Harry Potter and the Hidden Treasure (Volume 3)

Chapter 421 The Blood Pond

"I will return soon, and then, the endless nightmare shall begin!"

The chilling voice of the malevolent spirit echoed in the Temple. "Tremble, young human sorcerer! Prepare to succumb to death!"

"Silence!" Evan shouted. His voice reverberated back and forth in the silent tunnel.

The whisper of the malevolent spirit bored him. For a moment, he merely gazed at the dark cave beneath his feet, with Sirius in his mind.

He could not believe Sirius had fallen in that manner, perhaps to his death.

Then, Evan ran upwards as fast as he could. It made no sense to linger there. The cave was too deep. Sirius couldn't climb up from below, nor could he jump from above.

Due to the appearance of the evil god, the magic in the space became restless.

But it was clearer than before. Evan could distinctly feel the location of the evil god, right below in the underground well, in the deepest area underground.

Besides leaping directly, there was definitely another way to get there: it was the secret passageway he had taken before with Okegiga, the Centaur, to sneak into the Temple of the Moon from the lake in the illusion. That was the right path.

Evan knew he had to hurry. Sirius might not have died yet.

He ran through the corridor as fast as he could and saw many panicking wizards along the way.

They also heard the whispers of the malevolent spirit, standing there unsure of what to do.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

Just as Evan turned the corner, a sharp voice suddenly sounded.

The training with Sirius served him well, and he instinctively dropped to the ground, the green light grazing his body.

He saw a wizard in a black robe holding a wand, standing not far from him.

His skin was pale, dressed like the three wizards he had seen in the tavern the night before. He was a vampire!

After the well appeared beneath the wizards, the vampires lurking in the darkness finally emerged. They gathered to kill any survivors to ensure that what happened today in the temple would never be known.

Neither the evil god nor his plans could be known to the outside world, and with what happened today, only the dead could truly keep this secret.

Evan had no time to waste here. As he crouched to avoid the vampire's Killing Curse, three red lights flew swiftly from the tip of his wand.

Facing Evan's counterattack, the vampire hurried to dodge.

He seemed somewhat surprised, not expecting Evan to evade his surprise attack and react so swiftly, managing to cast three spells in such a short time.

Following his spells, Evan yelled and lunged at him.

His wand glowed like a sword, and sparks flew everywhere.

Although the opponent managed to evade the first round of attacks, Evan's Full-Binding Curse followed through and struck the vampire.

His arms and legs tied together, and he fell heavily backward.

If this were under different circumstances, Evan would sit down to interrogate the vampire and inquire about his plans, but now he was in a hurry to save Sirius.

He didn't even see the vampire fall to the ground and continued forward.

In a secluded hallway from the previous chamber, Evan looked at the moon phases carved on the wall and hit the full moon sign on the wall as quickly as he could.

Creak, creak, creak...

With the dry and raspy sound of the dry pulley, the thick stone door slowly rose.

The smell of mud and dampness spread from the secret passage to the depths of the earth, as expected.

As the stone door rose, the magic fluctuated in the area more wildly than before.

Judging by the current situation, this secret passage should lead to the location of the evil god.

In the thick dust on the ground, Evan also saw many footprints, traces of the vampires lurking in the darkness coming in and out of the area.

At the end of the narrow passage, there was a large and terrifying Lovage.

From its height and thickness, it was at least several hundred years old.

The angelica is a plant with strong characteristics, which can extend its roots to surrounding plants and slowly wither them. Even other angelicas are not an exception.

In the end, only one angelica plant can survive and thrive while enjoying all the nutrients in a certain area.

Upon seeing this grand and ominous angelica plant, Evan finally understood where the vampires sourced the curse material used in the gold.

It is crucial to note that angelica is primarily used to create Confundus and Stunner Potions, which can lead individuals to be ruled by impulsiveness and recklessness or gradually lose themselves in the illusion crafted in their minds.

The juice extracted from angelica leaves is a key ingredient in the preparation of certain dark magic that clouds the mind.

Angelica grows at an extremely slow pace. Evan had seen an angelica plant in Professor Sprout's greenhouse.

That plant had been nurtured for over 40 years, yet it was still much smaller and its confounding effects were milder.

Moreover, angelica typically thrives in dark and damp places.

Beside him, Evan noticed a sloping passage filled with red water.

The odor in the air was unpleasant and peculiar, prompting Evan to recall Professor Sprout's remark about the bewildering scent of angelica.

He held his breath and plunged into the pond, casting a Bubble-Head Charm upon himself.

The pond was deep, stretching through the ancient passage into the depths of the earth.

In the murky and muddy water, Evan couldn't precisely discern where he should head.

He could only swim on instinct. The red water felt viscous, and Evan quickly realized what was happening. The vampires had poured a significant amount of blood into it.

This was truly dreadful, and he felt queasy realizing he was immersed in blood.

Suppressing the nausea, he hastened his descent. Yet immediately, he felt something entangling his ankle.

Gripping his wand, he glanced back.

Apart from the reddish objects in the murky blood, nothing was visible.

Evan shook himself repeatedly, leaning down to inspect his ankles...

His heart pounded fiercely, sensing the imminent danger. There seemed to be something within the blood.

He heightened his alertness and cautiously proceeded forward...

The next moment, a ghastly and severely decomposed face suddenly appeared before him!