Ling Yun knew what Dugu Bo was thinking. One bird in the hand was better than a flock in the woods! It was only human nature.
"Am I that kind of person?"
"I said there were three methods, so I'll tell you all three. You can choose for yourself."
"Other people couldn't manage the second method, but you absolutely can. It's the one best suited to you."
Dugu Bo perked up, curiosity in his eyes impossible to hide.
"You've condensed a Poison Core, so you're capable of condensing a Soul Core too. I've kept this Primordial Immortal Grass for you, even though it hasn't yet reached the rank of an Immortal Herb. As long as you eat it, you'll have a ninety percent chance of succeeding."
"Its effect is to purify Soul Power and help condense a Soul Core."
Dugu Bo listened in a daze. He recognized every word, so why couldn't he understand them when they were put together?
"What is a Soul Core?"
"A Soul Core! It's rather complicated to explain. Simply put, after a Soul Master transforms the Soul Power in his body from a gaseous state into a liquid one, he then turns it into a solid energy core. He uses his mental power to control his Soul Power as it spins rapidly in his dantian, compressing it again and again until it forms a solid crystal."
"To reach the point where the crystal remains stable without needing mental power to control it, you have to go through a Soul Core collapse. After that, a separate Soul Core space forms in your dantian. A rapidly spinning vortex will always serve as a bridge between your dantian and the Soul Core."
"Once a Soul Core has been condensed, a Soul Master's explosive power and stamina will both improve greatly. As long as you condense a Soul Core, all your toxins can gather inside it."
"Once you successfully condense a Soul Core, the problem of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison turning on you won't even be worth mentioning."
"In theory, as long as a level 89 Soul Douluo successfully condenses a Soul Core, he can advance smoothly to Titled Douluo."
"Condense two Soul Cores, and you can become a Limit Douluo."
Dugu Bo had been a Titled Douluo for many years, but this was the first time he'd ever heard something so astonishing. The Soul Power in his body was highly refined, almost solid, even though most of it had turned into his Poison Core.
If something happened to the Poison Core, his combat strength would drop by at least half.
After giving Ling Yun's explanation some thought, he could tell the Soul Core was feasible. He remembered the process of accidentally condensing his Poison Core very clearly. He had experience with this.
"This is an entirely new cultivation method. I can hardly imagine how you learned about it."
Dugu Bo was certain that even Spirit Hall didn't know of this method. Modern Soul Masters who became Titled Douluo all relied on lucky encounters and insights into their Martial Souls.
Without sufficient insight into one's Martial Soul, trying to break through to Titled Douluo came down to two words: dream on.
"That's a secret. No comment!"
"As for the third method, it concerns the Extreme Cold Yin Spring and the Scorching Yang Spring. We'll also need the medicinal herbs in your garden."
"Do you remember the two herbs that used to grow by the shore? One was white and shaped like an octagon, called the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass. The other was entirely red and looked like a cabbage, called the Infernal Delicate Apricot."
"Of course!" Dugu Bo knew them all too well. He couldn't stand the auras of those two herbs either. One carried terrifying cold poison, the other terrifying fire poison. He couldn't touch either of them.
Though he couldn't touch them, they were rather pleasing to the eye. Now he could only picture them in his mind. It was truly frustrating.
Ling Yun continued, "Both herbs are poisonous plants, but they counteract each other. Put them together, and they can turn from deadly poison into medicine. Taking them lets you use the two springs to temper your body with Ice and Fire."
"From then on, you'll gain immunity to both ice and fire."
"I refined the two herbs into Ice-Fire Body Refining Pills, and I have some left. Extreme cold and heat are both natural enemies of your serpent poison. You've also been using Ice and Fire Elemental Power to suppress it all along."
"Take the Ice-Fire Body Refining Pill, and you'll be able to stay unharmed in the Ice and Fire Spring Water just like me."
Dugu Bo was tempted. Those were springs even he dared not touch, and they could grant him immunity to ice and fire.
It was hard to hear that and not be tempted. But he didn't speak, continuing to listen and waiting for Ling Yun to finish.
"You know how powerful these springs are. Their power can easily dissolve the serpent poison in your body. Then you'll have two kinds of energy inside you: ice and fire."
"But there's one drawback to this method: you won't be able to keep your Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison. Unless you're a level 99 Limit Douluo, your poison will be nothing but dregs compared to the springs of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well."
"And when you start cultivating again, the poison generated by your Jade Phosphorous Serpent won't be enough to stand up to the medicinal power of the Ice-Fire Body Refining Pill left inside you."
"That little bit of poison would be nothing but a stray dog by the roadside compared to the medicinal power the Ice-Fire Body Refining Pill leaves in your body."
"If you no longer rely on the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's poison as your main means of attack, you could consider this method too."
The temptation in Dugu Bo's heart was immediately flung into the highest reaches of the heavens. The Jade Phosphorous Serpent was his symbol, and his poison was what kept the other factions from daring to cause him trouble. There was no way he'd consider this last method.
"I'll go with the first method for now. Give me the pill formula!"
Dugu Bo decided to play it safe. The idea of condensing a Soul Core was tempting, but was it really that easy?
Condensing his Poison Core had nearly killed him. Condensing a Soul Core would surely be even harder.
As for the Primordial Immortal Grass, since it could help condense a Soul Core, he'd rather leave it for his precious granddaughter!
"I thought you'd choose to condense a Soul Core!"
"Here you go!"
Ling Yun tossed Dugu Bo the jade bottle containing the Viscera-Moistening and Meridian-Protecting Pills and said, "These pills will last you a long time. I'll give you the formula once I completely trust you, but not right now."
Dugu Bo took the bottle and glanced at Ling Yun without saying anything. Then he left the valley with the pills.
Clearly, he was going back to force the poison out.
Ling Yun paid him no mind and continued cultivating. The Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well was a perfect cultivation environment for him.
He decided to stay here until the various academies opened, going nowhere and improving as much as he could.
A month later.
Ling Yun's Soul Power had reached level 20, so he could add another Soul Ring. His cultivation was practically rocketing upward.
"You're a monster, reaching level 20 this fast! Maybe you'll break the Soul Master record and achieve the legendary level 100."
Over the past month, while cultivating, Dugu Bo had grown close to Ling Yun, almost like family. Ling Yun had also given him the pill formula.
Dugu Bo no longer smelled of blood. His green eyes had returned to normal, and his once-green hair had turned white and gray, neatly combed.
His Soul Power had also broken through to level 92. He was no longer the Titled Douluo gatekeeper, and his whole demeanor was in remarkably good shape.
"How about it? Call me Master once, and I'll go catch you a Soul Beast right away!"
"I already call you Grandpa Dugu, and you're still hoping I'll make you my master? Let's talk after you become a Limit Douluo!"
"If you don't want to, you don't want to! It's not like reaching level 99 is easy."
Before you continue