Dugu Bo led the two away, running for an unknown amount of time, only knowing that they seemed to be in a forest. He had used a special method to obscure their view, presumably to prevent their location from being revealed.
Upon arriving at a cave, Dugu Bo didn't stand on ceremony and threw the two of them to the ground. Qi Ling cried out, "It's broken! You broke my arm! Old man, you're not leaving until you pay me ten or eight Soul Bone!"
Dugu Bo said irritably, "Your body is so weak, it wouldn't even knock off a hair, let alone an arm! Besides, what do you think Soul Bone is? Something worth ten or eight bucks?"
"Hehe, you must have some purpose in bringing us here, right?" Qi Ling sat up and said.
"It's very simple. My goal is to cure the poison in me and my granddaughter, but I don't trust you two brats!" Dugu Bo said. "Prove to me that you are capable enough to cure the poison in my body!"
"Do I need to prove anything more? Haven't I proven enough today?" Qi Ling said helplessly. Could it be that she'd really been caught off guard and couldn't intimidate this old man?
"Hmph, you may be able to break my poison, but you might not be able to cure it! Poisoning and saving lives are indeed very similar, but there are still fundamental differences!" Dugu Bo said.
"Alright, alright, old man, just tell me, what will it take for you to believe us!" Qi Ling said helplessly.
"Follow me!" Dugu Bo said, turning and leaving the cave. The two followed behind him, and only after leaving the cave could they see the scenery of the forest in front of them.
Seeing Dugu Bo ascend a mountaintop as if walking on flat ground, Tang San whispered to Qi Ling, "Brother, why don't we run away now? If we both escape, at least one of us can get away!"
Qi Ling laughed and flicked Tang San on the forehead, saying, "Silly boy, don't think I don't know what you're thinking! If we really run away, you'll definitely stay behind to attract his attention, and then let me take the opportunity to escape, right?"
Tang San was embarrassed when Qi Ling pointed out his true thoughts. He scratched his head sheepishly. It was indeed what he was thinking. He was willing to sacrifice himself if Qi Ling could leave.
"Don't mention or do such things again," Qi Ling said. " Xiao San, what kind of older brother lets his younger brother die while he escapes? If anyone's going to die, it should be me first."
Following the direction Dugu Bo had taken, Qi Ling also climbed towards the mountaintop. Tang San watched Qi Ling's retreating figure with a mix of emotions, and then followed Qi Ling up the mountain.
Seeing the two of them climb the mountain together, Dugu Bo sneered, "Hmph, I thought you two would run away. You're smart for not doing that!"
"The forests around here are not only teeming with poison, but also home to many Soul Beast I've captured, all at least a thousand years old, with bizarre and varied attack methods! If you try to escape, they'll tear you to shreds without me even lifting a finger!"
Tang San was secretly alarmed upon hearing Dugu Bo's words. Fortunately, he hadn't acted impulsively, otherwise he would have harmed both of them.
Qi Ling chuckled and said, "Old man, stop bragging! If I wanted to leave this wretched forest, I could do it with ease! The only reason we didn't run away was because we were worried you'd think we were afraid of you."
"You ignorant brat! Do you really think you can handle the countless Soul Beast in this forest?" Dugu Bo said.
"See if you still don't believe me? Well then, I'll show you!" Qi Ling said, summoning her Divine Dragon Emperor Martial Soul and letting out a dragon roar towards the sky.
Under the roar of the dragon, countless startled birds took flight in the forest. The weaker Soul Beast trembled and dared not move, while the stronger ones showed expressions of surprise and uncertainty before disappearing into the forest without a trace.
Qi Ling's dragon roar caused all the beasts to flee in terror. Dugu Bo's expression changed, for even he could feel a strong sense of awe. This kid's spirit was truly astonishing.
"How about it, old man? Are you convinced? Can I get out of this forest with this trick?" Qi Ling laughed.
Dugu Bo snorted coldly, but he had to admit that if wild beasts acted on their instincts, they would not attack such a being; seeking advantage and avoiding harm is a biological instinct.
"Hmph! You've got some skills, kid!" Dugu Bo said. "Looks like I'll have to keep a closer eye on you guys then!"
"Um, actually, it's not necessary. You can rest assured and get some sleep, after all, rest is the most important thing, right?"
"You glib-tongued brat! Enough talk, come with me!" Dugu Bo said, and with a leap, he jumped off the bottomless, dark mountainside in front of him, disappearing in an instant.
"This old man is giving me another difficult problem!" Qi Ling laughed. Dugu Bo was like a child; once he got angry, he would definitely try to stump people.
"Big brother, my Eight Spider Lances can ignore this terrain. Why don't you let me take you away?" Tang San said, summoning the Eight Spider Lances on his back to support himself high up.
"No need, that would make the old man look down on us!" Qi Ling laughed. "Perfect timing, Xiao San, let me show you something good!"
As Qi Ling spoke, she took something out of her Infinite Space and placed it in front of Tang San.
"This is..." Tang San looked at the object in front of him, puzzled.
From the outside, it looks like two round boxes, secured to the waist with a belt, and it has many mechanisms on it, but I don't know what they are for.
"Don't understand, do you! This is a product I improved using your grappling hook; it's called the Omni-Directional Mobility Gear!" Qi Ling laughed. "Its function is similar to your grappling hook, allowing you to scale walls and rooftops, but it can be used continuously."
"Its principle is quite simple: it uses a triggering device to fix the grappling hook to the target, and then uses a special device to reel in the cable! The whole system is driven by our Soul Power, so any Soul Master can use it!"
Tang San stared wide-eyed at the Omni-Directional Mobility Gear in Qi Ling's hand. He never imagined that the Tang Sect's Hidden Weapon could be improved in such a way.
Although there were many parts that Tang San couldn't understand, that didn't stop him from appreciating the device's greatness. So he excitedly exclaimed, "Big brother, you really are a genius, a true genius!"
"Haha, it's nothing special," Qi Ling said embarrassedly, because this thing wasn't actually something she created herself, but rather came from the system.
In any case, with this Omni-Directional Mobility Gear and his extraordinary Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils, the problem that Dugu Bo had given the two of them was immediately solved.
When Dugu Bo saw Qi Ling using some kind of magical device to rush in from the forest, his expression was incredibly interesting. Compared to Qi Ling, even Tang San's Eight Spider Lances didn't surprise him as much.