Dugu Bo, his mind free of distractions, sat down cross-legged. He swallowed the Dragon Beard Leaf and the Earth Dragon Golden Melon to stimulate his bloodline, reinforcing the toxins with the help of Snow Swan Kiss petals.
Then, his aura withdrew completely, his expression calm and composed.
Though his body was undergoing an immense transformation, nothing was visible from the outside. While he meditated, Ye Qingxian and Lin Xiao kept watch, speaking quietly.
"Auntie Ye," Lin Xiao asked curiously, "has your Nine-Heart Begonia martial soul changed in any way?"
Ye Qingxian smiled faintly. "After its evolution, not only did it break the curse that limited it to two bearers per generation, but its healing abilities have improved significantly."
"Now, even damage to the martial soul itself can be healed."
Her eyes shone with delight as she spoke.
In the world of soul masters, it was common knowledge: if a martial soul was injured, that soul master was finished—either dead on the spot, or crippled forever, unable to advance any further.
A certain failure from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan was a well-known example.
Even the Nine-Heart Begonia, famed for defying fate itself, had never been able to heal martial soul damage before. At most, it could keep someone alive—but now it could truly cure them.
Her Nine-Heart Begonia had shed its mortal shell—it had become a true divine-grade martial soul.
Lin Xiao's eyes lit up.
He had dared to push himself so far—forcing repeated Evil Fire Tempering—only because of Nine-Heart Begonia's extraordinary healing powers.
Now that Ye Qingxian had taken it even further, his safety was even more assured.
At that moment, Dugu Bo groaned faintly.
They turned quickly to look.
Dugu Bo remained sitting cross-legged, but behind him, the illusory image of the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor appeared—his martial soul emerging on its own.
It resembled a giant king cobra: massive, fierce, with dark green scales and intricate patterns etched across its body.
But now, it writhed restlessly. The serpent's tongue flicked out repeatedly, emitting a strange "hissing" sensation even though it made no sound.
Then, before their eyes, the dark, patterned scales began to fall away, revealing a vibrant jade-green beneath. Its skin gleamed like polished gemstone—like an imperial sculpture carved from flawless emerald.
From the top of its head, a swollen bulge had begun to form—something inside was stirring, on the verge of breaking free.
Dugu Bo had followed Lin Xiao's instructions to the letter during the refining of the immortal herbs.
He felt his blood begin to boil—literally. The heat rose higher and higher, his internal toxins erupting uncontrollably and mixing with his boiling blood.
But he ignored it.
Instead of suppressing the poison, he poured every ounce of soul power into directing the medicinal essence into his core pearl.
Success… or death!
HSSSSSSHH!
The Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor twisted and shuddered in agony. From the swollen crown of its head, a bony protrusion pierced through its scales.
Ye Qingxian's eyes widened.
"The Python becomes a Flood Dragon!"
For any snake-type soul beast, there was always a trace of dragon blood hidden deep within. In some, it was faint—nearly nonexistent. In others, it was more potent.
As a sovereign among serpents, the Jade Phosphor Serpent had always possessed a strong draconic heritage. After Dugu Bo evolved it into the Serpent Emperor and formed a core pearl, he had reached the edge of dragon transformation.
And now, pushed by the power of the immortal herbs, that transformation was happening.
This was the ultimate goal of all serpent and aquatic soul beasts—
To become a dragon.
But Ye Qingxian's face remained serious.
She saw Dugu Bo's skin turn an eerie green. She knew this meant the toxins had completely flooded his body. If the evolution failed—if the breakthrough didn't come in time…
A mighty Title Douluo would fall today.
Lin Xiao, meanwhile, watched the scene with a strange sense of familiarity.
Dugu Bo was now facing the same life-or-death moment that Lin Xiao had already endured three times.
The difference? Lin Xiao had the Nine-Heart Begonia to heal him after each agony-laced bout of Evil Fire Tempering.
Dugu Bo had only himself.
"Old Poison," Lin Xiao muttered, "there aren't many people like you—strange and stubborn, but still loyal."
"Don't you go dying on us now. That'd be a damn shame."
He turned to Ye Qingxian, about to speak.
But she was already one step ahead.
She summoned her Nine-Heart Begonia, unleashing a healing soul technique. A shower of soft pink-white light rained down from above, soaking into Dugu Bo's body.
The Nine-Heart Begonia couldn't detoxify poison.
But it could heal the damage the poison caused—repairing his meridians and buying him precious time.
Suddenly—
SPLURT.
Dugu Bo coughed up a mouthful of blood.
It sizzled as it hit the grass, scorching it instantly.
"Boiling blood?"
Ye Qingxian blinked, then smiled.
"Snakes are cold-blooded. Even soul masters with snake-type martial souls have lower body temperatures, especially during spirit possession."
"But the blood he just spat out was boiling hot—that means the dragon transformation is nearly complete. He's only one step away!"
Snake blood is cold.
Dragon blood is fire.
Lin Xiao couldn't help thinking of the Ten-Headed Fiery Sun Serpent in the Slaughter City.
Perhaps… it too was just one step from becoming a Flood Dragon.
But even so—leaping the Dragon Gate was no easy feat.
The Nine-Heart Begonia's healing was clearly working.
Dugu Bo's expression began to ease. Though his complexion was still greenish and strained, the tightness in his brow was gone.
"Auntie Ye, look!" Lin Xiao suddenly pointed.
At some point, a golden horn had sprouted from the serpent's head.
Emerald turned to gold.
The transformation was complete!
Dugu Bo's eyes snapped open. With a roar, he opened his mouth and spat out a glowing golden core pearl, shimmering with powerful energy.
It made Lin Xiao think of all sorts of terms from his previous life—"golden core cultivator," "demonic beast forming its core," and so on.
"Congratulations, Senior Poison Douluo," Ye Qingxian said with a light laugh.
"One step beyond the mortal—transcending into dragonhood."
Dugu Bo's martial soul had evolved.
It was like a fish leaping over the Dragon Gate—only a single step, but one that crossed a canyon between the mortal and the divine.
Lin Xiao, however, frowned and tilted his head.
Why didn't it grow dragon claws?
Looks like the road to full dragonhood is still long…
Dugu Bo turned to Ye Qingxian and bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Lady Ye."
He had only succeeded because of her precise selection of herbs and the Nine-Heart Begonia's timely support. Her contribution was immense.
Then, he turned to Lin Xiao—only to find the boy circling his martial soul's illusory form, examining it like he was about to check if it was male or female.
Dugu Bo's face darkened.
But he still forced out a grudging sentence:
"…Thank you too, brat."
"If not for your warning, I never would've dared to abandon poison suppression. I would've never bet everything on directing the herbal power into the core pearl."
Because of Lin Xiao and Ye Qingxian—
Dugu Bo had been reborn.