Spar

Zhu Huang saw through Dugu Bo's little scheme, but he did not care.

When it came to poison, how could the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor compare to the Death Spider Emperor? And after cultivating the Heavenly Demon Creation Art, his death venom had grown even more powerful than before. In all the world, almost nothing could be mentioned in the same breath as his Death Spider Venom.

"I know you're skilled with poison, but why should I compete with you in what you're best at?"

Zhu Huang's tone was calm. Dugu Bo's expression shifted slightly. If they did not compete with poison, he had no confidence at all. Faced with such an unfamiliar powerhouse, he was already considering retreating.

He had only come at Prince Xue Xing's request to smooth things over for him, not to risk his life. It was true that he owed Prince Xue Xing a favor, but that did not mean he had to repay it with his life.

Just as Dugu Bo was preparing to leave, Zhu Huang suddenly said, "Of course, if you want to compete with me in poison, that's fine too. But there has to be a wager. If you lose, acknowledge me as your master and become my subordinate. If you win, I'll help you cure the snake venom in your body. How about it?"

"What snake venom? What are you talking about?"

Dugu Bo's pupils contracted. A terrifying killing intent suddenly erupted from him, and his emerald-green eyes fixed on Zhu Huang. Behind him, the vast phantom of a Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor flickered in and out of sight, while nine Soul Rings—two yellow, two purple, and five black—slowly revolved.

The terrifying aura belonging to a Title Douluo spread across the entire room in an instant. Liu Erlong's face went deathly pale, and her legs gave way as she collapsed onto the sofa. Even Xue Tianya, Meng Shenji, and Bai Baoshan could not help retreating again and again, each releasing their martial souls to resist that enormous pressure.

Only Zhu Huang remained unmoved. He calmly took a sip of tea and chuckled. "No need to get worked up. You can hide your condition from others, but not from me. And you don't need to be nervous. In this world, aside from me, no second person will know that you're suffering backlash from your own snake venom. Not only do I know you're poisoned, I also have the ability to resolve the problem of your snake venom backlash."

Great waves surged in Dugu Bo's heart. Killing intent filled his eyes, and his expression shifted between dark and uncertain. He looked coldly at the three Soul Douluo and Liu Erlong. His undisguised murderous intent made the three of them feel ice-cold from head to toe. They knew they had just heard a tremendous secret concerning Dugu Bo.

This Poison Douluo, who had only recently advanced to Title Douluo, was suffering backlash from his own snake venom? It sounded simply unbelievable, but judging from Dugu Bo's reaction, it seemed to be the truth.

Liu Erlong was still all right, but the three Soul Douluo were horrified. Cold sweat streamed down their faces. Sometimes, knowing too much could be fatal. Right now, they wished they could stab their own ears deaf.

After sweeping a cold glance over everyone, Dugu Bo took a deep breath. When he looked at Zhu Huang again, his gaze was completely different. Along with deep wariness, it carried intense expectation. He asked seriously, "Can you really help me detoxify?"

Zhu Huang said, "Of course. I have no need to deceive you. As long as you can defeat me, I'll help you detoxify. If you can't defeat me, then I can still help you detoxify, but you'll have to join my command and acknowledge me as your master."

Dugu Bo said without the slightest hesitation, "Deal! How do we compete?"

Zhu Huang pointed at the two cups on the tea table. "Use your strongest poison to concoct a cup of poisoned wine. I'll concoct one as well. We'll each drink the other's poisoned wine, and the winner and loser will naturally be clear at a glance."

Dugu Bo was startled. "Aren't you afraid we'll both die together? Or that the winner won't give the loser the antidote?"

Zhu Huang smiled faintly. "No. I'm confident you can't poison me to death. As for not giving the other party the antidote, that won't happen either. You need me to help you resolve your snake venom backlash, and I want to subdue you as my subordinate. How could either of us watch the other be poisoned to death?"

Dugu Bo nodded. The poisons they administered themselves, they could naturally cure themselves. As long as both sides wanted something from each other, their safety would not be a problem.

"This method is simple and straightforward. It truly can show very well whose poison is stronger, yours or mine."

Dugu Bo restrained his aura and sat opposite Zhu Huang. Liu Erlong hurriedly stood and went to sit beside Zhu Huang, watching the two of them nervously.

Only now did she truly witness Zhu Huang's strength. He was a terrifying existence powerful enough to make the three great Soul Douluo not dare to act, and to make the infamous Poison Douluo dare only speak of poison rather than risk an all-out battle.

She was certain that even the clan master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, that level ninety-four Thunder Douluo, might not possess such deterrent force.

Zhu Huang suddenly said, "Miss Liu, could you help me buy a bottle of unopened wine?"

Liu Erlong froze, then immediately understood. This was to show that neither side had tampered with the wine in advance, so he was asking her, an outsider who knew nothing about poison, to buy an unopened bottle. That way, it would be fair to both parties.

"All right, I'll go now!"

Liu Erlong immediately got up. A moment later, she returned with a perfectly sealed bottled wine, opened it in front of the two of them, then filled both cups.

The three Soul Douluo had also put away their martial souls by now and moved a little closer, eyes wide as they sought to personally witness this unique contest between Title Douluo.

"Brother Dugu, let's begin!"

Zhu Huang made an inviting gesture.

"Good!"

Dugu Bo nodded, directly picked up one of the cups of wine, then took out several small bottles from his storage Soul Tool and began mixing poison right in front of Zhu Huang.

Zhu Huang, however, took nothing out. He merely extended his index finger and forced out a drop of black liquid, letting it fall into the wine cup. That pitch-black venom entered the cup but did not change the wine's color in the slightest. In an instant, it merged into the wine and vanished without a trace, showing not the slightest abnormality.

If they had not seen him drip the venom in with their own eyes, no one would have dared believe that this freshly poured cup of wine already contained a terrifying poison capable of killing a Title Douluo.

Xue Tianya and the others felt chills run down their spines. This poison truly killed without leaving a trace. If it were placed in wine or food in advance, absolutely no one would notice. One ambush, one certain hit.

Dugu Bo's movements were extremely fast. After a dazzling sequence of actions, he also set down his own cup of poisoned wine and gently pushed it to Zhu Huang's side, while he picked up the cup Zhu Huang had finished preparing long ago.

"You..."

Seeing Zhu Huang pick up the poisoned wine Dugu Bo had prepared without hesitation and drain it in one gulp, Liu Erlong could not hide the worry on her face. She could not help wanting to stop him, yet did not know what to say.

This was a contest between two Title Douluo. She had neither the position nor the qualifications to interfere, and could only hope that Zhu Huang's strength was enough to suppress Dugu Bo's poison.

When Dugu Bo saw Zhu Huang drink down his poisoned wine in one gulp, admiration could not help appearing in his eyes. He believed that aside from Zhu Huang, there was no one in the world who would dare drink his poisoned wine.

Not willing to show weakness, Dugu Bo likewise drained the poisoned wine Zhu Huang had prepared in one gulp.

The next moment, both of them reacted almost simultaneously. An emerald-green color surfaced on Zhu Huang's exposed skin. A sharp light flickered in his eyes as he circulated the Heavenly Demon Creation Art. A demonic power that seemed to split heaven and earth and create all things flowed through his entire body, slowly suppressing that terrifying poison capable of killing a Title Douluo.

Then his Death Spider Venom wrapped around the invading toxin, breaking it down and devouring it bit by bit.

In less than a minute, under Liu Erlong's tense gaze, the emerald-green color on Zhu Huang's hand began to fade. Before long, it had returned to a healthy, fair, jade-like color.

Liu Erlong let out a breath of relief, then looked at Dugu Bo.