Boom!
The doors of the Great Hall were thrown open as Professor Quirrell, who taught Defense Against the Dark Arts, rushed in from outside with a panicked expression.
The sight felt strangely familiar to Chu Yang.
"A troll! There's a troll in the underground classrooms!" After shouting that, Professor Quirrell collapsed stiffly onto the floor.
The Great Hall fell silent for about two seconds. Then piercing screams erupted everywhere as the students fled in terror.
"Silence!"
Dumbledore, who had been seated calmly, rose to his feet. His overwhelming presence instantly restored a measure of order to the panicked students.
He spoke slowly and clearly, "Prefects of each year, escort your students back to your house dormitories. The professors will come with me to deal with the troll."
Under Dumbledore's direction, the students exited the Great Hall in an orderly fashion.
Before leaving, Chu Yang deliberately glanced at Professor Quirrell, who was sprawled on the floor playing dead.
He had to admit—the man's acting was excellent.
No one present doubted his timidity or cowardice.
In order to gain experience in Dark Arts, Quirrell had deliberately interrupted his teaching career at Hogwarts and traveled to dangerous regions.
Judging from that alone, Quirrell could hardly be called a coward.
Unfortunately, it was precisely during that journey that he encountered the remnant soul of Voldemort.
Quirrell failed to withstand Voldemort's temptation and ultimately joined him.
He became Voldemort's temporary Horcrux, brought him back to Hogwarts, and attempted to steal the Philosopher's Stone to restore him to life.
In the end, not only did he fail, but he also lost his life.
In Chu Yang's eyes, Quirrell was a pitiful man.
Had he never met Voldemort, he might have become a teacher beloved by his students.
Some once commented that if Quirrell's heart had been firm enough, he would never have fallen to such a fate.
But how many people could truly hold fast to themselves under the temptation of the "Dark Lord"?
Chu Yang looked at him with a trace of pity.
Quirrell planned to create chaos using the troll, then slip off to the hidden chamber on the third floor to steal the Philosopher's Stone.
But a terrifying three-headed hellhound guarded that place, and he was destined to fail.
To be safe, Chu Yang quietly followed behind Quirrell while he was in action.
Meanwhile, on the way to the underground classrooms, Dumbledore sensed that something was amiss. He ordered the other professors to deal with the troll while he alone turned back.
No one believed Dumbledore would retreat out of fear of a troll—something far more important must have occurred.
By the time Dumbledore arrived at the chamber, Quirrell—unable to break through the hellhound's defenses—had already left. Even so, Dumbledore noticed several telltale signs at the scene and immediately became alert.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, I just saw Professor Quirrell come out from inside."
Chu Yang stepped out of the shadows, nearly giving Dumbledore a heart attack.
After steadying himself, Dumbledore immediately asked, "Are you certain it was Professor Quirrell you saw?"
"Yes," Chu Yang explained. "I left a bit later and noticed that Professor Quirrell, who was supposed to be unconscious, quickly departed after you all left. His behavior was extremely suspicious, so I followed him all the way here."
"After Professor Quirrell went inside, there was a great deal of noise. It seemed like something drove him back out…"
Hearing this, Dumbledore's expression grew complicated. Ever since Quirrell returned from his travels, he had felt that something about him was off, but he had never paid it much attention.
Combined with Chu Yang's account, Dumbledore could already guess that the drastic change in Quirrell's temperament was likely due to Voldemort's influence.
Thinking of the fact that Quirrell had once been his student, Dumbledore felt a sharp pang of sorrow.
But he quickly composed himself. Fixing his gaze on Chu Yang, a hint of approval flashed through his eyes.
Not only had Chu Yang keenly detected Quirrell's abnormality, he had also managed to observe his every move without alerting him. Both his mental fortitude and personal ability were truly exceptional.
Over these past few months, Dumbledore had nearly grown accustomed to the surprises Chu Yang brought him. He had almost forgotten that Chu Yang was merely an alternative candidate to the future savior, Harry.
Chu Yang asked, "Headmaster Dumbledore, Professor Quirrell's condition seems a bit… off, doesn't it?"
"He has indeed encountered some problems," Dumbledore replied casually, though he was hesitating over whether he should tell Chu Yang about Voldemort.
After all, Chu Yang had always performed outstandingly—so outstanding that Dumbledore was even tempted to abandon those abstract guiding principles that held little meaning for him and speak more frankly.
Unexpectedly, Chu Yang spoke first, bowing slightly. "In that case, I trust you'll handle these matters appropriately."
Yeah, right—showing my face once in a while is fine, but do you really expect me to go all out against Voldemort for you?
Chu Yang couldn't help grumbling inwardly. At most, he might secretly help destroy one or two Horcruxes. Facing Voldemort head-on? Not a chance.
While Dumbledore was still lost in thought, Chu Yang stepped onto the spiral staircase and quickly disappeared from his sight.
At this moment, Professor Quirrell—having failed to steal the Philosopher's Stone—sneaked back to the underground classrooms.
In front of everyone else, he put on the act of having just regained consciousness.
A troll wasn't particularly powerful—at least, not in the eyes of Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick.
One was Hogwarts' Deputy Headmistress; the other a former champion of the dueling circuit. Forget a single troll—even a whole group would be easy prey.
Quirrell didn't need to do anything at all. Standing to the side and screaming was enough.
That way, he could maintain his image as timid and cowardly.
With a Petrification Charm each, McGonagall and Flitwick completely subdued the troll.
"What a splendid Petrification Charm," the pale-faced Quirrell applauded weakly from the side.
McGonagall shook her head helplessly, seemingly unwilling to exchange words with Quirrell, and turned to leave at once.
Professor Flitwick followed right after, and the two departed the underground classroom together.
Quirrell narrowed his eyes, staring coldly at their retreating backs. Then, Voldemort's voice suddenly echoed beside his ear.
"I need…"
Meanwhile, Chu Yang did not obediently return to the dormitory. Taking advantage of Quirrell's presence in the underground classrooms, he slipped out of the school and headed toward the Forbidden Forest.
Ever since he had transplanted the Whomping Willow into the forest last time, Chu Yang hadn't really gone to check on it. He was curious how it had grown.
At this hour, Hagrid was still on patrol. To avoid him, Chu Yang didn't take the path that passed by the gamekeeper's hut, instead making a slight detour.
The winter night was exceptionally quiet. Aside from the crunching sound of boots on snow, there was almost no other noise.
To be honest, it was pretty creepy.
If Chu Yang didn't possess Observation Haki—making the darkness unable to interfere with his perception—he definitely wouldn't have ventured out this late at night.
Suddenly, a cold wind swept past. Goosebumps rose on the back of Chu Yang's neck, and he instinctively scanned his surroundings, feeling as though something was watching him from the shadows.
His Observation Haki detected nothing unusual. Instead, it was his sixth sense screaming a warning of danger.
The very next second, panicked, terrified neighing echoed again and again through the Forbidden Forest!
"What was that?!" Chu Yang spun around, staring toward the source of the sound—but all he saw was pitch-black darkness.
The cry sounded somewhat like a horse, yet clearer and more piercing.
Though he could sense danger, Chu Yang still decided to investigate. For some reason, the cry kept echoing in his heart, as if it were calling out to him for help.
With a light push, Chu Yang leapt onto a thick branch and began bounding through the trees, moving with the agile grace of a Leaf Village ninja.
If there had been spectators, they would likely have been left staring in disbelief.
Along the way, Chu Yang heard several more mournful cries. He increased his speed again and again.
Finally, beside a lake at the heart of the Forbidden Forest, he saw a cloaked black figure—and a unicorn covered in blood.
The unicorn was still struggling desperately.
But the massive blood loss had caused its mobility to plummet.
As for the mysterious figure attacking it—Chu Yang was all too familiar with that presence.
Professor Quirrell!
Or rather, Voldemort, who had yet to regain a body and could only parasitize others.
Quirrell was merely a temporary Horcrux and a vessel.
"Just my luck…" Chu Yang had just been thinking about avoiding Voldemort as much as possible, yet by a twist of fate he had run straight into him. Truly, destiny had a cruel sense of humor.
The unicorn let out another mournful cry, halting Chu Yang in his tracks just as he was about to turn away.
Since he had already stumbled upon this scene, Chu Yang couldn't very well stand by and watch the unicorn die.
He might dislike trouble and avoid unnecessary conflicts—but that didn't mean he was afraid of them.
"Tch. No classes today, and I didn't even bring my wand."
Chu Yang clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking as he loosened up slightly. Curling his lips, he muttered, "Looks like I'll be playing druid again…"
With that, Chu Yang slammed both hands into the snow. The chakra within him erupted violently, transforming into an inexhaustible surge of power.
"Wood Release: Wood Style—Tree World Wall!"
Between the unicorn and Quirrell, a succession of towering trees and thick vines burst forth from the ground, forming a natural chasm that completely cut the two apart.
The sudden attack startled Quirrell badly. He hurriedly retreated, narrowly avoiding the lush, emerald trees that surged upward.
The unicorn let out a sharp neigh. Its four hooves kicked frantically against the ground as it seized the opportunity to widen the distance between itself and Quirrell, then turned and fled toward the depths of the Forbidden Forest.
Seeing this, Voldemort—barely sustaining himself on unicorn blood—was instantly enraged. He roared furiously into Quirrell's ear, "Who is interfering with me?!"
Hearing his master's furious bellow, Quirrell was both angry and terrified. He turned his head and saw a young man in wizard's robes standing on the opposite side of the small lake.
Both Voldemort and Quirrell were taken aback. How could a boy suddenly appear in the Forbidden Forest?
It was the dead of night, and the forest was pitch-black, where one couldn't even see their own hand in front of their face. Chu Yang hadn't brought a lantern or anything similar, so in the dim light, Quirrell couldn't make out his features.
He could only judge from his build that the intruder was a teenager.
To guard against Voldemort pulling something underhanded, Chu Yang had no intention of engaging them in close combat. Instead, he prepared to use Wood Release to fight Quirrell from a distance.
Separated by the lake, the two faced each other from afar. Though they couldn't see one another's faces, an icy chill spread between them all the same.
Quirrell's cloak billowed as he rose into the air, drifting forward like a specter from a ghost story, charging straight at Chu Yang.
"Too slow."
If it had been Apparition, Chu Yang might have been a little wary.
But floating over at such a leisurely pace might scare children—but using it against him was frankly insulting.
Before Quirrell could get close, Chu Yang rapidly formed hand seals. His arm suddenly swelled, and vast quantities of wooden vines burst forth from it, shooting toward Quirrell in midair.
Wood Release: Great Forest Technique!
Quirrell, who hadn't reacted in time at all, was struck head-on by the massive wood.
His vision went black as he plummeted from the air into the icy lake below.
In truth, Quirrell had been watching Chu Yang's casting movements the whole time. But seeing that the boy hadn't taken out a wand for so long, he assumed the youngster had been scared stiff, so he subconsciously let his guard down.
The result was exactly what one would expect—he got hit.
Beating up Voldemort felt great, but without destroying the Horcruxes, killing him was impossible anyway. Chu Yang was doing this purely to disgust that old bastard.
The lake's surface rippled, but after waiting a long while without seeing Professor Quirrell emerge, Chu Yang stepped closer and used his Observation Haki to probe the lakebed.
Nothing at all…
Quirrell had already escaped using magic.
Chu Yang searched along the lakeshore with his Observation Haki for a while.
Only after confirming that Voldemort and Quirrell had left did he follow the trail of blood the unicorn had left behind, heading deeper into the Forbidden Forest.
If he couldn't find it in time, the unicorn would surely die from blood loss.
And then, everything Chu Yang had done would have been completely meaningless.