Flame Splitting Devouring Wave Ruler!

"Tianjiao? What's wrong? Why are you suddenly spacing out?"

Dugu Yan's voice pulled Yu Tianjiao's focus back from the joy of claiming his mission rewards.

Yu Tianjiao steadied himself, a brilliant smile spreading across his face.

"It's nothing, I just suddenly figured out the final piece of my self-created soul skill."

A self-created soul skill?

Hearing this, both Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling couldn't help but let out soft gasps of surprise.

One had to know that on the Douluo Continent, anyone capable of creating their own soul skill was an absolute genius among geniuses!

Who would have thought that not only had Yu Tianjiao not fallen into decadence over these years, but he had actually been tinkering with a self-created soul skill?

"Mm, though I've only conceptualized it so far; I haven't mastered it yet."

Yu Tianjiao said with a smile.

The so-called self-created soul skill was, naturally, the Flame Splitting Devouring Wave Ruler rewarded by the system.

Regardless, since the system rewarded it, it was his own creation.

"Tianjiao, you're truly amazing!"

Ye Lingling praised him with a beaming smile.

"A self-created soul skill, eh? Let me see it sometime, will you?"

Dugu Yan also asked, her face full of anticipation.

"No problem!"

At this, Yu Tianjiao gave Dugu Yan a thumbs-up.

"Where are we going next?"

Seeing Yu Tianjiao agree, Dugu Yan nodded in satisfaction and immediately took the initiative to ask.

"Wherever you two want to go, I'll accompany you."

Yu Tianjiao said with a gentle smile.

Although Yu Tianjiao really wanted to carefully flip through the Seven-Colored Poison Manual right now to see if he could find a way to resolve the issue where Poison Douluo Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan's martial souls caused them to be poisoned themselves, now was certainly not the time.

Therefore, he had to forcibly suppress the urge to study it immediately, patiently accompanying his two girlfriends for a stroll around the academy.

Listening to Yu Tianjiao's gentle and doting words, both Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan felt as if their hearts had been filled with honey.

"Let's go to the back mountain!" Dugu Yan spoke first, her eyes sparkling. "It's quiet there, and the scenery is nice. It'll be the perfect place for you to practice your soul skill, and we can keep you company."

How could Ye Lingling not know that Dugu Yan was actually looking for a place where the three of them could be alone? She tightened her grip on Yu Tianjiao's arm and followed up with a gentle smile.

"Yanzi is right, I'm also very much looking forward to your self-created soul skill!"

Yu Tianjiao naturally had no objections to this; his mind was currently half on the two beauties and half still on the three heavy scrolls sitting in his system space.

"Alright, let's go to the back mountain."

Yu Tianjiao nodded in agreement, and the three of them headed toward the most scenic area of the academy's back mountain.

Along the way, they naturally garnered plenty of envious, jealous, or shocked gazes, along with all sorts of whispers.

"Look, look! Senior Yu is really together with Senior Dugu and Senior Ye!"

"My god, one on each arm—a winner in life!"

"The way Senior Dugu is looking at him, tsk tsk, she looks like she wants to glue herself to Senior Yu..."

"Senior Ye is so gentle, though it's a pity she always wears a veil; I'm afraid only Senior Yu Tianjiao gets to see her true face..."

"Wuwuwu, my goddesses! Yu Tianjiao, the hatred of stealing one's wife is irreconcilable!"

"Brother, calm down, you can't beat him..."

"Sigh, he truly lives up to being at the top of our Heaven Dou Royal Academy's 'This Scoundrel Must Be Executed List'; Senior Tianjiao is just too authoritative."

"Funny, if I remember correctly, this list wasn't originally called that. Rumor has it that Senior Tianjiao said it would be better with this name, and the senior managing the list changed it overnight."

"Senior is really killing them and then attacking their hearts, too!"

"Ah!!!"

Listening to these increasingly outrageous discussions, Yu Tianjiao remained calm, even feeling a bit amused.

Dugu Yan, however, blushed slightly upon hearing others say she "looked like she wanted to glue herself to Yu Tianjiao." She couldn't help but secretly glare at the gossiping students, only to be met with a wave of good-natured laughter.

Ye Lingling maintained her serene smile throughout, though she held onto Yu Tianjiao's arm even more affectionately; only the tips of her reddened ears betrayed that her heart was not as calm as she appeared.

Arriving at a grassy, open-view hillside on the back mountain, the breeze brushed against their faces, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees, which was truly refreshing.

Dugu Yan pulled Yu Tianjiao down to sit on the grass, and Ye Lingling naturally nestled against his other side.

"Tianjiao, what exactly is the self-created soul skill you mentioned?" Dugu Yan couldn't suppress her curiosity, blinking her large eyes as she pressed him for an answer. "Is it an offensive one, or a defensive one?"

Ye Lingling also cast a curious gaze his way.

Looking at the expectant eyes of the two women, Yu Tianjiao smiled and said:

"This self-created soul skill is a purely offensive technique. To suit my martial soul and physical constitution, it requires a heavy, massive ruler as a weapon to unleash its full power."

The two girls exchanged strange looks upon hearing this.

Using a massive ruler as a weapon?

That was quite uncommon on the Douluo Continent.

Generally speaking, on the Douluo Continent, apart from tool soul masters who used their own martial souls as weapons, other soul masters rarely utilized external armaments.

This was because once soul power reached a certain level, most weapons simply could not withstand the soul skill attacks of high-ranking soul masters.

Soul masters with beast martial souls, for instance, were their own sharpest weapons; they had no need for armaments forged from common iron.

However, Yu Tianjiao was only at level fourteen, so using a weapon to spar at his current level was not particularly unusual.

Since others were present, Yu Tianjiao certainly could not pull out a scroll to study it, so he simply accessed the method for using the Flame Splitting Devouring Wave Ruler within the system space.

Yet, anything produced by the system was guaranteed to be of the highest quality.

Yu Tianjiao merely tapped the "Use" button on the system interface, and all information regarding the Flame Splitting Devouring Wave Ruler flooded his mind, as if this soul skill were something he had truly researched and perfected after years of arduous cultivation.

The two girls beside him remained oblivious, assuming that Yu Tianjiao's lowered eyelids meant he was deep in thought.

About two minutes later, Yu Tianjiao organized the information in his mind and walked toward a massive boulder at the back of the mountain.

"I'm going to give it a try. You two should stand back a bit and be careful."

Yu Tianjiao warned his two girlfriends, then held his right forearm horizontally in front of him. As he activated his martial soul possession to boost his stats, his soul power began to compress within his body, gathering toward his right hand and forearm.

The purple soul power was compressed to its limit, turning a dark, bruised violet. Using his arm as a substitute for a weapon, Yu Tianjiao slashed fiercely at the boulder.

"Flame Splitting Devouring Wave Ruler!"

With a sharp shout, a purple blade of light erupted from his arm, slashing directly toward the boulder!

The blade arrived in an instant, striking the rock.

BOOM!

The next moment, accompanied by a thunderous explosion, the boulder shattered instantly. An invisible shockwave surged outward, sweeping past Yu Tianjiao's body and spreading toward Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling.

The two girls hurriedly channeled their soul power to resist the shockwave, their eyes fixed unblinkingly on Yu Tianjiao, whose hair was dancing in the wind and whose robes were snapping violently from the blast.

So handsome!

This thought surfaced in both their minds simultaneously.

At this moment, Yu Tianjiao stood with his right arm pointing diagonally toward the ground, his robes fluttering and his hair flying. That heroic, spirited appearance, combined with his god-like, handsome features, made him a walking arsonist of young girls' hearts!

"Sigh, it's a pity my soul power is only at level fourteen. If I had level forty soul power, I'd dare to go and fight Teacher Qin right now!"

Yu Tianjiao shook his arm, feeling his soul power nearly drained, and sighed with some helplessness.

He was still too weak right now!

"That was already very impressive!" Dugu Yan praised him sincerely. "Tianjiao, you were silent for three years—was it because you were working on this move? The power is quite good; an ordinary two-ring Soul Grand Master going all out would likely only reach the level of this single strike of yours. Your talent is truly enviable!"

"Indeed," Ye Lingling added softly. "This self-created soul skill is already very strong. I believe that once you recover to your former strength, unleashing this skill will surely stun everyone!"

The praise and comfort from his two girlfriends eased the tension in Yu Tianjiao's heart caused by his lack of strength.

He smiled, though his gaze involuntarily drifted toward Dugu Yan.

Looking at her seemingly healthy and vibrant appearance, then thinking of the Seven-Colored Poison Manual, his heart sank slightly.

Dugu Yan's deep purple short hair and green eyes were not natural traits; they were the result of the virulent poison inherited from the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor, the martial soul of Poison Douluo.

Dugu Yan was still young, and she hadn't been cultivating for long, so the poison from her Jade Phosphorous Serpent martial soul had not yet deeply eroded her, which was why she showed no abnormalities.

However, during his previous encounters with Dugu Bo, Yu Tianjiao had noticed that on rainy days, the old man would press his hands against his ribs with unnatural discomfort, and a faint black aura would linger between his brows.

His lips were also not the pale red of a normal person, but a dark, bruised purple.

That old man likely wouldn't last many more years...

Since the system was so generous, he might as well see if he could use the Seven-Colored Poison Manual to solve the problem of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's toxic backlash!

This was not just to heal Dugu Yan and Dugu Bo, but also to ensure he could reap a massive fortune from Dugu Bo's Yin-Yang Well.

Thinking of this, Yu Tianjiao stood where he was, closed his eyes, and once again selected the Seven-Colored Poison Manual on the system panel. The next moment, a vast ocean of toxicological knowledge surged into his mind like a flood.

Information regarding the identification of poisons, refining, antidotes, and even the concepts of fighting poison with poison, the integration of poison with soul power, and the mysterious relationship between toxins and martial souls were instantly branded into the depths of his consciousness.

He felt as if he had been immersed in this field for decades, his understanding of "poison" reaching an unprecedented height.

Wait, this isn't right.

Yu Tianjiao realized.

Could the original Seven-Colored Poison Manual contain this much?

It seemed that the rewards provided by the system were automatically adapted specifically for the Douluo Continent.

That was good news.

When he opened his eyes again, his gaze subconsciously fell upon Dugu Yan, who was snuggled against his side.

This time, he saw more than just the girl's charm and vitality.

The knowledge bestowed upon him by the Seven-Colored Poison Manual allowed him to keenly capture the subtle, imperceptible sense of withered dryness at the edges of Dugu Yan's deep purple hair, and the faint, murky shadow deep within her emerald eyes that was almost perfectly blended with the green of her vitality.

Within her breath, there seemed to be a trace of an extremely faint, fishy sweetness that ordinary people could not perceive; it was a sign that the Jade Phosphorous Serpent poison was slowly accumulating in her body, intertwining with her life force.

Although it was currently extremely mild and far from reaching the point of affecting her body, it was like a buried seed that would eventually take root and sprout as her soul power increased and she aged, eroding her vitality.

He almost immediately understood the reason behind it.

The backlash of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul's poison was not simple poisoning, but an imbalance and erosion produced during the symbiosis between the origin of the Martial Soul and the origin of life.

The black aura between Dugu Bo's brows, the way he pressed his ribs, and his purple-black lips were exactly the late-stage manifestations of the poison penetrating deep into the bone marrow and eroding the internal organs.

"Tianjiao?"

Seeing him gazing at her with profound eyes—a look different from the excitement he showed when using soul skills or the calmness he displayed while thinking, carrying a weight and pity she could not understand—Dugu Yan called out softly, a trace of confusion appearing on her pretty face.

"What's wrong? Are you exhausted from using your soul skill just now?"

She reached out with concern, wanting to touch his forehead.

Ye Lingling also noticed the change in Yu Tianjiao's expression and asked softly:

"Is your soul power consumption too high? My Nine Heart Begonia can help you recover some."

Yu Tianjiao snapped back to reality instantly; he knew how to handle Dugu Yan's problem, so there was no need to hide anything.

"Yanzi, what has your grandfather been doing lately?"

Yu Tianjiao asked with a smile.

"My grandfather?" Dugu Yan thought for a moment after hearing this and said, "He shouldn't be doing much. I expect he's back in the Sunset Forest fussing over his flowers and plants again. I was just planning to go back and see him in a couple of days. Are you looking for him, Tianjiao?"

Ye Lingling, standing to the side, also looked at Yu Tianjiao with curiosity.

"I previously obtained the poison technique inheritance of a Title Douluo from the ancient era who once suppressed an entire age with his own strength. After studying it for these past few years, I have gained some small insights. I suspect that your grandfather's Martial Soul has some issues that are affecting his body; it is possible that the poison of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor has eroded his internal organs."

Yu Tianjiao said with a serious expression.

"You're saying my grandfather is poisoned? Tianjiao, you aren't joking, are you?"

Dugu Yan's expression changed upon hearing this, but she knew Yu Tianjiao very well; he would not joke about such matters with her, yet she was unwilling to believe that her own grandfather had actually been poisoned by his own Martial Soul.

"Not just him; you also have mild symptoms of poisoning. Your eye color and hair color are both the result of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent poison's influence. If it is convenient, I would like to meet your grandfather and carefully examine his physical condition."

Yu Tianjiao shook his head, took Dugu Yan's hand, and looked into her eyes, his tone very simple, even somewhat beyond dispute.

"Alright, there is no time to lose. Let's go to the Sunset Forest now."

Dugu Yan did not hesitate at all and said immediately.

"Lingling, you come with me as well."

Immediately after, Dugu Yan looked at Ye Lingling, who was standing to the side.

"Would it be inappropriate for me to go?"

Ye Lingling felt a bit conflicted upon hearing this.

"It won't be. You are my best sister. Grandfather is very good to me, and he will treat you just as he treats me."

Dugu Yan said earnestly.

"Mm, then I will go with you."

Ye Lingling nodded.