Spellcasting Gods

Although she initially hoped to let her parents know about the wonders of the British magical world, the more she learned, the more she discovered the terrible dangers hidden behind it. So she gradually changed her attitude and began to hide the truth, eventually refusing to even reveal what happened at school.

Zhang Cheng undoubtedly sensed this barrier, took out a small bottle of longevity potion rich in life essence, and handed it to the girl's mother with a smile: "Mrs. Granger, if you don't mind, please try this. I guarantee that after using it you will become as young and beautiful as a twenty-year-old."

"Really! You're giving this to me? This is so precious! I don't even know what to say..."

The latter clearly showed surprise and delight, carefully took it, opened it, and smelled it under his nose, then dripped two drops onto the back of his hand.

moment!

The slight wrinkles that were originally there have disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the large pores have gradually tightened, replaced by a delicate and tender texture that cannot be described in words, as if she has suddenly returned to the most beautiful age of white women, between eighteen and twenty years old.

Upon discovering this incredible change, Mrs. Granger immediately went crazy, pouring the product onto her face, neck, shoulders, arms, and lower abdomen. In no time, she was completely transformed, and standing next to her daughter, she looked more like sisters than mother and daughter.

Staring at her completely new self in the mirror, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Unbelievable! My God! I... I don't even know what to say! Thank you, Professor, this miraculous potion must be very precious!"

"Of course! It's made from a special material called Life Essence. Its greatest effect is not only to restore youth, but also to forcibly extend human lifespan. If you can take it once every now and then, living to be several hundred years old is no problem." Zhang Cheng deliberately put on a serious expression as he explained.

"Extend...extend life?!" Hermione's voice suddenly became shrill.

Based on what she learned at school, only one person in the magical world was capable of concocting longevity potions: the alchemist who created the Philosopher's Stone, the famous Nicolas Flamel.

Besides, even Dumbledore and Voldemort couldn't do that.

But with the destruction of the Philosopher's Stone, the longevity potion also disappeared completely, and no one has been able to make it again.

Seeing her daughter's surprised expression, the mother immediately realized the value of the small bottle of green liquid in her hand and cautiously asked, "Granger, tell me, is this medicine very valuable?"

The girl hesitated for a few seconds before finally nodding slightly: "Yes, Mom. Even in the magical world, its value is immeasurable."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Granger's eyes immediately revealed a strong sense of contradiction and entanglement. On the one hand, as a woman, she desperately wanted to keep this magic potion that would keep her young and beautiful; on the other hand, she was unwilling to accept such an expensive gift for no reason.

Seeing that the "little gift" had had the desired effect, a barely perceptible glint of amusement flashed in Zhang Cheng's eyes. He took the initiative to comfort her, saying, "Please accept it, Madam. To me, this potion isn't as valuable as outsiders imagine. To be precise, given time, Hermione will be able to concoct a similar potion. You simply cannot imagine how outstanding your daughter is. Her talent in magic is like that of Einstein, Newton, and Marie Curie in the ordinary world."

“Really…really?!” Mrs. Granger instinctively stared at Hermione, who was equally bewildered.

Although she knew her daughter had always been smarter and faster learners than her peers, she could not imagine that her future achievements would be comparable to those of the great scientists who laid the foundation for modern science.

"Of course it's true! Time will tell." Zhang Cheng pursed his lips and revealed a confident smile.

With his vast knowledge base, even an ordinary wizard could be trained into a magic master, let alone a girl who is far smarter than her peers and has received education in both science and magic.

Not many boys and girls in their adolescence can resist being praised in front of their parents, no matter how smart or mature they may seem on the surface.

……

Hermione, whose mind was blank, even forgot what happened next. She dazedly went back to her room, changed into a pretty dress, and only came to her senses after walking more than a hundred meters from her house. She looked up and whispered, "Why? Why are you so nice to me?"

“I think you know why, don’t you? To me, you are a special being, even more special than Harry. There is a beautiful gem hidden within you, which no one has discovered yet, but I believe that one day it will shine with a dazzling light.”

Looking towards the sunlit street, Zhang Cheng gave a vague reason that seemed to have a profound meaning.

However, it was precisely this extremely vague reason that made the girl involuntarily make some connections. She lowered her head, a shy expression on her face, and replied in a voice barely above a whisper, "Thank you..."

Then the two fell into an awkward silence, neither speaking, until they passed through a deserted alley around a street corner and then used teleportation magic to disappear without a trace.

Meanwhile, Voldemort, hiding in Riddle's old mansion, stared at his newly recruited subordinate through his extremely distorted, rudimentary body, his eyes filled with terrifying horror.

Several minutes later, he finally spoke in a hoarse, strained voice: "Remember, this mission can only succeed, failure is not an option. You must demonstrate your strength and let everyone know that I am about to return, and that no one can stop this from happening."

"Understood! We will make the entire magical world tremble under the Dark Mark!" a man completely wrapped in a cloak shouted fanatically.

“That’s right! For the pride of purebloods! For the future of the magic world!” another woman echoed.

Chapter 758 Quidditch World Cup (Part 1)

The Quidditch World Cup, a grand celebration for wizards held every four years, is comparable in scale and influence in the magical world to, or even surpasses, the FIFA World Cup in the human world.

After all, while the World Cup in football covers most parts of the world, there are other intense competitive sports such as basketball, rugby, track and field, swimming, and combat sports to choose from.

But wizards only have one sport, Quidditch, and no other choice, so it's not surprising that they are obsessed with it.

In fact, ten days before the start of the match, a number of enthusiastic fans had already arrived early around a huge stadium that had been set up in a secluded location in England, setting up their own tents. There were also a large number of vendors selling all sorts of trinkets and souvenirs, as well as gamblers hoping to make a fortune.

That's right!

It's sports betting!

However, the wizards obviously did not enact any laws to restrict gambling, so anyone who could take out real gold and silver coins from their pockets, from seventy- or eighty-year-old elders to toddlers who could just talk, could participate.

Enjoying the joyful scene before him, Zhang Cheng couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth slightly, and sighed with a smile, "What a bunch of carefree fools, aren't they? They probably never dreamed how interesting things would be..."

"Completely agree! This is the world Dumbledore wanted to create! If things continue like this, it won't be long before the entire wizarding community becomes increasingly decadent and pleasure-seeking. At that time, we will gradually become appendages of Muggles, or even slaves. He doesn't understand at all that the reason the Muggle government doesn't dare to interfere with us is not because they are so friendly, but because they fear the power of magic. Once they discover that wizards are starting to become weak, they will immediately tear off their hypocritical mask and arrest us all to send us to laboratories for cruel experiments."

Lucius Malfoy clearly has a deep understanding of the darkness and greed of humanity, especially the ordinary human world, and he hits the nail on the head regarding the true meaning of so-called "peace".

Since the dawn of civilization, wars and killings among humans have never ceased, and their cruelty far surpasses that of any other species that has ever existed on Earth.

But why did all the major powers, without prior agreement, cease all-out war after World War II and instead turn to relatively cautious methods of warfare such as espionage, infiltration, the establishment of puppet regimes, and proxy wars?

It's not that the high-ranking officials in these countries have become more morally upright!

Rather, it's because they can't afford the cost of a full-scale war!

A global thermonuclear war would mean that human civilization would likely be destroyed, and even if some people survived, it would be difficult for them to rise again in the dangerous wasteland.

Anyone with a basic understanding of biology knows that any living organism needs to maintain a certain level of diversity to survive, and the power of firearms is enough to cause fatal damage to the diversity of life on the earth.

Therefore, strictly speaking, "peace" is equivalent to "nuclear peace".

Many people who are unaware of the truth may find it strange that the barbaric and bloodthirsty Europeans were so warlike in the past. From Greece to Rome, from barbarian invasions to the Dark Ages, and then to the Age of Exploration and the gunpowder-filled modern era, there was almost no year without war.

Why did they suddenly become peace-loving during the Cold War?

The answer is simple: they were intimidated by the nuclear weapons constantly wielded by the two superpowers, the US and the USSR.

Although neither country actually started a war in Europe, but instead chose Asia as the battlefield for their proxy wars, those who understand geopolitics know that Europe is too important a place, and once a war breaks out, it will definitely be a major war. Therefore, neither side dares to fight.

On the contrary, Asia is not so important. A fight there won't cause the situation to get out of control. In the meantime, we can also find out what our arch-enemy is capable of. Why not?

“That’s right! Once the wizards become docile, their demise won’t be far off. You’re smarter than I thought.” Zhang Cheng glanced at the impeccably dressed, handsome middle-aged man beside him with some surprise.

You should know that this guy's performance in the "original work" can be described as extremely stupid, and he doesn't seem like a nobleman who is good at scheming and plotting at all.

But now he suddenly realized that Lucius was not stupid. Many of his seemingly foolish choices were actually out of desperation. Once he had enough resources, he would immediately become a troublesome opponent. Even Albus Dumbledore could only swallow his pride after suffering a loss.

"Hahaha! It's a pity that the greatest wizard in existence deliberately pretends not to see this. Sometimes I wonder if he's a spy sent by the Muggles to lead us to self-destruction," Lucius laughed sarcastically.

"A spy? No, he doesn't deserve to be called a spy. At best, he's just a brain-damaged liberal." Zhang Cheng curled his lip in disdain.

"White leftists?" Lucius was clearly hearing this term for the first time and showed an interested expression.

"Ah, it refers to those self-proclaimed morally superior idiots who believe they can influence the world with love and justice. In their minds, the minority is always more important than the majority, animals are always more important than humans, to the point of wanting to prohibit all of humanity from eating animals—a truly morbid idea. Look at Dumbledore, isn't that exactly the kind of theory he promoted?" Zhang Cheng explained meaningfully.

Just as Lucius was about to express his opinion on this type of person, he suddenly saw his son and Harry Potter walking towards him. He immediately hid his sarcastic face and greeted them with a smile: "Well, have you found anything interesting?"

"We didn't find anything interesting, but we bought some souvenirs." Malfoy showed off the dolls and hats he was holding.

“Me too!” Harry held up his magic telescope.

"Where's Hermione? Isn't she with you?" Zhang Cheng immediately asked, noticing that someone was missing from the group.

Harry turned around and pointed to a red tent in the distance: "Granger and Cho Chang are over there playing tarot with a Gypsy. They probably won't be out for a while."

"Gypsy tarot card reading? Sounds interesting, maybe I should go check it out. Excuse me, I'll be back in a minute." A strange glint flashed in Zhang Cheng's eyes as he quickly walked towards the red tent.

He could sense a peculiar magical energy emanating from the tent. Although it was difficult for ordinary wizards to detect, it was as conspicuous to him as a beacon in the darkness.

Clearly, this was not divination at all, but a premeditated and planned approach.

Zhang Cheng, who always considered things from the worst possible perspective, didn't think this was a prank or a joke between friends...

Chapter 759 Quidditch World Cup (Part 2)

"Ah, the Queen, this card represents a happy and fulfilling life, full of feminine charm, and a fruitful romance. Beautiful lady, congratulations, your future is very promising."

Inside the red tent, a woman with a veil covering her face, revealing only her two brown eyes, and adorned with amulets, pendants, and other trinkets of various sizes, smiled and offered an explanation while holding a tarot card.

Sitting across the table was none other than Hermione Granger, who had been invited to watch the Quidditch World Cup final.

It goes without saying that, like most girls just entering puberty, she inevitably begins to develop an interest in the opposite sex. In particular, the ambiguous atmosphere a few days ago further fueled this fantasy that lingered in her mind, to the point that she forgot her dismissive attitude towards divination.

In contrast, Zhang Qiu next to him looked rather worried.

Because she drew the Lover card, and it was even upside down.

According to the definition of Tarot cards, this means emotional setbacks, betrayal by a lover or friend, and is an extremely unlucky omen.

“That sounds pretty good!” Hermione was completely oblivious to her friend’s reaction, her eyes gleaming with excitement and anticipation.

Just as she was about to take out her money to buy the card as a souvenir, the veiled Gypsy woman suddenly pointed a finger at the wooden box on the table and asked, "Beautiful lady, would you be interested in seeing a treasure, a treasure that can truly change someone's destiny? I guarantee you will not be disappointed."

"A treasure that can change your destiny?!" Zhang Qiu's eyes widened immediately, revealing an expression of interest.

Although a rational voice kept reminding her that this was probably a scam, her emotions kept urging her to buy it as long as it wasn't outrageously expensive, to reverse the bad luck brought by the reversed lover.

“Yes! This is a treasure passed down to me by my grandmother. A hundred Gypsy witches died to make it. Now, let me show it to you…”

As the last word escaped her lips, the Gypsy woman placed her hand on the lid of the box and opened it with an extremely careful and slow motion.

But before she could even push the lid halfway open, she suddenly stopped all movement, and then her whole body began to tremble slightly involuntarily.

About ten seconds later, a familiar voice came from behind: "You have keen senses and a sharp mind. Do you know? If you had dared to open the lid again, you would probably be a cold corpse by now."

The words had barely left his mouth!

A dark figure emerged from the darkness behind the tent; it was Zhang Cheng himself.

However, he was completely devoid of the friendliness he usually feigned; his eyes gleamed with a light of destruction and death.

"M-Sir, I can explain..." The Gypsy woman was clearly terrified.

To be precise, she sensed an aura of even greater terror and despair than Voldemort's.

“Explanation? No, no, no, you don’t need to explain, and I never like to listen to explanations from a lowly soldier. I’m very sorry, it seems your companion will have to complete the mission alone. As for you, I won’t kill you, but you need to send a clear message to your master.” With that, Zhang Cheng raised his hand and aimed a beam of light at his opponent.

moment!

The woman felt her senses being magnified infinitely, and even the light clothing and jewelry she wore became unusually oppressive.

next second...

"Heart-piercing and bone-scraping!"

"Aa ...