Chapter 15: Crimson Poison Veiling the Sky
Memories of his childhood flickered through Xiahou Mang's mind—carefree days filled with simplicity and innocence.
That all changed the moment he absorbed a spirit ring and, by sheer fortune, obtained a soul bone.
It had set him on the path of power.
Time had flown since then; now his clan lay annihilated.
A cold light flashed in his eyes.
If he could capture the boy, he would live. He would continue cultivating, ascend to Soul Douluo, reach Titled Douluo, and rebuild his fallen family.
Xiahou Mang's expression twisted fiercely—his hand stretched forward, just about to seize the child.
But the boy suddenly stood up.
He grinned, showing perfect white teeth. "One."
Xiahou Mang froze. What was he doing?
"Two."
Was he… counting?
"Three—fall."
Instantly, Xiahou Mang felt his strength draining away. His right hand, which clutched the giant blade, drooped uselessly at his side.
Fatigue swept through him; blood seeped black from his seven orifices, unstoppable.
A suffocating purple-green hue spread through his entire body.
The crimson aura around his blade vanished.
And Xiahou Mang fell face-first into the dirt.
Before Dugu Feng's eyes, flesh, muscle, and bone dissolved into colored mist, scattering into ash, dust to dust.
Dugu Feng's pupils contracted sharply.
He had known Old Snake's poison was deadly, but not that it was this unstoppable.
The reason he had smiled earlier was simple—Old Snake had already whispered to him that Xiahou Mang would die within three steps.
The area around them was thick with Jade Phosphor Violet Poison.
Old Snake would never have left his young master's safety to chance.
Poor Xiahou Mang, convinced of his advantage, had charged directly to his death.
Even Dugu Feng, prepared as he was, couldn't help feeling awe at such venomous power.
Three breaths. That was all it had taken—for Xiahou Mang to go from sensing poison to dying from it.
Dugu Feng sighed softly. He leapt down from the tree, landing near the spot where the man had fallen.
There, floating above the ground, was a glowing orb of multicolored light.
No doubt—the soul bone.
His first time seeing one up close, he leaned in. It was a round, miniature skull, no larger than three inches across, glimmering with a prismatic sheen.
Utterly mesmerizing.
This was the treasure over which the Huyan and Tuoba Families had fought so ruthlessly.
Dugu Feng picked it up and placed it into his storage belt.
A short distance away, the white-armored dragon masters and Huyan Lie stood rooted in horror.
Xiahou Mang was dead—silently, without even a sound.
"People of the Dugu Clan?" Huyan Lie exclaimed.
The leading White Armored Saint Dragon Soul Saint, Tuoba Lan, immediately bowed deeply, his tone respectful. "Esteemed Jade Phosphor Excellency, if our actions have disturbed your meditation, please forgive us! We shall withdraw at once."
His first thought was that Dugu Bo himself was present.
Given the corpse's state and the boy's green hair and emerald eyes, who else could this be associated with but the Titled Douluo "Poison Douluo" Dugu Bo?
After the Clear Sky Clan's retreat, that name had become one of the most feared across the continent.
Even as a Soul Douluo, Dugu Bo had been formidable; as a Titled Douluo, he was untouchable.
Damn it, Tuoba Lan cursed inwardly. Why did I have to run into that old venomous monster here of all places?
He was a temperamental butcher—known never to leave loose ends alive.
The others bowed low, too—Huyan Lie included—voices trembling. "Please forgive us, honored Excellency of the Jade Phosphor… we will come later to pay proper respects."
Yet even now, they couldn't sense where their opponent actually was.
Only the boy, Dugu Feng, stood visible.
But clearly it wasn't he who had killed Xiahou Mang.
Dugu Feng sighed inwardly. Was Dugu Bo really the only name they could ever associate with the clan?
How would they know the truth of the division—the Poison Line and the Serpent Line—each with bitter blood feuds?
To outsiders, Dugu Bo and Dugu Shuo were one and the same.
How predictable.
"You're quite naive," Dugu Feng said calmly, smiling faintly. "Seeing the soul bone in our hands, and you still dream of leaving here alive?"
Unseen in the shadows, Old Snake had already begun his work.
Since the soul bone was secured, there could be no witnesses—not for vengeance, nor for secrecy.
"Arrogant brat! If the Jade Phosphor Excellency were truly here, he wouldn't be hiding behind a child. If he's not here—then today you'll die in his name!"
Tuoba Lan roared as his body erupted in blinding white.
His seventh soul ring flared.
Martial Soul True Body—complete transformation.
In an instant, he became an enormous Earth Dragon, its serpentine body stretching dozens of meters long.
White scales the size of basins gleamed under the moonlight, horns spiraled from his head, and long whiskers whipped through the air as he inhaled deeply.
His great jaws gaped open, unleashing a beam of white light like a searing breath of flame aimed straight at Dugu Feng.
A flash of violet flickered before him—Old Snake appeared.
Grabbing Dugu Feng by the arm, he vanished with a flicker, reappearing high among the canopy.
"Tuoba Lan," Old Snake hissed darkly, his voice echoing through the air around them, "you of the Saint Dragon Sect have grown arrogant hiding under Spirit Hall's banner. Have you forgotten why the Dugu Clan remains among the Seven Powers controlling the Great Spirit Arenas?"
His voice seemed to come from everywhere at once.
None could pin down his location.
Then, both of the Soul Emperors standing behind Tuoba Lan convulsed violently as violet light engulfed them.
Within moments, their bodies melted into bubbling sludge—vanished without a trace.
Huyan Lie's face twisted in horror. This wasn't Dugu Bo—but whoever it was, he was undoubtedly a powerhouse of the Dugu Clan.
Xiahou Mang's death, now followed by two Soul Emperors—proof of terrifying, inescapable poison arts.
Even the Elephant Armored Sect, who had once allied with the Dugu Clan against Xiahou's family, trembled at their power.
Eyeing Tuoba Lan's towering dragon form ahead, Huyan Lie made a decision. His eyes flickered once, then he turned and fled.
Even his massive Diamond Mammoth seemed lighter as it bounded in retreat.
The Elephant Armored Sect had indeed begun courting Spirit Hall's favor—their leader, Huyan Zhen, fully intending to side with them. The operation had been part of that alliance.
They had never expected to run into the Dugu Clan here.
"Crimson Poison Veiling the Sky!"
Old Snake's cold voice rang out.
A faint red glow spread across the entire forest—a hypnotic, deadly haze, radiating both beauty and terror.
Huyan Lie's body tensed. Yellow-brown light burst from him, forming a thick protective shell.
The Diamond Mammoth martial spirit was one of the finest defensive types in existence. In terms of raw endurance, even some Soul Douluo couldn't compare.
"Watch closely, Young Master," came Old Snake's whisper from the shadows.
"The highest refinement of Jade Phosphor Red Poison attacks the enemy's mind directly. Once their senses open, the toxin slips in, corroding sanity itself."
He was teaching even as he killed.
Old Snake's fifth soul skill—Crimson Poison Veiling the Sky—blanketed the entire forest in lethal red mist.
(END CHAPTER)
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