"Senior Dugu, there are three ways to help you deal with the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison in your body."
"As for which one you choose, that's up to you."
Su Ze glanced around the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye, and a smile immediately spread across his lips.
After all, he had studied the records left by Teacher Ye Qingxian, so he recognized most of the Immortal Herbs growing around the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye.
"You're saying you have three ways to remove the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison from my body?"
Dugu Bo's eyes narrowed, suspicion showing on his gaunt face.
For years, he had desperately searched for a way to rid himself of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison in his body, but he had never found a clue.
Yet this boy claimed to have three ways.
If there really were three methods, how had a dignified Titled Douluo like him never found any?
"Of course. I have no reason to lie to you, Senior."
"Senior Dugu, the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison in your body has penetrated to the very marrow of your bones. Naturally, ordinary methods can't remove it."
"To eradicate it completely, the first method is to consume the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Infernal Delicate Apricot."
As he spoke, Su Ze pointed to the red and blue Immortal Herbs growing near the pool and explained seriously.
"You mean that consuming those two Immortal Herbs will cure the serpent poison in my body?"
Hearing Su Ze's confident tone, Dugu Bo's eyes immediately lit up, and he seemed eager to give it a try.
"Not you, Senior. I would consume them."
"After I do, the lightning power in my body will help me develop a body immune to all poisons."
"Then I'll be able to completely purge the serpent poison from your body."
"If that happens, you won't be able to use your poison anymore!"
At Su Ze's words, Dugu Bo's excited expression stiffened.
He was known as Poison Douluo because his mastery of poison was unparalleled.
If he lost his poison arts, he might as well be crippled.
With that thought, Dugu Bo immediately spoke up.
"Impossible! Without my poison arts, how could I remain a Titled Douluo? No!"
"Save that method for Yan Yan."
Hearing Dugu Bo's agitated words, Su Ze simply smiled.
"Why are you in such a hurry, Senior Dugu? I haven't finished. There are two other methods!"
Watching Dugu Bo's expression shift again and again as Su Ze toyed with his emotions,
Su Ze smiled.
Seeing the confident smile on Su Ze's face, Dugu Bo looked at him with growing irritation.
He felt that this little brat was deliberately messing with him.
But since he still needed Su Ze to help with the poison, Dugu Bo swallowed his displeasure and pressed him for an answer.
"Tell me the other two methods."
At Dugu Bo's cold demand,
Su Ze immediately explained the method Tang San had used in the Original Work.
When he heard the second method, Dugu Bo's eyes brightened at once.
A head-type Soul Bone was rare, but as a Titled Douluo, he could collect one without too much trouble.
And this way, he could retain his combat strength.
The second method suited him extremely well.
More importantly, based on the knowledge Dugu Bo had accumulated, Su Ze's method seemed entirely viable.
That made Dugu Bo's gaze toward Su Ze noticeably warmer and friendlier.
"Not bad. So what's the third method?"
Dugu Bo sounded expectant. He had already figured out the boy's little trick.
He had put the worst method first.
Each method that followed was better than the one before.
So now Dugu Bo was eagerly anticipating Su Ze's third suggestion.
"The third method is evolution. If your Martial Soul evolves, not only will your strength increase greatly, but you'll also be freed from the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison."
Without hesitation, Su Ze told him the third method.
He had read about it in the Immortal Herb book Ye Qingxian had given him.
"Brat, do you think Martial Soul Evolution is that easy?"
"I trained all the way to Titled Douluo before I managed to evolve my Jade Scale Snake into the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor."
"And you just casually tell me to evolve my Martial Soul again?"
Dugu Bo's stiff face took on a helpless expression.
The main reason he could survive the serpent poison was that he had advanced to Titled Douluo and evolved his Jade Scale Snake into the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor.
So Dugu Bo knew just how difficult Martial Soul Evolution was.
Yet Su Ze made it sound effortless.
"Don't rush, Senior Dugu. If I dared bring it up, I must be absolutely certain."
"Besides, your Medicine Garden is one of the three great treasures on Douluo Continent: the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye."
"It's full of Immortal Herbs."
"If an Immortal Herb couldn't even help a Martial Soul evolve, would it deserve to be called 'immortal'?"
Su Ze's tone remained utterly confident.
After all, the herbs he needed to evolve his own Martial Soul also came from Immortal Herbs.
"Boy, are you really sure?"
Dugu Bo's eyes shone, and his voice grew extremely excited.
"Of course. Why else would I say it?"
"So, Senior Dugu, how do you want to deal with your problem?"
Su Ze looked at Dugu Bo and waited with a smile for his answer.
Faced with Su Ze's question, Dugu Bo fell into thought.
After a moment of silence, he shook his head and said, "I choose the second method."
"Save the Martial Soul Evolution method for Yan Yan."
"Yan Yan is still young. She has a future ahead of her. I'm old already, so let her have the chance to evolve her Martial Soul."
Martial Soul Evolution was precious to Dugu Bo. It could give him a chance to advance to Super Douluo
and stand at the very peak of the continent.
But to him, no amount of strength mattered more than his granddaughter's future.
Hearing the regret in Dugu Bo's voice, Su Ze smiled again and asked, "Are you sure, Senior? You should know that there's more than one Immortal Herb here that can help a Martial Soul evolve."
Earlier, Dugu Bo had put him through test after test.
Su Ze couldn't get revenge on Dugu Bo physically, since he couldn't beat him.
But he could get even in other ways.
"Brat, are you messing with me?"
Dugu Bo's face stiffened at Su Ze's words.
Now it was clear: this little brat was taking his revenge for all those tests.
But after cursing him, Dugu Bo's eyes lit up with excitement.
Looking at his former Medicine Garden, he finally understood how valuable the resources he had possessed were.
"Brat, hurry up and tell me—which Immortal Herb can help me evolve?"
"I promise you: if what you say is true, you'll be my Dugu Family's benefactor from now on."
"As long as you don't cross my bottom line, you can come to me for help with any difficulty."
Dugu Bo spoke with mounting urgency. The temptation of Martial Soul Evolution was simply too great.
And it wasn't just him who could evolve his Martial Soul—his granddaughter could, too.
Just as Su Ze had said, the Dugu Family's curse was finally going to end.
Seeing how quickly Dugu Bo was breathing, Su Ze smiled. Rather than keep teasing him, he walked straight over to a golden flower and fruit.
"Senior, this is the Earth Dragon Golden Gourd. It contains the Earth and Dragon Attributes and can awaken the Dragon Attribute bloodline in your Martial Soul, allowing it to evolve!"
As he spoke, Su Ze handed the Immortal Herb to Dugu Bo.
"How should I consume it?"
Dugu Bo asked, extremely excited. He could feel a craving rising inside him the moment he held the Immortal Herb.
He wanted to swallow it immediately.
Dugu Bo knew that feeling well. It was the sensation of his Martial Soul being on the verge of evolution.
That made him believe Su Ze.
"Remove the stem and roots, and consume only the golden flower."
At Su Ze's words, Dugu Bo nodded. He composed himself, made sure he had no lingering concerns, and sat down cross-legged.
Then he immediately consumed the Immortal Herb.
The instant he swallowed it, the Martial Soul of the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor appeared behind him of its own accord.
Its phantom form loomed behind Dugu Bo.
The Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor had originally looked somewhat like a King Cobra. It was enormous and vicious,
its entire body covered in fine, Ink Green scales patterned with mottled markings.
Now, however, its phantom form writhed restlessly.
Its forked tongue flicked in and out. Though it made no sound, it seemed to hiss.
As its body twisted, its mottled green scales began to shed.
Beneath them, the new scales gleamed with a jade-like hue, beautiful as polished jade and seemingly carved from the finest emerald.
At the same time, a large bulge began to form on its head, as though something were taking shape beneath the skin.
Seeing that Dugu Bo had officially entered the Martial Soul Evolution stage,
Su Ze watched for a while, then turned away.
Since Dugu Bo was already progressing smoothly, it was time for Su Ze to evolve his own Martial Soul.
After looking around briefly, Su Ze soon reached an Immortal Herb.
The herb shimmered with golden-yellow lightning. Its stalk was covered in scale-like ridges, and its many crooked roots vaguely resembled a dragon's head.
This was exactly what Su Ze was looking for.
The Thunder Flame Tyrant Dragon Ginseng!
Su Ze's eyes burned as he gazed at the Immortal Herb.
Once he consumed it, his thunder could evolve into Extreme Thunder, and Sikong Zhen's Martial Soul would evolve as well.
He could even unlock the Storm Dragon King he had kept hidden until now.
The moment Su Ze touched the Thunder Flame Tyrant Dragon Ginseng, a powerful electric current surged into Su Ze's hand.
Feeling the sting in his palm, Su Ze immediately activated Martial Soul Possession. With the power of Sikong Zhen's Martial Soul bolstering him, he managed to pluck the Immortal Herb.
Following the instructions in the book, Su Ze swallowed it.
As the Immortal Herb went down, blue lightning surged out and instantly enveloped Su Ze.
At the same time, thunderclouds churned above the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye, while a storm swept in.
Dense Dark Clouds gathered overhead.
Bolts of lightning darted through them like frenzied serpents.
As the clouds churned, Su Ze automatically activated Thunderous Force's ultimate move without reciting its incantation.
His shirt was ripped away, revealing a muscular, well-built torso.
His black hair turned white.
Frenzied lightning surged around Su Ze.
As for Su Ze, absorbing the Thunder Flame Tyrant Dragon Ginseng, he was completely unaware of the changes outside.
His body was now filled with a ceaseless stream of medicinal energy.
The energy continuously transformed his body.
As the transformation continued, Sikong Zhen's Martial Soul began to evolve as well.
The blue lightning began turning a sacred gold.
At the same time, Su Ze's Soul Power began breaking through to higher levels.
Level 26!
Level 27!
Level 28...
Su Ze's Soul Power rose as if he were riding a rocket.
While Su Ze entered the Martial Soul Evolution stage, Dugu Bo, as a Titled Douluo, absorbed the medicinal energy at a tremendous speed.
In less than half a day, he had completely absorbed all the medicinal energy in his body.
When he had absorbed it all, a hard, horn-like protrusion had already pushed through the skin on the head of the serpent phantom behind Dugu Bo.
This was the Jiaoshe Transformation Dragon.
Every Soul Beast of the serpent race had a trace of Dragon blood in its body. Some had a stronger bloodline, while in others it was so faint as to be negligible.
As the emperor among serpents, Dugu Bo's Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor had a much stronger serpent bloodline than other snakes. It was only one step away from becoming a python.
Suddenly,
Dugu Bo spat out a large mouthful of blood. The scalding blood hit the grass and hissed, steaming as it burned the blades!
Snakes were cold-blooded animals, and Soul Masters with serpent-type Martial Souls also had body temperatures slightly lower than normal.
Dugu Bo's blood came out hot, which meant he had officially crossed into the realm of dragons.
As the saying went, snake blood was cold, while dragon blood boiled.
Once he crossed that threshold, it was like a carp leaping over the Dragon Gate.
As he spat out the tainted blood, a golden horn had already sprouted from the head of the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor.
Jade turned to gold—his transformation into a dragon was complete!
Dugu Bo's eyes snapped open, and he threw his head back and roared.
"I've become a Flood Dragon. From today onward, this old man has a new life!"
Dugu Bo's eyes flew open. One emerald-green Flood Dragon after another appeared behind him, thrashing wildly.
Feeling the powerful Soul Power within him, Dugu Bo glanced at the enormous phantom behind him.
"Too bad I didn't advance further and grow dragon claws. I'm only a Flood Dragon!"
"But since I've evolved, I'll call myself the Golden Horn Jade Flood Dragon."
"I don't know how much stronger my body has become after this evolution. Even without using poison, this old man can now rank among the titled Douluo."
"I have that brat named Su Ze to thank for this."
A smile spread across Dugu Bo's face.
That brat named Su Ze hadn't lied to him. He really had helped him complete his Martial Soul Evolution.
And Dugu Bo wasn't the sort of man who went back on his word.
From now on, Su Ze would be the Dugu Family's benefactor.
He would help him with anything he needed.
As he was thinking this, Dugu Bo opened his eyes, intending to thank that brat Su Ze properly.
But the moment he looked toward Su Ze, he froze.
The sky was now so dark it looked as if the world were ending.
Thunder Clouds weighed heavily overhead, and a storm surged in. Golden-blue bolts of lightning kept crashing down from the sky.
At the center of the dark clouds and lightning, a bare-chested figure with golden-blue hair hovered in midair.
With golden-blue lightning all around him, he looked just like the Thunder God of legend.
"Is that Su Ze?"
"What's that kid doing?"
Dugu Bo's voice was filled with disbelief.
Before you continue