Tang Feng pointed at two strange fruits. Scales covered their skins, and their stems coiled like little snakes. "These immortal fruits are called 'Dragon Snake Fruits.' They're a perfect match for snake-type Martial Souls.
"Old Monster, although your toxins have been cleared away, your Jade Phosphorus Snake Martial Soul is a Beast Martial Soul. When you use Martial Soul Possession, its toxins will merge into your blood. Over the years, they'll still accumulate and turn back on you."
"These Dragon Snake Fruits can not only help you break through your bottleneck, but also temper your Martial Soul Origin, reshape your bones and sinews, and even bring about Martial Soul Evolution.
"Most importantly, they can permanently increase your body's poison resistance. Afterward, you can use your Martial Soul and poison arts freely without worrying about toxic backlash. You'll never have that worry hanging over you again."
Dugu Bo's breathing nearly stopped at those words. He stared fixedly at the two fruits, each no larger than a fist, his body trembling slightly with excitement.
For decades, Dugu Bo had endured the agony of ten thousand ants gnawing at his heart every night, barely clinging to life by relying on the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to suppress it.
Now, hearing that he would "never have that worry again," those words weighed like a thousand tons, striking Dugu Bo's heart and mind with a tremendous shock.
"Is that really true?" Dugu Bo stepped forward excitedly and grabbed Tang Feng's arm. "These little fruits really have such miraculous effects?"
"When have I ever lied to you?" Tang Feng raised an eyebrow and teased him.
"Hahaha, of course I believe you!" Dugu Bo laughed heartily. "I'm just too excited... Speaking of which, Little Monster, I also have a granddaughter. She used to suffer from her Martial Soul's toxins too, and only escaped the agony of toxic backlash thanks to your method. If she eats this Dragon Snake Fruit, will she be able to rest easy from now on, just as you said?"
Tang Feng nodded in confirmation. "Of course. There are exactly two here, one for each of you."
"Hahaha! Good!" Dugu Bo clapped his hands and laughed. After calming himself, he sidled up to Tang Feng with a crafty look and lowered his voice. "Little Monster, how about... becoming my grandson-in-law? My granddaughter is one of the greatest beauties in Heaven Dou City!"
Tang Feng froze at those words. Looking at Dugu Bo's smug expression, which all but proclaimed, "My granddaughter is the most beautiful woman in the world," he could not help rolling his eyes and giving a wry smile. "Old Monster, thank you for thinking so highly of me. I've only just turned twelve, and all I want right now is to cultivate hard and grow stronger. Besides, my identity as a member of the Clear Sky Sect... I'm afraid it would bring Spirit Hall's bloody storms down on you."
"Spirit Hall? When have I ever feared them! Just say yes, and even if the sky falls, I'll hold it up for you!" Dugu Bo snorted proudly, a fierce ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.
Warmth filled Tang Feng's heart, but it only strengthened his resolve to refuse. His expression was candid. "Old Monster, it's precisely because you treat me sincerely that I can't drag you into trouble. If we're truly fated, we'll naturally end up together in the future."
"Ah, let's leave that aside for now. Hurry up and absorb the Dragon Snake Fruit. It might even help you break through to rank ninety-three!" Seeing that Dugu Bo still wanted to keep recommending his granddaughter, Tang Feng hastily changed the subject. Right now, he wanted only to grow stronger.
Dugu Bo did not press him. He took out a blue leather pouch the size of an adult's two palms. "You've done our Dugu Family a great kindness. This is a Storage Soul Tool that can hold living things. I call it the 'Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse,' and it's yours. With this, you won't have to worry about medicinal potency fading when you gather herbs."
Dugu Bo then pointed at the entire herb garden. "Take any herbs here that you need."
Tang Feng accepted the Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse and said solemnly, "Then I won't stand on ceremony. These herbs really can save lives when I'm out in the world."
"Take whatever you like!" Dugu Bo waved generously, then turned and rushed excitedly into the cave to enter seclusion, preparing to absorb the Dragon Snake Fruit. Even his departing figure radiated anticipation.
Looking at the valley full of immortal herbs and the Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse in his hand, Tang Feng murmured, "Old Monster, thank you. I'll remember this kindness."
Tang Feng gently stroked the Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse, his gaze sweeping over the immortal treasures filling the valley, and began harvesting them methodically.
His touch was exceedingly light, and he damaged neither roots nor stems, ensuring that their medicinal properties remained intact.
The Aromatic Silk Beauty, a large pink flower, stood gracefully beside the Extreme Cold Yin Spring. Its petals were translucent as colored glaze, and its central stamens gave off a soft pink glow.
Tang Feng thought to himself, Grandfather has spent his whole life refining medicine. This flower's fragrance can neutralize all poisons. It's the best protective charm he could have.
As he slowly approached, an intoxicating fragrance washed over him. Tang Feng severed the stem with a jade knife, then carefully sealed the flower and placed it in the Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse.
The Ink Jade Divine Bamboo was inky black as iron throughout, yet a jade-like luster flowed over its joints. It could strengthen a Martial Soul's balance of hardness and flexibility and improve its toughness, making it very suitable for his grandfather's Soul Breaking Spear Martial Soul.
The Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum was a neutral immortal treasure with mild medicinal properties but an extremely powerful lasting effect. Once consumed, it allowed Qi to flow through the four limbs and blood to circulate through the eight vessels, tempering an indestructible vajra body. It was especially suitable for Power Attack System Soul Masters and those who needed to rely on bursts of vitality.
The Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone nourished sinews and strengthened bones, sending Qi through the eight extraordinary meridians and greatly increasing the speed of Soul Power cultivation. Consuming it greatly increased Soul Power and refined one's physique and bearing, producing the effect of "ice-like skin and jade-like bones, naturally cool and free of sweat."
Tang Feng hesitated for a moment before shaking his head. "Although it can nourish sinews, strengthen bones, and greatly increase Soul Power, its bearing is too soft and feminine, at odds with the dominance of my Clear Sky Hammer."
The Aromatic Silk Beauty was magnificent and stately, with an elegant bearing, making it especially suitable for gem-type Martial Souls.
Next came the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, Earth Dragon Golden Melon, Vajra Arhat Fruit, Nine-Grade Dragon Ganoderma, Ten-Thousand-Year Nine-Grade Ginseng King...
Tang Feng harvested every immortal herb with a special technique, leaving roots and stems unharmed to ensure that the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's origin was not damaged.
After all, spiritual Qi was abundant here. Any plant grew a hundred times faster here than outside, and another batch would likely reach maturity in a hundred years.
Tang Feng carefully sealed away the immortal herbs one by one. Though the space inside the Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse was not large, it maintained its own cycle of spiritual Qi, allowing none of their medicinal potency to escape.
In total, Tang Feng gathered more than twenty kinds of immortal herbs, over a dozen kinds of near-immortal herbs, and various precious medicinal herbs that restored Soul Power and strengthened one's foundation and vitality.
After putting the immortal herbs into the purse, Tang Feng came before the Primordial Immortal Herb. It was lustrous white as jade throughout, with slender blades, yet it exuded a vast, boundless presence like the first opening of primordial chaos.
Tang Feng sat cross-legged and placed the blades in his mouth. They melted on contact.
"Boom!!!"
The medicinal power erupted inside Tang Feng like the first ray of light that split heaven and earth apart!
Unlike the violence of the Infernal Delicate Apricot or the extreme cold of the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, the Primordial Immortal Herb's power was balanced and gentle, vast and boundless.
Like a torrent of primordial chaos, it washed through Tang Feng's limbs and bones, completely merging the powers of ice and fire within him that he had yet to fully refine.
Nourished by this power, his Soul Power surged and rose wildly!
The rank-thirty bottleneck shattered at once. Immense Soul Power roared through his meridians, but without a Soul Ring, it had nowhere to vent. It could only compress and condense throughout his meridians and dantian, ready to erupt fully once he absorbed a Soul Ring.
Tang Feng immersed himself in this wondrous state. His consciousness seemed to sink into the depths of primordial chaos as he comprehended the laws of heaven and earth at their birth.
Meanwhile, inside the cave.
Dugu Bo placed the Dragon Snake Fruit in his mouth. The golden dragon scales on its skin instantly turned into streams of light and poured down his throat.
The next second, an ancient dragon's roar exploded in his sea of consciousness!
The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul burst out of his body uncontrollably, its enormous serpentine form thrashing through the cave.
Its formerly jade-green scales began to shed, and the newly grown scales shone gold and red, each as hard as refined steel, like a dragon's scales.
Atop its head, two fearsome dragon horns tore through the flesh, branching like antlers and wreathed in jade-green poisonous mist.
Beneath its belly, the phantoms of four dragon claws gradually solidified. The venom dripping from their tips actually corroded bottomless holes in the ground.
"Roar!!!"
The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor-no, it should now have been called the Jade Phosphorus Poison Dragon-raised its head and roared. Poisonous mist carried within its dragon roar corroded the cave walls until they were riddled with holes.
The evolved Martial Soul's poison was even more overbearing, and it had also gained a trace of pure draconic might.
Dugu Bo could clearly sense that his poison was no longer mere poison, but dragon poison fused with the power of a dragon bloodline, exerting a natural suppression of rank over Beast Martial Soul Soul Masters.
Even more delightfully, the rank-ninety-two bottleneck at which he had stalled for ten years shattered like paper. His Soul Power advanced triumphantly, only slowing to a halt when it reached the peak of rank ninety-three.
The Dragon Snake Fruit's medicinal power had actually forced open a smooth road to rank ninety-four. This meant that the shackles on Dugu Bo's cultivation, which had troubled him for more than ten years, had been broken by a single fruit!
Outwardly, Dugu Bo's muscles had become firm and powerful once more, and his bone density had also increased greatly...
In his excitement, Dugu Bo tried punching the mountain wall.
"Boom!"
Where his fist's force struck, a fist imprint roughly an inch deep appeared, and cracks spread like a spiderweb. This physique was already no weaker than that of a Power Attack System Titled Douluo!
This astonishing transformation not only allowed Dugu Bo to retain his original ability to control poison, but also evolved the power-attack attributes of a dragon-type Martial Soul. The Dugu Bo of today now possessed both control and power-attack capabilities.