Jade-green light shone from Dugu Bo's dantian, and his Poison Core slowly emerged.
Dugu Bo extended his right hand, palm upward. A mass of jade-green Soul Power surged from his palm. He did not rush to compress it, first separating out a wisp of poison and blending it into his Soul Power instead. Soul Power and poison intertwined, jade green and deep green layering over each other. Sweat beaded on Dugu Bo's forehead, and his arm trembled slightly. For decades, he had been suppressing the poison, never once thinking of actively merging his Soul Power and poison into one. The sensation was too unfamiliar, so unfamiliar that it made his heart tremble. Yet alongside that trembling came an irrepressible exhilaration. It was like a savage beast, caged for decades, being let loose to run wild for the first time.
Feng Lingtian stared at the Soul Core taking shape. Soul Power and poison built up layer by layer, and with each additional layer, the Soul Core spun a little faster. From exceedingly slow to gradually faster, from sluggish to smooth. Poison no longer leaked out, and Soul Power no longer contracted. Within the core, they formed a balance, drawing on each other in an endless cycle.
Dugu Bo opened his eyes. The Soul Core rotated slowly in his palm, jade green throughout, with a faint halo flowing across its surface. The Poison Core was completely enclosed at the Soul Core's center, like a beating heart. No mist seeped out, and no poison spread. All the poison was locked inside the Soul Core, circulating continuously as it spun.
"It worked." Dugu Bo's voice trembled slightly. "The backlash has stopped. I can feel it. The poison isn't accumulating anymore. It's circulating on its own. I don't have to suppress it."
Feng Lingtian looked at the Soul Core. The jade-green halo flowed across its surface, pulsing again and again.
"This isn't a Poison Core anymore," Feng Lingtian said. "It's a Soul Poison Pill."
Dugu Bo gazed at the Soul Poison Pill in his palm, a light surging in his jade-green eyes that had not been there for decades. In all his long life, this was the first time he had felt that his body belonged to him. The poison no longer corroded his meridians day and night, no longer hung like a blade over his head. He no longer had to suppress it.
Dugu Bo raised his head and looked at Feng Lingtian.
"You saved this life of mine." Dugu Bo's voice was quiet, but every word carried weight. "From this day forward, your affairs, Feng Lingtian, are my affairs."
Dugu Bo looked at the Soul Poison Pill in his palm, then toward the depths of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. "I've guarded this place for decades. I relied on it to suppress the poison, barely clinging to life. Now that the poison no longer needs suppressing, it's time this place had a new master."
Dugu Bo turned to look at Feng Lingtian. "From today onward, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well belongs to you. How you use the immortal herbs inside is up to you."
Feng Lingtian froze for a moment. "Senior Dugu-"
Dugu Bo waved a hand. "You saved my life. Giving you this place is no unfair exchange. Besides, I have an old debt to settle."
Feng Lingtian looked at Dugu Bo. "What debt?"
A bone-chilling glint flashed through the depths of Dugu Bo's jade-green eyes.
"Spirit Hall's Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan killed Yan Girl's parents."
"For generations, everyone in my Dugu Clan has had the Jade Phosphorous Serpent as their Martial Soul, born with poison and a curse of backlash in their bloodline.
"Every clansman throughout the generations had an ordinary Jade Phosphorous Serpent. They couldn't withstand the poisonous fire invading their bodies year after year. Most were eaten away by poison while still young, and the clan dwindled with each generation."
"I alone experienced an unexpected mutation in my Martial Soul when I was young. It evolved into the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor.
"It was that mutated Martial Soul, along with living at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well year-round and borrowing this natural wonder to suppress the root of the poison, that allowed me to hold on until I reached the Titled Douluo realm and barely survive."
"But Yan'er's parents still had ordinary Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Souls. Their lifespans were already short, and they suffered from poison year after year. Later, Spirit Hall persecuted them, and they died at Yue Guan's hands.
"At that point, the once-great Dugu lineage fell into complete decline. Only Yan Girl and I remained in this world."
Dugu Bo's voice was low, filled with half a lifetime of endurance and exhaustion:
"I've never told Dugu Yan about this cruel family history, this blood-deep vengeance, or the existence of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
"I only wanted her to grow up simply, without suffering the torment of the deadly poison in her bloodline, without bearing the family's fate and hatred, and without needing to know the secret of this forbidden ground."
"Although I had become a Titled Douluo back then, the poison inside me accumulated day after day. I was often tormented by its backlash, and my strength was severely constrained.
"Against Chrysanthemum Douluo, I had the will but not the strength. I could only watch my loved ones die horribly, unable to do anything."
"Now that you've helped me completely resolve that longstanding poison and all my shackles are gone, it's time to find Yue Guan and settle the score from back then."
Feng Lingtian nodded silently, all the questions in his heart resolved.
"There's no rush. I've endured decades; a few more days won't matter." Dugu Bo looked at him, his expression softening somewhat. "Take your time harvesting and sealing away the immortal herbs first. Once you've finished everything, I'll set out."
Feng Lingtian nodded. Over the next few days, he followed the instructions recorded in the True Explanation of the Dao of Alchemy, harvesting the eight immortal-grade medicinal herbs one by one and carefully sealing them away.
On the evening when the last immortal herb was put away, Dugu Bo temporarily left the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
At dusk three days later, he returned.
The moment he stepped into the secret realm, his steps were light. The gloom and heaviness that had once clung to him were entirely gone. His jade-green eyes were clear and bright, and he had completely cast off half a lifetime of shackles.
"How did it go?" Feng Lingtian asked.
Dugu Bo nodded, his voice calm, a trace of regret hidden in his eyes:
"Old Chrysanthemum didn't die. Just as I was about to strike the killing blow, his old partner suddenly appeared and rescued him. Still, I wounded him grievously. His cultivation has plummeted, and he'll struggle to recover for years. That decades-old grudge is more than half avenged."
Feng Lingtian nodded calmly without saying more.
Dugu Bo looked at his hands, jade-green light flickering in his palms.
"From now on, I won't have to forcibly suppress the poison inside me. And I've finally let go of the obsession that weighed on my heart for decades."
Dugu Bo fell silent for a breath, then looked deeply at Feng Lingtian:
"The Soul Core you developed has saved far more than just me. From now on, it can free countless Soul Masters from hidden dangers, let their Soul Power flow endlessly, and keep their foundations firm and enduring. It will change the fate of every Soul Master in the world."
He paused, then spoke with utmost solemnity:
"From now on, I, Dugu Bo, will follow you."
Feng Lingtian looked up in surprise.
"I've lived for decades. For the first half of my life, I was shackled by poison and trapped by hatred, unable to go anywhere or accomplish anything. Now all seven poisons have been resolved, and even my old grudge has been settled. I've seen countless Soul Masters in my lifetime, but never anyone with your breadth of heart, vision, and extraordinary gifts. You're the first."
Dugu Bo raised his head, his gaze certain:
"You're destined to achieve world-shaking things. I'll never regret following you."
Feng Lingtian remained silent for a long time, then slowly nodded:
"The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well needs someone to guard it, after all. If you're willing, we'll protect the secret of this natural hidden realm together."
Dugu Bo nodded. "Good."
Dugu Bo paused. "Right. When I fought Old Chrysanthemum, the way he looked at me wasn't quite right. He probably noticed that my backlash had been resolved. But he doesn't know how."
Feng Lingtian nodded. "Spirit Hall will investigate."
The corner of Dugu Bo's mouth twitched. "Investigate? When Old Chrysanthemum and his partner go back to report, those above them might not take it seriously. I rank at the bottom among Titled Douluos, the lowest of the lot. Who would bother investigating me?"
Feng Lingtian said nothing.
Dugu Bo was right. Spirit Hall did later send people to investigate, but only casually. His Holiness the Pope handled countless affairs every day. How much could it matter that some bottom-ranked Titled Douluo had resolved his poison backlash? Seeing that their superiors attached no importance to it, those below them went through the motions. After a few days of investigating without finding anything, they dropped it.
But they did not know what they had missed.
The Peregrine Falcon appeared again in the treetops at the valley entrance. It had come many times over the past few days. It had witnessed the entire process of the Poison Core becoming a Soul Poison Pill. When Dugu Bo left the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to find Chrysanthemum Douluo, it had followed him as well. While Dugu Bo fought Yue Guan, and when the old partner rescued Yue Guan, it perched in a distant treetop, taking everything in with its pale-gold eyes.
Now it had returned, perching quietly in the treetops at the valley entrance, watching Feng Lingtian.
The Peregrine Falcon spread its wings and took flight, disappearing into the night.
From then on, there was one more Titled Douluo deep in Sunset Forest. He would guard the secret of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Few people knew of this. But those who needed to know would find out sooner or later.