Dugu Bo's Frustration

Which one should I choose?

Dugu Bo frowned slightly, and after thinking it over again and again, he decided to follow Riko.

After all, Riko their guide.

No matter what, Mithras was Saundin's adopted daughter. The other party shouldn't be so heartless as to actually use her for experiments. Even if it's a dog, after raising it for so many years, there's bound to be some affection... However, before chasing after Riko, Dugu Bo still left behind a small snake that was entirely emerald green.

Nine-Section Jade Serpent.

This snake is extremely venomous; if an ordinary person is bitten, they will turn into a puddle of pus within a short time.

This Nine-Section Jade Serpent was raised by Dugu Bo from a young age. Although it was not Soul Beast, it was intelligent and human-like. Especially after Dugu Bo, with the help of Zhou Qing, Tang San, and Romantina, constructed the Martial Cauldron Soul Furnace based on the human body's meridians and opened up the Inner Scenery World, the spirituality of this Nine-Section Jade Serpent that had been with him all year round was also affected. It became more agile than usual, and even a trace of Soul Power was generated in its body, making it a potential Soul Beast.

In Dugu Bo's view, leaving him behind to look after Mithras's safety was more than enough.

"Dad, where are we going?"

After Riko left, Saundin confirmed that Mithras's emotions were not pure. In order to minimize the damage, she decided to immediately start the experiment and use her with the other consumables to make him evolve again!

But Mithras naively thought that Saundin wanted her to see other experiments so that she could make up her mind.

"Experiment complete."

Saundin didn't want to pay any more attention, but perhaps because he had raised Mithras for many years, a little compassion remained in his heart, and he still answered her question, "You will be the key!"

"Key···"

Mithras murmured.

Do you know why I named you Prometheus?

Saundin's voice had a touch more femininity as she led Mithras by the hand toward another experimental base. "In an Abyss People myth, Prometheus was the Fire Thief."

Humans are creatures created by God, but they lack the speed of a leopard, the strength of a bear, and the defensive capabilities of a tortoise, making them completely unable to protect themselves.

So a god named Prometheus went to the heavens, stole fire from the other gods, and gave it to humankind.

When humans learned to use fire, they evolved, and through their intelligence, they gradually defeated all other creatures in the world.

But now, humanity has stagnated for far too long, even after mastering the use of Soul Power.

And you, Prometheus, will, like that god in mythology, steal the flame that will allow humanity to evolve once more!

"Was my name really that great?"

Mithras muttered to himself, sensing Saundin's urgency, and for the first time, the thought arose in his heart that perhaps Riko and the others were right.

However, she still smiled, because she believed that her father would never hurt his daughter.

Upon reaching another steel building, Saundin activated a nearby switch, causing the building to vibrate and hum, the vibrations almost reverberating throughout the entire Steel Base.

Feeling the tremor, Zhou Qing immediately led Romantina and the Rabbit Girl to run towards the outer edge of the space they were currently in.

But Saundin had anticipated this.

The space where the three were located was surrounded by steel doors, each over a meter thick, which were lowered into the passageways. Judging from the sound, there were more than thirty such doors inside each passageway.

"What happened?"

Outside the base, Dugu Bo and Riko saw a building not far away that had split open and collapsed like a watermelon, revealing one of its steel pillars that was over fifty meters high.

Around the pillar, there was a ring of seats, which were already full of people wearing helmets, clearly Saundin's men.

The helmets worn by these people were connected by a dense network of fine lines that eventually converged on a seat with a silver helmet-like top.

Saundin made Mithras sit in that chair.

Mithras had no doubt whatsoever, or rather, even if he had doubts, he would still sit down— Saundin might not be Mithras's father, but Mithras considered himself Saundin's daughter from the bottom of his heart. He had raised Saundin, she was a baby, she was a child, and she still was now, at fifteen years old.

"Dad, if I really steal the 'flame' for you, can you come with me on this adventure with Riko and the others?"

Saundin didn't answer, but helped Mithras put on the helmet, covering the upper half of her face so that she could no longer see what was happening outside.

After that, iron rings came down from above, binding the calves, waists, and necks of everyone in the circle of seats, including Mithras.

Apart from Mithras shouting "I feel terrible," the rest of the people remained silent.

The Nine-Section Jade Serpent, which had been guarding in the shadows, suddenly darted out and bit at Saundin's neck.

Boom!

The fangs broke.

It was clear that Saundin had a protective sheath made of Light Gold around his neck, which was extremely flexible and tough, and blocked the attack of the Nine-Section Jade Serpent.

Even if the Nine-Section Jade Serpent is highly toxic, it cannot break the skin to inject the venom, so it is useless.

Snap!

Saundin grabbed it, intending to crush it, but found the snake in his hand to be quite special, so he put it into a glass jar he took out from his waist for later experiments.

"That guy!"

Dugu Bo saw it clearly and was about to make a move when he turned around and saw hundreds of people with squares, triangles, and circles on the front of their helmets surrounding Riko.

If he were to rescue Mithras, then these people would attack Riko.

But would Dugu Bo be threatened?

With a flash, he appeared behind Riko, slapped away any approaching people, and then leaped towards the steel pillar that was over fifty meters long with Riko in tow.

"Ah!"

Suddenly, Riko screamed, her whole body convulsed, blood flowed from her seven orifices, and even a large red patch seeped through her skin—

Ascension Curse!

Dugu Bo himself was unharmed, but he overlooked Riko, who was unable to bear it.

This sudden leap landed Riko in trouble.

This scene terrified Dugu Bo, who had to hover in mid-air, carefully watching over the lovely Riko in his arms, whose face was contorted in pain and covered in Riko—

Are you alright?

Dugu Bo dared not fly any further. He carried Riko back to the ground of the Steel Base and asked anxiously.

"It's alright... but if we fly again... I might... die."

Because of the pain, Riko's limbs could no longer move, and her eyes were slightly vacant, but she still tried her best to turn her head to look in the direction of Mithras, "Mr. Dugu Bo, you don't need to worry about me... go save... go save Mithras, she can't be used as an experimental subject."

At this moment, the group surrounded them again, each holding a ready-to-fire Soul-Guided Fish Spear.

This time, Dugu Bo, who was holding Riko, could only dodge and could only run on the ground. He dared not fly, otherwise Riko would be injured even more.

Even the slightest increase in Riko's current condition could lead to her death.

A Titled Douluo!

It's truly unbelievable that they would be so hesitant to act because the object they're trying to protect can't withstand the environmental Aura Field.

"Hateful!"

This is mainly because Dugu Bo doesn't yet know how to use the Inner Scenery to protect Riko...