Chapter 142. Purification
Brewing the Purification Potion was exceedingly complex and took several days.
Fortunately, everything went smoothly, and the week before Hallowe'en, Wesson successfully finished the Purification Potion.
This time, the potion's golden hue was a shade paler; Wesson guessed it was due to an insufficient quantity of golden apples.
After all, last time he had added two whole golden apples.
However, so long as it worked the same, that was all that mattered.
Now, he could finally deal with the Horcrux in his possession—Tom Riddle's diary.
Drawing on his previous experience, Wesson chose to carry out the procedure before the Tree of Wisdom, making it easier for the Tree to process the soul fragment within the Horcrux.
At dusk, after Lupin got off work, Wesson set a small table before the Tree of Wisdom and placed the Purification Potion and the diary on it.
Until now, Wesson had never once opened that notebook, because he had no desire to converse with a teenage Tom Riddle.
Even a teenage Voldemort could not be presumed harmless.
The best way to handle it was to say nothing and destroy it outright.
"Let's begin."
After a deep breath, Wesson slowly poured the Purification Potion over the diary.
The moment the potion touched the cover, it seeped in by degrees.
For a while, the diary showed no response.
Just when Wesson thought the potion might have failed to take effect, the diary suddenly began to shudder violently, flipping itself open and emitting a shrill, piercing screech.
The pages writhed and twisted, squirming like a living thing.
Clearly, the potion was working.
Suddenly, the diary sprang wide, and a billow of black mist gushed out.
The scene mirrored exactly what had happened when Ravenclaw's diadem was purified.
Though Wesson had prepared himself, he couldn't help a flicker of tension when the black smoke appeared.
The Voldemort inside the diary was still very young—but even so, he was highly dangerous.
The black mist twisted and coiled in mid-air, gradually condensing into a handsome, black-haired youth.
Wesson knew that was Voldemort in his younger years.
Unlike before, this time Tom Riddle's features were very distinct, and a dangerous light flashed in his dark eyes.
"Who are you?" he asked coldly, fixing Wesson with his gaze. "What have you done?"
Clearly, he realised he'd been forcibly expelled from the diary by a power from outside.
It was a Horcrux, after all.
Even he himself did not know how to separate a soul fragment out of a Horcrux again.
But why would Wesson answer him?
The more said, the more variables.
Wesson smiled faintly. "Have a guess?"
The words had barely fallen when a great shaft of green light lanced from the Tree of Wisdom and, in an instant, engulfed Tom Riddle's insubstantial form.
"No! This is—" Riddle's features contorted as he screamed, earsplitting. "What have you done!?"
He tried at once to flee the green light.
Unfortunately for him, the Tree of Wisdom's beam was far faster.
Riddle's body writhed violently in the green glow, beginning to melt like a wax figure under heat.
Watching Riddle's ceaseless struggling, Wesson couldn't help smiling.
This soul fragment seemed stronger than the last; that one had been drawn in by the Tree of Wisdom almost in an instant.
Whereas this Tom Riddle had already held out for nearly ten seconds.
Of course, no matter how he struggled, it was pointless.
Here, on the turf of Wesson and the Tree of Wisdom, he could stir no great waves.
"You will regret this..:::" Riddle's voice began to distort, hair-raising to hear. "I've remembered you."
"Is that your last line? Hilarious. Sir, you ought to say something more useful, not this nonsense."
Wesson shrugged and brought a touch of pressure to bear on the fellow before him.
After today, this soul fragment would cease to exist—what use was there in remembering him?
Perhaps only after the real Voldemort's resurrection would he learn of this.
However, with Wesson's interference in the plot as it now stood, whether Voldemort could successfully return was still in question.
Riddle no longer bothered with Wesson's mockery and suddenly fell quiet.
He had realised that struggling was useless and only made him look like a clown performing on a stage.
The green light blazed brighter; Riddle's silhouette crumbled bit by bit, like sand scattered by the wind.
[Sir, the purification has concluded.]
Before long, the Tree of Wisdom's words sounded in Wesson's mind.
"How's your growth progress, Eldra?"
[I feel excellent, sir.]
[Name: Eldra (Tree of Wisdom)]
[Species: Oak]
[Level: 5]
[Traits: Object Analysis, Soul Link, Purify Souls, Energy Amplification, Ravenclaw's Wisdom]
[Status: Growing (77%)]
With the growth progress up to seventy-seven per cent, Wesson nodded to himself.
In truth, he now had a small conjecture about the Tree of Wisdom's growth conditions.
From what he knew, he had already confirmed two ways to greatly accelerate the Tree's growth.
One was to absorb powerful souls—that is, things like Voldemort's soul fragments.
So far, the Tree of Wisdom had only shown interest in Voldemort's soul fragments.
The other was to absorb powerful magical artefacts, such as the Philosopher's Stone and Ravenclaw's gem.
Therefore, if Wesson wished to continue advancing the Tree's growth, there were two paths to pursue.
The first was to keep seeking Voldemort's Horcruxes and absorb the soul fragments within them; the second was to search for all manner of powerful magical artefacts.
The former required no explanation—even for the sake of curing his sister's illness, he would do it.
As for the latter, powerful magical artefacts were hardly common; his only clear targets next were the treasures left by Hogwarts' four founders.
Gryffindor's sword, Hufflepuff's cup, Ravenclaw's diadem, Slytherin's locket.
Of these, Ravenclaw's diadem was already in his hands.
After absorbing the soul fragment from the diary, the Tree of Wisdom would need time to process it into pure soul power and fix it onto one of its leaves.
Wesson could only wait patiently.
After checking the Tree of Wisdom's status, Wesson turned his gaze to the notebook.
By now, the notebook had lost its Horcrux properties and become nothing more than an ordinary study tool.
Wesson took a quill and wrote a few words in the notebook.
Naturally, nothing happened; it was, after all, an ordinary notebook.
But to be safe, Wesson still planned to take the notebook somewhere secure and destroy it completely.
Like this story Leave a review ; it would really help me out a lot.
Want to Read Ahead in Advance?
Join my Patreon!
+75 Chapters
Support me in
Patreon.com/BestElysium