novellaaa Chapter 148 Retreating is for a Better Advance
Chapter 148 Retreating is for a Better Advance
Chapter 148 Retreating is for a Better Advance
Although Harry dodged most of the attacks, his arms and sides were still hit by bits of ink during the roll, and his robes were soaked.
He pushed away the wooden plank covering him, scrambled to his feet, his body covered in ink and grease, his glasses smudged badly.
He could already see the door on the other side; it was less than fifteen meters away!
There were only a few low, broken walls and some stacked wooden crates in the middle.
Don't hesitate!
He gritted his teeth and sprinted forward, trying to rely on speed to get past.
However, the moment he rushed into the open space, something unexpected happened!
A metal barrier as tall as a person suddenly rose from the ground directly in front of him!
At the same time, the walls on both sides flipped and deformed again, and more than eight nozzles locked onto him simultaneously!
Harry waved his wand, but didn't know how to defend against attacks coming from all directions at the same time.
"Petrify them all!" he desperately fired a spell at the barrier in front of him. The barrier shook slightly, but did not disappear.
The next second, a blinding light shone on the metal plate in front of them.
"Boom!" It wasn't a real explosion, but the intense light instantly engulfed his vision.
Harry instinctively closed his eyes tightly and shielded them with his arm.
At the same time, he tried to move his feet and hide in the corner, but it was too late. At least three streams of black liquid hit his chest and legs at the same time. The huge impact made him fall backward and crash heavily to the ground.
As he fell, he triggered a new mechanism, and countless bright pink glitter particles rained down from both sides, completely transforming him into a colorful "ink man".
Harry's eyes stung, making it impossible for him to see anything. He could only feel the pain of being "hit" all over his body and a complete sense of powerlessness.
"Alright, that's enough." Lin Qi's calm voice rang out from somewhere, clearly echoing throughout the entire venue.
All sound suddenly stopped.
The blinding light went out, leaving only some residual pink powder slowly drifting down in the air, along with Harry's heavy breathing.
Let's go back the way we came.
Harry, panting, struggled to sit up, groped for his wand lying to the side, and tried to wipe the ink and powder off his glasses, but the more he tried, the worse it got.
He could barely make out the direction, and with his head down, he limped back along the path he had "paved" himself, a path covered in ink spots, oil stains, and pink powder.
Outside the door, Lin Qi looked at him, who was almost unrecognizable, with no expression on his face.
"How does it feel?"
"It's terrible," Harry answered honestly, his voice filled with frustration, as he futilely tried to wipe his glasses with the relatively clean lining of his robe.
Lynch waved his hand, and a stream of clear water gushed out, gently washing over Harry's entire body, washing away all the dirt on his face, body, and glasses, making him feel refreshed. Although his robes were still wet, he could at least see things clearly.
"Take off your robe, it'll make you more comfortable," Lin Qi said, producing a dry, fluffy towel from who-knows-where and handing it to him.
"Now, let's talk about your performance just now."
Harry took off his soaking wet, sticky robe, wiped his hair with a woolly coin, still feeling down, and braced himself for criticism.
"First of all, Harry," Lynch began, but to Harry's surprise, it wasn't a reprimand, but praise. "I must say, you've done much better than I expected, and you've gone much further."
"I originally expected that no one would be able to get to within 15 meters of the finish line on their first visit to the corridor—which I call the 'Transforming Corridor'.
Harry looked up in surprise.
"From the moment you dodged the first three-shot barrage, your reactions were incredibly quick," Lynch calmly analyzed. "Especially your tackle after spotting the brick trap; your instinctive judgment was excellent, protecting your wand. Then, using the Levitation Charm to lift the planks and create cover—though forced into it—was a very decisive and adaptable move, which is commendable. This ability to make on-the-spot decisions under pressure is something many wizards with years of training lack."
Harry was taken aback by the praise and was momentarily stunned, which eased his frustration somewhat.
“But,” Lynch’s tone shifted, his expression turning serious, “your problem is equally obvious, even fatal. You’re too ‘reckless,’ Harry.”
He paused for a moment, then added, "To put it bluntly, it was 'reckless'."
"You seem convinced there's only one path: to rush straight to the finish line, destroying or breaking through any obstacles in your way. Courage is commendable, but you lack strategy and observation. It's like playing Wizards Chess; you can't just let your knight charge forward relentlessly. Sometimes you need to retreat a step or move laterally to find a better attack route and see the overall board layout."
"For example," Lynch pointed to the first metal arm in the arena that Ha had stopped with a petrification spell, "what were you thinking when you successfully destroyed it and gained a small safe area?"
"...Keep going? Rush to that door?" Harry answered uncertainly, recalling his thoughts at the time.
"Yes, move forward. Reaching the finish line is the goal itself. But is it the only option?" Lynch pressed. "The ink was still spraying, and your flank wasn't entirely safe. Did you consider retreating behind that section of wall? Or moving to the side, using the scattered wooden crates as cover, observing the pattern of the ink spray? Waiting for a pause in the spray? Even—did you look down at your feet or up at the ceiling, looking for other clues or paths that might allow you to bypass this area?"
Harry fell silent. At that moment, all he could see was the road ahead and the door at the end. He didn't think about retreating or carefully exploring the surroundings. He just wanted to rush through in one go.
"You didn't," Lynch said for him, his tone not harsh, but stating a fact. "You chose the most direct and dangerous way—to force your way through."
"As a result, although you successfully broke through that area, you also slipped on the oil and triggered more chain mechanisms, leaving you exhausted and in a terrible state, and ultimately completely trapped with nowhere to hide."
"True fighting and survival, Harry, is not just about moving forward and destroying, but also about preserving yourself, assessing the situation, and choosing your path."
Lynch looked at Harry, his eyes deep. "Sometimes, a temporary retreat is for a better advance. What you need to learn is not just the courage to forge ahead, but also the wisdom to know when to retreat, when to hide, and when to wait for the right opportunity. Understand?"
"I hope this corridor can teach you these lessons."
Harry looked at the now silent porch, then at his wet robe that he had just taken off, which still seemed to have ink stains and pink glitter, and nodded thoughtfully.