The Old Ones of Hogwarts

Chapter 536-545: The Prelude to Destruction 1

The ceremony was both grotesque and terrifying.

Well, how should I put it?

I wonder what sins this couple committed in their past lives.

To think we would encounter such a disaster.

"Aaaaaaaahhhhh!!!"

Suddenly, they opened their eyes, their eyeballs bulging out from the pain and fear, bloodshot, and they let out incoherent screams that sounded like they were dying.

"Clang clang clang" The two people's bodies convulsed and twisted violently, as if countless insects were wriggling under their skin, and their facial features were distorted and deformed due to extreme pain.

of course.

As the ceremony proceeded...

They couldn't make a loud sound—the cave was already shrouded in a soundproof barrier, and only their inhuman expressions of pain and silent screams appeared even more eerie and terrifying against the backdrop of the dim light and distorted shadows.

At Voldemort's sacrifice.

Their vitality, the trembling of their souls, and the intensely negative emotions, like lit black incense candles, transformed into an invisible and intangible "energy flow" that Voldemort could clearly perceive. Guided by the dark matter, it flowed into the patterns of the altar. Then, following some mysterious path, it surged upwards, outwards, towards the mysteriously summoned source of "deep space"! Voldemort was incredibly adept at performing such dark magic rituals.

The altar suddenly shone brightly!

Dark red, eerie green, dark purple, filthy yellow... all sorts of blasphemous colors swirled and mixed wildly, forming a chaotic halo that enveloped the entire altar and Voldemort.

"Giggle giggle!"

Voldemort was still ecstatic.

I felt proud of my masterpiece.

The cave began to tremble slightly, tiny pebbles cascading from the ceiling, and unnatural ripples spreading across the puddles on the floor. The sweet, spice-like scent in the air was replaced by a stronger, more ancient, salty, decaying, and icy aroma, as if from a deep sea trench or a star graveyard. "It's here! It's here! I have been chosen!"

Voldemort could feel that the "gaze" had become clearer! It was no longer a vague sensation, but a real "connection" that transcended incomprehensible dimensions had been established!

A massive flow of information, so vast it made his soul tremble slightly, surged into his consciousness like a flood bursting its banks, forcefully breaching the "gap" he had forcibly pried open with rituals and sacrifices!

Voldemort is trembling!

It was both fear and excitement! There were no concrete words, no clear images. It was a more direct, more essential form of "knowledge transmission." It was countless fragmented, self-contradictory "concepts" and "perceptions" that seemed to reveal some crazy truth about the universe! The eternal, deathly silence of the cold starry sky and the indescribable, writhing shadows lurking within it;

Time and space are like fragile bubbles, subject to vague laws that can be twisted, folded, and manipulated at will;

The boundaries between matter and spirit are blurred; flesh and blood can be transformed into starlight, and thoughts can shape the absurd possibilities of reality.

And... power!

An endless, chaotic, and primal force capable of tearing apart reality, reshaping logic, and reducing so-called "order" and "common sense" to laughable toys! The essence of that force is this... "freedom," unbound by any morality, rules, or even causality, following only the most primal chaos and the will of existence!

"Heh...heh heh..."

Voldemort let out a suppressed, intensely excited gasp. His body trembled slightly from the overwhelming flow of information. A sickly blush even crept onto his snake-like face.

but.

The physical stress did not diminish his current ecstasy!

because!

He could "hear" it! Not with his ears, but with indescribable "voices" echoing directly in the depths of his consciousness—like the whispers of billions of stars, the sighs of deep-sea monsters, the first chaotic roar at the birth of the universe, and the final, mad laugh at the end of all things! That "voice" was "telling" him, telling him the secrets of power, the "truth" of the universe, and how to break free from the shackles of a tiny life!

Then, embrace that endless, chaotic, and cold "greatness"!

"I heard it... I heard it! An echo from deep space! This is... this is the power I've been searching for! Beyond all! Above all!" Voldemort roared inwardly, his crimson pupils seemingly dripping blood, filled with indescribable ecstasy, greed, and signs of being gradually eroded and distorted by mad knowledge.

just.

Voldemort himself seemed oblivious.

He felt his magic was strangely resonating and merging with the surging "deep space echo".

Although it was only the most initial and weak contact, he could clearly sense that his mastery of dark magic was like a stream compared to a vast ocean in the face of this more primal and chaotic power! If he could absorb more, if he could truly master even a trace of such power… Dumbledore? The Order of the Phoenix? The entire wizarding world?

snort!

They're nothing but ants!

Those troubles that once seemed insurmountable will become as insignificant as dust!

He could even glimpse a vague possibility—how to use this power to perfect his immortality and achieve his ultimate dream of ruling and reshaping the world!

Voldemort felt that today was his lucky day.

However, he found it difficult to discover.

Along with the ecstasy and the infusion of knowledge of power, something more hidden and dangerous, like a malignant tumor, silently seeped into the depths of his soul.

It was a frenzied whisper, not clear words, but a pollution and distortion that directly affected the mind.

It is a silent mockery and an impulse to dismantle all order, logic, emotion, and moral concepts. It is a temptation that leads the soul to pure chaos and disorder.

It's a vague sense of awe and a fluttering desire to get closer to the "sleeping god." It's also a cold, detached feeling of being pulled to infinite heights, looking down on all living beings as insignificant as ants…

Voldemort's soul, already riddled with holes from the split Horcruxes, was filled with extreme selfishness, arrogance, and darkness. Now, this chaotic echo from "deep space," like the most potent catalyst and the most suitable source of contamination, found the perfect breeding ground. No wonder everyone else looked down on him. He really was somewhat foolish.

Faced with such a dangerous loss, he not only did not resist the insane whispers and twisted temptations, but instead opened his heart and greedily absorbed everything.

They actually regarded that as part of "power," as an essential path to "higher levels."

"Ha ha ha ha!"

He was ecstatic, completely immersed in this dangerous "blessing." The "echoes of deep space" in his ears seemed to grow clearer and more intimate, as if a great and ancient being was casting an approving "gaze" upon him through the endless void. How glorious!

The two Muggles on the altar were now completely lifeless, their bodies withered and shriveled, like rags drained of all moisture and soul. Their faces were frozen in a distorted expression of extreme pain and fear, their eyes sunken, as if they had stared at something indescribable and utterly collapsed. Their deaths provided the final energy for this brief "connection."

Voldemort didn't notice, or rather, didn't care about, this. At the same time, he didn't notice that his own shadow, illuminated by the flickering blue firelight and chaotic magical light of the cave, was undergoing an extremely bizarre change—no longer merely distorted, but seemingly extending out something that shouldn't exist.

It was a wriggling, tentacle-like shadow that gradually merged with his original humanoid silhouette.

Voldemort, obsessed with power, was unaware that deep within his soul, besides the cracks in the Horcruxes and the imprint of dark magic, an extremely small "mark" or "seed" had appeared, bearing characteristics completely different from the "Raven Mark" in Rol's soul, and filled with chaotic and mad elements.

It is taking root and sprouting silently.

That is not the cold imprint of order.

Rather, it was the beginning of chaos and erosion.

Yes.

This moment.

Whether Voldemort originally wanted to or not, at this moment, he had silently become a follower of the deep space and was enslaved by the corrupting power of the Cthulhu pantheon.

The ceremony lasted for an unknown period of time.

As the light of the altar gradually dimmed.

The tremors in the cave subsided.

As the salty, rotten smell of "deep space" slowly dissipated from the air, Voldemort seemed to awaken from a deep sleep, slowly lowering his hand that was holding his wand. "Whoosh whoosh whoosh~"

He stood there, slightly out of breath, a fine layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead, but his scarlet eyes were brighter than ever before. Brighter…deeper.

It is also more dangerous.

The flames burning within were no longer merely ambition and cruelty, but also a distorted understanding—an "insight" into the madness of the universe coupled with a thirst for chaotic power. He succeeded. He successfully established contact with "deep space," receiving unprecedented power, knowledge, and a frenzied response.

This made him feel that he had taken another big step closer to his ultimate goal. As for the spiritual pollution and soul erosion that followed? In his view, they were nothing more than a trivial price to pay for gaining great power, or even a necessary "baptism" in the process of "sublimation".

"I! I will ascend to legend!" He glanced at the two horrifying desiccated corpses on the altar, and with a casual wave of his wand, the two bodies turned to ashes and vanished into the air without leaving a trace. The dark red patterns on the altar's surface also returned to silence, as if the terrifying scene had never happened.

"Power..." Voldemort murmured, a strange, satisfied tremor in his voice, "More power... deeper knowledge... 'Raven'... and Dumbledore... you can't understand... what a magnificent being I'm touching..." He turned, his steps lighter and more... ethereal than when he came, as if treading on some inhuman rhythm, slowly making his way back to the stone steps. The eerie green light of his wand rekindled, illuminating the indescribable, bizarre smile on his pale, snake-like face—a smile a mixture of ecstasy, madness, and absolute confidence. The underground lair of London fell silent once more. But deep within Voldemort's soul, a more secretive, more dangerous transformation and erosion had already begun. The power of the Cthulhu Mythos, the ancient madness that was ended by Ian in R'lyeh, is once again relentlessly extending its invisible and terrifying tentacles through the most greedy and darkest soul in this rewritten timeline, attempting to pry open the cracks that are eroding this world. Voldemort, the Dark Lord who believes he is pursuing ultimate power, is ecstatically transforming himself into the bridge and vessel of that mad erosion.

In London under the cover of night, the crisis extends far beyond the Death Eaters' atrocities and the mystery of the "Raven." A chaotic and ancient darkness, originating from deep space, is quietly seeping into the deepest recesses of reality, achieving a dangerous and deadly resonance with an evil soul thirsting for power. "Tap tap tap~"

Footsteps sounded.

Leaving the underground cavern filled with blasphemous atmosphere and echoing madness, Voldemort did not return to the hall where the Death Eaters gathered, nor did he go to his other secret hideouts in England. An irrepressible urge, born from the newly acquired "knowledge" deep within his soul, drove him to take the next step.

"I can do it! Of course I can!" He knew that merely establishing an initial connection and receiving knowledge feedback was not enough. He needed to truly internalize the chaotic yet powerful force bestowed upon him by "deep space"!

Integrate your own magical essence and achieve a qualitative leap!

The vague guidance from the frenzied echoes in his mind, and the treasures he had amassed over the years, contained something that seemed to resonate inexplicably with this newfound power, helping him break through the barrier to higher levels that had long troubled him and many other high wizards. "Legend! I will become the first legend of the end times!" Voldemort needed a place of absolute quiet, undisturbed peace, where magical elements were relatively primitive and active. The area near London was clearly unsuitable. After a moment's thought, a glint of light flashed in his crimson eyes, and he made his decision. Silently, he appeared in a secluded corner of the stronghold, where his personal, heavily guarded Apparition coordinates were located.

Then.

Voldemort closed his eyes, and the image of a desolate island somewhere in the North Atlantic, far from all major shipping routes and areas of wizarding activity, came to mind. It was a place he had discovered by chance years ago while chasing a traitor who was trying to escape, and he had secretly converted it into a private storage point and emergency shelter.

The island is covered with various protective, concealment, and counter-detection magic.

"Apparition!"

Long-distance apparition is absolutely impossible for most wizards.

But Voldemort was different.

His magic is indeed powerful enough.

All I saw was...

This was accompanied by Voldemort's spellcasting.

The next moment, a sensation of space violently distorting and compressing came over me.

"Snapped!"

The faint popping sound was exceptionally clear in the silence. The cold, dampness of the London underground lair was instantly replaced by the biting, salty sea breeze of the North Atlantic night.

Voldemort appeared in a dark area, on a basalt platform smoothed like a mirror by the waves.

The platform is located on the top of a cliff at the edge of the island, with thunderous, surging waves crashing against the rocks below, stirring up a sky full of cold, salty foam.

"On this island, I will do what no wizard can do! I will stand in the heavens! I will become the world's only legend!"

Voldemort looked up and saw that the night sky was incredibly clear, free from the light pollution of London. Billions of stars were scattered like shattered diamonds on the velvety night sky.

The Milky Way stretches across the sky, magnificent yet...cold.