Dugu Yan, her closest friend, frowned slightly and shook her head. "I don’t think so. He seemed sincere... and besides, my grandfather is a Titled Douluo. Anyone with ill intentions wouldn’t dare lie to someone from my family—especially not with such a serious claim."
She paused for a moment, still replaying Dave’s words in her mind.
"...Though I’ll still ask my grandfather about it. Just to be sure."
With that, they both drank their tea quietly, though Dugu Yan was clearly more thoughtful than before. Eventually, they left the inn and went their separate ways—Ye Lingling returned to the Tian Dou Royal Academy, while Dugu Yan went home to visit her grandfather, Dugu Bo.
When she arrived at their secluded estate, she found Dugu Bo seated in the back garden, cultivating quietly.
"Grandfather," she said respectfully, bowing slightly before approaching him.
He opened his eyes and smiled faintly. "Yan’er, you’re back. Something on your mind?"
She nodded, then sat beside him and recounted everything—her encounter with the strange, water-blue-haired young man, the claims he made about the hidden dangers of her martial spirit, and his proposed method to control it.
Dugu Bo listened patiently, but as the story unfolded, his expression gradually darkened.
"A man... with water-blue hair and sharp eyes?" he repeated, frowning. "And he spoke as though he knew about the poison loop forming inside you?"
Dugu Yan nodded. "Yes. He seemed to know exactly what he was talking about. He said the toxins are settling inside my marrow... and that it might damage my spiritual foundation if left unchecked."
Dugu Bo remained silent for a long moment before speaking again.
"It’s true that your Jade Phosphor Serpent spirit is extremely toxic. Even within our clan, many have suffered side effects. I’ve kept that from you to protect you—but if someone could see it with a glance... then he’s not ordinary."
"I don’t know who he is, but if he’s telling the truth... perhaps we should listen."
Dugu Yan looked down, biting her lip.
"That guy..." she muttered softly. "He said he came to help. He didn’t ask for anything... Maybe he really was sincere."
Dugu Bo stood, his expression unreadable. "We’ll look into him. Find out his name, his background. If he truly has a solution... it might be worth it. But be careful, Yan’er. People with knowledge like that often have their own ambitions."
She nodded slowly, her mind still stuck on the image of Dave—his calm demeanor, sharp gaze, and the confidence with which he spoke.
Back in her room later that night, Dugu Yan sat by her window, looking out toward the horizon.
"Dave... huh?" she whispered to herself. "Just who are you?"
The Next Day — Morning at the Inn
The sun had barely crested over the rooftops of Tian Dou City when a quiet tension settled in the inn’s reception hall.
Dave sat at a corner table, sipping a cup of freshly brewed tea. Meilin was beside him, eyes half-lidded, clearly still waking up, her long silver-blue hair loosely tied back. They hadn’t planned to leave just yet—they were waiting.
He could sense them before they even walked in.
The subtle chill in the surrounding spirit energy.
A presence honed through battle and poison.
The front doors opened with quiet force.
Two figures stepped in.
The first was Dugu Yan, dressed in a deep jade-green robe, her eyes sharp but hesitant. Behind her, tall and imposing, was her grandfather—Dugu Bo, the infamous Poison Douluo, a Titled Douluo known and feared across the continent.
His long hair was streaked with gray, his expression unreadable, but his every step was filled with power restrained under tight control.
The innkeeper instinctively stepped back, the room falling into a quiet hush.
Dave, however, didn’t even blink. He calmly set his cup down.
Dugu Yan led the way.
"We’re here," she said simply, looking at him.
Dave stood up. "I figured you might come."
Dugu Bo scanned him from head to toe with a sharp gaze. "So... you’re the one who told my granddaughter about the supposed poison backlash in her martial spirit."
"I am," Dave replied evenly. "And I’m not just guessing. If left untreated, the internal cycle of her poison will start corroding her cultivation foundation. Slowly, subtly, but steadily."
Dugu Bo narrowed his eyes. "Bold of you to claim such things to my granddaughter. If you’re lying—"
"I don’t lie," Dave interrupted politely but firmly. "I speak only truth. And if you want proof—let me show you."
Dugu Bo raised a brow, intrigued but cautious. "You have a method to test it?"
Dave nodded. He reached into his sleeve and brought out a small stone vial filled with faintly glowing water.
"This is Cleansing Dew Essence. A high-grade neutralizing fluid. If you allow your granddaughter to circulate her spirit energy while holding this—if her poison is turning inward, the dew will react. The water will darken slightly. If not, nothing will happen."
Dugu Bo took the vial skeptically. "Where did you get this?"
Dave simply replied, "Let’s say I have sources."
Dugu Yan stepped forward. "Grandfather... should I try it?"
After a long pause, Dugu Bo handed her the vial. "Yes. We’ll see if he speaks the truth."
Dugu Yan closed her eyes and activated her martial spirit. Jade-green light shimmered across her arms as her serpent energy began to flow. Carefully, she grasped the vial.
Within seconds... the glow in the vial began to flicker—faintly, then darken slightly.
Not much. But just enough to show a reaction.
Meilin’s eyes widened slightly. Dave, meanwhile, said nothing. He just sipped his tea again.
Dugu Bo’s face grew still.
There was no outburst. No denial. Just a calm, knowing stillness from the old man.
After all, Dugu Bo wasn’t an idiot.
He had only been testing Dave.
How could he, of all people, not know the side effects of his own Martial Spirit?
He had buried his own son and daughter-in-law with his own hands—victims of the very poison they inherited. He had watched the corrosion creep through his lineage like a silent curse. He knew the truth. He simply wanted to see whether this young man did too.
"Can you really fix it?" Dugu Bo asked slowly, sitting down across from Dave with measured weight.
Dave leaned back with a lazy grin. "Old man, you know better than anyone—everything has a price."
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