The underground chamber fell silent.
The hidden array node no longer struggled.
Under the suppression of Wutu Divine Light and Yimu Divine Light, the originally violent fluctuations gradually calmed.
Roots spread through the surrounding earth.
Willow Immortal's presence became increasingly clear.
Theodore stood quietly at the center of it all.
His attention, however, was no longer on the node itself.
Instead, he was observing the countless threads extending outward from it.
Like spider silk.
Connecting one hidden location after another.
Nine remaining nodes.
Nine future problems.
A faint smile appeared on Theodore's face.
"This really is convenient."
Originally, finding all ten nodes would have taken some effort.
Now?
The first node had practically introduced all of its friends.
How thoughtful.
Theodore reached out and lightly touched one of the threads.
Immediately, a distant image flashed before his eyes.
A corridor.
Then a classroom.
Then an abandoned tower.
The locations vanished as quickly as they appeared.
But Theodore had already remembered them.
Meanwhile, Willow Immortal's roots continued extending through the ground.
Not aggressively.
Not forcefully.
Patiently.
Like a hunter quietly marking territory.
Theodore nodded in satisfaction.
"Good."
A grand array couldn't be rushed.
The strongest formations were never built in a day.
They grew.
Accumulated.
Expanded.
By the time enemies realized what was happening, the cage had already closed.
The Ten Absolute Arrays wanted to descend upon Hogwarts.
Theodore had no objections.
In fact, he hoped they would continue.
The more they revealed, the more he learned.
The more he learned, the stronger the future Wuzhuang Temple Grand Array became.
For a moment, Theodore almost felt sorry for whoever was behind this.
Almost.
At the same time.
An abandoned classroom.
BOOM!
Another ritual table exploded.
Quirrell jumped three feet into the air.
"Again?!"
Smoke filled the room.
Half the candles went out.
The other half burst into green flames.
Voldemort's face appeared unusually dark.
Not literally.
Emotionally.
The Dark Lord was staring at the remains of the ritual.
The silence lasted long enough that Quirrell began considering whether pretending to faint would be safer.
Finally—
Voldemort spoke.
"Good."
Quirrell blinked.
"Good?"
"Excellent."
"Excellent?"
"Outstanding."
Quirrell stared.
Voldemort stared back.
Neither spoke.
Eventually Quirrell gathered enough courage.
"My Lord..."
"Speak."
"May I ask what part of this is outstanding?"
Voldemort scoffed.
"Theodore discovered one node."
"Yes."
"He suppressed one node."
"Also yes."
"He exposed the remaining structure."
"Still yes."
Voldemort spread his hands.
"Exactly."
Quirrell felt a headache forming.
The logic was approaching levels beyond human understanding.
Voldemort continued confidently.
"Theodore believes he has gained an advantage."
"He has."
"He believes he understands the array."
"He kind of does."
"He believes he is disrupting my plans."
Quirrell hesitated.
"He definitely is."
Voldemort waved dismissively.
"Which is precisely why everything is proceeding according to plan."
Quirrell nearly bit his tongue.
At this point he wasn't even sure whether Voldemort believed his own explanations.
The frightening thing was—
He probably did.
Far away in the castle.
The Great Hall buzzed with excitement.
The upcoming Quidditch Friendship Tournament had become the biggest topic in Hogwarts.
Professional players.
Famous teams.
Visitors from outside.
Even first-years couldn't talk about anything else.
At the Gryffindor table, Ron was practically vibrating with excitement.
"They say one of the Chudley Cannons reserves is coming."
Hermione didn't look up from her book.
"The Chudley Cannons have been terrible for years."
"That's not the point."
"It is exactly the point."
Ron looked personally attacked.
Harry wisely stayed out of the argument.
Instead, he examined the willow branch tied around his waist.
Over the last few days, something strange had happened.
The branch had become heavier.
Not physically.
It felt...
Sharper.
Sometimes when Harry held it, he had the bizarre feeling that it wanted to swing itself.
Yesterday it had nearly sliced through one of Fred's prank devices.
Accidentally.
Probably.
Maybe.
Harry wasn't entirely sure.
Across the table, Hermione suddenly paused.
The fire crab pendant hanging around her neck glowed faintly.
"Hm?"
"What is it?" Harry asked.
Hermione frowned.
"Did you feel that?"
"Feel what?"
"For a second..." she said slowly, "it felt like Hogwarts moved."
Ron immediately scooted his chair back.
"Nope."
"What?"
"Nope."
"What do you mean nope?"
"I've learned my lesson."
Ron pointed dramatically.
"Every time one of you says something weird is happening, something weird is actually happening."
That was difficult to argue with.
Elsewhere.
Dumbledore stood atop the Astronomy Tower.
The night wind tugged at his robes.
His gaze swept across the grounds.
Most people saw nothing unusual.
Dumbledore saw something different.
The castle was breathing.
Not literally.
But magically.
Ancient currents of power flowed beneath Hogwarts.
And those currents had changed.
Subtly.
Recently.
As if new roots had begun growing beneath the earth.
The old wizard's eyes narrowed.
He could sense the change.
What he couldn't determine was its source.
That bothered him.
Very little escaped his notice inside Hogwarts.
Yet lately...
More and more things seemed connected to Theodore Snow.
Dumbledore chuckled softly.
"An old mystery solving a new mystery."
Fawkes landed beside him.
The phoenix let out a questioning chirp.
Dumbledore smiled.
"I know."
"He's helping."
The smile faded slightly.
"But I'm becoming increasingly curious about what he's preparing for."
Because Theodore wasn't acting like someone reacting to danger.
He was acting like someone preparing for a war.
The following morning.
Theodore finally emerged from the Room of Requirement.
The moment he stepped into the corridor, several students noticed him.
News traveled fast.
Very fast.
Within minutes, half the castle seemed aware that Theodore Snow had reappeared.
Some wanted advice.
Some wanted talismans.
Some simply wanted to look at him.
To many younger students, Theodore had already become something between a legendary upperclassman and a walking miracle.
Theodore ignored most of the attention.
Until he heard running footsteps.
"Hah!"
Ron skidded around a corner.
"Hah!"
Then another.
"Hah!"
Then Hermione.
Then Harry.
All three looked like they had sprinted through half the castle.
Theodore raised an eyebrow.
"What happened?"
Ron immediately pointed at him.
"You disappeared for over a week."
Hermione crossed her arms.
"You left no explanation."
Harry nodded.
"We thought you were doing something dangerous."
Theodore considered that.
Fair.
"Sorry."
All three froze.
Ron blinked.
Hermione blinked.
Harry blinked.
Theodore had apologized.
That was unexpected.
Theodore smiled faintly.
"I was busy."
Hermione immediately forgot her complaint.
"What were you researching?"
"An array."
"Oh."
She nodded.
Then paused.
Then her eyes widened.
"Wait."
Theodore laughed.
"Later."
Hermione looked ready to explode from curiosity.
Far away.
Deep beneath Hogwarts.
Something moved.
A second node awakened.
Not fully.
Just enough.
Ancient symbols illuminated the darkness.
Tribulation Qi surged.
And somewhere beyond mortal sight—
Something enormous opened its eyes.
A presence.
Ancient.
Malicious.
Watching.
Waiting.
The Quidditch Tournament drew closer.
The Ten Absolute Arrays continued forming.
And for the first time since entering Hogwarts—
The hidden enemy had begun moving before everything was ready.
The board was changing.
The players were gathering.
And the opening moves were finally over.
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