Chapter 75: Cooperation

"Grandpa, I want to tell you something…"

Dugu Yan walked into the adjacent room and saw the Poison Douluo sitting cross-legged on the bed, meditating.

His face was pale, his clothes clung to his body, and there was a wet patch on the bedsheet beneath him—he had clearly been sweating heavily just now, likely from intense pain.

Seeing this, Dugu Yan froze for a moment. She suddenly thought of a trait from the simulation—her grandfather had been poisoned.

That utterly absurd conclusion now felt strangely real.

"What is it, Yan?" Poison Douluo asked with a cheerful smile.

Dugu Yan's eyes turned red. She opened her mouth, about to mention the simulator, but when the words reached her lips, she found herself unable to speak.

[Player permission insufficient. As a level 1 player, disclosing the simulator's existence to others is not allowed.]

A flicker of shock passed through Dugu Yan's eyes.

Forgive her—people native to the Douluo world had never played games before, nor would they pay much attention to the "Lv: 1" field on their status panel. It was completely incomprehensible to her.

"Yan, what's wrong?" Poison Douluo forced a smile as he stood up. But as he moved, his brows twitched slightly.

The torment from the toxins he'd just endured had not completely passed.

Dugu Yan's gaze was full of distress. She quickly stepped forward to support him and asked with a slight sob in her voice, "Grandpa, tell me the truth… have you been poisoned?"

"…Yan, what are you talking about? Your grandpa's Title is 'Poison'. How could I be poisoned?" Poison Douluo said with a loud laugh on purpose.

But Dugu Yan's face only grew more worried. Most of her grandfather's weight was leaning on her—if he were in his normal state, he wouldn't need to rely on her at all.

She bit her lower lip and added, "I've been poisoned too, haven't I?"

At those words, Poison Douluo's pupils contracted sharply, but he said nothing more.

Dugu Yan understood everything in that moment and fell silent as well.

At the same time, her trust in the predictions from the simulator deepened.

'I have to find a way to neutralize the poison… Where is Zhou Sheng'an?'

She thought to herself.

…

Elsewhere, in a small town near the Star Dou Great Forest.

Xiao Wu lay in the center of the bed. On her left, Jiang Zhu was already sound asleep, her breathing steady. On the right, Zhu Zhuqing was still awake.

"Zhuqing, you're a Goddess Simulator player too, right?" Xiao Wu asked softly.

Zhu Zhuqing was silent for a moment. She turned to face Xiao Wu and nodded. "Yes, I am."

"That's great! In one of the previous simulations, we both joined Shrek Academy, remember? And Rongrong too…" Xiao Wu's voice grew more cheerful.

Zhu Zhuqing gave a slight nod. "Yes, I remember everything."

"So, that means we're good sisters, right?" Xiao Wu's eyes sparkled.

Zhu Zhuqing gave a soft "mm".

Xiao Wu continued, "We're both here for the teacher, and now that we've both succeeded, we're basically going to be family in the future. Zhuqing, let's share intel!"

Zhu Zhuqing looked at her in surprise for a moment, then nodded. "Alright."

"I'll go first. I'm a hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form!" Xiao Wu confessed directly to Zhu Zhuqing.

She had an instinctive feeling—Zhu Zhuqing was someone she could trust.

Zhu Zhuqing's expression changed dramatically. She looked at Xiao Wu in disbelief.

She actually said that out loud so easily? Was she not afraid it might be used against her?

Thinking back to their short time together at Shrek Academy, Xiao Wu had also left a deep impression on her.

Zhu Zhuqing said, "You already know my identity and my martial spirit. The Shrek Academy we joined—Dai Mubai is my fiancé. But now, I want to break off the engagement and change my destiny."

"Only the teacher can make that possible."

Her words were simple and direct—she was honest about her goal.

Xiao Wu giggled. "I know! You're the one who triggered the fourth simulation, right? You're amazing! You actually unified the whole Douluo Continent and became the first Empress!"

A faint blush rose on Zhu Zhuqing's face.

'Empress'? That was all thanks to the teacher's support. If not for him, the one who would've become Emperor of the Anzhu Empire would've been her older brother.

Still, it was a beautiful memory. It was just a shame that the moment she'd planned to use her imperial authority to search the continent for her teacher and confess her feelings, the simulation had ended.

Such a pity.

"Zhuqing, you're seriously incredible. If we hadn't been classmates at Shrek Academy, and if you hadn't shown up here to become a disciple too, I never would've guessed you were also a player," Xiao Wu said with admiration.

Zhu Zhuqing gave her a small smile but didn't respond. Right now, all she wanted was to establish a close relationship with the teacher. Whether or not to revive the Anzhu Empire would depend on the direction of the future.

"Zhuqing, in the simulations, we definitely need to hide our identities. If that crazy woman from the Spirit Hall finds out, we'll be in danger!" Xiao Wu grabbed Zhu Zhuqing's hand under the blanket and said seriously.

"Yes," Zhu Zhuqing nodded. She wasn't quite used to being this close with another girl.

Xiao Wu kept talking, "This time, I had Da Ming and Er Ming become the teacher's disciples, but I won't be showing myself too easily. If I get discovered, it'll be dangerous."

As a soul beast in human form, Xiao Wu was at a natural disadvantage in the simulation. If any other players found out, she'd be in danger in real life.

"I can cooperate with you in the simulation," Zhu Zhuqing suggested. "I can send a squad of soldiers to 'drive you away' and secretly deliver you to Grandmaster Zhou. That would be more believable."

As she said this, a trace of resentment appeared on Zhu Zhuqing's face.

It was all that lunatic from Spirit Hall's fault. The current simulation had sparked a war—and they'd even gone for a preemptive strike and assassinated her aunt.

In chaotic times, it was easier to fish in troubled waters—but it was just as easy to die.

The most direct problem was that the current state of the world was no longer a reliable reference point.

…

The scene shifted.

Zhou Sheng'an followed Poison Douluo up to a bowl-shaped hollow at the mountaintop. Mist lingered in the air, giving off a refreshing scent. The place was filled with rare flowers and herbs. Most striking of all was a twin-colored spring—one side red, one side blue.

One side emitted extreme cold, the other extreme heat.

Though Zhou Sheng'an had studied many texts, he still couldn't identify many of the plants here.

But with the intuition granted by his Blue Silver Grass, he could feel that many of these plants contained potent energy—some might even allow someone to be reborn!

"Teacher, this is my medicinal garden. I've been using this place to suppress the toxins in my body. There are many kinds of herbs here, but I've been guarding a treasure mountain in vain… I don't even know what most of them are," Poison Douluo said with a sigh.

Zhou Sheng'an gave a slight nod. "The books I've read don't cover these herbs either. But I can sense it—many of these are incredibly valuable. The potential here is immeasurable!"

"Then this medicinal garden shall be yours, Teacher. From now on, make this your new home," Poison Douluo offered.