Dragon Might Shakes Dugu

Dugu Bo stared fixedly at the Spirit Rings beneath Luo Can's feet, his entire body frozen midair.

He had lived for most of his life and had met more than a handful of Title Douluo: Tang Xiao of the Clear Sky Sect, Sword and Bone Douluo of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, even several from Spirit Hall... yet he had never seen such an outrageous Spirit Ring configuration.

Four purple, four black, one red.

The age of every single Spirit Ring shattered the common sense of the Spirit Master world.

One had to know that even the favored prodigies cultivated with the full support of the Upper Three Sects usually only had a Spirit Ring of around four hundred years for their first ring. Yet this young man, who looked no older than twenty-seven or twenty-eight, had begun with a thousand-year Spirit Ring for his first!

This was completely unreasonable.

"Who... exactly are you?"

The cold ruthlessness had vanished from Dugu Bo's voice, replaced by deep wariness in his eyes.

He knew very well that anyone possessing such a Spirit Ring configuration could not possibly be some nobody. What was more, this man had passed through the Poison Array he had painstakingly arranged over several decades without suffering so much as a scratch. His strength was undoubtedly no weaker than Dugu Bo's own.

Luo Can raised his eyes toward Dugu Bo in the air, his tone calm.

"My name is Luo Can. I am merely an ordinary Spirit Master passing through. I already said that I came here only to take some herbs. I have no other intentions."

"Take some herbs?"

Dugu Bo's expression darkened.

"More than half the herbs here were painstakingly cultivated by me over more than ten years. You think you can simply take them because you say so?"

Though he said that, he did not attack immediately.

At the level of a Title Douluo, unless there was a life-and-death grudge, they would not easily fight to the death. Moreover, the strength Luo Can had displayed was unfathomable. If they could talk, Dugu Bo absolutely did not want to fight.

Luo Can saw through his thoughts and did not waste words.

With a flick of his wrist, the Golden Dragon Spear formed from Soul Power in his palm suddenly ignited with golden flames.

The flames appeared faint, flickering like candlelight, but the instant they emerged, the Jade Phosphorous Serpent poison within Dugu Bo's body reacted as if it had encountered its natural nemesis. It frantically shrank deep into his meridians and fell silent, while even the poisonous mist around him thinned by a third.

"Your poison is indeed formidable," Luo Can said indifferently. "Unfortunately, it is useless against me."

Before his words had faded, the golden flames in his palm abruptly expanded into a sea of golden fire, illuminating half the valley as brightly as day.

Dugu Bo's expression changed drastically.

Gritting his teeth, he sliced through the air with his right hand. A jade-green streak of poison shot forth, piercing straight toward Luo Can's face!

It was the Jade Phosphorous Poison Qi condensed from his own life-bound venom, containing the purest toxicity of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor. Even a Title Douluo of the same rank would have their meridians corroded by the poison and suffer a sharp drop in combat strength if touched by it.

But what happened next nearly made Dugu Bo's eyes pop out.

The instant the poisonous streak touched Luo Can's body, the golden flames around him lightly rolled over it.

Sizzle!

Like cold water splashed into hot oil, the jade-green poison did not even stir a ripple before evaporating completely within the golden flames, leaving behind not the slightest trace.

Not only that.

The Golden Dragon Moth Martial Soul behind Luo Can merely gave its wings a slight shake.

Boom—

A heavy dragon's might descended like a mountain. The phantom of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor behind Dugu Bo released a miserable hiss and involuntarily curled up. Even the circulation of Soul Power within Dugu Bo's body slowed by a third.

Dragon-type Martial Souls were naturally the absolute bane of snake-type beast Martial Souls.

Moreover, Luo Can's Golden Dragon Moth had fused the bloodlines of nine dragon-type Spirit Beasts. Its dragon's might was so pure and tyrannical that it exerted an almost crushing suppression over the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor.

"This... is impossible!"

Dugu Bo cried out, his voice filled with disbelief.

"Nothing is impossible."

Luo Can withdrew the golden flames from his palm, his tone still calm.

"Dugu Bo, I do not wish to fight you. I came today not only to collect herbs, but also to—help you with something."

"Help me?"

Dugu Bo was taken aback, then sneered.

"What could I possibly need your help with?"

"Whenever it rains, do you feel numb and itchy beneath both ribs? And does it flare up once at midnight and once at noon? Whenever it is deep in the night, do you feel needle-like pain in the crown of your head and the center of your chest?"

Luo Can looked at him, every word striking directly at the heart of the matter.

"And as you grow older, the pain becomes increasingly severe and lasts longer, so you can only hide here alone and use the Yin-Yang Dual Springs to forcibly suppress it. Am I right?"

Dugu Bo's expression changed instantly.

This was a secret he had hidden for a long time.

Aside from himself, not even his closest granddaughter, Dugu Yan, knew about it. How could this young man before him possibly know?

"And your granddaughter, Dugu Yan."

Luo Can did not stop and continued.

"She inherited your Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul, and snake venom likewise lies dormant in her body. She is still young, so her symptoms are not yet obvious. But once she breaks through to Spirit King, the poison will begin to backlash. At that time, she will suffer the same bone-eroding pain as you every month and may not even live past thirty."

The moment those words came out, Dugu Bo completely lost his composure.

He himself had suffered from poison all his life and had long resigned himself to it. But the person he cherished most was his granddaughter. His greatest wish in life was to completely cure the poison in Yan's body so that she would not repeat his mistakes.

For this, he had sought out famous physicians throughout the Heaven Dou Empire and tried countless methods. He had even tested medicine on himself without hesitation, yet he had always been helpless.

He stared fixedly at Luo Can. "You... how do you know all this? Do you have a way to cure it?"

"Yes."

Luo Can nodded, answering decisively.

"Not only can I remove the dormant snake venom in your granddaughter's body, I can also resolve the Martial Soul backlash that has accumulated in your body for decades."

Dugu Bo's breathing immediately became hurried.

He had lived for seventy-eight years. What storms had he not weathered? Yet at that moment, his withered hands could not help but tremble slightly.

For decades.

This poison had tortured him until he was neither human nor ghost, forcing him to endure bone-eroding agony every month. And now someone had suddenly claimed he could cure it—

How could he not be agitated?

He forcibly calmed himself and said in a low voice, "What do you want? There is no such thing as a free meal. You are helping my granddaughter and me cure our poison; it cannot be without compensation."

"What I want is very simple."

Luo Can raised a hand and pointed toward the rare herbs in the valley.

"I will take all the Immortal Herbs here, but I will not destroy the other medicinal herbs you have cultivated."

After a pause, he continued, "Also, you may not reveal any information about me to anyone, including Spirit Hall and the Heaven Dou Imperial Family."

"...That is all?"

Dugu Bo was stunned.

He had thought the other party would make an exorbitant demand for Spirit Bones, secret manuals, or perhaps even require him to swear a soul oath of loyalty. Yet there were only these two conditions?

They were merely a few herbs! As long as he and Yan could be cured, he would willingly give away this entire valley!

"You are not lying to me?" Dugu Bo still did not dare to fully believe him. "Those are your only conditions?"

"Those are all."

Luo Can smiled faintly.

"But let me make this clear first: if you dare play any tricks, I can cure your poison, and I can also make it flare up ten times worse."

"Do not worry! I keep my word!"

Dugu Bo immediately patted his chest in assurance. "As long as you can help Yan and me cure our poison, never mind a few herbs. From this day onward, you are my friend, Luo Can! Whoever becomes your enemy becomes the enemy of Poison Douluo!"

As he spoke, he raised a hand and dispersed the Soul Power around him, even retracting his Martial Soul.

Luo Can said nothing further. He merely extended his right hand and flicked a wisp of pale golden Soul Power through the air toward Dugu Bo.

The Soul Power entered Dugu Bo's body.

The old man shuddered. The faint stabbing pain in his meridians receded like a tide, while the violent toxins that normally required vast amounts of Soul Power to barely suppress were now firmly sealed away, no longer stirring in the slightest.

The effect was more than ten times stronger than his own suppression!

"This..."

Dugu Bo was both shocked and delighted. The way he looked at Luo Can changed completely, and not a trace of doubt remained in his heart.

"This is only a temporary suppression." Luo Can withdrew his hand. "I will collect the herbs first. In half a month, bring Dugu Yan to Luo's Herb Shop in Yaowang Town. I will cure the poison for both of you."

"Good! Good!"

Dugu Bo nodded repeatedly and hurriedly said,

"Take whatever you want! You can take everything if you wish!"

Luo Can did not stand on ceremony any longer.

He turned around, his gaze sweeping over this Treasure Basin.

Aromatic Silk Beauty, Star Anise Ice Grass, Infernal Delicate Apricot, Lovesick Heartbreak Red, Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone, Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum—these supreme Immortal Herbs that had allowed Tang San and the other six monsters in the original story to soar all the way to godhood would now become his.

Under the moonlight, every Immortal Herb emitted a lustrous glow, their medicinal fragrance refreshing the heart and mind.

The corners of Luo Can's mouth could not help but curve into a faint smile.

Tang San, from this day onward, your fortuitous opportunities would bear the surname Luo.