Chapter 156: Mental Enhancement, Another Mythical Puzzle Piece?! Investigation!

The seed before Ciel had a wrinkled surface and gave off a peculiar, irritating odor. It was called Chizpurfle, a plant found only in the magical world. After reaching maturity, this distinctive scent would become even more pungent. The leaves were particularly prized—when burned, they emitted a rich, tobacco-like fragrance. For certain wizards, Chizpurfle leaves were considered premium smoking material, far superior to any cigarette and comparable to the finest cigars in the magical world. However, its price was quite high. But he didn't care about its value. What made his eyes light up was the reward information floating above the Chizpurfle seeds. [Cultivate Chizpurfle to maturity to receive reward: Mental Enhancement (Black Iron Tier)] Seeing this reward information, his eyes flashed with intense heat. As his understanding of magic deepened, he had gained increasingly profound recognition of the role of the mind in magic. As repeatedly mentioned in every class's basic knowledge, magic was an idealistic power. Whether one's mental will was firm and strong was a key factor in casting spells. The more resolute one was during spellcasting, the more significant the magical effects would be. Sometimes, a powerful mind could even push wizards to their ultimate potential, unleashing power they themselves couldn't imagine. For example, the original Harry Potter mentioned that Peter Pettigrew blew up an entire street with a single spell on the night he betrayed the Potters. When he first read this description in his past life, he found it quite incredible. After all, such descriptions were extremely rare. If Peter Pettigrew's magical strength was that formidable, why would he be so submissive and looked down upon? And during the final battle, Bellatrix Lestrange, who followed Voldemort so arrogantly, actually died at the hands of Mrs. Weasley, who spent her days doing busy housework with no time to practice powerful magic. And she was killed in single combat. This had also puzzled him. But this time, after personally experiencing magic, he understood the reasons. Peter Pettigrew unleashed extremely powerful spells when betraying because he was completely twisted at that time. Years of accumulated humiliation from being looked down upon and acting submissively all exploded at that moment. This caused his mental state to climb to levels he normally couldn't reach. Hence that spell that directly destroyed an entire street. Mrs. Weasley's outburst was due to losing her child. With the belief of not letting Bellatrix harm her children anymore, her mental state also soared. Only then could she crush Bellatrix in such a short time. To use a more appropriate analogy, magical perception and magical strength were a wizard's basic stats. While the mind was an amplifier. Wizards with powerful minds could perform their magical abilities at one hundred percent or even beyond. Those cowardly and timid wizards, even with outstanding magical talent, might see their strength greatly diminished at crucial moments due to weak minds. "Even in the final battle. Even though Harry was the true master of the Elder Wand, did Voldemort really lose entirely because of this? Dumbledore also had a public duel with Grindelwald. If the Elder Wand's power could let Harry crush Voldemort, who was far stronger than him, then Grindelwald wielding the Elder Wand would have been virtually unbeatable, yet Dumbledore actually won. This also shows that Voldemort's defeat likely involved factors of his mental state being affected upon learning he wasn't the Elder Wand's true master. The importance of the mind is evident." However, his eyes brightened at this. This was good news for him. Whether due to being reborn or having experienced many hardships, or possibly because his strong physique nourished his mind, his mental state should be much stronger than ordinary young wizards. In magic, he was more limited by magical talent than mental will. This was one of his strengths. "Previously, my magical talent was too weak... no matter how strong my mind, it couldn't overcome physical talent deficiencies. But now, my talent has grown considerably. And it will continue improving. The importance of the mind will gradually manifest. No one would complain about their strengths being too strong. The Mental Enhancement reward from cultivating Chizpurfle would benefit even top-tier wizards. This must be planted!" Finding Chizpurfle seeds put him in an excellent mood. Though the benefits of planting this plant would become more apparent once his magic reached a certain level, starting cultivation now would definitely yield satisfying returns. Perhaps Lady Luck began favoring him at this moment. After a while longer, he found another plant that made him ecstatic. "Puking Pastilles. A magical plant with poor taste but extremely strong satiation ability. Legend says eating just one Puking Pastille could keep an adult from needing food for three days and nights." His eyes suddenly burst with brilliant light. He would need to tame more trolls to produce Mimbulus mimbletonia. This meant needing more food. Hogwarts' kitchens couldn't supply this demand. But if he could mass-cultivate Puking Pastilles, this key problem could be easily solved. Even with trolls' appetites, eating several Puking Pastilles should be sufficient. As for their poor taste... trolls were never picky eaters! He took a deep breath. Just Puking Pastilles' ability to feed trolls was enough for him to decide on cultivation. When his gaze fell on the Puking Pastilles' reward information, his breathing stopped for a moment. [Cultivate Puking Pastilles to maturity to receive reward: Stamina Enhancement (Black Iron Tier)] His palms instantly showed bulging veins. His excitement was beyond words. Another body-related ability. Stamina had countless connections with vitality, strength, and even hematopoietic ability. Perhaps this would be like hematopoietic enhancement... another piece of the mythical vitality puzzle! He was completely determined. "Chizpurfle and Puking Pastilles. These are the first plants I'll cultivate after clearing farmland." But after a moment, looking at these two plants, he frowned slightly. Chizpurfle seeds were fine. Though expensive, they were sold on the market and easy to obtain. But Puking Pastilles weren't grown from seeds. They were grown from tubers. That is, cutting several pieces from a Puking Pastille and burying them in soil could grow new ones. In a sense, with sufficient Puking Pastilles, cultivation wasn't complex. Large-scale planting could be achieved quickly. But the key issue was that what Professor Sprout left in the storage compartments was just one dried, inactive Puking Pastille. It couldn't be used for cultivation. Professor Sprout's explanation clearly stated the reason. "Previously, Puking Pastilles were cultivated on Drear Island by the MacBoon and MacBride families. But as their ancestral feud intensified, all MacBoon family members were transformed into Quintapeds by the MacBride family using ancient dark magic. However, on the very night the MacBride family celebrated wildly, the Quintapeds slaughtered their entire clan. "Since then, Drear Island has been occupied by the MacBoon family turned Quintapeds. Worse still, they actually found being Quintapeds quite good, refusing to be restored to human form and voluntarily maintaining monster forms. The Ministry has sent wizards to the island several times trying to transform the Quintapeds back, but they not only have strong resistance to transformation spells but also retain some magical abilities from their wizard days. Ministry wizards were eaten by them. "Therefore, Quintapeds are rated as Class 5X magical creatures, even extremely dangerous among Class 5X dangerous magical creatures. Drear Island was also made Unplottable by the Ministry, hidden from the magical world. Since then, except for a few dried specimens, no fresh Puking Pastilles suitable for cultivation have appeared. After all, these fruits have neither research value nor economic value. No one wants to search for Drear Island, risking being cruelly devoured by numerous Quintapeds, just for fruits that fill stomachs." This enlightened him. He hadn't expected Puking Pastilles to be connected to Quintapeds, Class 5X magical creatures. Thinking of Quintapeds, his brow furrowed. These things sounded troublesome from Professor Sprout's description. Resistant to transfiguration, retaining wizards' magical abilities. Intelligent. Gregarious. Fond of human flesh. Practically upgraded Acromantulas. For him, having magical abilities made them much harder to deal with than Acromantulas! Getting Puking Pastilles from their habitat would be incredibly difficult. Moreover, Drear Island had been made Unplottable by the Ministry for centuries. Except for knowing it was north of Scotland, no one knew its exact location. Finding Drear Island might be even harder than dealing with Quintapeds. But for him, among thousands of magical plants, Puking Pastilles were most suitable for his needs. Whether solving future troll feeding problems or gaining the [Stamina Enhancement] ability to attempt another piece toward the mythical tier, he was determined to obtain them. His gaze profound, he memorized all information about Puking Pastilles. Then he took a deep breath and walked toward the library. "The pioneering permit hasn't been issued yet. Even when issued, just finding locations, tilling soil, fertilizing... these processes will consume considerable time. Perhaps before then, I can find clues about Drear Island, Quintapeds, and Puking Pastilles in the library." Meanwhile, outside the Ministry of Magic, countless reporters surrounded the building almost impenetrably. They constantly questioned every person entering and leaving about Umbridge's death. "Is it true Umbridge committed suicide? Was she subjected to workplace bullying? There are rumors Umbridge learned about Ministry financial problems at work, and then news of her death emerged. Is this accurate? We got inside information saying this involves a crime of passion. Can you reveal any details?" In the Minister's office, Fudge paced frantically. Looking at the scene outside his office window, he couldn't help roaring, smashing the cup on his desk to pieces. "These damned, despicable reporters! They're like hyenas and vultures seeing corpses! Do they have even a Knut's worth of connection to the facts and truth they claim? It's all for sensationalism! And those stupid citizens reading the Daily Prophet with such relish daily... they don't care about any damn Umbridge or truth. Who would care about that toad Umbridge? But now they talk about Umbridge's death like the sky is falling. From Umbridge's death, they see this and that, discussing high-mindedly daily as if they know inside information. Don't I know why? Just wanting to see the Ministry fail, wanting to criticize my incompetence from their high horses!" He panted heavily. His aide cautiously knocked and entered, carrying a large stack of documents. "M-Minister Fudge. Several documents have been accumulating for days now... Reporters are beginning to ask questions from this angle, attempting to spread rumors that the Ministry has been paralyzed since Umbridge's death. Perhaps you should compose yourself and address these matters." Fudge's temple veins bulged as he cursed again. But after a moment, he sighed deeply, picked up a quill, and waved despondently. "Come on, come on. This damned life!" Then he began listlessly reviewing these documents. After a moment, he paused at a letter. "Hmm? This document has no departmental stamps? That's against procedure." The aide reminded him. "It's an application letter from that young Ciel Sprout. You forgot? We signed a contract... the Ministry must provide the boy's Herbology resources. This time he's applied for over a hundred bottles of fertilizing potions plus pioneering permit documents." As if to ease Fudge's bad mood, the aide continued indignantly. "This boy. How does he pick such timing? Doesn't he know you're busy, Minister? Who has time for his little Herbology matters?" Fudge initially frowned too. Especially remembering this contract was signed under Dumbledore's witness made him even more annoyed. But after a moment, his eyes suddenly brightened. "Hmm?! Pioneering permits, fertilizing potions... This boy plans to clear land and grow herbs himself?" He suddenly smiled. "Good! Excellent! Perfect timing!" The aide was somewhat confused, not understanding why Fudge's mood suddenly improved after being so irritated. He chuckled with a mysterious air. "Now this whole Umbridge business is creating such a mess. Those idiotic citizens call us incompetent one day, corrupt the next, like they're trying to drag us through the mud. They act completely disappointed in us. But what if they could profit from us? I guarantee they'd be singing our praises in no time. Never mind one dead Umbridge... hell, even three or five deaths, and who would give a damn?" The aide began understanding. "Minister, you mean..." He snapped his fingers, looking at the letter requesting pioneering permits. "Exactly. We can revisit old matters and open pioneering permits. To demonstrate our image of improving people's livelihood. This boy can serve as a publicity example." The aide showed complete admiration. "Minister. Brilliant!" But his face also showed some hesitation. "But issuing pioneering permits... what if they clear too much land?" He laughed at this. "It was opened a century ago. The fact is, land clearing is so hard... those applying for permits are just hot-headed. When it comes to actual work, how many can persist? Those who persist, how much land can they actually clear? Including application fees and subsequent payments for Ministry protective magic, it actually generates revenue for the Ministry. What's to fear?" The aide thought this made sense. "What level permit should we issue him? Would a ten-acre permit be sufficient?" He shook his head, looking disappointed. "Vision. Expand your vision! We're using this as a publicity example... ten acres? What publicity value does that have?" He curled his lips and casually wrote a number. "Unlimited. Give him unlimited pioneering permits. However much he can clear, we'll acknowledge. Also, emphasize in publicity that the Ministry waives subsequent costs for building protective magic and connecting to the Floo Network, demonstrating our unlimited support for young wizard entrepreneurship." The aide was startled. "Unlimited?! Minister, isn't this too exaggerated?" He laughed. "Only looks exaggerated. Only allowing him to clear land himself, no hiring help, otherwise it doesn't count. You think he can actually clear much land? He's a young wizard, not a mule. Even if he were a mule, working alone, how much could he clear before dying of exhaustion? You have too little vision. The Ministry already supports so many parasites anyway. The boy just wants to plant trees... what are you panicking about? As I said, this could bankrupt our Ministry?!" The aide nodded enthusiastically, completely conquered by Fudge's political wisdom. "Minister. Brilliant!" He looked quite pleased. Then he said, "Quickly send the permit documents and potions to Hogwarts. Then create publicity buzz around this. Of course..." His expression darkened. "Umbridge's matter still needs investigation. Do the Aurors have any leads?" The aide looked somewhat serious. "Some leads. But they point toward Hogwarts. Investigate at Hogwarts? Recently there have been too many Hogwarts-related matters... hearings, academic reviews. Sending Aurors to investigate Hogwarts again might make Dumbledore think something else?" This gave him a headache too. But after a moment, he suddenly thought of a candidate. "There's a trainee Auror, what's her name? Tonks? She just graduated recently, still counts as a Hogwarts student, and is supposedly a staunch Dumbledore supporter. Good, good. Let Hogwarts graduates investigate Hogwarts. Let Dumbledore's people deal with Dumbledore. Send her to investigate exactly how Umbridge died!"