24. Generous and Magnanimous

"Hello, Sister Xiaotao!"

After introducing the two of them to her, Huo Yuhao briefly explained why they had stopped here.

Ma Xiaotao gave a charming smile and waved her hand grandly. "That's simple. I remember there's a Treasure Appraisal Meeting for Outer Court Core Disciples today. I can take you two in directly."

During her afternoon cultivation, she had finally understood from the bottom of her heart just how comfortable it was to cultivate without being plagued by evil fire.

Ma Xiaotao was nearly moved to tears. She had never felt this good before.

Her martial soul was the Evil Fire Phoenix, inherited from her ancestor Ma Hongjun—and along with it came the troublesome evil fire.

Phoenix Evil Fire was also lust fire.

Ever since her martial soul awakened, she had suffered under the torment of evil fire, breaking down countless times during cultivation because of it.

Her ancestor could release the evil fire within his body through indulgence, but Ma Xiaotao, proud and self-respecting as she was, would rather die than do such a thing.

As for other methods of resolving the evil fire, even her teacher Yan Shaozhe, the esteemed Martial Soul Department Dean of Shrek Academy, was helpless.

For other Soul Masters, ordinary meditation and daily battles were nothing unusual, but for her, they were things she could only long for.

Normally, she relied on Xu Sanshi, whose Mysterious Turtle Shell Shield possessed both water and earth attributes, to temporarily suppress her evil fire.

But due to the gap in their Soul Power Levels, it could only treat the symptoms, not the root cause.

Now, with Huo Yuhao's help, the clouds had finally parted to reveal the moon. Having endured so much bitterness before reaching this sweetness, she would never let go of the hope he had brought her.

With Ultimate Ice, everything would get better!

Although her Evil Fire Phoenix martial soul would still continuously produce evil fire, as long as Huo Yuhao was there to help, she could freely devote herself to cultivation and battle for a long time without being troubled by it again.

Ma Xiaotao had come here at this time merely to stroll around Shrek City and buy some cultivation resources, intending to repay Huo Yuhao later.

She had not expected to run into the very person who was having trouble.

Whether it was to draw closer to him or for the sake of her future happy life, helping with such a small matter was naturally her duty.

With Ma Xiaotao's status, bringing two people inside was effortless.

Besides, the two before her were both Shrek Academy students. From what she could sense, both possessed exceptional talent. How could they possibly be turned away at the door?

The Treasure Gathering Pavilion was backed by Shrek Academy. Its first floor had specifically been opened to students whose status and standing were not yet sufficient.

As long as they underwent a potential evaluation, exceptional Shrek Academy students could be granted special access.

"Alright, then we'll have to trouble you, Sister Xiaotao."

After Huo Yuhao spoke, he noticed that Wang Dong's expression seemed a little unnatural and asked, "Wang Dong, what's wrong? Aren't you coming?"

Wang Dong gave a bitter smile and shook her head.

"Yuhao, go in with Senior Sister. I already arranged to meet Senior Brother here."

Just as Wang Dong had said, the time she had agreed on with Beibei was approaching. That was also why she had brought Huo Yuhao here.

She could not exactly stand up Tang Sect right after joining it.

Huo Yuhao understood. "Alright, then I'll go first. Bye-bye."

With that, Ma Xiaotao directly pulled him away, leaving Wang Dong standing there alone, the corner of her mouth twitching.

Senior Sister Xiaotao and Huo Yuhao really did seem to have a good relationship.

As an Inner Court Disciple who had risen through the ranks from a proper Shrek Outer Court Core Disciple, Ma Xiaotao was clearly very familiar with the process of attending a Treasure Appraisal Meeting.

And thanks to the intimidating presence of her Inner Court Red Robe, after dismissing the welcoming girl, she led Huo Yuhao unimpeded all the way to the second floor of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion.

The second floor of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion was where today's Treasure Appraisal Meeting for Outer Court Core Disciples was being held.

Compared to the first floor, it was quieter and more elegant. The displays within seemed scattered, yet every single one had been placed in the most suitable and eye-catching location.

Each display was enclosed beneath a massive crystal glass cover, with different items resting on the platform inside.

"What a pity, Yuhao. There isn't a Treasure Appraisal Meeting for Inner Court Disciples today. Otherwise, your big sister here would definitely have taken you to broaden your horizons."

Holding Huo Yuhao's hand, Ma Xiaotao's tone carried a trace of disappointment.

"Still, for you right now, treasures at the Outer Court Core Disciple level may be the most suitable. If you see anything you like, just say so. I'll buy it directly."

Women would only slow down one's cultivation, but rich women would not.

Naturally, Huo Yuhao accepted Ma Xiaotao's goodwill.

She had already put it that way. How could he possibly pretend to refuse?

"Thank you, Sister Xiaotao. There really is an item I need at this Treasure Appraisal Meeting."

The moment he entered the meeting, Ice Empress's reminder had sounded in his mind.

"Yuhao, in the third display on the left, there's something good that may suit you very well."

Tian Meng chuckled. "More accurately, it's very suitable for both of you. That's Whale Rubber over ten thousand years old, and its quality is quite good."

Following the Ice Empress's guidance, Huo Yuhao led Ma Xiaotao to the third display stand on the left side of the hall.

A black crystal had been placed on the stand. It was dull and lusterless, its surface uneven and rough.

The display stand also bore a detailed description: Thousand-Year Whale Glue, a special substance produced in the brains of whale-type soul beasts. It had excellent restorative effects for Soul Masters, strengthening the body and enhancing the endurance of the muscles, bones, and meridians.

As Huo Yuhao stopped, Ma Xiaotao studied the piece of whale glue with curious eyes, looking somewhat puzzled.

"Yuhao, are you interested in this poor-quality whale glue? High-quality Thousand-Year Whale Glue is golden, clear, and translucent, like golden crystal. A genuine piece of Thousand-Year Whale Glue this large would be worth at least fifty thousand Gold Soul Coins."

"And this one is only selling for six thousand. I really don't think it's any good. Yuhao, don't try to save money for me. Your sister here is Treasure Gathering Pavilion's highest-ranking VIP. Everything I buy at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion comes with a forty percent discount."

As she spoke, Ma Xiaotao took out a red VIP Card bearing a single golden stripe from her storage Soul Tool and showed it to him.

The card was forged from Red Spirit Warm Jade and bore the three ancient characters for Treasure Gathering Pavilion. There were no other markings.

It was one of the investments Shrek had given Huo Yuhao in the Original Work after he appropriately revealed his talent and became an Outer Court Core Disciple.

With this highest-tier VIP privilege, one could choose any one item from the Treasure Appraisal Meeting each year and take it away without paying anything.

At the same time, purchases at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion came with a forty percent discount.

Ma Xiaotao enjoyed the same level of treatment. She truly was worthy of being Shrek's direct descendant and Yan Shaozhe's disciple.

Huo Yuhao smiled and explained softly, "Sister Xiaotao, this isn't Thousand-Year Whale Glue. It's of the ten-thousand-year grade."

"Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue!?"

Ma Xiaotao was utterly shocked.

Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue was exceedingly rare in human history.

The Treasure Gathering Pavilion had judged that, because this piece of whale glue was black, it had likely weathered for some time and deteriorated slightly, causing its quality to decline.

Huo Yuhao continued, "That's right. Generally speaking, Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue is dark yellow. The reason this piece is black is indeed because it has weathered for too long. No wonder no one at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion recognized it."

Ma Xiaotao looked astonished. "I see. Then didn't we strike it rich?"

While they spoke, the two quickly bought the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue.

The Treasure Gathering Pavilion's Treasure Appraisal Meeting lasted until midnight, but Huo Yuhao certainly had no intention of browsing for that long.

Perhaps because the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue had been so cheap, Ma Xiaotao insisted that they roughly look through all the exhibits. After finding nothing else that interested them, they prepared to leave.

Ma Xiaotao

Relationship: Close Friend

Achievement Task: Awaiting Refresh

A new close friend had appeared, but unfortunately, the task was still refreshing.

"Next, I'll have to trouble Sister Xiaotao again to help me refine the whale glue."

Although Huo Yuhao might have been able to achieve a similar result with the Second-Turn Fire Brazier Gu, there was no need to.

He would not miss this excellent opportunity to increase their relationship by absorbing the whale glue.

Generous and magnanimous Sister Xiaotao, please help me cultivate.