Chapter 005:

Dugu Mei and Dugu Xin had never seen their child, Dugu Wei, so adamant. Ever since his birth, he was always unlike other children as he was so much quieter and hard to read, as if he was hiding something from them. Still, he was their precious son, and so they did not truly mind, only somewhat worried. Now seeing this look on their usually expressionless son's face, they knew that he had something very important to say, hence they waited.

However, the sentence they heard next was something they never expected. The young child with wild green hair and charming purple eyes said, "I can cure you both."

At first, the two were shocked into stupor before falling away into laughter. To them, it just seemed that their son was finally acting his age and being selfishly childish. They were relieved. Dugu Mei continued patting her son's head, as she nodded, "Yes, yes, you can cure us. Our Little Wei is indeed wonderful."

But when they saw their son's expression remain, they knew that he was being entirely serious, making them want to believe in him. Dugu Xin almost laughed at himself for the thought. Even his father Dugu Bo who had studied the poison all his life and was half a step away from becoming a Douluo was unable to cure him, what less was there to say of his own son yet to awaken a martial spirit? Still, Dugu Xin's eyes turned into crescents as he smiled, feeling grateful for his family's affection.

Seeing that his parents still did not take him seriously, Dugu Wei thought it would be better to show them. Thinking along these lines, he called out the Sky Poison Pearl from his soul, causing a small green orb to levitate from his hand. He was about to explain the functions of the Sky Poison Pearl when he heard a loud cry of shock from both his parents.

At the same time, they yelled, "A Martial Spirit!?"

Dugu Wei's head blanked momentarily before a flash of light sparkled in his eyes. He thought he would have to expose himself in order to cure his parents but it seemed that was no longer the case as he had been now given an excuse.

Nodding, he affirmed, "Mom, Dad. This is my martial spirit, the Sky Poison Pearl. It is able to cure all poisons and I have been using it on the both of you for some time now, but I just couldn't find the time to tell you."

Within the pearl, the Dugu Couple could see a familiar swirl of green they recognized to be the poison of the jade Phosphor Serpent being purged at a rate visible to the naked eye. Finding themselves in this situation, the two were incredulous.

Dugu Xin exclaimed, "But how could this be? My son has not only awakened a martial spirit before the age of six, but it is also able to combat the poison of the great Jade Phosphor Spirit which made my father the king of poison?" It was well known that children would only awaken their spirit at the age of six, any time beforehand being something not even fairy tales would dare suggest. In that moment, Dugu Xin realized that his son was a genius and not just any genius, but one that was possibly unmatched.

Dugu Mei thought similarly, however, her attention was on another aspect. Shaking her husband's arm, she said, "Dear, you don't realize what this means! Our son awakened a different spirit! He is not cursed by the Jade Phosphor Serpent's poison and can even save Little Yan in the future." Indeed, a mother's love was great. Rather than herself, she was thinking about how her children no longer had to live under fear of the serpent's poison. It was a new light of hope for the Dugu Family as a whole.

Dugu Xin realized the weight of his wife's words as he looked towards his children. Looking specifically at his son, he requested, "Please heal us." In response, Dugu Wei only said, "You both have called me your son and raised me, not sparing any love. There is no need for formalities, it is simply what I should do." Once they were done talking, he began to cure them.

A few minutes later, the complexions of the couple's face were a few shades brighter, no longer showing the pale face of the sick. They were now completely healthy. Dugu Xin got out of bed and lifted his daughter, spinning her around. The little girl Dugu Yan could be seen giggling happily as Dugu Mei watched with a warm expression. At the heart of it, Dugu Wei heaved a sigh of relief as he spent the rest of the day with his family, awaiting Dugu Bo's return.

The man very close to Douluo and the master of poisons would not be so easily fooled, or so he thought.

Three days later when Dugu Bo returned, he had broken through to become a Douluo and immediately reached over to his son in order to cure him, only to find that there was not a single trace of poison remaining.

Having been afflicted with this poison himself all his life, Dugu Bo knew exactly how implausible this situation was himself, thinking himself to have gone insane and having dreamt the matter of his breakthrough. However, when his son explained to him the events from a few days ago, the man realized he was indeed still sane as he would not even dare to dream such things.

Unlike ever before, Dugu Bo stared deeply at his grandson, who he had always found strange but never truly minded. Now, he was wondering if his grandson was possessed, scanning his soul.

Dugu Wei felt the immense spiritual pressure coming from Dugu Bo, making it hard to even breathe. 'So this was a Douluo', he thought. At that time, he realized something terrible. He began to dearly hope that Dugu Bo would not be able to find the ghost of his grandfather in his Sky Poison Pearl. And as the sensation faded, it seemed that he had not.

His grandfather snorted in his mind, "That old man is much weaker than me in my prime, he would never be able to find me if I don't let him. Still, he's not bad. That's great news for you, Little Wei, a suitable shield has appeared!" Over the years, Dugu Wei had slowly forgotten his grandfather's childish personality, competing with others even as a ghost.

He was broken away from his thoughts, however, as Dugu Bo began to speak to him. A rare smile on his face, he said, "You've done a good job, Little Wei. This 'Sky poison Pearl' Martial Spirit... Remember to make good use of it, as only the strong are able to protect what they love. You must train hard." After saying that, Dugu Bo rubbed both his and Yan's heads.

Looking at the figure of Dugu Bo, Dugu Wei was reminded that this man was also his grandfather ever since he came into possession of this body. Although he was very different from his Grandfather Zhang in the Sky Poison Pearl, he was still a very compassionate man despite their different ways of showing it. Thinking for a moment, Dugu Wei said, "Grandfather, I can cure you as well."

Only now did Dugu Bo think about this. While he was resistant to the poison now as a Douluo, it still wouldn't hurt to get rid of it. Grabbing his chin with his hand, he nodded. "If you can, little Wei." With that, he immediately sat down on the floor as he waited for his grandson to begin the process.

Dugu Wei suddenly realized why his grandfather seemed so oppressing, as even when seated on the floor, they were nearly the same height. Thinking no further, he once again called out the pearl and began to cure his grandfather. The process this time was much faster, only taking less than a minute. The entire time, Dugu Bo had been watching silently, causing him to grow more amazed as time passed. To be able to use a newly awakened spirit to completely cure a Douluo of poison, even if the spirit was mainly purposed for curing, was not at all simple and could even be said to be impossible. And yet, it had happened. Dugu Bo was truly convinced that there could not be a greater genius in all of the continent than his grandson, making him extremely pleased.

In his head, Dugu Bo had already planned to test his grandson's spirit power and martial aptitude. If it was good enough, he would personally train him in the ways of poison whenever he was free. After all, now that he was a Douluo, there was a lot to be done, including announcing his ascension to the world, thereby raising the status of his family.

Although the Dugu Family was already considered a noble family, a regular noble family and one with a living Douluo were worlds apart in terms of influence. After all, power was the greatest form of legitimacy in the continent. Still, he decided that it would be best to wait until his grandchildren both became six, as they could then test both Wei and Yan in the same sitting.

And so, many days passed by carelessly as they turned into weeks and months. Finally, it was the day that the Dugu twins turned six years old, and were ready to be awakened.