Tomorrow's test questions?!
Harry and Cedric exchanged glances, both seeing the disbelief in each other's eyes.
According to the history they had learned, the Potion Tournament had always been a closed-book competition, and there had never been a situation where the test questions were announced a day in advance.
To be honest, knowing the time of the first round was expected, since the competition was tomorrow.
However, Harry had never imagined that they would be able to know the test questions a day in advance.
And it was personally confirmed by Professor Swan.
Did the rules of the Potion Tournament change?
"Tomorrow's competition content is brewing Shrinking Potion. As long as you successfully brew it, you can pass the first round of the competition."
"Don't worry, this news is absolutely true." Sebastian smiled slightly, feigning mystery.
"I heard it directly from the judging panel."
Merlin's Potion!
Would the judging panel reveal such information?
It should be known that the judges on the judging panel were not Professors from Ilvermorny, but Potion Masters who had been famous in the Wizarding World for a long time.
Some of them had already made an appearance at the banquet just now, and some of them were even mentioned in Potion textbooks.
Professor Swan is indeed resourceful; he can even find out such news!
Oh, right, Swan Alchemy seems to be the biggest sponsor of this competition.
Thinking about it this way, it makes perfect sense that Professor Swan could get first-hand information.
No wonder the school would let Professor Swan be in charge of international exchange affairs; it's such a professional fit!
The advantage of knowing the test questions in advance is too great.
Tomorrow's competition is secure!
Looking at the students' excited expressions, Sebastian did not explain further, but quietly retreated to the side, leaving the space for Snape and the students.
In fact, at this time, basically all schools had received tomorrow's test questions.
This was not because every school had a resourceful accompanying Professor, but because the officials were intentionally going easy.
A long time ago, the Potion Tournament was not like this; there was no going easy.
At that time, there were only two rounds of competition, the preliminary and the semi-finals, and each round greatly tested the true level of the participating students.
However, due to the high difficulty, it often happened that some magic schools could not even pass the first round of the competition.
Over time, to prevent embarrassment, many magic schools would not send people to participate in the Potion Tournament if they felt their students' level was not good enough.
In the most exaggerated Potion Tournament, only two schools participated.
Everyone saw this and thought, this won't do.
Just having a competition is not enough; human relations also need to be handled well.
So, from then on, the Potion Tournament's format was increased to three rounds.
Although it was not explicitly stated, basically everyone knew that the first round of the competition was a friendly match, only the students were unaware.
This time, the officials specifically chose a Potion that low-grade students had already learned as the test question, and revealed it to all schools in advance, in order to allow everyone to pass the first round of the competition.
After all, everyone came from far away; they couldn't let the participating students fail even the first round.
At this time, Snape had already changed back into his iconic black robe, and his stern demeanor made Harry and the others dare not make any extra movements.
Although their hearts were still filled with excitement and anticipation, Snape's grim expression made everyone quickly rein in their scattered thoughts.
Thus, in a quiet atmosphere, everyone carefully reviewed the brewing steps of the Shrinking Potion according to Snape's requirements.
The next morning, after breakfast, the delegations, led by staff, proceeded to the Potion Tournament venue, which had already been set up.
Inside the venue, independent tables had already been set up, allowing participants to compete without disturbance.
On the tables were standard cauldrons and cauldron stirring rods, and in addition, there were three sets of Potion ingredients for the students to use.
On the other side of the venue, a large spectator stand was erected, surrounded by advertising slogans for Swan Alchemy of the United States.
In addition, there were several magic cameras for live broadcasting this grand competition.
Professors from various schools, teachers and students from Ilvermorny, and reporters from various news media who came to watch the competition took their seats one after another.
Amidst the whispers of the audience, the competing contestants entered the arena and found their respective positions.
Before the competition officially began, Headmaster Agilbert Fontana of Ilvermorny walked onto the podium.
He gently waved his hand, and the entire venue immediately fell silent.
"Distinguished delegates, dear students," Fontana began, a friendly smile on his face, "Today is a special day; we are honored to welcome the most outstanding students from the Wizarding World to participate in this magic School Potion Tournament."
"This is not only a test of your knowledge but also a tempering of your spirit. Potions is an art, and only with patience, focus, and wisdom can you go further on this path."
"Today's competition content is brewing Shrinking Potion." His gaze swept over all the participants. "This is a Potion that seems simple but actually requires great skill and attention to detail."
"I hope each of you can calm down and show your best level, not only for yourselves but also to bring glory to your schools."
"The time limit is one and a half hours. The competition begins now!"
Harry withdrew his gaze and focused his attention on the table in front of him.
He first carefully checked the cauldron and Potion ingredients, and after confirming everything was in order, he began to methodically process the Potion ingredients.
One and a half hours of competition time was very ample, and each person also had three chances.
As long as one wasn't nervous and didn't make major mistakes, passing the first competition was simply an easy matter.
However, facts proved that even on the same starting line, not every contestant could maintain a good mindset.
During the competition, Harry smelled strange odors drifting over more than once, clearly indicating that some students were too flustered under pressure and had messed up their Potion.
They could only complain softly, then empty their cauldron, and then pick up the next set of Potion ingredients to start brewing.
Harry remained unmoved, focusing only on using his magic sense to perceive the Potion reactions in the cauldron.
Leech juice, rat spleen—one by one, the processed Potion ingredients were precisely added to the cauldron under Harry's control.
Soon, the Potion in the cauldron turned bright green.
Harry let out a small breath, then raised his hand to signal a judge, asking them to evaluate his Potion.
The judges immediately determined that Harry's Potion was of perfect quality, but for fairness, they still took out a toad and had it drink Harry's Potion.
Under everyone's gaze, the toad slowly began to change, eventually transforming into the appearance of a tadpole.
"Congratulations, Hogwarts contestant Harry Potter, you have passed the first round of the competition. You may now go and rest."
Contestants successively finished brewing, and basically all contestants passed the first round of the competition, with only two unlucky Mahoutokoro students messing up all three chances and having to leave dejectedly.