Chapter 775
Tiankeng
Chapter 775 Tiankeng
Hermione, sitting by the fireplace, was completely oblivious to Harry and the others' little commotion; she was excitedly flipping through the documents, saying:
"Ms. Picqueri is a female leader I greatly admire. She achieved a lot when she was president of the Magical Congress and had a very strong leadership style! I didn't expect her to be a judge in this competition! Wade, do you know what alchemical works she has written? I'd like to read them in advance! Wade?"
“Oh, oh.” Wade looked away and said, “Ms. Serafina Picqueli hasn’t published any books, but she has written quite a few papers. I happen to have a collection of them…”
"You collect this?" Ron said in surprise. "Wade, I didn't expect you to be a fan! Although the idols you idolize are something most people would never think of."
Wade smiled and said casually, "Everyone has their own pursuits!"
Actually, the collection of papers was given to him by Dumbledore through Moody before he set off, but Wade felt there was no need to explain this.
Ron still wore an incredulous expression, muttering, "I know you're into alchemy... but collecting papers? What were you thinking... that's a terrible hobby!"
Fred tapped him on the head and said, “So Wade is a famous alchemist, and you, you stupid Ronald! You’ve been reading a book for half a month and haven’t even finished the first three pages.”
“Don’t touch my head!” Ron protested, though his tone wasn’t as aggressive as before.
The days of receiving pocket money from his older brother quickly taught him the meaning of "a wise man submits to circumstances."
Although Ron didn't know this saying, and although he didn't want to bow his head, he couldn't help it. The feeling of going to school with a full set of new stationery in his schoolbag was too wonderful. He didn't want to go back to the poor days when he had to use second-hand goods.
……
Before we knew it, the alchemy competition was about to begin.
Salina arrived at the White Bridge Hotel early in the morning to pick up Wade and the others to attend the opening ceremony. The group, including the Aurors, numbered more than a dozen, and even after all of them were crammed into one car, the space still felt quite spacious.
The black car sped along the highway with a low hum, incredibly smooth; the water in the cup didn't even slosh around.
It was only when Wade leaned against the back of the passenger seat that he saw how these American wizards drove.
Unlike the knight bus that bounces wildly, leaping forward a hundred or two hundred miles at a time, the Ministry of Magic's car, on the surface, looks no different from an ordinary person's vehicle.
They all travel on the same roads, sometimes detouring and overtaking, and they don't fly over other people's houses or move a great distance in an instant.
After observing for a long time, Wade gradually discovered the differences:
No matter how congested the traffic ahead, this car always manages to squeeze through.
Every time I got to the intersection, the light was green.
If some sections of the road are completely congested, when a black sedan approaches, the vehicles or people in front may inexplicably fall into the ditch beside the road to make way for the black sedan.
The most amazing time was when Wade saw a car in front of him suddenly swerve, fly over the high concrete platform by the roadside, and crash into a window of a building next to it.
Wade couldn't help but ask Salina, "Do you usually drive like this?"
—Do you call this being low-key?
“Our vehicles were driven normally, and even if the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration were to measure us by the strictest laws, we had not violated any regulations.”
After Salina finished speaking confidently, she seemed to understand the intention behind Wade's question and said casually, "That person must have been seriously drunk, or smoked something he shouldn't have, otherwise the effects of the magic wouldn't have been so exaggerated."
“So, turning him into a decoration on the wall might not be a bad thing,” one of her Aurors said with a laugh. “Otherwise, if that guy keeps driving, he might actually run over one or two Muggles.”
Wade: "..."
American wizards are no less arrogant than pure-blooded British families. They simply hide their arrogance behind warm smiles or a facade of respectable institutions.
……
With extremely smooth road conditions, the black sedan took less than ten minutes to get everyone to the edge of a wooded area in Central Park.
Salina got out of the car first. She patted the wrinkles on her robe, and with a flick of her wrist, half of her wand, hidden in her sleeve, was revealed.
She walked forward, chanting incantations, and drew circles in the air with her wand. After drawing three circles, the air rippled like water, revealing a flat and wide elevator.
"plz follow me."
Salina went in first, followed closely by Wade and the others. Once everyone was inside, the elevator doors closed, and everyone experienced a strong feeling of weightlessness.
Harry grabbed the bar quickly, muttering, "It feels like I'm going to fall!"
The elevator descended for a minute or two, then glided through some passage for a long time before finally coming to a stop.
When the door opened, the world before him opened up, and the sight made even the somewhat prepared Wade hold his breath slightly.
A word suddenly popped into his mind—sinkhole!
At this moment, everyone was in an enormous underground pit. Looking up, they saw a rough, naturally formed rock wall nearly a hundred meters high, with an opening at the very top only a few meters in diameter, through which sunlight streamed down.
In such an environment, the dome seems to be pressing down on you, creating a suffocating sense of oppression.
However, someone used magic to modify the environment—
The rock walls overhead were obscured by large patches of clouds that slowly moved and changed shape; a careless person might mistake them for the real sky.
Giant luminous fungi and magical plants were planted in the crevices of the rock wall, with vines climbing upwards along the rock as if chasing the only sunlight.
The plant's leaves are a very light green, some even turning white or translucent, with a jade-like texture, lustrous and translucent.
Purple or blue African violets can be seen everywhere on the ground, along with many fuchsias, lilies of the valley, violets, and other flowers, blooming in clusters, creating a particularly beautiful scene.
The hard bottom of the pit was leveled, and the core area was cleared out to serve as a competition platform. Spectator platforms and boxes of various sizes were carved into the rock walls, connected by natural rock bridges and ingenious magical floating platforms.
Unlike Quidditch matches, the Alchemy Tournament, even with spectators, wasn't very crowded. Therefore, the entire space was unusually quiet, with only the faint sounds of people talking in the distance, further emphasizing the grandeur and tranquility of the place.
(End of this chapter)