Friction and Invitation (2)

Friction and Invitation (2)

"Where do you think you're going, Dugu Bo?" Yue Guan's shrill, mocking voice rang through the dense forest. At the same time, golden flower stamens formed a golden blade. "Fifth Spirit Ability—Gathering of Cold Essence!"

"Yue Guan, don't push your luck!"

"This old man has already backed down. Why must you keep pressing me?"

Dugu Bo's face was dark and ugly, as though his son had died. Watching the golden blade aura, his past encounters with Yue Guan told him that it not only possessed immense destructive power but also a tracking effect. It was Yue Guan's strongest single-target spirit ability. Left with no choice, he stopped and took it head-on. "Fourth Spirit Ability—Jade Serpent God Cover!"

A dark green poisonous mist barrier spread out three meters.

Its terrifying toxicity corroded every plant within the barrier into empty husks. Even Yue Guan's strongest single-target spirit ability could not slice through this poisonous barrier with ease. It could only be gradually eroded by the poison, its Soul Power worn away bit by bit until it was completely depleted.

On the surface, Dugu Bo seemed to have won that exchange.

In truth, he had suffered a major loss.

Yue Guan's Martial Soul was the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, a rare immortal herb. Consuming it allowed one's qi to flow through the limbs and blood through the meridians, forging an indestructible body. Though it could not absolutely suppress Dugu Bo as Porcupine Douluo could, it still made Dugu Bo extremely uncomfortable and rendered most of his poisons ineffective.

The Jade Serpent God Cover was a perfect example.

The terrifying trait of this poisonous barrier was its extremely concentrated poison. Most spirit abilities that struck it would be corroded and assimilated by the toxic mist.

Yet against Yue Guan, Dugu Bo could only take his attacks head-on.

Because the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum feared no poison.

And because Gathering of Cold Essence was a fifth spirit ability.

How could the power of a ten-thousand-year spirit ability possibly be matched by a Thousand-Year Soul Skill?

This was how Yue Guan's advantage over Dugu Bo had accumulated, little by little.

Not to mention Gui Mei standing guard nearby.

For safety's sake, Gui Mei had remained with the squad, wary that Dugu Bo, driven mad by the prospect of death, might turn back without regard for his life and slaughter his way through the Soul Hunting Squad. Still, when it came to certain long-range spirit abilities, Gui Mei could support Yue Guan without leaving his position.

"Backed down?" Hearing Dugu Bo's angry rebuke, Yue Guan's smile became particularly dangerous. "You still have the strength to warn me not to push my luck and threaten me not to keep pursuing you. That only means you haven't backed down enough!"

"Chrysanthemum Guan, are you saying this old man should kneel and kowtow to you twice?" Dugu Bo truly did not want to keep tangling with Yue Guan. He would not have wanted to even under ordinary circumstances, much less now, less than a week after Ye Qingcang had planted the Bloodline Gu in his heart. It was devouring his vitality, though it also purified his blood. His current condition was genuinely weak. "This old man warns you: if you kill me, you cannot bear the consequences!"

What he said was true.

But it felt exceptionally awkward to say it.

Ever since he had become Ye Qingcang's dog and received the Bloodline Gu, Ye Qingcang had even deliberately made it twitch inside his heart once, afraid Dugu Bo would not believe him. It had been solely to prove the Bloodline Gu's lethality, and the pain had nearly killed him. Ever since then, Dugu Bo's impression of Ye Qingcang had been terrible. His fear outweighed his reverence.

He had always regarded that status as a humiliation.

Now, if anyone dared mention dogs in front of him, he would chop that person to pieces and feed them to dogs—except Ye Qingcang and those connected to Ye Qingcang...

Yet now, he had to use his status as a "dog" to threaten his mortal enemy...

There was no greater malice in this world!

But to Yue Guan, those words sounded like the ravings of a man at the end of his rope. Dugu Bo had already lost his mind!

Yue Guan let out several sarcastic laughs.

Clenching his palm, he condensed another golden blade. "There is no consequence I cannot bear. Dugu Bo, whether you have the Heaven Dou Empire, the Star Luo Empire, or the Three Upper Sects behind you, Spirit Hall will not fear them. At this moment, no one can save you. I said so. Again—Fifth Spirit Ability—Gathering of Cold Essence!"

Neither side had used their Martial Soul Avatars.

Dugu Bo had not used his.

So Yue Guan had not used his either.

They had been fighting a battle of attrition all along.

As a result, Dugu Bo still had roughly two-thirds of his Soul Power left, while Yue Guan retained around four-fifths. Seeing another Gathering of Cold Essence—the same attack he had blocked several times already, one that made him sick to his stomach at first sight—Dugu Bo suppressed his fury and prepared to unleash a spirit ability.

Unexpectedly, a sharp pain suddenly struck his heart.

His attempt to mobilize his Soul Power failed.

The spirit ability he had been preparing was forcibly interrupted.

He could only watch helplessly as the golden blade aura flew toward him!

"My life ends here!" Anticipating his death, Dugu Bo accepted it. "Chrysanthemum Guan, this old man will wait for you below. Before beating a dog, one must consider its master. You self-righteous fool will sooner or later die at the hands of my master—and you too, Gui Mei, equally foolish!"

When a man was near death, his words were kind.

Dugu Bo did not wish to revisit the humiliating history of seven days ago.

But if Yue Guan or Gui Mei were placed in his shoes, he suddenly felt that humiliation was not entirely unacceptable!

He hoped Ye Qingcang would use even crueler methods to torment Yue Guan and Gui Mei. It would be best if he used torture—such as the punishment Dugu Bo had surrendered before ever experiencing, the mere mention of which sent chills down one's spine: death by a thousand cuts—lingchi!

Yet the Bloodline Gu would not move without reason!

A dagger carrying decent force shot out from the forest!

It intercepted Dugu Bo from an angle!

Then, layers of black symbols unfurled from the dagger. Before Yue Guan's astonished eyes, they swallowed the golden blade aura of Gathering of Cold Essence. The black symbols then spread in the opposite direction. The instant they struck a tree trunk, they released the golden blade aura whole and intact—only its direction had changed. It sliced through dozens of towering ancient trees, completely losing its tracking ability, and saved Dugu Bo, who had been waiting for death!

"Who?" Yue Guan's heart tightened.

A dagger had redirected his fifth spirit ability.

If he had not seen it with his own eyes, he would have thought it was a joke!

But he had seen it himself. It could not be false!

Since when had such a bizarre spirit ability appeared on this continent?

"Sorry." A golden-haired girl wrapped in a black-and-gold cloak suddenly stood atop a treetop. Her silent entrance made Gui Mei's eyes light up. In particular, when he saw the blood-red sword insignia on the back of her cloak, it was not just him—even Yue Guan, who had been bristling with hostility moments ago, softened his gaze considerably. He listened patiently as the girl explained, "I am Violet, a student of Blue Tyrant Academy. My master left this dog behind to cover the rear and provide support. I did not expect him to come into conflict with everyone from Spirit Hall. My deepest apologies. Could we each take a step back? I will take him back to my master, and you can consider this matter never to have happened?"

"Who do you think you are?"

"How dare you speak to the two Lords like that?"

"Take a step back? You think you deserve that?"

Yan was a simp.

But he was devoted enough.

No matter how beautiful Violet was, he could ignore it.

Hearing Violet's proposal, he shouted in dissatisfaction.

But the next moment, Gui Mei, who was within the squad, immediately taught him a lesson. "Silence. Do not be rude. This young lady is an outstanding talent of Blue Tyrant Academy. The blood-red sword mark on the back of her cloak proves that she has personally killed Evil Spirit Masters. In recent years, the number of Evil Spirit Masters within Heaven Dou has become so scarce because the many talents of Blue Tyrant Academy killed them one by one. Even His Holiness the Pope has praised Blue Tyrant Academy's contributions and instructed Spirit Hall to connect its wanted list for Evil Spirit Masters with Blue Tyrant Academy, making it easier for the academy to eliminate them. Quite a few Blue Tyrant Academy students have also joined Spirit Hall. They can be considered half one of our own. How could you berate this female student so harshly?"