Dugu Bo's Return, Probing, and Pressure

The weather had turned chilly.

In the courtyard, the autumn wind swept up fallen leaves with a rustling sound. The sun slanted westward, its afterglow illuminating the lean figure of a young boy. His shadow followed the fallen leaves, darting and shifting through the courtyard, each movement filled with an indescribable rhythm.

Lin Xiao still practiced his martial arts as relentlessly as ever.

Dugu Yan had said that Dugu Bo would probably be returning soon.

So Lin Xiao moved back into Dugu Estate.

It had already been three full months since his first Evil Fire Body Tempering.

The Evil Fire could not erupt at any time. It needed to accumulate. Once its intensity exceeded what Lin Xiao's meridians could bear, the time for the next Evil Fire Body Tempering would arrive.

During this period, Lin Xiao had been using the Extreme Training Method.

If he couldn't train himself to death, he trained as though he wanted to die.

When he was close to death, he used the Nine Hearted Begonia for treatment.

Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan had tried it as well, but neither trained as ruthlessly as Lin Xiao. They could only watch as Lin Xiao pushed himself to the brink of death, yet his expression never changed.

Whenever they recalled what Ye Qingxian had said, their little faces turned Pale White. They did not dare imagine just how painful the Evil Fire Body Tempering that had made Lin Xiao wish he were dead actually was.

Therefore, although Lin Xiao was young,

Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling had corrected their attitudes. They no longer treated Lin Xiao like a child as they had at first, and had even begun to subtly learn from the qualities he displayed.

"Whew~"

After finishing a set of Five Animal Frolics, white steam rose from Lin Xiao's body. Even the breath he exhaled was deep and prolonged, extending more than three meters.

"Where did you come from, brat? What are you doing in my house?!"

A cold, stern voice suddenly rang beside his ear.

Lin Xiao was startled and turned around. At some point, a green-haired old man had appeared at the courtyard gate. His pupils were Dark Green, cold and sinister, making anyone who saw them feel chilled to the bone.

It was as if he had been targeted by the Serpent Emperor of Deadly Poison.

Lin Xiao knew that this person had to be Dugu Bo, so he cupped his hands and said,

"This youngster is Lin Xiao, a friend of Miss Yan Yan."

Dugu Bo looked at Lin Xiao with interest. This six-year-old brat had not wet himself in fright upon seeing him. Instead, he had answered without either servility or arrogance. How strange.

However, Dugu Bo had grown shrewd with age and accurately caught the flaw in Lin Xiao's words.

"You say you're Yan Yan's friend?"

"Would Yan Yan make friends with a child? Even if you really are friends, judging by the way you look, you've been staying in my house for quite some time."

"What I'm asking is, what are you doing in my house?"

Dugu Bo gave a sinister smile as he sized up Lin Xiao, as though a poisonous snake had locked onto its prey.

An indistinct aura locked onto Lin Xiao.

Lin Xiao's body stiffened, and his heart turned grim.

He knew the true test had arrived. Dugu Yan was only a Young Girl. With his childlike appearance and sincerity, it had been easy for him to approach her.

But Dugu Bo was suspicious by nature and eccentric in temperament. The slightest doubt might prompt him to test Lin Xiao, plunging him into danger.

To earn Dugu Bo's trust, he needed sufficient justification. He also had to let Dugu Bo know that Lin Xiao possessed the ability to save lives.

"Poison Douluo, I've been waiting for you for a long time."

The moment Lin Xiao finished speaking,

Dugu Bo let out a mocking laugh and said bluntly,

"What are you, to think you're worthy of waiting for me?"

Lin Xiao: "..."

He knew that Dugu Bo had a strange personality and had always been a solitary man without many friends, but he now had a deeper understanding of the reason.

With that mouth alone, no one could get close to him.

Yet Lin Xiao smiled.

With Dugu Bo being this straightforward, Lin Xiao felt even more at ease.

He said whatever he wanted, acted whenever he was displeased, and was nothing like those old foxes who hid daggers behind their smiles.

Dugu Bo was surprised.

"Ha! You still dare to laugh?"

Even Soul Douluo-level experts trembled with fear and acted cautiously when facing him, terrified of making a mistake. Yet this brat actually dared to laugh?

Dugu Bo was somewhat displeased.

It felt as though he were being looked down upon.

"I've long heard that Poison Douluo is eccentric, out of step with the secular world, and has few friends. But after seeing you today, I find that saying inaccurate. Most people in this world are hypocritical and treacherous, while Poison Douluo is true to himself and disdains such empty social formalities."

Flattery worked on everyone.

And one did not strike a smiling face.

Lin Xiao praised Dugu Bo a few times first, giving himself some armor.

"It is precisely because Poison Douluo stands as such a paragon that Miss Dugu Yan inherited your fine traditions. She is innocent and straightforward, and I'm honored to have become her good friend and helped her improve her strength."

Lin Xiao added another layer of armor.

He was openly telling Dugu Bo, I'm your granddaughter's good friend, and I've even helped her improve her strength. He refused to believe Dugu Bo would have the nerve to repay kindness with enmity.

As for whether his words were true, Lin Xiao's open residence in Dugu Manor was already the best proof. The servants had long since grown accustomed to it.

Although Dugu Bo had few friends, he had met no shortage of people over the years. Yet those who stood before him were usually either afraid of him, disgusted by him, or flattering and currying favor with him.

Someone like Lin Xiao, who was neither servile nor arrogant, neither afraid nor disgusted, and whose praise could even be heard to come from the heart, was something he had never encountered before.

How rare!

Dugu Bo's mood improved, and he spoke frankly:

"You started by flattering me, so you must have something to ask of me?"

"This Old Man normally has little regard for people who suck up and flatter, but seeing that you have some sincerity, I'll give you a chance to speak. If I want to help, I'll help. If I don't, you'd better scram early!"

Dugu Bo actually did not want to help.

But he was curious. What could such a strange brat possibly want with him?

He could listen and satisfy his curiosity. As for helping, he would merely talk about it.

Lin Xiao took a deep breath.

"Because of a flaw in my Martial Soul, my life is hanging by a thread. May I ask, Poison Douluo, how did you resolve the flaw in your own Martial Soul?"

Boom!

The instant Lin Xiao finished speaking!

Dugu Bo unleashed a terrifying pressure. His fearsome aura surged forth, and the amusement that had filled his eyes was replaced by a sinister chill. He said coldly,

"Who gave you the nerve to spout such nonsense before me?!"

Dugu Bo naturally knew that the Martial Soul of the Dugu Family had a flaw.

But he had hidden this secret. Once someone with ulterior motives learned about the flaw in the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul, it would become his fatal weakness.

When the Poison erupted, Dugu Bo was at his weakest.

Thus, he had no choice but to leave for several months at a time, relying on the unique magnetic field of the Ice Fire Yin Yang Well and his strength as a Titled Douluo to suppress his own Poison.

Now, Lin Xiao had exposed this secret.

Killing intent flashed through Dugu Bo's eyes.

If this child could not give him a reasonable explanation, then even if he was Yan Yan's friend, Dugu Bo could only lock him up first, interrogate him, and then eliminate him!

Facing that terrifying pressure,

Lin Xiao's body trembled uncontrollably.

But he stubbornly lifted his head, forcibly suppressing the fear in his heart as he met Dugu Bo's eyes.

"Senior Dugu."

"Because my Martial Soul is the same..."

"I want to cooperate with you. Saving me would also mean saving Miss Yan Yan."

At the words "save Yan Yan,"

The terrifying pressure and killing intent paused slightly, then receded like the tide.