As November arrived, the weather at Hogwarts suddenly turned cold, especially in the early mornings, students donned thick robes and hurried across the courtyards, rushing between different parts of Hogwarts.
For Adrian, today was another leisurely day. At the moment, he was in greenhouse number two of his plantation, staring at a tree in a daze, holding a tattered book in his hand.
It was a small apple tree, about two meters tall, with a slender trunk but lush branches.
Most eye-catching were the few apples hanging on the tree—red with a hint of green.
Obviously, they were about to ripen.
Of course, its presence in Adrian's plantation meant it had its own special qualities.
[Type: Apple Tree]
[Level: 2]
[Characteristic: Purification]
This was an apple tree with the "Purification" characteristic.
However, this wasn't an ability of the tree itself, but rather of its fruit.
As the name "Purification" suggested, directly consuming the fruit from this tree could eliminate unwanted or harmful impurities from the body, restoring one's physical condition to its optimal state.
Last year when this apple tree bore fruit, Adrian had tried it and discovered that even if one was poisoned by venomous tentacles, eating this apple could heal them instantly.
It could even dispel the effects of minor curses. Such was its powerful effect.
However, for Adrian, this effect still wasn't quite enough.
At that moment, a voice brought Adrian back to reality.
"I've got what you asked for, Adrian," Remus approached from a distance carrying a briefcase. "A brand-new cauldron, a bag of finely ground gold powder, and a table."
Adrian waved his wand, and the three items flew out of the briefcase, landing neatly before him.
"Thank you."
Adrian set up the cauldron, then opened the bag on the table and carefully pinched a small amount of gold powder, examining it closely.
"Grounded very finely," Adrian nodded with satisfaction. "This will work perfectly."
Remus stood nearby with his hands in his robe pockets and said, "I found a shop in Diagon Alley—quite fortunate, they sell very pure gold. But... what do you need these things for? Are you brewing a potion? I don't know of any potion that requires gold powder..."
Adrian shook his head, placed the book on the table, and gestured to Remus, saying, "I found something interesting in this book."
Remus looked over and saw that the cover of the book clearly read—"Collection of Alchemy Rituals Worth Trying."
'Alchemy rituals!' Remus was somewhat surprised.
"May I take a look?" He asked Adrian curiously.
"Of course," Adrian nodded. "Just be careful not to tear it, or Madam Pince will be angry."
Remus gently opened the worn cover and discovered that under the title "Collection of Alchemy Rituals Worth Trying," there were a few crooked lines of text, obviously added by someone later.
"Friendly reminder, the contents are not actually worth trying."
Remus's heart skipped a beat, then he continued reading. Below this sentence was another one.
"Another friendly reminder, the contents might cost you an eye—or give you an extra eye, hahaha."
Remus remained silent for a moment, then closed the book, not looking at the contents that followed.
"Are you sure this book is... safe, Adrian?" he couldn't help asking.
Adrian smiled and waved his hand. "Don't worry, Remus, I'm just using this book as a reference."
"That sounds even less reassuring—" Remus muttered under his breath, already considering whether he should contact St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries in advance, to avoid missing the best treatment window.
Just then, Adrian suddenly sensed a faint aura.
He turned his head to look at the apples on the tree. The fruit skin, which had been red with a hint of green, was now becoming more vibrant at a visible rate.
[Name: Apple]
[Characteristic: Purification]
[Status: Ripe]
"The apples are ripe," Adrian said with some excitement.
"They look quite ordinary," Remus remarked. "Not much different from the ones I usually eat."
"The difference is huge!"
Adrian waved his wand, and an apple detached from the tree, floating slowly toward Remus. "You must try it."
Remus looked at the apple floating in front of him, hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took it.
The apple felt heavy in his hand. Apart from being slightly plumper on the surface, it indeed looked no different from ordinary apples.
"It's not poisonous, don't worry!" Adrian urged when he saw Remus still hesitating. "Hurry up."
Finally, Remus raised the apple to his mouth and took a small bite.
"How does it feel?" Adrian asked, his eyes showing a trace of anticipation.
"It seems... there's no change?" Remus said with slight confusion as he smacked his lips. "At least it tastes good."
Adrian raised an eyebrow, seemingly surprised by this result.
He stepped closer, staring at Remus's face, and asked with slight suspicion, "Really no change?"
Remus nodded.
'Oh well,' Adrian sighed.
He had thought that these apples with the "Purification" function might have some effect on Remus's lycanthropy.
After all, lycanthropy was a kind of disease.
Theoretically, it should be purifiable.
Now it seemed that this approach wouldn't work.
Adrian used his wand to pick all the apples from the tree and placed them on the table—apart from the one Remus had eaten, there were six more.
"Let's begin."
Adrian murmured, starting to prepare for the ritual.
A large cauldron of dew collected during the full moon night. A few drops of phoenix tears that Ray had obtained from Fawkes. A bag of gold powder.
And finally...
Adrian took a silver knife and unhesitatingly cut a wound on his arm. Blood flowed down his arm and dripped into the cauldron.
...A cup of blood from a kind-hearted person.
In fact, Adrian wasn't sure if he qualified as a "kind-hearted person."
But besides himself, he didn't know whose blood to use.
While Adrian worked, Remus watched in astonishment from the side. The scene in front of him seemed decidedly eerie no matter how he looked at it.
"Adrian, are you sure this is alright?" He couldn't help asking.
"Don't worry," Adrian replied briefly.
As soon as he finished speaking, the moment the blood made contact with the golden liquid, a dazzling light burst forth from the cauldron.
Seeing this, Adrian, disregarding the wound on his arm, quickly selected two apples and placed them into the cauldron—the cauldron was only large enough for two.
The apples sank into the golden liquid, and the liquid in the cauldron suddenly began to boil.
After about ten seconds, the light gradually dissipated, and the liquid in the cauldron returned to calm.
Adrian used silver tongs to remove the apples from the cauldron and placed them on the table.
The apples had now completely turned golden.
"Eldra."
[Name: Golden Apple]
[Characteristic: Purification!!!]