Halloween at Hogwarts was a spectacle. A thousand live bats fluttered near the enchanted ceiling, and the feast included enough sugar to send a giant into a diabetic coma. Zhang Ming, however, picked at his food with clinical detachment.
Nutritional value: negligible. Magical residue: chaotic. The sheer waste of magical energy on decorative bats is… impressive.
His internal critique was interrupted by Professor Quirrell, who burst into the Great Hall, his turban askew, screaming, "TROLL! IN THE DUNGEONS! THOUGHT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW!"
He then promptly fainted. The performance was so over-the-top that Zhang Ming almost applauded. He's laying it on a bit thick, isn't he?
Panic erupted. As Dumblediore's voice boomed, instructing prefects to lead students back to their common rooms, Zhang Ming's [Myriad Celestial Mechanism] pinged.
[Alert: High-level deception detected. Quirrell's bio-signs indicate simulated panic.]
[Analysis: Diversion. Target: Third-floor corridor. Objective: Philosopher's Stone.]
[Secondary Alert: Large magical creature signature detected. Not in dungeons. Moving towards… the girl's bathroom on the first floor.]
The bathroom?Zhang Ming's eyes narrowed. Hermione.She'd been upset after a run-in with Ron earlier and hadn't come to the feast.
As the crowd surged towards the exits, Zhang Ming grabbed Harry and Ron by their collars. "Change of plans. We have a rescue mission."
"A rescue? Who?" Ron yelped.
"Hermione. The troll isn't in the dungeons. It's heading right for her."
Without another word, Zhang Ming cut through the panicking students like a hot knife through butter, dragging the two boys with him. They rounded a corner and were hit by a smell like a public toilet that had been used to compost rotten eggs. And there it was.
Twelve feet tall, with dull, granite-gray skin, a small, stupid head, and legs like tree trunks, the mountain troll was lumbering down the corridor. It stopped outside the girls' bathroom, raising its massive club.
From inside, they heard a terrified scream. Hermione.
"Bloody hell," Ron whispered, face pale.
"W-what do we do?" Harry stammered, fumbling for his wand.
Zhang Ming sighed. "We conduct a field test. Observe."
He stepped forward, completely calm. The troll, sensing movement, turned its dull eyes towards him and grunted, raising its club for a crushing blow.
"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry shouted, his spell bouncing harmlessly off the troll's thick hide.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Ron tried, his voice squeaking. The troll's club didn't budge.
"Ineffective," Zhang Ming stated, as if grading a paper. "The Body-Bind Curse lacks the penetrative force. The Levitation Charm requires a clear, non-resistant target. Your approach is fundamentally flawed."
The troll swung its club. Zhang Ming didn't dodge. He simply raised a single hand.
THWUMP.
The club connected with his open palm. The impact echoed like a gong, but Zhang Ming didn't move an inch. A faint, golden shimmer surrounded his hand. The troll stared, confused, as its club was stopped dead by what looked like a tiny, fragile human.
"Lesson one," Zhang Ming said, his voice perfectly even. "Overwhelming force is meaningless without proper grounding. Your turn."
He looked at Harry and Ron. "Apply the principles from our training. Don't forcethe magic. Channelit. Feel the energy. Shape it with intent."
The twins, Fred and George, who had sneakily followed them, watched from behind a statue, eyes wide. "Blimey, he's giving a lesson mid-troll fight!" George whispered.
"Shh! This is better than the feast!" Fred hissed.
Taking a deep breath, Harry closed his eyes for a second, remembering the 'Qi Sensing' exercises. He didn't shout. He pointed his wand, not at the troll, but at the club. He imagined the energy not as a spell, but as a precise, cutting force. "Diffindo!"
A sharp, much finer and brighter blade of magic shot out. It didn't bounce. It sliced clean through the club's handle, sending the heavy end clattering to the floor. The troll stared at its now-useless stick.
"Excellent control, Harry!" Zhang Ming praised. "Precision over power."
Emboldened, Ron stepped up. He focused, feeling the 'buzzing pool' in his stomach. He didn't want to lift the troll. He wanted to unbalance it. He waved his wand in a sharp, jabbing motion. "Flipendo!"
The Banishing Charm hit the troll's knee not as a blunt push, but as a precise, localized shockwave. The creature roared in surprise and pain as its leg buckled, sending it crashing to one knee.
Suddenly, the bathroom door opened. A tear-streaked Hermione emerged, wand drawn. She saw the scene: the disarmed troll, her friends fighting, and Zhang Ming observing like a professor. Her fear vanished, replaced by academic fury.
"You brute!" she yelled. She didn't just shout a spell. She visualised the energy forming a complex, restraining pattern, just like the theory Zhang Ming had discussed. "Incarcerous!"
Thick ropes, glowing with a steadier, stronger light than the spell normally produced, shot from her wand, wrapping tightly around the stunned troll, pinning its arms and tying its legs together. It toppled over with a ground-shaking thud, trussed up like a Christmas turkey.
Silence descended, broken only by the troll's muffled grunts.
"Outstanding application of magical theory, Hermione," Zhang Ming said, nodding approvingly. "You three just demonstrated a perfect tactical takedown. Teamwork. Control. Efficiency. Twenty points each to Gryffindor."
At that moment, the staff arrived. McGonagall, Snape, and Quirrell (who had miraculously recovered) skidded to a halt, wands raised, expecting a disaster.
They found a tied-up troll and four first-years (plus two hiding Weasleys) being debriefed by a calm Zhang Ming.
"…and that, children, is why understanding fundamental energy principles is superior to blindly reciting incantations," he finished.
"What is the meaning of this?!" McGonagall gasped, her hand over her heart.
Quirrell's eyes bulged as he saw the captured troll, a flicker of pure rage visible for a split second before he started stammering again. Snape's dark eyes swept over the scene, lingering on the cleanly severed club and the unusually strong binding ropes, then on Zhang Ming. His expression was unreadable, but there was a new, deep respect in his gaze.
"Professor," Hermione spoke up quickly. "I went after the troll myself. Harry, Ron, and Zhang Ming came to save me. They… uh… managed to overpower it."
Zhang Ming gave a slight, approving nod. Loyalty was also a valuable trait.
Dumbledore, who had arrived last, twinkled at them. "A remarkable feat for first-years. Fifty points to Gryffindor for sheer dumb luck… and remarkable courage." His blue eyes, however, were fixed on Zhang Ming, full of knowing amusement. "And ten points to Ravenclaw, Mr. Zhang, for… supervising."
As the teachers led the stunned troll away, the group was left in the corridor. Ron was beaming. Harry looked proud. Hermione was already analyzing what they could have done better.
The twins popped out from behind the statue. "That was bloody brilliant!" Fred exclaimed.
"Sign us up for your next 'field test', professor!" George added, giving a mock salute.
Zhang Ming allowed himself a small smile. The troll was a minor nuisance. But the result was priceless. His students had passed their first practical exam with flying colors. And the entire school would soon hear about it.
The legend of the Science and Cultivation Research Club had just begun.