Tang San saw Dugu Yan approaching, and his expression shifted slightly. Still, he wasn't too worried about his situation.
Old Poison was practically wrapped around his little finger already, so he wasn't concerned about a defeated opponent like her.
So when he saw her looking his way, he raised his chin a little, wearing a calm, self-satisfied look.
Dugu Bo glanced at Tang San, then lowered his voice to explain to his granddaughter. "Yan Yan, didn't you say he broke your third Soul Skill and used poison to turn the tables on you? I took the liberty of bringing him here to ask him about it."
He deliberately kept his voice low, not wanting Tang San to hear. After all, he was counting on Tang San to help detoxify him and his granddaughter.
"Let me tell you, this kid really is a little uncanny. He actually saw through our Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison..."
Dugu Bo was faintly excited. At last, he could see hope of neutralizing the deadly poison in his granddaughter's body and preventing her from following in her parents' footsteps.
But before he could finish, Dugu Yan cut him off.
"Grandpa, knock him out. I have something very important to tell you."
"Huh?" Dugu Bo froze, then hesitated. He looked at Tang San, then at his granddaughter, as if weighing the pros and cons.
Before, whenever his precious granddaughter said something, he would knock Tang San out without a second thought.
But they had just finished discussing a deal, and Tang San had a way to dispel the deadly poison in both his and his granddaughter's bodies. He was reluctant.
Seeing her grandfather remain still, Dugu Yan grew so anxious and angry that she nearly stamped her feet. They couldn't let any more outsiders learn that their home was full of countless rare treasures.
"Grandpa, hurry up!" Dugu Yan stamped her foot hard.
Tang San was dumbfounded. What was Dugu Yan getting at? They'd barely met, and she was already asking Old Poison to knock him out.
His neck still hurt from when she'd captured him earlier, and he was still a little groggy. He didn't want to go through that again.
"Dugu Yan, I only beat you at the Great Soul Arena. Do you really have to hold a grudge? I'll go farther away so I can't hear your conversation."
As he spoke, Tang San started walking farther away—toward the volcano, where Dugu Bo's Herb Garden was.
"Grandpa, now!" Dugu Yan cried in alarm. If she weren't too weak to beat him, she would have acted herself.
This was the first time Dugu Bo had seen his granddaughter so anxious. He gritted his teeth, flashed behind Tang San, and said, "Sorry, young friend," before striking him unconscious with a palm.
Only after that did he return to his granddaughter and ask in a probing tone, "Yan Yan, what's gotten into you today?"
"Grandpa, are you sure he's unconscious? Sure he won't wake up partway through? Sure he won't overhear us?"
Dugu Yan didn't answer right away. She looked at Tang San, dangling from her grandfather's hand like a chick, and made sure.
"..." Dugu Bo nearly choked on the string of questions from his precious granddaughter.
He was a dignified Titled Douluo. Knocking out a Soul Elder should be as easy as drinking water. What could possibly go wrong?
"He's out cold. He won't wake up for a whole day and night." Dugu Bo nodded helplessly. What could he do? His granddaughter was his most beloved.
But Dugu Yan's next words nearly made him lose face all over again.
"Grandpa, I don't think that's safe enough. How about hitting him a few more times?" Dugu Yan said again.
Dugu Bo looked at his granddaughter. She seemed utterly serious, not the least bit like she was joking. He gritted his teeth and, as if possessed, gave Tang San two more hard smacks to the back of his neck.
Tang San: Dugu Yan, I fucking thank you!
"All right, Yan Yan. This guy won't wake up for at least three days and nights. What did you want to tell Grandpa?" Dugu Bo was close to losing it.
"Grandpa, come with me." Dugu Yan finally seemed reassured. She started toward the volcano's crater, then suddenly stopped and turned back. "Leave him here."
"..." Dugu Bo was speechless, but said nothing. He casually tossed Tang San aside, and his body rolled several times across the ground.
Tang San didn't so much as twitch. He was clearly out cold, just as Dugu Bo had said, and wouldn't wake for days.
The two soon arrived at the Herb Garden growing around the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Dugu Yan's eyes began to shine with boundless wonder, and her breathing grew incredibly rapid.
"It's real, it's real! Every bit of it! Just like the pictures!"
"Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower, Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone, Aromatic Silk Beauty, and Lovesick Heartbreak Red...!"
She gently brushed her fingers across the petals of the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, her fingertips trembling as her heart pounded wildly.
Before, she had only thought these flowers and plants looked pretty. Sometimes she would pick them for fun, never realizing that every single one was worth a fortune.
Now that she knew the names of these Immortal Herbs and their heaven-defying effects, she wanted to slap her former self hard across the face.
Watching his granddaughter wander through the Herb Garden, raving like a madwoman and listing off all sorts of baffling things as if she knew them by heart, Dugu Bo started to feel uneasy.
"Yan Yan, they're just some pretty weeds. You used to pick them all the time, and Grandpa often cleared them out. Is there really any need to make such a fuss?"
Dugu Yan, who already wanted to slap herself across the face, wanted to slap herself even more after hearing that.
"Grandpa, these aren't weeds. They're rare treasures of heaven and earth! Every single one is worth a fortune, every one a treasure that would make Soul Masters fight tooth and nail for it."
"It's one thing that we didn't know before, but now you can't keep treating them like weeds!"
Dugu Bo listened in a daze, eyeing his increasingly animated granddaughter with deep suspicion as she waxed more and more fantastical.
"Yan Yan, have you been poisoned? Are you hallucinating?" Dugu Bo asked tentatively.
He had tended the Herb Garden for decades. Aside from looking pretty, these flowers and plants had nothing special about them. How could they be treasures of heaven and earth?
If they really were such treasures, how could they be growing in big clusters all over the place, like cabbages?
Dugu Yan, who had been speaking excitedly, was immediately struck speechless.
"Grandpa, you don't understand!"
"These really are Immortal Herbs! They're priceless rarities, impossible to find no matter how much money you offer!"
Dugu Yan grew anxious. She worried that her grandfather wouldn't take her seriously, so she repeated herself again and again.
"Enough, enough, Yan Yan. You're getting more and more ridiculous. There are at least hundreds of plants like these in this garden alone. If they were really worth a fortune, your grandfather would already be the richest man on the continent!"
Dugu Bo chuckled and waved his hand, completely unconvinced. He thought his precious granddaughter was just pulling his leg.
Seeing that her grandfather refused to believe her, Dugu Yan bit her lip. "Grandpa, you don't believe me, do you? Just wait!"
She silently thought the words to activate the Chat Group, and the chat panel immediately appeared.
Without bothering to check what the others in the group were talking about, she took a screenshot of an ordinary Immortal Herb illustrated guide and sent it right away.
[Dugu Yan: Immortal Herb guide.jpg. Anyone want to buy? I'll give an 20% discount off the Immortal Herb points in the Mall. Gold Soul Coins accepted. One-time offer.]
As soon as Dugu Yan's picture appeared, along with her offer to accept Gold Soul Coins, the Chat Group exploded...
Before you continue