Chapter 116: Cruciatus Hell and a New Trait—Pain Spread

After Dylan returned to the Burrow,

Harry and Ron were outside playing with the twins.

—They had brought Ginny along too.

Dylan walked into the Burrow alone, heading straight to the twins' room. He opened his suitcase and slipped inside.

Dylan had specifically divided the space into two areas.

In one section, he placed captured cockroaches, spiders, and other small insects. Then, he took out a bottle, uncorked it, and let the liquid spill out.

"Amortentia should work on bugs too, right?"

As droplets of the love potion touched the insects in this area, they instantly began to fidget and squirm.

Soon, driven by instinct, the swarm of bugs eagerly crowded together, initiating a frenzied breeding process in this small space.

"Not bad. With my improved Amortentia, forget these bugs—even an elephant might not withstand its charm."

Dylan was pleased. He ignored the bugs in this area for now, simply tossing in some vegetable scraps and bits of meat.

After mating wore them out, at least they'd have some energy to replenish.

Then, Dylan moved to the second area.

The number of bugs here was noticeably much higher than in the first section.

"Let's kill a batch first."

With a flick of Dylan's wand, a barrage of terrifying light erupted, and a bone-chilling cold filled the air.

The cockroaches writhed and twisted in agony before dying miserably. Dylan even caught faint, eerie "sizzling" sounds—apparently the cries of the roaches.

"There's no way I can kill enough like this."

Dylan was working on unlocking a new trait for the Cruciatus Curse.

By now, he had already mastered two traits of the Cruciatus Curse.

The first was *Endless Pain*.

It allowed anyone struck by his Cruciatus Curse to carry a lingering pain curse in their body.

Even if the victim was rescued in time and didn't die from the curse-induced angina, they would continue to experience recurring, periodic heart-wrenching pain for a long time afterward.

The second trait—*Cruciatus Hell*.

Dylan had unlocked this one after his exams, originally intending to use it against Quirrell while completing a refinement task. He had paid to activate it.

But back then, worried that Dumbledore might be watching from the shadows, he hesitated for a long time and ultimately didn't dare use the Cruciatus Curse directly on Quirrell or Voldemort.

Fortunately, he had managed to complete this trait during the holidays, finalizing it in Knockturn Alley.

---

**[Cruciatus Hell]:** 

When you cast the Cruciatus Curse, you are no longer limited to a single target. Instead, with yourself at the center, you can activate or deactivate this trait at will, creating a circular energy field with a four-meter radius that lasts for four seconds. 

Within this range, the energy of the Cruciatus Curse will permeate, affecting all targets simultaneously with its torturous effects. 

**[Note]:** Sooner or later, I'll unleash a true hell!

---

This trait was somewhat similar to *Fiendfyre's Slaughter*.

However, the note attached to this trait caught Dylan's attention, making him linger on it for a moment.

He couldn't help but wonder if, after unlocking all the traits of the three Unforgivable Curses, he might gain mastery over something akin to a domain-like territory. 

Even if he didn't, just activating the traits of the Killing Curse and the Cruciatus Curse alone would be enough to mimic a hellish domain.

—No pretending needed.

Whether it was entering the domain and having your life snuffed out in three seconds, 

or stepping in and enduring a wave of excruciating Cruciatus pain, 

the mere thought of such effects was enough to inspire terror! 

What's more, Dylan had discovered that these traits could even combine with one another, amplifying their effects! 

For example, pairing *Endless Pain* with *Cruciatus Hell*. 

If he unleashed the energy field, anyone within its range who survived the Cruciatus Curse's torment would still suffer the lingering effects of *Endless Pain* afterward.

Dylan was quite satisfied with this.

And now, he was working on completing the third trait of the Cruciatus Curse.

---

**[Curse to Refine]:** Crucio (Cruciatus Curse) 

**[Trait to Unlock]:** Pain Spread 

**[Refinement Task Activated]:** Step into the ocean of life and let the terrifying shadow of the Cruciatus Curse envelop ten thousand souls! 

Cast the Cruciatus Curse on ten thousand living beings! You will unlock this curse trait and complete its refinement. 

**[Note]:** Refinement tasks cannot be completed simultaneously.

---

This time, the Cruciatus Curse refinement task required Dylan to cast the spell on ten thousand living beings to unlock the trait.

If he used it on people, the entire wizarding world would likely be thrown into chaos. 

Some might even think Voldemort had returned, seeking revenge and aiming to bathe the wizarding world in blood.

So, Dylan turned his attention to these little bugs to complete the refinement task.

Ten thousand people were a lot, but ten thousand bugs? Not so much.

Catching bugs, however, was a tedious chore.

Dylan didn't want to waste his time on it, so he spent only half a day gathering bugs—some to kill, and some to breed. He'd let them produce offspring, then kill those too.

This way, he could achieve a self-sustaining cycle for the curse's refinement.

Additionally, this refinement task came with an extra note: refinement tasks couldn't be completed simultaneously.

In other words, if he cast the Cruciatus Curse on a creature, he couldn't then use the Killing Curse on it to simultaneously progress another refinement task.

This would obviously slow down his progress on multiple refinement tasks, so he decided not to activate too many at once.

Refining curses simply added new abilities to them, significantly boosting their combat potential.

But for now, Dylan preferred to focus on learning more knowledge.

So, he planned to tackle the refinement tasks one by one, rather than pouring most of his time into them.

"Let's start with the Cruciatus Curse. The other Unforgivable Curses can wait for now. The tasks they require are too intense. Instead of rushing those, I might as well consider refining something like *Sectumsempra* or *Legilimens* first."

Once he got more skilled, he could also move forward with refining *Occlumency*.

Another week or so passed.

It wasn't until the day approached when he'd promised Hermione they'd go to Diagon Alley together that Dylan finally took a break.

He slept well, skipping his usual early-morning reading, and woke up at the same time as Harry and Ron.

—Dylan woke up on his own, while Ron and the others were roused by Mrs. Weasley.

"With so much breakfast, you must have worked hard. Thank you, Mrs. Weasley."

Dylan held a glass of milk in his hand, with several pieces of crispy fried bread spread with butter sauce in front of him.

In the middle of the table sat a large pile of fried eggs, while a nearby plate was stacked with cooked bacon.

Both piles were as high as small mountains.

At their age, they were growing fast and could eat a ton at every meal, so Mrs. Weasley always prepared plenty, worried there wouldn't be enough.

"Are you all full?" Mrs. Weasley asked, watching as the kids sandwiched bacon and fried eggs between bread, wolfing them down in a few bites. After several rounds, their movements slowed, and she finally spoke up.

"Full, Mrs. Weasley. Really full," Dylan replied with a smile.

"Then let's get ready to head out, shall we?" Mrs. Weasley handed the kids their coats.

Ron, Harry, and the others put theirs on.

Dylan, meanwhile, pulled his wizard robes out of his storage space and slipped them on.

Mrs. Weasley walked over to the fireplace, picked up a flowerpot from the mantel, and examined it in her arms.

"Hmm, there's enough for us to use, but we should stock up soon. Let's buy some more while we're out this time."

She turned around, stepped back a couple of paces, and stood by the fireplace, placing the flowerpot in front of her.

"Come on, who's first?"

Dylan blinked, stepped forward into the fireplace, and grabbed a pinch of Floo powder from the pot. With a swift toss, he shouted,

"Diagon Alley!"

As his words fell, green flames erupted around him, engulfing him completely.

Dylan felt a powerful force tugging at his body, and he began spinning within the flames.

—His vision blurred into a haze of green light, the sound of rushing wind and a strange buzzing filling his ears.

After a dizzying whirl, Dylan's feet landed solidly on the ground again.

The green flames faded, and he stepped out of the fireplace.

"Hmm, not as nauseating as Apparition, but there's still a slight dizziness."

Dylan brushed the ash off his clothes.

It was his first time using Floo powder to travel.

The first time Professor McGonagall had taken him to Diagon Alley, they'd used Apparition directly.

Back then, being his first experience with Apparition, Dylan had felt sick for quite a while. 

But now, the sensation was much milder.

"Unlike Apparition, Floo powder works through the Floo Network. The powder turns the flames into a conduit connecting different fireplaces for spatial travel. I could look into how this method works sometime when I'm free."

As Dylan mulled this over, George and Fred emerged from the green flames in the fireplace, followed by Ginny, Ron, and the others.

After a short wait, even Mrs. Weasley and Mr. Weasley arrived, but there was still no sign of Harry.

"Huh? Wait a sec—where's Harry?" Ginny looked around.

"Wasn't he before George and them?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"No, Mum—"

"He was after us!"

Ron's expression turned frantic. "No way—he couldn't have misspoken the address and ended up somewhere else, could he?"

The latest novels are first released on 69 Book Bar!

"What? If that's the case…" Mr. Weasley's brow furrowed instantly.

Mrs. Weasley's face changed too as the realization hit her.

Just as they were about to tell the kids to stay put, Ron anxiously turned to Dylan and said,

"Hey, Dylan! Quick, use your amazing divination skills! Harry's gone! He might've ended up in Knockturn Alley—that's no place for a young wizard!"

Dylan blinked, vaguely recalling that Harry had indeed once misfired while using Floo powder to get to Diagon Alley.

So, it was this time?

Unlike Ron and the others, Dylan wasn't particularly panicked about Harry's disappearance.

For one, Harry had ended up fine after his little detour in the original story.

And now, Knockturn Alley was swarming with Aurors patrolling back and forth.

When Dylan had been sneaking through the dark alleys, dealing with black wizards who tried to ambush him, he'd learned something from their chatter.

After he'd used an Unforgivable Curse in Knockturn Alley that day—and given the Aurors a beating before slipping away—the nearby black wizards watching the show had apparently all been rounded up by the Aurors, who were trying to figure out where he'd gone.

Even Mr. Borgin had been interrogated for a long time, all to uncover who this "Carlsas" was and where he was hiding now.

—But that was impossible.

There was no "Carlsas the Fool" in this world.

Just an innocent, weak little wizard preparing to start his second year at school.

Regardless, with the Aurors' heavy patrols, most of the black wizards in Knockturn Alley had already fled.

Harry showing up there wouldn't run into any trouble.

Still, faced with Ron's plea, Dylan couldn't exactly say no.

He pulled out his crystal ball, gripped it tightly in one hand, closed his eyes, and focused his mind to begin divining.

A faint mist slowly rose within the crystal ball.

The fog swirled and thickened.

Until a clear image emerged.

First, the gates of Gringotts appeared, followed by Harry's figure gradually coming into view.

Beside him were Hermione and Hagrid.

After pinpointing where they'd meet Harry, Dylan tucked the crystal ball away.

"Dylan, what'd you see?" Ron asked eagerly.

"Harry's fine. I think he's already run into Hagrid by now. Let's head to Gringotts—I saw them chatting with Hermione at the entrance in the crystal ball."

Hearing from Dylan that Harry was okay, Ron let out a sigh of relief.

"Good! Let's go then—what are we waiting for?"

Mrs. Weasley and Mr. Weasley exchanged a glance.

Though they'd been a little tense when Harry didn't show up, they weren't overly worried.

After all, Mr. Weasley worked at the Ministry.

He was well aware that a wicked dark wizard had recently emerged—one bold enough to use an Unforgivable Curse in broad daylight and effortlessly toy with a small squad of Aurors.

Lately, whether it was Diagon Alley or Knockturn Alley, Aurors had been patrolling in droves.

If Harry had ended up in Knockturn Alley, it wouldn't actually be all that dangerous. At this hour, a team of Aurors would be making their rounds.

Still, a street that long could always hold some unexpected surprises, so they needed to be sure.

"Wait a second, Dylan—you can divine?" Mr. Weasley asked.

Mrs. Weasley blinked in surprise. "You're only in your first year—how do you know divination? And are you sure your predictions…"

Before she could finish, Ron cut in, "Mum! Dylan's divination skills are so good even Professor Dumbledore himself praised them!"

Mrs. Weasley looked even more confused.

"Professor Dumbledore actually认可ed your divination? I thought he didn't even believe in that sort of thing!"

Mr. Weasley reacted more quickly. "If Professor Dumbledore trusts your divination skills, then we certainly have no complaints. Let's head to Gringotts and take a look."

Ginny didn't know that Knockturn Alley wasn't as terrifying as it used to be these days. In fact, with the current level of security, it might even be safer than Diagon Alley.

She'd only ever heard her family warn her never to go there.

So when she heard Harry might have ended up in Knockturn Alley, she grew frantic.

Hearing everyone decide to follow Dylan's advice, she was the first to dash off anxiously.

Mrs. Weasley had taken her shopping there before, so she naturally knew the way.

"Hey, sweetie, slow down!" Mr. Weasley called out.

Ron grabbed Mrs. Weasley's hand and ran after her, with the others quickly following.

And so, Dylan and the Weasley family hurried toward Gringotts. When they arrived at the entrance, they looked around but didn't see so much as a hair of Harry.

Mrs. Weasley and the others turned questioning gazes toward Dylan.

Dylan, unruffled, explained calmly, "What I saw in my divination was the outcome. We came straight to the result. Before that, we should've been searching for Harry elsewhere until we exhausted our options and ended up here."

Ron scratched his head, not quite getting it.

Mr. Weasley, however, caught on first. "You mean it's still a bit early for Harry to show up here?"

"Not too early."

Dylan had already spotted Harry in the crowd. He tilted his chin to point him out to the others.

"There—they're here."

Mrs. Weasley and the others looked up and immediately spotted the towering figure of Hagrid.

Harry was standing beside him, and the two were walking toward them.

"Oh, thank goodness, Harry! Are you alright?" 

Mrs. Weasley rushed over to Harry in a few steps, turning him this way and that, inspecting him from head to toe.

"I'm fine, Mrs. Weasley. I just accidentally went to the wrong place earlier. Sorry for worrying you all," Harry said apologetically.

"It's alright, it's alright—as long as you're okay." Mrs. Weasley shook her head.

Dylan waved a greeting to Hagrid.

Hagrid nodded back, his gaze fixed on Dylan. His rough hands fidgeted in front of him, and his mouth opened slightly.

Dylan, worried the big guy might blurt something about Beta, smiled and said, "Everything been alright lately? I've been doing great at Ron's place—everyone's been really good to me, and Harry too."

The implication was clear: Hagrid should keep quiet and not mention anything. He and Beta were fine.

Hagrid caught on, scratching his head. "Oh, well, that's good then!"

Harry blinked and exchanged a look with Ron.

They both knew about Dylan and Hagrid's little secret—the two of them were raising a dragon together!

But of course, that wasn't something anyone else could know.

Harry glanced at Dylan and added, "Actually, on the way here, I already mentioned you to Hagrid. He knows we've been staying at Ron's."

Just then, a bright voice chimed in.

"Hey~ Why's everyone gathered here? Are you all waiting for me?"

Hermione stepped out from the entrance of Gringotts.

She was holding a small money pouch in her hand, clearly having just exchanged some currency.

Ron saw her and rolled his eyes. "Why would we be here waiting for you?"

(End of Chapter)