Saving Poison Douluo Dugu Bo

Early the next morning, Yu Luomian set out with Qing Luo and me.

His carriage was far more spartan than Yu Yuanzhen's. There were no cushions or tea table inside, only two hard wooden benches.

Qing Luo sat across from me with her hands properly placed on her knees, but her eyes kept darting toward the window. It was her first time leaving the clan grounds and traveling so far, and everything seemed new to her. When we passed a hillside covered in wildflowers, her eyes lit up for a moment before she quickly looked away, pretending she had not seen anything.

"If you want to look, then look. Don't hold it in."

She smiled shyly, then pressed her face against the window and stared outside without even blinking.

Sunset Forest lay north of the Balak Kingdom's border. The carriage traveled for a full day and a half before reaching its outskirts. The closer we came to the forest, the denser the Soul Power in the air became, and the thicker the trees grew. At the forest entrance, Yu Luomian told the coachman to wait where he was and brought only Qing Luo and me inside.

The hunt was swift and clean.

Yu Luomian was, after all, a Soul Douluo. A five-thousand-year soul beast had no room to resist before him. He barely even used any soul skills; relying solely on Soul Power suppression, he pinned a five-thousand-year Single-Horned Python to the ground.

The Single-Horned Python had cultivated for five thousand two hundred years. It possessed the wood attribute, and the Power of Vegetation gathered within its horn could instantly pierce through three feet of solid rock. In the middle regions of Sunset Forest, it was the overlord of this area.

Yet before Yu Luomian, this overlord was crushed so thoroughly that it could not even lift its head.

"Do it." Yu Luomian's voice came over.

I struck the Thunder-Horned Python's head with my palm. My Soul Power condensed into a beam as thin as a needle, pierced through its scales, and drove straight into its skull. The Thunder-Horned Python's body stiffened violently before going limp. A purple soul ring slowly rose from its body, casting a cold, ghostly glow through the dim forest.

"Five thousand years." Yu Luomian glanced at the soul ring, then at me. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

He did not try to persuade me further.

I sat cross-legged beside the Single-Horned Python's corpse and drew the soul ring into my body. The torrent of energy from five thousand years was more than five times fiercer than it had been with the thousand-year Mystic Armor Turtle. The instant my meridians tore apart, the corrosive sensation of the wood attribute spread through me as well, as if countless ants were gnawing at my flesh.

An hour later, I opened my eyes. My second soul ring, five thousand years old, had been formed.

My Soul Power leaped directly from level twenty to level twenty-three.

The name of the soul skill surfaced in my mind: Azure Dragon Halberd. It condensed Azure Dragon Soul Power into the form of a dragon-headed war halberd for a thrown attack, carrying the wood attribute's life-draining and corrosive effects. Its range was fifty paces, and its penetrating power was enough to break through the defensive soul skills of soul masters at the same level.

Yu Luomian merely nodded when he saw the purple soul ring settled securely around me.

Next came Qing Luo's soul ring. Her endurance was far inferior to mine, and a four-hundred-year soul beast was her limit. Nearby, Yu Luomian found a four-hundred-year Thorn Vine Monster, a plant-type soul beast that was naturally compatible with Qing Luo's Dragon Scale Vine martial soul.

The hunt took only three breaths. Qing Luo took an hour to absorb the soul ring, and her Soul Power steadily rose to level fifteen. She gained the soul skill Thorn Bind, a control skill that wrapped vines around the target while carrying the effect of dragon-breath toxins.

When Qing Luo opened her eyes, she was so excited that she nearly jumped up. But with Yu Luomian present, she forcefully held herself back and only silently mouthed the words to me, "Young Master, I did it!"

Before I could reply, my mind suddenly jolted.

Two immensely powerful presences were rapidly approaching. One was icy and sinister, carrying intense poisonous fluctuations, yet it was unstable, surging and weakening as though its owner had suffered severe injuries. The other was far sharper, its Soul Power as keen as blades, its oppressive force overwhelming—an entire level stronger than Yu Luomian.

They were definitely Title Douluo.

Yu Luomian's expression changed instantly. He stepped in front of Qing Luo and me, releasing his martial soul from his right hand. A blue lightning dragon coiled behind him as eight soul rings pulsed up and down.

"Stand behind me. Don't move." He kept his voice low, but every word seemed squeezed through clenched teeth.

The sound of something tearing through the air came closer. The first to arrive was a blood-soaked figure that shot out of the dense forest and staggered several steps after landing before managing to steady himself.

The man was lean and tall, dressed in a dark green robe. But the robe was riddled with tears, and a bone-deep wound marred his left shoulder. His face was pale without a trace of color, his pupils were slit like a snake's, and blood hung from the corner of his mouth.

Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo. Level ninety-one, famed for poison techniques unrivaled beneath the heavens.

A second figure chased closely behind him. He was a middle-aged man in golden robes, with a delicately handsome, feminine face and long hair draped over his shoulders. Nine soul rings circled his body—two yellow, two purple, and five black.

His martial soul was the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum. Its petals rotated slowly in the air, each one sharp as a blade. Several small corrosive wounds marked his left arm, and his aura was slightly unsteady. Clearly, Dugu Bo's poison had not been easy to withstand, but compared to Dugu Bo, he was in far better condition.

Chrysanthemum Douluo, Yue Guan. An elder of Spirit Hall, a level ninety-five Title Douluo.

Dugu Bo clutched the wound on his shoulder, his gaze sweeping over the three of us. When he saw the blue lightning dragon behind Yu Luomian, his slit pupils suddenly brightened.

"Friends of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan!" Dugu Bo's voice was extremely hoarse, leaking air with every word. He had clearly suffered internal injuries.

"I am Dugu Bo, and I rashly ask for your aid. Yue Guan of Spirit Hall is pursuing me without cause. I ask your clan to lend a hand. Dugu Bo will surely repay this kindness generously afterward!"

Yu Luomian said nothing. His gaze remained fixed on Yue Guan.

Yue Guan landed ten paces away. He withdrew the killing intent from his face and replaced it with an elegant, composed smile, giving Yu Luomian a slight nod.

"Elder Yu Luomian of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, I have long admired your reputation." His voice was as soft and delicate as his appearance.

"Spirit Hall is pursuing the wanted criminal Dugu Bo. This man stole a supreme treasure from Spirit Hall and has committed unforgivable crimes. This is an internal matter of Spirit Hall, and I hope your clan will not interfere. Spirit Hall and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan have always stayed out of each other's affairs. Yue does not wish to damage our goodwill."

Dugu Bo sneered. "Stole Spirit Hall's supreme treasure? Yue Guan, could you at least prepare a draft before making up such nonsense?"

"Shut up. A mere level ninety-one Title Douluo dares act so presumptuously before me?"

He took a step forward, releasing the pressure of a level ninety-five Title Douluo without reservation. Qing Luo and I both felt our chests tighten, as though an invisible hand had gripped our hearts.

I hurriedly activated my Azure Dragon martial soul to withstand the pressure, then placed a hand on Qing Luo's shoulder and shared part of my Soul Power to help her resist it.

Yu Luomian finally spoke.

"Elder Yue Guan, this is Sunset Forest, not Spirit Hall territory." He stepped forward, and the lightning dragon behind him let out a deep roar.

"Whether Dugu Bo is a wanted criminal is Spirit Hall's claim. But you, an elder of Spirit Hall, chased an injured man to the people of my Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and now intend to strike before my eyes. What do you take the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan for?"

Yue Guan's smile faded slightly.

"Elder Yu, are you saying that you intend to tear relations apart with Spirit Hall for a Poison Douluo you have never met?"

"A stranger?" Yu Luomian gave Dugu Bo a cold glance. "He has already invoked the name of my Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Since he begged me for help before my very eyes, if I stand by and watch him die, where would the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's honor go when word gets out?"

At those words, Dugu Bo's tense shoulders visibly relaxed.

Yue Guan fell silent for a moment. The petals of the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum began spinning faster, cold light gleaming along the edge of every petal.

"Elder Yu, the order to pursue Dugu Bo was personally issued by Her Majesty the Pope."

The Pope's decree.

The weight of those three words was heavier than the pressure of level ninety-five Soul Power.

Yu Luomian's pupils contracted slightly. He understood the significance of a papal decree perfectly well. Spirit Hall's Pope, Bibi Dong, was the most powerful woman on the continent. There were not many forces on the Douluo Continent that dared openly defy an order from her own lips.

Yet he still did not step aside.

"Elder Yue Guan, I do not wish to fight you. Report today's events truthfully when you return. I will take the person I saved back to my clan. If Dugu Bo truly stole something from Spirit Hall, bring evidence to my clan grounds another day, and we can sit down and discuss it. But today, you cannot kill him before my eyes."

Yue Guan sighed.

"Then forgive my offense."

The Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum suddenly bloomed.

The battle erupted in an instant. Yue Guan's golden petals split into hundreds of golden blades in the air and swept toward Yu Luomian like a storm.

Yu Luomian shouted lowly as the lightning dragon coiled around his body. It opened its jaws and spewed forth a thick pillar of lightning, blasting apart most of the petals. Yet several still sliced across his arms and shoulders, cutting through his robes and leaving bloody wounds.

Level eighty-five against level ninety-five—the gap was simply too great.

But Yu Luomian did not retreat a single step. Two people stood behind him: one was the greatest genius his clan had seen in three hundred years, while the other was the maid personally raised by that genius. If either of them fell here, he would have no way to answer to his elder brother when he returned.

"Fall back into the woods!" Yu Luomian roared without looking back.

I pulled Qing Luo backward. A battle between Title Douluo was not something I could interfere with at my current level.

Dugu Bo struggled to his feet, gathering a cloud of dark green poison mist at the tips of his right fingers. His injuries were too severe; the poison mist he barely managed to form was so thin that it looked ready to disperse at any moment. Yet he still gritted his teeth and flung it at Yue Guan.

"Elder Yu, I will assist you!"

The poison mist transformed into a dark green venomous snake, bypassing Yu Luomian and lunging straight for Yue Guan's face. Yue Guan frowned slightly, and a golden petal flew out from the side, slicing the venomous snake in two. But rather than dissipating after being cut apart, the poison mist exploded into a cloud of green fog that covered an area three paces wide.

Yue Guan drifted back two steps, avoiding the central area of the poisonous fog. Several drops of venom splashed onto his sleeve, immediately corroding several small holes through the golden fabric and revealing the fair skin beneath.

"Dugu Bo, you are courting death."

Yue Guan's voice finally lost its elegance. He had already expended more than half his Soul Power, and he could not afford the slightest carelessness against Dugu Bo's poisonous mist. Meanwhile, though Yu Luomian was injured, his momentum had not weakened in the least. The lightning dragon roared and charged forward again.

I stood at the edge of the woods, watching the collision between Title Douluo. Lightning and petals tangled madly in the forest clearing, and every clash made the ground tremble faintly. The air was filled with the smell of burning and the cloying sweetness of poison. The two scents mingled together, making the back of my head tighten uneasily.

For now, I had no right to interfere in a clash at the Title Douluo level. But one day, I would stand upon this stage. When that day came, neither Chrysanthemum Douluo nor the Pope would dare act so presumptuously before me.