Chapter 456: Critique of Weapons

Indeed, it's true—they've rotted to the point of turning to white bone; even though this secret chamber lacks flies and beetles and the temperature is lower, after several months it has decayed like this—if it had just been killed, it wouldn't be so. Bai Lang walked around and said, "This is Tangmu Ma Woluo Li De Er, the future Voldemort. If he doesn't practice soul‑splitting, he's actually looking pretty good."

But Tom's eyes were vacant; he knelt on the ground, staring at the decayed skeleton before him, murmuring, "How did he die? He was fine before…" Bai Lang's keen ears could hear it, though Harry clearly did not. "What's going on? Tom? Who killed the basilisk? And who kidnapped Ginny to bring her here?" Harry kept asking, and that Tom finally seemed to come to his senses.

He rose from the ground, "Alright, there have been some changes, but we still have to reach this point, don't we? In the end it's just a few second‑years…" He turned to face Harry, Ron who was struggling to carry Ginny, Hermione Granger who was helping, and of course Bai Lang, who was holding his wand. "What are you talking about?" Harry kept asking, and Bai Lang's wand paused on the floor. "Oh, Harry. I think this guy in front of us is off."

Villains always like to talk, and Bai Lang also likes that style, so let him speak. However, he gave a preemptive remark, "Tell me, how can you notify the headmaster or a professor? Ginny still needs treatment, even though she's fine for now."

Over there, Tom had already started speaking. After obtaining Ginny's diary and beginning to converse with her, he said he was Voldemort, and finally declared he would kill Harry Potter here, siphon their life force and be reborn. "As for who killed the basilisk? Oh, that was beyond my expectations, but it's fine." Tom produced Ginny's wand, "Let's keep it simple and solve this with a wizard's method."

Bai Lang began to move, "What a long and decent story; I was almost captivated. But the story's over, you should exit now—dead people don't need to occupy center stage." The young Voldemort turned his face toward Bai Lang; Bai Lang chose not to reveal that he was the one who killed the basilisk, simply because he didn't want to say so. "Who are you again? Anyway, you're just a mud‑born."

Bai Lang smiled, his figure darting like a flash of lightning; Tom swung his wand, emitting a beam of light, but it only struck air—Bai Lang's change of direction was astonishing, and in the blink of an eye he was there and slammed his wand down. Just like the duel between Pi Pi Gui and Bai Lang, this Tangmu Ma Woluo Li De Er also had his head smashed into mush, his wand slipping from his hand. At that moment, Bai Lang saw a phoenix fly in, accompanied by an old man with a white beard.

"Whoa, Headmaster Dumbledore has arrived. I'm starting to think Harry has a tracking system…" Bai Lang thought. Dumbledore scanned the situation, and Bai Lang realized he was surprised that this was indeed the secret chamber. At that moment, the phoenix had already snatched a notebook and tossed it into Dumbledore's hand. Dumbledore straightened up; perhaps Harry and the others finally realized he was such a tall old man.

"Tangmu Ma Woluo Li De Er, long time no see." That was Dumbledore's first words upon seeing the Voldemort who had managed to restore his appearance. "Well then, farewell, Tom." Dumbledore waved his wand, spitting strange black flames from the ground, and he threw the notebook in his hand directly into the fire. "No!" Tom shouted wildly, but his whole body, like a scorched notebook, turned black, curled up, and vanished.

"Dark Fire," Bai Lang thought to himself. "Sure enough, since Grindelwald is a master of Dark Fire, Dumbledore naturally wields Dark Fire with ease—no surprise." As Tom turned to ash, Ginny woke up—she immediately clutched Harry Potter and began to sob. Bai Lang shrugged, ready to leave, "The matter is settled, the headmaster has arrived. It's time for us students to go back."

"Mr. Bai Lang, please take Harry and the others back to the Gryffindor common room. You are brave and strong children… I'll leave this to an old man like me." Dumbledore squeezed his eyes at Bai Lang; Bai Lang thought this old bee might soon find out who killed the basilisk. "Could it really be the Soul‑Capturing Technique?" Bai Lang also doubted, but since Dumbledore wouldn't make it public, he didn't mind.

Their first stop was Professor McGonagall's office—because Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were there, and the school had notified them when Ginny's incident occurred. "Oh, damn it. The thought of facing a professor makes me feel that going with you all was my biggest mistake," Bai Lang muttered, but he still let Harry push open the door. Ginny was held in Mrs. Weasley's arms, and everyone—except Bai Lang—was deeply moved.

The main narration was handled by Harry Potter, with Ron and Hermione Granger providing supplements, while Bai Lang fell silent after inquiring about Professor Gilderoy Lockhart—who had been sent to Mrs. Pince and reportedly might need rest for a while because his head hurt and he seemed to have forgotten many things. Bai Lang tried his best to appear clueless about the cause and effect, and it seemed everyone believed he was just a man pulled in to save the day.

Because he can fight……

Bai Lang's wand in his hand annotated his fighting ability; just by seeing the disguised copper head, everyone knew the thing was essentially a bludgeoning wand, the kind used to break armor. A youngster who could wield this freely from the day he entered school—saying he can't fight would be an insult to intelligence. Moreover, he's a wizard; although his grades aren't great, because of the wand his spells are almost silent and rely on gestural transformation.

The professors knew how difficult this was; a wizard who overcomes such challenges and becomes combat‑oriented would surely be strong—though judging by Bai Lang's results, he likely can't pass the Auror compulsory course in the N. E. W. T. s. Professor McGonagall knew even more: Bai Lang in the Muggle world should belong to a middle‑income bracket, certainly not destitute—he can even afford a bag enchanted with the Seamless Expansion Spell…

Harry Potter's story concluded; midway, Dumbledore arrived, and Harry glanced at him as the headmaster signaled him to speak fully, no problem. Everyone listened quietly as Harry Potter finished, "So… the diary contained Voldemort? And the secret chamber actually housed a basilisk? The basilisk was also killed by someone? Who?" The basilisk's attacks had ceased because it had been killed.

"Miss Weasley should go to the school infirmary immediately," Dumbledore said, "It's a painful ordeal for her. The school won't punish her. Many older, more cunning wizards have been blinded by Voldemort." He strode to the doorway and opened it. "Rest in bed, perhaps also have a big steaming cup of chocolate milk; I always find it good for my mood." He said, gently blinking at Ginny. "You'll notice Mrs. Pince hasn't slept yet. She just earlier…."