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Having successfully created the Middle-earth version of Ravenclaw's Diadem, the Crown of Wisdom, Kael plunged into frantic learning and practice.

Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, Alchemy, and Middle-earth's witchcraft, spells, and elven magic all accelerated like rockets under the Crown of Wisdom's enhancement.

What delighted Kael more was that meditation with the Crown of Wisdom yielded tremendous results, several times more efficient than usual.

The only problem was that such high-speed brain operation consumed bodily energy rapidly. Kael now needed several times his previous food intake, requiring constant energy replenishment.

For this, Arwen specially prepared lembas for him, avoiding his need to constantly eat for energy.

Moreover, the Crown of Wisdom couldn't be worn continuously. Prolonged rapid brain activity was extremely mentally exhausting.

So Kael only used it half a day daily, removing the crown when feeling mentally fatigued.

Even with the Crown of Wisdom's help, Kael understood not to bite off more than he could chew, so he focused mainly on studying alchemy to avoid errors when making the Philosopher's Stone.

After all, knowing how to make the Philosopher's Stone didn't mean one could actually create it. Otherwise, throughout magical history, Nicolas Flamel wouldn't be the only known possessor of a Philosopher's Stone.

Kael stayed at Weathertop for several months. Though he considered continuing to create Hufflepuff's Cup, the cup's creation required not only specific materials but also particular magical rituals and stellar conditions.

Specifically, it needed magical ritual performance on Saturn's opposition day.

Middle-earth's Saturn was called Lumbar, with opposition occurring roughly every 378 days, when Saturn would become extremely brilliant, its radiance even outshining Eärendil's star.

With over half a year until Saturn's opposition, and Kael needing to continue seeking remaining Philosopher's Stone materials, he naturally couldn't wait.

However, Kael made some advance preparations. Despite Smaug's reluctant protests, he took about a ton of gold from the treasury and put it in the mithril furnace.

After continuous smelting and refining, only a fist-sized block of pure gold essence without any impurities remained.

Hufflepuff's Cup differed from Ravenclaw's Diadem. Its creation involved ancient Celtic nature magic.

Ancient runes symbolizing abundance needed to be drawn on the gold essence blank and then buried underground in fertile soil alongside planted crops, never to be dug up during growth.

Only when surface crops matured and were ready for harvest could the underground gold essence be re-excavated.

Then healing and protection runes would be drawn on the gold essence, and a mistletoe-covered oak tree located.

A hole would be carved in the oak to hide and seal the gold essence inside.

Only when the oak bore fruit and mistletoe bloomed could the gold essence be extracted.

Such lengthy time requirements were naturally unbearable for Kael.

So he took the gold essence blank inscribed with harvest runes and used Apparition to reach the mountain base, finding the most fertile wheat field.

When farmers planted wheat, he used Notice-Me-Not charms to deeply bury the gold essence where none could dig it up, left magical markers, and silently returned to Weathertop.

After staying only a few days at the castle, Kael again bid farewell to Arwen and departed for the southern White Mountains to find Sulfur of the Soul.

This time Kael didn't have the Great Eagle Thorondor carry him but first traveled through the fireplace to Lothlórien, then used Apparition to reach Fangorn Forest.

However, Kael didn't find Gandalf in Fangorn this time.

According to Treebeard, Gandalf had left Fangorn months earlier for Rohan.

Unable to secure Gandalf's help, Kael traded several bottles of plant growth potion with Treebeard for Ent-draught, then left the forest on his flying broomstick, heading south.

Midway, Kael saw Saruman's Orthanc Tower from afar but had no intention of dealing with the White Wizard currently, so he bypassed the area and continued flying south.

Though missing a check-in opportunity was unfortunate, finding Sulfur of the Soul was more important, lest complications arise.

While Kael flew south without looking back, in Isengard, in a secret chamber of Orthanc Tower, Saruman sat at a long black table, staring inscrutably at Kael's flying figure in the palantír.

Suddenly, Kael's image in the crystal ball vanished, replaced by a fiery eye radiating a dark aura.

"Sauron, what do you want?" Saruman frowned.

Though seduced by Sauron into betraying the forces of good, Saruman maintained his pride, not considering himself Sauron's subordinate but merely a cooperation partner.

Sauron ignored Saruman's question but countered. "You're quite interested in that black-robed wizard?"

Saruman frowned deeper, seeming indifferent. "Just someone insignificant!"

"Insignificant?" Sauron seemed amused. "If truly insignificant, how could he attract your attention as the White Wizard to spy on him with the palantír?"

"Moreover, his reputation now far exceeds yours. Bane of orcs, master of the dragon Smaug, who with the Grey Wizard killed Moria's Balrog. Even east of Mordor, his legend is heard!"

Hearing Sauron's somewhat mocking tone, anger flashed in Saruman's eyes as his expression darkened.

"What exactly do you want? I'm very busy, unlike you, who lacks even physical form, cowering uselessly in Mordor."

"Busy forging Rings of Power?" Mockery flickered in Sauron's eye. "You want to forge a ring rivaling my One Ring, but apparently haven't succeeded. Can't even match one of my Nazgûl's rings!"

Then his tone shifted to corruption and temptation.

"Saruman, I know your ambition and unwillingness. I can personally teach you to forge a ruling ring, granting you ultimate power! You need only submit to me, become my servant..."

"Impossible!" Saruman, truly a Maia of the same order, remained proud despite Sauron's influence.

"No one can make me submit. Not the Valar, and certainly not you, Sauron!"

In his view, he and Sauron were temporary partners, cooperating only to obtain ring-forging methods.

Submitting to fellow Maia Sauron was absolutely unacceptable to proud Saruman.

Seeing Saruman's thoughts, Sauron sneered.

"But what qualifies you for cooperation? Your desired Moria orc alliance was eliminated by two wizards and dwarves. As for the Dunlendings, I understand the Grey Wizard is in Rohan, having convinced the Rohan king to grant them ancestral lands. Your divisive words seem useless now."

"Mithrandir!" Saruman's expression worsened as he ground his teeth in hatred.

His planned two pillars of support had been dismantled by Gandalf, causing his schemes to collapse completely.

This made him hate Gandalf, who had ruined his plans, to the bone.

Sauron's next words greatly shocked him.

Sauron reminded. "Haven't you noticed the coincidences? Why did Moria's orcs get eliminated just as you planned an alliance? Why did the Grey Wizard reconcile the Rohirrim with the Dunlendings just as you incited conflict, silently bankrupting your plans!"

Saruman was incredulous, filled with unease. "What do you mean?"

"I believe you're already suspected! Especially by that Grey Wizard. He's targeting you!" Sauron said with some schadenfreude.

"Impossible!" Saruman stood excitedly. "My actions were completely secret. No one knows! How could Gandalf know? This must be coincidence!"

Saruman was deeply uneasy but, in his arrogant pride, refused to accept that his plans could be discovered.

Even while secretly colluding with Sauron, he never thought he'd be exposed.

Because this would cost him his current position among the righteous and his White Council leadership.

Especially with his plans incomplete, exposure would leave no place among the forces of good.

Even his current Orthanc Tower would become unsafe.

For survival, he'd be forced to flee to Mordor, seeking Sauron's protection and becoming his servant.

How could Saruman accept this?

But Sauron didn't allow self-deception, mockingly breaking through. "Actually, you already have the answer, don't you? Think carefully about what's been wrong recently. Won't you understand?"

Hearing this, Saruman recalled Gandalf's sudden visit and subsequent overlooked events, his unease growing.

"I was very secretive. No one should know! Plus I have the palantír. Nothing in Isengard could escape my sight! How did Gandalf discover this?"

Saruman paced uneasily, his mind storming as he traced clues bit by bit.

His gaze swept through the window to the upright trees outside, suddenly understanding. His expression immediately turned ugly as he ground his teeth.

"Of course! I forgot about those spying ears reaching into my home!"

"I should have cut down every tree here from the start. Not leaving a single one!"

Seeing Saruman's panicked state, Sauron was more gleeful.

"You've been discovered. The forces of light have no place for you. Submit to me, and I'll send Mordor's armies to help, even forge you your own Ring of Power. How about it?"

But Saruman instantly calmed, sneering. "Sauron, do you think I'd give up so easily? I'm Aulë the Smith's disciple. Perhaps less gifted in forging than you, but more skilled in engineering and creation!"

"I've researched how to breed stronger orcs, fearless of sunlight and more powerful, perfectly capable of forming mighty armies! This is only the beginning. Given enough time, I could breed even more powerful monsters!"

Sauron's eye in the crystal flickered, changing terms.

"Then let's formally ally. I'll send a dark army under your complete control, sufficient to defend Isengard. You need only breed strong enough war machines, then coordinate with Mordor's forces to devour both Rohan and Gondor."

Saruman was somewhat tempted but still shook his head.

"No rush. I need to confirm whether Gandalf has evidence. If it's mere suspicion, I can continue hiding while secretly building strength."

Unless absolutely necessary, Saruman didn't want to openly betray and side with Sauron immediately.

Besides not wanting to abandon his current status and position, he also considered the Valar's reaction.

Hearing this, Sauron suggested. "To confirm, capture that black-robed wizard. He's close to the Grey Wizard. They killed Moria's Balrog together. He must know what you want to learn."

At the mention of the black-robed wizard, Saruman's eyes turned cold. He equally hated this person who had ruined his plans.

He nodded in agreement. "That brat is valued by Gandalf and should know much. Plus he's strange. Has something I can't see through. Capturing him could reveal what secrets he hides!"

What Saruman didn't mention was that when first meeting the boy, he'd caught a very strange, veiled look in his eyes. Though deliberately hidden, Saruman had keenly detected it.

He hadn't understood that gaze then, but after colluding with Sauron, he finally realized.

It was the look one gives a traitor.

As if he had foreseen today's outcome long ago.

And that final gaze made him even more uneasy.