Black mist began to rise from Quirrell's body, and the struggle on the ground ceased. His eyes turned scarlet, and his pale face began to distort, much like when Ethan drank the Polyjuice Potion.
He transformed into a monster with a pointed chin and a nose so flat that only two holes could be seen.
After moving his head twice, Voldemort tore off his scarf, revealing his smooth, hairless head, and adapted to Quirrell's body as quickly as possible.
"I'll give you a chance. Kneel down and submit to the great Dark Lord, and I'll spare your life!"
Voldemort looked at Ethan with a hint of both appreciation and resentment.
He resented Ethan for ruining his plan, but he also appreciated the strength Ethan showed in his current appearance. Now, in a time when he was short of loyal followers, each additional lackey increased his chances of success tenfold.
Moreover, if nothing unexpected occurred, Quirrell would suffer considerable damage after this transformation, so it would be prudent to prepare a new vessel in advance.
"Dark Lord? Are you talking about the Dark Lord who was defeated by a baby ten years ago and disappeared from sight, perhaps hiding in a stinking ditch to survive?"
Ethan smiled disdainfully, his eyes full of contempt for the ugly figure before him.
Then he pointed his wand, and a stone on the ground transformed into a monkey, which took the box of dragon eggs from Ethan's hand, jumped a few times into the woods, and disappeared.
He said this to provoke Voldemort, otherwise Ethan would have retreated after obtaining the dragon egg.
Last time, the prank attack earned an achievement, and today, directly repelling Voldemort would likely earn another.
Voldemort was now in a weakened state. If not now, when would be the time to strike!
"You dare !"
Voldemort trembled with rage. He hadn't heard such direct insults in many years.
Since becoming infamous, everyone who saw him had trembled in fear. Those who insulted him in the past had long been reduced to ashes.
Now he had encountered another.
"Avada Kedavra!"
The Killing Curse cast by Voldemort himself was far stronger than anything Quirrell could muster. It was thicker, faster, and reached Ethan in the blink of an eye.
But just as it was about to strike Ethan, he disappeared, and the green light, continuing on its path, only created a hole in the ground where Ethan had stood.
Voldemort stared at the shadow in the woods that was moving frantically. Most people couldn't see it, but under his perception, Ethan's magic was still evident.
"Hehe!"
Voldemort sneered twice, his tongue longer than normal flicking out. A massive orange-red flame rose from his mouth, setting the surrounding woods on fire.
Without the shadows, let's see how you move now.
With decades of combat experience, he saw through the essence of Ethan's magic at a glance.
However, what Voldemort didn't expect was that Ethan simply walked out of the fierce fire Voldemort had unleashed, but his body was now surrounded by even hotter, more dazzling flames.
"Damn!"
Voldemort snorted coldly, his expression growing serious.
He had made a mistake.
Had such a powerful junior emerged? Then he waved his wand, and the magic within Quirrell's body began to surge instantly.
The surrounding orange-red flames suddenly intensified, as if fuel had been added to them, and a massive snake made of fire leapt out.
The snake's scales were lifelike, and its body, made of red flames, flowed like magma.
This demonstrated Voldemort's proficiency in fire spells.
As soon as the fiery snake formed, it shot toward Ethan, as if it wanted to swallow him whole.
However, it was intercepted halfway by a giant wolf made of flames, which bit into the snake's neck.
The giant wolf shook its head violently, its enormous claws repeatedly striking the snake's body.
Voldemort frowned and raised his wand again, slashing it down heavily.
The fiery snake exploded, and the massive burst of magic destroyed everything around it. The magic wolf, caught in the blast at point-blank range, was also blown into countless sparks. A huge wall of fire rose before Ethan, shielding him from the aftermath.
Ethan looked at the ground that had turned to magma, sighing at how little Voldemort valued Quirrell's life. With each explosion, Ethan could feel Voldemort's body swelling a bit more, and his face growing paler.
Let's see how much vitality you have left to burn.
The surging flames turned into a torrent, rushing out from Ethan's center like a wave straight toward Voldemort.
Voldemort's eyebrows twitched at the sight. He hadn't expected the unknown wizard opposite him to be so skilled in fire magic.
Voldemort wouldn't just stand by. He knew full well what would happen if he were burned by these flames.
He immediately waved his wand, increasing the output of magic to control the flames beside him.
The orange-red flames quickly gathered around Voldemort, forming a sphere, and exploded just as Ethan's flames were about to strike, pushing back toward Ethan with extraordinary explosive power.
The massive waves of flames fought, clashing, and consuming each other. Suddenly, ravens made from fiendfyre from Ethan's side took flight from the inferno, launching an aerial assault.
Voldemort was not to be outdone. He drew an arc with his wand in the air, causing the orange-red flames to wriggle again. A massive snake made of flames opened its mouth and swallowed the ravens whole.
Dennis and the other two, who had stayed at a distance, watched this scene with some horror. They were already several miles away, but they could still see the flames burning sky-high over there. What kind of scene was it?
It was certain that Dumbledore and the professors at Hogwarts would be drawn to the site. The battle wasn't far from Hogwarts!
At the same time, they were even more in awe of Ethan. They hadn't expected this Hogwarts student to possess such strength.
"Avada Kedavra!"
A green light as thick as a thigh pierced through the sea of flames, angrily attacking Ethan and illuminating everything around it with a vivid green.
Ethan could feel that Voldemort was now fighting desperately. This was definitely a full-strength attack from Voldemort, likely comparable to the blow that destroyed the protective spell during the attack on Hogwarts.
In addition, Quirrell, who was already drooping, now had wrinkles on his skin, his whole body appearing shriveled.
But it still had no effect on Ethan. A giant black wolf leapt out from Ethan's shadow, swallowing the incoming green light in one gulp.
The dazzling green light exploded in the black wolf's chest, blasting it apart.
But the scene before him stunned Voldemort. Killing one created two—this was beyond his understanding!
And with this wolf around, the threat posed by Voldemort was minimised.
Ethan waved his wand like a conductor at a music concert, and the flames began to shrink and condense.
Voldemort cautiously watched everything before him. He seemed to see a giant roaring in the flames.
He wasn't mistaken. The flames had indeed formed a giant over a hundred metres tall, with what seemed like lava flowing over its body. It wasn't merely similar to lava—it was lava. In its hand, it held a giant sword made of flame, the tip pointed directly at Voldemort.
Ethan swung his wand downward fiercely, and the giant's sword moved in sync, stabbing toward Voldemort's position.
Defend? With Quirrell's physical condition, it was impossible.
Dodge? The attack range was wide, making it difficult to avoid.
Just then, a high-pitched bird cry accompanied by fire appeared in the clearing ahead.
With it came a tall old man with white hair.
Ethan suddenly increased his magic power, and the giant sword in the fire giant's hand ignited a towering flame, stabbing directly at Voldemort's position.
After everything was done, Ethan didn't wait to see the result. He reached for a chain hanging by his waist, and in a twist, he disappeared.
This was a Portkey Ethan had prepared before coming, leading to a base of Dennis and his team in Wales.
It was to prevent Dumbledore from arriving. It was no problem to fight a weakened Voldemort, but facing Dumbledore, who still held the Elder Wand, was another matter. It was better to hide.
Dumbledore was dumbfounded at this moment. What on earth had happened?
He had received an urgent message from Aberforth's owl and rushed here. If it had happened within Hogwarts' territory, he would have known immediately, but this place was not part of Hogwarts.
It seemed he had arrived a little late. The surrounding environment was completely destroyed, especially the attack he had just witnessed, which had turned a 300-meter diameter area into a lake of lava.
Additionally, fiendfyre was spreading without it's caster's supervision, and there was a fire giant rampaging everywhere.
One of them should be Tom, but who was the other?
What were they doing here, and why were they in conflict?
Would this affect the subsequent plans for the Philosopher's Stone and Hogwarts?
Too many questions filled his mind, but now there was no time to think because if this fire continued, it would reach the Forbidden Forest.
As he inserted the Elder Wand into the ground, a red light began to spread, gradually enveloping the flames and the giant, followed by a clash of magic.
On the other side, Voldemort, who had forcibly Apparated, had collapsed to the ground. Or rather, now he was Quirrell. The weak soul forced to fight had drained Voldemort significantly.
Quirrell, lying on the ground, had his eyes closed, his lips trembling, his face pale, and his body shriveled, as if he had aged thirty or forty years. He was missing an arm—his entire left arm and part of his shoulder had disappeared.
This was the consequence of the forced Apparition.
The powerful magic collision had made the space unstable, and he had to face the terrifying attack.
Humans are not magical creatures with this ability ingrained in their bones.
If something went wrong, it would be a case of bodily disintegration.
Voldemort had been lucky then. He had only lost an arm during the forced Apparition.
And it wasn't even his own.
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