Douluo: Emerald Poison Emperor

After cultivating for a few hours, it was about time for lunch. Dugu Yan opened her eyes from meditation and glanced at Chen Ming, her gaze carrying a hint of complexity.

Although this mimicry meditation was somewhat exhausting, Dugu Yan could feel her meditation speed improving significantly. However, seeing Chen Ming so immersed in his training, she didn't want to interrupt him. Instead, she rubbed her stomach and headed toward the cave entrance.

It didn't take long before Dugu Yan, initially on her way to the dining hall, returned at an even faster speed, her face full of annoyance.

A group of riffraff had stationed themselves firmly at the entrance of the training grounds. Though they couldn't come in, they blocked the doorway completely. The moment they saw her, they began fawning over her—some singing, some holding bouquets, and even some unidentifiable individuals with ambiguous behavior.

To Dugu Yan, this was more disgusting than a thousand cockroaches.

"Were they always this nauseating?" Just thinking about it made her stomach churn, so she decided not to dwell on the matter. She returned to her original spot, sat down, and prepared to take a short nap with her eyes closed.

A few minutes later, Chen Ming awoke from his meditation and stretched his limbs, and the sounds of his movements roused Dugu Yan from her half-sleep.

Under her watchful gaze, Chen Ming took a folding table out of his soul storage and placed it on the ground. He then retrieved the food he had prepared and began eating.

The food Chen Ming had prepared included some simple pastries, fruits, and a specially formulated nutritional meal.

It was a jerky-like substance, its unique medicinal aroma so pungent that even Dugu Yan couldn't help but twitch her nose. Even though Chen Ming was used to consuming bizarre culinary creations, he ate it cautiously—one bite of jerky followed by a sip of juice, then some fruit or pastries to neutralize the taste.

Skipping a meal wouldn't have been a big deal, but Dugu Yan, pampered by her grandfather Dugu Bo, was used to luxurious meals. Her daily diet included a variety of fruits, pastries, and delicacies.

Initially, she didn't feel the urge to eat, but seeing Chen Ming eating stirred her appetite.

Noticing Dugu Yan's gaze, Chen Ming paused, casually wiped his hands on his uniform, and took out an extra set of bowls, chopsticks, and jerky from his storage soul device. Placing them nearby, he gestured toward her.

"If you're hungry, come over and have some. It's just simple food—not much, but enough to fill your stomach."

"Alright." If Chen Ming had insistently begged her to eat, Dugu Yan would have flatly refused. But his nonchalant attitude piqued her interest.

She sat down by the folding table, picked up a piece of jerky, sniffed it cautiously, and then put it in her mouth. The pungent medicinal taste made her frown tightly, her originally pretty face twisting into a comically exaggerated expression.

Judging from Chen Ming's demeanor, she had expected the jerky to taste bad, but she hadn't imagined it would be this awful. It was far worse than the medicinal meals she was used to.

If this had been in front of her grandfather, Dugu Yan would have pouted and refused to eat. But in front of a peer—a soul master of similar age who, in her opinion, was her equal in all respects—her pride wouldn't allow her to back down.

She poured herself a cup of juice from a nearby jug, rinsed her mouth, and ate a few honey pastries. Her expression gradually returned to normal. Looking at the piece of jerky she had only taken one bite of, she found herself strangely curious.

She extended her finger, carefully tearing off a small piece and cautiously placing it in her mouth. Suppressing the odd sensation brought by the medicinal taste, she began analyzing the jerky's ingredients using her knowledge.

"Meat of the Jade Phosphor Serpent, Vinebone Flower, Hundred-Jie Grass, Scarlet Blood Lotus… and this bitterness—it must be Blue Silver Grass? But why does the main ingredient feel so strange, like I've never encountered it before? Yet somehow, it feels vaguely familiar."

Dugu Yan sensed that the flavor seemed to stimulate her martial soul, even if just slightly. It felt as though her martial soul was becoming more active because of it.

"Just eat it. Don't bother asking questions. This is top-tier stuff, something you wouldn't have tasted even as the granddaughter of a Title Douluo. If it weren't for how pampered I am at home, I wouldn't be able to get my hands on it either. These materials are unparalleled across the entire continent."

Chen Ming wasn't exaggerating. Even though Dugu Yan was the granddaughter of Dugu Bo, who had the treasured Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, she still couldn't have possibly encountered the jerky's primary ingredient.

And what was the most important ingredient in this jerky?

The answer: the sap of the Jade Phosphorous Flower of the Seven Absolutes.

As Chen Ming had suspected in the past, the Jade Phosphorous Flower of the Seven Absolutes was a type of immortal herb. However, it was a herb that most people couldn't consume safely. Consuming it required extreme care, or it could result in death.

After Chen Ming absorbed the soul ring of the Jade Phosphorous Flower of the Seven Absolutes and gained a deeper understanding of its toxicity, his family developed a method to utilize its sap to create auxiliary medicinal materials.

Even though the sap came from a flower that hadn't become a soul beast, it was still an extraordinary tonic for poison-type soul masters. Regular consumption not only enhanced soul power but also strengthened one's martial soul.

If there was a drawback to the medicinal jerky made from Jade Phosphorous Flower of the Seven Absolutes sap, it was the taste—it was incredibly unpalatable. Even with over a dozen spices, the unique flavor couldn't be masked.

Just eating a small piece, while offering no immediate benefits, could temporarily activate one's martial soul and boost cultivation speed thanks to the flower's inherent properties.

Dugu Yan wanted to ask about the jerky's primary ingredient, but since this was only their first meeting and they weren't close yet, she suppressed her curiosity and began eating the jerky in small bites.

Chen Ming's soul storage contained five or six bottles of juice, each holding two liters. On a regular day, half a bottle was enough for one meal. But during this meal, Dugu Yan alone drank two full bottles of juice.

After eating and drinking her fill, Dugu Yan leaned against the stone wall. The comfort radiating from her martial soul made her squint contentedly as she rubbed her now full belly.

She was about to say something to express her thoughts when she suddenly remembered she wasn't with her grandfather but rather in front of an unfamiliar male. The realization hit her hard, and she instantly felt uncomfortable.

Although Chen Ming wasn't even looking in her direction, Dugu Yan couldn't shake the feeling of being scrutinized. She became so self-conscious that she didn't know where to place her hands.

After deliberating for a moment, she sat up, thanked Chen Ming politely, and hurriedly left the training grounds. Her sudden departure left Chen Ming, who had just finished his meal and was about to enjoy some tea, completely baffled. He had no idea what Dugu Yan was thinking.