Douluo Dalu (Soul Land): Shadow Monarch

"Hehehe... If you want to blame someone, blame yourselves for being blind. You knew there was a tiger in the mountain, yet you still dared to enter. Since you've made such a foolish choice, don't blame this old man for being ruthless!" Dugu Bo laughed sinisterly, raising his hand wrapped in a poisonous green glow. In no time, dark green venomous snakes materialized, coiling and writhing up the bodies of the people in front of him.

The Golden Iron Triangle turned pale as they watched the venomous snakes approach. These snakes didn't bite them immediately but slithered up towards their necks, a clear sign that Dugu Bo was serious about killing them—he wasn't playing around!

In their current state, even a single bite would probably send them to an early grave.

"Wait!" Seeing the snakes about to reach his neck, Grandmaster suppressed the fear in his heart and looked directly into Dugu Bo's eyes, pleading, "Dugu Bo, Tang San is my disciple. If he's done anything wrong, I, as his teacher, am willing to take the blame for him. Please spare my friends. I'll trade my life for theirs."

"Xiaogang, what nonsense are you talking about? We're the Golden Iron Triangle! If we die, we die together!" Liu Erlong's eyes reddened as she heard Grandmaster's words, roaring in defiance.

"Spare them? What makes a waste like you think your life is worth the lives of three others?" Dugu Bo laughed coldly, his face twisted into a malevolent smile. "Killing you wouldn't prompt anyone to seek revenge. If I have one principle, it's that I leave no loose ends."

"Listen closely to the cries of death! Don't worry—my venomous snakes' bite will take only seconds to reduce you all to a puddle of ooze."

With that, Dugu Bo slightly moved his finger. The snakes slithering towards their necks opened their bloodthirsty jaws, their poisonous fangs glinting with a venomous green glow.

But just as the snakes were about to sink their fangs into the Golden Iron Triangle's necks, Dugu Bo's expression suddenly changed. The next moment, a powerful dragon's roar echoed from deep within the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

"Roar!"

At the sound of the dragon's roar, Dugu Bo felt his own spirit power start to churn and go chaotic. The venomous snakes he had summoned also dissipated, breaking down into ghostly green lights and vanishing in the air.

Before Dugu Bo could calm his spirit power, a massive shadow shot out from the forest into the sky, with a lone figure standing on top of it.

"Old poison, Nash told me you captured a few Spirit Masters who snuck into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to steal herbs. So, did you take care of them?" The enormous figure in the sky gradually shrank, and a steady voice echoed throughout the valley.

Hearing this voice, the Golden Iron Triangle showed a hint of relief. When Grandmaster recognized the approaching figure, a trace of joy appeared on his face.

"It's Cheng Xiao! Xiao San, Flender, we're saved!" Grandmaster said, visibly excited. However, upon hearing Cheng Xiao's name, Tang San's expression became somewhat complicated.

"You know Cheng Xiao?" Seeing Grandmaster recognize Cheng Xiao, Dugu Bo's expression also changed. His gaze moved from Cheng Xiao to the Golden Iron Triangle, and he asked coldly.

"Yes, Senior Dugu Bo. You might not know this," Grandmaster quickly replied, trying to leverage the connection to his advantage. "He and Tang San were both students at Nuoding Academy, and they got along quite well. I even served as their teacher. I hope, in the name of their old friendship as classmates, that you will spare us." Grandmaster wasn't stupid. Hearing Cheng Xiao call Dugu Bo "old poison" made him guess the two must be on friendly terms. So, in an attempt to save their lives, he tried to bind himself to Cheng Xiao by mentioning their shared past.

As expected, upon hearing Grandmaster's words, Dugu Bo's expression changed slightly, though he still didn't believe it outright. With a suspicious look, he asked, "You claim you taught Cheng Xiao? That you were his teacher? Then let me ask: what could you possibly have taught him?"

"With my strength, even I couldn't teach him much. And yet a weakling like you at only the twenty-ninth rank thinks he's qualified to be his teacher?"

Dugu Bo's tone was full of doubt, clearly not buying Grandmaster's claim, so he questioned him further.

Hearing this, Grandmaster panicked, quickly replying, "Senior Dugu Bo, if you don't believe me, you can ask Cheng Xiao himself. I was the one who took him to acquire his first spirit ring. You could say I was his guide as he entered the path of a Spirit Master."

Hearing this, Dugu Bo frowned, then turned to Cheng Xiao, who had just landed and was dusting himself off. With a twitch of his mouth, Dugu Bo called out, "Hey, brat! Did you hear that? This fool claims he was once your teacher, even calling himself the one who led you into the Spirit Master path. So, what do you say about that?"

"Haha, old poison, he was indeed a teacher at the academy, but I wouldn't say he was a competent one," Cheng Xiao replied, approaching Dugu Bo and looking at Grandmaster, who was tied to a tree with his shirt off. His pupils narrowed slightly as he muttered, "What the… Is he... a eunuch?"

"Hahaha!" Hearing this, Dugu Bo burst out laughing, clapping Cheng Xiao on the shoulder and mocking, "Right? I was shocked the first time I saw it too. But do you really mean to say this weakling was the one who helped you get your first spirit ring?"

"A Spirit Grandmaster at only the twenty-ninth rank... Don't tell me he helped you acquire just a ten-year ring?"

Dugu Bo's words struck a deep chord with Grandmaster, wounding his sensitive pride. As a renowned theorist, he had always aspired to be a powerful Spirit Master. But here he was—mocked for his weak power and reminded of his personal sacrifices. Only he understood his own suffering.

Though Grandmaster wanted to retort, he held back, fearing it would risk their lives even more. This was no time to provoke Dugu Bo.

"Cheng Xiao! If you have any spine, then fight me! This old guy accused me of stealing his herbs. The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well is a gift from nature and should be claimed by the worthy. Dugu Bo is murderous by nature and has no right to own such a treasure. And he insults my teacher—you have no conscience? Have you forgotten who helped you get your first spirit ring?" Tang San argued, clenching his teeth, speaking on behalf of himself and his teacher.

"Huh???" Cheng Xiao exclaimed, struggling to find words to describe Tang San's audacity. Cheng Xiao wasn't the only one stunned; even Dugu Bo looked shocked.

It seemed almost unbelievable that anyone could be this shameless. Dugu Bo prided himself on his thick skin, but Tang San appeared to be in a league of his own, as if he'd never heard of pride at all.

...

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