The Plan

"What exactly do you want? Money, fame, Soul Rings, Soul Bones, or even for me to kill someone-it's all fine, as long as you tell me how you did it. You can come and go here as you please. It doesn't matter; all of this is yours..." Dugu Bo's words began to sound a little frantic. He promised Huo Yuhao all sorts of things, making Huo Yuhao frown slightly as he listened.

"Senior Dugu, I really want to have a proper talk with you. So please, really calm down." Huo Yuhao said seriously. Dugu Bo's state of mind troubled him. Why couldn't he just act normally?

Slowly, Dugu Bo's emotions shifted from agitation to calm. He also realized he had lost control a little just now, but the excitement in his heart still hadn't subsided.

Dugu Bo spoke to Huo Yuhao again. "Go on, what's your name, and what exactly do you want to talk about?" This time, his question was calm, neither perfunctory as before nor the wild rambling from just now. At last, they could have a normal conversation.

"Senior, my name is Huo Yuhao. My main reason for coming here is this Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass. Of course, Senior, you also felt what I did to the poison in your body. You must know your own condition well, but this is only temporary. What I want to say is that if you want to cure your condition completely, I have a way. At the same time, I have a few requests. First, I hope to temporarily obtain the right to use this place. Second, my friends will be staying here, and I hope you'll keep it confidential and not let word get out. Third, I haven't thought of it yet; I'll tell you once I have."

Hearing Huo Yuhao's requests, Dugu Bo felt they were a little outrageous. "I'm already tied up here, and you're still asking me for these things? Or is this the elders behind the girls trying to curry favor with me? But no matter what they ask, I can't give up this method of dealing with the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison. Even if it's fake, I have to give it a try."

"As long as the method you mentioned works, I can agree to all these requests, even if you have other requests in the future." This time, Dugu Bo answered with complete sincerity.

"Good, then, Senior Dugu, I'll tell you the few solutions I can offer. The first is that I have a way to completely abolish your poison cultivation. That would greatly reduce your strength, but from then on, you wouldn't suffer from the poison's corrosion. You could still cultivate, but you wouldn't be able to cultivate poison techniques."

After hearing the first solution Huo Yuhao offered, Dugu Bo first frowned, then thought of his granddaughter. He couldn't use this method himself. Setting aside the fact that he had cultivated poison techniques his entire life, and was unwilling to see the achievements of his life vanish into thin air-that was only secondary. More importantly, if his strength dropped greatly and he couldn't use poison, people would surely come after him. How could he protect his granddaughter then? But this method could be used for Yanzi. After all, Yanzi was still young and had the chance to change the direction of her cultivation.

Dugu Bo asked, "What about the other methods?"

"The second is that I can make a medicine to detoxify the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison, but it would only be a temporary solution. Because of the flaw in the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul, you would have to take the medicine continuously for the rest of your life. Of course, you could also force the snake poison directly into one of your Soul Bones. That would greatly reduce the poison's corrosion of your body. Combined with the antidote, it would let you resolve your current condition in a short time. But this has its problems too. After all, a Soul Bone's capacity is limited. One day the poison will erupt all at once, and then death will be certain."

Dugu Bo felt this method would work for him. After all, as long as his granddaughter used the first method and grew up, then it wouldn't matter if he died.

Before Dugu Bo could say anything, Huo Yuhao continued with the next solution. "The third solution is the most complicated and the boldest, and there's a risk of failure. When I suppressed your poison just now, I realized that your spiritual power is relatively weak. That's why you can't fully control the poison in your body, and a large amount of it remains in your meridians, further deepening its corrosion of your body. The steps for my solution are to take the antidote first, then increase your spiritual power and strengthen your control over the poison. But the flaw in your Martial Soul means that the higher your Cultivation, the more poison will leak out. Your spiritual power won't grow fast enough to keep up with the poison's corrosion. Finally, I'll make your Martial Soul evolve again, solving the problem completely through the Martial Soul's inheritance. But there's a risk that the Martial Soul Evolution will fail. Still, this is the most thorough solution."

Dugu Bo desperately wanted the third solution Huo Yuhao had described. If Yanzi gave up poison cultivation and took a different path, it would be best if she succeeded. If Yanzi ended up like him, she would one day marry and become a mother. Would she die during pregnancy just like his wife or daughter-in-law? Even if Yanzi were fine, what about the child? He didn't dare imagine Yanzi suffering the same fate he had. But how easy was it to achieve Martial Soul Evolution?

Dugu Bo was deeply conflicted. He asked Huo Yuhao, "What are the chances of success?"

"Since you're already a Titled Douluo, and the quality of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul isn't low, the highest success rate is only forty percent."

"What are the chances if the Cultivation is lower?" Dugu Bo pressed.

"The younger someone is and the lower their Cultivation, the greater their potential for change, and the higher the chance of Martial Soul Evolution. But it still depends on the actual circumstances."

"Do you have a Detoxification Pill right now?"

"No, but I can make one now."

"How long will it take?"

"At most two hours. Why do you ask?" Huo Yuhao asked in confusion.

"Give me one so I can see what you're capable of."

"But what if you take it and then go back on your word and leave? What am I supposed to do?" Huo Yuhao asked, staring into Dugu Bo's eyes.

"Since you're willing to tell me all this, then I must still be of some use to you. Since you say that the Detoxification Pill has to be taken for life, what's the harm in giving me one to show your sincerity? Besides, I'm still tied up. What can I do?" Dugu Bo said with an air of pride, as if it weren't Dugu Bo who was tied up right now, but Huo Yuhao across from him.

Seeing Dugu Bo like this, Huo Yuhao thought for some reason of Du Busi, that old man who always looked down on everyone. "All right, I'll make one for you to try, but don't peek." Huo Yuhao smiled.

"Little girl, I'm the dignified Poison Douluo. I'd never stoop to sneaking around. At worst, you can blindfold me."

"No need. I believe what you said." Huo Yuhao stood up, turned around, and went to make the medicine.

Making the Detoxification Pill wasn't complicated. He had made the Universe Creation Pill before, so making the Detoxification Pill for Dugu Bo wasn't difficult. Besides, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well was rich in medicinal herbs, so there was no shortage of ingredients.

Huo Yuhao placed the herbs he had gathered into a pot and slowly concocted them. Two hours later, a medicinal fragrance wafted out. Huo Yuhao took out one pill, put the rest away, and returned to Dugu Bo.

Dugu Bo had also smelled the medicinal fragrance. He had never concocted anything with this scent before, and his nose couldn't identify its ingredients either.

"I'm done. Next, I'll withdraw the chill in your body. Then, after a while, poison will form in your body again and corrode you. When that happens, just take this." Huo Yuhao explained.

"Stop talking and hurry up."

"You're really impatient." After saying that, Huo Yuhao reached out and removed the chill from Dugu Bo's Poison Core. The poison appeared again, spreading throughout Dugu Bo's body. Then Dugu Bo felt that familiar sensation return. He opened his mouth, signaling Huo Yuhao to put the medicine in.

Once the pill was placed in Dugu Bo's mouth and he swallowed it, its medicinal power slowly spread through his body. Then the pain of corrosion in his body began to disappear.

This Detoxification Pill is real, Dugu Bo thought. At that moment, a joy he couldn't put into words welled up in his heart.

"Untie me," Dugu Bo said hurriedly.

"What are you trying to do now? Take the pill and go back on your word?"

"No. I believe you can cure the poison now, but my poison can wait. There's someone else who needs this poison dealt with more urgently." Dugu Bo explained.

"But what if you run off and bring a bunch of people back to surround me?"

"I swear on my Martial Soul. The person who needs it more urgently is my granddaughter. Didn't you say your third solution could solve the problem completely? My granddaughter is still young, so her chance of success is even higher, according to what you said. I'll bring her here to see you right away."

"How long will it take to bring her here?"

"I'll be back in three hours."

"Go ahead." After saying that, Huo Yuhao untied Dugu Bo.

"I, Dugu Bo, keep my word." After saying that, Dugu Bo quickly left. Dugu Bo was also taking a gamble now, gambling that it was all true. After all, this might be his granddaughter's only chance to live a normal life.

After Dugu Bo left, Huo Yuhao turned around and went to look at the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass.