Sunset Forest, Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well
"Hahahahaha!"
Less than a minute after Lin Chen had knocked and called out, Dugu Bo opened the door with a boisterous laugh.
"Little fellow, you finally came! I've been waiting a long time for this day!"
Dugu Bo strode out in a gray robe, laughing heartily as a fierce presence emanated from him now and then.
"Hm?" Xue Qinghe's gaze sharpened. He smiled and cupped his hands. "Congratulations on breaking through to level 92, Mr. Dugu."
"Congratulations to you as well." Dugu Bo laughed and waved a hand dismissively. "More than my breakthrough to level 92, I care about what this little fellow Lin Chen just said."
The corners of Lin Chen's mouth rose slightly, his face full of smiles. "Senior Dugu, you really do dote on your granddaughter. I came to see you this time to cure Dugu Yan's poison."
"Hahahaha!"
Dugu Bo burst into laughter again, his face lighting up with excitement. "Then what are we waiting for? I'll go bring Yanyan here right now!"
Seeing how excited Dugu Bo was, Lin Chen and Xue Qinghe exchanged a glance, helpless expressions appearing on both their faces.
"Don't be in such a hurry, Senior Dugu."
Lin Chen patted Dugu Bo on the shoulder and continued, "Dugu Yan can't use the Soul Core method to cure her poison, so we'll need the help of some rare medicinal herbs to cure her."
Dugu Bo replied casually, "No matter. I have a Herb Garden, and medicinal herbs are the one thing it doesn't lack!"
With that, Dugu Bo was about to head out of the hall.
Lin Chen hurriedly reached out to stop him. "Senior Dugu," he said helplessly, "Brother Xue is coming with us this time, but his status as crown prince is sensitive, so it can't be exposed."
Hearing this, Dugu Bo waved a hand unconcernedly. "I wondered what it was. Leave it to me. I guarantee Qinghe's identity won't be exposed."
Only then did Lin Chen relax. "Sorry for the trouble, Senior Dugu."
"It's nothing. No need to stand on ceremony with me, little fellow." Dugu Bo waved his hand and hurriedly turned around. "You two go wait outside Heaven Dou City. I'll bring Yanyan over right away."
"No problem." Lin Chen and Xue Qinghe nodded at the same time. Watching Dugu Bo hurry away, they couldn't help feeling a surge of excitement.
Before long, two indistinct figures in black robes and masks slipped out of the crown prince's residence in secret.
To avoid attracting the attention of the spies Xue Ye had stationed around the crown prince's residence, Qian Renxue dispatched both Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupinefish Douluo, the two Titled Douluo, all to keep anyone from discovering them.
With the two Titled Douluo checking the way and protecting them, the two of them made it out of Heaven Dou City without incident and waited for Dugu Bo to arrive.
Dugu Bo didn't keep them waiting long. In just three minutes, a carriage picked Lin Chen and Xue Qinghe up.
As soon as Lin Chen got in, he saw Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan, who was sitting beside him and looking at them curiously.
"Lin Chen, why are you wrapped up like a zongzi?" Dugu Yan asked in confusion as she watched Lin Chen remove his disguise.
"Look who's beside me and you'll know." Lin Chen rolled his eyes, and Xue Qinghe took off his mask at that moment.
"Your Highness..." When Dugu Yan saw his face, she was just about to cry out in surprise when Lin Chen covered her mouth.
"Any louder and our disguises will have been for nothing!" Lin Chen leaned close to Dugu Yan's ear and whispered.
"Haha, sorry, sorry. I got excited." Dugu Yan scratched her head with a laugh.
A gentle smile appeared on Xue Qinghe's face. "There's no need to apologize, Miss Dugu Yan. As Mr. Dugu's granddaughter, you needn't address me as crown prince. If you don't mind, just call me Brother Xue, like Lin Chen does."
"Your Highness... I mean, Brother Xue, are you also going to Grandpa's Herb Garden to help cure my poison?" Dugu Yan looked at Xue Qinghe curiously.
"More or less," Xue Qinghe said with a relaxed smile. "But I'll only be lending a hand. The most I can probably do is help identify a few medicinal herbs."
Hearing this, Lin Chen felt a little embarrassed, because he couldn't actually recognize all the medicinal herbs.
Lin Chen knew there were many Immortal Herbs in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, but only around ten had been mentioned in the original work, and he didn't remember all the descriptions of their appearances.
Without Qian Renxue's help, he wouldn't know what Immortal Herbs were in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well at all.
When the time came to cure Dugu Yan's poison, he would probably have had to use the Soul Bone method to hold it in check for the time being, then wait until level 89 to condense a Soul Core.
Several days later.
In the Sunset Forest, four figures appeared.
Dugu Bo led the way with Dugu Yan, while Lin Chen and Xue Qinghe walked behind them.
All four wore relaxed, cheerful expressions, as though they were out on an excursion.
"Little fellow, how are you planning to cure Yanyan's poison?" Dugu Bo glanced back at Lin Chen and asked curiously.
Lin Chen smiled and waved a hand. "I'll keep you in suspense until we get there. All I can tell you is that I have two plans."
"Why be so mysterious?" Dugu Yan pursed her lips, clearly very curious about Lin Chen's plans.
"In that case, let's pick up the pace. I can't wait any longer!" Excitement filled Dugu Bo's face as he led Lin Chen and the others quickly toward the depths of the Sunset Forest.
Along the way, the four deliberately avoided the territories of various powerful Soul Beasts. Danger lurked on all sides in the Sunset Forest. Although there were no powerful Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were far from rare.
Although Dugu Bo was a Titled Douluo, he was so eager to save someone that he had no mind to bother with those Soul Beasts. He simply led Lin Chen and the others forward at a brisk pace.
After they had walked for who knew how long,
A thick green poison mist suddenly appeared ahead. Dugu Bo's eyes lit up at the sight, and he turned back to Lin Chen with a smile.
"This is the Poison Array I set up to protect my Herb Garden. Its power is not to be underestimated. Even Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts can't enter it. Be sure to stay close to me, or you'll be poisoned."
"No problem." Lin Chen nodded and followed Dugu Bo into the terrifying Poison Array.
"Brother Xue, once we're inside, I'll leave it to you to introduce the Immortal Herbs," Lin Chen said with a smile, looking at Xue Qinghe beside him.
"Leave it to me." Xue Qinghe smiled, her expression as composed as ever. After all, she had come for this very reason; how could she drop the ball?
After the four had walked for some time, the poison mist gradually thinned. Lin Chen and the other two stared, transfixed, at the beautiful scenery growing clearer before their eyes.
Before them lay a deep, secluded valley, with a hot spring nestled peacefully within. Though the pool was not large, it was distinctively divided into two halves.
In the oval pool, the waters of the hot spring were a clear ice blue and a brilliant fiery red, a particularly striking sight.
Stranger still, although the blue and red waters occupied the same pool, they were as distinctly separated as the two aspects of a taiji.
At the place where the two waters met, great clouds of steam rose in an endless stream, shooting more than ten meters into the air before slowly dissipating.