A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

Valen gently nudged Felix.

“The record button? The red one—” Felix whispered, while watching intently. A crack quickly appeared on the silver eggshell, and then the eggshell began to twist and deform, as if a huge thing was expanding inside. After probing a few times, it began to peck at it, and the crack continued to widen.

The clicking sounds rose and fell, creating a symphony.

Finally, the first bird-snake hatched.

Birdsnakes are winged, bilegged animals with snake-like bodies and beautiful plumage, usually a delicate, bright blue, though exceptions exist. Newborn birdsnakes have very weak legs that clung to their sides, moving more like snakes. They circle around in the nest, curiously observing their siblings.

They are still trying to hatch.

"Did you record it?" Felix asked in a low voice.

Its partner, Valen, hummed happily, feeling quite pleased with itself. Perhaps the footage it was capturing would become precious images released by the 'Future World' company and be seen by thousands of wizards.

“I recorded it too, we can compare when we get back… Let’s get closer, the bird snake mother isn’t home…”

"Chirp! (Because you lured them away with a bucket of bugs!)"

"Ha, the bird-snake mother needs to replenish her nutrition, doesn't she? We came quietly, and we'll leave quietly."

"Chirp? (Want to see a transformation?)" Valen asked.

The bird-snake possesses a unique ability even among magical creatures—it can expand and contract at will, growing large enough to fill any space, or shrinking its body to fit the available space.

"You mean them, or me?" Felix asked, pointing to the bird's nest right in front of him. His binoculars were almost touching the nest. The first chick to hatch was attracted by their voices and the shiny lenses, tilting its head and curiously examining them.

The little bird snake shifted its gaze from Felix to Valen, staring at its long pink beak for a long time. Then it turned to examine its own reflection in the silver eggshell, seemingly finally confirming that the two creatures in front of it were not its mother. The little guy immediately spread its bright blue wings and showed off to them.

The bird-snake's body also swelled up.

"Waaaaah!"

Valen watched this scene in shock; the Niffler certainly didn't have that ability. It slowly reached behind it and waved at Felix, who grinned and handed it a small glass bottle.

Valen stared at the little bird-snake, waved his fist in front of its eyes, revealing a beetle in his hand.

The little snake, which was still trying to inflate itself, stopped, tilted its head to examine the food in Valen's hand, and its stomach growled involuntarily. Although it didn't speak, its mouth moved closer and closer...

The little snake quickly succumbed to the lure of food.

With the first role model in mind, the other newly hatched avian snakes didn't have time to ponder the complex question of why their mother looked different from them. They began to fight over food, and Felix and Valen took the opportunity to reach out and stroke their beautiful feathers.

Especially Felix, whose fingertips, as they touched, were imbued with a faint magical energy—not for harm, but for analysis…

The joy of feeding was short-lived. Before long, Warren shook the empty glass bottle and held it up for Felix to see.

"That's all?" Felix asked.

Warren turned the bottle upside down, shook it twice, and found it was completely empty.

"That should be enough, they've only just been born, it's best not to feed them too much at once..." Felix was undecided.

Just then, a rustling sound came from behind them.

Valen tilted his head back and opened his mouth wide, looking through the glass bottle.

“Hmm—” Felix also sensed something was wrong. He turned around and saw the bird-snake mother slowly raising her body from behind them, her size constantly expanding, and her huge, bird-like head pressing down on them.

'The bird snake will attack anyone who gets close to it, especially if it is protecting its eggs.'

As these words crossed Felix's mind, he had already pulled Valen to within twenty feet. This distance was nothing to the mother serpent; she could reach them with a single leap. Fortunately, Felix had been there for a few days and could at least recognize her.

Therefore, the mother serpent simply surrounded the nest and watched them warily.

As Felix and Valen retreated in compromise, the mother bird-snake's body began to shrink little by little, soon revealing the nest she protected. The baby bird-snakes chirped and climbed onto their mother, awkwardly flapping their wings, watching their "keepers" walk away.

"Let's go back too."

Felix said with satisfaction.

On their way back, they passed an empty tree hollow. "Hey, Lightning," Felix greeted, and Valen waved back at the hollow, the home of an invisible beast. They then crossed a small open plain, walked across a long log bridge, and returned to their lodgings.

This area is adjacent to the exit and is the most human-like place in the entire basement.

Everywhere there were pots, jars, and books, and Felix was so surprised to see that he thought he had returned to the Potions professor's territory, even though the contents of the bottles were completely different.

He never intended to introduce the two people to each other.

That was destined to be an unfriendly meeting.

Chapter 499 Magical Creatures

“Hey, Newt,” Felix said to the busy figure, “Any discoveries?”

“I’m not sure.” Newt straightened up from the table, quickly jotted down a few notes, stared at the several large scorpions scurrying around in the glass case, and said hesitantly, “Hagrid calls it a blast-tailed snail? It looks a bit grumpy. Is it in heat? Some animals get stupid during heat…and some people do too.”

“Nobody can say for sure. This creature has only been around for less than a year, and nobody knows what it does,” Felix said. “Hagrid was taking care of them, but he had to go on a long trip and left the last few to me before he left. He was also hoping to get your opinion.”

“We still need to observe for a while.” Newt stared intently at the glass case. “We must confirm whether the Bombtails can reproduce stably under natural conditions. That’s the priority—otherwise, they will simply disappear into history. There are too many examples of human intervention creating new species that have failed. Hagrid didn’t involve magic, which is good. There is a possibility of stable existence. I think I should build a site for them. Your magic has been restraining them.”

He looked up, a look of eager anticipation on his face.

“Make sure it’s sturdy,” Felix reminded him. “I’ve never seen a docile blast-tailed snail; they don’t seem to have a brain.”

Newt nodded.

Felix held Valen in his arms, and together they examined the ball of yarn hanging overhead.

It was a spiky sac. As they were observing it, the spiky sac suddenly opened and transformed into some kind of huge, butterfly-like reptile with a pair of skeletal wings. It was terrifying in appearance and hung upside down like a bat, staring at them. Valen, who was in their arms, was startled.

The next second, it shrank back again.

“The Winged Demon, when it’s not flying, it curls up in a spiky pouch. This one isn’t dangerous, but you’d better not get too close. Norris is a little shy,” Newt said with a sly smile.

"Chirp?" Valen, still shaken, patted his small chest.

“Norris, that’s his name,” Newt repeated. “Like you’re a Niffler but your name is Valen.” He looked at Felix. “I can’t believe she’s learned to write, even though her handwriting is a bit messy, but… well, it’s really good. It reminds me of my brother.” He whispered the last sentence.

Felix stared at the curled-up winged demon and couldn't help but click his tongue. "Valen is still the prettiest." He didn't want to become like that. "So you tamed it?" he suddenly thought of something and asked curiously. "This thing is quite dangerous in the wild."

Newt's face lit up with a nostalgic expression.

“I once had a winged demon, and he helped me a lot. Norris is his descendant.”

“I see,” Felix nodded, then asked softly, “I guess that winged demon helped you capture Grindelwald?”

“Oh, oh—” Newt looked at him, “Dumbledore told you?”

“No, my source is an assistant professor at Iphamoni,” Felix explained. “He told me that there is a hidden winged demon statue in the hall of the Magical Congress of the United States, near the trial chamber… The inscription on the stone reads ‘It helped defeat the source of the turmoil.’”

"It's said that this statue was left by Serafina Picqueri, the president of the Magical Congress of the United States. Considering the context at the time, that's my guess," he added.

Newt stopped what he was doing and fell into a long-forgotten memory. "I can't reveal more—it involves Headmaster Dumbledore. But so far, what you've said is correct."

"What kind of person is Grindelwald?" Felix asked astutely. "This shouldn't be considered illegal, right?"

“Oh, uh, not really… He’s very arrogant, or rather confident… and very charismatic, though I don’t really like that about him…” Newt’s voice trailed off, and only then did he seem like a man nearing a hundred years old.

Two days later, Felix took his leave.

“Hey, Lightning, you’re here too,” Felix said to the invisible beast next to Newt, which had revealed its form today and looked like a sloth. Felix handed it an apple.

"Have you finished your investigation?" Newt asked.

"It's done, much faster than I expected," Felix said with satisfaction. "I guess it's because I deliberately gave up on some targets; after all, the Poison Horned Beast and the Moon Demon Beast weren't really suitable..."

And he's not good-looking either.

“Can I ask?” Newt asked, a look of interest on his face. “You told me before that you wanted to observe the structure of magical creatures, using magic—the word was ‘scan’?” He glanced at Felix, who nodded at him.

"Hmm—using magic to scan, to be honest, I don't quite understand. It sounds like the process of familiarizing oneself with shapeshifting creatures in Transfiguration..."

“You’re right,” Felix said with a slight smile.

"Is it really Transfiguration? But that shouldn't be the case. Ordinary Transfiguration can only change the appearance of magical creatures, not reveal their true nature. Even the advanced Animagus only removes some of the drawbacks..." Newt muttered to himself.

“Even Headmaster Dumbledore—wait, I seem to have seen a similar scene before, but it wasn’t a complete transformation, and there were very few changes to the skin. I always thought it was some kind of magic I didn’t know about.”

Newt's eyes sparkled as he stared at Felix, his gaze filled with curiosity.

"Can you really do it? Can I see?"

"Of course, it would be my honor to demonstrate this skill to the world's greatest expert on magical creatures."

Valen stood on the table, looking at Felix with the same anticipation—even though he had seen it beforehand, he was still amazed. What kind of creature was the Great Demon King? The invisible beast, which was munching on fruit nearby, suddenly opened its eyes wide, and the fruit fell to the ground—it had already seen what was about to happen.

Felix tilted his head, scrutinizing his fingers with a cautious gaze, and began to cast the transformation spell. A strange sensation spread throughout his body. His body seemed to melt; his hands began to shrink and merge into his sides; his torso and neck stretched continuously; and a pair of blue wings, like scimitars, tore through his clothes, revealing themselves from his back… Felix felt no pain, but rather a warm sensation; there was no panic in his heart, only calm—because he knew what the transformation target was, and he knew that his body could adapt to this level of change.

He is a magical creature.

Felix lowered his head, but his body rapidly expanded, his gaze rising even higher than Newt's. His blue, bird-like head, about the size of an invisible beast, looked down upon those present. His gaze shifted slightly, easily revealing distant rivers, caves, and plains.

He transformed into a bird-snake.

Chapter 500 Bait

Newt appeared both surprised and fascinated.

He stared intently at the unusually large bird-serpent, his gaze focused and burning, muttering, "Am I dreaming? I hope Tina won't wake me up." He tentatively approached, but the bird-serpent seemed frightened by his attitude, flapping its wings and creating a strong gust of wind that pushed him back a few steps.

"Wow, calm down—"

Newt pulled a jar from somewhere on his person, filled with beetles. “I know you like this. No harm intended. Look, this is food—uh—” he said, as he tried to slowly unscrew the lid, only to find the bird snake starting to shrink.

“Felix?” he said, clearly puzzled.

Soon the bird-snake was only the size of a newly hatched snake, its body coiled up. Valen jumped off the table and stared at the bird-snake, his bright black eyes gleaming. The two little creatures were almost the same height.

"Ha!"

Valen reached out to grab it, but the bird-snake darted to the side, and as the mist billowed, Felix reappeared. He waved his hand, and his robe draped over his body, restoring him to his original state.

"The performance is over."

Felix snapped his fingers, and the fog quickly dissipated.

Newt looked visibly disappointed.

“You don’t want to study me, do you?” Felix asked warily.

“Oh, no, how could that be—” Newt said, slightly flustered, his gaze still fixed on him. “Of course not—I can tell the difference between you. There’s no such thing as a bird-snake this big in reality, at least I’ve never seen one. Is it because of you?” He awkwardly changed the subject.

To be honest, Felix also breathed a sigh of relief. Newt's eyes just now looked like he was looking at a favorite magical creature, and a new species he had never seen before.