Intelligence
Zhou You followed the stranger into the alley. The alley was blocked by blue stone walls on both sides, leaving only a narrow path that could only be walked side by side by two people. Looking up, a sliver of sunlight squeezed out from the two rows of buildings.
The light doesn't touch the ground, nor can it illuminate the darkness here.
The local intelligence brokers were very cautious. The person leading the way didn't speak, and his face was covered by a tattered burlap hood, with only a small part of his chin visible.
At the end of the alley, he saw his target: a tall, middle-aged man who wasn't particularly muscular, with rough skin, messy hair, and clothes that looked like they had been made from burlap sacks.
He had his head down, and in the dim light, his face was obscured.
"So you want to find out information about Poison Douluo?" The voice was cold, as if his throat had been stabbed with a knife.
He held a 50-centimeter-long pipe in his hand, took a deep drag, and slowly exhaled the smoke.
The other person looked up through the smoke, paused when they saw Zhou You's face, and seemed somewhat surprised that this customer was so young.
However, he didn't say anything more, "A deposit of 300, pay it and then give me the intelligence."
"How can I know that the information you gave me is true?" Zhou You questioned.
The middle-aged man said impatiently, "Believe it or not, if you don't want to trade, please leave."
This is a common psychological game tactic, using a tough attitude to intimidate customers and force them to follow one's lead.
Selling information is different from ordinary transactions. Those who come to you usually have some unspeakable difficulties, so you won't give up easily.
But today, middle-aged people are an exception.
The young man, who looked far too young, turned around and walked away without looking back.
"Etc!"
The person who had led the way earlier blocked Zhou You's path.
"What? You want to force me to stay?" Zhou You's voice turned cold.
The middle-aged man glanced at the fabric of Zhou You's clothes, confirming that the latter was either rich or noble. Not wanting to miss out on this fat sheep, he remained silent for a moment before finally speaking:
"Poison Douluo, real name Dugu Bo, Martial Soul Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor, level 92 Titled Douluo..."
Zhou You interrupted him, "There's no need to talk about those public information; I just want to know his current whereabouts."
The middle-aged man became even more certain that the other party had an extraordinary background. After all, basic information about Titled Douluo was difficult for ordinary people to obtain, and only the scions of powerful families would treat such information as common knowledge.
So he decided to reveal some real information. "The Poison Douluo has been collecting poisonous substances in Sunset Forest all these years. I don't know his exact whereabouts, but he frequently travels to the Marketplace to purchase supplies. My men once inadvertently collected a very rare poison from him. With it, you might have a chance to find him."
Zhou You couldn't help but look at him with new respect. He could snatch chestnuts from the fire from a Titled Douluo, so it was understandable that the other party charged a high price.
Seeing that the other party had shut up, Zhou You understood, took out a bag of Gold Soul Coins from his Treasure Bag and threw it out. The other party caught it, weighed it in his hand, and showed a happy expression.
"Things," Zhou You said.
The middle-aged man was quite decisive; he pulled out a small glass bottle from somewhere and tossed it at Zhou You.
Zhou You was about to catch it when he stopped halfway up his hand, and with a push of his foot, he flew backward!
"Exposed?" The middle-aged man exclaimed in surprise, then immediately yelled at the other man, "Stop him!"
The silent man who had previously led Zhou You blocked his retreat again, a huge scythe that had appeared in his hand at some point, and he delivered a vicious horizontal slash towards Zhou You's upper body!
In that instant, Zhou You calmly bent over, forming an arch to avoid the scythe's horizontal slash. He then switched hands for support, shifting his weight in a flash. With the force of the impact, he launched himself upwards, stomping on the man's face.
His physical strength was now so great that with just one kick, accompanied by the tooth-grinding sound of bones cracking, the Soul Master was sent flying like a rag doll, crashing straight into the wall and embedding himself in it.
The middle-aged man's pupils widened in shock, and the pipe in his hand immediately flashed with four Soul Rings —one white, two yellow, and one purple—clearly indicating that he was a Soul Ancestor!
The purple Soul Ring lit up, and the smoke in the air instantly froze. Zhou You's body seemed to be frozen in place, unable to move.
At the same time, the bottle in mid-air suddenly shattered, and an ominous poisonous miasma spread out.
The middle-aged man immediately retreated, manipulating the surrounding smoke to envelop his body and prevent the poisonous miasma from getting close.
Zhou You immediately held his breath, but a trace of poisonous miasma still sneaked into his respiratory tract, making him dizzy and disoriented. His Soul Power melted away like snow under the sun.
'It seems the poison is real.'
Zhou You had never encountered this poisonous miasma before, but through his own symptoms, he had already identified the components of the miasma as the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flower Pollen!
This proves that what the information broker said earlier was true, but the other party clearly didn't want a sincere deal; they were just trying to make a quick buck by taking advantage of his youth.
In response, Zhou You activated the Threefold Reversal, causing a sudden surge in the amount of Internal Qi. After a brief compression, this Qi was released in one breath from various acupoints on his body surface, producing an "Qi Explosion" effect.
The violent energy, like a steam explosion, blew away the smoke binding him in one breath, but the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flower Pollen was like a bone-eating poison, returning in an instant.
The middle-aged man, who had already retreated to a safe area, revealed a cunning smile.
The pollen of the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flower automatically seeks out the nearest living creature and parasitizes it, feeding on its flesh and blood to grow.
That kid's dead meat!
The opponent's sudden outburst had indeed startled him. Such agility and adaptability, as well as the action of kicking his capable subordinate to death, made him belatedly realize that this young brat was no ordinary person.
He might not even be a match for them.
But it doesn't matter. As long as you're touched by the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flower Pollen, whether you're Soul King or Soul Emperor, you'll have no choice but to surrender obediently. Hehe, if he wasn't mistaken, this kid has a Wishful Treasure Bag.
He's about to make a fortune...
Just as he was lost in thought, he saw Zhou You remain calm. He slapped his hand into the Treasure Bag, and a white shadow darted out, transforming into countless afterimages in the air.
The pollen that had been spreading across Zhou You's body disappeared quickly, as if it had been swallowed up by something.
Zhou You regained his mobility, his dizziness subsided, and his Soul Power no longer inexplicably dissipated.
The middle-aged man's eyes widened, his face showing an expression of utter disbelief.
It wasn't until a Xiao Bai Diao perched on Zhou You's shoulder that he finally understood what was going on.
"Lightning... Lightning Marten..." The middle-aged man's face turned ugly. Who the hell would raise a poisonous Soul Beast and carry it around with them!
Without saying a word, he turned to flee.
But the moment I turned around, I felt a lightness all over my body, and I flew into the sky, with the surrounding scenery spinning around me.
Only when he landed did he finally see a headless corpse falling to the ground; the body looked somewhat familiar...