Chen Jin laughed heartily and withdrew his hand.
"You said it. There'll be plenty of chances for you to make good on that."
Seeing that Chen Jin had not refused, Huo Wu's face blossomed into a smile again.
"Then where are we going now?"
Huo Wu naturally linked her arm through Chen Jin's, pressing almost her entire body against his shoulder.
Feeling that voluptuous softness, Chen Jin quietly drew a breath.
"Let's head back and rest first. The matches ahead are the main event."
Night fell.
The bustle of Heaven Dou City gradually faded.
Inside a room at the inn.
Chen Jin sat cross-legged on the bed.
Within his body.
The Nine-Turn Nirvana Art circulated slowly.
Golden soul power flowed through his meridians like surging rivers, washing over his bones and muscles again and again.
With each full cycle, the power within him grew a little more condensed.
Faint phoenix cries echoed in the air.
Although he had displayed only three soul rings-yellow, yellow, and purple-on the Soul Fighting Platform, Chen Jin knew his true strength had long since far surpassed his peers.
Outside the window.
Silvery moonlight spilled over the windowsill.
A breeze brushed past, stirring the curtains.
Suddenly.
The temperature in the room plummeted.
A faint rank odor spread through the air.
Green mist seeped silently through the gaps in the window, tinting even the moonlight an eerie green.
Chen Jin opened his eyes.
Two gleams of golden light flashed in them.
Before the bed.
A figure had appeared at some unknown moment.
Green hair fell to his shoulders, his face was sinister, and an eerie green light flickered in his eyes.
The visitor was none other than Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo.
Dugu Bo stood with his hands behind his back, sizing Chen Jin up.
"You're right on time."
Chen Jin slowly brought his cultivation to a halt and settled the soul power within him, his expression composed.
Dugu Bo looked at Chen Jin, making no attempt to conceal the scrutiny in his eyes.
"Boy, I naturally won't go back on a promise I've made."
"But you'd better pray everything you said was true."
Dugu Bo's voice echoed through the room, dry and rasping.
"If you dare make a fool of me, I'll show you what it means to suffer a fate worse than death."
Chen Jin rose and patted his robes.
"If I dared say it, then naturally, I'm confident."
"Lead the way."
Dugu Bo said nothing more. His figure flickered, turning into a streak of green light that shot out the window.
Chen Jin lightly tapped the floor with his toes.
The Phoenix God's Wings unfurled behind him.
The dazzling golden wings gave a gentle beat.
Chen Jin turned into a streak of Gold-Red light, following close behind Dugu Bo as he soared into the night sky.
In the night sky.
Two streaks of light, one green and one gold, threaded through the clouds.
Dugu Bo moved extremely fast.
The soul power of a Titled Douluo formed a green protective barrier around him, tearing apart every gust of wind that rushed toward him.
Dugu Bo glanced back from time to time.
He discovered that Chen Jin could actually keep up with him with ease.
Every beat of those golden wings left a brilliant trail of flame in the air.
Ultimate Fire really does have something to it.
Dugu Bo was secretly astonished.
The scenery below raced backward.
The outline of Heaven Dou City gradually blurred.
Rolling black mountain ranges appeared ahead.
Sunset Forest.
This ancient forest looked particularly sinister beneath the night sky.
Towering ancient trees stood in the darkness like savage beasts, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws.
Occasionally, a low beastly roar or two echoed through the valleys.
Dugu Bo plunged downward.
Chen Jin followed closely behind.
The two figures landed atop a towering mountain peak.
The wind was strong at the summit.
It whipped Dugu Bo's green hair into a wild dance.
Dugu Bo turned and looked at Chen Jin.
"We're deep in Sunset Forest."
"My secluded residence is just ahead."
A sinister gleam flickered in Dugu Bo's eyes, his tone low.
"Boy, I'm warning you one last time."
"If you dare deceive me, I'll kill you immediately."
"Even with Blazing Fire Academy behind you, your life won't be spared."
Chen Jin withdrew the Phoenix God's Wings, his expression calm.
"I told you, I'm only after the medicinal herbs."
"I can cure the poison in your body."
"I can cure the poison in Dugu Yan's body too."
"Now, take me to the place you mentioned."
Without a trace of fear on his face, Chen Jin met Dugu Bo's gaze directly.
Dugu Bo gave a soft snort, turned, and leaped down into the valley.
Chen Jin leaped down after him.
Poisonous mist filled the valley below.
It was the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flower Poison Formation that Dugu Bo had laid out.
Dense green mist churned, giving off a pungent, sickly-sweet stench.
An ordinary Soul Master would dissolve into a puddle of blood upon touching it.
A faint layer of Gold-Red flame ignited around Chen Jin.
The aura of Ultimate Fire spread outward.
The moment the poisonous mist approached Chen Jin, Ultimate Fire burned it into nothingness.
At this sight, the wariness in Dugu Bo's eyes deepened.
This junior's flames could actually counter the deadly poison of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor.
They passed through layer upon layer of poisonous mist.
The view ahead suddenly opened up.
An enormous basin appeared before them.
Within the basin, heat and cold intertwined.
They formed a strange white mist that shrouded the entire basin.
Standing here, one could feel an extreme change in temperature.
On one side was unbearable heat, while on the other was a cold that sank into the marrow.
Chen Jin followed the stone path downward.
At the very center of the basin.
A large hot spring glowed with a strange radiance.
The hot spring did not cover a large area.
Yet it was divided into two parts.
On one side, crimson spring water churned with scorching waves like boiling magma.
On the other, milky-white spring water lay as still as a mirror, giving off an intensely cold chill.
Red and white.
Heat and cold.
Two utterly opposing attributes had actually merged perfectly within this hot spring, neither interfering with the other.
"The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well."
Chen Jin murmured to himself.
This was one of the three great deadly grounds on the Douluo Continent.
It was also a treasure basin that countless Soul Masters dreamed of.
Dugu Bo had possessed this place for years, yet he had no idea of its true value.
Chen Jin's gaze shifted from the hot spring to the surrounding grass.
Around the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Countless plants of every strange shape grew.
These plants shone with all kinds of light, illuminating the entire basin like an immortal paradise.
A rich medicinal fragrance greeted his nose.
Just one breath left him feeling refreshed, and even the soul power within him grew a little more active.
Chen Jin suppressed his inner joy and began carefully identifying the medicinal herbs.
Not far from the crimson spring water.
A plant grew, fiery red from top to bottom.
It was shaped like a cabbage, but its leaves were as translucent and lustrous as rubies.
At its center was a red fruit that radiated scorching fluctuations of energy.
Because of its presence, the surrounding ground was charred black.
"Infernal Delicate Apricot."
Chen Jin recognized this top-tier fire-attribute immortal herb.
Meanwhile, on the bank of the milky-white spring water.
A large, eight-pointed flower bloomed quietly.
The flower was ice-blue, as though carved from ice crystals, without a trace of impurity.
Because of its presence, a thin layer of frost clung to the surrounding air.
"Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass."
Chen Jin's eyes flickered.
These two immortal herbs were precisely the key to Tang San's complete transformation in the original story.
Now, all these things would belong to Chen Jin.
Chen Jin continued looking.
Among a pile of scattered rocks.
An enormous pink chrysanthemum swayed in the wind.
The chrysanthemum displayed a magnificent purple hue, and every petal looked thick and substantial.
Its stamens gave off a faint golden light, like a pillar reaching into the heavens.
"Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum."
Chen Jin recognized it as an immortal herb that could send energy flowing through all eight meridians and strengthen the tendons and bones.
Not far away.
A very ordinary-looking immortal herb caught Chen Jin's attention.
It was a white flower, only the size of a palm.
It resembled a peony, yet had no leaves.
Its root was attached to a large stone, which was pitch-black.
Its petals were flecked with deep crimson, like a beauty weeping blood.
"Lovesick Heartbreak Red."
Chen Jin marveled inwardly.
This was a divine treasure among immortal treasures.
In another corner of the basin.
A nine-leaved herb, green all over as though carved from emerald, swayed.
Each leaf bore nine golden markings.
"Nine-grade purple ganoderma."
Chen Jin's gaze swept over the immortal herbs one by one.
Aromatic silk beauty, aromatic silk beauty, narcissus jade muscle bone, eight-petal immortal orchid.
Every immortal herb here would be a priceless treasure in the outside world.
Chen Jin withdrew his gaze from the immortal herbs shimmering with treasured light.
The air in the valley held not only the fragrance of medicinal herbs, but also a thick concentration of jade phosphorous serpent poison.
"Grandpa, why did you bring him here?"
An impatient female voice came from in front of the stone house beside the hot spring.
Dugu Yan strode over, her emerald eyes filled with hostility as she stared at Chen Jin.
At the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena, Chen Jin had defeated Yu Tianheng and broken the Jade Phosphorous Bewitching Formation with ultimate fire, leaving Dugu Yan nursing a grudge.
"Yanyan, don't be rude."
Dugu Bo frowned, cutting Dugu Yan off.
Dugu Yan refused to let it go and tugged at Dugu Bo's sleeve.
"Grandpa, this guy is just a Soul Elder in his thirties. He doesn't even have a fourth soul ring. How could he possibly cure our family's deadly poison? If you ask me, he's clearly a fraud plotting to get his hands on the treasures in this valley!"
Dugu Yan's voice carried through the silent valley.
Chen Jin turned and looked at the grandfather and granddaughter. His expression remained unchanged in the face of Dugu Yan's doubts.
"Senior Poison Douluo should know better than anyone whether I'm a fraud." Chen Jin's gaze settled on Dugu Bo.
Dugu Bo's expression shifted as he looked at Chen Jin. "Boy, Yanyan has a point. If you can't produce solid proof, you won't leave this valley today." His voice carried a chilling menace.
Chen Jin smiled and paced beside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, his hands clasped behind his back. "The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor is an overlord among poisons. The world knows only that its poison reigns supreme, but not that this poison also torments the Soul Master who possesses it."
He stopped in front of the infernal delicate apricot.
"Senior Poison Douluo, whenever the weather is rainy and overcast, you feel numbness and itching along both sides of your ribs, which gradually spread throughout your body. At midnight, the pain becomes unbearable, as though ten thousand ants were gnawing at your bones. Am I right?"
Dugu Bo shuddered, a terrifying light bursting from his dark green eyes. This was his most deeply buried secret. Apart from himself, absolutely no one knew.
Dugu Yan froze and looked nervously at Dugu Bo.
Chen Jin turned his gaze to Dugu Yan.
"Your condition is more serious than your grandfather's. His cultivation is profound, so he can still forcibly suppress it with the soul power of a Titled Douluo.
"But you carried poison from the womb, and it has already invaded your marrow.
"Every night of the full moon, your hands and feet turn icy cold, and your meridians spasm.
"Within a few years, the poison will inevitably erupt and kill you, reducing you to green liquid."
Chen Jin's words were plain, yet they struck Dugu Yan in the heart.
Dugu Yan paled and stumbled back two steps.
"You... how do you know?" Her voice trembled with terror.
Dugu Bo could no longer remain calm. He strode forward, arriving before Chen Jin. The immense pressure of a Titled Douluo surged toward him like toppling mountains and overturning seas.
Gold-Red light flashed around Chen Jin, and the aura of the Nine-Heaven Divine Phoenix's ultimate fire spread, melting away every trace of that invisible pressure.
Dugu Bo drew a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his shock. "Boy, since you can see all this, do you have a way to cure the poison?" There was more urgency in his voice.
The deadly poison that had tormented Dugu Bo for most of his life had now become Dugu Yan's death warrant. As long as he could save her, he was willing to pay any price.
Chen Jin remained composed and brushed the dust from his sleeve.
"Naturally, there's a way to cure it. A complete cure without any side effects, at that."
A light kindled in Dugu Bo's eyes at those words. "What method? Tell me!" He stepped forward and reached to grab Chen Jin's collar, but Chen Jin sidestepped him.
Chen Jin looked at Dugu Bo, his expression calm.
"The jade phosphorous serpent poison has already fused with your martial souls. Eradicating the poison would be equivalent to destroying your martial souls. So the solution I'm talking about isn't eliminating the poison, but guiding and neutralizing it."
Chen Jin pointed at himself. "Guide the poison in your bodies into a soul bone. Once the poison has somewhere to reside, it will no longer turn against your bodies. Not only will your soul power not weaken, it will advance further as the poison condenses."
After listening, Dugu Bo sank into thought. As a master of poison, he understood the principle, but he had never thought along these lines before, much less known how to put it into practice.
"What about Yanyan? She doesn't have a soul bone yet, and her constitution couldn't withstand this kind of guidance."
Dugu Bo asked urgently.
Chen Jin pointed at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well behind him and the surrounding immortal herbs. "This valley holds countless treasures of heaven and earth.
"I can use the herbs here to prepare a mild neutralizing medicine for Dugu Yan, slowly breaking down the poison in her body and nursing her health until a suitable soul bone is found."
Dugu Bo let out a heavy breath. The scrutiny in his eyes as he looked at Chen Jin turned to astonishment.
"Good, good, good!" Dugu Bo said three times in succession. "As long as you can cure Yanyan, I'll owe you an enormous favor."
Chen Jin shook his head.
"Senior Poison Douluo, you've misunderstood.
"I didn't come here to have you owe me a favor."
The atmosphere in the valley tightened once more. Dugu Bo frowned, displeasure flashing through his eyes.
"Then what do you want?"
Chen Jin surveyed the valley of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, filled with immortal herbs.
"First, once the poison is successfully cured, this valley of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and all its medicinal herbs will belong to me."
Dugu Bo's expression changed. This valley was a treasured place where he cultivated in seclusion, and the only place where he could suppress the deadly poison in his body.
"That's impossible!"
He rejected it outright.
Chen Jin's expression remained unchanged. He had already expected this reaction.
"Don't be so quick to refuse, Senior. Once the deadly poison in your body is cured, this valley will no longer have any value to you as a means of suppressing it..."
Chen Jin looked at Dugu Bo and said, enunciating every word,
"Second, after the poison is cured, Senior Poison Douluo must work for me."
Before you continue