Contingency Plan

During this time, Lu Fan asked, "Since you two were able to join Heaven Dou Royal Academy, you must be quite capable. I still don't know what your Martial Souls are."

There was a hint of curiosity in his tone.

Seeing how familiar Lu Fan was with Qin Ming, the two women did not conceal anything. Besides, they had heard Lu Fan's Martial Soul earlier. Introducing themselves in return was a matter of courtesy.

"My Martial Soul is the Jade Phosphor Snake."

Dugu Yan stopped walking and turned to look at Lu Fan, her eyes carrying a trace of pride.

The quality of her Jade Phosphor Snake Martial Soul was not low. Among those her age, few could rival her.

"My Martial Soul is the Nine-Star Begonia."

Ye Lingling also stopped, a gentle smile appearing on her face.

Her Nine-Star Begonia was the greatest healing Martial Soul in the world, truly unparalleled. Although it had certain flaws, that did not diminish its power.

Hearing this, Lu Fan pretended to look at the two women in surprise, a trace of shock appearing on his face. "Both of these Martial Souls are extraordinary. I know about the Nine-Star Begonia—it's the greatest healing Martial Soul in the world. And the Jade Phosphor Snake, that is the Martial Soul of a Titled Douluo."

Hearing Lu Fan's praise, both women showed some pride on their faces.

Dugu Yan lifted her chin slightly, her gaze carrying a trace of arrogance. Clearly, she was extremely satisfied with her Martial Soul.

However, he wondered what her reaction would be when she learned that there was a problem with her Martial Soul.

When both her parents had been killed by the very Martial Soul she was so proud of.

The group did not discuss such matters in depth, merely touching upon them briefly. After all, this was a Soul Master's personal privacy.

Lu Fan was not in a hurry either. He knew haste made waste. The most important thing now was to gain the two women's initial trust, so that he would have a better opportunity to approach Dugu Bo.

After returning to his room, Lu Fan still felt that it was somewhat unreal. He had not expected to encounter these people merely by going out this time.

He sat by the bed, excitement in his eyes. "What a coincidence. I was just worrying about how to meet Dugu Bo. Now that I know Dugu Yan, at least I have a way in."

He had already begun calculating how to use Dugu Yan to get close to Dugu Bo and obtain the Immortal Herbs he wanted.

Lu Fan lay on the bed, constantly pondering his next plan.

"Falling in love over time would certainly be wonderful, but unfortunately, I can only be away for a month at most, and that includes the time needed to return."

Lu Fan shook his head and stopped thinking about it.

Most of the time,

rather than planning everything out,

Lu Fan preferred to take things one step at a time.

After all, if he thought too much,

the only one who would become anxious was himself.

That night,

seeing that Lu Fan had been thinking the entire time,

neither cultivating nor sleeping,

one of the guards tactfully reminded him, "Young Master Lu Fan, that girl is likely Poison Douluo's granddaughter. Poison Douluo and Elder Yue Guan do not get along personally..."

Lu Fan nodded. "I know. You don't need to concern yourselves with it. I have my own plans."

He also had a means of keeping Dugu Bo in check.

He had long since prepared a contingency plan.

Everyone in Spirit Hall who was familiar with him knew that he would be away for a month at most.

If he had not returned after a month,

perhaps he had simply delayed for a few days because he was having too much fun.

But if that delay went on for too long,

to the point that even the two guards beside Lu Fan disappeared without a trace along with him,

then the conclusion would be obvious.

Lu Fan was not stupid. Of course, he knew about the grudge between Yue Guan and Dugu Bo.

But he also knew what Dugu Bo's weakness was.

It was his last remaining family member, Dugu Yan.

And the contingency he had left behind was that letter.

Before leaving, Lu Fan had handed the letter to the maid who had always taken care of him.

"Take this letter. Return it to me after I come back in a month."

"Yes, sir."

And his letter contained only three words:

[Dugu Bo]

Once he failed to return after a month,

Yue Guan would surely question those who had served Lu Fan.

And that maid should bring out the letter.

Well, Lu Fan could not actually guarantee that the maid would not forget about it.

So, for the sake of his own safety,

he had written more than one letter.

And he had not handed them to just one person.

The more people he gave them to,

the more likely it was that once one person mentioned the letter,

it would trigger a chain reaction.

At that time, the others would likewise produce their letters.

When Yue Guan saw that several letters all bore Dugu Bo's name,

no matter how foolish he was, he would know the matter was related to Dugu Bo.

He might not be able to kill Dugu Bo,

but killing Dugu Yan would not be a problem.

After all, strictly speaking,

if things truly reached that point, Dugu Bo would have been the one to break the rules first.

Although doing this made Lu Fan seem rather cruel,

there was no other choice.

When his own life was at stake,

Lu Fan could not afford to be careless.

The purpose of those letters was not merely to have Yue Guan avenge him if something happened to him.

They were also a trump card. If Dugu Bo truly hated Yue Guan enough to directly kill him, they could still save his life.

As for whether he would encounter other dangers along the way,

Lu Fan felt that he probably would not.

The timing he had chosen was not bad.

Tang San was still in Nuoding City.

And he would not be going anywhere near Nuoding City, so there was no reason for him to encounter Tang Hao.

As long as no Titled Douluo appeared,

he had two Soul Saints by his side,

one from the assault category and one from the agility category.

Even if a Soul Douluo made a move, there was no guarantee they could kill him.

In a sense, everything was ready.

All that remained was to leave it to fate.

The next day,

when they met again, the Imperial Dou Team had four more people.

Qin Ming enthusiastically introduced them to Lu Fan.

"These are the Shi Mo brothers, our Imperial Dou Team's defense-type Soul Masters. This is Yu Feng, and this is Osler. They are both agility-type Soul Grandmasters of our Imperial Dou Team."

Lu Fan merely nodded at these people.

However, the Shi Mo brothers

were definitely talents worth cultivating.

The brothers had identical Martial Souls and were blood brothers.

If they were properly nurtured, forming a Martial Soul Fusion Skill would not be difficult.

Qin Ming announced to everyone, "Next, we will head to Suotuo City together. Lu Fan is my junior, and he will be traveling with us."

No one had any objections upon hearing that.

They would give Qin Ming that much face.

The group rented four carriages.

Lu Fan and his guards took one carriage.

Qin Ming, Yu Tianheng, and Yu Feng took another.

Shi Mo, Shi Mo, and Osler took one together.

The two girls, Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan, shared a carriage.

Qin Ming paid for the carriages.

"Yesterday, you gave up your room. Today, as your senior, I naturally have to show some appreciation. Don't worry, the academy will reimburse all our expenses along the way. I'm only paying in advance for now."

Seeing this, Lu Fan said nothing more.

He accepted it with peace of mind.

With two Soul Saints and one Soul Emperor keeping watch,

and with the group traveling entirely along official roads,

they did not encounter anyone foolish enough to cause trouble.

However, the journey was long.

And since the group was in no rush, they traveled slowly.

It took them a full four days to finally reach Suotuo City.

During those four days,

in their spare time, the outstanding students of Heaven Dou Royal Academy had challenged Lu Fan.

Although Lu Fan held back,

even Yu Tianheng could only concede defeat.