Tom remembered Nicolas Flamel's year of birth, his expression changed, and he looked at Hermione. "Hermione, do you remember when the Great Plague happened in the Middle Ages?"
Hermione scrutinized her memory, somewhat uncertain, and replied, "I think it was in the mid-14th century... it began in 1347-."
She stopped her words because she suddenly remembered that the famous alchemist Nicolas Flamel was born in 1327. When the Black Death erupted, he was twenty years old. She thought maliciously, could he have had something to do with it?
Probably not, as Nicolas Flamel was French, and the plague originated in Sicily. Plus, if he really had the courage to do it, why not create a Horcrux?
What Tom and Hermione referred to as the Great Plague of the Middle Ages was the infamous Black Death. In the years 1347 to 1353, the Black Death, an epidemic of bubonic plague, swept across all of Europe, claiming the lives of 25 million people, approximately one-third of the European population at the time. In terms of human lives lost, it was one of the most devastating pandemics in European history, surpassing even the Spanish flu, World War I, and World War II.
This was a horrifying plague that killed one in three. In key cities like Florence, the mortality rate exceeded 80%. The epidemic shook the dominion of the Catholic Church and had a profound impact on Europe.
But setting aside its impact, this plague actually met the requirements for creating the Philosopher's Stone.
"Ah, I understand, there were enough people for that," hearing Tom and Hermione's explanations, Menes suddenly realized why that successor had been able to create the Philosopher's Stone.
The deaths of over twenty million people in just a few years would certainly be enough!
"You don't need to directly provoke the massacre; you can create various prototypes and place them in places with many deaths; they will absorb energy by themselves. When the stones turn as red as blood, the Philosopher's Stone will be ready. You can combine several prototypes to create a finished product." Menes, considerately, taught Tom the production method.
Tom felt powerless; where would he find millions of dead people for Hermione?
Nicolas Flamel had the chance to live during the Great Plague, but he didn't have that chance. If he had been born a hundred years earlier, he might have had the opportunity. World War I claimed the lives of over ten million people, World War II claimed seventy million, and the Spanish flu probably claimed a hundred million lives. But all that happened decades ago.
Even if he had the chance, would Hermione really be willing to use a Philosopher's Stone that carried the lives of millions of people?
Impossible. Just thinking about the origin of the Philosopher's Stone fragments in that small bag gave him chills. Unconsciously, he moved away from that bag a bit.
Hermione's small movement didn't escape Tom and Menes' eyes.
Menes looked at them and expressed his regret, fearing that they would have to look for other ways to prolong life.
Tom also sighed, but before giving up, he asked, "Does it have to be human life as 'fuel'?"
Menes was surprised for a moment and casually replied, "In the eyes of death, people and farm animals are equal, only people are a little more 'valuable' due to their higher spirituality. So, theoretically, the lives of livestock could also be used as substitutes, but the quantity you need won't be something you can handle... Oh yes, they must be lives of the same species."
Tom heard that animal lives could also be used and filled with excitement and hope.
To Menes, it seemed impossible, but to him, it seemed way too easy! In the modern industrial society, would it be difficult to establish a slaughterhouse and sacrifice several million chickens in a year? In the Far East, there are slaughterhouses that slaughter 150 million chickens in a year. Worldwide, humans kill 70 billion chickens each year. Additionally, in the United States, they consume 8 billion chickens a year. By the way, Earth consumes 59 billion kilograms of beef and 118 million tons of pork in a year.
Sacrificing a few animals would be enough to prolong Hermione's life. As for the same species, it wouldn't be a problem! Humans and pigs, cows and sheep are all mammals.
This is the generation gap between Tom and Menes. In Menes' time, chickens had to be caught and sacrificed one by one, the whole process was manual, and in a day in the city of Memphis, only a few thousand animals could be sacrificed. How could enough consumption be generated to create the Philosopher's Stone? But in modern industrial factories, the assembly-line process would be much faster.
Tom instantly got excited and decided that when he returned to the modern world, he would open a slaughterhouse.
Menes: ?
Tom's sudden change in mood was a bit difficult for Menes to understand. He couldn't comprehend why the boy was suddenly happy.
After Tom explained about modern slaughter factories, Menes was utterly amazed.
"A factory that sacrifices 10 billion birds a year?" Menes asked in such a surprised tone that he almost thought the boy in front of him was talking about the wrong figure.
"It's hard to imagine, but just at Hogwarts, at least a thousand chickens are consumed every day, and that's just in one school," Tom replied with outstretched hands.
Menes fell silent. Compared to people from thousands of years ago, modern methods of obtaining meat were much simpler. In the past, who could guarantee having meat every day? An egg a day was already a great achievement! In contrast, modern people consume chicken nuggets every day, as if they were at a "feast of meat and wine."
Menes sincerely envied them. However, he had already chosen another path to immortality, even if he had the Philosopher's Stone, it was already too late.
After a good deal, Menes bid farewell to the two young visitors.
When Tom and Hermione arrived, they were nervous, but when they left, they felt more secure. Tom was especially happy because he had found a solution for Hermione.
However, they were in no hurry to return to Hogwarts. They had gone out to eat in Cairo at least.
As for classes...
Christmas was approaching, and this year there was also the Triwizard Tournament, so everyone at Hogwarts, from teachers to students, had their minds set on the Christmas holidays. In previous years, Professor Snape might have intervened to restore order, but this year he was also busy with potion research, so the students were completely unsupervised.
In this situation, even Hermione thought they could stay out for a while longer.
Therefore, they naturally headed to Cairo.
"How about I treat you to some kebabs?" Hermione, who had found a solution to her problem, was in a good mood and even decided to invite Tom for a meal.
"Great!" With Hermione suggesting it, Tom didn't hesitate to accept and pulled out a map and a tourist guide to find a kebab restaurant that looked good.
Egyptians love to eat all kinds of kebabs, so today Tom and Hermione would enjoy a special treat.