Chapter 15: Half a Year, Dugu Bo
Time passed slowly, and in the blink of an eye, Ning Bei had been enrolled in the academy for half a year.
During this time, Ning Bei had not slacked off and had reached level 26 in his cultivation. Of course, if someone asked about his soul power, Ning Bei would only say that he was at level 23. After all, in a soul fight, he only needed to summon two soul beasts, which carried no risk of exposure.
Since two months ago, Yu Tianheng had obtained his second soul ring and had started challenging Ning Bei again. However, every time, he was beaten black and blue by Ning Bei's two soul beasts.
Surprisingly, Yu Tianheng didn't seem discouraged. On the contrary, he seemed to enjoy it because, through fighting against soul beasts, his combat skills had improved significantly.
One day, Dugu Yan also asked for leave from her teacher to go hunting for her second soul ring with the help of the Poison Douluo.
In fact, Ning Bei had already chosen a suitable snake-type soul beast for Dugu Yan's second soul ring from his Pill Tower, but releasing it in front of her would be hard to explain.
During this time, he and Dugu Yan had become quite familiar. The two often exchanged experiences about poison, and Ning Bei had obtained quite a bit of venom from his snake-type beast pets. He would then use Detox Pills to counteract the poison. He shamelessly claimed that he had formulated the antidote based on the venom, which was quite shameless, to be honest.
But this did manage to spark Dugu Yan's interest.
Gradually, Ning Bei steered the conversation towards the fact that poison-type martial soul soul masters often left toxins in their bodies when using martial soul possession.
However, Dugu Yan didn't seem to care much at the time. It seemed that Dugu Bo had not yet explained the gravity of the situation to her, as he likely didn't want her to live in fear at such a young age.
Three days later, Dugu Yan successfully obtained her second soul ring and returned to the academy.
The next morning, Ning Bei arrived at class and saw Dugu Yan already there. He smoothly started a conversation with her.
"So, how was it, Yan Zi? Is your second soul skill useful?"
But Dugu Yan's expression was somewhat off. She looked at Ning Bei and dejectedly said,
"It's alright. My second soul ring is a 700-year-old Purple Scaled Rattlesnake, which further enhances the power of my snake venom."
Seeing Dugu Yan's low mood, Ning Bei had an inkling of what was going on.
"Isn't that a good thing? Your strength is largely based on toxins, so with the enhancement, your power should have grown stronger, right? Why do you seem unhappy?"
Dugu Yan's mood worsened even further, and her eyes began to tear up.
"What's the point of getting stronger? You're right. The stronger the venom of my family's Blue-scaled Snake Martial Soul, the stronger the backlash it has on the soul master. My father died early because he couldn't control the snake venom."
"That's what my grandfather told me after my soul ring hunt."
After hearing Dugu Yan's words, Ning Bei glanced at her pupils. They indeed seemed greener, indicating that the poison from her martial soul had already started affecting her body.
However, Ning Bei couldn't help but feel a small sense of satisfaction. After half a year of planning, he finally found an entry point, but he still had to be cautious not to seem too eager.
"Wasn't your grandfather a Poisoned Title Douluo? Even he couldn't solve your snake venom?"
Dugu Yan didn't realize Ning Bei's intentions and thought he was genuinely concerned. She shook her head dejectedly.
"There's nothing that can be done. If it could be solved, my father wouldn't have died from the venom backlash."
"This..." Ning Bei tried to put on a sad expression, comforting Dugu Yan.
"It's okay, I'll ask my father and grandfathers when I get back. Maybe they'll have a solution."
Dugu Yan's eyes showed a glimmer of gratitude, but she didn't believe that the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School had a solution to her poison.
"Thank you, but it's fine. This might just be my fate."
Ning Bei, looking at the girl who had seemingly given up, found it rather amusing.
"But wasn't Dugu Bo's martial soul also the Blue-scaled Snake? How did he overcome the venom backlash?"
Dugu Yan thought for a moment before answering.
"Grandfather said that his venom also flares up periodically, but with his powerful cultivation and our family's medicinal garden, he could suppress the venom."
Ning Bei thought for a moment and decided to lay it all out.
"I don't need to go back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School to ask. I think I might have a few methods."
Dugu Yan was immediately surprised and looked at Ning Bei.
"Really?"
"Can I meet Dugu Bo? I think my methods might be able to be verified by him."
Dugu Yan thought for a moment and agreed to Ning Bei's request. She decided to take Ning Bei to meet Dugu Bo after class.
The remainder of the class was torturous for Dugu Yan. The thought that her poison might have a solution made her heart burn with hope, but then she remembered that Ning Bei was just a Great Soul Master, so his methods might not work. A sense of unease lingered in her heart.
But at least she had to try. If there was a solution, who would want to wait to die?
Finally, the class teacher announced the end of class, and the time for self-training began.
As soon as the class ended, Dugu Yan immediately grabbed Ning Bei's hand and, in front of the others' curious gazes, rushed out of the classroom, making Ning Bei feel quite awkward.
A few hours later, they arrived at a small town near the Sunset Forest.
Upon entering the town, they came to a small house. Dugu Yan directly opened the door and walked in, waving at Ning Bei. Seeing this, Ning Bei followed her inside.
"Grandfather, I'm back."
An old man dressed in deep green appeared in front of the two. His eyes were even greener than Dugu Yan's, and his hair was grayish-white.
"Yan Yan, today's not a holiday, is it? And who is this?"
The old man was Dugu Bo. His eyes held a loving gaze as he looked at Dugu Yan and then turned to examine the two's intentions.
"Grandfather, this is my classmate, Ning Bei. He says he has a solution to my body's poison."
Upon hearing Dugu Yan's words, Dugu Bo's eyes turned cold, and a pressure filled the air, targeting Ning Bei.
"Boy, tell me, what are your intentions with Yan Yan?"
The overwhelming pressure made Ning Bei's body stiffen. He inwardly cursed.
"Damn, this old man really doesn't follow the rules. He's attacking right away."
Seeing her grandfather's action, Dugu Yan immediately became anxious.
"Grandfather, stop! He's my friend. He's only here because he's worried about me. If you hurt him, I'll never speak to you again."
Hearing Dugu Yan's words, a hint of helplessness flashed in Dugu Bo's eyes. He shook his head and retracted his aura.
"Speak. What are your intentions? If I find out you're up to something, even if Yan Yan resents me, I'll make sure you regret it."
With the pressure released, Ning Bei let out a long breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He bowed to Dugu Bo.
"Senior Dugu Bo, I'm indeed here because I'm worried about Yan Zi's martial soul toxin."
(END CHAPTER)
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