Return of Salazar Slytherin

Upon learning that Rhys had used an Origin Fragment, Rowena Ravenclaw furrowed her brows.

Seeing her expression, Rhys immediately understood what she was thinking—his old friend was worried that, after coming into contact with the Origin Fragment, he might be twisted into the kind of existence those false Norse gods had become.

"Relax, I didn't fuse with the fragment directly," Rhys raised an eyebrow. Did she not understand the expertise of a Potions Master?

He had minimized the fragment's negative effects, achieving what was possibly the closest thing to a perfect method of immortality.

The only drawback was that the period of slumber was far too long—when he awoke, all his old friends had either been buried in the ground or turned into ghosts.

"A truly fortunate snake."

After hearing Rhys' explanation, Rowena finally relaxed, sincerely marveling at his luck. She also admitted that, even if she had obtained such a treasure, she likely wouldn't have been able to use it as effectively as Salazar had.

In the field of potion-making, Salazar was truly leagues ahead.

"The only issue is that I slept for so long that I was completely out of touch with the world when I woke up," Rhys shared his experiences from his first year after waking—desperately cramming modern knowledge—which amused the two Ravenclaws greatly.

The three of them chatted for a long time, until Rhys' stomach growled, making them realize that it was already dinnertime.

"Alright, it's about time to wrap this up." 

Rowena Ravenclaw brought an end to the seemingly endless conversation. The words between her and Helena could easily last three days and nights. 

If they really wanted to talk to their heart's content, Salazar wouldn't have the patience to wait. 

"Oh, right—there's something else. You're familiar with Helga, take a look at this and see if it has any connection to her." 

Rhys pulled a small crystal vial from his robes, with a thin layer of sand-like dust settled at the bottom. 

This was the peculiar material Gemma Farley had used during their duel. It had caught Rhys' attention the moment she pulled it out. After the duel ended, he went straight to the platform, collected some of the soil used to construct it, and painstakingly separated these special dust particles from the ordinary dirt. 

This dust had the ability to enchant regular soil, allowing it to temporarily exhibit domain-like effects. The magic Gemma used in the final moments of the duel could essentially be considered a crude version of a true domain.

Unfortunately, this magic consumed an excessive amount of magical power and mental energy—far beyond what an ordinary young witch or wizard could handle. 

Even though it had been just a fleeting moment, Rhys had sensed something oddly familiar about that false domain. The earth-based magic bore some resemblance to Hufflepuff's domain. 

As for why Rhys couldn't be certain—well, the collected dust carried no trace of Hufflepuff's magic.

That meant the familiarity he felt could simply have been a coincidence due to similar elemental attributes. Dumbledore's fire-based domain had also seemed somewhat familiar to him… 

Handing this small sample of dust to Ravenclaw for research was nothing more than Rhys taking a shot in the dark, hoping to stumble upon an answer by chance.

What if, by chance? 

Sure enough, after a preliminary examination of the dust in the vial, Rowena still couldn't reach a conclusion. 

"Can I keep some of this for further research?" 

Rhys had no objections. He was certain that Gemma must have more of this stuff—otherwise, she wouldn't have wasted it on an ordinary duel. 

"Thanks." 

Ravenclaw took the vial from Rhys' hand and pulled out the stopper. 

Helena: "…" 

As she idly listened to their conversation, she suddenly felt like something was off. 

It didn't take long for her to pinpoint the anomaly—the vial! 

Why was it that despite both being ghosts, her mother could pick up the vial and even open it?

Ghosts weren't supposed to be able to physically interact with objects after all! 

Rhys had also noticed the change in Rowena. Clearly, during the time he had been outside the sealed chamber, Ravenclaw had not been idle.

Her form had undergone further transformation. A few months ago, she had merely been a special kind of ghost, but now she was leaning more toward something akin to a spirit. Her ability to influence the physical world was gradually strengthening. 

To put it in a way that would definitely earn him a beating if he said it out loud—Rowena was slowly becoming more like Peeves.

"We are not the same." Rowena glanced at Helena with a slight smile. "I found a way to preserve my power." 

A mummified corpse suddenly appeared at the corner of the corridor. 

"However, there are still many limitations, such as being unable to stray too far from my remains." 

Helena: "What's with that Mummy!!" 

The sudden appearance of the corpse left her utterly shocked. 

After giving her daughter a brief explanation of her situation, Rowena turned her attention back to the vial of dust. She poured the dust onto the ground and began observing the changes in the soil. 

Just as Rhys had described, the dust exhibited a fascinating effect upon contact with ordinary soil—it made the earth significantly easier to manipulate. 

With a wave of Rowena's hand, the ground beneath Rhys' feet instantly turned as fluid as water. If not for his quick reflexes, he would have "sunk" right into it. 

Rhys shot a look at Rowena and swiftly took to the air, hovering in the corridor. The now-animated soil, under Ravenclaw's control, lunged toward him like a living entity, snapping at his heels with remarkable agility. 

However, as Rhys flew dozens of meters away, the liquefied earth suddenly halted, as if a leash had yanked it back—like a rabid hound restrained by an invisible chain, unable to advance any further.

"Fu fu fu~ The range has its limits since there's too little enchanted soil, but it truly is a fascinating substance." Rowena had developed a strong interest in this peculiar dust—just now, she had genuinely felt an understanding of the earth-element domain. 

"You should talk to that Gemma and ask her where she got this dust," Rowena suggested. 

Rhys, however, pulled out his wand, preparing to extract the dust that had merged with the soil. Rowena stopped him, finding it rather amusing to keep this enchanted patch of earth nearby. Besides, with her abilities, separating the dust from the regular soil would be a simple task. 

"Fine." Rhys agreed. If Rowena wanted to play with dirt in the dungeon, that was her business—after all, giving a thousand-year-old ghost a stress-relief toy was probably good for her mental well-being. 

As he prepared to leave the sealed area, he noticed that Helena remained still. 

Rhys immediately understood—she wanted to stay and spend more time with Rowena. 

That was a good thing.

Rhys also preferred having someone inside the seal to keep Rowena company and, more importantly, to stop her from doing anything too reckless. 

Upon receiving Rhys' approval, Helena brightened up instantly. 

"Thank you, Uncle Salazar." 

Watching Helena choose to stay behind, Rhys felt a slight headache forming—if the Bloody Baron came asking about her whereabouts, things could get complicated... 

Maybe I should just send the Baron in as well?

After all, the man had spent plenty of time lingering around the sealed area when he was alive.

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