What met Char's eyes at this moment...
was an island with a completely different shape from any he had seen before.
"Judging by the looks of it—
"Is this a volcanic island?"
Char's nose twitched slightly.
He seemed to faintly smell sulfur wafting from the waters below.
The temperature of this sea area was also noticeably higher than in other regions.
All these signs indicated that...
this was not only a volcanic island formed after a volcanic eruption...
but also one that hadn't been formed very long ago.
It was a relatively "young" island.
Even the volcano beneath it might not be completely dormant, still emitting heat.
Char's expression brightened with joy.
A volcanic island—this was an extremely special environment.
Higher temperatures and humid air from the sea created a unique hot and humid climate.
It was very suitable for the growth of charati grass and many magical Herbology.
Additionally, the soil formed by the deposition and solidification of volcanic ash...
was often rich in nutrients.
Combined with the use of fattening Potions...
it could optimize the planting effect of the soil.
Even if it was still far from comparing to the Greenhouses of Hogwarts...
it would surpass most other soils.
Most importantly, the ecosystem on a volcanic island was relatively simple.
This would minimize interference from other vegetation.
It was practically like a "natural Greenhouse."
Compared to the alternative locations Char had found in the nearshore waters before...
the conditions of this volcanic island were absolutely far superior.
This filled Char's eyes with pleasant surprise.
His luck on this exploration to the North Sea was truly good.
Such a discovery right after entering the area.
Having found this volcanic island, there was no need to bother searching for other islands.
This island was currently the most suitable place for him to cultivate and plant.
No other place came close!
He marked the location of this volcanic island on the map.
Char noticed that this volcanic island wasn't on the original map.
"It must be because this island formed recently."
"The Magical World's maps haven't been updated in a long time."
"So this island isn't on the map yet."
"In other words, I might even be the first Wizard in the Magical World to discover this island."
Char wrote a name in his notebook.
"For now, I'll name it Sprout Island."
Then...
Char descended towards Sprout Island.
If he didn't find any other issues...
then he would definitively decide to plant charati grass and other magical Herbology here.
Soon...
Char, having landed, picked up a handful of soil.
His eyes grew even more surprised.
The formation time of this island was even later than he had anticipated.
It was estimated to have formed no more than fifty years ago.
For an island, it was indeed very young.
At this moment...
Char's mind recalled a rumor Professor Sprout had once mentioned to him.
It was about an extremely rare magical Herbology.
"cinderbloom fern."
"A magical plant rumored to only appear in areas after a volcanic eruption."
"Approximately thirty to fifty centimeters tall, its leaves display deep red and inky black spiraling patterns, with an obsidian-like luster, and its roots are encased in a translucent crystalline sheath that refracts light to form a faint iridescence."
"When it matures, it blooms with molten-gold sporangia at its tip, emitting a reddish glow like sparks."
"This plant is lauded as beautiful as a gem."
"It also possesses unique magic and is an essential ingredient for some ancient Potions."
"However, due to its extremely stringent growth requirements, cinderbloom fern has only a slight chance of appearing in volcanic regions that have erupted within the last fifty years."
"Therefore, even many Herbology Masters rarely see it in their lifetime."
Char's eyes showed a hint of anticipation.
This volcanic island seemed to meet the growth conditions for cinderbloom fern.
He wondered if such a magical plant would be growing there.
Given the rarity of this item, if he could find a way to successfully cultivate it, it might be of a higher grade than most of the Herbology he currently possessed.
Additionally, both Professor Sprout and Snape...
would undoubtedly be very interested in this rare Herbology.
Thinking of this...
Char ascended again.
Riding his Nimbus 2000, he circled above the island.
By now, night had completely fallen.
The sea was deep and dark, like a monster devouring light.
And the sky, due to the perpetually bad weather near the North Sea, was covered in dark clouds.
Neither starlight nor moonlight could penetrate the cloud layer.
The world was plunged into darkness.
But this, in turn, allowed Char's Platinum Grade Night Vision to be utilized to its fullest.
Everything before him was clearly visible down to the finest detail.
Even individual magic particles of varying colors and properties were distinctly presented before his eyes.
These magic particles primarily emanated from the ocean.
Most of them came from common algal magical plants.
The remaining small portion came from some magical creatures living in the ocean.
But they were mostly plankton and small animals.
Char carefully scanned the sea surface.
He didn't find any valuable traces.
As for the volcanic island before him...
it was even more desolate.
Char couldn't see any magic particles at all.
Clearly...
the island must have formed recently.
There were simply no magical creatures or magical plants inhabiting it.
As for cinderbloom fern, he couldn't see any sign of it either.
This made Char shake his head slightly.
"That's right."
"cinderbloom fern is so rare."
"Even with the conditions of a volcanic eruption, it's not guaranteed that cinderbloom fern would grow here."
"Aunt Sprout said that many Herbology experts spend their entire lives searching volcanic regions around the world for cinderbloom fern."
"Even so, most of them still never see a trace of cinderbloom fern in their lifetime."
"I've only just seen one volcanic island, and to expect to find cinderbloom fern, the probability is still too low."
Even so...
Char lowered his altitude again.
He circled the island once more, to avoid missing anything.
And shortly after...
Char indeed discovered something he hadn't noticed before.
In the central uplift of the island...
among the rugged volcanic rocks...
there was a fissure, about three to four meters long and wide enough for two people to enter.
Its depth was unknown.
The smell of sulfur Char had detected seemed to emanate from within.
His heart stirred slightly.
"Could this fissure lead to an area closer to the volcano's crater?"
"If so..."
"The probability of cinderbloom fern growing there would be higher."
Looking at the dark fissure...
If it were anyone else, they might hesitate or be afraid.
But Char, possessing Platinum Grade Night Vision, was not afraid of such an environment.
Moreover, he also possessed Legendary Life-level heat resistance.
A volcanic environment, to him, was like returning home.
A few toxic gases, in the face of Legendary Life, were like a gentle breeze.
Therefore...
A moment later, Char gripped his wand tightly, his nerves taut.
He entered the fissure.
Fortunately, there were no magical creatures living within the fissure.
There was no risk of sudden attacks.
However, the further down he went, the stronger the smell of sulfur became.
The air also carried increasingly dry and hot waves.
The temperature had probably soared to nearly fifty degrees Celsius.
Yet, for Char, this was no problem at all.
Soon...
The narrow fissure suddenly opened up.
An underground grotto appeared before Char's eyes.
On the ground in the very center of the grotto, a faint reddish glow was visible.
Char observed for a while.
His expression became clear.
"That central area should be the passage leading to the underwater volcano."
"However, after the volcanic eruption, the lava here began to solidify first."
"And so, this landscape was formed."
A strange light flashed in Char's eyes.
"So, logically, the probability of cinderbloom fern growing here would be much higher than on the island's surface."
With a hint of anticipation...
Char's gaze shifted, and he began to survey the underground grotto.
Immediately after...
His breathing suddenly caught.
His gaze abruptly locked onto a crevice in the grotto.
A faint, dim molten-gold color was vaguely visible there.
Char's heart pounded faster.
He immediately rushed over.
What met his eyes were leaves interwoven with deep red and inky black, shining with an obsidian-like luster.
And also the rhizomes encased in crystalline sheaths.
The plant before him, rather than being called a plant...
was more like a living gem.
This was precisely the cinderbloom fern that countless Herbology Masters rarely saw in their lifetime!
But a moment later...
Char's eyes showed a hint of regret.
He had arrived too late.
This cinderbloom fern before him had almost completely lost its vitality.
The gemstone's luster had dimmed.
It had only not turned to ash because the environment within the underground grotto was stable.
But with just a gust of wind...
it would likely shatter.
Then...
Char's gaze, filled with regret and pity, fell upon the molten-gold color at the tip of the cinderbloom fern.
This was where the entire cinderbloom fern had retained its last trace of vitality.
Those were the spores it was nurturing.
And as Char's gaze fell upon them...
a line of reward information simultaneously appeared before Char's eyes.
[You have obtained cinderbloom fern Spores]
[Successfully planting cinderbloom fern Spores will grant rewards: Flame Enhancement (Gold Grade), Charm Enhancement (Silver Grade)]
[Cultivating cinderbloom fern to maturity will upgrade the rewards to: Flame Enhancement (Platinum Grade), Charm Enhancement (Gold Grade), a very small amount of Gubraithian Fire magic insight (Bronze Grade)]
Char's eyes suddenly lit up.
These rewards were indeed a bit higher than he had anticipated.
After cultivating it to maturity, he could actually receive Platinum Grade rewards?
Moreover, the content of these rewards was extremely practical.
Flame Enhancement?
Many destructive spells in the Magical World were related to fire.
The most famous among them, of course, was Fiendfyre.
And Dumbledore's signature Charms—Firestorm.
These fire-based spells also shared a characteristic: a large area of effect.
And this was precisely the magical attack method Char currently lacked the most.
Sectumsempra was purely a single-target attack.
Serpensortia was more about conjuring venomous snakes for entanglement and harassment.
It could not be relied upon for area-of-effect attacks.
If Char could obtain this Platinum Grade Flame Enhancement reward...
and combine it with any simple Fire-Making Spell or similar magic...
it would be enough to compensate for another of his current shortcomings.
Furthermore, the Dragon Fire ability he had previously obtained from the blood emerald also fell within the scope of fire.
The power of Dragon Fire, a trump card that could be used for surprise attacks, might greatly increase.
When it truly came to using Dragon Fire to turn the tide, his chances would be even greater.
Besides this...
the Charm Enhancement reward, though it seemed unrelated to magic...
Char thought about it.
Lord Voldemort's rise to power, in addition to his own powerful magical talent...
that charm capable of bewitching hearts also played a monumental role.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to extract the method for creating multiple Horcruxes from Slughorn.
Improving in this aspect would still be beneficial.
As for the final Gubraithian Fire insight, it made Char narrow his eyes slightly.
Gubraithian Fire, also known as Eternal Fire...
was also an extremely ancient fire magic.
It had appeared in the original work.
It was said that currently, there were very few Wizards in the Magical World who could use Gubraithian Fire.
Dumbledore was one of them.
This showed how extraordinary this fire magic was.
Char took a deep breath, his mood improving from finding this cinderbloom fern spore.
However, very quickly...
Looking at the condition of this spore...
Char's expression became serious.
This spore was likely already on the verge of death.
If it weren't for the fact that it could still slowly emit a few magic particles...
Char would probably have thought it was truly dead.
"Fortunately."
"There's still a last trace of vitality."
"As long as there's vitality, there's still hope."
Char carefully removed the spore.
Then he took an cinderbloom fern leaf closest to the tip and wrapped the spore in it.
He planned to take it back to Hogwarts Castle.
With Professor Sprout's Herbology expertise, it might be possible to revive this spore and cultivate new cinderbloom fern.
This was certainly much better than traveling the world to volcanic regions to try his luck.
If he could truly cultivate cinderbloom fern in batches...
Char's fire magic would definitely advance by leaps and bounds.
Immediately after...
Char, with his current gains...
flew out of the fissure.
However, before he even reached the surface, he heard angry shouts and the sound of Charms exploding from outside.
Char's pupils contracted slightly.
He immediately slowed down.
He looked out from within the fissure, secretly observing the situation.
Outside, in the sky...
Tonks, riding her broomstick, weaved back and forth between spells.
Opposite Tonks, on a flying carpet, sat a figure wrapped in bandages.
Char recognized him at a glance.
"Porgie Chalman?"
Char's heart skipped a beat.
He hadn't expected this fellow, after suffering such a loss in the Little Greenhouse...
to actually follow him to the North Sea?
A cold glint flashed in his eyes.
Char didn't believe Porgie Chalman was there to escort him.
His intentions were already clear.
At this moment...
Tonks, while dodging spells...
also let out a cry of disbelief.
"Porgie Chalman!"
"Are you insane?!"
"You're stalking and following, and you're attacking a Ministry of Magic Auror trainee."
"Stop now, or else when you're caught, you'll face the punishment of being locked up in Azkaban!"
To Tonks's questioning...
Porgie Chalman let out a sickly laugh.
His laughter was full of sinister madness.
"Then it's fine if I'm not caught, isn't it?"
"On the vast open sea, if something unexpected happens to you, you fall into the sea, and your bodies are never found."
"Isn't that a very normal thing?"
"Who would think I did it?"
Then...
It seemed that continuously waving his wand caused him a bit of pain.
Porgie Chalman snapped his fingers.
The next moment...
A loud bang immediately sounded.
The house-elf, whom he had previously whipped to the brink of death, appeared, bloody and mangled.
Its eyes, looking at Porgie Chalman, were filled with terror.
But it could only bow.
"M-Master—"
Porgie Chalman pointed at Tonks opposite him and said...
"I order you to entangle that woman."
The house-elf breathed a sigh of relief.
It was good that he wasn't going to hit him.
As for entangling a young Wizard like Tonks...
Even if the other party was a Ministry of Magic Auror trainee, having undergone strict training...
it wasn't too difficult for a house-elf.
The next moment...
The house-elf snapped its fingers.
A surge of magic acted upon Tonks's broom.
The broom began to bump and sway, making Tonks feel like she was on a roller coaster.
Her originally precise counter-spell also lost its aim.
"Bastard!"
Tonks cursed angrily.
Porgie Chalman, however, was very pleased with this.
He let out a low chuckle on the flying carpet.
"You know what?"
"Even such lowly beasts have their uses, don't they?"
"Alright, now that that little boy doesn't have you, an Auror trainee, to escort him..."
"And this isn't Hogwarts, there aren't those damned Professors and that damned Dumbledore nearby."
He gripped his wand tightly.
The flying carpet flew in the direction where Char had disappeared.
Porgie Chalman's expression was twisted.
"I'm going to finish him off with my own hands!"
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