Twin Martial Souls, Three Plans

"Boy, you can talk now."

"How exactly did you tell that Yanyan was suffering from martial soul poison?"

Dugu Bo spoke coldly, his aura bearing down with crushing pressure.

Ye Han drew a deep breath and answered calmly, "Senior, that wasn't difficult to deduce. The key was Senior Dugu Yan's hair and eye colors."

He paused briefly, then said, "Purple hair and green eyes are hardly normal features for a soul master. Even soul masters who specialize in poison arts don't develop such unusual traits. The only explanation is that a force has transformed her at the root, with changes reaching deep into her marrow."

"Combined with the deadly poison inherent in her Jade Phosphorous Serpent martial soul, the answer becomes clear... she is afflicted with martial soul origin poison. The toxins have invaded her internal organs and even manifested externally, altering her physical features. Recognizing that wasn't particularly difficult for me."

"Hmph. You do have a decent eye."

After hearing him out, Dugu Bo understood. He gave a faint snort, then raised the question that puzzled him most. "Then how did you do it? After Yanyan returned, I examined her carefully. Your method could only suppress the poison temporarily, but your technique was actually more refined than mine."

"I can only force down the restless toxins in her body by relying on my Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor soul power, which shares their origin. But you're a fire-attribute soul master. How could you possibly do it?" Dugu Bo's voice was full of bewilderment. This was the mystery he had spent so long pondering.

Ye Han did not answer immediately.

He slowly raised his right hand. A faint azure glow rose from his palm, then condensed into a red Fire Needle as fine as an ox's hair, neither dispersing nor breaking apart.

It was precisely the Fire Needle he had inserted into Dugu Yan's body earlier!

The room instantly fell silent.

Dugu Bo's pupils contracted sharply, and the hand stroking his beard abruptly froze.

Dugu Yan's eyes widened, her mind reeling.

Ye Han dispersed the Fire Needle in his palm, and his surging blood energy slowly receded into his body. He looked up at Dugu Bo and explained in a steady, unhurried voice:

"I've also studied medicine. Though I wouldn't claim to be an expert, I'm reasonably familiar with the body's meridians. The technique I used to suppress Dugu Yan's poison earlier was something I worked out myself."

Then he shifted the subject. "But rudimentary medical knowledge alone is nowhere near enough to suppress the Jade Phosphorous Serpent's deadly poison. The fundamental reason I succeeded lies in my martial soul."

Dugu Bo immediately interrupted, his brows tightly furrowed. "Your martial soul? Yanyan told me about it. It's an external beast martial soul, the Fire Qilin. Boy, don't try to fool me! With your fire-attribute soul power, you'd be lucky not to trigger a violent backlash by recklessly touching Jade Phosphorous Serpent poison. How could you possibly suppress it?"

He did not believe a word of it.

When fire collided with poison, it could easily intensify the toxicity. That was common knowledge in the soul master world.

Ye Han shook his head gently. "You've misunderstood, Senior. I wasn't referring to my beast martial soul."

Those few words exploded through the room like a thunderclap.

Dugu Yan cried out involuntarily, "Ye Han... what do you mean? Could you have a second martial soul?"

Ye Han nodded slowly. "That's right. I possess twin martial souls. It was thanks to my second martial soul that I could temporarily suppress the toxins in your body, Senior."

"So that's it."

Dugu Bo let out a long breath, relief entering his voice. "Twin martial souls... no wonder. No wonder you insisted so firmly that I swear a Martial Soul Oath."

Only now did he understand Ye Han's earlier insistence.

A genius who had only just turned ten, whose soul power was nearing level thirty, and who also possessed twin martial souls—if word spread across the continent, it would stir towering waves.

Just as Ye Han had anticipated, what awaited him would be either the major powers trying to recruit him at any cost or his secret assassination before he could grow.

If Meng Shenji and the other two education committee members had learned of this beforehand, they would certainly have kept him protected within the academy, unwilling to let him take even half a step outside.

A strange silence settled over the room.

After a long while, Dugu Bo spoke thoughtfully, his voice much lower:

"Boy—Ye Han. Since you can see the root of Yanyan's poisoning, tell me: do you have a cure? Can you completely remove the deadly poison afflicting both me and Yanyan?"

This was the true reason he had come tonight.

His earlier questions about the technique and its underlying principles had all been groundwork.

He stared intently at Ye Han. For the first time, his jade-green serpentine eyes revealed an almost pleading hope.

Ye Han was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

"There is a way."

Those simple words sent a tremor through Dugu Bo's body.

Beside him, Dugu Yan instinctively covered her mouth and held her breath.

"Tell me! What is it?" Dugu Bo demanded eagerly.

Ye Han's voice remained calm. "Take Senior Dugu Yan as an example. The toxins have long since become entangled with her internal organs. In my view, resolving this isn't difficult, and there's more than one approach."

He held up three fingers.

"The first treats the symptoms. Dugu Yan would temporarily slow her soul power cultivation. Once my cultivation surpasses hers, I'll have a chance to remove the toxins completely."

Ye Han looked at Dugu Bo. "Until then, she would still have to endure the suffering of poison backlash, but with her martial soul origin strengthened, her tolerance and ability to control the poison would improve greatly. As long as she acts carefully, staying alive won't be a problem."

After hearing this plan, Dugu Bo shook his head without hesitation.

"Another one. That method won't do. Yanyan can't withstand it."

He turned toward his granddaughter, his eyes filled with tenderness and pain. "No one knows better than I do how agonizing that path is. Every attack of the poison is torment that tears the heart and lungs apart."

"Yanyan was steeped in poison even in her mother's womb. Her innate Jade Phosphorous Serpent martial soul is stronger than others of its kind. But correspondingly, her poison backlash is several times more severe than mine was at her age."

His voice grew hoarse. "As her grandfather, how could I bear to watch her walk the same road through purgatory that I did?"

Listening to her grandfather, Dugu Yan's eyes reddened, and she bit her lower lip tightly.

Unsurprised by Dugu Bo's decision, Ye Han nodded slightly and continued, "The second also treats the symptoms, but it's more feasible. I call it the soul bone method."

"Soul bone?" Dugu Bo's gaze sharpened.

"Exactly," Ye Han explained. "Once absorbed by a soul master, a soul bone becomes part of the body. This method involves gradually forcing the toxins accumulated in the body into a soul bone during everyday cultivation. In essence, you find a vessel specifically for holding the poison. The benefit is that it won't slow soul power cultivation or affect combat strength."

"Dugu Yan can use this method, and so can you, Senior."

A flicker of hope had barely risen in Dugu Bo's heart before he seized on the key phrase. "It treats the symptoms, not the root. What's the flaw? If it could eradicate the problem in one stroke, you wouldn't describe it that way."

Ye Han answered frankly. "The flaw is fatal. Think about it, Senior. Even a top-quality ten-thousand-year soul bone has a limit to its capacity. Could it hold all the deadly poison you've accumulated over your lifetime as a Titled Douluo indefinitely, while ensuring that none leaks out and the soul bone never shatters?"

Dugu Bo fell silent.

This was the plan's greatest weakness.

Even he feared the full eruption of the deadly poison accumulated within his body.

If all of it were sealed inside a single soul bone, and that bone shattered under the strain, the accumulated toxins would pour out in an instant. Against such a terrifying backlash, even a Titled Douluo would have no chance of survival.

At that thought, the color that had just returned to Dugu Bo's face drained away, leaving him forlorn.

But on second thought, this method could still serve as a fallback.

If they combined it with the first method of slowing cultivation, found a top-grade soul bone to contain Yanyan's poison, and kept her soul power level steady to reduce the burden on the bone, perhaps she could live out her life in peace.

Before that thought could fully unfold, Ye Han's next words offered him a hope he would not have dared wish for even in his dreams.

"Senior, if you want to eradicate the toxins in both you and Dugu Yan completely, without leaving any lasting harm, there is another path."

"And that is—Martial Soul Evolution!"

"You and Dugu Yan have suffered martial soul poison backlash for years because the origin of your Jade Phosphorous Serpent martial souls isn't strong enough to contain their accompanying poison. That's why the poison turns against you."

"The root cure is plain to see: evolve the martial soul and strengthen its origin. Once it's strong enough to safely contain the poison, it will no longer turn against the body."

"Martial soul evolution?" Dugu Bo froze, then disbelief spread across his face as he blurted out, "Impossible! A martial soul's form is fixed upon martial soul awakening! At most, through cultivation and adding soul rings, you can do what I did and advance a Jade Phosphorous Serpent into a Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor. That's already the limit!"

Faced with Dugu Bo's doubts, Ye Han's expression did not change. He slowly raised his right hand and held up two fingers.

"Martial soul evolution—or a beneficial mutation, as you would call it. I've already achieved it twice."

"Twice?!"

At those words, both Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan froze.

Without another word, Ye Han removed his shirt and activated the qilin bloodline within his body.

In an instant,

A black qilin tattoo appeared on his chest, while the sound of his heartbeat resounded throughout the room.

Thump, thump, thump...

Powerful and vigorous, like the beating of a drum.

"This... this is a body martial soul?!"

Dugu Bo's pupils contracted violently. He stared fixedly at Ye Han, his voice trembling.

"That's right," Ye Han answered openly. "This is my second martial soul, a body martial soul. My blood mutated first, then affected my heart. Now the mutation is spreading toward my internal organs..."

"A body martial soul... a body martial soul..."

Dugu Bo quietly repeated the unfamiliar term.

After a long while, he took a deep breath, suppressing the storm-tossed waves surging within him. He looked solemnly at Ye Han and raised the central question:

"Fine. Even if martial soul evolution really is possible, how do you intend to bring about this beneficial mutation in me and Yanyan?"

Understanding the principle was one thing. Putting it into practice was another.