Qi Lin looked at Dugu Bo's expression and chuckled as his tense demeanor relaxed. "Senior Dugu Bo, it seems you don't quite believe what I said."
Dugu Bo's face darkened. "Even the lowest-ranked teachers at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy—the Tianwei-ranked instructors—have soul power at or above rank forty."
"What, are you saying your soul power is over forty?"
Qi Lin smiled faintly and raised his hand. One by one, five soul rings rose slowly beneath his feet.
"How about now? Do I qualify to be a teacher at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy?"
Dugu Bo's gaze locked on the soul rings rising around Qi Lin. Although the colors were strange and varied, that wasn't the point. What mattered was—this kid actually had five soul rings!
He was a Soul King!
Gulp.
Looking at Qi Lin's still-youthful face, Dugu Bo couldn't help but swallow hard.
At this moment, he even doubted his own eyes.
How could such a young Soul King possibly exist?
But the truth was right in front of him—Dugu Bo had no choice but to believe it.
Even so, he still asked cautiously, "How old are you this year?"
"Just turned thirteen."
Hiss—! Dugu Bo gasped sharply.
Damn it. A thirteen-year-old Soul King?
What kind of monster was this!?
Dugu Bo had been holed up in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well lately, so he hadn't even known his granddaughter returned to the academy today—let alone that Qi Lin had been made a teacher under special consideration.
But Dugu Bo was a Titled Douluo. He had the mental fortitude to handle shock.
After a moment, he regained his composure and continued, "By the way, you still haven't answered me—what about the senior backing you? Where is he?"
Maybe it was because Qi Lin knew his granddaughter, or maybe because of Qi Lin's terrifying talent, but Dugu Bo's tone had noticeably softened.
Qi Lin shrugged. "I think you've misunderstood, Senior Dugu. It's just the two of us here."
Dugu Bo frowned slightly. "Then what was that blue light just now?"
"Oh, that? Probably something that happened while I was absorbing my soul ring."
As he spoke, Qi Lin pointed above his head. "Look, my soul ring colors are different from yours, right?"
"So just now... you were absorbing your fifth soul ring?"
Dugu Bo scanned the area. There were no traces of soul beast combat, and no soul beast corpses either. A glimmer of doubt flickered in his eyes.
"That's right."
Hearing Qi Lin's confirmation, Dugu Bo hesitated briefly, then asked, "Your fifth soul skill—is it related to healing? Are you an auxiliary-type Soul Master?"
Qi Lin nodded.
Dugu Bo's eyes lit up. In a rare gentle tone, he asked, "Would you be willing to use your fifth soul skill on me?"
Normally, Dugu Bo would never use such polite language. If someone refused, he could just force them.
But Qi Lin was different. Not only was he a monstrous genius, but he also knew Yan Yan. At the very least, they seemed to be friends.
So Dugu Bo remained respectful.
Qi Lin was also curious. Would the soul power drain from casting his fifth skill on Dugu Bo be as terrifying as it was before?
If it consumed that much soul power every time, the skill would be pretty useless in battle.
With that in mind, Qi Lin opened his palm. A golden-veined four-leaf clover emerged from his hand.
The next moment, a streak of blue-gold light burst forth from the clover, enveloping Dugu Bo.
Qi Lin focused carefully on the rate of soul power consumption.
Not bad. The drain was several times slower than before—dozens of times slower, in fact.
Meanwhile, Dugu Bo's face betrayed even more shock than Qi Lin's.
He could feel it—his body, riddled with damage from years of Wuhun-based poison corrosion, was slowly healing.
Even more incredibly, the accumulated poison inside him, caused by the backlash of his own venom, was also being gradually purged.
This wasn't just any poison. It was the deep-seated, lingering poison left behind after merging with his martial soul.
To get rid of it, he had once spent enormous sums to hire multiple auxiliary-type Soul Saints. None of them had succeeded.
And now, a mere Soul King had done what even Soul Saints could not.
In this moment, Dugu Bo's heart surged with emotion.
He had always borne the title of "Poison Douluo," yet had been tormented by his own martial soul's backlash. Worse, it had even afflicted his descendants.
It was his life's greatest regret.
But now—he saw hope.
His beloved granddaughter... could finally be saved!
Dugu Bo couldn't help but glance at Qi Lin again.
Young, handsome, monstrously talented...
If this young man could become Yan Yan's husband...
As the idea formed, Dugu Bo's gaze grew intensely warm.
He had to come up with a plan—he couldn't let such an outstanding future grandson-in-law slip away!
Qi Lin continued channeling the healing energy for a while before stopping. He shrugged, "Using my fifth soul skill on a Titled Douluo like you burns through my soul power pretty fast. I'm done for now."
In truth, it wasn't that bad. He had only used less than ten percent of his soul power on Dugu Bo.
But his soul power was already low after healing Gu Yuena earlier.
Dugu Bo, still glowing with joy, laughed heartily. "No worries, no worries. The fact that your soul skill, at just Soul King level, can affect a Titled Douluo like me—and last that long—is already amazing!"
Who would've thought? The infamous Poison Douluo, known for his strange and eccentric temper, was now being so friendly to a total stranger.
Then, as if it had just occurred to him, he added, "Since you're Yan Yan's friend, I'll take a liberty and call you Little Lin, alright?"
"Call me whatever you like."
Everyone knew Qi Lin was famously respectful to elders, and Dugu Bo, despite his flaws, was a beloved figure in the original story—loyal and emotional.
Looking back at the novel, Dugu Bo arguably helped Tang San more than Yu Xiaogang ever did.
Unfortunately, as a kind of "angel investor," his ending never quite matched up to someone like Sea God Douluo Bo Saixi.
Qi Lin always thought it was a shame that Dugu Bo's story ended the way it did.
The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well held so many immortal herbs. Wasn't there even one suitable for Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan?
Even if Dugu Bo didn't recognize the herbs, couldn't Tang San at least help the two of them pick one?
Back in his previous life, Qi Lin had even seen online speculation that Tang San deliberately withheld a suitable herb as revenge for how Dugu Bo had once tortured him.
Regardless, Dugu Bo was clearly delighted that Qi Lin didn't object to the "Little Lin" nickname. His smile deepened, and in his heart, he had already accepted this boy as his future grandson-in-law.
Even though he knew Yan Yan had some feelings for that brat from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan...
But Dugu Bo didn't like Yu Tianheng.
That boy was arrogant to the core, no different from the rest of his clan, his head filled with nothing but their so-called family legacy.
If he ever found out Yan Yan had inherited a poison that could be passed down...
There was no doubt—he'd end things in a heartbeat.
The proud Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan would never allow one of their pureblood heirs to marry a woman carrying inherited toxins.
So...
A smile crept across Dugu Bo's lips.
Clearly, it was time for Grandpa to step in.
He couldn't let such an excellent grandson-in-law get away.