#59 - Section 59

It's just that I'm getting old after all. If I were thirty years younger, I could handle all of this.

"It's quite fulfilling, but it's not easy to practice magic."

Ethan was telling the truth. Although he had obtained the ability to cast spells without being noticed unless witnessed directly, there was no suitable place to practice Fiendfyre.

The commotion caused by this spell was too great. Unless he found a deserted island, but Apparition could only take Ethan to places he had been before, and his proficiency wasn't high enough to go too far.

And Undetectable Extension Charms didn't provide enough space to train Fiendfyre. Whether it was Fiendfyre or Fire-Making Curse, Ethan had tried them long ago. The powerful magical outburst could collapse the space inside.

He really missed the Room of Requirement. It was the eighteenth day of missing it.

Without the Room of Requirement, his strength improvement was much slower.

However, this gave Ethan time to research the alchemical construct creation technique he obtained after getting the Philosopher's Stone, and he even created a prototype.

"I can't help you with that!"

Dumbledore thought Ethan was troubled by the Trace, which prevented him from using magic.

"However, in the coming days, I don't think you'll have to worry about that."

At Nicolas Flamel's place, he could naturally use magic at will. After all, how could he learn alchemy without magic?

Many alchemy techniques require the assistance of magic.

"Seeing that you can't wait, grab my hand now and don't let go."

Ethan nodded to show his understanding and grabbed Dumbledore's hand.

Fawkes also swooped down, glowing with fire, looking like a fireball, and grabbed Dumbledore's shoulder as it approached.

Then the flames spread to Dumbledore and Ethan. Ethan didn't feel the burning sensation of the flames, only a slight warmth.

After the flames completely covered the two, Ethan and Dumbledore disappeared from the spot.

Leaving only the empty villa, unfinished desserts, and half a pot of black tea.

Onyxia had been entrusted to Dennis's care yesterday. They had become familiar with each other during this time. Although she occasionally threw a small tantrum, she wouldn't burn Dennis and the others.

Similarly, he had called his parents to let them know he would be away from home for a while, and a servant would come to clean up the house tomorrow.

Hermione, Cho Chang, and Penelope had all called. Cassandra had sent a letter by owl, also expressing that she couldn't contact him during this time.

More comfortable than Apparition, that was Ethan's first feeling after getting out of the car.

If there weren't so few phoenixes, and Ethan felt he couldn't hook Fawkes, he would have gotten one no matter what.

Observing the surrounding environment, lush trees, dense weeds, and the continuous mountains in the distance, it should be in a valley.

Just not sure if it's the Pyrenees or the Alps.

Underneath his feet was a stone path, the end of which was an ordinary-looking small courtyard.

"I've already written to Nicolas, he knows we're coming today."

After speaking, Dumbledore led the way, and Ethan followed closely behind, not daring to move around.

If you're not familiar with this place, it's quite dangerous. Only heaven knows what a six-hundred-year-old alchemist would turn his home into, especially with so many people coveting his Philosopher's Stone.

If it were a pure wizard duel, Nicolas Flamel might not be strong, after all, his body was too fragile, and this wasn't his specialty.

But if he was given time to set up the field and fight him in his place, probably few in the wizarding world would have the certainty of winning.

They walked all the way to the entrance of the small courtyard, and nothing happened, just like an ordinary family hiding in the mountains.

It wasn't until Ethan and Dumbledore entered the house that they discovered its difference. The interior was expanded with Undetectable Extension Charms, and the space was quite large. The main material of the hall was white marble, the ceiling was nearly ten meters high, and the pillars were engraved with exquisite stone carvings.

On the wall next to them were five paintings. In the paintings were two particularly old people, a man and a woman, each holding a blood-red gem, which was the Philosopher's Stone that Ethan had obtained.

In the paintings, the two old people were getting thinner and weaker in each painting, and in the last painting, it seemed like a gust of wind could blow them away.

Besides that, Ethan also saw some things that only Muggles used, such as stereos, televisions, and refrigerators. But could the television here receive programs?

"Two, welcome to your arrival!"

Just as Ethan was looking around, a voice sounded, and two old people came out from behind the curtain.

Pale hair, loose robes, wrinkled faces, extremely thin bodies, giving people an extremely unhealthy gray-white impression.

The other lady, except for her clothes, was in a very similar state.

If he hadn't been prepared, Ethan would have thought he had seen a ghost.

It could only be said that the effect of the Philosopher's Stone wasn't as great as imagined. Although it could maintain a person's life, the body became more and more fragile.

Ethan had no doubt that if they fell, it wouldn't be as simple as a fracture.

"Nicolas, I have something to do, I'll leave first, this child is in your care."

After the four exchanged simple greetings, Dumbledore left in a burst of fire.

"Ethan, I've heard Albus say that you are a talented young wizard and are quite interested in alchemy. Can you show me your work?"

How to understand the level of an alchemist? That must be to look at his works.

As he got older, Nicolas Flamel also wanted to pass on his alchemy.

Over the years, for the development of Beauxbatons' alchemy, he had donated money and books.

However, none of them could get up.

"Alright, Nicolas!"

"Let the guests sit down first, how can you test them as soon as they arrive?"

Perenelle directly interrupted Nicolas's actions. No host would do such a thing.

Of course, she could also understand Nicolas Flamel's mood. It wasn't easy to find a talented young wizard who was also interested in alchemy.

To be praised by Dumbledore for his talent was no simple matter. The last one she remembered was a person named Tom, and he was doing great now.

"Sigh!"

Looking at the two people sitting on the sofa still chatting about alchemy, Perenelle sighed.

She didn't like alchemy very much, or rather, she was past the age of liking alchemy. She couldn't stand researching alchemy day after day.

By chance, she fell in love with vocal art, and then when opera flourished in France, she became fascinated by opera, which was not comparable to the boring and tedious alchemy.

Over here, Nicolas was asking Ethan about knowledge related to alchemy and ancient runes. The connection between the two was quite close.

If you want to learn alchemy well, you must have a large accumulation of knowledge. This is much more complicated than spells, and ancient runes are extremely difficult to understand. Not to mention understanding them, you have to put in a lot of hard work just to memorize them.

If Ethan only had a superficial understanding of these, he would be quite disappointed. A young wizard with talent but unwilling to work hard in alchemy would ultimately have extremely limited achievements.

Fortunately, Ethan had a good grasp of the basic and advanced knowledge of alchemy and ancient runes. This was also thanks to the buffs being stacked enough, his brain being flexible enough, and his photographic memory, which allowed him to learn so quickly.

Otherwise, it would be extremely difficult for a normal little wizard to memorize the characters, shapes, sounds, and meanings of ancient runes by the end of their first year.

Following that, Nicolas presented several more in-depth questions.

Naturally, Ethan answered everything he knew, sharing all the relevant information he had.

Because Nicolas Flamel would correct some of his mistakes during this process, Ethan certainly wouldn't miss such an opportunity to verify his knowledge.

The more Nicolas tested him, the more astonished he became. Ethan's knowledge was already quite extensive, and now he grasped many concepts with just a hint.

At this point, Nicolas finally realized that Dumbledore hadn't sent him a genius, but a prodigy.

To go further on the path of alchemy, one needs genius-like sharp imagination and creativity, as well as machine-like meticulousness and rigor.

It's rare to find someone who possesses even one of these qualities, let alone both, and is also interested in alchemy. Ethan is the only one he's ever met.

Dumbledore also possesses both of these qualities and is interested in alchemy, which is one of the reasons why they became friends during Dumbledore's student days, but Dumbledore's interest is truly limited.

Chapter 85: The General Principles of Alchemy

"These are two alchemical creations I brought."

One is a ruby necklace enchanted with the Shield Charm, similar to the ring Cassandra gave Ethan for Christmas.

After magic is channeled into it, even a wizard who doesn't know the Shield Charm can automatically generate a Shield Charm for protection.

This is very practical for wizards, as most adult wizards still don't know how to use the Shield Charm, and their defensive methods are simply dodging or trading spells.

The other is a construct, standing three meters tall, made entirely of metal. Its lower body is a huge steel spider with eight long legs like sharp spears, gleaming with a chilling light.

This design allows it to adapt to any combat environment. Except for its inability to fly, it's suitable for all other situations.

Ethan has tried it out, and it can easily climb buildings, although it causes some damage to the buildings it climbs.

The upper body is a burly man with eight arms, each holding an extremely sharp katana.

Moreover, the upper body can rotate 360 degrees, allowing it to face enemies from all directions.

This big guy was only completed two days ago.

The outer metal is made of titanium alloy, which is strong, corrosion-resistant, and heat-resistant. The weight is also acceptable, making it a very excellent metal.

Although the production of titanium alloy is relatively high now, it's still somewhat difficult to obtain in large quantities, as much of it is used in military applications, such as airplanes.

Ethan only managed to get it after asking his father and discovering that he actually had a lot of titanium alloy.

It seems he got it from the dismantled Eastern European hegemon, and he and some friends got a lot of good stuff this time.

However, Ethan didn't ask for specifics.

Later, if he needs more, he can directly have Dennis and the other two get it from the Muggle world. The Imperius Curse and Polyjuice Potion are also quite convenient.

The inside of the titanium alloy is etched with operating circuits using goblin silver, and the core is made from a Thunderbird eggshell selected from Hagrid's gifts, combined with gold.

The core must be made of a material with magical properties to store magic. The Thunderbird eggshell was chosen for this purpose, as it has a great advantage in magic storage.

Gold was chosen for conductivity. Goblin silver is naturally the best, but goblin silver is too expensive to use, and even using it to outline the circuits cost a lot.

Ethan hasn't tested its specific combat power yet, but its impact resistance is very strong.

It's much stronger than the statues and armor in Hogwarts in the original story. After all, those things were easily smashed to pieces by giants during the Death Eater invasion.

Ethan's construct, on the other hand, only leaves a few white marks when Dennis and the others hit it with spells, and it can be repaired easily.

Ethan also used magic to drop a half-ton steel part from a height of ten meters to test its physical resistance. The result was also good. Although it was dented and several legs were broken, it could still move. After being reattached and repaired, it looked as good as new.

After all, a half-ton steel part dropped from a height of ten meters has a considerable impact force. Even a giant would be smashed into a pulp.

Fire spells are also useless against it. Ethan attached waterproof and fireproof charms to it. Even Fiendfyre wouldn't melt it in a short time. Ethan tested it with one of the construct's fingers and it only showed signs of melting after three minutes.

However, the endurance is still a bit short. If the core automatically absorbs the magic dissipated in the air to recover, it takes a day to charge for only five minutes of operation.

But it can't be fully charged in a day. According to the ratio, it takes five days to fully charge, which allows for fifteen minutes of combat.

Overall, it's acceptable and qualified to be compared to XXXXX-level magical creatures.

Nicolas Flamel looked at the big guy Ethan took out, his eyes almost sparkling. It was a brilliant idea with excellent concepts. It would definitely be a great weapon against those short-legged, slow-running wizards.

His own magical puppet could completely outperform this guy in terms of functionality, but in combat, his own magical puppet would be completely crushed. Nicolas Flamel had the insight to see this.

However, he should look at Ethan's necklace first. Good things come to those who wait. There will be enough time to study it later.

"Standard alchemical tool, solidification of spells, amplification and stabilization of ancient runes, and the conduction of magic is also very good. It can be called a masterpiece."

Although this necklace is ordinary in Nicolas Flamel's eyes, it is definitely a very sought-after item in the outside world, and there wouldn't be too many of them.

The fact that Ethan, who just finished his first year, can make this Shield Charm protection necklace shows that he is not just talking on paper.

Even without that big guy, just looking at this proves that Ethan really knows the alchemical knowledge he demonstrated in the previous tests.

As for the construct, Nicolas discussed it with Ethan. Alchemy is not a solitary pursuit. Ethan shared his ideas and concepts, and Nicolas proposed improvements and some of his own conjectures.

Among them was the ability to load magic onto the construct. Nicolas's magical puppet could release simple magic.

There was also the addition of logical thinking, just like the Sorting Hat at Hogwarts. Nicolas generously showed Ethan how he had transformed his television, refrigerator, and stereo into smart devices.

They can fully communicate with Ethan without any obstacles. In contrast, the construct can't do that. Ethan can only control its actions using the mark in its core.

Regarding the modification of the core, Nicolas suggested that it could be strengthened using some of the steps from making the Philosopher's Stone.

The two of them talked about the construct until it was getting dark before Perenelle called them to stop.

Dinner was prepared by the house-elf, a female house-elf named Lina.

Nicolas and his wife had a very light dinner, some vegetables and oatmeal porridge.

Ethan understood this very well. Their bodies were too fragile to digest many things, so they could only eat like this.