Easily Handling Dugu Bo—Is This Still Little Bing'er?

Leng Jun could clearly sense that Shui Bing'er's aura had grown stronger.

Dugu Bo was no less shocked than Leng Jun.

He stared fixedly at Shui Bing'er, his emerald eyes filled with disbelief.

The girl before him looked no older than twelve or thirteen, yet she possessed such nerve.

Not only had she identified the two highly poisonous herbs in the spring, but she had swallowed them whole and soaked in the water for several days.

Such actions were completely beyond Dugu Bo's understanding.

Leng Jun hurried over to Shui Bing'er.

"Bing'er, how are you? Do you feel unwell anywhere?"

"Grandpa, don't worry. I'm perfectly fine."

Xu Feng mimicked Shui Bing'er's tone so flawlessly that Leng Jun could not detect the slightest difference.

Dugu Bo slowly walked over as well.

Leng Jun gave him a grin.

"Brother Dugu, what do you think? I didn't lie to you, did I?"

Dugu Bo's sinister green eyes remained fixed on Shui Bing'er, his expression unchanged.

Even after confirming that Shui Bing'er had spent the past few days soaking in those polar springs, the vigilance and anger in his heart had not diminished in the slightest.

"Brother Dugu, let's talk things over properly. She's still a child—don't scare her."

Leng Jun put on a placating smile.

After all, Dugu Bo had discovered this place first.

Moreover, judging from Dugu Bo's tone, it seemed he had guarded this place for many years.

Seeing that the atmosphere had grown tense, Leng Jun introduced Dugu Bo to Shui Bing'er.

"Bing'er, this is Dugu Bo, the Jade Phosphorous Douluo whose name shakes the continent. His Jade Scale Serpent Emperor venom is incomparably toxic, so he is also known as the Poison Douluo."

Shui Bing'er clasped her hands in salute.

"This junior greets Senior Dugu."

"Hmph!"

Dugu Bo snorted coldly, his expression unchanged.

"Little girl, answer me. Did you really eat those two highly poisonous herbs?"

"Yes. Otherwise, I couldn't have soaked in that spring water for several days."

"You recognize those two poisonous herbs?"

Shui Bing'er nodded gently and explained, "These Yin-Yang Polar Springs are called the Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well. One well gives rise to two springs, and the two opposing forces restrain each other. The poisonous herb that originally grew in the Blazing Yang Spring is called the Infernal Delicate Apricot, while the one growing in the Extreme Yin Spring is called the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass. Both are lethal poisons, but when taken together, their medicinal effects restrain one another and achieve a delicate balance."

"Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well..."

Dugu Bo fell silent for a moment.

His gaze upon Shui Bing'er carried a hint of scrutiny.

He had not expected this twelve- or thirteen-year-old girl to know so much about this strange treasure land.

"Why did you consume those two poisonous herbs?"

"To strengthen my body. My martial soul is the Ice Phoenix, and its ice power is far too overbearing. Even now, I cannot fully control it. The medicinal effects of those two poisonous herbs will aid my growth."

Dugu Bo was only half-convinced by Shui Bing'er's words.

"You recognize all these rare herbs?"

"Only some of them."

As Shui Bing'er spoke, she pointed to a patch of herbs in the distance.

"I recognize almost all the herbs over there."

Dugu Bo frowned.

Those herbs had all been transplanted by him, and were somewhat different from the plants that had originally grown here.

"Little girl, I didn't expect someone so young to possess such knowledge."

Seeing Dugu Bo's attitude soften slightly, Shui Bing'er seized the opportunity to say, "Senior Dugu, there is something this junior is unsure whether she should say."

"Speak freely."

"It seems that you... have been poisoned?"

"What?!"

Dugu Bo's expression, which had just eased somewhat, instantly changed.

"You ignorant little girl, you're spouting absolute nonsense! I am the grandmaster of poison—how could I possibly be poisoned?! What poison in this world could surpass the poison of my Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor?! I have only ever poisoned others; no one has ever poisoned me!"

Shui Bing'er smiled faintly, showing not the slightest fear.

"Your Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor poison is indeed formidable. Precisely because it is so powerful, it has backlashed onto you. You have been poisoned by your own Martial Soul."

"???"

The moment those words were spoken, Dugu Bo was completely stunned.

Leng Jun, standing nearby, was equally shocked.

He had never expected Dugu Bo to suffer a backlash from his own poison.

For Dugu Bo, that was fatal.

"What a joke! How could I possibly suffer a backlash from my own poison?!"

Before Dugu Bo had finished speaking, the pressure belonging to a Titled Douluo erupted once more.

"Brother Dugu, what are you doing?"

Leng Jun hurriedly summoned his Martial Soul and shielded Shui Bing'er behind him.

Shui Bing'er gently pushed her grandfather aside.

"Senior Dugu, please do not misunderstand. This junior means no harm. I brought it up because I want to help you."

"Help me? Hmph! I'm perfectly fine. I don't need a little girl like you worrying over nothing."

Dugu Bo did not appreciate her goodwill.

"I have made countless enemies in my life and have never trusted anyone lightly. You grandfather and granddaughter barged into my territory without permission and stole my herbs. You clearly have ulterior motives. There are plenty of poisonous plants here—you want to take this opportunity to poison me to death and claim this herb garden for yourselves, don't you?"

Seeing that Dugu Bo was still stubbornly denying it, Xu Feng directly pulled out the immortal-herb cheat sheet.

"Senior Dugu, you already show signs of poisoning. Whenever the sky turns overcast or it rains, do your ribs feel numb and itchy, with the sensation gradually intensifying? It flares up once at noon and once at midnight, each episode lasting at least two hours."

"Y-You... how do you know?"

Dugu Bo looked astonished.

Shui Bing'er did not answer and continued.

"Whenever the night is quiet, around midnight, your scalp and the soles of your feet will feel as though they are being pierced by needles. Your entire body will convulse, and it will take at least an hour before it eases. Those are your symptoms, aren't they?"

Dugu Bo was completely dumbfounded.

Everything Shui Bing'er had said matched his symptoms exactly.

"Senior Dugu, this junior greatly admires you for enduring the backlash of your own poison and cultivating all the way to the realm of Titled Douluo. If this junior is not mistaken, any of your family members who inherit the Jade Scale Serpent Martial Soul will likewise suffer a backlash from their own poison."

Xu Feng deliberately brought up Dugu Bo's family.

He knew that Dugu Bo's son had died from the backlash of his own poison.

Now, the person Dugu Bo cared about most was his granddaughter, Dugu Yan.

Dugu Yan was not yet twenty, but she already showed signs of poisoning.

Dugu Bo looked at Shui Bing'er, his gaze complicated.

Naturally suspicious, he would not easily believe a thirteen-year-old girl.

Yet every word this girl spoke struck his heart like a heavy hammer.

To resolve the problem of suffering a backlash from his Martial Soul's poison, he had spent years of painstaking effort, only to gain very little.

If this problem could not be solved, then his granddaughter Dugu Yan might meet an early death just like his son.

That was what he least wanted to see.

Leng Jun glanced at Shui Bing'er beside him.

After soaking in the spring for several days, this granddaughter of his seemed different.

She was calm, composed, confident—and somewhat unfamiliar.

Even the tone in which she spoke was extremely similar to that of the hundred-thousand-year Ice Phoenix that had sacrificed itself before.

Was she still Shui Bing'er...?