Lightning and Poison, Dugu Bo

"Pfft! Little junior is truly interesting. Since you've arrived, let's begin!"

Dugu Yan turned to push open the doors of the No. 3 Training Ground, walking ahead of Yu Hengqing at a leisurely pace.

As soon as Yu Hengqing stepped inside the No. 3 Training Ground, a sparring ring the size of a basketball court caught his eye.

Dugu Yan vaulted onto the ring with one hand and stomped her foot.

"The floor of this ring is made from the trunks of the Silver Wind Willow, a century-old plant-type spirit beast! It can cushion the full-force blow of a level 30 Great Spirit Master, so feel free to go all out, junior."

Yu Hengqing, who had just walked up the stairs, looked down curiously upon hearing this.

Sure enough, just as Dugu Yan had said, the floor here was made of Silver Wind Willow.

This type of spirit beast was once found everywhere, but because its wood was so useful, its population had plummeted; now, only a small number remained in the Star Dou Great Forest.

"Spirit, possess!"

The moment a snake shadow merged with Dugu Yan, her pupils narrowed into slits, ink-green snake scales sprouted along her wrists and neck, and two yellow spirit rings appeared beneath her feet.

Because his own spirit was external, Yu Hengqing did not summon it; he simply revealed his spirit rings and began to channel the lightning power of Leiyi.

Seeing the golden lightning dancing across Yu Hengqing's body, Dugu Yan couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.

The information she had paid to acquire earlier was correct—Yu Hengqing's spirit was indeed not the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon!

As long as Tianheng becomes a Titled Douluo before Yu Hengqing, then Tianheng's position as Sect Master will be set in stone!

Ever since she became teammates with Yu Tianheng, Dugu Yan had learned that he had been instilled with a certain philosophy by his father since childhood.

Yu Tianheng had to do everything better than anyone else; only then could he be considered qualified as the successor to the sect.

Though the competitive Dugu Yan loved the powerful Yu Tianheng, she didn't want to be someone standing in his shadow; she wanted to face problems side-by-side with him.

That was why Dugu Yan was willing to give up the Century-Old Purple Vein Ginseng her grandfather had given her. She didn't care if it was worth it; she only wanted to do what she believed was right.

"Jade Phosphorus Red Poison!"

As the spirit ring at Dugu Yan's feet lit up, waves of red mist suddenly emerged, and she opened her mouth to gently inhale a cluster of the Jade Phosphorus Red Poison.

Just as Yu Hengqing prepared to retreat, he noticed Dugu Yan's eyes turn red as she charged toward him with a punch.

Seeing this, Yu Hengqing abandoned the idea of retreating, set his stance, and coiled power into his right fist.

The moment Dugu Yan's fist was about to reach him, Yu Hengqing threw his own punch, meeting hers head-on.

"Bang!"

Both of them retreated several steps, though Yu Hengqing's three steps were clearly fewer than Dugu Yan's seven.

"Junior, I didn't expect your physical body to be so strong. It looks like you've chosen the path of a Power Attack System Battle Spirit Master!"

Dugu Yan smiled and shook her arm, which was stinging from the impact. Having witnessed Yu Hengqing's strength, she finally understood why Yu Tianheng had been pushing himself so hard in training lately.

If not for the fact that Yu Tianheng had the advantage of being a few years older than Yu Hengqing, he likely would have been left in the dust long ago.

Facing Dugu Yan's praise, Yu Hengqing only responded indifferently: "Senior is joking, I was just lucky!"

Naturally, Yu Hengqing wouldn't tell Dugu Yan that he had used Whale Glue to raise his physical fitness to the level of a two-ring Power Attack System Battle Spirit Master.

"Then let's continue!"

Hearing Yu Hengqing's hollow response, Dugu Yan's mood didn't fluctuate; she simply continued her assault.

After another exchange of blows, Dugu Yan confirmed that Yu Hengqing's current physical strength was not derived from a spirit skill.

It seems I still have to use poison to solve this!

"Jade Phosphorus Blue Poison!"

The poison mist that had dissipated reappeared around Dugu Yan, only this time, it was blue.

After Dugu Yan absorbed the Jade Phosphorus Blue Poison, Yu Hengqing noticed a clear improvement in her defensive capabilities.

Previously, Dugu Yan had needed to retreat seven steps to neutralize one of Yu Hengqing's strikes, but now she only needed five.

It seems both of these spirit skills are buffs.

Having seen the effects of Dugu Yan's two spirit skills, Yu Hengqing stopped holding back. The spirit ring at his feet lit up, and golden lightning surged forth.

"Senior, be careful!"

No sooner had the words left his lips than Yu Hengqing's figure vanished from Dugu Yan's sight.

Before she could even react, her vision suddenly flipped, and she found herself staring at the ceiling of the No. 3 Training Ground.

"I actually went down without even being able to react. It seems I've been a bit slack lately!"

Lying on the ring, Dugu Yan stared at the ceiling and sighed.

Losing a spar to Yu Hengqing didn't feel shameful to her; after all, she hadn't even used her true trump cards yet.

"Senior, are you alright?"

Yu Hengqing walked over and extended a hand to the fallen Dugu Yan. She took it to pull herself up, then tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"Junior is truly gifted! It seems I didn't give my Purple Vein Ginseng to the wrong person. Don't forget your senior's investment in the future!"

Standing steady, Dugu Yan suddenly felt her body grow lighter, as if a heavy boulder had been lifted from her, and she began to tease Yu Hengqing with a cheerful smile.

"You jest, Senior."

Yu Hengqing and Dugu Yan exchanged a few more casual remarks before parting ways at the training ground entrance. However, just as Yu Hengqing was about to head toward the Thunder-Fire Hall to cultivate, an unexpected face appeared outside the training grounds.

"Finished?"

Zhou Yan was panting heavily, scanning Yu Hengqing as if trying to spot any injuries.

"Yes. It was just a simple training session, so it naturally didn't take much time."

Though puzzled by Zhou Yan's presence, Yu Hengqing answered his question nonetheless.

"Did Dugu Yan not use her soul skills?"

Hearing that it was a simple training session, Zhou Yan assumed Dugu Yan hadn't utilized her soul skills.

Seeing Zhou Yan's persistent questioning and recalling Dugu Yan's parting instructions, Yu Hengqing had already roughly guessed the reason for his arrival.

"She did! Right before she left, she even urged me to go to the school infirmary for an antidote, fearing I might have accidentally inhaled some Jade Phosphorus Blue Poison during our spar."

"That's good. Take this antidote now."

As he spoke, Zhou Yan produced the antidote he had retrieved from the infirmary and handed it to Yu Hengqing.

"Jade Phosphorus Blue Poison has the effect of temporarily slowing one's reactions. Taking the antidote will restore you immediately; otherwise, it would take an hour or two to recover."

Yu Hengqing's guess was correct. Zhou Yan had likely skipped his cultivation at the Thunder-Fire Hall to find him specifically for this reason.

Taking the antidote from Zhou Yan, Yu Hengqing swallowed it in one gulp under his watchful gaze.

In truth, Yu Hengqing felt no signs of poisoning, and Leiyi had confirmed his body was fine, but considering Zhou Yan had gone out of his way to fetch medicine instead of cultivating, he didn't want to let his friend's kindness go to waste.

Not long after returning home and beginning her cultivation, Dugu Yan felt that something was amiss with her body.

Coincidentally, Dugu Bo was home today, so Dugu Yan ran to find her grandfather and asked him to check her pulse.

Dugu Bo naturally wouldn't refuse Dugu Yan's request, but the moment he placed his hand on her wrist, he sensed something was wrong.

"Yanyan, the poison in your body has decreased by a tenth compared to before!"

Dugu Bo gripped Dugu Yan's hand in excitement, looking at her with a face full of agitation.

"Ah?! Grandfather, are you telling the truth? The poison in my body has decreased?!"

Dugu Yan naturally knew that ever since their family awakened the Jade Phosphorus Snake Emperor, every session of cultivation would cause toxins to accumulate within their bodies.