A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

“Then he has to be careful enough to avoid the hundreds of eyes in the kitchen,” Snape said, squinting. “It’s an emergency potion to keep the dying alive. I identified unicorn blood, various highly toxic ingredients, and an unknown type of snake venom.”

"Sounds like a curse?"

"Pretty much. The process is extremely painful, but the results are obvious, aren't they?" Snape said, opening the office door. His office hadn't changed much; it was dimly lit, and the shelves against the wall were filled with numerous glass specimen jars.

Felix, recalling the groans he'd heard from Voldemort at Crouch's old house, roughly understood the explanation. Looking around, he said with displeasure, "I remember giving you a magic lamp..."

“A qualified apothecary doesn’t easily change his lifestyle,” Snape said calmly, his gaze sweeping over the row of jars of various sizes along the wall. “And there’s something you didn’t write in the product description: the light emitted by the magic lamp has an effect on some dark creatures.”

Felix thought about it and realized that it was true. The principle of the magic lamp was to solidify a light spell and then slowly release it, and the light spell had the effect of dispelling fog and driving away dark creatures.

However, this additional effect is not very strong; it cannot even harm the lowest-level Shadow Corpse.

“Remus is perfectly fine,” Felix said.

Snape clicked his tongue and said slowly, "Unlike werewolves—potion ingredients are very delicate and require special spells to preserve them to prevent the loss of magic. I remember I talked about these things in class?"

“A person’s energy is limited, and I happen to know you and Belby, so I naturally don’t intend to spend too much time on potions. For me, knowing some necessary knowledge is enough, such as how to cure poisons,” Felix said tactfully. “How about we talk about ancient runes?”

Snape glared at him. "I put the magic lamp in the bedroom."

Felix shrugged and found a half-empty bucket of gray slime sealed with a clear lid in a suspicious corner of the office. He bent down to examine it. "Did you collect this from the Blasttail Snail?"

"It has a slight corrosive effect, and I haven't found a good way to eliminate its properties yet," Snape said softly.

Felix blinked. "How about using an illumination spell?"

Snape stared, standing there for a long time before finally stammering, "Well... it's not impossible... it's worth a try..."

He quickly retrieved a few drops of slime from the bucket. As soon as he lifted the lid, the pungent stench of rotten fish and shrimp instantly filled the entire room. Felix immediately cast a humanoid armor spell on himself, replacing the Bubble Head Charm with this magic.

"Need any help?" he asked in a muffled voice through the magic, Snape's face pale, but his fingers unusually steady.

“No need,” Snape managed to squeeze out, his face paling at the slight warmth of the air, his throat bobbing involuntarily. He swiftly slammed the lid shut and resealed it with magic, and Felix conspired to conjure a whirlwind, sending the stale air into the office corridor.

Hopefully, no little wizards who have just finished eating will pass by.

Snape held his breath. He transferred the wet, slimy liquid into a small glass bottle, quickly sealed it, and then took a deep breath.

On the other side, Felix was holding a ball of light the size of a ping-pong ball in his palm. Apart from a faint white halo on its surface, it did not emit any light and looked like a glowing glass ball.

Snape directed the small glass bottle to float over, while Felix simultaneously controlled the orb of light to approach. The orb of light effortlessly entered the bottle, and then he quickly cast a spell on the outer wall of the glass bottle to prevent the orb of light from dissipating.

Freed from Felix's restraint, the sphere of light expanded completely, filling the entire interior space—

"It doesn't seem to be working," Snape said uncertainly after a long pause.

“What kind of effect do you want, a sizzling sound? That’s too harsh. The light from the Illumination spell is very gentle. Even if you cast it close to your face, it will only cause some dizziness and blurred vision at most, without damaging your eyes,” Felix explained.

He had already sat back on the sofa, leisurely picked up a book, and casually flipped through it: "Just wait and see, let the magic work slowly. Sometimes the process of just soaking the materials with magic can take several months."

Snape stared at the small glass bottle in his hand for a long time, then his eyes suddenly lit up.

Felix was startled, thinking he was about to say something cleverly sarcastic, but Snape just said impatiently, "Let's try it a few more times! With different conditions, let them contrast each other."

“Oh…” Felix drawled, not wanting to see that sticky stuff again. “Wait a minute,” he muttered, taking out an Ouroboros Ring from his ring. Under Snape’s strange gaze, a dozen or so small orbs emitting a hazy white light appeared in front of him in no time.

Then, the Ouroboros Ring on his hand suddenly came to life. The little snake twisted its body and swallowed all the orbs of light one by one. Then it returned and coiled in Felix's palm, transforming back into a ring.

He handed the Ouroboros Ring to Snape, “It can store ancient runes, but that’s mainly because its material effectively isolates magic and greatly reduces its leakage… so it can also be used to store illumination spells.”

Snape took it and glanced at it briefly. "Basilisk scales?"

Felix nodded.

……

When Felix returned to his office, the Niffler Valen immediately pounced on him, grabbing his clothes and trying to climb up, but its movements stopped abruptly.

It withdrew its two little hands and gently twitched its nose. Its little face immediately scrunched up, and its bright black eyes looked at him with accusation.

Felix paused for a moment, then sniffed his clothes. "Does it smell?"

Valen nodded vigorously and made a gagging motion.

“It’s probably the smell of the slime from the larvae of the blasting snail,” Felix guessed. “Your nose is really sharp. I’m even protected by the Humanoid Armor Charm, and you still managed to smell it…”

Valen looked at him smugly.

Felix cast several cleansing spells on himself, and Valen slowly moved over, sniffing him to make sure there was no unpleasant smell before throwing herself into his arms.

At this moment, while holding Valen, Felix pondered, "Sniff's sensitive nose shouldn't be wasted. Should we add some 'extracurricular practice' to the regular literacy training?"

It certainly won't hurt to learn to recognize the smell of some poisons.

In the evening, Harry came to learn Occlumency.

During the Christmas holidays, Felix explained some techniques of Occlumency to Harry, leaving him completely bewildered. In the end, Felix had no choice but to let him continue reading the magic book.

Harry would come every two days and sometimes run into Hermione. However, by the time he was in fourth grade, Hermione wasn't coming every week anymore. Her knowledge of ancient runes far surpassed that of everyone except Felix.

With her current skill level, even if she doesn't improve further, she'd be more than qualified to be a professor. So Felix is ​​currently just assigning tasks and answering his assistant's questions from time to time.

Harry turned to page five and stared at the image of the wizard with a look of disgust. He was familiar with the picture—he had seen it when he was browsing through materials in the forbidden section. This wizard was originally the cover of a forbidden book, and Ron thought he looked a lot like Draco Malfoy.

But this time the feeling was completely different. In a daze, Harry realized that the wizard's face seemed to have turned into his own, and he was being tortured in the wizard's place... It was an illusion. His heavy breathing sprayed onto the wizard in the book, and then he felt as if his skin was being hit by a hurricane.

Harry held his breath, his face flushed red, constantly reminding himself that it was all Professor Hyp's magic at work; he really knew his stuff...

Harry knew perfectly well that his body was not injured at all, but his mind was filled with the exact opposite emotions.

This can't go on... I have to stop this feeling, or I'll go crazy... Let me think, what's the most basic method of Occlumency? Calm down, empty your mind... Huff... Huff... This is too hard. Harry felt like he'd been thrown into a nest of Bombtail larvae, swarming all over him, their tails spitting sparks, making him itchy and sore...

I need to clear my mind... clear my mind...

But why! Harry thought angrily, a sudden surge of intense anger welling up inside him, an anger that broke through the shackles of magic. He looked around and saw that he had somehow gotten up, his spellbook lying at his feet, and he was panting heavily.

Professor Hep's voice rang out from the chair behind his desk:

“Anger can be a good tool if used properly, but it’s clear that anger is not an emotion that can be sustained for a long time, and people are not powder kegs and can’t lose their temper anytime, anywhere. But... well done, you pass this time.”

Harry didn't find much comfort in those words, and he asked somewhat dejectedly, "Am I really that bad?"

Felix looked at him with great understanding: "Occlumency is an extremely difficult spell. Many wizards never manage to master it in their entire lives. The best way to learn it is to let your brain experience the feeling of being 'invaded' again and again. Of course, it's very difficult to grasp the right balance, and I happen to have some insights into it..."

Harry, of course, had no idea that the professor's "insights" referred to invading other people's minds. This experience came from Felix's year of solitary travel, during which, with the "help" of many dark wizards, he painstakingly mastered the rudiments of Mind Hut magic.

Now it seems that all the effort was worthwhile, and the magic has undergone a complete transformation.

Harry could only take Felix's words as true. He sat down and thought for a moment, then decided to play a game of cards with Varen to relieve his tense mood. However, when he found that he had actually lost to Varen, his mood worsened.

This resulted in him still looking unhappy when he returned to the lounge.

"Is that book really that terrible?" Ron asked quietly, secretly handing Harry a bottle of Butterbeer. "Fred and George's last Hogsmeade stash—they actually wanted five Sickles from me!"

“Yeah, three brooms for two sieges,” Harry said blankly, feeling too down to sympathize with Ron. He took a sip of butterbeer, the thick foam invigorating him and making him feel alive again.

“Tell me about that book again, Harry,” Ron urged, staring into his eyes.

“Well…you have to face a lot of terrible emotions and do everything you can to stop them from affecting you…it’s just horrible, the professor said. If I can finish reading it in one go, it means I’ve mastered Occlumency, and that’s quite an achievement,” Harry said haltingly, taking the opportunity to finish his Butterbeer.

He looked at the empty bottle with some regret, wondering if he should ask Fred and George for help. If they could have a hot butterbeer after each practice session, it probably wouldn't be so hard to get through.

“The professor is right,” Hermione said from the side, looking up from a large book. “I’ve read its theory. Even those who have mastered Occlumency can’t necessarily explain how they learned it. They usually learn passively.”

"Passive learning?" Ron looked at her, puzzled.

“Being invaded,” Harry said, relaying what the professor had told Ron. “The best way to learn is to let your brain experience being ‘invaded’ over and over again.” He thought for a moment and added, “I guess it’s to make your brain sharp enough.”

Ron's enthusiasm had clearly waned.

“You want to learn this?” Harry asked, not quite understanding the idea. Ron chuckled awkwardly and stammered, “Isn’t this magic supposed to be difficult? I was thinking, if I learned it…”

“It would be very prestigious to tell others,” Hermione added, completing the unspoken meaning in his words.

“Actually, there’s a simple way. The professor mentioned it to me… Remember my Dementor doll? He said it’s like a simple spellbook. If you’d like to try, I can lend it to you,” Harry suggested. He had locked the doll away at the bottom of his box.

Ron was quite tempted, but after thinking about it for a long time, he gave up. He lay on the table and muttered, "I'd rather study the magic needed for the second project. What do you think, should I learn the Bubble Charm or the Evasion Charm first?"

“The Bubble Head Charm is for older students,” Hermione reminded him.

“But the Humanoid Armor Charm isn’t easy either. I haven’t even met the basic requirements.” Ron groaned. “I think I’m going to drown, Harry. I’ll be the first warrior to be eliminated.”

“Don’t think like that,” Fred’s voice suddenly appeared as he plopped down next to Ron. He said with a grin, “Try to look on the bright side. Maybe Ifamoni will come in last again this time.”

"I suggest you guys practice swimming, otherwise it would be too embarrassing to run out of energy halfway through," George grinned.

“You reminded me,” Hermione said. “I’ve been so focused on the magic.” She took a small notebook out of her bag and wrote down George’s words. Harry knew it was Hermione’s plan for the second project, and it was already half full. Neither he nor Ron had the courage to look at it to see what was written inside.

At that moment, Ron suddenly looked up, as if he had thought of something, and stared blankly at Fred and George.

"You guys know the head-drinking spell?" Ron asked bluntly.

“Oh…of course, this is magic you have to master to play pranks. We’ve learned our lesson the hard way in the past…” Fred said with a sigh.

“Teach me,” Ron said.

"What?" Fred and George looked at each other in bewilderment.

“Teach me the head-drinking spell,” Ron repeated.

Fred and George exchanged a glance, and Fred said, "Listen, we're very busy. We have over a dozen products waiting to be perfected—"

“Okay,” Ron said readily, then muttered in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, “I haven’t written home in ages. Mom must be worried about me, and she might have a head-washing spell to give me some pointers…”

Fred and George stared at Ron as if they were seeing him for the first time.

The two exchanged glances quickly, and after a while, Fred said angrily, "Fine, you win, little Ronnie."

Ron grinned in victory.

As the two of them left, Ron was still basking in the joy of victory. He exclaimed excitedly, "I've wanted to do this for a long time!"

"You mean...?" Harry said slowly, a bad feeling creeping into his heart.

“Beat them once!” Ron shouted.

Harry fell silent. He didn't think coercing someone to help with training was a good idea. He knew this all too well, having undergone special training himself—Professor Hyp was already quite kind, but he still found the days unbearable. He couldn't even imagine what he would have to go through if Snape were teaching him.

He had anticipated that Fred and George would come up with all sorts of bizarre ways to mess with Ron, and the key point was that Ron himself had delivered these ideas to their doorstep.

However, seeing Ron's satisfied expression, Harry decided to tell him his worries later.

Late at night, as Harry tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep, his ears filled with the intermittent snoring of Ron and Neville, he thought it might be a good idea to let Ron try, and he could use this time to think of comforting words for him in advance…

Chapter 431 A New Defense Against the Dark Arts Lesson