Two of the strongest living wizards in the modern age had, thanks to Water Sight, both snapped straight into all-out combat readiness.
Almost immediately, Theodore felt two massive "blind spots" appear in his perception—like twin black holes in the flow of water and blood he was sensing. He couldn't get close to either of them.
Especially around Dumbledore, magic gathered so thick it was almost suffocating.
Even Theodore had to admit it: that level of magical power was absurd.
Even with his current ability to steadily ramp up his own magic via spiritual qi, reaching that level would take him a very long time.
Then he reminded himself what kind of Dumbledore this was.
This wasn't the late-stage Headmaster whose hand had been cursed by the Resurrection Stone, his days numbered.
This was Dumbledore in his prime, Elder Wand in hand, strength likely on the same level as the Big Four founders a thousand years ago.
Theodore did a quick, honest evaluation.
If he fought Dumbledore right now…
Yeah. No.
He'd get flattened.
Low profile, he thought. Low profile is good.
He cut Water Sight at once and slipped back into the Room of Requirement.
The sudden disappearance of that probing sensation sent both Dumbledore and Voldemort's nerves snapping even tighter.
The "eye" had vanished.
Was that the prelude to an attack?
If someone had the ability to scout them in such an uncanny way, what was to stop them from following it up with a curse from some blind angle the second they let their guard down?
Dumbledore swung the Elder Wand in tight, economical motions, layering shield after shield around himself.
Voldemort did the same with what magic he had, burning his reserves without hesitation.
Ten minutes passed.
Twenty.
Nothing. No curses, no traps, no follow-up whatsoever.
Both men finally let their shoulders relax a fraction—only to feel the same sharp, irrational annoyance.
"Cunning Tom," Dumbledore muttered, lips thinning. "To toy with an old man like this… appalling manners…"
"Rotten-hearted Dumbledore," Voldemort snarled. "Wasting my strength like that. Just you wait. You'd better not die before I get my hands on you, or I'll dig you up myself."
—
Meanwhile, Theodore was back in the Room of Requirement like the picture of innocence.
He was just a poor, weak, helpless little first-year.
The looming war between the White Dark Lord and the actual Dark Lord had absolutely nothing to do with him.
Quietly getting stronger and looting the System for all it was worth—that was the real business of the day.
His eyes drifted to the Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle Breeding Method he'd gained from bonding with Draco.
"System, claim it."
His mind dipped for a moment as the method unfurled inside it, line after intricate line.
Understanding dawned.
"So the Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle isn't strictly a spiritual bird."
"More accurately, it's a living magic treasure refined from a raptor."
Take a bird of prey with exceptional potential, feed it Flying Tiger Pills again and again, drip one's own blood onto it, inscribe and temper it with the refining method—and in time, the eagle would be transformed into an Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle.
Most of the time, it could live and move freely, no different from before—just much stronger.
But at a critical moment, a single hand-seal would activate the treasure-seals branded into its body.
Then its speed would explode, surpassing that of most flying swords in the world—swift beyond belief.
In the age of the Investiture of the Gods, Chong Heihu's Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle had made many immortals and gods eat a bitter loss.
And even for Chong Heihu, it had taken enormous effort to scour the whole Great Desolation for an exceedingly rare, mutated raptor. Only with that as the base could he refine such a fearsome Divine Eagle.
"Tracking down anything that rare in the wizarding world is probably impossible," Theodore mused.
But he didn't care.
Even an Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle refined from a normal raptor would be vicious by magical Britain's standards.
And the core resource it needed? Flying Tiger Pills.
The more it ate, the stronger it would grow.
For someone who could refine Flying Tiger Gold Pills, that was an unfair advantage.
Even Chong Heihu had never gotten his hands on those. An Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle raised on gold-grade pills… who knew what kind of monster that would turn into?
"Owls count as raptors," Theodore muttered, eyes gleaming. "Hermes is already a beast by owl standards. No reason he couldn't become an Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle."
"All I need is some time. Daily Flying Tiger pills, daily blood drops, treasure-seals inscribed one by one…"
"Once Hermes completes the transformation… that'll be my first true magic treasure in this world."
Expectation simmered in his chest.
Then his attention shifted to the three remaining entries:
Three Heads and Eight Arms divine power.
Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Barrier Refining Method.
Purifying Glazed Bottle Refining Method.
"Let's start with Three Heads and Eight Arms."
He tensed, bracing himself.
This was a divine power famous throughout the Great Desolation. However prepared he was, it might still knock him senseless.
Instead, the process was almost anticlimactically smooth.
He didn't feel any crushing weight at all.
All that happened was that Adamantine Body, Unclouded Mind surged to life on its own. Gold light spilled across his skin, and deep within that light, faint patterns emerged—lines and sigils full of ancient, vast meaning.
Theodore blinked.
"So Three Heads and Eight Arms… got inscribed onto Adamantine Body, Unclouded Mind?"
"Wait."
"Nezha used this divine power. Yang Jian used it. They both eventually forged their bodies into saints."
"Three Heads and Eight Arms does grant a tremendous boost to flesh and blood—that's always been its nature. Maybe this divine power was made to be wielded by those with terrifying physical bodies."
"My Adamantine Body is literally a talent from someone whose body achieved sainthood. Of course it's a perfect foundation."
"No wonder there was no pressure. It even feels like the threshold to use the divine power has dropped."
His eyes lit with sudden excitement as he checked the System readout.
[Three Heads and Eight Arms: a war-divine-power of great renown in the Great Desolation, reserved for those who have achieved great heights on the path of the body. When invoked, killing aura soars; power is fearsome.]
[Without a foundation of mana, you would normally be unable to perform Three Heads and Eight Arms. However, due to possessing Adamantine Body, Unclouded Mind, you may use this as the base from which to invoke the divine power.]
[Each time you use Three Heads and Eight Arms, it is equivalent to encountering a life-and-death calamity. The golden light of Adamantine Body, Unclouded Mind will shatter, your physique will fall into a weakened state, and your vitality will be greatly damaged.]
Theodore let out a slow breath.
So every use of Three Heads and Eight Arms would burn up one "death-negating" charge of Adamantine Body's protection and leave him drained for a long time afterwards.
The price was steep.
But if he thought about it… if he ever needed to resort to this divine power, the crisis would already be extreme.
Adamantine Body, Unclouded Mind could only block one truly fatal blow.
If such attacks came in a chain, the passive protection alone wouldn't be enough.
Three Heads and Eight Arms, on the other hand, would spike his combat strength to insane levels. That was the kind of edge that might let him carve a bloody path out of a situation he had no business surviving.
For a last-ditch trump card, it was better than nothing. Much better.
And once he had proper mana in the future, he'd be able to drive the divine power with that instead of his protective talent.
At that point, the side effects would vanish.
With that thought, his mood steadied.
"All right. That just leaves the Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Barrier and the Purifying Glazed Bottle."
"System, claim both refining methods."
The impact almost knocked him off his feet.
A tidal wave of information slammed into his mind, far denser and more complex than the Iron-Beaked Divine Eagle method by several orders of magnitude.
His thoughts scattered; his vision spun.
He had no idea how long it took before he could finally drag in a lungful of air and sit up, sweating, heart thumping.
"Bloody hell. I got careless."
"Taking in the Divine Eagle method and Three Heads and Eight Arms was nothing, and I thought I was fine. But these two… these refinement methods are insane."
Then he saw the System prompt and his eyelid twitched.
[Your cultivation realm is too low. The more advanced sections of the refining methods cannot yet be received. You have currently received only the foundational portions. Please raise your cultivation before claiming the remaining content.]
Theodore stared.
…?
Seriously?
Too weak to even collect his rewards?
Was the Great Desolation's hierarchy really this strict?
Grinding his teeth, he forced himself to scan the basic parts he had received.
"Fine. Let's see what's so incredible about you two that just reading the manual nearly scrambled my brain."
The first foundational law unfolded in his mind. Then the second.
He went completely silent.
"…"
"Samadhi True Fire."
"Three Lights Divine Water."
He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"You call these the basic parts?"
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios