Chapter 140: A Leisurely Teacher's Life

Everyone’s attention soon became focused once more. Gryffindor was no longer sunk in disappointment, while Slytherin was no longer savoring the taste of victory. They all wanted to see what would happen when they fought Professor Ma Jun, a young professor, especially as a group attacking him all at once.

The Gryffindor students stepped aside to watch.

The little snakes of Slytherin surrounded Ma Jun, each gripping a wand and pointing it at him, ready to attack at any moment. They all looked somewhat nervous. They had never before had the chance to point their wands at a professor.

Ma Jun stood calmly in the very center and said with a smile, “You may attack as you please, but you may use only Expelliarmus. I will not counterattack; I will only defend myself. I want you to see how to respond to this spell. Are you ready?”

“Ready!”

“Begin!”

At Ma Jun’s command, the group of Slytherin students immediately unleashed their spells at him without holding anything back.

Ma Jun remained perfectly composed. He swung his wand rapidly and said softly, “Finite Incantatem!”

It was a spell that brought other spells to an end. As his magic swept out, many of the students’ spells simply dissipated in midair, as though they had never been cast at all.

To the Gryffindor students, Professor Ma Jun seemed to face the attacks of an entire group with effortless ease, standing firm without ever wavering.

In reality, Ma Jun was muttering inwardly, “Hmm. The power of this attack is at least comparable to fighting an Auror. It seems my dodging skills and casting speed are both pretty good. Practicing spells this way really does work. It’s a pity these students are too weak. Even if they managed to hit me, they probably wouldn’t be able to break through my defensive shield.”

Ma Jun had turned the lesson into an opportunity to practice his own magic. Though he appeared utterly calm, he had secretly cast a Shield Charm on himself, just in case anything went wrong. The students could not see it, and therefore had no idea that their scheming teacher was cheating.

“Did you see that?” Ma Jun said, growing increasingly skilled at dodging the spells while casting his own magic afterward yet making it strike first, preventing the students from attacking. At the same time, he did not forget his duty as a teacher and continued explaining to the class. “Finite Incantatem! A simple and effective spell. It renders the spell cast by another wizard ineffective. This is a spell you can master and use in many different situations. What’s more, it allows you to strike after your opponent casts, yet stop them before their attack can reach you!”

A few minutes later, the Slytherin students ceased their attacks. They had not caused Ma Jun the slightest trouble.

At first, when they heard that Ma Jun would only defend himself, they had thought they might at least be able to disarm him. They had not expected the young teacher to possess such genuine skill.

Now, both the Slytherin and Gryffindor students were filled with admiration for Ma Jun.

Strength was always the most effective way to change how others viewed you.

“For today’s lesson, I want you to become proficient in both Expelliarmus and Finite Incantatem,” Ma Jun said as he summarized the class. “You may practice freely from now on. If anyone has a question, come and ask me at any time.”

After arranging activities for the remainder of the lesson, Ma Jun leisurely walked over to a chair and sat down. Holding a cup of coffee in one hand and a book in the other, he began to read. He had no intention of dutifully acting like a proper teacher. Whenever there was a chance to be lazy, he certainly would not waste it.

The lesson soon drew to a close, and none of the students had gone to disturb Ma Jun—not even Neville. During the earlier one-on-one battles, Neville had surprised everyone by defeating his opponent.

“All right, get ready to finish up!” Ma Jun closed his book, stood, and called out, “Next lesson, I will test your mastery of the spells. Anyone who cannot even cast the spells will lose twenty points! We will also continue with one-on-one battles next time. The spells you may use will include Expelliarmus, Finite Incantatem, and Impedimenta! Remember to practice after class.”

After the lesson ended, the students gradually filed out of the classroom. Harry came over and said with a grin, “Professor, that class was fantastic! This is what Defense Against the Dark Arts should be! Next time, I’m definitely going to beat Draco.”

“Thank you for the compliment!” Ma Jun replied with a smile. “I look forward to seeing how you perform next lesson.” He then looked at Ron beside Harry. “Oh, Ron, your spellcasting is still very clumsy. You need to practice more!”

“I will, Professor!” Ron’s face flushed.

“Professor Ma Jun, could you tell me about some more spells—spells that can defend against the Dark Arts? I would like to practice them in advance.” Hermione did not hurry to leave either. She looked at him expectantly.

“I wouldn’t mind,” Ma Jun said with a beaming smile, “but if I spend too much time alone with a pretty young girl like you, I’m afraid everyone will start spreading rumors. I’m sure that, as the eager student you are, you won’t find it difficult to learn something from books. If you want to visit the Restricted Section to look for books, I can approve it whenever you like!”

“Thank you, Professor Ma Jun!” Hermione was so excited that she nearly grinned from ear to ear. Being allowed to wander freely through the Restricted Section was the most wonderful thing imaginable for a scholar with such an intense thirst for knowledge.

…

And so Ma Jun began his life as a teacher at Hogwarts. Using his position, he established several competitive rules for the students, encouraging them to help him improve his combat skills.

It was practically like finding himself a group of free sparring partners!

If they knew that this was what Ma Jun had intended all along, would they come after him in fury?

But the students had no idea. Instead, they grew increasingly devoted to Ma Jun. During lessons, they often joined forces to attack him, yet each time he was able to dispel their assault with ease.

Many of the female students became Ma Jun’s devoted admirers.

Among them, Hermione was the most representative. She often ran into Ma Jun in the library, and the two of them would read together and discuss various spells and other magical skills.

Perhaps Hermione truly possessed a remarkable talent in this area. Although her own strength was still lacking, many of her insights were highly original. Through their conversations, Ma Jun had been able to work out quite a few things, deepening his understanding of how magic could be used.

In addition to becoming close with the students, Ma Jun was broadly accepted by the other professors as well. Everyone approved of him as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.

They even held several gatherings together, and Dumbledore attended one of them. He made no attempt to hide his praise for Ma Jun, leaving the young professor rather embarrassed.

Ma Jun had no intention of allowing Dumbledore to cultivate him.

October arrived, and the cold, damp mountain winds swept across the entire castle.

Halloween was approaching, and the school was making preparations for it.

These wizards were truly strange. They celebrated Muggle holidays as well. Perhaps, aside from their ability to use magic, they were not so different from Muggles in many other ways.

To be continued.