Though he was a Titled Douluo, he kept to himself and scorned serving the powerful. His savings were considerable, but five million Gold Soul Coins was still an unimaginable fortune to him!
It was enough to buy countless rare poisonous herbs and research materials, and could even turn his and Yan Yan's lives upside down.
Besides, how did Ning Fengzhi know the exact conditions and value of his herb garden? Dugu Bo's alarm bells rang at once, and he regarded Ning Fengzhi warily.
Temptation and suspicion tangled in his heart. Dugu Bo fell silent for a few seconds, then finally shook his head. His voice came out dry.
"Sect Master Ning, I appreciate the offer. But that herb garden holds special meaning for me. It can't be measured in money. There's no need to bring this up again."
He'd refused? Ning Fengzhi raised an eyebrow, but wasn't surprised. If Dugu Bo had agreed immediately, he would have wondered whether the herb garden was really as extraordinary as his son had claimed.
"Ten million." Ning Fengzhi's expression didn't change. He simply uttered another figure, as casually as if he were talking about a thousand Copper Soul Coins.
Hiss—!
This time, even Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo, who had seen plenty in their day, couldn't help glancing at him.
Ten million Gold Soul Coins for a patch of land? Fengzhi was really going all in! But thinking of how seriously Xiaochun had spoken, and of the "great opportunity" that might determine the sect's future... perhaps it was worth it?
Shui Bing'er covered her mouth, her icy-blue eyes wide with shock.
She knew the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was wealthy, but she hadn't realized they were wealthy to this degree! Ten million Gold Soul Coins could buy nearly half of Skywater City!
And they were offering all that just for an herb garden? This... was this the confidence of the greatest auxiliary sect in the world?
Dugu Yan was stunned too, disbelief filling her green eyes. Ten million? Her grandfather's herb garden had some unusual plants, sure, but was it really worth ten million? Had the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect gone mad?
Dugu Bo's breathing grew slightly heavier, his dark-green pupils narrowing to pinpricks. Ten million! That figure was enough to drive any Soul Master wild!
For one brief moment, he was tempted. Then a deeper chill rose from the bottom of his heart.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would never offer so much without wanting something in return! The secret of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well must have been exposed! And without the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well to suppress their poison, what would become of him and Yan Yan?
"Sect Master Ning," Dugu Bo said, his voice colder now, a trace of suppressed anger in it. "I said I won't sell! This isn't about money!"
"Oh? It isn't about money?" Ning Fengzhi's smile faded a little, but he remained composed.
"Then may I ask what it is about, Senior Dugu? If something is troubling you, perhaps the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect can help. There aren't many things on this continent that we can't handle."
It was a blatant display of power. Wealth, connections, resources—the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had every reason to be confident.
Dugu Bo's expression darkened. He was about to refuse again, more forcefully, when a clear, childish voice cut in once more.
"Senior Dugu." At some point, Ning Xiaochun had moved to a spot just ahead of his father. He lifted his small face toward Dugu Bo, whose expression was shifting by the second, and spoke earnestly. "Are you refusing because you're worried that, once you lose the special environment of that herb garden, the poison that's been building up inside you and Sister Dugu Yan for years, because of your Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul, will... turn on you?"
His words crashed like thunder out of a clear sky!
Dugu Bo's whole body shuddered. His dark-green pupils shrank to two points as he stared at Ning Xiaochun in disbelief. The chilling, terrifying aura of a Titled Douluo, which he had kept tightly reined in until now, burst forth beyond his control. Like a venomous serpent ready to devour its prey, it locked onto Ning Xiaochun in an instant!
"What did you say?!" Dugu Bo's voice brimmed with murderous intent and disbelief. "Boy, what nonsense are you spouting?!"
Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo both stepped forward almost simultaneously, shielding Ning Xiaochun from either side. Two auras, no less powerful—and even weightier—than Dugu Bo's surged up and crashed against his!
The air froze. The invisible pressure drained the color from Dugu Yan and Shui Bing'er's faces, forcing them to stumble backward.
Sheltered behind the two elders, Ning Xiaochun's own face had paled a little, but his eyes remained remarkably steady. He met Dugu Bo's gaze, which looked ready to tear him limb from limb, and spoke slowly, word by word.
"I'm not talking nonsense, Senior Dugu. I know what you and your granddaughter are suffering. The Ice and Fire power in that herb garden is what keeps the poison in your bodies under control, isn't it?"
"But keeping it under control isn't the same as curing it. The poison is still there. As your cultivation improves and you use your Martial Soul, it will keep building up, getting worse and worse, until one day it erupts completely and threatens your lives."
Ning Xiaochun's voice wasn't loud, but each word struck Dugu Bo like a heavy hammer. It struck Dugu Yan too, who had only just begun to understand.
"Yan Yan... what poison? Grandpa, what's he talking about? What poison? What do you mean we'll die?"
Dugu Yan's face had gone deathly pale. She clutched Dugu Bo's sleeve, her voice trembling. She had always thought her occasional dizziness and fatigue came from training too hard. It had never occurred to her that she was poisoned, let alone that her life was in danger!
Dugu Bo didn't answer his granddaughter. He simply fixed his eyes on Ning Xiaochun, as if he could see through the six-year-old boy's body and into the depths of his soul.
This child... how could he know?! This was a secret he hadn't even fully revealed to his closest granddaughter!
Protected by the two elders' steady, mountain-like auras, Ning Xiaochun drew a slow breath and continued in his childish voice, which nevertheless carried a strange power of persuasion.
"Senior Dugu, we aren't here to take the place that's keeping you alive. We're here to discuss a partnership."
"You're worried that if you lose the herb garden, the poison will get out of control. But what if we told you... we might be able to truly cure the poison inside you and Sister Dugu Yan?"
"In exchange for the right to share that herb garden, and to study and use some of the herbs inside, we'd offer you a way to cure the poison, along with enough wealth to make sure you and Sister Dugu Yan never want for anything. What do you think of that deal?"
The raging murderous aura around Dugu Bo faltered like a punctured balloon, then began to fluctuate violently.
He looked at Ning Xiaochun, then at Ning Fengzhi, who wore a confident smile. He glanced at Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo, standing ready, then finally at his granddaughter, who stared back at him, frightened and confused...
After a long while, his overwhelming aura finally began to recede, little by little.
His voice came out hoarse, each word seeming to scrape its way up his throat.
"Cure the poison? You think you can? Boy, do you even know what poison Yan Yan and I are suffering from?!"
Ning Xiaochun breathed an inward sigh of relief. The crucial first step—stirring the other man's greatest interest and hope—had worked. He put on that "innocent" yet "sincere" smile again.
"Senior Dugu, how can you know it won't work unless you try? The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect never makes promises it can't keep. And even if we ultimately can't cure you, you'd still have those ten million Gold Soul Coins to fall back on. You and Sister Dugu Yan could seek another solution, or use the money to build an herb garden just like this one—or an even better one. Wouldn't you?"
Before you continue