Dugu Bo, Ill-Fated by Destiny

"This..." Dugu Bo felt as though the door to a new world had been opened before him.

With his many years of experience dominating the path of poison,

he could naturally see that what Tang Xuan said was highly feasible.

Why had he never thought of it before?

But on second thought,

without the blood of Tang Xuan's Hundred Poisons-Immune Body,

even if he had thought of this method, he likely would not have been able to use it.

"Ah, if only you had been born a few years earlier, if only I had met you sooner, perhaps my son and daughter-in-law would not have left me..." Tears welled in Dugu Bo's aged eyes.

With the cure within reach, none of the wild joy he had once imagined appeared.

All he felt was endless longing for the dead.

"The dead are gone, but the living must go on. At least Sister Yanzi won't have to endure the pain you once suffered, right?" Tang Xuan stood on tiptoe and patted Dugu Bo's shoulder to comfort him.

Yet even he could not help feeling somewhat melancholy.

Dugu Bo's life could truly be called ill-fated.

The first half of his life had been fairly high-spirited.

But after he started a family, misfortune came one after another.

His innate poison erupted. Not only did he suffer its torment himself, but it also afflicted his descendants.

Including Dugu Yan, three out of their family of five had left him.

Without Tang San in the Original Work, and without Tang Xuan now,

the Dugu Lineage being wiped out would only have been a matter of time.

And in the latter half of his life,

although Tang San resolved his poison problem and let him live peacefully for several years,

a few years later, the infamy of slaughtering a city all fell upon him.

Tang San had clearly given the order, yet Tang Hao disliked Dugu Bo, the "blade," instead.

The thought processes of the Clear Sky Sect people were truly bizarre.

"You're right. Look forward." Dugu Bo wiped away the tears about to fall with one large hand, then said with a solemn expression, "Boy Tang, I owe you two lives. If you ever have use for me in the future, just say the word."

Tang Xuan's eyes shifted at those words. "Oh? Is that so? Then I really do have something."

Dugu Bo's expression immediately grew serious again. "Tell me. I'll certainly do everything in my power to make it happen!"

Tang Xuan could not help but laugh. "Don't be so nervous. It's nothing major. I heard you have a Soul Tool that can store living things, and I wanted to borrow it."

In this era, when Soul Tool technology had been lost, such an item was absolutely a rare treasure.

Even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, rich enough to rival a nation, only had two of them.

The one Tang Xuan carried was one of those two.

It was just that the storage space in his was far too small to hold so many Immortal Herbs.

"Is that all?" Dugu Bo smiled and removed a blue cloth pouch from his waist. "Here. Why talk about borrowing? I'll give it to you."

Tang Xuan did not stand on ceremony and accepted it immediately.

Like a child who had gotten a new toy, he looked it over from every angle.

Dugu Bo could not help laughing at the sight. "I never thought you'd have such a childish side?"

Tang Xuan did not even raise his head. "What do you mean? I am a child. I won't even turn eight for another two months."

Dugu Bo froze at that.

That seemed to be true. Tang Xuan was clearly five or six years younger than his granddaughter.

Yet Tang Xuan gave him the impression not of a child, but of someone even more rational than an adult.

"Forget your powerful talent and extraordinary combat strength. You're mature beyond your years, mentally resilient, and even your luck is exceptionally strong. I'd say you really are a living, breathing Little Monster." Dugu Bo sighed.

"You've survived with poison deep in your lungs, and you never act properly all day. Doesn't that make you an Old Monster?" Tang Xuan raised a brow.

Today, he had not only snatched the Mandarin Duck Pot, but even the title of Little Monster.

He had to admit, it felt pretty good.

Dugu Bo was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter. "Hahaha! Old Monster, Little Monster—I like it! You brat really suit my taste! We'll call each other that from now on!"

He had never cared much for formalities.

If someone acted overly proper around him, it only made him uncomfortable.

Tang Xuan naturally knew Dugu Bo's temperament, and he was happy to go along with it. "All right, Old Monster. I still need to gather the other Immortal Herbs. If you have nothing to do, hurry up and refine the medicine. Or go find Sister Yanzi a Soul Bone. Remember, it has to be at least ten thousand years old."

After saying that,

Tang Xuan began searching around for the remaining Immortal Herbs.

"Ah, you've really given me a huge problem." Dugu Bo looked deeply troubled.

Though he was a Titled Douluo, he was truly broke.

If he wanted to obtain a Soul Bone, he could only slaughter Spirit Beasts in large numbers or kill people and take their bones.

Although doing so might invite criticism,

for his granddaughter's sake, he had to do it no matter how difficult it was.

But just as he was about to leave the bottom of the cliff,

Tang Xuan suddenly called out to stop him. "Wait. Regarding the Soul Bone, you can try Xue Xing."

"Xue Xing?" Dugu Bo was first stunned, then frowned. "You mean that Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone he promised you back then? Wasn't that just bait he threw out to draw attention?"

Tang Xuan spread his hands. "Try it. What if it's real? It's easier than slaughtering Spirit Beasts all over the world, isn't it? If Xue Xing doesn't have it, I'll think of another way."

Originally, Tang Xuan had thought it would be best for Dugu Yan to take Tang San's Eight Spider Soul Bone to cure her poison.

Dugu Yan was also not far from Rank Thirty, and the Man Faced Demon Spider's Spirit Ring suited her well.

But the conditions for an External Soul Bone to form were simply too mysterious.

Even if the same Spirit Beast were absorbed again by the same Spirit Master following the exact same process,

it still might not produce an External Soul Bone with absolute certainty.

Rather than rely on luck, it was better to use an ordinary Soul Bone to cure the poison first.

As for the Eight Spider Lances, he could get them later.

"Little Monster, that's a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone. You're really willing to part with it?" Dugu Bo looked deeply moved.

He knew that, given Tang Xuan's background, obtaining a Soul Bone was indeed not especially difficult.

But he was willing to give away the Blood River Treasure just like that?

Could it be...

A flash of realization struck Dugu Bo. His gaze swept repeatedly over Tang Xuan from head to toe, and he nodded in satisfaction from time to time. "Mm, better than that brat Yu Tianheng... But if that's the case, what about that little girl Rong Rong?"

"Huh? What about her?" Tang Xuan scratched his head.

For a moment, he did not understand what Dugu Bo meant.

He was indeed stronger than Yu Tianheng, but what did that have to do with Rong Rong?

"You're not planning to take both, are you?" Dugu Bo shot Tang Xuan a look. But when he thought of Tang Xuan's monstrous talent, he became somewhat conflicted. "For you... it's not impossible. But let's make this clear first: Yan Yan absolutely cannot be the lesser one!"

Tang Xuan fell silent.

He merely looked around in every direction.

Dugu Bo was utterly confused. "Little Monster, what are you looking for?"

"I'm looking to see if there are any poisonous herbs that can poison you, Old Monster, dumb." Tang Xuan replied irritably. "You're already half-dead from poison, and you still have the mood to play matchmaker?"

"Sister Yanzi and I are purely friends. I advise you to put away those little thoughts of yours. Otherwise, I'll go complain to Sister Yanzi. We'll see how many hairs are left in your beard then."

Dugu Bo could not hide the disappointment on his face.

The man had no feelings, and the woman had no interest.

For this lonely old man to find another Granddaughter's Husband would likely be harder than ascending to heaven.

But he absolutely could not admit that he had considered replacing his Granddaughter's Husband.

Otherwise, just as Tang Xuan said, his beard would definitely not survive.

"Don't slander me. I was only saying that you're very... uh, generous. Yes, very generous—more generous than that brat Yu Tianheng!" Dugu Bo stammered as he forced the argument.

After saying that, his figure flashed away, vanishing from the bottom of the cliff.