Sunset Forest, outside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Sword Douluo stood in midair, his brow furrowing slightly as he studied the Poison Formation before him.
"Just how long has Dugu Bo been working on this place? How did he set up such a formidable Poison Formation? An ordinary Seven-Ring Soul Sage would die just from touching it!"
"But he still hasn't discovered the Immortal Herbs inside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well after all these years. How did Dugu Bo even become a Titled Douluo? He doesn't know a thing!"
Despite his remarks, Sword Douluo's hands did not slow.
He raised his right hand and swept it lightly at an angle, easily breaking through the Poison Formation before him.
Then he drew his Soul Power into his body and entered the Poison Formation directly.
Within the Poison Formation stood a mountain, with clear signs of habitation. A cave halfway up the mountain was particularly conspicuous, and traces of Soul Power fluctuations still lingered inside.
Unfortunately, no one remained inside now.
Sword Douluo gave it a casual glance, picked up speed, and flew toward the summit.
Suddenly, his brow lifted slightly as he sensed Soul Power fluctuations coming from deep within the mountain.
"Dugu Bo's Soul Power? Is he fighting someone?"
At that thought, Sword Douluo immediately sped up.
Their Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was so close to Sunset Forest, and he had arrived so early. If he still failed to get a share of the spoils, he would be too embarrassed to return and face Ning Fengzhi.
And if he came back empty-handed, what would Ning Fengzhi think of him?
Would he think Sword Douluo had pocketed the gains for himself?
At that thought, his expression soured. He could only hope nothing unexpected happened.
Before long, he reached the summit. Directly ahead lay the valley containing the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
But once he saw everything inside the valley clearly, his expression immediately changed.
Not a single Immortal Herb remained in the valley, and there were no signs of a battle.
Aside from that, emerald-green poisonous mist filled the entire valley. Its rank stench stung the nose, and it was extremely dangerous. An ordinary Soul Master would die instantly after inhaling a single breath.
As a precaution, he even held his breath and strengthened the Soul Power protecting his body.
"This Soul Power should belong to Dugu Bo. Could he have picked all the Immortal-grade Herbs in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well?"
With a flicker of movement, Sword Douluo flew into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, intending to see whether he could find anything else.
The moment he entered the valley, he sensed the powerful presence of two kinds of Heaven and Earth Yuan Power: ice and fire. The closer he came to the two springs at the center of the valley, the stronger that presence became.
The Soul Power and poisonous mist Dugu Bo had left behind were also being rapidly purified.
"This truly is a rare treasure of a place, but..."
Sword Douluo scanned his surroundings without finding any remaining Immortal Herbs. Through his powerful spiritual perception, he suddenly detected a trace of Soul Power fluctuations in another direction from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and planned to pursue it.
But just as he was about to move, a faint disturbance came from the spring.
Sword Douluo withdrew his gaze and descended toward the spring.
Where the ice spring and fire spring met, the water churned violently. Amid the white steam, a figure was floating up from the depths.
Then a hand emerged from the spring and grabbed a rock at its edge.
The hand had long, slender fingers and well-defined knuckles, but it was now covered in blood.
Then another hand reached out. Both hands strained together, and a thin, small figure clambered out of the spring, fell onto the loose stones beside it, and immediately lost consciousness.
Sword Douluo froze for a moment at the sight.
The person before him looked fourteen or fifteen, with a thin, small frame and nothing on his body.
Yet a large, mangled wound on his chest, roughly thirty or forty centimeters across, exposed the ribs beneath. Even Sword Douluo's scalp tingled at the sight.
More troubling still, the boy had already lost consciousness. His entire body was deathly pale, and he drew breath in without breathing out. He looked close to death.
"Could this be Tang San?"
Sword Douluo studied the boy's appearance, then looked up at the images on the Light Screen.
According to what Chen Shi had said earlier, Tang San was undergoing the Ice and Fire Golden Body refinement inside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. How had he ended up like this?
Could it be?
Sword Douluo looked around and instantly understood. Tang San had probably been wounded by Dugu Bo.
As for the poisonous mist inside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, it was merely residue left instinctively after Dugu Bo released his Soul Power, not an attempt to destroy the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
At that thought, Sword Douluo found himself caught in a dilemma.
On one side was Dugu Bo's presence, which he had just sensed. On the other was Tang San.
Although Tang San had nothing on him, who knew whether he had picked some Immortal-grade Herbs beforehand and hidden them away?
After all, the Light Screen had said that Tang San had brought out the Aromatic Silk Beauty. Whether it was currently in Tang San's possession was still unknown. What if Tang San died?
As for Dugu Bo, whether Sword Douluo could catch up with him was also uncertain. After all, he had expended quite a bit of Soul Power on the journey, and he was not as familiar with Sunset Forest as Dugu Bo was.
Thus, after careful consideration, Sword Douluo decided to stabilize Tang San's injuries first. At the very least, he would wake him and have him explain what had happened and where the Aromatic Silk Beauty was.
(Tang San dying so easily would certainly be unrealistic. He still has a role in the story later.)
Having made up his mind, Sword Douluo hesitated no longer. He immediately went to Tang San's side, used his Soul Power to stabilize the wound on Tang San's chest, and reluctantly took out a medicinal pill and placed it in Tang San's mouth.
"I hope this works, or I'll have suffered a huge loss!"
Sword Douluo spoke with some pain at the expense as he watched Tang San swallow the pill.
It was a top-grade medicinal pill, the Heart-Protecting Pill. Though it could not revive the dead or regrow flesh on bare bones, its effects were still extremely powerful.
But Tang San's injuries were simply too severe. Even with it, Sword Douluo could only barely keep him alive.
Whether he survived would depend on Tang San himself.
As for whether there would be any lasting aftereffects...
Sword Douluo glanced at the wound on Tang San's chest again and shook his head gravely.
With injuries like these, lasting aftereffects were unavoidable.
At that thought, Sword Douluo looked up at the Light Screen in midair, his expression turning puzzled.
With Tang San reduced to this state, could he still become a God in the future?
Just then, Sword Douluo suddenly noticed that Tang San's breathing had steadied. Moreover, the two kinds of Heaven and Earth Yuan Power around them were actually gathering toward Tang San's body, concentrating mainly on the wound on his chest.
Sensing this change, Sword Douluo was astonished to discover that the wound on Tang San's chest had actually stopped bleeding and was beginning to mend slowly.
Unfortunately, this unusual phenomenon did not last long before disappearing.
"What was that just now? How could Tang San draw upon the Heaven and Earth Yuan Power of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well? Could it have something to do with the Immortal-grade Herbs he ate?"
That was Sword Douluo's first guess about the unusual phenomenon.
Just then, Sword Douluo suddenly sensed Tang San's eyelids twitch, as though he were about to wake, and he immediately brightened with delight.
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