Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well

"Teacher Lin Mu, given your strength, your previous compensation truly fell short."

Meng Shenji bowed slightly and said apologetically, "Starting today, your salary will be raised to twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins per month. At the same time, you will have full authority over all matters concerning the Imperial Dou Team. The academy will not interfere in the slightest!"

The other two Committee Members nodded in agreement as well.

A month ago, they had learned that Lin Mu was the youngest Soul Sage on the entire continent, and that he possessed a ten-thousand-year Fourth Soul Ring and a hundred-thousand-year seventh soul ring.

Those facts alone had already shattered their understanding and were enough for them to spare no expense in recruiting him.

Yet they had never expected Lin Mu's strength to go far beyond that of an ordinary Soul Sage. He actually possessed the power to defeat the Poison Douluo.

Although the Poison Douluo ranked near the bottom among Titled Douluo, he was still a Titled Douluo. A difference of nearly twenty ranks in Soul Power could almost crush everything.

Most importantly, Lin Mu was only twenty-two years old. He would likely break through to Soul Douluo within two or three years, and reach Titled Douluo within ten.

In other words, Lin Mu would become a Titled Douluo at an age younger than Qin Ming had been when he broke through to Soul Emperor.

It was simply unimaginable!

"Then I'll have to thank the three Committee Members," Lin Mu said with a slight nod.

His previous monthly salary had been five thousand Gold Soul Coins. Now it had directly quadrupled. That meant two hundred and forty thousand Gold Soul Coins a year, so he would at least no longer have to worry about money.

As for control over the Imperial Dou Team, it would allow him to better reorganize the squad.

However, compared to the treatment offered by the three Committee Members, there was something more important at hand.

The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well!

Dugu Bo's herb garden contained a whole collection of Immortal Herbs comparable to cheat codes. The value of any one Immortal Herb far surpassed the three soul bones offered by the Soul Master Competition.

After all, soul bones could not help a Soul Master undergo a transformation or improve their talent, while Immortal Herbs could!

During this time, it was not as if Lin Mu had never considered making a deal with Dugu Bo—helping him cure his poison in exchange for Immortal Herbs.

He had never expected the man to deliver himself right to his door, saving him quite a bit of trouble.

After this battle, there was no longer any need to solve the martial soul backlash affecting Dugu Bo's bloodline. All the Immortal Herbs at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well had become his spoils of war.

From that perspective, Xiao Wu had inadvertently done him an enormous favor.

At that moment, Dugu Yan finally broke free from Yu Tianheng's restraint and rushed to Dugu Bo's side. Seeing him covered in wounds and breathing weakly, tears streamed down her face in distress.

She suddenly raised her head and looked toward Ye Lingling, who stood nearby. Choking back tears, she cried, "Lingling, please, save my grandfather!"

However, Ye Lingling did not act immediately. Instead, she cast Lin Mu an inquiring look.

Only after Lin Mu nodded did Ye Lingling hurry forward and summon the Nine Heart Begonia. Soft white light transformed into drifting petals that fell and merged into Dugu Bo's body, beginning to heal his wounds.

With Ye Lingling's healing ability, she could not immediately restore a Titled Douluo to full health, but she could at least help Dugu Bo regain his ability to move.

Lin Mu's gaze fell on Dugu Yan's grief-stricken face, and a thoughtful glint flickered in his eyes.

There was no denying that one reason he had not killed Dugu Bo was Dugu Yan. It was not because of any feelings for her, but because he did not want to affect the team's relationships.

Now, the Imperial Dou Team could already form a relatively complete lineup. After another two years of cultivation, they would have every chance of contending with the Spirit Hall Team.

Under his arrangements, the Shi Mo brothers had become increasingly coordinated. Before long, they would be able to develop a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

As captain, Yu Tianheng had clearly begun cultivating even harder after suffering blow after blow. Though he could not shoulder most of the team's damage output, he was more than adequate as a damage dealer.

Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Ye Lingling were all core members of the team, and they could later take Immortal Herbs to further increase their strength.

The only problem was that Dugu Bo had been seriously injured this time, and Dugu Yan might harbor resentment because of it.

But Lin Mu did not care in the slightest.

In his plans for the team, Dugu Yan had always been nothing more than a substitute. So what if she was dissatisfied? At most, she could only rage impotently.

A few minutes later, Dugu Bo's injuries had recovered somewhat, and he no longer had any problems with basic movement.

Lin Mu then waved for Ye Lingling to stop healing and said in an unquestionable tone, "Dugu Bo, I need to make a trip to Sunset Forest. You will lead the way."

Hearing the commanding tone, the three Committee Members nearby showed surprise. But on second thought, it was not strange for the Poison Douluo, as the defeated party, to follow Teacher Lin Mu's arrangements.

"Th-this old man obeys."

Dugu Bo had wanted to refer to himself as Old Slave, but when he saw his granddaughter sobbing beside him, he swallowed the words and tried to preserve the last shred of his dignity.

As for why Lin Mu wanted to go to Sunset Forest, he already had a guess. At this point, he had completely abandoned all hope of luck and only prayed that his granddaughter's life could be spared.

Lin Mu naturally noticed Dugu Bo's thoughts, but for the sake of the herb garden, he did not mind.

He then called over Tang San and Xiao Wu before looking at Meng Shenji. "Committee Member Meng Shenji, I need to leave the academy for a while. During that time, Teacher Qin Ming will be responsible for training the Imperial Dou Team."

"Then when will you return, Teacher Lin Mu?"

Meng Shenji immediately became anxious, afraid that Lin Mu would leave and never come back. That would be an enormous loss for the empire.

"Maybe half a month, maybe a month. I'm not sure for now," Lin Mu replied vaguely.

Seeing that Lin Mu had already made up his mind, Meng Shenji could only nod in agreement.

Led by Dugu Bo, Lin Mu took Tang San and Xiao Wu through a concealed poisonous miasma within Sunset Forest, eventually arriving at a valley.

The moment they entered the valley, an extremely dense and peculiar energy rushed toward them. Even Lin Mu felt his spirits lift.

Before long, the four stood on a higher spot and looked down to see a magical spring at the center of the valley.

The spring was distinctly divided into milky white and crimson red, like a taiji diagram—intertwined, yet never encroaching upon each other.

It was the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well!

It contained two kinds of energy: extreme heat and extreme cold. Ordinary soul masters would explode and die from absorbing these energies over a long period, let alone entering the spring itself.

All around the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well grew all manner of rare flowers and exotic herbs.

Lin Mu had only vague impressions of these immortal-grade medicinal herbs, but based on his knowledge of medicinal plants, he knew they were anything but ordinary.

Besides, Tang San was familiar with these immortal-grade herbs, so there was no need for him to worry.

"Master, this treasure land is the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. The herbs growing nearby are all the finest immortal-grade medicinal herbs."

As he spoke, Tang San hurried to one side of the hot spring and swiftly swept his gaze over the immortal-grade herbs he had seen only in books, barely able to suppress his excitement.