This Item Is Fated to Be Mine

Seeing this, Dugu Bo finally withdrew his pressure and snorted. "At least you know what's good for you, brat."

"How do you plan to detoxify Yan Yan?"

Duan Yu, who had been pulling herbs, paused and looked up.

"Yan Yan's poisoning isn't severe yet. I have two ways to save her."

"The first is to find a suitable Soul Bone for Yan Yan and have her force the toxins into it while cultivating her poison arts."

"But even if the poisoning isn't severe, if the toxins inside the Soul Bone are stimulated from outside and suddenly erupt, Yan Yan could still be in danger."

Dugu Bo frowned. "That won't do. What if something happens later?"

Duan Yu nodded, agreeing with Dugu Bo.

"That was what I was thinking too. The better option is the second one: I use the power of space to transfer the toxins out of Yan Yan's body."

"The benefit is that it solves the problem in one go, without worrying that the toxins in Yan Yan's body might suddenly flare up. The downside is that the power of her Bili-Scale Snake Venom will decrease."

Dugu Bo did not hesitate. "We'll use the second method you mentioned. This kind of snake venom that turns on its master is better off gone."

No one knew better than him how terrifying this poison was. Yan Yan's parents had died from snake venom.

Even though he had now reached the level of a Title Douluo, if he had not stumbled upon this treasure land and relied on it to endure the snake venom, he likely would have been tortured to death as well.

"Brat, how do you plan to deal with my poison? Your soul power is nowhere near enough to transfer my toxins out, is it?"

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Dugu Bo waited a long time without hearing Duan Yu reply, so he turned around to look.

He saw that Duan Yu had already squatted down and started rummaging through his medicinal herbs without permission. His bag was already half full.

Dugu Bo's expression darkened. He grabbed Duan Yu by the collar and lifted him up, saying irritably,

"Brat, are you some kind of bandit? You're taking so many of my herbs. Why don't you just have me give them all to you?"

"Really?" Duan Yu's eyes immediately lit up.

"..."

Dugu Bo smacked the back of his head irritably. "Give you my ass. Even if you want to take my herbs, leave some for me. Otherwise..."

"Otherwise what?" Duan Yu asked curiously.

"If I find myself short on herbs someday, I'll capture you, toss you into a furnace, and refine you."

"Ugh."

Duan Yu clicked his tongue in disgust. "Old man, you're pretty disgusting. Looks like you've been poisoned too deeply. You're terminally ill."

Dugu Bo's face turned black. "Brat, don't force me to slap you."

Duan Yu curled his lips and fell silent, continuing to pull herbs while glaring viciously in Dugu Bo's direction.

Old bastard, all he knows is bullying the young with his strength. Once I become a Title Douluo—no, once I become a Soul Saint, I'll show this old bastard how cruel the world can be.

For now, though, I'll spare him for Yan Yan's grandfather's sake.

"Hmm?"

Elsewhere.

By the river in the rear courtyard of the Heaven Dou Empire's crown prince's residence, Xue Qinghe stood waiting for someone despite the stifling heat.

Stingfish, disguised as a guard, saw his young master standing under the blazing sun without a care and advised him,

"Young Master, if you insist on waiting, why not wait in the pavilion over there? It's cooler there."

"That's right, Young Master. If you really want to wait here, at least hold up an umbrella," Snake Spear echoed from the side.

Xue Qinghe cast them an icy glance and said coldly, "My affairs are none of your concern."

"I want to wait here. If there's nothing else, withdraw."

"But..."

Snake Spear wanted to say more, but under Xue Qinghe's cold gaze, he shut his mouth and let Stingfish pull him away.

Not long after the two had left, Xue Qinghe heard footsteps behind him again.

He assumed Stingfish and Snake Spear had returned. Too lazy to bother with them, he continued standing there and waiting for Duan Yu.

Then he noticed that the sun above him had been blocked. He froze for a moment, thinking Snake Spear and Stingfish had ignored his orders and returned. Turning around, he said coldly,

"Didn't I just say there was no need for an umbrella—"

Xue Qinghe stopped before he could finish.

Because the person holding the umbrella over him was not Stingfish or Snake Spear at all, but Duan Yu, who had somehow appeared behind him.

Duan Yu spoke first. "What's wrong with Qinghe today? Why are you in such a bad mood?"

"Hmph."

Xue Qinghe said irritably, "Try waiting here in this kind of heat."

"What are you talking about, Qinghe? I never told you to stand under the sun waiting."

"Duan Yu!"

Xue Qinghe's eyes widened. "Do you even have a conscience? This crown prince came here because I was waiting for you."

"My mistake, my mistake."

Duan Yu hurriedly admitted fault. "Next time, I'll come earlier. Then Qinghe won't have to stand under the sun waiting."

"Fine. I'll forgive you this time, then."

Xue Qinghe snorted. "Tell me, what good treasure have you brought this time?"

Duan Yu smiled faintly. Then, under Xue Qinghe's shocked gaze, he pulled out a large pile of Immortal Herbs from his body as though setting up a street stall.

"Qiluo Tulip, Gazing-Through-Autumn Dew, Velvet Sky-Piercing Chrysanthemum, Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone..."

Before long, all the Immortal Herbs Duan Yu had brought were laid out on the ground, each displaying its own brilliance beneath the sunlight.

Although Xue Qinghe did not know what they were, he could clearly sense the energy contained within these plants.

"These are..."

"They're Immortal Herbs. They strengthen one's foundation and raise soul power."

"Qinghe, see which ones you want. Don't be polite—take more back for your trusted subordinates too. That way, they can serve you better."

Looking at the densely packed Immortal Herbs, Xue Qinghe froze where he stood and stared at Duan Yu in disbelief.

"You?"

"For me."

"Did you pull all this off?"

"Of course."

Hearing that, Xue Qinghe looked at Duan Yu and gave him a thumbs-up inwardly before asking in a low voice,

"How strong were the people in this group? How many rings did the leader have? How many people should I send to deal with them?"

"?"

Duan Yu's face darkened as he gritted his teeth. "Xue Qinghe!"

"Mm, what is it?"

"I didn't rob these. I obtained them through legitimate channels."

"Damn, you got them through legitimate channels?!"

Xue Qinghe was stunned and hurriedly apologized. "Sorry, sorry. I didn't expect that."

Still, it was not entirely his fault. The main problem was that Duan Yu had a certain habit—he coveted other people's treasures.

Whenever he set his sights on something, he would sneak out in the middle of the night and say,

"This item is fated to be mine."

Then he would knock the owner unconscious and snatch the item away.

Over the past three years, Xue Qinghe had lost count of how many of Duan Yu's messes he had handled. That was why he had immediately assumed the worst this time.

There was no helping it. That fellow's character spoke for itself.

Over the past three years, Duan Yu had relied on his powerful control over space to make moves against quite a few people.

If he could beat them, he struck openly. If he could not...

He waited until the dead of night, sneaked into their homes, cleaned them out, and swiftly left.

At first, no one paid much attention to one or two incidents. But his nerve grew bigger and bigger, until he eventually set his sights on the Power Clan, one of the former Clear Sky Sect's four great branches.

The key was that the brat had actually succeeded in stealing from them.

The matter caused a huge uproar. In the end, everyone in Heaven Dou City knew of him and secretly guarded against him.

Finally, no one knew where the public had heard his name—Jia Hao!