First Meeting with Yang Wudi

"Patriarch, that Su Yun Tao said he intends to spend a few days sightseeing here in Star Luo City and will come to pay a visit in a few days."

"A few days?" Yang Wudi barked, "Which day exactly is 'a few days'!"

"Patriarch, about that... Su Yun Tao didn't specify."

"Useless, you're all useless!" Yang Wudi raged. "Get everyone out there to find him immediately! If you can't find him, I'll use you to test my poisons!"

The gatekeeper swallowed his bitterness, unable to voice his grievances, and retreated in dismay.

From that moment on, Yang Wudi could neither eat nor sleep, his mind constantly preoccupied as he stood silently at the entrance, gazing toward the street ahead.

"Patriarch, your favorite meal has been prepared."

"I'm not eating!"

"Patriarch, it is time for your martial arts training."

"I'm not training!"

"Patriarch, the medicinal herbs you requested are ready."

"Get out!"

While Yang Wudi was suffering in agony, consumed by his longing and anxiety, Su Yun Tao was busy eating hotpot and singing songs, living quite the carefree life.

Three full days passed in this manner. Finally, the weary and longing Yang Wudi caught sight of a young figure slowly walking toward him.

The young man was tall and slender, with long, dark hair and an extraordinary temperament.

Though he wore a blue-gold mask, one look was enough to tell that he was an exceptional man.

Yang Wudi's expression was filled with intense excitement, his heart overflowing with emotions that eventually condensed into a single sentence.

"Young friend Su Yun Tao, is it really you?"

Su Yun Tao looked at the man before him with slight surprise and replied, "Patriarch Yang, a pleasure to meet you. I am indeed Su Yun Tao."

Yang Wudi burst into hearty laughter, his eyes gleaming as he looked at Su Yun Tao as if he were a long-lost brother from another mother.

"Young friend Su, I feel as though we are old friends at first sight. Tell me, did you bring that Aromatic Silk Beauty with you?"

Su Yun Tao smiled upon hearing this. "Patriarch Yang, aren't you being a bit too forward?"

Yang Wudi's face flushed slightly, and he said with some embarrassment, "My apologies, young friend. Please, come inside first."

Yang Wudi quickly turned back and shouted, "Men! Bring out the best wine and food of our Breaking Clan! I am hosting an honored guest!"

At the banquet, Su Yun Tao and Yang Wudi toasted each other repeatedly, enjoying themselves immensely. The two seemed to have truly hit it off, becoming fast friends despite their age gap.

Yet, beneath Yang Wudi's seemingly calm exterior, his heart felt as if it were being scratched by a cat—he was itching with impatience.

Seeing him like this, Su Yun Tao found it secretly amusing.

"Patriarch Yang, to be honest, I have come here today with a request!"

Yang Wudi's expression sharpened, and he waved a large hand. "Speak your mind, young friend. Anything within my power, I shall not refuse!"

Su Yun Tao spoke slowly, "I wonder if Patriarch Yang has heard of the Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo?"

"I have naturally heard of Dugu Bo. He is a guest elder of the Heaven Dou Empire and one of the current Titled Douluo."

Su Yun Tao nodded. "Correct. My visit is precisely for his sake. I wish to ask Patriarch Yang to help Dugu Bo detoxify."

"Detoxify?" Yang Wudi's expression turned strange. "Young friend, do not joke. Dugu Bo is known as the world's number one poison master. His Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor martial soul already possesses nine soul rings. With his cultivation at such a level, how could he possibly be poisoned?"

Su Yun Tao smiled. "The problem actually lies within his Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor martial soul itself. The poison Dugu Bo suffers from is brought about by his own martial soul; it poisons others, but it also poisons himself. For soul masters of the Jade Scale Serpent lineage, the more they cultivate, the more toxins accumulate within their bodies."

"Even though Dugu Bo has become the first Titled Douluo of the Jade Scale Serpent lineage, he cannot solve this problem!"

"So that is how it is!" Yang Wudi mused, lost in thought.

"Patriarch Yang, as far as I know, there is no one on this continent with greater skill in alchemy and detoxification than you. That is why I have come to visit you."

Yang Wudi immediately replied, "Rest assured, young friend. I will do everything in my power!"

"In that case, Patriarch Yang, let us begin at once!"

"Good! How refreshing!" Yang Wudi drained his bowl in one gulp and laughed.

Seeing this, a strange smile touched the corner of Su Yun Tao's mouth. He stood up immediately, and Yang Wudi followed suit, ready to depart.

Just then, Yang Wudi suddenly realized something was amiss.

Su Yun Tao asked deliberately, "Patriarch Yang, what is the matter?"

Yang Wudi gave a dry laugh. "I wonder what compensation I might receive for this trip?"

"What? Does Patriarch Yang wish to go back on what he just promised?"

Yang Wudi's face turned ashen. This young man he had never met before seemed to know his personality perfectly, as if he had him completely figured out.

While Yang Wudi did indeed hold his oaths in high regard, he was also a man of principle—he would not let himself be taken advantage of!

"Patriarch Yang, I know the whereabouts of the Aromatic Silk Beauty. I can guarantee that once the task is complete, you will get exactly what you desire."

"Young friend!" Yang Wudi had calmed down by now. He spoke, "It is not that I do not trust you, but this matter is of great importance. I require some assurance."

"Oh?" Su Yun Tao laughed. "Patriarch Yang is merely afraid that you won't receive the Aromatic Silk Beauty, and furthermore, you are worried that I might be a member of the Martial Soul Hall, fearing this is a trap. You worry that once you enter a perimeter designed by the Martial Soul Hall, you won't be able to escape, correct?"

Yang Wudi nodded. "Young Friend Su is indeed no ordinary person. In all honesty, I haven't even seen your true face, so how could I possibly trust your words?"

Su Yun Tao laughed. "It is very simple to dispel Patriarch Yang's concerns."

Before Su Yun Tao's voice had even faded, the Blue Gold Mask on his face was removed.

The next moment, Yang Wudi's pupils constricted, the word "shock" written all over his face. The face before him was not only incomparably handsome, enough to make others feel ashamed, but—

What was most terrifying was that this young man looked to be at most sixteen or seventeen years old! A sixteen or seventeen-year-old Soul King! It was truly terrifying!

One had to know that on the Douluo Continent, becoming a Soul Ancestor before the age of twenty was already enough to be called a genius. The gatekeeper's previous report had said he was in his early twenties, so Yang Wudi had assumed Su Yun Tao just looked young and was actually in his twenties. A Soul King in his twenties, while shocking, was still within the realm of acceptance.

But the true face Su Yun Tao revealed now made Yang Wudi feel that reality had become far too surreal!

Yang Wudi's right hand suddenly lunged out, gripping Su Yun Tao's arm, and his body began to tremble.

"You... you... you really are a Soul King?"

The corners of Su Yun Tao's mouth curled upward slightly as two yellow, two purple, and one black—five massive soul rings—lit up beneath his feet.

Yang Wudi felt as though the world had become utterly absurd; everything before him was dealing a massive blow to his inherent understanding.

"Fourteen years old, fourteen years old, a fourteen-year-old Soul King!" Yang Wudi muttered to himself.