Damon walked through the Albanian forest, a wary expression on his face. It was too quiet here, as quiet as a dead place.
It reminded him of a terrible horror movie he'd seen in his previous life. The protagonist also lived in an extremely quiet atmosphere, but that was because any sound would attract monsters—the monsters in this forest, perhaps, Voldemort and his servant Nagini?
"Specialis Revelio"
—silver dust burst from the tip of his wand, like falling fireworks, countless silver stars coating the magic within a hundred meters with a silver coating.
Damon closed his eyes and stood in the center of the woods, sensing every possible trace of magic—and then he discovered that traces of Nagini were everywhere. He even found a snake skin.
Voldemort had left this place, but before he left, he had not erased any trace of it.
"Did something happen beyond our control? Could it be that Lao Fu is truly dead?"
Damon frowned, finally stopping before a pale patch of ground. Unlike the black, deathly stillness of the surrounding area, everything within ten meters was pale: bare branches, the gray earth, and the scales of numerous vipers.
Damon pondered for a moment, then continued to wave his wand. The magical information floating in the air was gathered, gradually forming the traces of a powerful spell.
The spell's name was unknown, but Damon could roughly grasp its effect. It involved the disintegration and reconstruction of the mind and soul, a truly top-notch Dark Magic. Only Voldemort could possibly manipulate the soul to such an extent.
"Voldemort reconstructed his soul?!"
Upon reaching this conclusion, Damon was genuinely surprised—not by Voldemort's superior spellcraft, but once again by the noseless monster's senseless behavior.
Having split his soul into seven, rendering him half-human and half-ghost, it's doubtful whether Voldemort's mind and spirit were still intact—oh, then perhaps his actions were understandable.
The soul is a complex entity, one that even the most powerful alchemists dare not touch without authorization—Damon didn't know the specifics of what Voldemort had done to his soul.
But he was certain that the Voldemort he had once encountered was indeed dead—even if his body and memories remained, once his soul had been reconstructed, it would be a completely new entity.
Combined with the awakening of Harry's soul fragments, Damon had a theory: Voldemort must have fragmented his main soul to awaken the other Horcruxes.
But this raised a question: when Damon destroyed the diadem and the golden cup, he couldn't fake the wail of the Horcruxes being destroyed, meaning he had indeed killed the souls within them.
"Is it because Harry himself is a living Horcrux, making him special? Or have the other Horcruxes undergone changes I'm unaware of?"
Damon's brows furrowed slightly at this thought. Fortunately, he'd already destroyed three Horcruxes. Otherwise, in the worst-case scenario, wouldn't he have to face seven Voldemorts simultaneously?
"Nagini, as a living being, is in the same situation as Harry's. So—did Nagini awaken Voldemort's consciousness and take Gaunt's ring? Has Voldemort returned fully as a separate soul?"
The thought made Damon feel a little apprehensive—but it didn't matter. He had help.
"Fawkes, is the teacher available now? Please ask him to come here."
The Phoenix Feather Ring ignited again, and the clear sound of a phoenix echoed in Damon's mind.
"Pop."
With the sound of the explosion, Dumbledore emerged from it. A trace of fatigue and lingering worry crossed his brow. Perhaps the old man had discovered something, but hadn't yet shared it with Damon.
After all, Damon White only needed to luck out and discover a Horcrux, while Albus Dumbledore had much more to consider.
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"What have you discovered?"
Dumbledore wasn't particularly surprised to see Damon here, but he sighed with mixed feelings. Even without Damon, his sense of justice would still drive the young man. This was Damon White, a figure he both loved and feared.
"Voldemort is dead, but Voldemort has also been resurrected."
"What do you mean?" Dumbledore's brow furrowed.
He had explored this place before, and his understanding of the soul-reforming spell was even deeper than Damon's. Dumbledore concluded that Voldemort had fragmented and transferred his soul.
But he couldn't understand why Voldemort would do that. He didn't believe Voldemort truly wanted to die; there must be some other conspiracy.
"The original Tom Riddle is dead, but perhaps fifty years ago, perhaps even earlier, depending on his age when the Horcruxes were created.
In any case, Voldemort's souls within the Horcruxes should have been awakened, including Harry and Voldemort's servant Nagini."
There was a gap in information here.
Damon hadn't told Dumbledore that he already knew about the seven Horcruxes, and Dumbledore had already shared his findings with Damon.
Thanks to Damon's help in destroying the diary and the diadem, Dumbledore had a deeper understanding of Voldemort's thinking—the conceited Dark Lord would only create Horcruxes that belied his status or held special significance.
Therefore, Dumbledore had actually discovered five of the seven Horcruxes, leaving the locket and the cup unconfirmed. However, his discovery of nothing at Gaunt's mansion left him doubting whether Gaunt's ring was a Horcrux.
"All the remaining Horcruxes? Five?"
Dumbledore's expression was serious—he and Damon were thinking the same thing.
If the two of them faced one Voldemort, no matter how hard he tried, he wouldn't be able to make a dent. But if they were to face five, the situation would be quite dire.
Voldemort was a conspirator by nature, and with five such evil beings lurking in the British wizarding world, Dumbledore had little confidence he could prevail, even with Damon's help.
"No, I guess that apart from Harry and Nagini, the other souls are in a dormant state - or need to be manually awakened.
But what is certain is that Nagini should have a soul of Voldemort - a soul that inherited Voldemort's thoughts and values at the time, but it is definitely not the Voldemort of today."
Dumbledore's expression did not become relaxed, but more serious - "I am afraid this will be even worse."
"When he was young, he had a cruel personality but was more patient. Apart from some deviations in magical attainments, this soul is even more difficult to deal with than the current Voldemort."
"Things are complicated!"
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(End of this chapter)