Outside the Tian Dou Imperial Palace.
This was the most solemn place in all of Tian Dou City, even in the entire Tian Dou Empire.
Though it was the center of Tian Dou City, it didn't possess the prosperity belonging to Tian Dou City.
Simply because those who lived here were either imperial relatives or nobles of the Tian Dou Empire.
Dugu Bo lived here!
This old fellow was someone who valued loyalty and friendship.
Though this old fellow was now an honorary elder of the Breaking Clan, Prince Xue Xing hadn't given up on maintaining contact with Dugu Bo.
Occasionally treating him to drinks, sometimes sending precious gifts.
Even Prince Xue Xing had built a residence for Dugu Bo beside his own prince's mansion.
As for the purpose... everyone knew!
Having a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse living beside him, he could probably sleep much more soundly.
Though he hadn't returned to Tian Dou City for eight months, nothing here had changed.
Yang Fan skillfully found Dugu Bo's residence!
"Hey, who are you?"
"Yang Fan?!"
He didn't see Dugu Bo first, but instead ran into his granddaughter Dugu Yan first.
Since the end of the Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament, all of them had already graduated.
He had previously heard from Dugu Bo that Dugu Yan had gone to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family with Yu Tianheng.
"Why are you here?"
Dugu Yan found it strange.
This was her home!
Shouldn't she be the one asking that?
"Did Yu Tianheng dump you?"
"That makes sense!"
"You're already over twenty now. Competing with those eighteen-year-old girls does put some pressure on you."
Dugu Yan was furious!
Without a word...
She immediately released her Jade Phosphor Serpent Poison at Yang Fan.
But... times had changed!
Yang Fan hadn't been afraid of Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphor Serpent Poison before, let alone now that he already possessed Titled Douluo-level strength.
The two of them had long since belonged to different levels without anyone noticing.
In a few moves...
Yang Fan easily subdued Dugu Yan.
"Brat!"
"You actually ran to my house to bully my granddaughter?"
Dugu Yan was the apple of Dugu Bo's eye.
Seeing his granddaughter captured by Yang Fan and unable to move, Dugu Bo, as her grandpa, wouldn't choose to sit idly by.
"I think you're asking for a beating!"
Dugu Bo's thinking was very simple: he needed to properly teach Yang Fan a lesson.
Let this kid know who was boss!
Dugu Bo pushed his palm forward, and invisible pressure gradually began to press down on Yang Fan.
Yang Fan was similarly unwilling to show weakness...
Palm against palm!
This kind of confrontation without releasing soul skills completely depended on whose soul power level was higher.
"Not bad... kid!"
Dugu Bo discovered he had still underestimated Yang Fan.
Eight months had brought another leap in progress for this kid.
Dugu Bo continued to exert force...
But no matter how much strength he used, Yang Fan would counter with equivalent strength.
Red and green soul power surged in the courtyard of the residence.
The ground trembled, the house shook!
As if the entire residence would collapse in the next moment.
At this moment!
Dugu Bo's forehead had already begun to slightly sweat. He discovered he seemed to no longer be Yang Fan's match.
This kid was a Titled Douluo?!
Though hard to believe, it was already an indisputable fact.
"Enough!"
"You two stop fighting."
The surging soul power pressed against each other. Once the balance was broken, this place would be leveled to the ground.
The four-ring Dugu Yan was now somewhat frightened.
Alright!
She already knew Yang Fan was strong, okay?
"Elder Dugu... I concede."
Yang Fan and Dugu Bo almost simultaneously slowly withdrew their power.
In an instant...
The entire courtyard returned to its usual calm, as if nothing had ever happened.
"Kid!"
"Where exactly did you go these eight months?"
Dugu Bo was very curious about what Yang Fan had experienced during this time that actually made this kid become a Titled Douluo.
"The Extreme North!"
Recalling the freezing cold of these eight months, Yang Fan didn't even want to mention it more.
"The Extreme North?"
"You're sure it wasn't the Icebound Forest?"
Dugu Bo could tell from Yang Fan's eyes that he hadn't misheard.
The Extreme North!
He had once been fortunate enough to go there with others when he was young.
After returning, he swore he would never set foot in that place again in his life.
One had to admit!
This master-disciple pair truly had guts.
"Let's get to the main point!"
"I came today because there's a very important matter I need your help with."
Yang Fan changed from his joking demeanor just now, and a gravity appeared on his face.
"Speak!"
How could he not understand Yang Fan?
This kid never visited unless he needed something!
However...
Yang Fan wasn't in a hurry to speak, but instead looked at Dugu Yan, who had her ears perked up like a rabbit nearby.
"Hey—"
"Can't I just listen?"
"Do you really think I, Dugu Yan, would tell others about this matter?"
Yang Fan said seriously: "I believe you, but it really won't do."
What he was about to say next concerned the fate of the entire Breaking Clan. He had to ensure nothing went wrong.
At the same time, he didn't want Dugu Yan, who lacked self-protection ability, to be drawn into this conflict!
"Yanyan, be good."
Dugu Bo had already sensed the severity of the matter.
After Dugu Yan left, Yang Fan told Dugu Bo about the current situation of the Breaking Clan.
"What?"
"Yang Wushuang is a spy planted by Spirit Hall in the Breaking Clan?"
"Is this information reliable?"
This matter was no joke.
Not to mention that Yang Wushuang was Yang Wudi's younger brother.
A clan member who had gone through countless hardships and suffered all the bitterness in the world had finally returned to the family.
If they captured Yang Wushuang without evidence at this time, it would chill the hearts of all the clan members.
Some might even think it was internal purging after the family rose to prosperity.
"There's no evidence yet."
This was precisely why Yang Fan couldn't move against Yang Wushuang now, but sitting idle waiting for death was obviously not his style.
"Then what do you want to do?"
Dugu Bo believed Yang Fan. This kid wasn't someone who liked to shoot his mouth off.
But...
Until this matter was clarified, everything was worthless.
Taking a step back...
If Yang Fan made a mistake and killed Yang Wushuang by accident, then this would become a knot in the hearts of Yang Fan, Yang Wudi, and the Breaking Clan that could never be untied.
"I want to ask you to help monitor Yang Wushuang."
This was Yang Fan's decision after meditating last night.
Monitor!
As long as they watched Yang Wushuang's every move, they didn't believe this old guy wouldn't show his true colors.
And the only candidate for monitoring was Dugu Bo!
Dugu Bo crushed the eight-ring Yang Wushuang in strength, and was also the person he trusted most in this matter.
"No problem!"
"I'll take care of this matter."
Dugu Bo now understood why Yang Fan didn't let Dugu Yan know about this matter.
If this girl accidentally let it slip one day when she wasn't thinking clearly, she would definitely be silenced by Spirit Hall people.
"Don't be careless!"
"Yang Wushuang is a poison expert. His abilities are absolutely not below yours."
At this moment... Yao Lao appeared!
Yesterday, Yang Fan had taken him to see the poison Yang Wushuang had refined.
Not simple!
On the Douluo Continent, he barely counted as someone who used poison.
"I know this."
"When Yang Wushuang first returned to the Breaking Clan, we met once."
"Don't worry!"
"I definitely won't be careless about this matter."
Dugu Bo had one characteristic.
As long as it was action against Spirit Hall, he would show abnormal excitement.
...
The matter of monitoring Yang Wushuang couldn't be delayed!
After learning that the returned Yang Wushuang was very likely a Spirit Hall traitor, Dugu Bo quickly entered the state.
On Yang Fan's side...
He directly returned to the Breaking Clan as if nothing had happened, then took Grandpa Yang Wudi and quietly left Tian Dou City.
"Little Fan!"
"Where are you planning to take Grandpa?"
Yang Wudi was completely confused. He didn't know where his grandson was being so mysterious about going.
"Of course to take you to absorb soul bones!"
The family now had Yang Wushuang, these Spirit Hall eyes, and was no longer safe.
Especially without his protection, Grandpa Yang Wudi absolutely couldn't rashly absorb soul bones.
Traitors were the least trustworthy!
Facing the temptation of six soul bones, Yang Wushuang might even stab him in the back and flee with the soul bones.
"Grandpa."
"You didn't leave the soul bones at home, did you?"
Yang Wudi patted the storage soul guide device on his body. Of course he would carry such important items as soul bones with him.
"Then let's go!"
Yang Wudi didn't suspect much about why they weren't absorbing soul bones at the family but instead ran outside.
He only thought it was because Yao Lao wanted to remove the extra soul ring from him after absorbing the soul bones, and then obtain a ninth soul ring belonging to himself.
This was indeed the case!
Yang Fan brought Grandpa Yang Wudi out this time precisely because he was prepared for the process of fusing the ninth soul ring and then obtaining it again.
...
Speaking of knowledge of soul beast forests...
Yang Fan dared to say that apart from soul beasts, no one was more familiar with them than him.
After all, being able to live in a soul beast forest for a year and a half was unique in the soul master world.
In less than half an hour!
Yang Fan brought his grandpa to a familiar place.
The Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well!
Only when they arrived at this place, it no longer had its former glory.
The immortal-grade medicinal herbs were gone, leaving only some small seedlings.
Though the aura of the ice-fire hot springs was still as rich as before, it seemed that in a few thousand years, it would gradually lose its ability to nurture immortal herbs.
Fortunately, Dugu Bo hadn't abandoned this place yet. The poison barrier used to protect this Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well was still there.
One could say...
This was their best choice for absorbing soul bones.
"Not bad!"
"This is where you picked the immortal-grade medicinal herbs, right?"
"In my life, Yang Wudi, this is the first time I've seen such a treasured land."
Yang Wudi had refined pills all his life!
This sulfur smell permeating the air was pungent and unpleasant to ordinary people, but to him, it was more like a stimulant.
"Alright!"
"Save the sighs for later."
"Absorb the soul bones first. Next, we still have more important things to do."
Yao Lao's words made Yang Wudi quickly collect himself.
Right!
Becoming a Titled Douluo was what mattered most to him now.
Because he had already absorbed a left leg bone Yang Fan gave him before, now he could absorb the other five soul bones in different positions.
Absorbing five soul bones at once!
This magnificent feat made Yang Wudi feel he might become the first person in history to do so.
Yang Wudi sat cross-legged...
Quickly adjusted his body to the right state, then took out the first right leg bone and pressed it against his right front leg position.
In an instant...
A sharp energy wave spread from his right leg position, and the horn for absorbing soul bones officially sounded at this moment.
"Don't just stand there either."
Yao Lao waved his hand.
A pill formula with various medicinal ingredients written on it fell into Yang Fan's hand. It was precisely the formula for the pill that had fused Yang Fan's soul ring before.
"Tier-6 pill."
"You should be capable of this."
With that!
Yao Lao also gave Yang Fan the medicinal ingredients for refining the Ring Fusion Pill.
[Ring Fusion Pill]
[Required ingredients: Blood Bone Flower, Sand Wood Root...]
Yang Fan roughly glanced at the medicinal ingredients for refining the Ring Fusion Pill.
Not difficult!
For him, who now had experience refining Tier-6 pills, the probability of success was at least over sixty percent.
Let's do it!
Yang Fan moved out his Crimson Flame Furnace and placed it before the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well.
Heavenly Flame rose in his palm...
Beginning the first process he had done countless times in alchemy: lighting the fire.
Yao Lao wasn't idle at this moment.
Both Yang Fan's alchemy and Yang Wudi's soul bone absorption needed someone to guard them nearby.
Though the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well was an absolutely safe place, Yao Lao didn't dare to be the slightest bit careless at this time.
How did he come to the Douluo Continent...?
Those were all lessons written in blood!
Every time he was the slightest bit relaxed, he would suddenly wake up in his heart, as if a sharp knife had stabbed him in the waist.
Time passed minute by second...
Like the breeze of the Sunset Forest, fleeting in an instant.
The first to emerge from the state wasn't Yang Fan, but rather Yang Wudi, who was absorbing soul bones.
"Am I..."
"Am I considered a Titled Douluo now?"
Yang Wudi's feeling now was very strange.
Logically speaking...
The boost of five soul bones should have made him a Titled Douluo no matter what, but he didn't have the slightest feeling of breakthrough.
Only the accumulation of soul power!
It was like he had been holding in a poop, only to suddenly discover he had no butthole.
At this moment, he finally experienced the distress brought by the Breaking Clan's curse. It wasn't that the predecessors of the Breaking Clan lacked the ability to break through, but when their strength reached level ninety, they would be blocked by a special barrier.
This feeling was very depressing!
"Shh—"
At this moment!
Yao Lao floated before Yang Wudi and made a gesture for silence, then pointed to Yang Fan on the other side.
Only then did Yang Wudi discover his grandson was currently focused on refining pills.
Yang Wudi watched without blinking!
This was truly the first time in his life he had seen his grandson refine pills.
The more he watched, the happier he became. The more he watched, the prouder he became!
Yao Lao had previously said: This kind of alchemy method wasn't something everyone could learn. It seemed to be closely related to the attributes within a soul master's body.
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