Chapter 11: Sunset Forest
Dugu Feng was shaken. A soul bone could solve the poison problem—it was a matter of life and death for the Dugu Clan.
He remembered that during the Continental Soul Master Tournament, Huyan Zhen's grandson, Huyan Li, had a soul bone.
Could this be when they acquired it?
Moments later, Dugu Shuo spoke calmly. "Old Snake, go retrieve that soul bone. Take Feng'er with you, and while you're there, help him hunt his first soul ring."
"Yes, Clan Leader," Old Snake replied evenly, as if it were a trivial errand.
"Yes, Father!" Dugu Feng's heart fluttered with excitement, though his face remained composed. It was finally time to hunt a spirit ring.
At that moment, Old Scorpion stood and approached him. "This storage soul tool suits you well, Young Master. It holds thirty-six cubic meters. Consider it a gift for our first meeting."
He handed over a green belt embroidered with the image of a serpent, gleaming faintly under the light.
Dugu Feng's eyes flicked to his father. A storage device—a travel and survival essential. He had longed for one, and thirty-six cubic meters was more than enough.
Dugu Shuo took the belt and stepped forward, fastening it around Dugu Feng's waist himself. "This is your first journey out. Follow Old Snake's lead in everything."
For a moment, Dugu Feng was overwhelmed. In all the memories of his life, it was the first time Dugu Shuo had ever shown him personal attention.
"Yes, Father. I'll be careful."
Dugu Shuo nodded curtly.
Old Snake bowed and then beckoned Dugu Feng to come along. The mission was not only to claim the soul bone but also to obtain Feng's first ring.
Despite the urgency implied, Old Snake didn't seem rushed. At the estate gate, he paused for a moment before a carriage rolled up. They boarded and soon departed the city.
The ride was smooth. From behind the curtain, Dugu Feng saw the bustling streets of Heaven Dou City.
After years in the cold and silent Dugu mansion, this scene felt almost surreal. The clan's reptilian indifference had seeped into him, breeding a habit of solitude.
But now, gazing upon the vibrant capital, Dugu Feng truly felt the pulse of the Douluo world.
Today marked the first step toward becoming the Poison King.
He would rise as the strongest—revered and feared—so that every corner of the Douluo Continent would remember his name. That alone would make his transmigration worthwhile.
The thought filled him with quiet determination.
Before long, the carriage left the city, rolling steadily down the wide main road.
Old Snake sat with eyes closed, as serene as always. Dugu Feng could only admire the man's composure.
Amused, he used soul power to probe his new storage belt, then turned his attention to the two Nine-Section Jade snakes coiled around his wrists.
Even as adults, the serpents would only grow to five inches—just enough to wrap around his wrists twice like glowing emerald bracelets.
He summoned gentle heat from his dan pearl, channeling it through his palms to envelop the tiny snakes.
Their crimson eyes glimmered excitedly. To them, following Dugu Feng was pure luxury—receiving the nurturing essence of a treasure usually reserved for Titled Douluo.
The young soul master planned to raise them into mighty serpent beasts. They would become his hidden aces in battle.
The carriage fell silent. Half a day passed in tranquil motion.
At last, they arrived at the vast and shadowed Sunset Forest.
Towering trees stretched skyward, their canopies blocking out the sunlight completely.
Stepping in, Dugu Feng felt the gloom envelop him—but there was something oddly soothing about the forest's atmosphere.
He narrowed his eyes. Could it be the influence of the twin springs hidden at its heart—the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well?
Everyone knew Sunset Forest teemed with venomous soul beasts: Human-Faced Demon Spiders, Pit Demonic Tarantulas, and the Earth King Serpent—truly a paradise for toxins.
It was the perfect place to find the beasts for his early spirit rings.
"Follow my lead," Old Snake whispered.
He transformed instantly, blending into the shadows. His body moved fluidly—flashing from tree to tree like a silently gliding serpent.
Dugu Feng watched in awe. That's the Serpent's Belly Strike footwork...
He tried to imitate it, following close behind.
Their pace quickened until the terrain began to shift—uneven ground, rising slopes, and jagged hills of stone.
Dugu Feng's pupils contracted. He could sense serpentine life hidden nearby.
Hss... sss...
The faint sounds of scales brushing against leaves filled his ears, along with the sharp tang of venom in the air.
"Something's close," he whispered.
"Well spotted," Old Snake replied evenly. "Just a hundred-year Mandala Snake—nothing to worry about. It sees us as kin."
This was one of Sunset Forest's notorious serpent dens.
Stretching over dozens of kilometers, it was a haven for snake-type soul beasts.
They pressed on, searching for the perfect specimen.
Then, the soft hissing grew louder.
From behind a cluster of stone roots emerged a massive serpent—its body an emerald green, but with dark, metallic-green scales circling its neck.
"There it is."
Old Snake's eyes glinted. "To gauge a Jade Phosphor Serpent's age, count the dark neck scales. Each year adds one. That one has nearly six hundred—that means a six-hundred-year beast.
Feng'er, do you dare?"
Given his physical capabilities—greater even than Little Snake's rank-twenty power—Old Snake knew Dugu Feng could endure it.
Finding this precise serpent had been no coincidence.
Even as he spoke, Old Snake blurred forward. Before Dugu Feng fully registered the motion, the serpent collapsed unconscious.
He realized then—the man had mastered toxin release to the third stage; any part of his body could emit poison.
In fact, they had encountered not a single beast since entering—Old Snake must have been spreading a poisonous mist around them, creating a protective field.
This was the terrifying practicality of poison-type martial spirits: invisible, unavoidable, and absolute.
"Old Snake, since you believe in me, I'll give it my all," Dugu Feng said firmly.
Confidence ignited his chest. Drawing his short sword, he steadied his breath and slashed downward.
The blade struck true—right at the serpent's seven-inch mark.
With a clean cut, the Emerald Serpent split in two.
He then sliced it open from head to tail in one expert motion. His hands moved with swift precision, as if following old habit.
Call it experience—he'd dissected more snakes than most butchers ever would.
In his two years of training, he had eaten 180 snakes during the first six months, and another two per day over the following eighteen months.
A total of 1,160 snakes.
Now, skinning one was as effortless as breathing.
He sorted the serpent meat into neat portions for later use, then turned his eyes toward the soft glow of a newly born yellow spirit ring.
(END CHAPTER)
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