First Encounter with Dugu Bo, Taken Under His Wing

A tall, thin old man slowly stepped out.

The old man's hair and beard were all ink-green, and his eyes were like emeralds.

At this time, in this place, with this appearance.

It was clearly none other than the true angel investor of the Douluo Continent (giving everything, asking for nothing in return)—Dugu Bo.

"Junior Dugu Bo greets the Senior."

"This junior was merely searching for medicinal herbs in the Sunset Forest; I absolutely did not follow the two of you."

Dugu Bo felt the terrifying pressure radiating from Qian Daoliu.

It was too strong; if a fight broke out, he would have no room to retaliate.

Dugu Bo wanted to slap himself a few times—why did he have to be so curious and peek?

Now he had done it; he had heard things he shouldn't have, and whether he could return home alive was now a question.

Qian Daoliu continued to exert his pressure, forcing Dugu Bo to release his Martial Soul to alleviate the strain.

Dugu Bo?

Wasn't this the very person who stood as the greatest obstacle on his granddaughter's path to seizing power?

"You should have heard the effects of my disciple's soul skill."

Dugu Bo broke into a cold sweat upon hearing this and hurriedly spoke up.

"This humble one did indeed hear of the genius of the Senior's disciple."

"However, please rest assured, Senior. I can swear that I will never reveal a single word of what I heard or saw today to anyone."

"I implore the Senior to spare me, for the sake of the Heaven Dou Empire."

Qian Daoliu thought of his granddaughter, his expression turning peculiar.

He pondered whether he should simply kill Dugu Bo right here.

"Oh?"

"You are a man of the Heaven Dou Empire?"

Dugu Bo looked at Qian Daoliu's strange expression, rubbing his hands together, his heart filled with trepidation.

"This junior did indeed accept an invitation to become a guest advisor for the Heaven Dou Empire some time ago."

"If the Senior feels that is inappropriate, this junior can adopt another identity."

Lin Huai sensed that his teacher might be thinking of taking action.

Hearing Dugu Bo's flexible response, he immediately interjected into the conversation.

"Senior Dugu, you are a Title Douluo, after all."

"We certainly won't silence you without reason, but..."

Qian Daoliu saw his disciple speak up and allowed him to take the lead, curious to see what he would do.

Dugu Bo felt a wave of relief wash over him.

He might have to bleed heavily, but at least he had survived.

Otherwise, who knew what kind of monsters or demons might bully his adorable granddaughter if she were left without his protection?

"Young Master, please speak your mind. As long as it is within my power to satisfy."

"Any condition you propose is acceptable!"

Lin Huai pretended to think for a moment.

"I won't bluff you. We are from the Martial Soul Hall, specifically the Worship Hall."

"This teacher of mine is the ninety-nine-level peerless powerhouse known as the 'Invincible of the Sky'—the Great Grandmaster Qian Daoliu!"

Being praised to his face by his disciple like this, even Qian Daoliu, who had lived for over a hundred years, found his composure slipping.

Dugu Bo was even more shocked in his heart; this was a terrifying figure from the previous era!

"So it is the Angel Douluo, Lord Qian Daoliu."

"When I first began traveling the continent, your stories were already legendary to my ears!"

"It is just that I haven't heard any news of you for many years, and rumors on the continent suggested that you had already..."

Lin Huai looked at Qian Daoliu helplessly.

He truly couldn't understand some of the Martial Soul Hall's behaviors; they could have simply crushed their enemies, yet they chose to endure the provocations of these clowns.

"Teacher, look, you've been silent for too long, so everyone has forgotten about you."

"If the seniors in the Worship Hall took action from time to time, how would those forces on the Douluo Continent dare to provoke the majesty of our Martial Soul Hall?"

Dugu Bo, standing to the side, felt that this brat was trying to stir up trouble for him.

"How could that be? Who on the continent does not fear the edge of Martial Soul Hall?"

Lin Huai wore an expression that said, 'Are you trying to fool a child?'

After thinking seriously, he said:

"Let's not discuss that for now. Senior Poison Douluo, you should just join our Martial Soul Hall."

"However, keep your position as a guest of the Heaven Dou Empire for now; consider yourself a mole we've planted within the Heaven Dou Empire."

Dugu Bo's face showed his hesitation.

Is Martial Soul Hall really that terrifying?

I, a dignified Title Douluo, am to act as a mole?

He looked toward Qian Daoliu, attempting to get the two of them to change the terms.

"Joining Martial Soul Hall is actually no problem, but asking me to be a mole..."

"Although it sounds a bit like bragging, I am a Title Douluo after all. Isn't this a bit of a waste of talent?"

Qian Daoliu's eyes lit up, as if he had thought of something.

"Not at all. You acting as this mole is actually quite perfect."

"I will arrange for someone to be your contact. When the time comes, you just need to follow that person's orders completely."

Dugu Bo felt a shock in his heart upon hearing this.

He hadn't expected Martial Soul Hall to move against the Heaven Dou Empire so quickly.

It seemed that the person they had planted held a high position.

"Teacher, do we still have our people in Heaven Dou?"

"Mm, we had a plan targeting the Heaven Dou Empire before, but it is not convenient to explain it right now."

When Qian Daoliu said this, his expression was difficult to fathom.

"However, Little Huai."

"How should we keep Dugu Bo under control?"

Lin Huai spoke with a strange expression.

"Old sir, surely you wouldn't want your family to..."

Upon hearing the word 'family'.

Dugu Bo hurriedly swore an oath:

"I swear by my Martial Soul that I will never betray you! Otherwise, may my Martial Soul shatter, my soul power dissipate, and may I suffer a fate worse than death!"

Lin Huai was slightly surprised; he hadn't expected Dugu Bo to play his trump card before he had even finished his sentence.

After all, on the Douluo Continent, swearing by one's Martial Soul was effective.

It seems Dugu Yan hasn't become a couple with Yu Tianheng yet, otherwise this old guy wouldn't be so nervous.

He immediately put on a righteous expression and began to comfort Dugu Bo.

"Senior, even if you hadn't sworn an oath, I would have trusted you. After all, I have heard a little about you."

"Although the world has many complaints about you, thinking you are temperamental."

"But I know, Senior, that you are actually a person who keeps his word."

Dugu Bo thought to himself, I don't believe a word of that.

If he hadn't sworn that oath, he would surely have died right here.

Lin Huai then asked with a look of confusion:

"However, as far as I know, Senior Dugu was once a free and unfettered person. You must have received some kindness from the Heaven Dou Empire to have become a guest."

"As a person of loyalty who keeps his word, how does Senior intend to handle this debt of gratitude?"

Thinking of why he had become a guest of Heaven Dou in the first place.

Dugu Bo wore an expression as if he were constipated.

"Young Master may not know, but I was once recruited by the current Pope."

"I didn't agree at the time, and was then hunted down by Chrysanthemum Douluo. By coincidence, I was saved by Prince Xue Xing, which is why I became a guest of Heaven Dou."

He then said earnestly: "As long as Martial Soul Hall spares Prince Xue Xing's life, I don't care about anything else."

"That shouldn't be a problem."

Lin Huai agreed casually, then looked at Dugu Bo's head of green hair.

"Since you are now sincerely joining Martial Soul Hall, let's discuss the problems with your own body."

Dugu Bo felt a bit awkward under Lin Huai's gaze and replied.

"Haha... Young Master, you jest. What kind of trouble could I, a Titled Douluo, possibly have?"

"Oh... are you sure?"

"If you don't say it now, it'll be hard to ask for my help later."

Dugu Bo showed a troubled expression.

After some internal struggle, he revealed that his family was affected by the Jade Phosphor Snake's poison.

Qian Daoliu was surprised.

"Xiao Huai, how did you know Dugu Bo was suffering from a backlash of poison? Does your spirit have this ability?"

Lin Huai scratched his head.

"Not exactly. My spirit only sensed that Poison Douluo Senior's body contained terrifying toxins.

However, for a poison-attribute spirit master, having potent poison within them is quite normal."

"I read an autobiography by a Jade Phosphor Snake spirit master. I then combined it with books written by other poison-attribute spirit masters to make a deduction."

Dugu Bo's tone was filled with admiration.

"Young Master, to be able to deduce this from the text is truly remarkable. At least, no one else has known about this flaw in our family until now."