"Turn me over and look... turn me over and look..."
The words continuously echoed in Dudley's mind, lingering endlessly.
Dudley's gaze gradually became unfocused, his brain seeming unable to process properly. He extended both hands toward the corpse on the stalactite platform.
He didn't know why, but he desperately wanted to see what this sleeping wizard looked like. This curiosity drove him to turn the corpse over urgently.
Just one look, just one look would be enough.
Just as Dudley's hands were about to touch that wizard's corpse, a golden six-winged angel abruptly appeared, spreading its glorious six wings and embracing Dudley. Amidst the spreading light, it enveloped Dudley's body.
In an instant, Dudley's entire body was bathed in golden light. All the cold evil was dispersed and disappeared, including that intense urge to turn the corpse over.
"Hiss..." Dudley drew in a sharp breath.
This was the first time he'd experienced such a strange situation in the magical world.
The previous dangers he'd encountered, at least he knew what they were. Even Voldemort was just a powerful enemy. But just now, he'd actually been influenced by that mysterious voice and almost really turned that corpse over.
Thinking about it now terrified him. Once that corpse was turned over, who knew what terrifying sight he would encounter.
To be placed by Slytherin in the innermost cave meant the corpse's owner was definitely extraordinary.
Fortunately, Dudley had made thorough preparations before dealing with the basilisk and had used a Paper Angel on himself. He hadn't expected it would come in handy now, purifying the strange power on Dudley at the critical moment.
Crack...
Suddenly, a faint sound came. The corpse on the stalactite platform trembled slightly, as if it wanted to turn over.
"Turning over is prohibited here!" Dudley subconsciously shouted as he pushed out with his right hand.
The Brass Book flipped noisily in his hands, greatly enhancing Dudley's extraordinary abilities and forcibly suppressing the trembling corpse back down.
Cold sweat seeped from Dudley's forehead.
He wanted to leave this place.
This location was too strange. Strange things he couldn't explain were happening, and he hadn't even sensed any traces of magic.
It might be ancient lost magic. Regardless, I need to leave first.
Dudley's gaze remained fixed on the corpse while continuously retreating backward, backing toward the cave exit.
He did this because Dudley wasn't confident. He feared that after turning around, the corpse would suddenly flip over and sit up. That would be too terrifying.
Whoosh...
Suddenly, a breeze came. The branches and leaves of the large tree above Dudley's head began swaying slightly, making rustling sounds.
Only this sound in the spacious cave seemed extremely strange, as if something were softly weeping, filled with unspeakable fear.
This feeling... have I returned to that strange world?
Dudley stopped retreating and looked around, forcibly calming himself down.
He was now Sequence 6 of two pathways. Although neither sequence specialized in combat, they still gave Dudley enough confidence to avoid panic.
Most importantly, what Dudley held was Sealed Artifact 002, the Trunsoest Brass Book, a powerful sealed artifact that could change rules.
If it truly came to a life-or-death moment, Dudley couldn't care about anything else and would definitely make this book display its true power.
"No matter who You are or why You're here, what I want to say is that I'm just a second-year Hogwarts student driven by curiosity," Dudley said in a deep voice. "If You're willing to forgive my rude intrusion, then I'll leave now and absolutely won't disturb You again."
In the spacious cave, besides the sound of the breeze, there was now Dudley's echo.
In this situation, Dudley wasn't certain what kind of ghostly thing was here.
But recalling the words that had appeared in his mind earlier, he felt the strangeness here might possess some intelligence. If communication was possible, that would naturally be best. As long as the other party was willing to let him leave, he wouldn't take action again.
But if he couldn't leave safely, then Dudley would have to use his abilities to forcibly depart.
"Well then, I'll be going first."
Seeing no other situations arise, Dudley tentatively spoke and continued his retreat.
However, after Dudley had retreated only two or three steps, the surrounding wind suddenly intensified, producing a howling sound.
Dudley frowned.
It seemed the other party didn't want to let him leave.
Looking around, Dudley's expression became somewhat gloomy.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Solar Ring.
This ring couldn't be worn for extended periods, or it would cause significant negative effects, eventually turning the wearer into a mindless devotee who only worshiped the sun. Therefore, Dudley had put it away earlier, but now he had no choice but to take it out again.
"Solar Aura!" Dudley first activated the Solar Aura, bolstering his courage and dispelling the surrounding evil and cold.
"Solar Holy Light!" Dudley spoke in Hermes.
The next moment, the ring on Dudley's hand suddenly summoned a brilliant golden light that illuminated the entire cave.
The golden light radiated warmth, peace, and holiness, contrasting sharply with the cave's cold, damp atmosphere.
Solar Holy Light could purify wraiths and corpses, having a powerful restraining effect on such creatures.
However, Dudley didn't use this light to attack. He only let it fall on a stalactite.
Though the light flashed only briefly, the heat and warmth it emitted seemed to transform the entire cave.
After the Solar Holy Light faded, Dudley squinted and looked around.
If anything's here, that should've gotten its attention.
The situation here led Dudley to suspect it was most likely related to wraiths and corpses. He released the Solar Holy Light to tell the other party that he had the means to deal with them, so those things in the darkness shouldn't act rashly.
Following the Solar Holy Light's descent, the wind in the cave seemed to diminish considerably.
Dudley breathed a slight sigh of relief and continued retreating toward the cave entrance.
However, after retreating just a few steps, Dudley's expression changed dramatically, freezing in place.
Earlier, Dudley's attention had been on the surrounding wind sounds, not looking at the face-down corpse beneath the large tree.
When he looked again now, he discovered that the corpse had somehow already disappeared.
Dudley swallowed.
His head slightly turned, looking behind him. In his peripheral vision, he saw a massive shadow had appeared behind him at some unknown time.