hotmtlnovel Chapter 223 A Great Power from the East Arrives from Afar
Chapter 223 A Great Power from the East Arrives from Afar
Chapter 223 A Great Power from the East Arrives from Afar
It should be noted that Harry and Salazar had previously made a pact to find the Deathly Hallows, and now that the matter was settled, the Scarface was eagerly coming to claim his reward.
Salazar remained silent, only glancing at Ron beside him.
Ron was sensible; he called Hermione and left.
"Come on, Hermione, Mr. Salazar is going to have another private conversation with Harry."
As the two figures disappeared behind the pillars, Salazar pondered and said, "The Roman Empire."
Harry, completely bewildered, frowned and asked, "Why are you bringing up the Roman Empire?"
"They previously said the master craftsman who made the locket was clearly a powerful figure from the East, so what does he have to do with this damned Rome?"
“Yes, how did an Easterner come to the West?” Salazar looked at Harry seriously and said, “That’s the way he came.”
After he finished speaking, the drawing paper rolled up on its own with a "whoosh" and went straight into Harry's robe.
Harry, however, was no slowpoke. He grabbed the drawing paper, ripped it open with a jerk of his arms, and roared, his eyebrows furrowed, "Brother, what a fine deal! You let me observe that old wand for half an hour, and now you want to dismiss me after just mentioning its name!"
"Even the matchmakers in Bianliang who put up posters aren't as cunning as you!"
Salazar, however, remained unperturbed, letting Harry tear at him, his face as calm as a still well, and simply said, "This is an equal exchange."
"The value of observing the Elder Wand is indeed considerable, but it pales in comparison to the information related to him."
Seeing that Salazar had made such a point, Harry stopped pressing for answers and simply kept this crucial detail in mind.
In the following days, Dumbledore asked Snape for ten bottles of Truth Potion, intending to use them to interrogate Barty Crouch Jr.
Moreover, Dumbledore had long ago instructed his men and women to suppress any information about this case. The few people in the secret room that night who knew about it all looked as if they had pincers in their mouths.
Not only was it not reported to the Ministry of Magic, but it was also kept completely secret from Old Barty.
After all, they still needed to find out where Voldemort was lying in ambush with Harry, and if the news leaked out, they might alert him.
No matter how much medicine they administered, or how thoroughly they interrogated the man until he was nearly dead, they couldn't extract a single useful piece of information. It was as if the stone had sunk into the sea, leaving no trace whatsoever.
Seeing that it wasn't the boss, Harry's anger gradually cooled down.
From then on, he stopped going to the interrogation room and instead went to the library to look for geographical maps and search for the old traces of the Roman Empire.
He carefully examined the forbidden book section and indeed found a book that recorded the history of the world and the rise and fall of dynasties.
Upon closer inspection, it became clear that this Roman Empire resembled the ancient state of Fusuan, as recorded by people during the Song Dynasty.
Seeing that things were starting to look promising, Harry's spirits soared, and he even skipped his elective classes to begin searching.
When you don't look at it, everything is at a standstill; but once you do, it's dazzling!
What about the Eastern Roman Empire, the Western Roman Empire, and then there's the Holy Roman Empire, the Republican Roman Empire—the names are numerous and as tangled as a mess.
Harry, enraged by the Romans, cursed Theodosius I in his heart, thinking him utterly senile and senile.
What an impregnable empire, yet it insisted on splitting it up and passing it on to two sons, resulting in such a fragmented and chaotic state for posterity, with countless descendants to count.
No matter how remote or hidden a bird may be, if it does anything good or bad, it will always raise the tattered flag of "Roman orthodoxy".
If you look closer, Rome is as numerous as the stars in the sky.
Harry patiently sorted out the various Roman empires according to their Gregorian calendar dates, only to discover that the Eastern Roman Empire, later known as Byzantium, existed concurrently with the Song Dynasty emperor.
He paused for a moment, then asked in a low voice, "Brother, when you mentioned Rome the other day, were you referring to the Eastern Roman Empire?"
After a long silence with the drawing paper in his arms, Salazar said decisively, "I don't know."
"I don't care about the Muggle dynastic changes; back then, everyone called it the Roman Empire."
This sentence ignited Harry's anger, and he cursed inwardly: What bad luck! How am I supposed to tell which Rome it is when you speak so vaguely?
Even if the Eastern Roman Empire is indeed identified, with its territory spanning two or three million miles, where can I find the route taken by that great being from the East?
It is just as the saying goes: "Looking at flowers through the fog is always one layer away; where can one find them in the vast sea and boundless sky?"
Harry said irritably, "If it were my sister Rowena, she would have told me all these tricks of the trade the first time we met."
"Why beat around the bush like my brother, dragging things out year after year, leaving me anxious and uncertain?"
Just then, a man burst into the restricted section, ignoring all rules of quiet, and shouted from three rows of bookshelves, "Harry! Professor Dumbledore wants you in the Great Hall!"
"He said he'd score the warriors' performance in the second event of the Triwizard Tournament!"
Upon hearing this, Harry threw the map he was holding onto the table, exclaiming in surprise, "Could it be that old man Karkaroff has taught them to find it?"
Colin shook his head vigorously, his face a mixture of excitement and confusion, and said urgently, "But I didn't see Karkaroff. Durmstrang's students are still being led by Professor Lockhart."
"So I think it's possible that Professor Dumbledore found a new referee."
Upon hearing this, Harry's curiosity was piqued, and without further hesitation, he and Colin hurried towards the Great Hall.
When they arrived at the hall, it was already packed with people.
Not only Hogwarts students, but also the groups of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons were all present.
Looking again at the professors' table, four referees sat in the center. Beside Dumbledore, a brightly lit, empty chair stood—the very seat Karkaroff used to occupy.
As soon as Harry sat down, the entire room was complete.
Dumbledore stood up, stroked his silver beard, and laughed, "I won't waste time with unnecessary words, since everyone knows what we're here to do."
"First, I must announce some regrettable news: Professor Karkaroff's whereabouts remain unknown."
"In order to ensure the smooth operation of the Triwizard Tournament, we have decided to appoint a new referee to replace Professor Karkaroff."
As soon as these words were spoken, the students in the room erupted in a cacophony of voices, as if boiling water had been poured over it.
"Do you think it's possible that it could be Mr. Scrinker? I think only he could be the judge without any objections."
"Don't even dream about it! How could Fudge possibly agree? Don't forget how he treated Harry!"
"I think there's a high probability they'll invite a sage from Wissengamo—"
As everyone was discussing, Hermione couldn't contain herself any longer and whispered to Harry, "Harry, who do you think Professor Dumbledore will invite?"
Harry pondered, "Of the five judges, three are figures from the British wizarding world. Maxim and Karkaroff have long harbored resentment over this matter."
"The fact that Maxim agreed to allow the new judge to take his seat suggests that he must not be of British descent, which puts her at ease."
The students on both sides nodded in agreement upon hearing this explanation.
Just as everyone was itching to get started, Dumbledore suddenly raised his voice and announced loudly, "Let us welcome Mr. Liu Tao, the former Minister of Magic of China!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the two vermilion doors of the auditorium swung open, and an elderly man with snow-white hair strode in.
Although he was thin and frail, he was as vigorous as an evergreen pine. With a smile on his face, he waved frequently to the students in the hall, showing his approachable nature.
Everyone was amazed to see that Liu Tao had an Eastern face and dressed in a way that was completely different from Western wizards. The students in the hall whispered among themselves and discussed the matter incessantly.
Meanwhile, several students at the Ravenclaw table, upon hearing Dumbledore's explanation, all turned to look at their classmate Cho Chang.
"Qiu, do you know this Mr. Liu Tao?"
"His clothes are so strange—are they the robes of Chinese shamans?"
Qiu Zhang was staring blankly at Liu Tao when he heard the voice. He shook his head with a complicated expression and said, "No, that's a Zhongshan suit, not the everyday clothing of Chinese wizards."
"That's something only important people would wear."
The students around him, not understanding what he meant, continued to chatter and kept asking Qiu Zhang questions.
Then Liu Tao strode confidently to the professor's seat, where Dumbledore had already extended his hand, smiling and saying, "Long time no see, Tao. Thank you for your willingness to help me with this."
"To be honest, I would find it hard to find a more suitable person to be the referee than you."
Liu Tao laughed upon hearing this, grabbed Dumbledore's hand and shook it, "Don't be so formal, Albus."
"The older you get, the more you miss the people and things from your youth. Even if you don't invite me, I will come to England sooner or later to see you, my old friend."
As the saying goes: Parting in youth is no easy task, and reunion in old age is equally poignant. These two greeted each other warmly, arm in arm, chatting and laughing, wishing they could bring out a jar of wine and drink three hundred cups to their heart's content.
Barty Crouch, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but cough lightly after seeing the two talking for so long. He said, "Professor Dumbledore, Mr. Liu, don't forget we still have important business to attend to."
Upon hearing this, Liu Tao suddenly realized, "Ah, that's right, I remember Albus invited me to interrogate him."
Before he could finish speaking, Dumbledore placed his hand on his shoulder and gently continued, "He will serve as the referee for the Triwizard Tournament."
After saying that, he glanced at the two-inch scar on Liu Tao's forehead and sighed, "The war has really ruined you."
Liu Tao laughed heartily without any hesitation, "That piece of shrapnel only makes my head hurt occasionally, it's nothing serious."
Dumbledore, however, remained concerned. "But it's still affecting your brain, isn't it?"
"Heh, most of the damned people are already dead, so it's hard for anything to provoke me anymore."
After the two finished their conversation, Dumbledore smiled and announced the start of the scoring ceremony.
Although Liu Tao did not attend the second match in person, the British Ministry of Magic had already presented him with a stack of documents.
The records are very detailed, not only about the actions of the warriors on land, but also about their various actions underwater. People were sent to interview the mermaids and record everything clearly.
When it came time to score, none of the three warriors, including Krum, scored more than thirty points.
It turned out that before they could even see the treasure, they all fell into the abyss and sank to the bottom of the water. They accomplished little, making it difficult to award them a high score.
After Liu Tao finished scoring the three warriors, he thought the matter was settled and was about to put the document aside when Crouch suddenly turned to him and whispered, "Mr. Liu, there is one more warrior who needs to be scored."
Liu Tao was taken aback. "Why are there four warriors in the Triwizard Tournament?"
These words gave Maxim a perfect outlet for her frustration, and she snorted loudly through her nostrils, causing the wine in her glass to splatter.
"Then you'll have to ask Professor Dumbledore, sir from China."
Liu Tao remained silent, only glancing intently at the fourth person's name. He let out a soft exclamation, then looked up and called out loudly, "Is Harry Potter here?"
"Where is Mr. Harry Potter?"
Although Harry was unaware of the situation, he showed no fear. He immediately stood up, cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, and replied, "That is me! What guidance do you have, sir?"
This startling remark caused Liu Tao to stare at him intently for a long time before turning to Dumbledore, his eyes still fixed on Harry, and whispering, "Albus, now I understand why you told me he was special."
Dumbledore gave a wry smile. "Let's start by assigning scores."
Liu Tao took the document again and carefully read through the excerpt concerning Harry, word by word.
The comments about mermaids were utterly devoid of any kindness; the entire piece was filled with vulgar language and scathing insults.
After reading it, Liu Tao did not hesitate for a moment. He immediately took the magic wand and gave it a perfect score.
After all the judges had finished giving their scores and the totals were tallied, Harry had a total of forty-nine points.
The judges present all nodded after seeing the total, and not one of them raised any objections. Only Maxim snorted coldly, showing slight dissatisfaction.
Based on the current scoring, Harry's total score is more than ten points higher than the second place, putting him in first place.
After waiting anxiously for half a month, the students were overjoyed to finally see such a satisfying ending.
A crowd surged forward like a tide, surrounding Harry as he headed to the Chamber of Secrets to summon his house-elves to prepare a feast and celebrate.
As the students dispersed, the judges on the professors' bench also stood up.
Dumbledore turned to Liu Tao and asked, "Want to go to Hogsmeade for a drink? You should try their specialty, butterbeer."
Liu Tao was about to agree, but a glance at the corner of the professors' table caused his smile to freeze.
It turned out that in that corner was an old man leisurely drinking wine. He was composed and had a natural air about him as he moved his knife and fork.
Liu Tao frowned slightly, and hesitantly asked, "Sir, have we met before?"
When Dumbledore saw that he had his eyes on Grindelwald, his expression changed drastically.
Before he could speak, Grindelwald casually twirled his wine glass, raised an eyebrow, and replied, "This is truly heartbreaking, Liu Tao, you've actually forgotten about me."
"We once competed together for the position of president of the International Federation of Wizards."
Upon hearing this, Liu Tao felt as if struck by lightning in a clear sky, his pupils contracting sharply. The scene of that scoundrel's rampage sixty-two years ago was like steel needles piercing his brain, causing him a splitting headache.
"Everyone! Take cover!"
His kind and gentle demeanor vanished, replaced by a raging demon. He reached behind his waist and pulled out a Type 54 pistol, its muzzle pointed directly at Grindelwald.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"