Douluo: The Venom System is Awesome

Xie Yue curled the corners of his lips faintly: "You can try."

The air between the two seemed to solidify; despite being mere children, the atmosphere was thick with the scent of gunpowder.

Just then, Hu Liena's cheerful laughter drifted over from the distance.

Yan turned his head instinctively to look, only to see her walking side-by-side with Mu Junyu, holding an exquisite dessert box in her hands.

Hu Liena's eyes curved into crescents as she smiled, looking up while saying something to Mu Junyu, who tilted his head slightly, a doting smile playing on his lips.

Yan's heart felt as if it had been viciously pinched, his fists clenching until they creaked.

Xie Yue glanced at him, his tone calm: "Understand now?"

Yan took a deep breath, suddenly turned, and strode away, his retreating figure appearing somewhat disheveled.

Xie Yue watched his back, shook his head, and muttered to himself.

"It's better to face reality sooner."

He turned and walked toward his sister, a gentle smile returning to his face.

"Nana, sneaking sweets again? Be careful not to get fat."

Hu Liena immediately shielded the box in her hands, pouting: "I am not! This is a reward from Senior Brother!"

Mu Junyu chuckled softly and ruffled her hair: "Mm, a reward for her practicing her soul skills very diligently today."

Xie Yue watched their intimate interaction, a flash of complexity crossing his eyes, but he quickly returned to a state of calm.

He reached out and flicked his sister's forehead: "Eat less, we still have training tonight."

Hu Liena stuck out her tongue: "I know!"

Meanwhile, at a distant corner, Yan leaned against the wall, slamming his fist heavily into the masonry, his eyes filled with unwillingness and jealousy.

"Why! In what way am I inferior to him! It's infuriating!"

The dim underground training ground was permeated with a faint scent of blood, the surrounding walls carved with ancient patterns that emitted a ghostly blue glow.

Mu Junyu stood in the center of the arena, a faint, elusive smile on his lips, his burning gaze fixed on the figure bound by iron chains opposite him.

"It is the Pope's will that you shall not be told the opponent's information this time, Holy Son."

The guard to the side bowed respectfully, his voice low. "Kill him, and the training ends."

The chains snapped open, and the figure slowly raised his head, revealing a pair of scarlet eyes.

He was a lean man, with two yellow soul rings rotating slowly beneath his feet.

"Death row inmate Qin Yi, I give you one chance: defeat today's opponent, and you shall receive a pardon!"

The promise of that majestic female voice echoed in Qin Yi's mind.

"Martial Soul, possess!"

Qin Yi let out a low roar, his physique suddenly expanding, leopard-like markings appearing on his skin as his hands transformed into sharp claws.

Mu Junyu narrowed his eyes.

"Fire Leopard Martial Soul, two-ring Soul Grand Master."

Before the words had even faded, Qin Yi charged like an arrow released from a bow, his speed so great that he left a fiery red afterimage in the air.

"First Soul Skill: Flame Assault!"

Blazing flames enveloped his sharp claws, aiming directly for Mu Junyu's throat.

At the critical moment, Mu Junyu shifted slightly to the side; the claws grazed his neck, leaving a thin mark.

"Not bad speed." Mu Junyu touched the wound on his neck, a flash of excitement in his eyes.

"But it's useless."

The Heart-Eroding Venom Martial Soul granted its possessor the strange property of being able to turn into liquid at any moment.

The damage dealt to Mu Junyu by that previous attack was zero. Seeing his strike miss, Qin Yi immediately changed tactics, his second soul ring lighting up. "Second Soul Skill: Fire Claw Barrage!"

His claws turned into a sky full of fire shadows, shrouding Mu Junyu's entire body.

Facing this torrential assault, Mu Junyu suddenly smiled.

"Second Soul Skill: Shadow Evasion Strike."

Just as the fire claws were about to make contact, Mu Junyu's figure suddenly sank, melting into the shadows on the ground as if he were liquid.

"What?!" Qin Yi stopped his assault in shock, looking around vigilantly.

The training ground fell into a deathly silence.

Suddenly, a black shadow erupted from the shadow beneath Qin Yi's feet!

Mu Junyu appeared like a ghost, and countless dark spikes launched a fierce attack toward Qin Yi.

Qin Yi, however, managed to dodge the strike by a hair's breadth, relying entirely on his physical instincts at the absolute limit of distance! This left Mu Junyu in awe!

But Mu Junyu's coordinated barrage was far from over.

"First Soul Skill: Neurotoxin."

Eerie purple liquid suddenly seeped from his martial soul, shooting along the spikes toward Qin Yi's arm.

Qin Yi felt a wave of numbness instantly spread throughout his entire body.

"You... used poison..."

Qin Yi staggered backward, discovering that his movements were becoming increasingly sluggish.

Mu Junyu flicked his short blade with composure.

"With every move you make, you must consider all the actions that follow. Now, it is time to end this."

Qin Yi let out a roar of frustration, wanting to activate his soul skill once more, only to find his soul power circulation incredibly sluggish.

Mu Junyu's figure suddenly blurred, and in the next second, a cold blade edge was pressed against his throat.

Chapter 17: Almost Flipped the Script...

Just as Mu Junyu's venom was about to pierce into Qin Yi's throat...

"Go to hell!"

Qin Yi suddenly let out a violent shout, pulling a gleaming short blade from his robes with his left hand. Despite being completely blinded, he relied on pure instinct to stab directly at Mu Junyu's right eye!

The strike came too suddenly, and the distance was mere inches.

Mu Junyu's pupils constricted, and he instinctively tilted his head to dodge.

"Sshhh—"

The sharp blade grazed the corner of his eye, drawing a line of blood.

Mu Junyu felt a searing pain in his right eye, and his vision immediately blurred.

"Interesting." He wiped the blood from the corner of his eye, his voice surprisingly calm.

"A desperate counterattack before death—you are much stronger than those previous pieces of trash!"

Qin Yi panted heavily; the toxin was making his movements increasingly sluggish, but his eyes flickered with a frenzied light.

"As long as I can kill you... I can regain my freedom!"

As he spoke, he ignored the erosion of the toxin and forcibly channeled his soul power, his claws igniting with raging flames once again.

"Second Soul Skill: Fire Claw Barrage!"

A sky full of fire shadows attacked once more, but this time, Mu Junyu did not choose to dodge.

He stood his ground, a cold sneer curling his lips.

"Do you think... the same trick will work on me?"

Just as the fire claws were about to make contact, Mu Junyu's figure suddenly transformed into a pool of purple-black liquid, perfectly merging into the shadows on the ground.

"Again! I refuse to accept this! Urgh..."

Qin Yi's attack missed entirely, and he stumbled, nearly falling over.

In the next second, countless black spikes shot out from all directions!

"Pfft, pfft, pfft—"

The sound of spikes piercing flesh rang out in succession.

Qin Yi let out a shrill scream as a dozen bloody holes appeared on his body in an instant.

Mu Junyu's figure slowly emerged from the shadows.

The wound on his right eye was still bleeding, but it did not affect his cold gaze in the slightest.

"It's over."

He raised his hand and flicked it, and a stream of purple-black venom shot out like an arrow, precisely piercing through Qin Yi's heart.

"Urgh..."

Qin Yi's eyes widened, and he slowly collapsed to his knees.

In the final moments of his life, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something.

Mu Junyu stepped forward slowly and leaned down to listen.

"I... refuse... to accept..."

Before the words could finish, his eyes dimmed completely.

Mu Junyu frowned slightly, standing up while lost in thought.

He looked up toward the shadows high above the training ground, his voice not loud, but exceptionally clear.

"Teacher, will I be punished..."

On the high platform, the figure of Bibi Dong slowly emerged.

Her silhouette manifested gradually upon the dais, her purple robes shimmering with a cold, ghostly luster in the dim light.

She gazed down at Mu Junyu from her vantage point, a flicker of something imperceptible passing through her violet eyes.

I was almost killed by a dying man.

Her voice was as cold as ice, yet it seemed to carry a hint of something else.

"Is this what I have taught you?"

Mu Junyu knelt on one knee, the blood on his right eye already congealed, the wound on his face appearing exceptionally jarring.

The restorative effects of the Heart-Eroding Venom were incredibly potent; now that it had coagulated, he feared that within a day, not even a scar would remain.

"This student knows his mistake."

"You know your mistake?"

Bibi Dong let out a cold laugh, her fingertips tapping lightly against her scepter.

"Had I not cleared the lethal poison from that dagger beforehand, you would be a corpse by now."

Mu Junyu jerked his head up, a flash of shock crossing his eyes.

Only then did he understand why the wound merely throbbed with a dull ache instead of triggering a toxic reaction.

Even if the Heart-Eroding Venom provided a strong resistance to poisons, it could not completely ignore them.

It seems I must make a move against Dugu Bo sooner... the Immortal Herbs... they are imperative!

"Teacher, I..."

"Shut up." Bibi Dong cut him off, turning to walk into the shadows.

"Come to my bedchamber tonight to receive your punishment."