Harry Potter and the Hidden Treasure (Volume 3)

Chapter 403 The Book Of Abraham

Needless to say, that stone must have been Flamel's Philosopher's Stone.

Yet Evan was now deeply intrigued by the ancient colossal book Flamel mentioned. A book left behind by the most powerful ancient sorcerer, prophet, sacrificer, master astrologer, and holy sage Abraham was something beyond imagination.

Evan had speculated before on the source of the Alchemy Flamel had mastered.

But he never thought the truth of the matter would be so legendary. At this very moment, he found his imagination to be so lackluster.

Besides shock, Evan couldn't find other words to depict his emotions at this moment.

Even when he first saw the unknown malevolent spirit, he wasn't as astonished.

He never expected what Flamel had obtained to be "The book of Abraham"!

This magical book, documenting the profoundest knowledge of alchemy, was even more precious than all the legendary magical items Evan had known so far.

"I immediately knew that the magical book I acquired was the one the man mentioned in my dream," Flamel said slowly. "The Muggle who gave it to me had no inkling of its value at all. He told me he found the book in an abandoned ruin, but he couldn't understand a single word of its content."

Flamel mentioned he was weary and paused to rest for a while.

"It was a great ancient book, not made of paper or sheepskin parchment like other books, but of delicate, smooth bark. The cover was tightly wrapped with brass, etched with words or odd symbols," Flamel glanced at Evan, who held his breath and listened intently. "The words weren't in English, Latin, French, or any languages Muggles could recognize, but I recognized them instantly. They were words of ancient magic that only the most learned wizards can read."

While Evan tried to ponder over the book of Abraham, Flamel didn't pause and continued speaking with his aged voice.

"It took me forty years to completely decipher the meaning of each ancient magical inscription on the cover," Flamel's voice suddenly lowered. "I'm sorry, my son! I can't say it here. Unlike the words of ancient magic we usually know, the words on the cover are magical. They are a powerful spell. Even without magic, they can be activated by the power of language..."

Flamel's intermittent voice was like a whisper, and although Evan was very close, he found it difficult to hear what he said next. He had to move a bit forward.

Now, in the empty hallway, he could only hear an imperceptible voice.

Only Flamel's lips seemed to be moving, and not even the finest dust could be disturbed. An eerie and indescribable sense of mystery arose in the depths of Evan's heart.

He felt an unparalleled heaviness and realized his hair was standing on end. This unusual discomfort and fear grew stronger.

"Dear son of mine, you only need to know that whoever obtains the book can no longer let it go from their hands. No one can disregard this book, for it can spark the greatest ambition and desire in people's hearts and minds," with a long sigh, Flamel's voice gradually returned to normal. "What came next was quite simple. With the help of that book, I refined the Philosopher's Stone I obtained from the Muggles simultaneously. From then on, I acquired unimaginable wealth and eternal life."

Although Flamel didn't describe the specific process of refining the Philosopher's Stone, Evan could imagine the hardships he had to endure.

It took him 40 years just to decipher the ancient magic on the cover. The contents of the book were surely more intricate and challenging to grasp.

He could picture Flamel sitting alone at his desk, day and night, scrutinizing the book word by word to confirm the instructions he understood, and this process lasted for six hundred years!

As I said before, the magic book is very thick. The pages inside are divided into three groups. There is no text on the front pages of each group. Instead, there is a strange pattern." Flamel said: "It took me over six hundred years to decipher it and acquire knowledge of unimaginable alchemy, but so far, I can only understand what is recorded in the first set of pages."

Evan looked at Flamel, and the bright face of the old wizard could not hide his sense of failure.

He did not understand why Flamel had that expression. In his view, it was already a great achievement to learn a third of the content of a legendary magic book like "The Book of Abraham."

Furthermore, Flamel still had time. If he did not destroy the Philosopher's Stone, and with the help of the Elixir of Life, he would eventually understand the knowledge recorded in the entire book.

"No, with the progress of the research, I finally discovered that my starting point, the most basic part of all theories, was wrong, and it made no sense to persist." Seeming to know what Evan was thinking, Flamel shook his head and said: "I chose to use that Philosopher's Stone to obtain wealth and immortality, to acquire things of no use, and thus renounced the opportunity to gain greater knowledge. Perhaps death is all I have left..."

Flamel closed his eyes and did not continue speaking.

But things in Evan's mind became clearer, and all his doubts seemed to gather and fade away.

Flamel must have learned something from "The Book of Abraham," which was why he said that death was just the beginning of another great adventure.

But, what did he mean by opportunity?!

Flamel did not seem to have any intentions of further explaining to Evan. It seemed that if he wanted to understand all the details of this matter, he could only read "The Book of Abraham" by himself.

However, thinking that Flamel had spent over six hundred years deciphering a third of the book, Evan felt a massive headache.

He did not want his future destiny to pass by a table.

"As I said, I am ready to embrace death, but I cannot rest easy about one thing, so I have stored a lot of Elixir of Life." Flamel looked into Evan's eyes and said sincerely: "You must have guessed. What worries me is the legacy of the book. I cannot allow it to be buried after my departure."

Evan felt his heart pounding, and his breathing could not help but become heavy.

Indeed, he had had this premonition before, that Flamel might give him "The Book of Abraham."

But when he was about to hear the news, he could not help but feel excited.

Before today, not even in his dreams, had he imagined that he would obtain the legendary magical object "The Book of Abraham" on his journey to France.

Perhaps Dumbledore had known, and that is why he took him to France, to Beauxbatons, to meet Nicolas Flamel.