After all, his bones were old.
Dugu Bo shot a glance at Tang San, looking at the changed Eight Spider Lances on his back, saying:
“Kid, didn’t you eat something? Don’t blame me for not warning you that the medicinal plants here are much more potent than ordinary herbs. Even a tonic might be fatal.”
Tang san smiled calmly,
“Old freak, when did you become so caring? Weren’t you looking forward to seeing me die?”
Dugu Bo’s face chilled,
“That’s right, if you can’t pass my test you will still die. It’s time, are you ready?”
Tang San wandered aimlessly three steps along the edge of the spring, standing straight, calmly saying:
“Come at me.”
Dugu Bo somewhat doubting looked at him,
“Are you really ready?”
Tang San nodded once again, making an inviting gesture.
Dugu Bo snorted coldly, lightly flicking the fingers of his right hand towards Tang San, mildly green fumes quietly appeared. Dugu Bo was indeed worthy of being called the great scholar of a generation among poison Spirit Masters, a seemingly simple poisoning, that green mist dispersed in an instant, just enough to envelop Tang San within.
Tang San stood there, looking at him without moving,
“Old freak, this was your first test. Hurry up with the second. Your Jade Phosphor Serpent poison is so trivial, useless.”
Dugu Bo looked distracted a moment, this scene clearly falling short of his research in poisons. Tang San basically hadn’t taken any antidote, only stood there as if nothing had happened, his body not changing at all as the green mist scattered, not seeming the slightest bit poisoned.
The green mist Dugu Bo released was only a probing attack that could be easily cured, but he hadn’t expected Tang San to dissolve it so easily. Even if he had already decided to kill Tang San, he had always had extremely high self esteem when it came to ‘poison’.
Right now he couldn’t keep his competitive spirit from rousing. A jade light flickered in his eyes, turning over his hand, a jade green little snake appeared in his palm.
“For the second test, let it bite you.”
Speaking, he already threw the little snake at Tang San.
The reason Tang San was able to easily block Dugu Bo’s first poison mist was actually quite simple. Those steps he had taken before starting had been just enough to bring him into the protective range of the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure. Let lone not using his full strength, even if Dugu Bo brought out his most potent poisonous attack, he still might not harm Tang San.
From Dugu Bo vacantly not understanding the circumstances, Tang San could see that this Poison Douluo wasn’t completely familiar with the plants here.
However, Dugu Bo’s second stage test wasn’t so easily resisted. The Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure could only protect against external poisons, and wouldn’t have any effect if the poison entered the bloodstream.
Tang San flicked his wrist and that jade green snake fell into his palm. That little snake seemed practically transparent, only five cun[ 5寸 = 16.7cm] long, dense green light roaming within, a pair of scarlet little eyes, appearing exceptionally cute. On its body was altogether nine bamboo joint like stripes. As it fell into Tang San’s hand it moved about softly, unreservedly yawning to bite.
Hissing, the little green snake twisted, closing its mouth, unexpectedly not biting. Even if it was a poisonous creature, Tang San’s Mysterious Jade Hand was especially resistant to poison, and its incomparable toughness clearly wasn’t something the snake’s teeth could match up to.
Tang San used two fingers to catch the little jade snake’s seventh cun, lifting it up, saying with a frown:
“Old freak, you can be poisonous enough. This is the best among bamboo vipers[ (竹叶青) Trimeresurus stejnegeri, bamboo viper, or Chinese tree viper.], Nine Segment Jade[ (九节翡翠)], infected with its poison, in three quarters of an hour one would die issuing pus water. Even though it seems small, it’s still one of the most poisonous snakes. Moreover it’s body is strong as steel, even a sharp blade couldn’t injure it easily.”
As Dugu Bo looked at Tang San unexpectedly easily describing his Nine Segment Jade, he couldn’t help secretly be astonished. The Nine Segment Jade was strangely fast, but it was still exceptionally aggressive. Falling into a stranger’s hand there was basically no reason it wouldn’t attack, but how didn’t anything happen to this kid?
Actually, having entered the range of the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure, as a poisonous creature it suffered the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure’s suppression, and as a result its speed was limited, and adding Tang San’s Mysterious Jade Hand it naturally didn’t try anything.
“This is my second test for you, let it bite you, I want to see blood. Don’t you dare?”
To other people there might be no solution to the Nine Segment Jade’s poison, but to Dugu Bo it was a different matter. He had cultivated his Jade Phosphor Serpent Spirit to the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor realm, and could be said to be the ancestor of all other snakes. Neutralizing this Nine Segment Jade’s poison was a simple matter to him.
Tang San calmly smiled, saying:
“Letting it bite me is no problem, only, senior Dugu, let’s talk it over? If it bites me and doesn’t have any effect on me, will you give this Nine Segment Jade to me as a gift? How about it?”
“Ah?”
Dugu Bo was really somewhat speechless. There had never been anyone who hadn’t been scared when confronting his poison. But this kid wasn’t just fearless, he even made demands.
“You’re not calling me ‘old freak’? Why switch to ‘senior’?”
Tang San smiled:
“Isn’t this a request to you? What?”
Dugu Bo snapped:
“You really are a little freak. Fine, let it bite you, if nothing happens, how about I give it to you?”
How could he believe that this teenaged child confronting him could endure the Nine Segment Jade’s poison.
This Nine Segment Jade was an extremely precious creature, and he had complete confidence in it. Secretly he thought that as long as long as this kid was poisoned, he would detoxify him and this Nine Segment Jade would naturally return to its rightful owner.
Tang San showed a somewhat cautious expression, drawing a deep breath, quietly circulating Mysterious Heaven Skill within his body, slowly gathering the Nine Segment Jade at his underarm.
The Nine Segment Jade had bitten Tang San’s Mysterious Jade Hand several times without success, on the contrary its teeth bounced back. Being presented with soft flesh like a prepared meal, it bit at once.
The Nine Segment Jade’s bite didn’t feel the slightest bit sore, only a slight numbness, and a little tingle. But that tingle spread with astonishing speed, and in practically just an eyeblink, Tang San’s whole arm had already become jade green.
Watching this, Dugu Bo couldn’t help but show a smiling expression,
“Kid, since you know about the Nine Segment Jade, don’t tell me you don’t know about its poison? You……”
He prepared to step forward to detoxify Tang San, but before he had even finished speaking, Tang San’s jade green arm unexpectedly equally quickly returned to normal.
With a glimpse of red and white on the skin, the whole arm seemed like a precious jade treasure.
What Dugu Bo could understand the least was that the Nine Segment Jade that bit Tang San actually rolled on its belly, directly losing consciousness in Tang San’s hand, motionless.
Dugu Bo’s present actions as a Title Douluo made Tang San smile somewhat. Raising both hands, he rubbed his eyes.
Tang San kindly reminded him:
“Senior Dugu, you didn’t make a mistake. Haven’t I passed your second test? Also, this Nine Segment Jade belongs to me.”
“This…… Kid, how did you do it?”
Dugu Bo looked dumbstruck at Tang San. He had played wi
th poison for a lifetime, but this was still the first time he had seen something like this.
Tang San still smiled, affectionately caressing the unconscious Nine Segment Jade in his hand, saying:
“Senior Dugu, give me your third test first.”
Dugu Bo’s expression gradually became serious. Right now his heart was already faintly convinced that this youngster indeed had the ability to detoxify him and his granddaughter. But even so, deep in his heart he was unwilling to admit he was inferior to someone in poison.
The light of spirit rings rose from below, nine spirit rings revolving around his body, moving up and down. But this time there wasn’t any pressure.
Looking at those dazzlingly beautiful nine rings of light, Tang San couldn’t help inwardly gasp in admiration. Indeed worthy of being a Title Douluo, he could even control his imposing aura.
A fingernail on Dugu Bo’s hand slowly lengthened, in a moment already three cun[ 3寸 = 10cm.] long, sharp like an awl, a jade green light giving it a colorful glow.
Part 3 (TL by Bagelson)
“Tang San, you must understand that even I can’t fully control my next poison. Right now there is still time to regret it. I still won’t kill you, and I’ll let you try to cure my poison side effects.”
Tang San looked at Dugu Bo’s hand, his expression also becoming serious. He put away the Nine Segment Jade by his chest, he knew that what Dugu Bo used this time would be his own toxin, the poison of the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor. With his cultivation, such a poison would indeed be very difficult to ward off in his present condition.
But what Dugu Bo said also aroused Tang San’s own pride. Being of Tang Sect, confronting the threat of the opponent’s poison, how could he shrink back? As a Tang Sect disciple, if he was someone unable to conquer poison, he wouldn’t be worthy of the Tang name.
After thinking a moment, Tang San touch the flower of the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure with his right hand, then walked over in front of Dugu Bo, raising his left arm,
“Come on.”
Dugu Bo’s brows furrowed,
“You really want to?”
Tang San firmly nodded once.
A cold light flickered in Dugu Bo’s eyes, thinking to himself, ‘A tiger that doesn’t show its strength, you would truly take me for a sickly cat. Don’t tell me that with all these years of cultivating poison I would be unable to control this little junior?’ Lightly flicking his finger, the tip already pierced into Tang San’s arm.
Practically in an instant, a dark energy entered and swiftly spread, and in a moment that black line rose up the arm.
Tang San quickly used his right hand to press down on the injury on his left arm, and while he could still move, quickly retreating a few steps, again returning within the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure’s protective range. Sitting down cross legged, he closed his eyes and silently circulated Mysterious Heaven Skill.
Right now he wasn’t circulating Mysterious Heaven Skill in order to force out the poison; let alone the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor’s poison, with his current level of Mysterious Heaven Skill he couldn’t even have disposed of the previous Nine Segment Jade’s poison. The reason he circulated his internal strength was to increase the flow speed of his blood vessels.
An average person dealing with poison this way would not doubt accelerate their own death, but what Tang San did now was in order to arouse the medicinal strength of the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Precious Apricot within his body.
Just like ten thousand poisons shunned the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the most significant advantage of dosing himself with the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Precious Apricot was to change his physique with the two extreme ice and fire medicinal strengths. If Tang San was able to completely absorb these two kinds of medicines, then he would possess a body protected from a hundred poisons.
Of course, he still had a very long way to go to reach this goal. Before when the Nine Segment Jade bit him, it was precisely the two kinds of medicinal herbs in Tang San’s body that showed their effect, neutralizing the poison. And the reason the Nine Segment Jade lost consciousness was because it had swallowed some of the two kinds of medicinal herbs along with Tang San’s blood. Fortunately this blood was already neutralized, otherwise such a rare and precious poisonous creature like the Nine Segment Jade would have immediately burst and died.
If Tang San was be able to completely absorb the two kinds of medicinal herbs, he of course wouldn’t fear Dugu Bo’s Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor poison, but right now he was still far from accomplishing this. Consequently, in order to resist Dugu Bo’s toxin, he had to rely on some external force.
Tang San of course wouldn’t play around with his own life, when he agreed he had already made up a plan.
Even if the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure was unable to restrain poison in the blood stream, by its very nature it could still slow down the rate of the poison’s outbreak, and cause a certain suppressive effect. When Tang San previously touched the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure’s flower with his right hand, it had been covered in pollen. After being poisoned, he immediately spread the pollen on his wound.
The Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Treasure’s pollen had the effect of dissolving a hundred poisons, even if it couldn’t dissolve the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor’s poison on its own, it was still enough to weaken it. Further adding the combined effect of the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Precious Apricot, several kinds of poisons were currently struggling for life and death within Tang San’s body.
Dugu Bo calmly observed Tang San. Even he himself didn’t have the ability to remove the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor’s poison, and watching Tang San sit there with a face already black, he couldn’t help feel somewhat regretful. He had been famous for so many years, what strength did a child have by comparison. If he died here now, the trouble would truly be great. Recalling that person behind Tang San, Dugu Bo felt a great headache. Just like what Flender said, Tang San’s father, that man called Tang Hao, truly wasn’t someone he could offend.
Just as man and heaven waged war in Dugu Bo’s heart, suddenly there was a change in Tang San before him. Faint red light appeared underneath his skin, followed by white light. Red and white distinctly alternated, and that quickly moving dark energy was pushed back by the red and white lights, unable to continue spreading.
Eight Spider Lances released on Tang San’s back. When fighting the poison with all his strength, Tang San was already unable to control his own spirits and spirit bone.
The Eight Spider Lances was brightly colored, but it wasn’t alone in that. The Blue Silver Grass within Tang San was equally released, and the originally bluish purple Blue Silver Grass was still the same size, but the coloring had changed, bluish purple with the same pattern as Eight Spider Lances, the color of the lines alternating red and white, appearing both beautiful and bizarre, even somewhat dazzling. It spread out from him like a multitude of vipers, revolving around Tang San’s body and taking on a shape a bit like a cage.
If this made Dugu Bo startled, then, when a small pitch black hammer slowly appeared from Tang San’s left hand, his astonishment became shock.
Yes, they hadn’t lied to him, even if that hammer was small, wasn’t it precisely the world famous Clear Sky[ (昊天) Hao Tian, the first character is the same as in Tang Hao, and it’s the same as what Flender and Wuji called the mysterious stranger after the Shrek entrance exam. Could also be “Boundless Heaven”.]?
The poison unable to continue spreading, Tang San’s Mysterious Heaven Skill circulating with all its power and the two kinds of herbal medicine effects slowly compelled it outside the body. Even Tang San himself didn’t know that right now he was profiting from disaster.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Precious Apricot’s medicinal properties were both extremely potent. Even if one by one they weren’t the best immortal treasures around this Ice and Fire Yin
Yang Well, with the two kinds of herbs fused together, it was absolutely a top-notch existence even in this place. Tang San thought that in order to completely assimilate the medicinal properties of these two kinds of herbs within his body, he would need to reach at least seventieth rank spirit power to achieve it.
But right now, stimulated by the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor’s poison, the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Precious Apricot were resisting on their own, thus greatly accelerating Tang San’s absorption rate.
When the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor’s poison had largely drained from Tang San’s body, more than thirty percent of the two kinds of herbs’ positive effects had already been absorbed. Of course, this was also inextricably linked to Tang San soaking for a night in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Dugu Bo looked at Tang San with a volatile expression, after he had finished being astonished, he who was famous for poison had by now gradually started to understand the reason this youngster in front of him was able to resist the poison.
When he had just been captured by him he clearly didn’t have this ability. Whether it was spirit or external spirit bone, both had changed somewhat after coming here, clearly he had eaten some medicaments capable of resisting poison.
Ever since discovering this Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Dugu Bo had found that there were a lot of plants here he didn’t recognize. He had once tried to experiment a bit with the medicinal properties of these herbs, but had only let him sample pain that couldn’t be forgotten if he lived forever. If it wasn’t for his outstanding strength, perhaps he would have already died from poison.
Ever since, when Dugu Bo came here he had only taken the plants he recognized. He really didn’t want to believe that this teenaged kid in front of him would be able to recognize plants that even he didn’t. He also knew there could be untold treasures among these plants, but having already reached Title Douluo he didn’t want to take unnecessary risks.
Looking at Tang San, Dugu Bo could only think of two words: Blessed genius. Perhaps, everything Tang San possessed right now didn’t mean anything to Dugu Bo, he could still crush him like an ant, but Tang San’s age was his greatest advantage. With his present age and strength, his future prospects could not be measured.
Douluo Dalu - Volume 10 - Ice Fire Alchemical Body Page 5