Choosing Immortal Herbs, Dugu's Surprise

"Why do you need jade, gold, and silver shovels?" Dugu Bo looked up from his tea in surprise at Gan Lin, who was asking him for all kinds of shovels.

Although his grandson had been quite interested in medicinal herbs before, he had never seriously worked with them.

When it came to medicinal herbs, Dugu Yan, who had been exposed to them since childhood, was probably more knowledgeable.

"I want to process some medicinal herbs," Gan Lin answered truthfully.

"Process medicinal herbs?" Dugu Bo raised an eyebrow. "How much of that Compendium of a Hundred Herbs you got from the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace have you read?"

"Not much, but I think it's enough," Gan Lin answered truthfully once again.

"Xiaolin, you can't aim too high before you've learned the basics of medicinal herbs," Dugu Bo advised. "You still need a firm grasp of the basic medicinal principles."

Some time ago, Gan Lin had invited him to read the Compendium of a Hundred Herbs together, but he had refused.

For one thing, he disdained taking advantage of a junior. The Compendium of a Hundred Herbs was compensation from the Heaven Dou Imperial Family to Gan Lin; he could read it after Gan Lin finished.

For another, he prided himself on being unmatched under heaven in the art of poison. No matter how impressive the Compendium of a Hundred Herbs was, how impressive could it really be? Could it be as reliable as the experience he had accumulated over most of his life?

As for Gan Lin... although he might not know much about medicinal principles, after a period of reading and selection, he had tentatively picked out five Immortal Herbs suitable for himself, Dugu Bo, Dugu Yan, and Ye Lingling.

"Grandpa, I want to try. I have to build up some experience somehow."

"That's true..." Dugu Bo rubbed the rim of his blue-and-white porcelain teacup with his fingertips and glanced up at the young man standing before him. The young man stood with his back straight and his eyes clear, without the slightest hint that he was joking or fooling around. He was somewhat like Dugu Bo in his younger days.

Dugu Bo relented in the end. He set his teacup on the stone table and rose. "Very well. I happen to have plenty of medicinal herbs in my place. If you want some practice, come with me. But there's one thing—you know that herb garden. The medicinal properties around it are a dangerous jumble, so don't touch anything without my permission. And when you dig anything up, follow the proper methods. Don't ruin the spirit herbs. I happen to have what you asked for, so take them and practice."

Gan Lin's eyes lit up, and he quickly nodded his agreement.

He carefully put the jade, gold, and silver shovels he had requested into his Soul Tool. Jade was mild and would not rob herbs of their medicinal properties; gold was firm and could withstand fire poison; silver was cold and could ward off invading cold. They were precisely suited to the herbs of different attributes at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

The next moment, Dugu Bo laid a hand on his shoulder, and a surge of powerful Soul Power swept them away. By the time Gan Lin found his footing again, a fierce wind of mingled heat and cold rushed against his face. Before him was the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, hidden deep within Sunset Forest.

The spring at its center was divided in two. Scarlet boiling water churned on one side, its rising heat warping the air; dark blue ice had formed on the other, wisps of cold seeping into the gaps between his bones. The ground around the spring shaded from one color to another like yin and yang, and strange flowers and grasses of every shape grew everywhere.

"Go on. Make sure you've identified them before you start." Dugu Bo stood by the spring with his arms folded, his tone casual, though his gaze never left the young man. He wanted to see what his grandson could pick out after only a few days of looking through the Compendium of a Hundred Herbs.

Gan Lin answered, but he did not rush to begin. He first walked slowly around the edge of the spring, treading lightly for fear of disturbing the roots beneath the soil. His gaze swept over the spirit herbs one by one, sometimes nodding and sometimes frowning. Before long, he stopped on a patch of warm soil where the ice and fire springs met.

Two small plants, each half a foot tall, grew there side by side. Their leaves were split into two colors: the left halves were a translucent icy blue, and the right halves a blazing vermilion. Light seemed to flow slowly through their veins, and a small spike grew at the tip of each plant. Cold and heat mingled perfectly among the leaves, without the slightest sign of conflict.

"Grandpa, these two are Ice and Fire Joined-Spike Grass." Gan Lin crouched and took the mutton-fat jade shovel from his Soul Tool, moving as lightly as if he feared shattering glass. "They're dual-attribute Immortal Herbs that grow where yin and yang meet. Ice and Fire Qi coexist and nourish each other in them, so their medicinal properties are balanced rather than fierce. They're just right for my Martial Soul."

As he finished speaking, the jade shovel carefully cut into the soil, slowly loosening it around the roots. He controlled his strength with extraordinary precision, leaving even the finest rootlets unharmed. Before long, he had dug up both plants of Ice and Fire Joined-Spike Grass intact, together with the soil around their roots, and carefully placed them in a warm jade box he had prepared.

Dugu Bo raised an eyebrow, a little more surprised.

Before he could think further, Gan Lin had risen and walked toward a crack in the rocks beside the fire spring. A clump of strange dark-purple flowers grew there, their petals layered upon one another and their edges glimmering with flecks of green phosphorescence. Their stamens were a deep inky color, and up close one could smell a faint, peculiar fragrance that involuntarily made one's meridians tighten.

"This Dark Jade Condensed Poison Flower is best suited to you, Grandpa." Gan Lin switched to a red-gold shovel and slowly dug into the soil along the crack. "It has absorbed the fire spring's heat poison and the sinister Poison Qi beneath the earth for years. Its medicinal properties are fierce, but they also have a nourishing effect. Your Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison has long since reached the bottleneck of a Titled Douluo. This flower can refine its poisonous power and take your poison to another level. More importantly, it can repair the meridians you overtaxed cultivating poison techniques in your early years and resolve the hidden damage from residual poison that has built up inside you for decades."

The casual look finally vanished completely from Dugu Bo's face.

He did not recognize either of these herbs. Had Gan Lin really gained such a thorough understanding of their medicinal properties after reading through the Compendium of a Hundred Herbs only once?

And had Gan Lin just said that this herb could increase his strength?

He stepped forward and looked down at the Dark Jade Condensed Poison Flower, then at the young man crouching on the ground, the side of his face lit by the firelight. His throat moved, and in the end he managed only, "You're willing to give me something this good?"

"I picked it out especially for you in the first place, Grandpa." Gan Lin did not look up or pause in his work. Before long, he had dug out the entire flower along with the rocky soil around its roots and placed it in a special wooden box lined with dried grass.

Next, he went to a gentle slope on the ice spring's side. A blue-purple plant grew there, its leaves covered in fine droplets of dew that glimmered faintly in the cold. It looked somewhat milder than the other herbs. Gan Lin switched to the silver shovel, moving even more gently than before. "This Azure Phosphorous Dew-Concentrating Grass is for Sister Yanzi. Her Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison hasn't fully developed yet, so she can't withstand medicinal properties that are too fierce. This plant is mild and nourishing. It can gradually permeate her Martial Soul, refining the purity of its poison attribute bit by bit. It can also strengthen her Soul Power foundation. It's much more effective than the ordinary herbs she's using now."

Dugu Bo followed behind, his surprise giving way to silent approval.

Finally, Gan Lin walked to the mildest patch of grass on the outskirts of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. A small, pearly white flower bloomed there, its petals delicate and translucent, its stamens a very pale pink. Its fragrance was clear but not faint; a breath of it made one's meridians relax and one's mind grow calm.

"This Exquisite Jade-Stamen Flower is for Lingling." Gan Lin used the jade shovel again, moving more carefully than he had at any point before. "Her Martial Soul is the Nine Heart Begonia. Support-type Soul Masters can't withstand fierce medicinal properties. This flower is gentle and mild, perfect for nourishing her Martial Soul Origin and strengthening her Soul Power foundation. It can also make her healing power more concentrated, giving her more leeway when she saves people in the future."

Four spirit herbs: the Ice and Fire Joined-Spike Grass for himself, the Dark Jade Condensed Poison Flower for Dugu Bo, the Azure Phosphorous Dew-Concentrating Grass for Dugu Yan, and the Exquisite Jade-Stamen Flower for Ye Lingling.

Gan Lin carefully sealed the last jade box, stood, and brushed the loose soil from his hands. He turned to Dugu Bo. "Grandpa, they're all dug up. Once we're back, I'll process them according to the methods in the Compendium of a Hundred Herbs and remove the impurities. They'll be more effective that way."

Dugu Bo folded his arms and gave a snort, but the corners of his mouth could not help twitching upward. He forced back a smile and pretended not to care. "You make it sound easy. Don't botch the processing and ruin such fine spirit herbs."

Despite his words, his earlier concern that Gan Lin was aiming too high had long since vanished. He had thought the young man was acting on a passing whim, but now it was clear that he knew exactly what he was doing. He had even worked out each herb's use and the circumstances of the person it was meant for.

"Come on, let's go back." Dugu Bo turned and headed out, his voice much gentler than it had been on the way there.

Gan Lin answered with a smile and hurried after him.