Wang Zhong glanced at Dugu Bo and muttered, "I'm already doing that without you telling me."
"That's precisely why I need to examine the toxins within your body."
"Did you really think I wanted to see you?"
His voice was soft, but Dugu Yan, who was closest to him, heard it clearly. Her eyes crinkled into slits as she smiled.
Dugu Bo, as a Titled Douluo, possessed exceptional hearing and naturally caught the remark. A twitch of his lips was his only reaction.
"Yan'er, getting rid of the poison in your body isn't difficult. I can think of at least three methods."
Wang Zhong's eyes held a flicker of thought and speculation.
"What methods!" Dugu Yan grabbed Wang Zhong's hand tightly, her voice full of anticipation.
"One, you give up the path of a soul master, cripple your soul power, and then have your grandfather forcefully extract the toxins from your body. Afterward, with proper recuperation, it can be resolved."
"However, you've never agreed to this idea before and want to continue on the path of a soul master, so this method is out."
Dugu Yan nodded repeatedly. She had no desire to become an ordinary person.
"Two, from now on, regardless of the level you reach, you must hunt soul rings only from non-poisonous soul beasts or exclusively from Jade Phosphor Serpent soul beasts."
"I examined the toxins in your grandfather's body earlier. It's a mixed poison, a concoction of various strange toxins. While such toxins are potent, controlling them is incredibly difficult. It's precisely because of this that your grandfather has become this way."
"A single toxin is far easier to control than a mixed one."
Upon hearing the second method, Dugu Bo's eyes lit up.
This idea was simply perfect!
With himself as a reference, he understood the problem he was facing: the combined effects of various toxins made control extremely arduous, leading to the overflow into his body.
Given Dugu Yan's talent, a single toxin would never present such a dilemma!
Although this approach might reduce a soul master's killing power and destructive force, it was the best solution available.
"As for the third method, it would be..."
Wang Zhong's gaze fixed on Dugu Bo, hesitating whether to reveal this method.
"Kid, what are you looking at me like that for!"
Having found a way to resolve his granddaughter's toxic backlash, Dugu Bo's opinion of Wang Zhong had improved considerably.
"Hmph!"
With a displeased snort, Wang Zhong pursed his lips and turned his gaze to Dugu Yan, speaking in a heavy tone.
"The third method is for your grandfather to spend his entire life, injecting all the toxins he can control into your body, bit by bit, turning you into a complete poison person!"
"At that point, you will be poison, and poison will be you. The so-called toxic backlash will cease to exist."
"Moreover, with this method, your future will be far more terrifying than your grandfather's, and you will be far more suited to the title of Poison Douluo!"
"As a poison person, your breath will be toxic, your sweat toxic, your blood toxic. Even without activating your soul power or spirit, a pervasive toxic aura will surround you, and no one will dare approach you!"
This method caused Dugu Yan's emerald eyes to tremble incessantly, and Dugu Bo was also startled by such a wild idea.
"If you choose this last method, your entire life will become like your name, Dugu Yan!"
"Even migrating geese have companions, but you will not. You will have to fly south alone, living a solitary life in this world! Anyone who approaches you, whether you wish it or not, will be poisoned to death!"
Hearing the consequences, Dugu Bo finally understood why Wang Zhong had looked at him in that manner.
If he were merely a ruthless and harsh individual focused on nurturing a successor, then this last method would indeed be his best choice.
However, he was Dugu Yan's grandfather, the one who cherished this only granddaughter the most. How could he possibly do such a thing!
That gaze carried appraisal and distrust!
"Kid, what do you take me for! Even a tiger doesn't eat its cubs. Yan'er is my only granddaughter!"
How long had you two known each other, and you dare to look at me, Dugu Yan's own grandfather, with such suspicion? Dugu Bo was so incensed his beard bristled.
"You can see a person's face but not their heart. Who knows what kind of grandfather you are!"
Wang Zhong cast a sideways glance at Dugu Bo and muttered softly.
"Hehe."
This mumbled remark caused Dugu Yan to bite her lip and laugh, her shoulders shaking.
After a good while of laughter, Dugu Yan suddenly remembered and grabbed Wang Zhong's hand again, her voice filled with anxiety. "You can solve the toxins in me, can you also help my grandfather escape that torment?"
Wang Zhong rested his chin on his hand, thought for a moment, and then slowly shook his head.
"Cannot be cured! Hopeless! Just wait to die!"
The triple pronouncement made Dugu Yan's slender body sway. She murmured, "Is there truly no other way?"
Dugu Bo was not surprised by this outcome. As an expert in poison himself, he was all too aware of his own condition.
He was already deeply satisfied to have found a solution for his precious granddaughter from this young man.
"No, you're lying!"
"There's a smile in your eyes! You're a wicked boy!"
Suddenly, Dugu Yan's indignant voice interrupted Dugu Bo's thoughts.
Looking up, she saw her granddaughter straddling Wang Zhong, shaking his shoulders incessantly, her little face flushed with anger.
Wang Zhong chuckled and replied, "I'm not lying!"
"Your grandfather's poison has already seeped into his bones and blood. How can such poison be cured?"
"Then tell me, why were you smiling with your eyes crinkled just now?"
Even while sitting on Wang Zhong's lap, Dugu Yan's hands were on her hips, adopting the demeanor of a little queen.
"Ah, I was smiling!"
Wang Zhong grinned, looking immensely amused.
"You're still pretending! Hurry up, tell me quickly."
"Please, please."
Dugu Yan's small face wore a pleading and coaxing expression.
"Alright, alright. Get down first, and I'll tell you then."
Hearing this, Dugu Yan immediately leaped off Wang Zhong, her eyes fixed on him with excitement.
"Really. What I said earlier wasn't to mock your grandfather; I genuinely couldn't understand why he wouldn't think of such a simple thing."
"In nature, poisonous snakes are not killed by their own venom because they don't store it within their bodies. Instead, it's kept in venom sacs, which they expel or inject into their prey only when needed."
"Since your grandfather's poison cannot be controlled, why not find a container like a venom sac to store it? Then, he can take it out when needed!"
Wang Zhong spoke casually, his gaze resting on Dugu Yan's slightly flushed face, without even looking at Dugu Bo while discussing him.
"But Grandpa's poison is very potent! No container can hold it," Dugu Yan frowned, looking troubled.
"Fool!"
"I'm using 'container' as a metaphor, not suggesting he carry it around in pots and pans! Use soul bones!"
"Import the toxins from his body into his soul bones, letting the soul bones act as venom sacs, wouldn't that suffice?"
Wang Zhong's words struck Dugu Bo's mind like lightning.
Yes, yes! If he couldn't control it, why not use soul bones as containers to store it! Soul bones are hard and extremely difficult to destroy, making them the perfect vessel!
"Actually, this method can also be applied to you, but I don't recommend it."
"While soul bones are derived from soul beasts, they fuse with the body and are, in essence, a part of it. Injecting toxins into them merely condenses the poison into a smaller, concentrated area."
"It treats the symptom, not the root cause!"
"Furthermore, soul bones have limits. When the poison exceeds what the soul bone can bear, it will erupt! The resulting toxic backlash will be unimaginably terrifying."
"Besides, you have no idea how much poison a single soul bone can hold! Therefore, using this method would be very dangerous. You are still young, and the amount of poison you might generate from future martial soul cultivation is something even your grandfather cannot foresee."
Wang Zhong warned Dugu Yan with a serious tone.