When that ancient voice echoed through the Chamber of Secrets, alarm bells instantly rang in Lucien's mind.
The Heir of Slytherin!?
Was it because he was about to use Magic, and the surge of magical power had triggered the enchantments within the Chamber of Secrets?
A contingency left behind by Slytherin to protect his heir?
Lucien made his decision instantly. His left hand exerted force as he viciously stabbed the Diary with the Sword of Gryffindor.
At the same time, his right hand flickered, and a Thunder Arrow wrapped in purple-blue lightning shot toward Tom at an almost imperceptible speed.
Plans could not keep up with changing circumstances. He needed to cripple the Heir of Slytherin first!
Whoosh!
The black smoke surrounding Tom suddenly transformed into eerie green flames. Just as the flames were about to strike Lucien, they collided head-on with the lightning arrow.
Thunder and fire clashed, triggering a violent explosion.
Tom had already prepared himself to endure the pain of his Horcrux being attacked.
But the soul-piercing agony he expected never came.
Furthermore, Tom sensed that the force resisting the green flames had suddenly weakened greatly.
As the light from the colliding Magic faded, Tom looked closely.
Lucien had vanished.
The silver sword piercing the Diary had disappeared as well.
The joy of surviving flooded Tom's soul entity, and an unconscious smile spread across his face.
"Ancestor, you ultimately protected your descendant and punished the Mudblood who dared to strike against your heir!"
Tom turned to look at the statue standing against the wall of the Chamber of Secrets.
The statue was nearly as tall as the chamber itself, with a face like an ancient, decrepit monkey and sparse whiskers that dragged along the floor.
Salazar Slytherin.
One of the Four Founders of Hogwarts, the founder of Slytherin House, a legend of that era, and a master of powerful Dark Arts... it was Salazar who had left behind the Chamber of Secrets and the Basilisk, waiting for the appearance of his heir.
He himself was also the ancestor of the Gaunt family. Tom's mother bore the surname Gaunt, meaning Tom also carried the blood of Salazar Slytherin.
Fifty years ago, Tom had discovered the Chamber of Secrets, entered it, and inherited Slytherin's legacy.
In terms of bloodline, talent, knowledge, character, and every other aspect, Tom considered himself the most suitable Heir of Slytherin.
Although Tom had never heard that voice when he first came here years ago.
But it did not matter. Perhaps the eruption of massive magical power, or perhaps the danger Tom had just faced, had triggered the magical safeguards left behind by Slytherin.
Filled with joy, Tom reached down and picked up the dragon blood that had fallen onto the ground, checking the remaining amount. After confirming there was still enough left, he let out a sigh of relief.
Walking over to the cauldron that had not been affected, Tom prepared to complete the final step of the Potion.
Plop.
The vial containing the dragon blood slipped from his hand once again, and the bright red liquid spilled across the floor.
Tom stared at his translucent hand in disbelief. It was fading and disappearing at an astonishing speed.
"No..."
The moment he uttered that word, Tom's entire soul entity suddenly grew dim.
A faint red glow emerged from his chest and shot into the eye of the Slytherin statue like a crimson meteor.
Tom reached out, trying to grasp that final trace of vitality, but he was too slow.
Before his vision completely faded, Tom looked toward the Slytherin statue with eyes full of confusion.
Tom's soul entity fully dissipated, leaving behind only a tiny wisp of black mist that trembled as it was sucked back into the Diary.
The next second, a pale blue orb of light emerged from Lockhart's forehead. Lockhart had long since collapsed onto the ground, and the orb also flew into the eye of the Slytherin statue.
Light flashed before Lucien's eyes.
A moment later, all he could see was white. Endless, pure white.
Having suddenly appeared in an unfamiliar space, Lucien's first reaction was to cast layers of Protective Charms around himself.
Shield Charm, Impedimenta, Lightning Armor...
The moment Lucien finished casting them, he immediately attempted to call Lumen and teleport away from this place first.
Clap, clap.
The sound of applause suddenly came from behind him.
"Excellent reactions. Good awareness..."
A faint voice followed the applause.
However, Lucien's figure flashed away. The instant the clapping began, he had already Apparated.
Reappearing in another direction, Lucien frowned slightly.
There was no issue with his Apparition, but why could Lumen not appear?
There was not even a response from it.
Lucien stared toward the place where he had originally been standing. There was clearly nothing nearby, yet the voice had unmistakably come from there...
The vortex within his pupils rapidly expanded, dyeing his dark green eyes completely black as he pushed the Eye of Peering Magic to its limit, trying to capture even the slightest trace of the unknown presence.
"Interesting eyes, but still not enough..."
This time, the voice sounded from behind him again.
Lucien did not hesitate. Brilliant lightning burst from the tip of his wand and expanded wildly in every direction with him at the center.
Yet within Lucien's perception, there was no sign that he had struck anything tangible.
Was the opponent simply too fast to evade?
This strange and inexplicable space... could it really be Magic left behind by Slytherin?
Suddenly, an absurd thought flashed through Lucien's mind.
Driving his magical power, Lucien withdrew the lightning and let it circle around his body before slowly speaking:
"Salazar Slytherin?"
Lucien's voice echoed endlessly throughout the space.
"I have finally waited for another worthy heir..."
After an unknown amount of time, the voice sounded once more. It was ancient beyond measure, exactly the same as the one Lucien had heard in the Chamber of Secrets.
A figure gradually condensed into existence before Lucien.
The figure gave Lucien a slight nod, seemingly sizing him up.
"Hmm, a Ravenclaw..."
But when the figure's gaze swept across the Sword of Gryffindor in Lucien's hand, the voice paused.
"You. Which House do you belong to?"
Within the pure white space, the figure standing before Lucien gradually became clear.
It was a tall, middle-aged man with silver hair and green eyes, dressed in an intricate and luxurious black robe, observing Lucien with great interest.
His eyes were extremely peculiar. Snake-like vertical pupils flickered with an eerie glow.
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