At the center of Sunset Forest, deep within layer upon layer of valleys, lay a hot spring. It was not large, but its waters were miraculously divided into distinct red and white halves, displaying the qualities of extreme cold and extreme heat at the same time.
Poison Douluo Dugu Bo was glaring fiercely at the uninvited guests who had suddenly appeared. Yue Guan, however, showed no sign of discomfort, examining his nails closely and paying Dugu Bo's displeasure no mind. As for Xiao Yan, ever since arriving, he had been unable to keep his attention on Dugu Bo. He kept looking this way and that, scarcely able to take it all in.
"Chrysanthemum Guan, did you come here looking for a beating? I leave you alone, and you come stirring up trouble on my doorstep?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Old Poison, did I beat you silly? In all our fights, have you ever once gotten the better of me?" Yue Guan teased. The two bore hatred for each other as deep as the sea, so naturally, neither had a kind word to say.
Dugu Bo grew even angrier at that. He raised a hand and unleashed a blast of poisonous gas, intent on taking Yue Guan's life. Yue Guan merely smiled disdainfully. Countless chrysanthemum petals shielded his body, and the well-timed sneak attack came to nothing. "Save your breath. Even in another ten years, you still won't be my match. Oh, you old poison, you might not even live another ten years before you poison yourself to death." At that moment, even Xiao Yan felt that Chrysanthemum Douluo's venomous tongue could deal truly devastating damage.
Even a clay figurine had some temper in it, let alone Dugu Bo, a Titled Douluo who had been famous for years. At those words, anger surged in his heart, and a piercing shriek burst from his mouth. Seven Soul Rings blazed with blinding green light. Then his body stretched longer and longer, covered in emerald-green scales. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a massive green serpent.
"Heh, heh, getting angry out of embarrassment? The older this old thing gets, the thinner his skin?" With that, Chrysanthemum Douluo also released seven Soul Rings. An enormous singular velvet sky chrysanthemum descended from the sky, its petals and leaves sharp as blades, radiating a biting chill.
Singular velvet sky chrysanthemum against Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor: the two old enemies had barely met before their fight turned vicious. Both went straight to their Martial Soul Avatars, clearly intent on making the other suffer a fate worse than death.
While the two old men fought to the death, Xiao Yan himself looked this way and that, as though he were on an outing, enjoying the mountains and waters to his heart's content.
"A treasure land, truly worthy of the name. Not only is the ground covered in rare treasures, even the water in this pool can temper the body. It really is a wonderful place." With that, Xiao Yan reached both hands into the pool. One felt extreme cold, the other extreme heat. As yin and yang mingled, a faint memory was suddenly stirred in his mind, making his head ache. He quickly pulled his hands out, but the familiar feeling lingered for a long time. It was as though a ghastly white shadow continued to haunt his mind, refusing to fade.
"This place... might be useful to me..." With that, Xiao Yan stood up, a plan forming in his mind.
Elsewhere, Chrysanthemum and Poison Douluo were still locked in battle. But they were old opponents, and neither could gain the upper hand anytime soon. The fight remained at a stalemate.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Gathering of Cold Blossoms!" Petals whirled in the wind around Chrysanthemum Douluo, forming petal tornadoes of all sizes that tormented Dugu Bo. But Poison Douluo was no ordinary opponent. Enduring the excruciating pain, he lashed out with his tail, concentrating all the deadly poison in his body into it. Yue Guan could not dodge in time and was struck squarely by the poison, leaving him in unbearable pain as well.
"Chrysanthemum freak, why did you come here when everything was fine? Now look, we're both hurt. Are you satisfied?"
"Heh, old thing, has your poison seeped into your brain? Which of your eyes saw both of us getting hurt?" Yue Guan was suffering, but his tongue showed no mercy. A cold light flashed around the singular velvet sky chrysanthemum, and another sea of razor-sharp petals surged out like a raging tide.
"Old madman..." Dugu Bo cursed under his breath, not daring to be careless. He unleashed all his poisonous gas to block the singular velvet sky chrysanthemum's attack with all his strength. This old chrysanthemum freak's cultivation is above mine. He might not be able to do anything to me quickly, but if we remain locked in battle for long, I'll definitely suffer a great loss. Besides, even if I can still protect myself, this old thing doesn't know when to stop. My medicinal garden will be ruined! At that thought, Poison Douluo felt a pang of anguish. Not only was he going to take a terrible beating, but his precious medicinal garden would also be destroyed in an instant. What on earth did this old thing want?
At that thought, Poison Douluo restrained his presence, intending to stop fighting. "Chrysanthemum Guan, stop right now! If you want a beating, we can go somewhere else and keep fighting, but if you harm my precious medicinal garden, I'll take your life! I doubt even Bibi Dong could protect you then!" Yet Yue Guan clearly did not care about Dugu Bo's urgency. Taking advantage of Dugu Bo's agitated and weakened state, he pressed his attack, beating a dog while it was down.
"Old Poison, I'll tell you the truth. I really did come for your medicinal garden today. If you know what's good for you, get lost. For the sake of our old 'friendship,' I might let you keep half your life." At those words, Dugu Bo burned with even greater fury and lost all order in his fighting. One careless moment was all it took for Yue Guan's Ninth Soul Skill to break his Martial Soul Avatar.
Dugu Bo was horrified. An opponent at the Titled Douluo level was no laughing matter, and without the boost from his Martial Soul Avatar, his chances of winning were clearly even slimmer. To make matters worse, he had no chance to activate his Martial Soul Avatar a second time in the near future and could barely fend off Chrysanthemum Douluo's attacks. He clearly had no strength left to pay attention to the two-colored Fire Lotus flickering in and out of sight behind him.
"Chrysanthemum freak, don't push me too far!" Dugu Bo dodged Yue Guan's attacks in a sorry state. He was clearly gathering Soul Power, intending to use his Martial Soul Avatar once more to turn the battle around. Unfortunately, the two-colored Fire Lotus arrived in an instant and struck him squarely in the back. Ordinarily, though fierce, this blow would have done little harm to a Titled Douluo. But now, Dugu Bo's preparations for his Seventh Soul Skill were completely interrupted. His Soul Power failing him, he fell to the ground, clearly badly injured.
Dugu Bo shook his head. He had fallen hard, and his mind was foggy. He urgently needed to clear his head and return to fighting condition. Unfortunately, the moment he opened his eyes, he sensed a blade-shaped petal gleaming with cold light, pointed straight at the spot between his brows from no more than three inches away. Clearly, one careless move could cost him everything, including his life.
"Heh, Chrysanthemum Guan, you had a junior interfere in our fight. Have you no shame?"
"You're old and feeble yourself. You couldn't even block our Yan'er's attack, so who can you blame?"
Hearing that, Dugu Bo looked in Xiao Yan's direction for the first time. He had clearly once thought a junior like him unworthy of his attention, but things were different now. Seeing his gaze, Xiao Yan bowed and said politely:
"Senior Dugu, thank you for going easy on me."
"Yan? If I'm not mistaken, you're Spirit Hall's new Holy Son, aren't you, boy? That last blow came from you, didn't it? To use a move with such power at the four-ring realm is impressive," Dugu Bo said thoughtfully. He was naturally disdainful of everyone, and no genius could catch his eye. But Bibi Dong's personal disciple was another matter.
"I am indeed Xiao Yan, this junior. Grandpa Chrysanthemum, please don't make Senior Dugu speak while kneeling."
Those few words were respectful and courteous, leaving no fault to be found, yet somehow they still sounded unpleasant. Dugu Bo was thinking how detestable the boy was when, to his surprise, his old opponent actually stopped, giving up the best chance to kill him.
"Chrysanthemum Guan, what act are you putting on now?" Dugu Bo was utterly astonished. He dusted himself off and straightened his appearance, but the shock in his eyes never faded. Clearly, he had not expected to be spared by the old enemy he had fought for half his life. But Yue Guan had no desire to pay him any attention. He withdrew his chrysanthemum blade and turned his back, clearly unwilling to say more to him.
"I told you long ago: my Yan'er wants your medicinal garden, not your life. I was only showing him the way. Since Yan'er says you needn't kneel, get up. Stop making a spectacle of yourself."
Hearing this, Xiao Yan grumbled inwardly, Grandpa Chrysanthemum, Grandpa Chrysanthemum, I wasn't trying to start trouble. The way you put it, I'm afraid there'll be no room to negotiate, and we'll have to fight to the death. Although Xiao Yan could not remember the past clearly, he still remembered that everyone thought he would rather break than bend, that he was a troublemaker. In truth, he himself believed strongly in treating others kindly. If something could be settled through discussion, there was no need to fight to the death. Then Xiao Yan said, "Though I need this medicinal garden, I am not someone who bullies others with borrowed power or schemes at every turn. I won't take the medicinal herbs in this garden for nothing. Not only will I refrain from seizing them, I also intend to make a deal with you, Senior Dugu."
Dugu Bo frowned slightly at that. Clearly, he would not underestimate Xiao Yan, but he could not imagine what gave Xiao Yan the confidence to make a deal with him, given his current strength.
"Senior Dugu, if I'm not mistaken, I'm afraid you don't have long to live, do you?"