47: The Secret Of Transfiguration

"This..."

Ivan's pupils shrank slightly, and he looked at McGonagall in disbelief, even more shocked by Professor McGonagall's expertise in Transfiguration.

"Is it because of the state of life, Professor?" Ivan asked. "The owl was crushed, and in our perception, it was dead."

"The vine was cut, and even though part of it was destroyed, the rest could still survive...?"

The survival here doesn't mean it was barely hanging on, but rather that it maintained its original transfigured state.

The owl shed feathers, but those feathers would regrow.

Thus, that type of damage doesn't disrupt the Transfiguration.

However, if the owl's wings were cut off, although the owl could still technically survive, it would lose its ability to fly, causing the Transfiguration to fail.

Of course, this also depends on the level of Transfiguration skill the wizard possesses.

Someone as skilled as Professor McGonagall has given the owl multiple inherent states during the transformation, making the owl's transformation extremely stable.

Even if you sliced the owl with a knife, it would reveal internal flesh and blood organs.

Because the target of Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration is essentially a real living creature.

In contrast, other wizards Transfiguration...

The owl they might create could revert to its original form with just a simple touch.

"The attainment of Transfiguration will affect the stability of the transformation."

Ivan continued, "In addition, as long as the function of the transformed object changes, the Transfiguration can no longer be maintained."

For example, if you cut off part of the transformed vines, as long as some part remains, it can grow back.

"To put it simply, it can still be understood as the manifestation of 'intention' in Transfiguration."

Because you have a specific need, your transformation can succeed.

However, when the transformed object loses its intended function, the Transfiguration will naturally dissipate.

Just like a chair is meant for sitting, bread is meant for eating, and water is meant for drinking.

If you render the chair unusable, consume the bread, or drink the water, the magic has already fulfilled the wizard's intended purpose.

"Then, Professor, what if the chair I conjured up isn't seen as a chair in my view, but rather just a piece of wood shaped like a chair?" Ivan asked.

"Of course, that is possible," McGonagall responded. "Since the purposes are different, the methods for dispelling the transformation will naturally vary."

If you need a functional chair, simply sawing off one leg will disrupt the transformation of the chair.

On the other hand, if your intention is simply for it to resemble a piece of wood that looks like a chair, then breaking the transformation becomes much more challenging. You would either need to wait until the magic maintaining the chair is depleted or cast a counter-spell. Otherwise, it is nearly impossible to destroy its stability.

"To conjure up a stone wall for defense, our intention can be for it to function as a wall, as a complete stone, or simply as the material itself."

The first two purposes are relatively easy to disrupt.

But if the wizard's intention is for it to exist purely as stone material, then its stability is significantly stronger.

Since it is stone, a non-living material, you can smash it into pieces, but as long as the magic power isn't depleted, it will remain stone even after being crushed.

"Life Transfiguration can be divided into animal transformation and plant transformation, while non-life transformation can be divided into consumable transformation and material transformation."

The complexity of life transformation depends on the wizard's level of magical expertise.

The higher the wizard's skill in Transfiguration, the more realistic and stable the life they create becomes.

As for the transformation of non-living things, it caters to the needs of wizards—such as drinks, food, tools, and materials.

Once the consumables are used up or the intended purpose is no longer fulfilled, the transformation will end.

"Do you understand, Ivan?" McGonagall asked.

"Yes," Ivan replied gratefully, "Thank you for the explanation, professor."

"Any other questions?"

"Two more questions," 

Ivan asked, "Transfiguration can give material functions, but to what extent can it do that?"

"For example, could you turn a stone into a watch?

If that's possible, then can wizards transform stones into a TV, a refrigerator, or a computer?"

Professor McGonagall didn't know much about TVs, refrigerators, or computers, but she was familiar with telephones.

"Transfiguration can indeed create a phone," McGonagall replied. "And the phone that is made will have the functions of power supply and communication."

Good heavens!

Ivan once again confirmed his view that Transfiguration is a universal magic.

This even involves electrical signals!

"This is part of what is known as 'demand transformation,' and wizards refer to it as 'subjective transformation,'" McGonagall continued. "And if there is subjective transformation, there will naturally be 'objective transformation.'"

Subjective transformation is easier to understand.

"When performing Transfiguration, magic is used to analyze the structure of things," McGonagall explained. "The more you know about the object, the higher the success rate and efficiency of the transformation."

In theory, if a wizard could understand the structure and material composition of nuclear weapons, they could even transform a nuclear bomb into a giant mushroom.

'Did I say the other way around.. making a nuclear bomb? That's impossible! But this is magic..' Ivan felt a chill on his forehead.

Hmm... Transfiguration cannot change the substance itself; this is the basic rule of Transfiguration.

Even if you could make a nuclear bomb or a bullet, they would still be fake

In the words of Professor McGonagall, Transfiguration can only change the state, not the nature of the substance.

'This rule cannot limit higher-level Transfiguration. '

'According to Dumbledore, permanent transformation can achieve real changes.'

The flaw of permanent transformation is that it cannot be altered by magic afterward.

But this shortcoming is insignificant in the Muggle world because airplanes, tanks, rockets, and nuclear bombs lack magic and meet the standards of permanent transformation.

"So, what is objective transformation?" Ivan asked.

"Objective transformation is limited by the outside world's perception of the object," McGonagall explained.

In simple terms, it's how others judge that the object you've transformed is indeed what it appears to be.

For example, if Ivan transforms something into an apple, how would others believe it's an apple?

First, by its appearance, then by its texture, smell, and taste.

If these are the same as the experience of a real apple, then outsiders will naturally believe it is a real apple.

Similarly, suppose a stone is turned into a nuclear bomb. How do you determine whether it's a fake nuclear bomb?

You certainly can't detonate it to check—that's impossible.

So, using various detection methods—whether metal detection, radiation detection, or particle collision tests—you would conclude that it is real.

'Hmm, objective transformation is the transformation of various phenomena?' Ivan soon extracted the key information from the concept of objective transformation that Professor McGonagall had mentioned.

In simpler terms, objective transformation is a form of sensory deception.

For example, an apple can deceive people's five senses, and a nuclear bomb can deceive various detection instruments, making those tools believe they have detected real signals.

However, these signals are false, merely a product of mental and statistical manipulation.

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