Deep in Sunset Forest, inside a basin shrouded in dark purple miasma, the air reeked of a nauseatingly sweet stench.
"Hiss~"
With a snake's shriek that made one's scalp crawl, a massive emerald serpent crashed to the ground, its scales glittering like flawless jade.
It was a Jade Phosphorus Serpent with a cultivation of two thousand five hundred years, far beyond the theoretical limit that a certain Grandmaster had set for a Soul Elder absorbing a third Soul Ring.
"Yan'er, have you gone mad?!"
An anxious cry rang out.
Fourteen-year-old Ye Lingling wore white robes and a white veil over her face, leaving only a pair of clear blue eyes visible.
But now, those eyes, usually as still as an ancient well, held a rare flash of panic.
Ignoring the poisonous miasma all around her, she darted over to the giant serpent's corpse.
Dugu Yan sat cross-legged before the serpent. Her short, deep-purple hair, usually so spirited, now clung to her cheeks as if soaked with sweat.
As Soul Power surged wildly through her, her legs had already crossed uncontrollably, then dropped limply to the ground.
A diamond-shaped green scale at her brow glowed with an eerie light. Her once-clear green eyes had been completely swallowed by a deep purple hue.
"Ling... Lingling..."
Dugu Yan's voice was horribly hoarse. She gritted her teeth and clutched the front of her chest with both hands, her nails digging deep into her flesh and drawing thin streams of blood.
"Yu Tianheng could... absorb a Soul Ring beyond his limit... Why shouldn't I be able to?!"
Dugu Yan forced the words through clenched teeth, her voice filled with a young girl's characteristic defiance and resentment.
She had been the one ahead in Soul Power, but Yu Tianheng had obtained century-old and millennium-old Whale Rubber before her because of his family. He reached level 30 sooner and successfully absorbed a Soul Ring beyond his limit, breaking through directly to level 32.
Watching Yu Tianheng swagger with pride, how could Dugu Yan, granddaughter of Poison Douluo, bear the resentment?
So Dugu Yan had secretly used millennium-old Whale Rubber without telling her grandfather. After breaking through level 30, she brought Ye Lingling to Sunset Forest to hunt Soul Beasts. She absolutely refused to fall behind anyone.
"You..."
Seeing Dugu Yan's body convulse in pain, Ye Lingling was about to summon her Martial Soul, the Nine Heart Begonia, when Dugu Yan suddenly raised her head and spat out a dense cloud of purple mist.
"Stay back! The poison... I can't control it!"
Third Soul Skill: Jade Phosphorus Purple Poison!
But this wasn't a Soul Skill Dugu Yan had deliberately unleashed. It was an instinctive outpouring after the poison in her body had completely run wild.
If Ye Lingling didn't dodge, even Soul Power protecting her body wouldn't spare her from a terrible time.
"Yan'er!"
At the critical moment, an old voice filled with terrifying Soul Power thundered through the basin.
A vast wave of emerald-green Soul Power swept in like a hurricane, crushing the purple mist Dugu Yan had spewed out. It finally condensed into a few drops of poison that fell to the ground with a sizzling, corrosive hiss.
Dugu Bo, clad in green robes, appeared out of thin air in front of Dugu Yan.
This Titled Douluo, whose mastery of poison was second to none in the world, now wore an unprecedented look of worry and urgency on his usually sinister face.
"Grandpa..."
When Dugu Yan saw Dugu Bo, the purple in her eyes faded a little, but even greater pain followed.
"You foolish girl, are you trying to get yourself killed? How many times have I told you never to absorb a Soul Ring from a highly poisonous Soul Beast? And you chose a Jade Phosphor Snake beyond the age limit!"
Dugu Bo swept Dugu Yan into his arms and poured Soul Power into her, trying to suppress the poison running wild inside her.
But when his Soul Power probed her body, the face of this level-91 Titled Douluo turned deathly pale.
"How could this happen..."
Dugu Bo murmured, his voice trembling.
The poison arts he'd always prided himself on were useless against the poison in his granddaughter's body.
Was he about to watch the tragedy of his son and daughter-in-law happen all over again?
No. That couldn't happen. There had to be a way.
That treasure he'd recently discovered, the one that could suppress poison, would surely save Yan'er!
Looking at his unconscious granddaughter, Dugu Bo's eyes were wild with fear.
He absolutely could not lose her.
With that thought, Dugu Bo grabbed Ye Lingling with one hand, held Dugu Yan securely with the other, and flew deeper into Sunset Forest.
Deep in Sunset Forest, poisonous miasma hung thick in the air.
Dugu Bo swept his wide sleeves, and a gentle yet irresistible wave of Soul Power forced the miasma aside. He carried the two girls straight down into a hidden valley.
The moment their feet touched the ground, a strange aura that mingled freezing cold and searing heat washed over them.
In the center of the valley lay a spring more than ten meters across, divided as distinctly as a Taiji symbol: one half scarlet as lava, the other milky white as ice.
"Lingling, put her at the boundary between the red and white!"
Dugu Bo's voice brooked no argument.
The center was the best place, but Yan'er couldn't withstand it in her current state. They could only use the opposing forces of ice and fire at the edge to suppress the poison.
Ye Lingling had no time to study the strange valley. She did as he said and laid Dugu Yan down at the edge of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
The moment she touched the ground, the mixed poison raging inside Dugu Yan seemed to be stimulated. Her serpentine tail lashed wildly against the ground, while the green scale at her brow flickered.
"Nine Heart Begonia, bloom!"
Ye Lingling bit the tip of her tongue and spat a mouthful of blood onto the pink begonia in her palm.
Its petals burst open in a dazzling radiance. Rich Life energy became wisps of pink light that poured into Dugu Yan without end.
"Grandpa, I... I can't heal her as fast as the poison is erupting!"
Ye Lingling's face was pale, and cold sweat beaded her forehead. Though the Nine Heart Begonia was hailed as the greatest healing Martial Soul in the world, against such potent poison, all she could do was keep Dugu Yan clinging to her final breath.
"That's enough. Leave the rest to me!"
Dugu Bo drew a deep breath, a look of resolve flashing in his eyes.
He spun around and shot into the air, turning into a streak of green light. Only his words remained, echoing through the valley: "Keep Yan'er safe. I'll be right back!"
Heaven Dou City, Treasure Appraisal Pavilion.
A thirteen-year-old boy leaned listlessly against the counter, idly turning a copper coin in his hand.
The boy had delicate features, but his gaze carried a depth and composure beyond his years.
This was Yang Fan.
Suddenly, a suffocating, terrifying pressure came crashing down like a physical force.
The teacup on the counter shattered instantly, and the copper coin in Yang Fan's hand was shaken loose and sent flying.
"Poison Douluo?!"
Yang Fan's pupils contracted, and his body tensed instinctively.
"Yan'er's in trouble. The poison in her body turned on her after she absorbed a Soul Ring beyond her limit."
Dugu Bo didn't waste time. He spoke at lightning speed.
"I know you have secrets. Come with me and save her, and I'll owe you a favor!"
The situation was urgent, and Yang Fan agreed without the slightest hesitation. "All right. I'll go with you."
Dugu Bo swept Yang Fan into his arms and rushed out of the Treasure Appraisal Pavilion.
Lately, he had let Dugu Bo catch glimpses of his ability to help Tang Yuehua break through to Soul Master, along with his knowledge of pharmacology. He'd planned to wait until Dugu Bo's poison flared up, then imitate Tang San and the protagonists of other fanfictions, deliver that classic speech, and easily claim the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
But why had Dugu Yan gotten into trouble first? Had this happened in the original story, or was it the butterfly effect?
At that moment, Yang Fan's anxiety was no less than Dugu Bo's. He'd gotten along well with Dugu Yan lately.
After all, who wouldn't like a beautiful Soul Master with a good personality, a treasure trove at home, and a Titled Douluo in the family?
Anyone who didn't must have been a transmigrator from Chengdu.
But who would've thought...