Dugu Bo was torn between his own conscience and his own desires, to surrender or not. If he surrendered, his Titled Douluo status would be lost. If he refused, judging by Lin Jie's expression just now, he would definitely kill him immediately. If he died, all his pride would be false.
This kid said he had a way to help him and Yanyan eliminate the backlash of the poison. Judging from his expression, he didn't seem to be lying.
Moreover, this kid's strength at this age was unheard of. Even Haotian, the youngest Titled Douluo in history, couldn't match him. His future achievements would be unmatched by ordinary people.
"Time's up, Dugu Bo. What are your thoughts?" Lin Jie glared at Dugu Bo coldly. If he said no, he would be beheaded in the next second.
"Even if I surrendered to you, would you dare accept me? I'm a Titled Douluo. If my strength recovers, would you dare to do the same?" Dugu Bo asked coldly.
Lin Jie laughed, "Haha, so what if he's a Titled Douluo? I've killed them before. Tell me your answer."
"How could that be possible?"
Dugu Bo's expression shifted. He gritted his teeth and decided, "I surrender, but only if you can cure the poison in my granddaughter."
Dugu Bo could sense it already. If he didn't cure the poison, he wouldn't have many years left to live. He might not care about his own life, but he couldn't ignore his granddaughter's future. Dugu Yan was only in her twenties and had a bright future ahead of her. Furthermore, he had already experienced the pain of losing a loved one before Dugu Yan, and he didn't want to see the same thing happen again. Now someone could cure their poison. For his granddaughter, what was wrong with surrendering? Besides, this kid had defeated him before, and his strength was astonishing.
"Okay."
Lin Jie had two ways to cure Dugu Yan's poison. One was the traditional method, requiring her to refine a soul bone and then force the poison into it.
The other option was much simpler. Huo Wu would absorb their poison. Having refined the inner core of the exotic beast, Huo Wu would not only be safe, but would actually see her cultivation greatly enhanced.
Lin Jie actually had another option, but the ones mentioned above were sufficient.
"Undoing my granddaughter's poison is simple, but also difficult. For now, you should heal your wounds first. I'll give you three days. After that, I'll teach you how to control the poison in your body."
As for whether Dugu Bo would regret his actions once his strength recovered, Lin Jie wasn't worried at all. Even at his peak, he could still kill Dugu Bo.
After this, Lin Jie left Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan alone and went down to the Yin-Yang Eye of Ice and Fire.
Dugu Bo saw Lin Jie heading to the poisonous spring but said nothing. He
sat cross-legged and recovered from his injuries, while Dugu Yan watched over her grandfather.
Lin Jie returned to the Yin-Yang Eye of Ice and Fire and observed the newly grown medicinal herbs. He couldn't help but sigh, "It won't be long before this place becomes a medicinal garden again."
Gazing at the Yin-Yang Spring, Lin Jie considered whether to descend again. It was there that he had originally obtained the two Dragon King soul bones and the Ice and Fire martial spirit. However, something still seemed strange inside, and after a moment's deliberation, he decided not to enter.
His main purpose here was to once again temper his body with the Yin-Yang Spring of Ice and Fire.
His physique had now reached its peak, and it was a perfect opportunity to test whether the spring could help him achieve a breakthrough.
Unbuttoning his shirt, Lin Jie, fearless, leaped directly into the spring.
His physique was now fully capable of withstanding the erosion of its energies.
The moment Lin Jie plunged into the spring, the two Dragon King skeletons in the space beneath the Yin-Yang of Ice and Fire actually shifted. Two flashes of light flashed within the Dragon King soul bones.
The ice and fire powers continued to erode Lin Jie's body, but he refined them all, transforming them into soul power to strengthen himself.
His peak physique was further enhanced by the tempering of the spring.
Lin Jie was already immune to both ice and fire, and now, tempered by the energy of ice and fire, his immunity to both was further enhanced.
Three days passed in a flash, and Dugu Bo, having recovered from his injuries, awoke.
He had barely regained some strength.
"Grandpa, how are you?" Dugu Yan, who had been watching over him, asked worriedly upon seeing Dugu Bo awake.
"Where's that kid?" Dugu Bo inquired.
"He's in that spring on the cliff."
"What? He went in?" Dugu Bo exclaimed in shock. Even he didn't dare enter that spring.
"Yes, and he's fine, still soaking in it." Dugu Yan nodded. For the past three days, besides watching over her grandfather, she had been observing Lin Jie.
"He's fine? How is that possible?" Dugu Bo, his face filled with disbelief, quickly stood up, walked to the edge of the cliff, and gazed down at the Yin-Yang Eye of Ice and Fire. He saw Lin Jie, unharmed, soaking in the spring, a red and white energy aura swirling around him.
Dugu Bo then remembered. How had that kid found him here? And why had the poison array outside had no effect on him? And why had he ended up soaking in that terrifying spring? These questions hung in his mind, baffling.
Lin Jie felt his physique strengthen, a smile on his face. "It's truly worthy of being the Yin-Yang Spring of Ice and Fire. The tempering effect is truly powerful."
Lin Jie could now sense that, in terms of pure physique, he was now infinitely stronger than Dugu Bo. In terms of physical strength, he could easily outclass even some Titled Douluo.
"Three days have passed. Time to go talk to Dugu Bo."
Lin Jie leaped out of the Yin-Yang Spring, dressed, and looked up the cliff, just in time to spot Dugu Bo.
A moment later, Lin Jie reached the cliff.
"It looks like you've recovered well," he said calmly, glancing at Dugu Bo.
"Hmph~ You won't die yet." Although he said he would submit to Lin Jie, his strength as a Titled Douluo still made him arrogant. Moreover, Lin Jie had not yet detoxified his granddaughter's body.
"Let me make it clear first, if you don't detoxify my granddaughter, I will not submit to you even if you kill me." Dugu Bo knew that he was no match for Lin Jie at the moment.
"Well. Does Dugu Yan have any spirit bones to absorb now?" Lin Jie asked.
"Why are you asking this?" Dugu Bo frowned.
"Just answer. Do you have any?"
Resisting the urge to hit him, Dugu Bo said, "No."
"Do you have any extra spirit bones? Or any spirit bones prepared for your granddaughter?"
"What does this have to do with detoxification?" Dugu Bo said unhappily.
Lin Jie said calmly, "If you had a spirit bone, you could help your granddaughter control the poison right now. If not, I'm sorry."
Dugu Bo thought for a moment and said, "I do have one. A right arm bone. I was planning on having Yanyan absorb it."
"Great, that's great. You're smart, you even figured out how to condense a poison pill. You're stupid, but you're really stupid. You've already condensed a poison pill, so why don't you try forcing the poison into your spirit bone?"
"What do you mean?" Dugu Bo looked at Lin Jie in surprise.
"While your granddaughter is practicing her poison skills, have her force all the poison into her spirit bone. That way, she doesn't have to disperse her poison skills, and she can still fully control the poison. There won't be any backlash.
As for you, the poison has already penetrated your bones. If you're not afraid, you can give it a try."
"Boy, are you sure this will work?" Dugu Bo demanded.
"Okay, I'll let you, Dugu Yan, try it right now. Even if something goes wrong, I have a way to save her."
"Okay, if my granddaughter can truly control the poison in her body, then she'll submit to you. I, Dugu Bo,
always keep my word." Though he'd killed countless people and had both righteous and wicked ways, Dugu Bo always kept his word.
"Let's begin now. Let Dugu Yan absorb the soul bone, and then force the poison into it."
Lin Jie didn't want to waste too much time here; he still had to complete his third divine test!
Looking at Dugu Yan, Dugu Bo asked, "Yanyan, what do you think?"
"I'm willing to give it a try." She truly didn't want to endure that kind of pain again, so even if there was even a slight chance, she wanted to give it a try.
"Okay, let's begin now. This is a soul bone I prepared for you. I've wanted to give it to you for a long time, but never had the chance." Dugu Bo took out the soul bone and began letting Dugu Yan absorb it.
Lin Jie waited by their side, not interrupting them.
After more than two hours, Dugu Yan successfully refined the soul bone, and her soul power increased. Then, while practicing poison skills, he slowly guided the poison into the soul bone.
Not long after, Dugu Yan stood up with some excitement.
"Grandpa, I can feel that I can indeed control the poison in my body. But it takes multiple guidances to completely guide the poison into the soul bone."
"Really? Good, good! That's good." Dugu Bo was very happy. Now that his granddaughter could control the poison in her body, she would no longer have to suffer the torture of the backlash of the poison, which was worse than death. "
Dugu Bo, I can see it. In your current state, if you don't control the poison in your body, you won't have much time to live. Do you think I'm right?"
Lin Jie's words made Dugu Bo's happy expression cool. Because what Lin Jie said was right. He had spent too much energy in the past few years suppressing the poison, and helping his granddaughter suppress it. Coupled with her age, it would be difficult for her to overcome this hurdle.
Lin Jie ignored Dugu Bo's expression and continued, "If you are not afraid of death and want to live longer, you can also try to force the poison into your soul bone. However, your strength may decrease, or you may even break through due to a blessing in disguise."
Lin Jie's words made Dugu Bo fall into deep thought. After a moment, Dugu Bo had decided that in order to survive, he would give it a try. "Okay, I've decided to force the poison into the soul bone."
"Very good, Dugu Bo, I won't disturb you while you force the poison into the soul bone. But I have something I want to ask you."
"What is it?" Dugu Bo did not have much opinion on Lin Jie for the time being.
"How did the poison pill in your body condense and form, and by what method did you condense it?"
"Poison pill? Why are you asking this?" Dugu Bo looked at Lin Jie with some surprise. How did he know about his poison pill?
(End of this chapter)