great-warnovel Chapter 29 Fire of Death
Chapter 29 Fire of Death
In the darkness, the ghosts' mournful cries were especially terrifying.
Seeing that the Herbalist professor's protection was in jeopardy, the flying shadows became even more rampant.
"Burst forth a spiritual flame!"
Hermione chanted the incantation in a stern voice, and the Hundred-Legged Wounded Ring of Death Rune appeared in this world for the first time.
A pale flame, as the girl slammed her staff to the ground, suddenly exploded outwards like erupting lava, rushing towards the surrounding ghosts while spiritually avoiding the students.
A blood-soaked, fierce-looking ghost was accidentally touched by the pale flames and let out an even more terrifying scream than before. It scrambled back into the ghost horde and struggled to extinguish the flames.
However, his condition was visibly much weaker.
The Spirit Fire is a flame used to cleanse death in the era before the Golden Tree appeared. The infamous Bird of Death is the guardian of the Spirit Fire.
This is the flame of death. Crossing the curtain to the other shore, one needs this flame for baptism, and for those who linger, it is the most terrible punishment.
The other ghosts sensed the terror of the spirit fire and fled in a hurry before they were even touched.
The flames landed around the students, forming an irregular circle that protected them.
Hermione flicked a flame at the tip of her staff, raising it high above her head. The pale light illuminated the darkness, like holding a torch aloft.
She turned to the men still circling Professor Sprout, her voice icy: "Get out of my way, or die!"
At this moment, she is the embodiment of death.
If the deceased cannot overcome that hurdle on their own, then she will do it for them.
The ghosts surrounding Sprout, fearing the power of the flames, retreated into the air, but still screamed menacingly.
The herbalism professor, now free to speak, looked at Hermione with surprise and concern: "Be careful, kid, don't hurt them. They... they're not usually like this."
At this moment, the other students also realized what was happening, lit their wands, and a large glowing spell completely illuminated the auditorium.
Hermione, holding her staff aloft and burning with spiritual fire to deter the unwilling ghosts, turned and asked, "Professor, what's with these ghosts? Were they at Hogwarts before?"
Sprout hesitated for a moment, then said, "They are people who died at Hogwarts, but because they couldn't decide to continue, they remain in this world."
"But nobody has ever seen them," Harry said, puzzled. Not only first-year students, but even seventh-year students had never seen ghosts at school.
Professor Sprout sighed: "They have a difficult task and don't usually show themselves. In fact, there used to be many ghosts all over the world. In the right place, if a wizard died, he had the right to choose whether to continue or not. But after the world became like this, many ghosts chose to be freed."
She looked at the ghosts lingering in mid-air, menacing and unwilling to leave: "But the ghosts of Hogwarts...bear a heavy burden, they are unwilling and unable to go on."
"So why did they attack us?" Ron asked, still shaken. He had just been nearly grabbed by a ghost with its head hanging from its neck.
"Maybe it's been affected by something." Hermione squinted. She noticed that the ringing in her ears had disappeared since earlier, and the chill that seeped down from the top of her head was gone as well.
Just then, a burst of laughter came from outside, and then a chubby, ball-shaped ghost, accompanied by an unpleasant laugh, burst through the wall and came in.
It seems different from other ghosts, with a stronger ability to interfere with reality. It can arbitrarily overturn plates, lift drinks into the air, and then throw them down.
"Pee-pee!" Sprout called out to him, but the latter did not respond.
"Even Pikachu has been affected?" The fat professor frowned worriedly.
"He's coming." Hermione held up her staff, and the ghost named Peeves began to approach the crowd.
"Boom!" Hermione splashed a handful of flames.
Pee-Pee Ghost was startled, but he was clearly more powerful and special. Unlike the other ghosts, he wasn't afraid; instead, he seemed somewhat enraged.
Hermione secretly gathered her strength. If the small burst of spirit fire couldn't scare the ghost away, she would wait for it to get closer and then unleash a bigger one.
Just as the stalemate was at hand, a phoenix's cry echoed throughout the castle.
"It's Dumbledore! Dumbledore is back!"
In an instant, the faces of both students and professors relaxed, and some children even began to cheer.
As they expected, starting with the phoenix's cry, the ghosts seemed to gradually break free from the influence of madness. They looked blankly at their surroundings and the students below, and then suddenly seemed to be dragged by some force, flying towards the roof and disappearing behind the ceiling, never to be seen again.
"Everyone back to your seats. Professor McGonagall will be back soon." Professor Sprout wiped the sweat from his brow and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"It seems it's all over." Hermione tapped her staff, and the still-burning spirit flames were extinguished one by one, leaving no trace on the table or the floor.
The students looked at her curiously. The ghost, which even the older students found troublesome, was driven back by this girl's flames. Those pale flames, devoid of any warmth, seemed to be the ghost's natural enemy.
"Hey, Hermione, what kind of magic did you just use?" George asked, leaning closer.
"Pale flames, aren't those cool?" Fred chimed in.
Hermione swiped a bowl of pumpkin pudding in and casually remarked, "That's spirit fire. Legend has it that souls that have crossed the threshold of death must undergo its baptism."
"It's never mentioned in the books, and it's not in the library either. It must be some kind of talent of yours!" Percy analyzed with great seriousness. "That's right, you've deflected the Death Curse before, so you must have a deep understanding of death!"
Hermione stopped explaining and let them fill in the blanks. She suddenly realized that Gryffindor really had a high Weasley population. The Gryffindor house only had a few dozen students in the seven years, and there were Weasleys in the first, third, and fifth years. It was said that there were two older brothers, Bill and Charlie, who had already graduated, and a younger sister, Ginny, who would not be enrolling until next year.
In this way, in this desolate wasteland with a dwindling population, the unseen Mrs. Molly is practically a heroic mother.
As McGonagall was lost in thought, she saw the other professors return to the auditorium. They looked rather disheveled, as if they had gone to deal with some problem. Lucius was also at the end of the group, looking quite unwell, probably because he had been surrounded by ghosts in his office alone.
When he saw Draco being attacked and knocked unconscious by the ghost, he flew into a rage, like a venomous snake, spewing venom everywhere.
Hogwarts came to life again, and with slight undulations and tremors, the castle continued its endless advance.
But Hermione didn't care about any of that; her priority was to stuff as many sweets as possible into her mouth before the exhausted Professor McGonagall announced the end of the banquet.