Sunset Forest Encounter with Dugu Yan

Within the Sunset Forest, the trees blocked out the sun and sky.

Qin Yao walked ahead at a leisurely pace, the soul power pressure of the Amethyst Winged Lion King radiating from his body. This pressure was not particularly strong, but it was enough to make soul beasts below the thousand-year level shy away.

Training did not mean wasting time cleaning up these small fry.

Just then, he sensed a cold, sinister aura—not from a soul beast, but from a human.

Soon, a slender and graceful figure emerged from behind a tree.

It was a young girl who looked no more than seventeen or eighteen, dressed in a set of purple-black tight-fitting gear with silver trim that outlined her exquisite, shapely figure.

A head of ink-green hair hung loosely behind her, her brows and eyes were long and narrow, the corners of her eyes slightly upturned, and her pupils were a pale purple, giving her a cold, alluring, and somewhat rebellious appearance.

Seeing that iconic ink-green hair and unique temperament, a name instantly surfaced in Qin Yao's mind: Dugu Yan.

Qin Yao was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected to run into Dugu Yan on his very first day in the Sunset Forest.

Dugu Yan clearly noticed Qin Yao as well. She stopped in her tracks, standing in a standoff with him from a distance of over ten meters.

In a place like the Sunset Forest, the sudden appearance of a stranger—especially a stranger who looked like he wasn't to be trifled with—forced her to be cautious.

Especially since this man was excessively handsome.

With dark purple hair, sharp, well-defined facial features, and a tall, upright build, he stood there casually, yet possessed an imposing aura.

Someone like this was either an elite descendant from a major family or a powerful lone soul master.

Either way, it meant trouble.

Why would I run into a guy like this in the middle of nowhere? Dugu Yan muttered to herself, becoming even more vigilant.

Qin Yao watched her guarded expression and the corners of his mouth curled up; since they had met, it saved him the trouble of searching.

Being direct might yield better results.

Having made up his mind, Qin Yao took a few proactive steps forward, stopping at a safe distance before Dugu Yan could lose her patience and attack.

"May I ask, Miss, are you Dugu Yan, the granddaughter of Poison Douluo?"

Qin Yao's voice was calm, but it sounded exceptionally abrupt in the silent forest.

Dugu Yan frowned. Many people knew she was the granddaughter of Poison Douluo, so that wasn't the issue.

But encountering a stranger in the Sunset Forest was still somewhat dangerous.

"Who are you?" Dugu Yan's voice carried a hint of wariness as she stared fixedly at Qin Yao. "I don't think I've seen you before."

"Who I am is not important," Qin Yao replied simply and directly. "I came here to see someone. Your grandfather, Dugu Bo."

The moment the name "Dugu Bo" left Qin Yao's lips, the aura around Dugu Yan changed completely.

"Looking for my grandfather?"

Dugu Yan sneered, a look of mockery appearing on her cold, beautiful face.

"What kind of thing are you to be worthy of seeing my grandfather? Over the years, plenty of people have tried to cause trouble for him. Who do you think you are?"

Before the words had even faded, an ink-green soul power erupted from her body!

A massive phantom of a Jade Phosphorous Serpent appeared behind her, its snake eyes cold, flicking its tongue.

The next moment, Yellow, Yellow, Purple!

Three soul rings rose in sequence from beneath her feet, slowly rotating around her slender waist.

Level 36, Soul Elder.

While this cultivation wasn't as formidable as that of a true genius, Dugu Yan was confident that no one could break her third soul skill, Jade Phosphorous Purple Poison!

Qin Yao watched her stance of activating her martial soul at the slightest disagreement, and instead of being angry, he found it somewhat amusing.

This temperament was truly just like in the original story—ready to explode at the slightest touch.

"Miss Dugu, I think you've misunderstood." Qin Yao spread his hands to show he had no ill intent. "I am not here to cause trouble, but to offer an opportunity."

"An opportunity?" Dugu Yan sounded as if she had heard the world's biggest joke. "You? A brat who hasn't even grown his hair out yet?"

She had already made up her mind: regardless of who this person was, if he dared to inquire about her grandfather's whereabouts, she could not let him leave this place alive.

"First soul skill, Jade Phosphorous Red Poison!"

"Second soul skill, Jade Phosphorous Blue Poison!"

"Third soul skill, Jade Phosphorous Purple Poison!"

Dugu Yan didn't waste any more words; her first, second, and third soul rings lit up in succession.

The next moment, toxic mists of red, blue, and purple were spat out from the mouth of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent in turns, instantly enveloping Qin Yao.

A cold sneer appeared on Dugu Yan's face.

This was her most confident attack. With these three virulent poisons combined, even a soul master with higher soul power than her would lose their combat ability within a short time once contaminated, eventually dying in numbness and agony.

This ignorant, arrogant guy was dead.

Just then, a domineering, peerless lion's roar exploded from the center of the toxic mist!

"ROAR!"

Purple flames rose from the poisonous mist without warning, instantly transforming into a sea of fire.

The moment the tricolor poisonous mist touched the purple flames, it was like snow meeting a scorching sun; it didn't even last a second before being burned away completely.

As the flames dissipated, a figure emerged.

Dark purple hair danced wildly, scarlet pupils devoid of any emotion, and a pair of hideous dark purple bone wings slowly unfurled behind his back.

Yellow, purple, purple, black!

Four spirit rings hovered silently beneath his feet, and that final, ink-black ten-thousand-year spirit ring radiated a heart-stopping pressure.

"This... this is impossible!"

The smile on Dugu Yan's face froze completely, her heart filled with shock.

Her Jade Phosphorous Serpent poison had been burned away just like that, so easily?

And that fourth spirit ring—it was actually ten-thousand-year!

What kind of monster was this!

Before she could recover from the immense shock, the bone wings behind Qin Yao gave a violent flap.

With a "hum," the air let out a sonic boom.

Dugu Yan felt a blur before her eyes, and that figure instantly crossed a distance of over ten meters, appearing right in front of her.

Too fast!

So fast that her nerves couldn't react at all!

The next moment, a hand gripped her slender neck, and as the sensation of weightlessness took hold, Dugu Yan was lifted off the ground by his single hand.

"I told you, I have business with your grandfather."

Qin Yao's voice was very flat, revealing neither joy nor anger.

"Why must you insist on making me angry?"

A sense of suffocation surged in like a tide; Dugu Yan's face flushed bright red as her hands desperately clawed at the hand strangling her throat.

But that hand was as hard as iron; no matter how much force she used, it didn't budge an inch.

Under the opponent's overbearing pressure, her spirit power couldn't circulate smoothly, and even her martial soul began to flicker and fade.

Am I... going to die?

Her consciousness began to blur, and everything before her eyes started to double.

Just as she thought she was truly going to die here, the pressure on her neck suddenly eased.

Fresh air rushed into her lungs, and Dugu Yan coughed violently, her body going limp as she collapsed toward the ground.

But the pain she expected never came.

A strong arm wrapped around her waist, steadily catching her body before she could fall.

Dugu Yan froze completely.

She looked up instinctively, meeting those dark purple pupils.

An unfamiliar masculine scent enveloped her, and the warmth of the hand on her waist seeped through her combat suit, making her feel entirely ill at ease.

"Take me to see your grandfather."

Qin Yao let go, his previous action having been merely to prevent her from falling.

"You and your grandfather are deeply poisoned; if you don't detoxify, you won't live much longer."

Dugu Yan snapped back to reality; she clutched her still-aching neck and retreated several steps, putting distance between herself and Qin Yao.

"What nonsense are you spouting!" she gasped, her voice hoarse. "How could we possibly be poisoned!"

"Impossible?"

Qin Yao looked at her with a hint of mockery in his eyes.

"Every time it rains, don't your ribs go numb in waves?"

"Every day at noon and midnight, when the poison flares up, isn't the pain unbearable?"

"In the dead of night, don't you feel needle-like stabs in the crown of your head and the soles of your feet, followed by full-body spasms?"

With every sentence Qin Yao spoke, Dugu Yan's face turned a shade paler.

By the time he finished the last sentence, only terror remained on her face.

The Immortal Herb exchange code, truly terrifying!

"You... how do you know!"

These symptoms were something she and her grandfather, Dugu Bo, had never told anyone.

Why did this man know them so clearly!

"Because this isn't an illness; it's poison."

Qin Yao calmly unveiled the cruel truth.

"It is the Jade Phosphorous Serpent venom inherent to your martial soul. Your grandfather possesses immense strength, and with his soul power exceeding level ninety, he can barely suppress it. As for you, in ten years at most, the poison will flare up and claim your life."

"As for your father and mother..."

Qin Yao paused, "They died for this very reason back then."

"No... that's impossible!" Dugu Yan muttered to herself, her body swaying unsteadily.

Her father—she suddenly recalled that when she was a child, her father would often complain of rib pain during rainy days.

She had always assumed that the symptoms she suffered were merely some strange hereditary illness from her father.

But now it seemed that it was not an illness at all, but poison!

This revelation left her chilled to the bone.

"Who... who exactly are you?" Dugu Yan raised her head, her voice trembling.

She knew that the person before her was not lying.

To be able to neutralize her potent venom so easily and expose her family's greatest secret with a single sentence—the background of this person was absolutely extraordinary.

Moreover, he did not seem to harbor any malice.

Qin Yao spoke slowly, "Martial Soul Hall, Holy Son Qin Yao."