A Deal with Dugu Bo, Treating the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison

Dugu Bo's residence was on the western side of Heaven Dou City.

The courtyard was not large, but it was filled with brightly colored flowers and plants.

A faintly fishy-sweet scent lingered in the air.

Bai Yi followed Dugu Bo through the courtyard and into the main hall.

The main hall was simply furnished.

Several calligraphy paintings hung on the walls, while a low table sat in one corner.

Beyond the main hall was a small courtyard.

Dugu Yan stood in the middle of it, cultivating.

Her arms were held level, her palms facing upward as purple poisonous mist slowly curled around her.

Her eyes were closed, and a light sheen of sweat covered her forehead.

Several withered yellow leaves lay scattered across the ground, having fallen after being corroded by the poisonous mist.

Dugu Bo stood at the entrance without making a sound.

As he watched Dugu Yan, his gaze carried a gentleness Bai Yi had never seen before.

She had trained longer than usual.

The pauses between her movements were shorter than before.

The speed at which her Soul Power circulated was also slightly faster than usual.

She had watched Bai Yi's battle that day and had been spurred on.

When Dugu Yan finished cultivating, the poisonous mist around her fingertips slowly dissipated.

She opened her eyes and immediately smiled when she saw Dugu Bo standing at the entrance.

"Grandpa, you're back."

She ran over and linked her arm through Dugu Bo's.

"Why were you gone for so long today?"

"Something held me up."

Dugu Yan was about to say more when, from the corner of her eye, she spotted the person standing behind Dugu Bo.

The smile vanished from her face.

She saw Bai Yi standing in the doorway, looking at her with an utterly calm expression.

"What are you doing here?"

Before Bai Yi could speak, Dugu Bo shifted sideways and stood between them.

"This kid insisted on coming to apologize to you. I couldn't stop him."

After saying that, he shot Bai Yi a warning look.

Bai Yi looked at Dugu Yan. "Do you need my apology?"

Dugu Yan froze for a moment.

She glanced at Dugu Bo's expression, then at Bai Yi's emotionless face.

She released Dugu Bo's arm and straightened up.

"I don't need your apology. I'll defeat you fair and square and make you kneel at my feet in submission."

Her tone was harsh when she said it.

Yet the fingers hanging at her sides curled slightly.

She knew she could not do it.

She had been present for the matches over the past two days.

She had watched Bai Yi tear through the joint team formed by the Five Great Academies all by himself.

She had watched him shatter Shui Bing'er's Ice Phoenix Martial Soul Fusion Skill head-on.

She had once believed that once she broke through to Soul Ancestor, she would be able to narrow the gap between herself and Bai Yi.

Now Bai Yi was already a Soul Elder with a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

She was still only a Soul Ancestor.

Even getting into the Heaven Dou Royal Team required her grandfather's influence.

Bai Yi looked at her and laughed.

"Someone who plays with poison really has no business talking about being fair and square."

Dugu Yan's brows shot up. "You..."

"Besides," Bai Yi cut her off, "the snake poison in your body won't let you live much longer."

The air in the courtyard seemed to freeze.

Dugu Bo's expression changed.

The aura he had kept restrained suddenly erupted.

The pressure of a Titled Douluo crashed down like a mountain.

Bai Yi felt the air around him turn thick and heavy.

Something invisible squeezed in from every direction.

"Kid."

Dugu Bo's voice was low and heavy.

"You'd better give me an explanation. Otherwise, no matter how highly Meng Shenji values you, I'll make sure you learn what a lesson is today."

The fluctuations of Soul Power around him grew stronger and stronger.

A dark green glow faintly seeped out from beneath the hem of his robes.

Dugu Yan was startled.

She had never seen her grandfather fly into such a rage at someone from the younger generation.

She hurried forward and stood in front of Dugu Bo.

"Grandpa, don't be like this. Calm down first."

Blocked by her, Dugu Bo did not continue releasing his pressure.

But the look he gave Bai Yi remained as sharp as a blade.

Bai Yi stood at the center of that pressure without changing expression.

His shoulders did not tremble, and his breathing did not falter.

"I can remove the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison from her body. Her cultivation will not be affected in any way."

Dugu Bo's gaze abruptly sharpened.

He stared at Bai Yi for a long time.

He knew better than anyone what the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison meant.

It was a curse the Dugu Clan had been unable to escape for generations.

His father, his wife, and his son had all died from that terrible snake poison.

He had risked his life cultivating until he became a Titled Douluo, yet all he had managed was to delay the poison's outbreak by a few years.

He had never truly solved the problem.

And now, a ten-year-old child stood before him and claimed he could remove the poison from his granddaughter's body.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

Dugu Bo's voice was lower than before.

"This is a problem our family has been unable to solve for generations."

Bai Yi met his eyes.

"You'll know if you let me try. Within seven days, I can remove the snake poison from your granddaughter's body."

Dugu Bo placed a hand on Bai Yi's shoulder, gripping him hard.

"Are you serious?"

Bai Yi did not evade him.

"I don't make promises about things I'm not confident in. But I won't do this for free. I have one condition."

Dugu Bo withdrew his hand and leaned back against the doorframe again.

There was now a little more scrutiny in his gaze as he looked at Bai Yi.

"You're only a ten-year-old child. It's hard for me to believe you."

After saying that, he fell silent for a while.

Bai Yi noticed that Dugu Bo's gaze moved away from him and settled on Dugu Yan.

Dugu Yan was still standing beside him, her hand still resting on his arm.

Her face was filled with worry and confusion.

As Dugu Bo looked at her, he seemed to recall something from long ago.

His son had been the same age when he died.

At that time, Dugu Bo had not been by his side.

He had been unable to save his own son.

At the very least, this time, he had to protect his granddaughter.

"If you can truly cure my granddaughter."

Dugu Bo spoke, his voice calmer than before.

"Then no matter what condition you have, I'll agree to it."

Dugu Yan had remained silent beside them.

As she watched the conversation between Bai Yi and her grandfather, her thoughts raced.

Bai Yi said he could remove the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison from her body.

It sounded absurd.

But what if it was true?

She thought of Ye Lingling.

For the past two years, Ye Lingling had followed Bai Yi around almost constantly.

That had been utterly impossible in the past.

Ye Lingling was withdrawn by nature and had never taken the initiative to approach anyone.

Unless Bai Yi had done something for her, or could give her something she needed.

Dugu Yan stepped forward two paces and stood before Bai Yi.

Her tone softened, carrying a trace of pleading.

"Bai Yi, don't worry about me for now. Treat my grandfather first."

Bai Yi glanced at her. "Your grandfather?"

Dugu Yan nodded, lowering her voice.

"The poison in my grandfather's body is far worse than mine. He should have already... He's been forcing himself to hold on. I'm afraid that one day, he'll suddenly be gone."

Dugu Bo's expression shifted when he heard that.

He reached out and patted the back of Dugu Yan's head.

"Don't worry about me. I'm already old; I don't need treatment. Besides, once this poison is removed, all my poison arts will be ruined. Without my cultivation, how will I protect you?"

The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's Soul Power and poison were bound together.

Removing the poison meant losing his cultivation.

Everything he had ever possessed in this life had been built upon poison.

Without it, he would merely be an old man with no cultivation at all.

When that happened, how could he protect his granddaughter? Not to mention the two enemies from Spirit Hall.