No way, is someone really going to be poisoned to death by their own martial soul?

"I just swallowed a poison I recently developed. I'll control it as it spreads into every corner of my body, while also drawing upon the toxins contained within my martial soul." A trace of madness flashed through his eyes.

"This poison is extremely overbearing. Once it acts up, even I will find it difficult to control completely."

Ling Qianyue: I'll just quietly watch you perform.

Ling Qianyue put on an expression of shock and cried out, "Senior, this is far too dangerous! What if—"

"Hmph, what are you afraid of, boy?" Dugu Bo snorted, a hint of smugness flashing in his eyes. "I, Dugu Bo, have spent my entire life in the company of poison. Why would I fear such a trifling toxin? Just use your martial soul's purification ability and let me see where your limits lie."

As he spoke, Dugu Bo's body began to tremble slightly, and his face turned somewhat pale.

"Hurry up."

Silver-white starlight glimmered at Ling Qianyue's fingertips. The Shattered Star Sword floated in the air, slowly rotating as the twenty-eight stellar markings of the Four Symbols Star Constellations gradually lit up along its blade.

A pure force of stars was drawn forth by him, swirling around the sword as though forming a dazzling river of stars.

"Senior, I'm starting," Ling Qianyue said in a deep voice.

Dugu Bo nodded, anticipation and madness intertwining in his eyes. He wanted to see just how far Ling Qianyue's martial soul purification ability could go.

If it was truly as he had expected, then he was definitely taking this boy in!

With a sharp sweep of his arm, Ling Qianyue sent the star river condensed from stellar force rushing straight at Dugu Bo.

The instant it came into contact with Dugu Bo's body, it transformed into a warm, pure power that began to travel through him.

Like spring rain nourishing the earth, that power seeped into every one of Dugu Bo's cells, engaging in a fierce struggle against the overwhelmingly tyrannical poison.

Dugu Bo felt a warm current flow into his body. The toxins within him seemed to be bound by an invisible force, gradually losing their potency.

Color slowly returned to his face, and his body stopped trembling.

A flash of delight passed through Dugu Bo's eyes. He lowered his gaze and pondered for a moment, then stirred the Emerald Pill Bead that had formed within his Dantian after his Martial Soul Evolution.

This pill bead carried the essence of Dugu Bo's lifelong poison arts. It could be said that half his strength lay within this bead.

Though it posed no threat under normal circumstances and could even accelerate Soul Power cultivation, once Dugu Bo activated it, the danger posed by the poison throughout his body would rise sharply.

This was his final test. If Ling Qianyue could even dispel the poison within the pill bead, then he could be saved—and his granddaughter would no longer have to suffer the agony of toxins devouring her body in the future.

The Emerald Pill Bead began to slowly rotate. The toxins inside seemed to be awakened, surging out like a tide and fusing with the toxins of his martial soul, forming an even more tyrannical and complex poison.

His entire body began to turn green. Even though he deliberately controlled the area in which the poison spread, a large patch of herbs around the platform instantly withered and turned to ash.

Sensing the sudden change in the toxins within Dugu Bo's body, Ling Qianyue's expression shifted slightly.

Circulating his Soul Power became incomparably difficult.

This poison really is far too overbearing! Ling Qianyue exclaimed inwardly.

He gritted his teeth and pushed his Soul Power and stellar force with all his might.

The Shattered Star Sword suddenly erupted with blinding starlight. He fully invoked the might of the Four Symbols, and the stellar force became like dawn's first light, gradually dispersing the toxins within Dugu Bo's body.

Watching Ling Qianyue struggle against the poison, a look of satisfaction flashed through Dugu Bo's eyes.

Beads of sweat gradually seeped from Ling Qianyue's forehead, and his face grew pale as well.

Finally, at a certain moment, a brilliant light burst from Dugu Bo's eyes. He steadied Ling Qianyue, who was becoming unsteady on his feet from exhausting his Soul Power.

"Good, good, good!"

He said "good" three times in a row. The source of poison within his body, which he had forcibly suppressed with Spiritual Power for decades, had actually calmed down and been suppressed by Ling Qianyue's martial soul purification ability.

An unprecedented sense of comfort spread throughout Dugu Bo's entire body.

"How long has it been? How long has it been since I, Dugu Bo, felt this refreshed and clear-headed!!!"

He was overjoyed. Even though today's suppression was only temporary, merely a brief display of Ling Qianyue's martial soul purification ability, he had already seen hope—the possibility of completely breaking free from the shackles of poison.

"Boy, you truly haven't disappointed this old man!"

He stared intently at Ling Qianyue, his eyes filled with expectation. From what he could sense, Ling Qianyue's all-out effort this time would spare him from the agony of the poison source devouring his body for the next seven days.

It was a recognized fact in the Soul Master World that martial soul abilities grew stronger as their masters grew. His Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor had likewise evolved from the Jade Phosphorous Serpent.

Since Ling Qianyue could suppress the poison source in his body now, it was entirely possible that he could completely eliminate the threat posed by the toxins in the future.

Dugu Bo placed Ling Qianyue on the platform and channeled Soul Power into him to help him recover.

"Boy, did you sense something inside my body just now? Speak freely," Dugu Bo asked.

Ling Qianyue nodded. "Senior, you're poisoned—and deeply poisoned at that."

"Heh heh." Dugu Bo gave two cold laughs. "What else?"

A faint smile hung on Ling Qianyue's lips. "There are countless strange people and strange things in this world, but I truly never expected someone to be troubled by their own martial soul.

No way, could someone really be poisoned to death by their own martial soul?"

"Get lost." Dugu Bo's face darkened. He withdrew the hand that had been channeling Soul Power into Ling Qianyue, then kicked at Ling Qianyue's backside.

Ling Qianyue flashed aside and easily dodged the kick, laughing. "Senior, don't be so stingy. I was only joking."

Dugu Bo snorted, stroking his beard as he said, "When I allowed your martial soul's Purification Power to roam through my body, I had already prepared myself to let you know about my condition.

You're a clever boy, so let's speak plainly. The poison in my body did not form overnight. It is a hidden danger left behind from years of cultivating my martial soul.

This poison has fused with my martial soul and become part of my body.

And your martial soul ability is my turning point. Suppress it for me once a month, and you will receive the reward you need."

Ling Qianyue nodded. "All right. I won't reveal Senior's affairs to anyone else."

"Though I, Dugu Bo, have spent my life alongside poison, I am not an unreasonable man. If you help me, I naturally will not treat you poorly.

Come, swallow this pill bead. It will speed up the rate at which you condense Soul Power and benefit your cultivation."

He opened his mouth, and the Emerald Pill Bead that carried half his strength and his very life appeared.

Ling Qianyue did not hesitate. To Dugu Bo's astonishment, he took it directly—then, as Dugu Bo's face darkened, spent quite a while wiping it down.

He then repeatedly cleansed it with the Shattered Star Sword's Purification Power. Only after ensuring that no trace of Dugu Bo's aura remained apart from the pill bead itself did he swallow it in one gulp.

There were no toxins and no suppression from Soul Power—only a warm sensation. His limbs and bones felt indescribably comfortable, and the speed at which his Soul Power condensed also increased.

It was a gift, but also something that could kill him—the price Dugu Bo paid to make him keep the secret.

"Thank you, Senior, for this treasure!"

"You brat..." Dugu Bo suddenly laughed, then directly drew the pill bead out of Ling Qianyue's body and back into his own hand. "This old man has changed his mind. You want it? Well, I'm not giving it to you."