Ghostly Flower Picking

"Heh. I've been to Spirit Hall's library myself, and there wasn't a solution to the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison in there..."

Dugu Bo was indirectly admitting it. Now that Su Wen had seen through him, what would denying it accomplish?

He still had his doubts, too.

Cure it?

If it could be cured, the Dugu Clan wouldn't have been reduced to just him and Dugu Yan.

Besides, the other party was only a little kid.

"No, no, no..."

Su Wen shook his head. "Spirit Hall has a history of ten thousand years, and its collection of books is vast. If you couldn't find it, that only means your status wasn't high enough to access the more valuable books."

Dugu Bo's old face reddened. "You really can cure it?"

When Su Wen nodded, a glimmer of hope appeared in Dugu Bo's eyes, though he still held onto his doubts and a trace of wariness. "I can trust you this once. As long as you help me, you can pick whatever you want from my Medicine Garden."

"No... I'm taking the things in your Medicine Garden, whether you like it or not. You can try to stop me, if you're capable. If you want me to help you with the poison, you only need to do three things for me, then swear you'll never oppose Spirit Hall for the rest of your life."

Su Wen knew Dugu Bo disliked being bound. Otherwise, he would have joined Spirit Hall long ago. He would make friends with him first, and the old man would naturally come around later.

Dugu Bo fell silent for a moment, then swore on his Martial Soul that he would never oppose Spirit Hall for the rest of his life...

A smile appeared on Su Wen's face. "I'll pick the herbs first. Come find me in Spirit City in half a month... Don't worry, Chrysanthemum Douluo won't make things difficult for you. As the Pope's disciple, I'm sure Elder Ju will show me some consideration."

"You're the Pope's disciple?"

Dugu Bo was shocked. He had never imagined that the kid before him was the Pope's disciple.

"Fine. In that case, I'll wait for you for half a month."

Seeing this, Su Wen didn't waste any more time.

"Aunt Ye, let's take all those flowers. Keep the seeds wherever we can."

Ye Yuan'er nodded lightly, took out her harvesting tools, and got to work as Su Wen had instructed.

Though she was busy, her wariness toward Dugu Bo hadn't lessened.

Dugu Bo watched in a daze as they stripped all the flowers and plants from around the spring.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that they hadn't touched the poisons he had planted.

"Aunt Ye, we can't take these two Immortal Herbs with us. I'm going to consume them here, then jump into the spring and temper my body."

Su Wen pointed to the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot near the spring.

Both of these Immortal Herbs were highly poisonous if taken on their own.

Only by consuming them together could one gain their medicinal effects.

Immunity to all poisons and Ice and Fire Immunity.

And after undergoing Ice and Fire Body Tempering, one's physique would be greatly strengthened.

Chapter 36: Ghostly Flower Picking

Su Wen wanted a good Spirit Ring for his Second Soul Ring.

These two Immortal Herbs were indispensable.

The only regret was that Xiao Sanzi hadn't gained any Soul Power after consuming them in the original story.

"Kid, I should warn you first: not even a Titled Douluo would dare stay long beside this spring, let alone jump in."

Seeing him about to leap into the spring, Dugu Bo couldn't help warning him.

"Xiao Wen!"

Ye Yuan'er furrowed her brows. As a Titled Douluo, she could naturally sense how dangerous the spring was.

Even she wasn't confident she could go in, let alone Xiao Wen, a mere Soul Master.

"Aunt Ye, don't worry. These two Immortal Herbs grew from the same source as the spring, and they hold both scorching heat and bitter cold. After eating them, I could drink my fill in the spring without any trouble."

Seeing how seriously Su Wen spoke, Ye Yuan'er recalled that she had experienced the abilities of Immortal Herbs herself.

She nodded lightly and ultimately decided to trust Xiao Wen.

"Hongdou!"

A red Oil-paper Umbrella appeared out of thin air, and a cool breeze immediately swept through the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

Dugu Bo's eyes shifted as he stared at the umbrella in wonder.

Its surface was covered in ancient, indecipherable incantations, which shimmered with a strange, faint light. Nine long streamers hung around it, and eight of them bore talismans.

Dugu Bo couldn't see through it, but he could feel that it was strange in every way.

Under his slightly astonished gaze, a red mist drifted out of the umbrella.

As the Ghost Bride appeared,

the Yin energy around them grew denser.

Dugu Bo studied the Ghost Bride's unusual attire. It was both terrifying and festive, a style of clothing never before seen on Douluo Continent.

He asked in surprise, "Is that your Martial Soul?"

Su Wen didn't answer. He took metal and jade tools from his Soul Tool, handed the metal tool to Hongdou, and had her harvest the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass.

Holding the jade tool, Su Wen hurried toward the Infernal Delicate Apricot. Even before he got close, he felt a wave of intense heat.

Braving the heat, he circulated his Soul Power and cut the Infernal Delicate Apricot as quickly as he could.

Just then, Hongdou floated over with the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass in her hands. She looked completely at ease, and the bitter-cold aura didn't seem to have harmed her at all.

Su Wen placed the two Immortal Herbs together, and their scorching and freezing auras immediately canceled each other out.

Without hesitation, he stuffed them both into his mouth.

The moment they entered his mouth, they turned into two streams of power that slid down his throat.

Su Wen quickly removed his Soul Tool and clothes.

In that brief moment, his Blood Qi surged, and discomfort and pain began to set in.

A thin layer of frost appeared on his skin, then in the space of a breath he became burning hot. Su Wen experienced the extremes of ice and fire, and the breath he exhaled alternated between hot and cold.

He knew the herbs' effects had begun. Under Ye Yuan'er's worried gaze, he plunged headfirst into the spring.

Hongdou also turned into a wisp of red mist, drifted into the spring, and merged with the Oil-paper Umbrella.

As soon as Su Wen submerged himself, he felt the medicinal power erupt in full.

Two streams of power battered his meridians, making him feel as if his body were being torn apart. His bones, too, gave off faint cracking sounds.

Su Wen groaned in pain, but beneath the agony was immense joy. Every sensation of his body being torn apart meant that Ice and Fire Body Tempering was progressing rapidly.

As time passed, Ye Yuan'er waited by the spring for several hours.

The spring remained calm, and the anxiety and worry on her face grew more intense.

"That kid... Could he be dead?"

Dugu Bo muttered to himself.

He could already tell that Lingyuan Douluo cared about the kid.

If he really died,

it would be one thing for Lingyuan Douluo to destroy this place, but if she killed him in a fit of rage, that would be a much bigger problem.

Even if he escaped today, he would make a mortal enemy of Spirit Hall.

"Xiao Wen."

Just as Ye Yuan'er was about to lose patience, ripples appeared across the spring's previously still surface.

Su Wen's head emerged above the water. When he leaped out of the spring,

his face was brimming with joy.

He could feel that his body had changed and his physique had grown much stronger. Most importantly, he had gained immunity to all poisons and Ice and Fire Immunity. Ah Yin, Ah Rou, and even Hongdou had gained the same benefits as he had.

Su Wen had already been unafraid of the sacred light attribute.

If he could bring Ice and Fire Immunity to its fullest potential,

Su Wen felt that from now on, he could keep both hands in his pockets.

"Aunt Ye..."

Su Wen was still feeling out the changes in his body when a pair of arms wrapped around him and pulled him into an embrace. They held him so tightly that they even trembled slightly.

"Aunt Ye, you're squeezing too tight."

"Hmph!"

"Hehe, I feel stronger. I could plow twenty mu of land in one go without getting tired."

Pressed against her ample chest, Su Wen breathed in her fragrance and let out a contented sigh.

Then he realized something was off. Under Ye Yuan'er's burning gaze, his cheeks reddened, and he wriggled free of her embrace before picking up his clothes from the ground.

"Xiao Wen's gotten sturdier, and bigger, too."

Seeing him blush, Ye Yuan'er let out a tinkling laugh, her own relief evident.

Su Wen felt like she was praising him, but something about it seemed odd.

"Ah, what a pity. I'd wanted to go down and take a look at the Two Great Dragon Kings, but I couldn't get all the way in."

Su Wen put his clothes back on and looked at the spring in disappointment.

The passage was right there, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't reach the bottom.

He was still too weak.

"I'll come back when I'm a Spirit King."

Thinking this, he let Ye Yuan'er check him over from head to toe. Only when she had fully relaxed did he turn to Dugu Bo. "Senior Dugu, I hope you won't tell anyone about what happened today."

"Of course. I'm not the sort to blab!"