Chapter 32: Time to Show Off
Not far away, Royal Battle Team's instructor Qin Ming was startled when he saw Dugu Yan release her Green Phosphor Purple Poison. He immediately activated his soul power, ready to intervene at any moment.
Xiao Wu was also shocked. Even a fool could tell that Dugu Yan had just unleashed a deadly toxin. She cried out in alarm, "Zu Zong, be careful!"
The other members of the Royal Battle Team, though, wore faint smiles. While they had no personal grudge against Zu Zong, deep down they still hoped their long-time teammate Dugu Yan would win.
The next moment brought a truly unexpected scene.
Somehow, Zu Zong now held two large leather pouches in his hands. With a flick, he hurled them into the air and simultaneously fired two black kunai. The pouches were filled with gas.
Boom—
Unsurprisingly, the water pouches exploded. Empowered by both soul-powered kunai and internal air pressure, they burst open, releasing massive clouds of realgar wine mist into the air.
At that same moment, Zu Zong's first soul ring lit up.
"First Soul Skill—Poison Dragon Entangle."
The Blue Silver Emperor vines, now lined with searing red-hot scales, didn't attack Dugu Yan. Instead, they struck into the cloud of mist. Instantly, the water vapor transformed into a blazing fog under the intense heat, spreading a unique aroma throughout the area—engulfing the entire cloud of purple poison.
Zu Zong let out a soft exhale and whispered, "Phew... finally pulled it off. All those rehearsals weren't in vain."
The dense purple fog, when touched by the blazing fire mist, ignited at once with a series of popping sounds—then vanished completely into the air.
"No... impossible! How could you counter my Green Phosphor Purple Poison!?" Dugu Yan stared blankly at Zu Zong, eyes filled with disbelief. Not just her—every member of the Royal Battle Team, along with Qin Ming and Xiao Wu, stood frozen.
"Your Green Phosphor Serpent Poison is nothing but a minor trick. If the full Five Phosphor Poisons were used, maybe I'd be more cautious. But this? It's not there yet." Zu Zong coolly repeated Tang San's original line to Dugu Yan—word for word.
Zu Zong (secretly thrilled): 'Finally pulled off a perfect flex!'
Tang San (furious): 'You damn thief! You not only stole my strategy—you even stole my lines! We are enemies now!'
In the next instant, Zu Zong canceled his first soul skill. Blue Silver Area Bind reactivated, effortlessly wrapping Dugu Yan up like a dumpling.
Turning to Qin Ming, Zu Zong said, "So, Teacher Qin, I've won, haven't I?"
Qin Ming swallowed nervously and nodded. "This round goes to Zu Zong."
The clash between Zu Zong and Dugu Yan had caused quite a commotion. A crowd of curious students had gathered, including several instructors—Sun Buyu among them.
Only when Qin Ming officially announced his victory did Zu Zong release the bound Dugu Yan.
The surrounding crowd erupted in chatter.
Fangirl A: "Wow! Who is that handsome blue-haired guy? So cool!"
Fangirl B: "Big brother, I wanna have your babies!"
Guy A: "That dude's actually really strong—he beat Dugu Yan!"
Dugu Yan wasn't injured—not even a drop of blood. She had simply exhausted too much soul power. With her boyfriend Yu Tianheng's help, she walked over to Zu Zong and stared at him intensely.
"What was in that pouch just now?" she asked coldly.
Zu Zong replied with feigned nonchalance, "Realgar wine."
Hearing that, not only Dugu Yan, but most of the audience looked confused.
Just then, Sun Buyu spoke up, "Heh... it's true. Snake-type soul beasts really dislike the smell of realgar. I never expected realgar wine could neutralize serpent venom though. Young man, you've put your knowledge to good use."
Zu Zong lied with ease, "My first soul ring came from a century-old poisonous snake-type soul beast. I prepared the realgar wine back then just in case. But the teacher helping me hunt the soul ring was too strong—I never ended up needing it. So I saved it. And what do you know? It came in handy today."
Franklin (excited): "Wow, was I really that strong?"
Zu Zong (rolling his eyes): "Tch! I just used you as a cover. That Blackscale Venom Python? I killed it myself. Alone."
Xiao Wu excitedly pounced forward and once again clung to Zu Zong's neck like a sloth, cheering, "Wow! Zu Zong, you're amazing! You actually beat that old hag!"
Zu Zong's calm explanation clearly left Dugu Yan feeling dejected. As the only granddaughter of the Poison Douluo, the snake venom she had always taken pride in had just been neutralized.
She removed the ornate bracelet from her wrist and tossed it in front of Xiao Wu. "A bet is a bet. This three-cubic-meter storage soul tool is yours. From today on, you're officially part of the Royal Battle Team."
Xiao Wu caught the bracelet, clearly caught off guard. "Old hag, this is—"
Thwack!
Zu Zong gave her a firm karate chop to the head.
"Oww, oww oww!"
Xiao Wu clutched her head in pain.
"Still calling her an old hag? She just gave you her treasured storage tool! Don't be so heartless—call her Sister Yan!"
Although Xiao Wu had had a falling out with Dugu Yan earlier, she always listened to Zu Zong. She lowered her head, gave Dugu Yan a deep bow, and thanked her politely, "Thank you, Sister Yan!"
Even Dugu Yan, still sulking, was stunned by the turn of events. "Zu Zong, you…"
Zu Zong smiled faintly. "Everything before this was a misunderstanding. Besides, from now on, we're all teammates in the same squad. If we get into fights over something so minor, that'd be pretty childish, wouldn't it?"
His words noticeably improved the Royal Battle Team's impression of him. Even instructors like Qin Ming and Sun Buyu nodded in approval with smiles.
When the crowd dispersed…
Qin Ming smiled and said, "Well then, tonight I'm treating everyone to a feast in Heaven Dou City!"
Cheers broke out all around.
"Oh yeah!"
"Long live Teacher Qin!"
That evening, nearly everyone in the Royal Battle Team—including Qin Ming—ended up drunk. Xiao Wu and Dugu Yan drank until they laughed off their grudges, both swaying with flushed cheeks. Only Ye Lingling abstained, sipping a small glass of juice. She sat quietly alone, responding with only short phrases when others tried to engage her.
After the banquet ended, Zu Zong brought a tipsy Xiao Wu back to her room, then stepped out again. He held his liquor well and wasn't even tipsy.
Just as he exited the room, he ran into Yu Tianheng, who had also just returned from escorting Dugu Yan.
Their eyes met, and they exchanged a silent nod.
Yu Tianheng remained cold-faced as ever and said calmly, "Thank you for showing mercy to Yan today."
"Not at all. Yan's strength is formidable. If I hadn't happened to have realgar wine on me, I might've lost," Zu Zong quickly replied, shaking his head earnestly.
Looking at Zu Zong's serious expression, even the usually stoic Yu Tianheng couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.
If he hadn't witnessed the fight with his own eyes, he might've actually believed it.
'Believe you? You sly brat, you're way too devious.'
As they brushed past each other, Yu Tianheng left one last sentence behind.
"Next time, I want to see your true strength."
Zu Zong nodded and turned back toward his room.
(End of Chapter)
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