Tang Shan's Taboo Violation! Lan Yu's Command!

Half an hour later.

"Brother... mmm?"

Tang Shan slowly opened her eyes, and just as she was about to habitually call out for Lan Yu, she suddenly discovered a foreign object in her mouth.

?!

Lan Yu only then realized what had happened, hurriedly withdrawing his hand and awkwardly turning his head away.

Why is there such a sense of melancholy?

Tang Shan gazed at his profile, a trace of unease suddenly surfacing in her heart, and she asked softly, "Brother, will you leave me?"

"How could I?"

Lan Yu did not quite understand her sudden low spirits, only laughing as he turned back and raised his other hand to ruffle her hair.

"Mmm~"

The young girl squinted her eyes comfortably, like a kitten being petted. When his hand moved away, she subconsciously nuzzled against the empty air.

Brother, I will never let the things from my dream happen.

Having just fainted, she had experienced a very long dream. First, she dreamed that her brother abandoned her, his eyes full of disgust; the next second, the scene shifted, and it was her brother holding her in his arms, showing her the utmost tenderness.

One moment in hell, the next in heaven—it had nearly driven Tang Shan to the brink of madness.

Fortunately... it was only a dream.

"Xiao Shan, how do you feel?"

Seeing her dazed, Lan Yu reached out and waved a hand in front of her eyes.

Tang Shan shook her head gently, subconsciously touching her forehead.

As soon as her hand touched the mark on her forehead, the mark instantly vanished.

This...

"Brother, what's wrong..."

Tang Shan touched her smooth forehead, her face full of confusion.

"It's nothing."

Lan Yu's tone was calm. He stood up, reached out to pull her to her feet, and cast his gaze toward the edge of the spring. "Xiao Shan, look at that Dragon Blood Grass."

Tang Shan looked in the direction his finger pointed. Standing quietly by the spring was a stalk of Dragon Blood Grass, shaped like a dragon's bone, half a foot tall, with a purplish-black stem and dragon-scale-shaped leaves at the top that emitted a faint, ink-black halo.

"Go pick a few of the newly grown, deepest-colored tender leaves and consume them."

"I should eat them?"

Tang Shan hesitated, shaking his arm. "But I just ate the Earth Dragon Golden Melon... what will Brother eat?"

"Be good, listen to me."

Lan Yu pressed down on her small head, his tone firm. "Only when you become stronger can you stay by Brother's side forever and help Brother, understand?"

Right, only by becoming stronger can I keep Brother.

Tang Shan's heart surged, and she nodded heavily. She activated her Mysterious Jade Hand, gently plucked a few ink-black tender leaves, returned to Lan Yu's side to sit cross-legged, tilted her head back to swallow them in one gulp, and closed her eyes to focus on refining the medicinal power.

On the other side, Lan Yu's gaze swept over the two immortal herbs hanging above the Love-Hate Yin-Yang Well.

A pity. If it were the Infernal Delicate Apricot and the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, I could have tempered my body with ice and fire.

He quickly withdrew his gaze and landed on a massive, peculiar chrysanthemum not far away.

The petals were like fluffy golden silk, and the heart of the flower glowed with a soft, pale gold light.

It was none other than the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum. It circulates energy through the four limbs, clears the eight extraordinary meridians, and forges a body as indestructible as diamond—it was a match made in heaven for his Primordial Dragonman martial soul.

Less than half an hour later, Tang Shan was the first to open her eyes.

"Brother! My martial soul... it seems to have evolved again!"

She rushed over, grabbed Lan Yu's arm, and shook it, her eyes sparkling. "And, and, my Soul Power seems to have broken through to level thirty!"

"More than level thirty."

Lan Yu smiled and pinched her soft cheeks. "Once you hunt for your third soul ring, you'll know exactly how much it has improved."

His tone shifted, becoming serious. "Xiao Shan, guard me. It's time for me to absorb an immortal herb as well."

With that, Lan Yu sat cross-legged, plucked the entire Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, and consumed it from the flower heart to the petals, immediately sinking his consciousness to focus on absorbing the medicinal power.

Tang Shan, keeping watch at his side, first glanced left and right like a thief before quietly kneeling beside him.

Her gaze fell uncontrollably onto Lan Yu's lips; her heartbeat inexplicably quickened, and her throat bobbed.

It's so hard to bear~

I want to kiss him, but Brother will find out~

She shook her head vigorously, forcing her gaze to move to his well-defined profile.

Just a touch... that should be fine, right? Brother won't notice.

Tang Shan pursed her lips, leaned down cautiously, and pecked Lan Yu lightly on the face.

Boom—

Tang Shan jerked upright and scrambled back, crouching down while clutching her wildly pounding heart, her legs trembling slightly.

What on earth was I just doing?!

It took quite a while for her heartbeat to settle down.

She stole a glance at Lan Yu, and seeing that he was still keeping his eyes closed to refine his power, an even bolder thought bubbled up from the bottom of her heart.

Just... one more time? Once Brother wakes up, there won't be another chance.

She gritted her teeth and crept over on tiptoe once more, her courage bolstered this time. The young girl slightly extended the tip of her tongue and brushed it gently against his earlobe.

Lan Yu's body shuddered, almost imperceptibly.

That single touch nearly scared Tang Shan's soul right out of her body.

She scrambled back, knelt down obediently, and lowered her head, pouting her little bottom as she didn't dare to even draw a full breath.

On the other side, Lan Yu had already entered the depths of his consciousness; he felt completely at ease with Tang Shan acting as his guardian.

"The Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum is truly a perfect match for the Primordial Dragonman Martial Soul!"

"For the physical body, it can stack the Indestructible Vajra trait, perfecting my physical defenses. As for the energy channels, it can open up the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, directly increasing the efficiency and upper limit of my Soul Power."

An hour later, Lan Yu slowly opened his eyes. Feeling the surging Soul Power within him, the corners of his mouth curled upward slightly.

It was worthy of being a celestial-grade medicinal herb; even though the majority of its medicinal potency had been absorbed by the origin of his Martial Soul, the remainder had still allowed his Soul Power to rise by five consecutive ranks.

He stood up and scanned his surroundings. Not seeing Tang Shan, he couldn't help but call out, "Xiao Shan?"

"Brother~"

A weary female voice drifted over from behind him.

Lan Yu turned around to see Tang Shan crouching not far away, looking exhausted with pale lips.

What happened?

"Brother, I'm so sleepy..." The young girl rubbed her eyes, her voice raspy.

"Then go get some sleep quickly."

The next morning.

"Grandfather, I'm not going! He's probably just lying to you. He looks even younger than me—what kind of skill could he possibly have?"

"Nonsense!" Dugu Bo rarely darkened his face, scolding her sternly, "Yanyan, show some respect!"

Hearing the commotion, Lan Yu, who was organizing herbs with Tang Shan, looked up and happened to see the grandfather and granddaughter walking over quickly.

"Little Monster, I've brought the person you asked for," Dugu Bo said, getting straight to the point.

Lan Yu nodded, stood up, and walked over to the patch of Dragon Pattern Grass that had been catalyzed by divine power the previous night.

The Dragon Pattern Grass catalyzed by divine power had dispersed its nourishment to the secondary stalks nearby; using those for Dugu Yan to consume was just right and wouldn't be a waste.

Dugu Bo took the tender leaf Lan Yu handed him.

Do I even have herbs of this color in my garden?

But he trusted Lan Yu's character, so he immediately turned to Dugu Yan and said, "Yanyan, take this quickly."

Though Dugu Yan was full of doubt, she still obediently took the leaf, swallowed it, and sat cross-legged on the spot to absorb the medicinal power.

Two hours later, amidst Dugu Bo's anxious pacing back and forth, Dugu Yan finally opened her eyes.

"Someone, give me a hand!"

Her voice trembled and her cheeks were flushed, but she couldn't suppress the excitement in her tone.

Lan Yu stepped forward, reached out to grab her by the back of her collar, and hoisted her straight up.

Dugu Yan's footsteps were unsteady, and she stumbled a few times before finding her footing. As soon as she recovered, she couldn't wait to summon her Martial Soul.

"Grandfather, my Martial Soul has evolved!"

As she spoke, Dugu Yan summoned her Martial Soul, and a massive snake covered in shadow-like stripes appeared behind her.

"My Martial Soul is now called—the Venom Shadow Corrosive Python!" Dugu Yan said excitedly.

Lan Yu stroked his chin, thinking to himself: Is the poison attribute still the primary one?

Not far away, after the initial surprise, Dugu Bo lowered his voice and began to nag Dugu Yan about something.

During their conversation, Dugu Yan's gaze frequently drifted toward Lan Yu, and she hurriedly lowered her head several times.

"Did you hear me? Stay away from that kid from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan in the future. Don't associate with him so much," Dugu Bo said in a deep voice.

"Who's associating with him!"

Dugu Yan retorted stubbornly, "He's the one who keeps pestering me. We're on the same team, so it's only natural that we talk a bit more."

Seeing Lan Yu walk toward them, Dugu Yan inexplicably raised her voice, "I haven't even let him hold my hand!"

"Little Monster, if that brat dares to pester Yanyan again, this old man will break his legs!" Dugu Bo patted his chest, guaranteeing it.

"What are you two mumbling about?"

Lan Yu was confused, but then he remembered something. His expression turned serious as he looked at Dugu Yan.

"After you go back, you don't need to deliberately avoid him. Just be cold and indifferent toward him, ignore him as you see fit, and keep him on a string."

"Why?" Dugu Yan blinked.

Lan Yu pondered for a moment, then gave a faint smile, "Consider it my order."

"Did you hear that, Yanyan!" Dugu Bo urged.

"Grandpa, shut up!"

"An... order?"

Dugu Yan's throat tightened, and her face felt as if it were burning. She suddenly recalled similar lines from the romance novels her friend Ye Lingling was always reading—

"Consider it your master's order."