Dugu Yan

On the outskirts of Sunset Forest, an old man and a young man walked along at an unhurried pace.

"En'er, have you truly decided not to obtain your fourth soul ring yet?"

Gu Rong turned to look at his grandson, his eyes full of gratification.

If an ordinary genius encountered such an opportunity to leap ten levels at once, they would probably have been clamoring to hunt a fifty-thousand-year soul beast already. Yet Gu En was calm enough to make one's heart tremble.

Gu En nodded, his expression composed.

"Grandfather, my improvement this time was too rapid. I went from level thirty to level forty almost instantly. Although the immortal herbs and ten-thousand-year soul ring supported me, the refinement of my Soul Power still needs tempering."

"If I obtain my fourth ring now, I could at most aim for thirty thousand years. But if I temper myself for half a year and let my body fully adapt to this power, then perhaps my fourth ring... might reach the threshold of fifty thousand years or more."

"Good! Not rushing for quick gains—that is the mindset of one destined for great things."

Gu Rong burst into laughter and casually swiped his hand, opening a spatial rift.

"Come on, let's return to the sect and give your Uncle Ning a surprise too!"

Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Sect Master's Hall.

The moment Gu En and Gu Rong stepped into the hall, they felt a suppressed, chilling aura.

Ning Fengzhi sat in the seat of honor, smiling as he conversed with an elderly man seated below.

The old man wore green robes. Though he sat upright, his eyes betrayed a trace of anxiety.

Behind him stood a green-haired girl with defiant eyes. It was Dugu Yan.

"Uncle Bone, En'er, you're finally back."

Ning Fengzhi rose to his feet. His gaze swept over Gu Rong, and he immediately felt that the pressure emanating from him had grown several times more imposing. Shock appeared on his face.

"Uncle Bone, your aura... you broke through?"

"Haha, thanks to En'er, I'm level ninety-seven now!"

Gu Rong proudly raised his brows, showing off his precious grandson to everyone.

The instant those words fell, the air in the hall froze.

Dugu Bo abruptly rose to his feet, a tempestuous storm raging within his heart.

Level ninety-seven? He remembered that Gu Rong had previously been level ninety-five. How long had it been since they last met? He had actually broken through two levels in a row?

But what truly horrified him came afterward.

His gaze shifted to Gu En. When he saw the faint Soul Power fluctuations around Gu En, his entire body was struck as though by lightning.

"Level forty... a Quasi-Soul Ancestor? Kid, didn't you just break through level thirty?!"

Dugu Yan's beautiful eyes widened as well, fixed firmly on the boy several years younger than herself.

She considered herself a genius, yet before this boy, she felt like a joke.

Gu En bowed to Ning Fengzhi, then turned toward Dugu Bo with an amused smile curling at his lips.

"Senior Dugu, it seems you considered my suggestion quite thoroughly. You even brought your granddaughter to my door so soon."

Dugu Bo gave a bitter smile. Before absolute strength, the pride he possessed as a Titled Douluo had long since vanished into thin air.

Especially after sensing the unfathomable spatial pressure from Gu Rong, he became even more certain that he had to attach himself to the mighty Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"This old man's life is worthless, but Yan'er is still young."

Dugu Bo gave Gu En a slight bow, his tone carrying a hint of pleading.

"Little Friend Gu En, as long as you can cure Yan'er, this life of mine will be yours from now on."

"Grandfather!"

Dugu Yan grew anxious and tried to pull Dugu Bo back.

Dugu Bo waved his hand, signaling for her not to speak.

Inside the secret chamber, the incense burner emitted a faint fragrance. It was a calming medicinal powder specially prepared by Gu En.

Dugu Yan sat cross-legged on the stone bed, her face somewhat pale. Dugu Bo stood nearby, unconsciously rubbing his hands together, with none of the dignity of a Titled Douluo remaining.

"Senior Dugu, since we are treating this, there are some things I must make clear first."

Gu En sat across from them, his expression frank.

"To be honest, I am not an apothecary specializing in poison. Most of the knowledge I possess comes from fragmented volumes of lost ancient texts. As for completely curing the Jade Phosphor Snake Poison, I currently have three approaches: lower, middle, and upper."

Dugu Bo's expression sharpened. "Please explain."

"The lower approach is to use top-grade immortal herbs to neutralize the poison."

Gu En raised one finger.

"I do possess such rare treasures, capable of instantly suppressing the deadly poison within your bodies."

"But the price is that the poison attribute of your martial souls would be greatly weakened, perhaps even causing your Soul Power Levels to regress. For a soul master, that is no different from crippling one's own martial soul."

"No!"

Dugu Bo shook his head without hesitation.

He had made countless enemies throughout his life. Without his poison arts, neither he nor Yan'er would survive until tomorrow.

"The middle approach is 'Poison Transfer into Bone.'"

Gu En continued.

"Find a suitable Soul Bone and forcibly inject the toxins that you normally cannot control, which seep through your meridians and internal organs, into the Soul Bone through guided transfer. A Soul Bone's capacity far surpasses that of the human body. This preserves your poison arts while alleviating the backlash. It is also the most reliable method at present."

A sharp gleam flashed through Dugu Bo's eyes as he pondered.

"Only, Soul Bones are difficult to find, and even with one, precisely guiding the poison would be another problem... Still, this truly is a path to survival. Then... what is the upper approach?"

Gu En lifted his teacup and took a sip, looking deeply at Dugu Bo.

"The upper approach is called an 'Artificial Poison Sac.' Senior, have you ever considered why there are countless venomous snakes in this world? Their mouths contain poison, venom flows through their bodies, yet they are never poisoned to death by their own venom."

Dugu Bo froze. He had dealt with snakes his entire life, yet he had never seriously considered such a fundamental question.

"That is... because they naturally possess venom glands and poison sacs. Their venom is isolated within specific organs."

"Exactly."

Gu En nodded.

"The reason the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul suffers backlash is because you have treated your bodies as poison sacs during cultivation."

"The toxins mix with your blood and Soul Power. Over time, your bodies naturally collapse."

"And my upper approach is to use special secret techniques and medicines to create a space within your bodies, similar to an inner core or poison sac, and gather all the toxins within it."

"In that way, the poison will not only cease to cause backlash, but because it is highly concentrated, its power will surpass what it was before."

Dugu Bo's breathing became rapid. This was practically a divine technique tailor-made for Jade Phosphorous Serpent soul masters!

"I choose the upper approach! Little Friend Gu En, please teach me this Artificial Poison Sac method!"

Dugu Bo said eagerly.

But Gu En sighed, revealing a bitter smile.

"Senior, I told you already. This is merely the upper approach, and also the most difficult one. Though I have the theory, I have never tested it on a human body."

"The human meridians are fragile. Forcibly creating a space near the Sea of Qi or dantian capable of holding deadly poison carries the risk of exploding to death at the slightest mistake."

Gu En paused, then sighed again.

"I cannot guarantee the risks involved."

Dugu Bo's expression shifted unpredictably.