"Xiaohai, do you really have a way to cure the poison in my body?"
Dugu Yan's playful expression froze instantly. Her delicate face slowly turned toward Yang Yunhai, as she tried to read his expression for any hint that he might be joking.
Her grandfather, Dugu Bo, had spent most of his life researching and creating poisons. His martial spirit was also famous for its poison, and he was a titled Douluo.
Even he hadn't found a way to cure her.
Yet this young boy claimed he had a solution? It was hard for her to believe.
However, Yang Yunhai looked completely serious,there was no sign of jest in his expression.
"Xiaohai, do you really have a way?" The other teammates also looked over at once. Yu Tianheng seemed a little excited and asked urgently.
"Xiaohai, you're not joking, are you?" Dugu Yan still found it hard to believe and asked again with a solemn expression.
"Yan-jie, why would I lie to you?" Yang Yunhai rolled his eyes.
"Then tell me,what exactly is wrong with me?" Dugu Yan maintained her skepticism and asked in a half-joking tone.
"It originates from your martial spirit and was passed down from your ancestors," Yang Yunhai said, without giving specifics.
Dugu Yan's expression changed instantly. She lifted her pointed chin and asked urgently, "Xiaohai, you really do have a way!?"
"Of course." Yang Yunhai nodded slightly, then shook his head. "But to fully cure it isn't as easy as it sounds. There is a method, but it's difficult to implement. Also, your condition is rather unique, so treatment will be even more complicated."
"What's the method, Xiaohai?" Dugu Yan got straight to the point.
Yang Yunhai smiled. "Yan-jie, are you sure you want me to say it here?"
Dugu Yan froze. Her eyes flicked to the others present, and her thoughts shifted. Reacting quickly, she showed a look of realization and said with slight awkwardness, "Sorry, Xiaohai, that was rude of me. How about I come over for dinner after training?"
Revealing a treatment method that could cure a long-term illness in front of others wasn't appropriate. Yan-jie's quick reaction was clever. The others also showed understanding expressions, thinking she had realized that asking someone to publicly share their healing method was impolite.
After all, no one asks a doctor to lay bare their entire method in front of everyone.
"No problem. Just one more pair of chopsticks," Yang Yunhai agreed readily.
"Xiaohai, then I'll trouble you," Yu Tianheng said politely.
"It's fine. We're all teammates and friends,it's only right," Yang Yunhai replied with a slight smile, then glanced around. "Alright, it's getting late. Let's begin training."
The group began their training session.
Time flew by, and soon it was noon. Dugu Yan said goodbye to Yu Tianheng and followed Yang Yunhai and Zhu Zhuqing to the valley.
Before long, in the wooden house nestled in the valley, the aroma of food filled the living room. The three of them sat around the table.
Soon after, they finished eating. Zhu Zhuqing took the initiative to clean up the dishes, leaving Dugu Yan and Yang Yunhai to discuss the treatment method.
"Xiaohai, quickly tell me, what's your plan?" Once Zhu Zhuqing entered the kitchen, Dugu Yan asked eagerly.
"Yan-jie, before we talk about treatment, we need to understand where the poison in your body comes from," Yang Yunhai said seriously. "To be honest, I suspected you were poisoned the first time we met. Your hair and eye color are not normal,they're classic signs of deep-seated poisoning. Of course, I wasn't certain at first, until that time in the living room when you suddenly caught a chill."
"Your body's reaction then clearly showed intense pain in your head and the soles of your feet."
"The soles of the feet are considered a region of accumulating yin energy because they're the farthest from the heart, making blood flow weakest there. Plus, the soles have little muscle or fat and poor insulation. They're often in contact with cold surfaces, making them especially susceptible to cold dampness."
"That's why when someone heavily poisoned gets a chill, the soles often react first."
Master Ju's Human Anatomy Commentary, combined with how the original story described Dugu Bo's poison causing pain in the top of the head and soles of the feet,these two together gave me everything I needed to bluff convincingly. This is what they call foresight.
Yang Yunhai thoroughly enjoyed pretending to be an expert. If Dugu Bo later said he was wrong? Oh well, then it's just my poor understanding,please excuse me.
But if he guessed right, then the process doesn't matter, right? Only the result counts.
"As for headaches, that's much more serious. As far as I know, that usually indicates the poison has attached itself to the bones." Yang Yunhai continued, "And there's another key reason I suspected your symptoms were caused by poison."
"Your martial spirit, the Jade Phosphor Serpent, is a genuine poison-type spirit,and a beast-type at that."
"As far as I know, beast spirits easily absorb toxins from soul beasts when forming spirit rings, transferring that poison into the host's body. Since you're already a Soul Elder, and if your spirit rings were all from poison-type beasts, then that means you've taken in external toxins three times."
"In other words, the poison from soul beasts was transferred to the spirit rings, and then into your body,not toxins produced by your own martial spirit."
"Three types of external poison, combined into one, becomes a mixed poison. That's far more dangerous than a single type. On top of that, your martial spirit can produce Jade Phosphor poison. If you use your spirit abilities frequently, or if the spirit generates poison naturally, it can be reabsorbed when you retract your spirit."
"So, you've got four types of poison mixing in your body. Imagine how toxic that is."
"Add in your age,it's probably been many years since you got your first spirit ring."
"That would explain why the poison has reached your internal organs or even your bones. It might have mutated due to the mixture, too."
"That's why your unusual hair and eye color makes more sense now."
"Honestly, Yan-jie, I was astonished when I realized this. The fact that you're still alive is almost a miracle. That's why I offered to examine you, using my martial spirit's sensing ability as an excuse."
"The real reason was to confirm my suspicions."
"What did you find out?" Dugu Yan asked anxiously.
Yang Yunhai's explanation was detailed and logical, nearly identical to the truth. She genuinely believed him now.
"It's worse than I thought. Not four kinds of poison,many kinds. And they've already mutated," Yang Yunhai said gravely. He had sensed Dugu Yan's serpent poison during training with his martial spirit, and it was nothing like the toxins in her body. Clearly, the toxins inside her had mutated into a highly complex and untraceable poison.
No one could even identify what it was anymore.
And that's the scary part.
This was likely why even Dugu Bo couldn't find a cure.
The only viable solution seemed to be the Ice and Fire Body Tempering. After taking the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Fiery Apricot Delicate Fruit, her blood would carry dual polar energies,essentially turning her into a walking Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. That would gradually dissolve almost any poison, making detoxification much easier.
This perfectly demonstrated the saying: "Brute force trumps skill."
"That's why I said it was passed down from your ancestors. Honestly, Yan-jie, I strongly suspect that the toxins in your body mutated and became hereditary generations ago. Otherwise, there's no way to explain your unique condition."
He looked directly at Dugu Yan and spoke carefully.
"It wasn't my father,it goes back even further. My father…" Dugu Yan paused, a trace of pain in her eyes.
Her father had died shortly after absorbing a spirit ring. Looking back now, it was probably as Yang Yunhai suspected,the poison had further mutated and intensified, overwhelming his body all at once and killing him.
The fact that she was still alive might truly be a matter of luck.
"I'm sorry," Yang Yunhai said softly, regret in his voice.