In the blink of an eye, the snake had lost its life, but not a single drop of green liquid seeped from its mouth.
It dispersed like a dandelion seed, its flesh and skin transforming back into silvery-blue light, gathering in the air.
Vizette cast his magical eye, looked at the silver-blue light, and called out to it.
As expected, these lights were also ancient magical forces, and they immediately responded, flying into "The Wizarding Manual" and merging with one of its pages.
That was the first ancient magic Vizette acquired, and the magic that saved him and Luna: Ancient Magic: Shield.
The original knight statue shattered completely, and a new statue slowly rose.
The statue depicts an elderly man holding a heavy book, sitting on a throne, with a large, venomous snake coiled around it.
The moment the statue appeared, the effect of the modified Lights Out spell vanished instantly...
Just as Vizette looked at the statue, the statue slowly turned its head and looked at him!
The statue's gray eyes were surprisingly bright and piercing, sparkling with extraordinary wisdom and profundity.
The old man statue seemed to come to life, putting down the book in its hands.
His granite-colored body quickly faded, revealing a healthy glow on his skin, and his beard and hair turned a smooth, glossy silver-white.
The serpent statue seemed to come alive, winding its way into a long staircase.
"It's been so long since I've seen the Eye of Magic..."
The old man's tone exuded composure, and the years had etched many wrinkles on his face, each one seemingly telling a legendary story.
He slowly stood up, his medieval dark green robe trailing to the ground, the silver embroidery along the hem faintly visible, radiating a dignified luster.
The old man's silver-white hair moved on its own without wind, flying wildly behind him, exuding a sense of unruliness.
"So you are the new Guardian? What's your name? You seem to be new to Hogwarts. Which house are you in?"
...
"Ravenclaw? His name is Vizette Lovegood... He seems like a diligent student and knows how to apply his knowledge flexibly, not bad!"
These few words, seemingly just the old man talking to himself, sent a chill down Vizette's spine.
Without a doubt, from the moment Vizette and the old man locked eyes, the old man had already cast Legilimency.
The passage just now was simply the old man asking a question, and Vizette thinking of the answer in his mind, which was then read aloud.
Vizette's soul labyrinth had achieved some success, even managing to hold off Voldemort for a moment, but he never expected the old man to see through it at a glance...
Who exactly is this old man?
Is this old man a ghost or a spirit?
"You may have heard of me." The old man's lips curled into a smile. "Salazar Slytherin, the founder of Slytherin House."
Vizette murmured. Since the old man was Salazar Slytherin, it didn't seem so surprising that he could see through him.
The library contains a lot of information about the history of Hogwarts, including a mention of the Sorting Hat, a key magical artifact.
It is said that the four founders endowed the Sorting Hat with different abilities, with Salazar granting it Legilimency, which is the fundamental reason why the Sorting Hat was able to split into houses.
The fact that the Sorting Hat's Legilimency has been maintained to this day suggests that Salazar's mastery of this magic has reached its pinnacle.
Salazar stroked his beard. "The method of constructing a soul labyrinth is indeed interesting... but that's all it is."
"But I am standing above the maze, so the maze's twists and turns are naturally ineffective against me. I can freely see what you are thinking."
"Furthermore... you are still fixated on the soul, but you don't realize that it, like the body, is merely a deeper shell... there is something even more important within that shell."
Vizette's eyes lit up. "Headmaster Slytherin, may I ask if it's... appropriate for me to address you like this?"
"I know what you're thinking… As a Ravenclaw, you naturally wouldn't hide your thirst for knowledge," Salazar said in a deep voice.
"Since you are the new guardian, you will surely cross the threshold of the soul and understand those more profound secrets, so why rush things?"
"As long as you make more use of ancient magic and collect more ancient magical power, you will understand all of this sooner or later. As for the name... you can call me whatever you like."
Vizette touched his nose sheepishly. "In that case, I'll call you 'Headmaster Slytherin'!"
"Actually, I have a question. You keep mentioning the term 'Guardian,' including the 'Guardian Meditation Method' that I know..."
"What exactly is this so-called 'Guardian'? Do I need to shoulder some kind of responsibility?"
"Oh? You've only just become a Guardian, and you're already thinking about taking on responsibilities?" Salazar raised an eyebrow. "That's not something you need to worry about right now."
"There is only one thing you need to do now—study and strengthen yourself! So-called responsibility is nothing but an illusion. Every action of the guardian will eventually have an impact on the magical world."
Salazar's eyelids were lowered, and he spoke seemingly casually, yet he naturally exuded a calm and confident demeanor.
His last sentence, in particular, filled Vizette with an indescribable sense of arrogance.
"Is it enough to just study and strengthen yourself?" Vizette stretched out his palm and then clenched his fist.
He suddenly thought of the history of Hogwarts. Could it be that the four founders... were all guardians?
If we bring this hypothesis into history, it perfectly explains what Salazar said—that the effects would eventually reach the magical world.
"That interpretation is also acceptable." Salazar stood with his hands behind his back. "Just like the people who guided us in the first place…"
"He didn't tell us what responsibilities we would have to shoulder. We just went with the flow, did what we wanted, and worked together to build Hogwarts."
Vizette looked into Salazar's eyes, his grey eyes revealing an extremely complex light.
This may be related to the history of Hogwarts. Salazar disagreed with the other three founders due to differences in teaching philosophy, and subsequently chose to leave the school.
This disagreement is related to the current "pure bloodline theory".
Salazar believed that children from pure wizarding families were more reliable, while Muggle-born children might betray Hogwarts because of their blood ties.
"I still believe this idea is correct." Salazar narrowed his eyes slightly. "This is the wizard, Vizette!"
"If a wizard cannot uphold his beliefs, then he is not worthy to be called a wizard! Perhaps you could call it fanaticism, and that description... is quite accurate!"
"So-called belief is the path to the top of magic. If the belief wavers, it means that the path has diverged, and it will take more time to climb to the top."
"Therefore, sticking to your beliefs and walking the path you believe is right is more important than so-called objective 'correctness'..."
...
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