Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Water Margin

Chapter 201 Scarface Man Invites Himself to Prison

Chapter 202 (4k long chapter) Scarface Man Indicts Himself and Goes to Prison

Newt then instructed Harry that the magical creature they were about to face was no ordinary being, and that if he felt he was in trouble, he should call for help immediately.

Harry laughed loudly, "Sir, don't underestimate me! It's just a horned, furry beast. I have my own methods; what's there to be afraid of?"

Newt just shook his head without saying a word, then turned and walked back to the stands.

With a light tap of his wand, the suitcase clicked open, and a rustling sound came from inside, like thousands of scales rubbing against each other, making one's teeth ache.

The students in the stands couldn't contain themselves any longer, all craning their necks to get a clear look.

Even the referees leaned forward, their necks craning like geese.

No sooner said than done! Suddenly, a head the size of a water vat squeezed out of the box!

The severed head was deathly pale, as if covered in frost; its disheveled hair was as black as withered weeds; its eyes were as white as glass, rolling around wildly in their sockets, shooting out two sinister and malevolent beams of light. Its mouth and nose were so crooked that it resembled a demon that had escaped from the palace of the King of Hell.

The enormous head actually emerged from that tiny leather suitcase; it was truly bizarre and grotesque.

The moment the man's head appeared, the stands erupted in chaos, as if an old hunter had shot through a hornet's nest, with all the students discussing it animatedly.

Hermione slammed down her binoculars, exclaiming incredulously, "What the hell? Harry's going to be facing a half-giant?"

Ron, perched atop the willow staff, peered into the distance and exclaimed, "It's not that small! That head looks bigger than a pure-blooded giant's!"

As the two were discussing, the creature in the box slowly revealed its true form.

The first head that emerged suddenly shot upwards, causing the leather at the top of the box to burst open with a creaking sound, and then a second head suddenly emerged from the crack!

Upon seeing this, the students gasped in astonishment. Even Kakarov, who was leaning back in his chair, sat bolt upright, rubbing his eyes as if he were seeing things.

The enormous monster continued to struggle outwards, and with a series of "plop plop" sounds from inside the box, like ripe melons falling to the ground, seven more heads emerged one after another.

Each one had a blue face and fangs, with disheveled hair, and a ferocious appearance that would frighten anyone out of their wits.

Those nine human heads were connected to the bodies of green-scaled snakes, their scales as large as millstones, many times larger than the snake monster in the secret chamber that year.

Once the monster had completely broken free of the cage, its nine heads were raised in unison, and its eighteen poisonous eyes darted around wildly, scanning the surroundings like a horde of ghosts eyeing a feast.

Such a terrifying sight would make even the most monstrous creature, capable of sucking away souls, pale in comparison!

Those in the stands who were timid only glanced at the scene before feeling a chill run from the soles of their feet to the top of their heads. Before they could even utter a sound, they collapsed to the ground, limp and weak.

Those who were still conscious were all trembling, their faces ashen, and their teeth chattering incessantly.

When Furong, who had just bandaged her wounds and forced herself to return, saw this, she was so shocked that she dropped her magic wand to the ground without even realizing it.

Although Harry was not a learned man, he had seen the name of this creature in books and was naturally aware of the ferocious reputation of this ancient monster.

Far from being afraid, the scarred man's eyes blazed with madness. He twirled his wand in his hand and roared:

"You wicked monster! Do you know your grandpa Harry?! Take this curse!"

The sound still lingered in the air when a streak of crimson light, like a shooting star chasing the moon, struck straight for the head of the vicious man in the center!

When the cursed light struck, the demon leader in the center neither dodged nor avoided it, but simply opened its huge mouth and swallowed the cursed light whole.

But a gurgling sound could be heard in his throat, as if he were chewing, and finally he swallowed it down with a "gulp".

"What the hell is this thing?!" Karkaroff was so shocked that his hair stood on end. He suddenly leaped up, his wand already in his hand.

"Mr. Scamander! You'd better tell me this thing is just scary to look at!"

Dumbledore also lost his composure, and with a light wave of his wand, a magical barrier instantly surrounded the arena. He then turned back and said seriously:

"Newt, could you tell me about this magical creature?"

"It seems to be even rarer than a phoenix."

Newt stared at the nine-headed monster for a long while before saying, "It's called Xiangliu, a very ancient and magical creature. Its blood permanently pollutes the land, and its saliva contains even greater toxicity than that of a basilisk."

"But why does it have a human face?" Maxim's lips were clenched tightly, his face ashen. "Can this kind of creature really be killed?"

"Thousands of years ago, there was a shaman in China named Yu who killed Xiang Liu."

Upon hearing this, the faces of the referees all changed.

The last person to kill this magical creature lived thousands of years ago?

What's the difference between that and no one ever killing this human-headed snake?

Nakarov removed his hat, turned and bowed to Scamander. "Please forgive my disrespect towards you a few hours ago, Mr. Scamander."

"Now I believe that when you set up the challenges for the warriors, you absolutely did not favor Hogwarts."

Dumbledore, his white eyebrows furrowed, his gaze fixed on Xiang Liu, who was fighting Harry in the arena, finally turned his head and asked:

"Newt, why choose such a dangerous magical creature as Harry's trial?"

Newt remained silent for a long while before raising his head and saying, "Because Mr. Potter is too strong."

"Ordinary magical creatures are simply not qualified to be his opponents, so how could they possibly show us his courage?"

Upon hearing this, Dumbledore felt that the reasoning was sound, but he dared not relax his vigilance in the slightest, fearing that Harry might suffer misfortune if he was not careful.

He sighed almost inaudibly, "This rare and magical creature is far too dangerous. Perhaps a dragon would be better."

Hagrid's ears twitched behind him. Hearing Dumbledore's intention to go easy on him, he remembered what Dumbledore had said when he took Harry to see the dragon the previous night, and immediately shouted:

"Professor Dumbledore, that's an insult to Harry!"

Dumbledore sighed again, saying that Hagrid had spoiled Harry so much that he was no longer the same as before.

He didn't argue, but simply nodded, "You're right, Rubeus."

Karkaroff, upon hearing this, was so shocked that his eyelids twitched wildly, and he cursed inwardly: "These lunatics at Hogwarts! They're completely out of their minds!"

While thinking about it, he moved the stool he was sitting on a little further away.

Meanwhile, in the arena, Harry was wielding his wand and locked in a fierce battle with Xiang Liu.

This Xiangliu was tens of feet tall and had nine heads, making it look as bulky as a mountain. Unexpectedly, when it moved, all nine heads attacked at once, as swift as the wind and as fast as lightning, without the slightest clumsiness.

Seeing that ordinary methods were ineffective, Harry steeled himself and unleashed all his most treasured ancient spells. The spells were filled with magical light, each a deadly attack aimed at vital points.

If Rowena were to see it in person, she would surely praise him, saying, "He's ready to graduate."

The students in the room held their breath and watched intently. Seeing this display of skill, they realized that Harry had only used three-tenths of his strength when he sparred with them.

The judges on the panel whispered amongst themselves, for they had never witnessed Harry cast a spell. Maxim also changed his tune, saying that Harry might have a chance of winning.

As the saying goes, "Success comes from secrecy, failure from leaks." Before Maxim could finish speaking, Xiang Liu suddenly raised all nine of his heads, spewing out a foul, pungent stench.

The evil wind from the Cult of Charms blew, causing the body to veer off course by three inches. In an instant, nine bloody mouths opened wide, and emerald snake tails slithered, closing in on Harry!

Harry waved his wand again, and a golden barrier suddenly appeared, blocking Xiang Liu in front of him.

The beast crashed into the barrier but wasn't angry. Its eighteen eyes seemed to be nailed to the wall, all staring at the locket around Harry's neck, completely stunned.

Harry snorted and unleashed another vicious curse aimed directly at the snake's face, yelling, "You rascal! What are you looking at?!"

Xiang Liu winced in pain and retreated slightly. Suddenly, nine faces contorted with lewdness, nine bloody mouths rising and falling, spitting out incoherent, snake-like words.

"Give me……"

"...Mother snake..."

"It's mine..."

"A good container..."

Upon hearing this, Harry immediately realized that the creature it was referring to was Nagini.

At that moment, a fierce and malevolent aura surged to the heavens, and an unnamed fire burned through his meridians. He wished he could devour its flesh raw and roared in a ferocious rage:

"You castrated beast! How dare you covet my sister!"

"I swear I will kill you!"

In a flash, it transformed into a mirage, spewing out a cloud of mirage energy. In an instant, the clouds surged, obscuring Xiang Liu's nine heads and leaving him utterly bewildered.

The students in the stands, witnessing this change, erupted in a clamor that shook the rooftops.

Hermione's face turned deathly pale, and when she met Ron's eyes, both of them looked horrified.

Karkarov was like a needle stuck in a needle's eye; he leaped up, his eyes bulging almost out of their sockets.

"What the hell?!"

"This is Animagus?!"

"It can even transform into magical creatures?!"

Dumbledore remained silent, his brows furrowed in a frown. He glanced sideways and caught sight of Fudge on the high platform, his face flushed, gesturing wildly and pointing incessantly at several officials behind him.

Newt stared blankly at the mirage for a long time before snapping out of his daze and muttering:

"There's an Animagus that can transform into a magical creature... I should have borrowed an even more dangerous one..."

Before the words were finished, the nine heads of Xiang Liu suddenly started biting each other, startling the middle school students in the stands who gasped in shock.

Nine human heads with interlocking fangs were seen tearing and biting each other, their black blood splattering like spilled ink.

The ground, stained with this foul blood, immediately corroded patches of scorched earth, and the stench soared to the heavens. The inky, poisonous stains spread everywhere as if they were alive.

The nine heads, jolted awake by the pain, suddenly raised their heads and began spewing poisonous saliva in all directions.

Seeing the fierce approach of Xiang Liu's clear saliva, Harry quickly transformed back into human form.

He raised his wand and chanted a spell at the bloody wound on Xiang Liu's neck.

Although Xiang Liu was tough and had magic resistance, the tender flesh of his new wound was exposed, so he dared not be careless and hurriedly shook his body to dodge.

Harry, however, remained calm and raised his wand into the air, unleashing "Ripple - Sky Piercer!"

A dozen or so white beams shot out from the tip of the staff, like shooting stars chasing the moon, heading straight for Xiang Liu's neck wound.

Even if this beast has nine heads and eighteen eyes, how can it withstand such a dense rain of curses? If you're not careful, one of its heads will be severed.

With a deafening roar, the head exploded into pieces.

Black blood and bits of flesh splattered onto the barrier Dumbledore had created, and spread out on their own, instantly weaving a murky red and black dome that obscured the view of the scene.

Newt, who had witnessed everything, clutched his disheveled hair and lamented, "Merlin's beard is missing a head! How am I going to explain this to everyone?!"

Hagrid, however, clapped his hands and laughed to himself, "I knew Harry could do it! That willow tree can't stop Harry from getting the golden egg!"

However, after waiting for a long time, no one heard Ludo announce the end of the match, nor did they hear any shouts of victory from Harry.

Only the endless wailing of Xiang Liu could be heard from within the blood barrier, and the deafening roar of the magic spells could be heard like thunder.

A thought flashed through Newt's mind, and he jolted awake, leaping to his feet in a panic and screaming at the top of his lungs:

"Mr. Potter! Harry! Don't kill it!"

"This is borrowed!"

"Borrowed—cough cough! cough cough cough!"

Just then, Ludo, standing on tiptoe on the high platform, called out:

"Ah! Mr. Potter has caught the golden egg!"

In an instant, cheers erupted from the stands, like the surging tide of the Qiantang River. But then the stench of Xiang Liu's blood and filth assaulted the air again, and the cheers turned into a chorus of retching.

But thousands of spectators covered their mouths and bent over, and those who did not know the situation thought it was a horde of corpses passing by. It was truly a case of: the cheers had not yet subsided when the vomiting began, and the fragrance of musk suddenly met with rotten abalone.

Dumbledore flicked his wand, and the blood-stained barrier vanished.

Harry stood there, staff in hand, his feet resting on the golden egg, alone on this sacred ground. Below him, Xiang Liu was already decapitated, his nine heads reduced to a pile of gruesome, mangled flesh.

Upon seeing this, Newt's face drained of color, and he staggered back three steps before collapsing into his chair. His eyes were empty and lifeless, as if his soul had departed.

Dumbledore patted him on the shoulder and said gently, "Calm down, Newt."

"I think my old friend Liu Tao would be willing to put in a good word for you."

Newt paused for a moment, then asked in surprise, "Is Mr. Liu still alive? I haven't heard from him in decades."

Dumbledore paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Of course, although he has some minor mental issues, he is much healthier than I am."

"I guess he'll be able to attend my funeral..."

Before the two finished their conversation, Harry, without even looking at his score, strode out of the arena with his golden egg, his clothes billowing in the wind, and disappeared into the distance.

As soon as Harry left the exit, a wizard was already waiting for him. He hurriedly presented him with a ring knife, arm guards, and various magical implements.

Just as they were getting ready, they heard footsteps approaching from behind. Turning around, they saw Ron and Hermione catching up with them.

Before Harry could speak, Hermione pounced on him like a whirlwind, pressing her hands against his shoulders and gritting her teeth.

"Harry! What are you thinking?!"

"Didn't you see Fudge is here too?"

"You are an illegal Animagus! And thousands of people saw it—you were going to Azkaban!"

"Please, Hermione, don't make Harry anxious." Ron looked at Harry and reassured him, "Don't worry, being an Animagus isn't a big deal. At most, he'll be locked up for half a month."

Seeing their worried expressions, Harry laughed and said, "Sister and brother, there's no need to worry. I saw Fudge there before I transformed into a mirage."

Hermione, always quick-witted, rolled her eyes and exclaimed in surprise, "You did this on purpose? You want to go to Azkaban?!"

"Mr. Potter."

Just then, a shout came from behind the three people. Fudge, beaming, approached with three or five officials from the Ministry of Magic.

"I think we need to talk about your illegal Animagus."

(End of this chapter)