The Curse of the Dugu Clan

Meanwhile, at Mu Jin's Office.

"What fine seedlings. They're all fine seedlings."

As she skimmed through the record sheets, Mu Jin's eyes gleamed with undisguised excitement and a hint of delight. She muttered to herself, "Just you wait, Zhou Yi! This time, I'll definitely crush you!"

"Knock, knock, knock—"

Just then, a knock suddenly sounded at the door.

Mu Jin quickly reined in her emotions and said solemnly,

"Come in."

As the office door opened, a middle-aged man around forty years old appeared outside. His features were rather ordinary, but he carried a scholarly air and wore a genial, smiling expression.

"Teacher Mu Jin, I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"Oh? Teacher Wang Yan?"

Seeing who it was, Mu Jin couldn't help feeling surprised. She then teased him, "Teacher Wang Yan is quite the rare guest. Why aren't you in the academy library? What brings you to my office instead?"

"Teacher Mu Jin, you're joking."

Wang Yan wasn't offended by her teasing.

He knew his own nature well. Aside from fulfilling his responsibilities as a teacher, he either holed up in the library or studied Martial Souls in his dormitory. As a result, he had pitifully little interaction with the other teachers.

"I came here today mainly to ask Teacher Mu Jin for a favor." Wang Yan's attitude was excellent. Though he was highly qualified and had powerful backing, he didn't let that make him overbearing.

"Teacher Wang Yan, please go ahead."

Mu Jin didn't refuse and invited him to continue.

"I heard through certain channels that Teacher Mu Jin used Soul Tools to examine the six aspects of this year's new students. The data you obtained must be extremely precise, so I'd like to study their Martial Souls and their specific circumstances."

"I wonder if that would be possible."

Wang Yan frankly stated his purpose, and Mu Jin didn't refuse outright. The problem was that she hadn't finished recording all the data on the new students in her class, making it difficult for Wang Yan to study them.

This didn't disappoint Wang Yan.

"Then I'll have to trouble Teacher Mu Jin to let me study them after you've finished. Of course, I won't be studying them for nothing. I'll add as many suggestions as possible after the student profiles. I only hope those suggestions won't mislead the students."

"Teacher Wang Yan, you're being too modest."

Upon hearing this, Mu Jin was genuinely delighted for the students in her class. Among the teachers of Shrek Outer Academy, there wasn't a single one who could compare with Wang Yan in the study of Martial Souls.

His suggestions would therefore be better than hers.

Mu Jin raised the list of the most talented students in her class and said with a hint of pride, "These are the most talented students in Class Nine. I wonder if Teacher Wang is interested in taking a look now? There are even two Soul Elders among them."

"Oh!"

Wang Yan immediately halted his departing steps. His eyebrows rose, and he took the information Mu Jin handed over with great interest.

When he reached for the records from the bottom upward,

the information on the first student left him stunned.

"Dugu Xin, Martial Soul: Jade Phosphorous Serpent..."

He didn't continue reading the information. Those eight words alone revealed enough to fill Wang Yan with excitement mixed with a trace of fear.

The source of his excitement

was the appearance of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul and the Dugu Clan.

The source of his fear

was likewise the appearance of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul and the Dugu Clan.

He hurriedly stuffed the record sheet back into Mu Jin's hands and muttered, "I never thought the Dugu Clan's Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul would appear again. Then wouldn't this student be..." Recalling the descriptions of Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul Soul Masters in the Ancient Book, Wang Yan's brows furrowed deeper and deeper. Mu Jin, who was watching from the side, was utterly confused.

In the end, a trace of determination flashed through Wang Yan's eyes. "No, I have to find Xuan Zi. Otherwise, this child..."

He then bade Mu Jin farewell and hurried away!

"What exactly is wrong with the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul?" Mu Jin looked over the record sheet several times, perplexed. After all, the Dugu Clan had kept its movements hidden for so long that virtually no teacher in the Outer Academy knew anything about the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul.

With no choice, Mu Jin could only set aside her doubts and look forward to Teacher Wang Yan's next visit, when he might tell her the answer.

After organizing the record sheets, Mu Jin began preparing the afternoon lesson. The first topic was the development of Soul Tools and the effects Soul Tools demonstrated in battle.

That afternoon, beside Sea God Lake.

Wang Yan anxiously gazed toward distant Sea God Island, pacing back and forth as he clearly waited for someone.

"Little Wang, why are you so restless? What could you possibly want with this old man?" Suddenly, a somewhat displeased voice came from behind Wang Yan. A slovenly old man with disheveled hair and an utterly unkempt appearance had arrived behind him. He held a wine gourd in his right hand and roast chicken in his left, taking a drink of wine and a bite of meat. He looked carefree and content.

"Xuan Zi, you're finally here."

As though he knew the old man's temperament, Wang Yan didn't waste any time. He directly told Xuan Zi that among the new students was a Soul Master from the Dugu Clan who possessed the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul.

"The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul? It's been so long..."

A soul-stirring light suddenly flashed in Xuan Zi's eyes. However, it quickly became scattered again, with even a trace of bewilderment mixed within.

"Little Wang, you want to save that child, don't you?" Xuan Zi saw through Wang Yan's purpose, his voice hoarse and aged.

"Yes, Xuan Zi. I believe..."

Wang Yan's tone grew urgent, but before he could finish, Xuan Zi impatiently waved a hand and cut him off. Wang Yan could only swallow the rest of his words. "What you believe is useless."

"Do you think the Dugu Clan's poison is a joke? Let me tell you this: even the method passed down by Ancestor Tang San back then would be powerless to turn things around. If you hadn't encountered someone from the Dugu Clan at the academy, I would have thought they had all died out."

According to the records of Shrek Academy,

the Dugu Clan would be poisoned as soon as its members embarked on the path of cultivation. Although the Dugu Clan possessed a method of resolving the poison passed down by Dugu Bo ten thousand years ago, there was always an upper limit to the amount of poison Soul Bones could store. That meant they needed multiple Soul Bones for storage—but Soul Bones were not easy to obtain.

Moreover, Soul Bones that had stored poison could no longer store any more, so there was essentially no such thing as inheriting Soul Bones. Faced with this predicament, the Dugu Clan had to increase its strength in order to obtain Soul Bones. Yet the stronger they became, the more potent the poison grew.

After ten thousand years of accumulation, the poison in each generation's bodies became increasingly severe, turning them all into short-lived wretches. Based on Xuan Zi's current estimates, they could live to no more than twenty-five years old. They simply had no time to break through to a higher level, and consequently had no chance of obtaining more Soul Bones. This trapped them in a vicious cycle.

It also meant the Dugu Clan couldn't have many children. In general, each generation had only a single heir, preserving the Dugu Clan's bloodline.

"This..."

Wang Yan was rendered speechless.

How could this be saved?

This was completely the Curse of the Dugu Clan!

Xuan Zi cast Wang Yan a glance before raising the wine gourd and taking a deep swig. Gazing absently at Sea God Lake, he said, "Several thousand years ago, the Dugu Clan came to Shrek Academy seeking Soul Bones. That caused the friendship between the academy and the Dugu Clan to completely fade away long ago. Besides, the academy never had a way to save the Dugu Clan. So, Wang Yan..."

"Xuan Zi."

"Tell that boy to go home. He should find an opportunity to leave behind an heir." Xuan Zi waved his hand indifferently. "This is the best advice I, a Sea God Pavilion Elder, can give him."

"Just tell him that."

With that, he swayed unsteadily into the air and flew away. Judging by his staggering movements, he seemed liable to fall at any moment.

"Sigh—"

Wang Yan couldn't help letting out a long sigh!

Before this, he had been considering whether to ask Xuan Zi about using the Soul Core Condensation Method to gather all the poison in the body into a Soul Core, thereby preventing it from affecting the body, and to seek his guidance. After all, he was only a Soul King and understood Soul Cores only superficially. He had hoped that Xuan Zi, a Super Douluo, could offer him some advice.

But now, there was no need to ask.

After all, condensing a Soul Core first required one to be on the verge of entering the Titled Douluo realm. With the Dugu Clan's lives being so short, they essentially had no chance. After all, a twenty-five-year-old Titled Douluo... How difficult would that be?

"Is it really hopeless?"