tell Professor Murphy? He might believe us. Besides, he seems to have a grudge against Snape," Ron said.

Stealing the Philosopher's Stone was too risky. If Professor Murphy were truly willing to believe them, he might be able to stop Snape.

The suggestion was immediately agreed upon by several young wizards, and even Tom thought it was worth a try.

He was also very curious about Professor Murphy's opinion on the Philosopher's Stone.

……

The first week of school was a practical week.

The development of the Weasley Brothers' enhanced version of Fairy Coins is progressing well.

To reduce costs, they used a one-millimeter-diameter gold foil as a "coin," performed a greedy whispering ritual, and found that it could still achieve the effect of long-distance communication.

However, the gold foil was too small, and the sound it emitted was so faint that it could not be heard at all. Moreover, the foil was extremely fragile. Not to mention carrying it, even the vibrations generated during communication could tear it apart. So they sealed the foil in a copper plate and then cast a "loud sound" spell on the copper plate, finally solving the problem.

However, "loud voice" is an instant spell and it is difficult to permanently attach it to an item. Currently, they are researching how to permanently add spell effects to items through rituals—a process that Murphy aptly calls "enchanting."

Murphy greatly admired the twins' problem-solving abilities and intellect. Moreover, if the issue of item enchanting could be resolved, it wouldn't just be a matter of a magical telephone; the magical world might directly see a large number of magical items appearing, their value immeasurable.

To support the twins' magical research, Murphy directly invested one thousand Galleons to purchase various experimental materials and equipment. At the same time, he broke up several groups that were not making much progress in their research and incorporated them into the twins' group, where they managed and assigned experimental tasks.

Besides the Gemini group, another group that has made some progress is the Qiu Zhang group.

After a month of practice during the winter break, they were almost at the threshold of their ancestors' spirits.

Qiu Zhang, who possesses the highest talent, is already able to summon an unformed spirit, but he is still unable to mold it into the shape he desires.

In their research on compound decoctions, they appear to have developed a new medicine, but they have not reported its specific effects to Murphy, only saying that further verification is needed.

After the lab class ended, Harry and his friends came to ambush Murphy again.

"Professor, we think there's something you might need to know."

Half an hour later, Murphy listened to their story and nodded. "I'm surprised you knew about what was going on in the back of the corridor. You suspect Snape is after the Philosopher's Stone?"

"Yes, Professor, you don't believe us either, do you?"

Murphy didn't immediately deny it. "Why do you suspect Snape?"

Harry recounted seeing Snape on Halloween Eve and how Snape was bitten by a big dog.

Murphy nodded. "That does sound very suspicious. So what do you think Snape's purpose was in obtaining the Philosopher's Stone?"

Ron said, "The Philosopher's Stone can bring wealth and immortality; it's not surprising that anyone would want it."

Murphy remained noncommittal. "The Philosopher's Stone can indeed turn lead into gold, but with Professor Snape's abilities, there are countless ways to obtain gold—I mean, if he didn't care about the law, there was no need to use the Philosopher's Stone. If it's just for wealth, then the risk he's taking seems a bit too great."

Tom understood. "You mean he obtained the Philosopher's Stone for the elixir of immortality?"

"What I mean is, the reason a rational wizard would want the Philosopher's Stone should be the elixir of immortality. Only the elixir of immortality has the irreplaceable value of the Philosopher's Stone."

Harry said, "Then Snape must be after the elixir of immortality."

Murphy then asked, "Why would Snape want an elixir of immortality? He's only in his thirties. Isn't it a bit too early for him to be thinking about aging? Besides, immortality doesn't seem to be illegal. If Professor Snape wanted to research an elixir of immortality, I think it would be simpler for him to ask Headmaster Dumbledore or Nicolas Flamel about alchemy."

Tom astutely understood Murphy's meaning: "So, if a wizard wants to secretly steal the Philosopher's Stone, his goal can't simply be to obtain the elixir of immortality. It's something else entirely..."

"Professor, I've read in a book that the elixir of immortality can also be used as a potion to reshape the body. Is that true?"

Murphy nodded. "Yes. But neither the elixir of immortality nor the formula for reshaping the body are easy to obtain."

Harry and Hermione both seemed lost in thought, but Tom was thinking even more deeply.

Both Voldemort (the notebook) and I need to be resurrected, but where can I get the recipes for these two things?

"Professor, do you think Professor Snape knows both of these recipes?" Tom asked.

"Possibly, after all, Professor Snape's potion-making skills are quite high."

"But you defeated him in the potions duel," Harry said.

"Snape and I have very different understandings of potion making. I won the bet, but that doesn't mean I know more about potions than Snape. At least, I don't know the recipes for either of those potions."

"Alright, young wizards, I think your worries are most likely unnecessary. Even if Snape knew both formulas, who would he want to resurrect?"

……

“I think Professor Murphy is right,” Hermione said. “We can’t find a reason why Snape would want the Philosopher’s Stone.”

"But these are all Professor Murphy's guesses. Maybe Snape really is just a greedy guy," Harry said, though he himself didn't quite believe it.

"I don't really want to say it, but Harry, I think you suspect Snape just because you hate him," Hermione said, "just as he hates you."

Harry fell silent.

"Perhaps we should go and ask Professor Snape directly," Tom said.

"What?" Ron was stunned. "What do you want to ask him? Hey, Professor Snape, I suspect you're planning to steal the Philosopher's Stone, but I have no proof. Can you give me a clue?"

"No, I was just discussing the elixir of immortality with him," Tom said. "You know, he doesn't particularly dislike me. Maybe he'll satisfy a little of my curiosity."

He at least needs to find out whether Snape actually had the recipe.

The notebook recently posted another task, which Tom guessed was most likely related to a recipe, but he didn't even look at it.

It doesn't matter anymore. His goal is to be resurrected anyway. No matter what the notebook says, what he wants to do will not change.

(End of this chapter)