In that brief instant, Taichu had already copied both of Yu Tianheng's first and second Spirit Abilities. Getting two Spirit Abilities for free naturally meant he wasn't bothered by the minor disturbance.
At this moment, Dugu Yan sat down cross-legged, preparing to absorb the spirit ring.
Seeing this, Taichu's eyes flickered beneath the spiral mask. A trace of hesitation flashed through them—but in the end, he spoke.
"If I were you, I wouldn't absorb this spirit ring."
His voice echoed clearly.
The moment those words were spoken, the members of the Huangdou Team frowned.
"Kid, what do you even know?" Oslo spoke up. "This Blood Shadow Red Snake is around seventeen hundred years old. Whether it's in terms of attribute or species, it's perfectly suited as Big Sister's spirit ring."
The other members didn't speak, but their expressions clearly agreed with Oslo. As for Taichu's warning, they didn't take it seriously at all.
Wearing a mask and refusing to show his real face—how trustworthy could someone like that be?
"Why do you say that?"
Unexpectedly, Dugu Yan stopped absorbing the spirit ring and looked straight at Taichu, her gaze flickering.
"You should already know the answer."
Taichu replied calmly.
"I don't understand what you're talking about."
Dugu Yan fell silent for a moment before speaking.
However—
In those few short seconds, Taichu had already observed her micro-expressions through the Mangekyō Sharingan. From the instant changes in her expression, he could basically confirm that Dugu Yan knew very well about the severe poison hidden within her body.
That made things much easier.
"Drinking poison to quench thirst," Taichu said slowly. "Do you understand now?"
Those words instantly caused Dugu Yan's expression to change drastically. With a sudden motion, she stood up.
"How do you know?!"
The moment those words left her mouth, she was already certain—this person absolutely knew about the Jade Phosphor Serpent Poison inherited by the Dugu Family for generations. Otherwise, there was no way he could have said something like drinking poison to quench thirst.
The Jade Phosphor Serpent Poison passed down through the Dugu Family—if one didn't cultivate their martial soul and only relied on medication to suppress it, they could barely live to around fifty.
But—
How could someone with Spirit Master talent be willing to remain ordinary for their entire life?
Thus, no one in the Dugu Family ever gave up cultivation.
Yet cultivation came with a cruel consequence.
Because of the Jade Phosphor Serpent martial soul, the spirit rings they absorbed had to be poison-related. And every time a spirit ring was absorbed, the inherited poison only grew more severe.
Although the increase in spirit power could temporarily suppress the poison, it was only a stopgap measure. As cultivation continued, the poison would inevitably worsen.
In short—
The higher one's cultivation and spirit power rank, the more terrifying the poison became.
Once cultivation could no longer suppress the poison within the body, death would soon follow.
That was why members of the Dugu Family who cultivated the Jade Phosphor Serpent martial soul typically only lived to about thirty-five years old.
"When the wind passes, it leaves a sound. When geese fly, they leave traces," Taichu's voice rang out from beneath the spiral mask.
"Everything leaves marks. As long as you observe carefully, you'll always find clues."
However—
Before Dugu Yan could respond—
"Enough with the mysterious nonsense!" Yu Tianheng suddenly snorted coldly. "Once I take you down, let's see if you still dare to act mysterious in front of Yanzi!"
As he spoke, he directly activated Martial Soul Possession. Two yellow and one purple spirit ring appeared around him. Without another word, he launched himself at Taichu.
There was no other reason.
He had pursued Dugu Yan for half a year with no progress whatsoever.
Yet today—
This masked man's few words had directly caused Dugu Yan to lose her composure. He clearly knew something important.
So—
If he captured this person and forced the information out of him, then passed it to Dugu Yan, she might finally look at him differently.
If that happened, he and Yanzi could smoothly become a couple.
And with that, he would gain a Titled Douluo as his grandfather.
At that point—
The position of next Clan Head of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan would surely be his!
Marrying a beautiful woman, inheriting the clan, and reaching the peak of life—just thinking about it made his blood boil.
Meanwhile—
Taichu frowned beneath the spiral mask. He genuinely didn't understand why Yu Tianheng had suddenly gone insane and started attacking him outright.
"First Spirit Ability—Thunder Dragon Claw!"
The spirit ring lit up as lightning condensed, the attack slamming straight toward Taichu.
"Captain!"
"Boss!"
"—!"
The members of the Huangdou Team were completely confused by Yu Tianheng's sudden action. Even if something was wrong with the man's words, attacking him outright was far too much.
"Lightning Release—Thunder Step!"
Electric currents surged beneath Taichu's feet as he dodged the attack in a flash.
"You barged into my camp uninvited," Taichu said coldly, sweeping his gaze across everyone present.
"And now you plan to kill me to silence me?"
Those words made the Huangdou Team members flush red, all of them turning to look at Yu Tianheng in confusion.
"Captain, we're just here to help Big Sister hunt a Spirit Beast—what are you doing?"
"Captain, he's not our enemy!"
"Boss, stop!"
They tried to dissuade him one after another.
Originally, while hunting a Spirit Beast, they had accidentally charged into someone else's campsite and disturbed him. The other party hadn't even pursued the matter—but their captain had suddenly attacked instead.
Though they all came from influential backgrounds, they weren't spoiled nobles like Xue Beng.
Nor were they troublemakers who picked fights for no reason.
"Yanzi," Yu Tianheng turned his head, speaking confidently, "this guy has the information you want, doesn't he?"
"Don't worry. I'll take him down right now and make him tell us everything!"
At this moment, Yu Tianheng thought he looked extremely heroic. Everything he did was for Dugu Yan—surely this would make her feel moved.
However—
The moment she heard his words, Dugu Yan's eyes widened in shock.
She had never expected that Yu Tianheng attacked… because of her.
Her expression darkened instantly.
Now—
Any remaining goodwill she had toward Yu Tianheng as a classmate was completely wiped away.
Off to the side, the other members of the Huangdou Team finally understood Yu Tianheng's motivation. It wasn't surprising—after all, in Heaven Dou Imperial Academy, who didn't know Yu Tianheng was pursuing Dugu Yan?
They even knew more than that.
The reason Yu Tianheng was the only suitor by Dugu Yan's side was because all the others had been secretly "taught a lesson" by him.
That alone showed how domineering Yu Tianheng was.
"So that's how it is…"
Taichu suddenly realized.
So he planned to use him as a stepping stone—to borrow flowers and offer them to Buddha.
That realization left Taichu feeling more speechless than anything else.