Dugu Bo's eyes narrowed slightly.
He watched as the Jade Phosphor Serpent with nine segments vanished into Su Wen's heel, then surged up along his pant leg. In his heart he grew more and more certain that this brat was probably just some charlatan putting on a show. He didn't know how the kid had slipped into this valley while he was cultivating, when his aura was at its weakest—but no matter how it happened, he had no intention of letting the boy off lightly.
With a thought…
A message came back from the Jade Phosphor Serpent: venom injected into the left arm.
The Nine Segment Jade Serpent was one of the most venomous snakes in the world, and it was a poison creature he himself had refined. With his cultivation at the Title Douluo level reinforcing it, even a Spirit Douluo would struggle to resist this toxin.
Anyone below the Spirit Douluo realm would melt into a puddle of pus in just three seconds.
Dugu Bo had lost his patience. He gave a cold snort. "Brat, I hope in your next life you'll know better—don't trespass on someone else's territory."
With that, he turned leisurely to leave.
But after a few seconds, that aura still lingered—steady, warm, with not the slightest sign of poisoning.
Dugu Bo turned back, staring at Su Wen in shock.
The youth smiled brightly, reached into his sleeve, and pulled out a small emerald snake, examining it with great interest. "Nine Segment Jade? Old poison, isn't that a bit too ruthless of you?"
"Who exactly are you?!" The corner of Dugu Bo's eye twitched fiercely.
He couldn't see the faintest trace of poisoning on Su Wen's face.
A poison expert as well?
At that age? Impossible!
"Su Wen."
Su Wen smiled, clasped his hands behind his back, and strolled unhurriedly up the mountain.
Dugu Bo frowned deeply. After hesitating again and again, he still chose to follow.
The valley was roughly a kilometer in diameter. At the center stood a mountain. At its peak lay the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well. Looking much like a yin-yang taiji diagram, it was split into a fiery red and an icy blue hot spring. Compared with how it would be ten thousand years later, this was simply a mini version.
Su Wen nodded in satisfaction.
This time node was good—probably just before the tournament. On his way up, he'd seen that most of the immortal herbs in the flowerbeds were still there; clearly Tang San hadn't come to pick them yet.
Spatial anchor points could only be set approximately. He'd had Big Eye roughly riveting the coordinates. He hadn't expected it to be this accurate.
"If you're willing, I'm also willing to split it with you." Dugu Bo's brows furrowed. This youth called him old poison so casually—only people who knew him would address him that way. But he truly couldn't recall ever having met this young man.
"Old poison, since you cultivate with poison, from your hair, brows, and even fingernails all being a glowing green, I'd say the toxins have already seeped through your entire body, haven't they?" Su Wen toyed with the Jade Phosphor Serpent in his hand, a smile appearing on his lips.
The corner of Dugu Bo's mouth twitched.
He gave a slight nod.
He could clearly see his beloved pet constantly gnawing at Su Wen's hand; he could even distinctly see the fangs piercing the skin. Yet Su Wen looked completely unconcerned, lazily playing with it. Only when the snake had utterly exhausted the venom stored in its body did it roll onto its back in despair in Su Wen's palm—completely drained, not a drop left…
"How about a trade?" Su Wen gently stroked the Jade Phosphor Serpent in his palm, smiling as he looked at Dugu Bo.
"Speak." Dugu Bo's expression was wary.
"I'll help you treat the toxins in your body, and in return I'll pick one immortal herb from that flowerbed to take away." Su Wen pointed toward the distant herb garden.
"If you can really cure the toxins that have accumulated in my body for so many years, never mind one stalk—take the entire nursery of immortal herbs, all of it!" Dugu Bo's brows knotted. It wasn't that he refused to believe Su Wen, but as a veteran who had played with poisons for many years, he knew all too well how severe the toxin build-up in his body was.
"Azure Luan."
Su Wen chuckled softly.
Before Dugu Bo's astonished gaze, a bird appeared before Su Wen, wings spread and body crouched low. Its entire body was snow-white, the feathers on its wings shaded with a gradient of emerald green, its neck long and graceful, its bearing noble like a phoenix.
"Th-this is…"
He had lived for over half his life and had never seen such a noble soul beast. Judging from the aura it released alone, he estimated its cultivation must at least surpass that of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
A hundred-thousand-year soul beast!
Looking out over the entire Star Dou Great Forest, how many of those were there?!
"Azure Luan, just like your Nine Segment Jade, is also one of my pet beasts." Su Wen said with a bright smile.
He gave it a look.
Azure Luan inclined its head.
Man and beast were perfectly in sync.
The very next instant—
"Holy Light's Radiance!"
A pillar of light descended and enveloped Dugu Bo. A warm current arose from deep within his heart, rapidly spreading through his limbs and bones. Dugu Bo couldn't help but let out a groan. Only after several seconds did he slowly open his eyes. Just as his face lit up in delight at the feeling that all the toxins in his body had been purged—he suddenly noticed Su Wen's slightly embarrassed expression.
Dugu Bo slowly lowered his head.
Wait a second?!!
All the toxins purged?!!
If the toxins are gone, then my entire cultivation goes with them!
The scene turned painfully awkward.
"It's fine, there's a way to fix it." Su Wen coughed twice and snapped his fingers.
Time seemed to hit the rewind button.
Dugu Bo's expression shifted back to the initial joy, then the light pillar appeared, vanished, and Azure Luan disappeared as well…
"If you can really cure the toxins that have accumulated in my body for so many years, never mind one stalk—take the entire nursery of immortal herbs, all of it!" Dugu Bo frowned and said.
He had a vague feeling that something had happened, but he couldn't catch it or make sense of it.
"It's simple. You just need to find something and transfer the poison into it." This time, Su Wen behaved more honestly. "For a tool-type martial soul, the poison can be transferred directly into the tool. But yours is a beast-type martial soul, so when you cultivate poison, it unconsciously fuses with your own body."
"So you mean… a soul bone?!" Dugu Bo's pupils shrank abruptly as he began to consider the feasibility.
"Correct. Find a soul bone, and slowly infuse all the toxins in your body into it."
Hands clasped behind his back, Su Wen examined the nursery.
He ignored the increasingly excited expression on Dugu Bo's face.
For his second martial soul, he had a ten-year soul beast he could evolve with Gale-tier to bridge the gap. Now, for the first-realm game world, which ten-year soul beast should he choose?
Everyone knew that the prevalence of bloodline theory in the soul beast world was because most soul beasts had fixed potential. The offspring of powerful soul beasts were also powerful, and truly gifted soul beasts usually started life at the hundred-year level, even the thousand-year level, right at birth.
Finding a ten-year-old soul beast was more difficult than ascending to the heavens.
Since that was the case…
Su Wen's eyes narrowed slightly.
He looked toward the immortal herbs in the nursery.
A long-unused skill rose to the surface again.
[Jade Phosphorous Exotic Flower]
[Cultivation: 1 year]
[Attribute: Poison]
[Potential: 5]
[Evaluation: Poison-attribute; can barely be classified among the immortal herbs…]
…
[Blazing Apricot Delicate Sapling]
[Cultivation: 2 years]
[Attribute: Extreme Fire]
[Potential: 7]
[Evaluation: Top-tier treasure among immortal herbs. After ingestion, grants extremely strong amplification to soul masters with fire-attribute martial souls…]
Looks like they've already just awakened their intelligence.
Su Wen smiled faintly.
Ten thousand years from now you'll all want to take a shot at it, but too bad, the slots will be full. But ten thousand years earlier… it's just right.