Chapter 163: My Grandfather Would Never Bow to Anyone
[Dad Douluo]: Ahem, I didn't say that. Royal Sister, don't joke around.
Lin Qingmo hurriedly jumped out to explain, his typing speed noticeably faster.
[Dad Douluo]: I'm just reasonably dividing up Tang San's future team and cutting off his retreat, that's all. It has nothing to do with any harem. Really, you've got to trust my character.
[Tyrant Dragon Mom]: Tch—
Liu Erlong sent a message with a long, drawn-out sound.
The disdain practically overflowed from the screen.
[Tyrant Dragon Mom]: I think you've got the heart of a thief but not the guts. You're probably hiding behind the screen right now, grinning to yourself, aren't you?
[Tyrant Dragon Mom]: Maybe you've already figured out how to coax those two little girls. Don't think we can't see through your little schemes.
[Little Witch]: ???
[Little Witch]: Ah Qing? So this is what you're like? How did I never notice before!
[Big-Chested Kitty]: ...
Zhu Zhuqing only sent a string of ellipses, not saying a single word.
Yet that very silence made it even more thought-provoking.
The chat group completely exploded.
Everyone chimed in one after another, all teasing Lin Qingmo.
The atmosphere was as lively as a festival.
Some heckled him to confess honestly.
Some teased that his intentions were as clear as day.
Others pretended to criticize him seriously for having "problematic thoughts."
But anyone could tell they were all just having fun.
Lin Qingmo tried explaining a few times, only to find himself digging a deeper hole.
In the end, he simply gave up struggling and let them tease him.
After all, they were just joking around. It would pass soon enough.
…
Meanwhile, at the back mountain of Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Inside the independent courtyard belonging to the core team.
Afternoon sunlight filtered through the old locust tree in the yard, scattering mottled patches of golden light. A faint fragrance of medicinal herbs lingered in the air.
Ye Lingling sat by the stone table, head lowered, quietly sorting herbs.
She had a meticulous nature and usually enjoyed doing such things.
But Dugu Yan, who should have been sitting across from her helping, was instead standing stiffly in the corridor.
It was as if she had been struck by an immobilization spell, not moving for a long time.
Her almond-shaped eyes, usually filled with pride, were now fixed rigidly on the chat group's light screen.
Her pupils shrank slightly, and her breathing grew extremely light.
She was completely lost in a daze.
Ye Lingling had long noticed this abnormal, absent-minded state of hers.
For the past half hour, Dugu Yan had been spacing out from time to time.
She would at least occasionally respond before.
But now she had frozen completely in place, her gaze unfocused.
Ye Lingling set down the herbs in her hand and wiped the residue from her fingertips.
She walked lightly up to Dugu Yan.
Raising her slender hand, she gently waved it in front of Dugu Yan's eyes.
"Yanzi?"
No response.
Her fingers were almost touching those curled eyelashes.
Yet Dugu Yan didn't even blink.
She still stared fixedly at that empty light screen.
The worry in Ye Lingling's heart deepened.
She raised her hand again and waved it, her voice soft and gentle, afraid of startling her.
"Yanyan? What's wrong? You've been spacing out since earlier. Are you feeling unwell? Do you want me to take a look?"
As she spoke, she reached out to check Dugu Yan's pulse.
Her Nine Heart Begonia martial soul was best at regulation.
Even a disturbance in soul power could be detected immediately.
However, Dugu Yan was actually thinking about what Ning Rongrong had said earlier.
About Ah Qing helping her grandfather detoxify.
That matter had stirred up a storm in Dugu Yan's mind.
She suddenly recalled a scene from late one night not long ago, when her grandfather, Dugu Bo, had come to find her.
That night had been exceptionally dark.
Her grandfather had broken in through the window.
The moment he entered, he pulled her to his side.
With an almost excited tone, he told her something she would never have believed in her life.
He was poisoned.
And it was the poison resulting from cultivating poison techniques with his Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor martial soul.
It had already seeped into his organs and the very source of his soul power. Even he himself could not cure it.
Dugu Yan had been stunned on the spot.
Who was her grandfather?
He was the renowned Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo!
A figure standing at the very peak of poison mastery in the entire Soul Master world.
Yet her grandfather, who had played with poison his entire life, was telling her he was poisoned by something even he couldn't cure?
It felt as if the sky had collapsed.
Tears welled up instantly as she anxiously grabbed his hand, repeatedly asking what had happened and whether there was any solution.
Even if it cost her life, she would find an antidote for him.
But he said he was already fine.
Then he took out a soul bone glowing faintly with a green light.
It was a thirty-thousand-year left arm bone.
He said it was for her to control the poison.
In a daze, she absorbed the soul bone and followed his instructions to channel the poison into it.
From beginning to end, only she and her grandfather knew about this matter.
At the time, she had been full of doubts.
Now, looking at the chat group's contents…
All her doubts were instantly answered.
The chat group's information and her grandfather's unusual behavior that night fit together perfectly like two puzzle pieces.
A cold thought suddenly surged up from the depths of Dugu Yan's heart, like a basin of icy water poured from head to toe.
It made her whole body turn cold, and she couldn't help but shiver.
Her grandfather… that proud and solitary Poison Douluo.
Had he really set aside a lifetime of pride, lowered the dignity of a Titled Douluo, and become someone else's subordinate?
Even if the group said he was subordinate to Ah Qing's teacher…
In essence, he had still submitted to someone.
"How is this possible?"
Dugu Yan panicked completely.
She knew her grandfather too well.
Proud all his life, arrogant all his life.
It was always others begging him for help. When has he ever lowered his head to anyone?
For him to bow to someone was harder than killing him!
But now?
For detoxification, for her sake, her grandfather actually…
The more Dugu Yan thought about it, the worse she felt.
Her heart was filled with shock and anger, as if tightly gripped by something.
Mixed within it was an indescribable bitterness and heartache.
…
Inside Training Ground No. 1 of Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Blazing lights from soul rings alternated across the field.
Dull thuds of soul power collisions and the sound of air being torn apart rang out continuously.
The daily sparring of the core team had entered an intense phase.
As the team's core control-type soul master, Dugu Yan should have been standing at the center, precisely coordinating soul skills and blocking opponents' movements.
But today, her state was completely off.
Her third soul skill, Jade Phosphor Violet Poison, which should have accurately covered Osler's evasion path, was off by a full three meters.
Instead, the poison mist blocked Yu Feng's advancing route.
Startled, Yu Feng hurriedly stopped his soul skill and flipped backward several meters.
He patted his sleeve, which had brushed the edge of the poison mist. A layer of corroding black marks instantly spread across it.
"Yanzi! What are you doing?"
Yu Feng couldn't help shouting after landing.
"If that were any closer, I'd be lying in the infirmary today!"
Dugu Yan suddenly snapped back to her senses, instantly withdrawing her soul power.
The spreading violet poison mist quickly dissipated.
She forced a smile and waved her hand perfunctorily. "Sorry, slipped."
Osler also withdrew his martial soul and leaned against a stone pillar nearby, raising an eyebrow.
"Slipped? Yanzi, that's the third time today."
"Earlier during sparring, you almost got yourself hurt, too."
"..."
Dugu Yan didn't respond.
Her thoughts were no longer on this dull sparring session.
Most of her mind was occupied with thoughts about her grandfather.
At the same time, she was also watching the chat group for any new information.
End of Chapter