4: I'm a Spirit Master of Evil, but Ma Xiaotao Didn't Count? Fuck, So You Were Playing Double Standards!

When the pale blue tide of Soul Power swept past the tree hollow for the third time, Lu Jing knew he could no longer hide.

That Soul Power carried the pure aura unique to the Light Goddess Butterfly. It nearly penetrated the cover of vines and touched his skin. If he waited any longer, the three of them would surround him, leaving him without even the slightest chance to fight back.

"Now!"

A cold glint flashed in Lu Jing's eyes as he fiercely activated every last bit of Soul Power within him.

The World-Annihilating Black Lotus above his head instantly swelled, black mist spilling out like ink and shrouding the entire tree hollow. He thrust both hands forward, sending the black lotus platform—now two meters across—howling through the air toward Tang Ya, a hundred meters away!

"Watch out!" Bei Bei reacted first. With an angry roar, blue lightning formed a massive shield before him as he charged toward Tang Ya, intending to push her aside.

The wings of the Light Goddess Butterfly behind Wang Dong'er beat once. Pale blue wings of light instantly spread out, forming an impenetrable wall of light before the three of them.

But the World-Annihilating Black Lotus was too fast.

The destructive aura contained within that black mist was especially effective against plant-type martial souls. The Blue Silver Grass Tang Ya hastily summoned withered the moment it touched the black mist, as though doused in strong acid. Even her Soul Power barrier instantly collapsed along with it.

"Puh—"

The black lotus skimmed past the edge of the wall of light and slammed fiercely into Tang Ya's chest. She flew backward like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily into an ancient tree with a dull thud. Blood sprayed from the corner of her mouth, and her aura immediately weakened.

"Xiaoya!" Bei Bei's eyes nearly split with rage. He turned to help her up, only to see Lu Jing darting out of the tree hollow and sprinting deeper into the forest.

"Stop him!" Bei Bei roared as he gave chase.

But Wang Dong'er stood frozen where she was.

She looked at the small figure running beneath the cover of black mist. He was only five or six years old, dressed in a washed-out short robe, his thin body stumbling through the woods. No matter how she looked at him, he was just an ordinary child.

"Wait..." Wang Dong'er called out instinctively. Her wings of light drew in slightly as she asked in confusion, "Senior, could we have made a mistake?"

"No mistake! It's him!"

Bei Bei's voice was filled with gritted fury. Blue lightning exploded beneath his feet, making him even faster as he replied, "His martial soul is utterly sinister. You saw it just now!"

Lu Jing had only run a few steps when he noticed Wang Dong'er was not chasing him. He simply stopped and turned to face the two of them. The World-Annihilating Black Lotus hovered behind him, wreathed in black mist, making his young face appear especially gloomy.

"A mistake? I think you're the blind ones!" Lu Jing cursed furiously. "I only awakened my martial soul today! I don't even have a soul ring, yet you've been chasing me down to kill me and pinning the label of Spirit Master of Evil on me? What kind of fucking logic is that?!"

Wang Dong'er watched his chest heave violently, then looked at Tang Ya coughing on the ground in the distance. Her brows gradually furrowed. She hated Spirit Masters of Evil, but this child before her... he truly did not seem like some vicious monster.

"Senior."

Wang Dong'er's voice carried hesitation. "Is what he said true? Did he just awaken his martial soul?"

"Don't let him fool you!"

Bei Bei shouted angrily, lightning crackling around his body. "An evil martial soul carries evil aura from the moment it awakens. If left alive, it will surely become a great threat! Countless tragedies ten thousand years ago began exactly like this!"

As he spoke, he gathered Soul Power once more, clearly intending to attack again.

"Bullshit!"

Lu Jing trembled with rage, pointing at Bei Bei's nose as he cursed, "The Bone Douluo ten thousand years ago had the Bone Dragon as his martial soul. Was that evil enough for you? Yet he was the protector elder of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect! Are you too blind to see that?"

Wang Dong'er's pupils contracted slightly. She had heard of Bone Douluo's deeds. His martial soul had indeed been sinister, but he had conducted himself with integrity.

"That's different!"

Bei Bei stiffened his neck and retorted, "Bone Douluo was an exception! The vast majority of evil martial soul possessors ultimately fall into depravity!"

"The vast majority? So because of that, you want to kill everyone with an evil martial soul?"

Lu Jing sneered, then suddenly turned to Wang Dong'er, his voice abruptly rising. "Sister! Let me ask you something: does the Evil Fire Phoenix count as an evil martial soul?"

Wang Dong'er froze for a moment before nodding instinctively. "The flames of the Evil Fire Phoenix carry a violent aura. It should... count."

"Good!"

Lu Jing seemed to have heard the funniest joke in the world, laughing so hard his shoulders shook. "Then let me tell you this: the successor to Shrek Academy's next dean, a descendant of Ma Hongjun, has the Evil Fire Phoenix martial soul! What, are you going to kill her too?"

Wang Dong'er abruptly looked at Bei Bei, her eyes filled with shock. "Senior, is he telling the truth?"

It was the first time she had heard this.

Bei Bei's expression stiffened. Then he said self-righteously, "Senior Xiaotao is from Shrek! With Shrek's guidance and restraints, she will never fall into the evil path! How can she be compared to this wild child?"

"Wild child?" Lu Jing's voice suddenly turned cold. "So whether someone has a background, whether they're from Shrek, determines whether they're a Spirit Master of Evil?"

He pointed at himself and said word by word, "I have no background. I'm not from Shrek. The moment I awakened my martial soul, you wanted to slaughter me. But because Ma Xiaotao is from Shrek, you can accept her even though she has the Evil Fire Phoenix? Is that Shrek's logic? If that isn't a double standard, what is?!"

Wang Dong'er fell silent.

She looked at Bei Bei's self-righteous face, then at the undisguised mockery and fury in Lu Jing's eyes. Suddenly, she felt as though she could barely breathe.

That was right. They had the same kind of special martial soul, so why were they treated so differently? Could the name Shrek really erase the "evil" inherent in a martial soul? And what had this child before her done wrong?

"Wang Dong, don't listen to his sophistry!"

Seeing Wang Dong'er waver, Bei Bei hurriedly shouted, "Spirit Masters of Evil are best at bewitching people! If we don't kill him today, it will become a grave mistake in the future!"

"What grave mistake?"

Lu Jing refused to give ground. "Becoming like you—chasing after a child and screaming that he should be killed? Or becoming like you, judging others by double standards?"

He took a step back. The World-Annihilating Black Lotus began to spin again, shadowy lotus petals flickering within the black mist. "If you want to kill me, go ahead. But remember this: the person you kill today won't be some Spirit Master of Evil. He'll only be someone who wanted to live!"

Wang Dong'er's wings of light drooped. Pale blue light flickered uncertainly in her eyes. She looked at Bei Bei's furious face, at the injured Tang Ya on the ground, then at the child who was clearly trembling in fear but still stubbornly held his head high. Suddenly, she felt that the forest night was even darker than she had imagined.

Seeing that Wang Dong'er still would not act, Bei Bei roared in frustration and charged at Lu Jing alone. "If you won't do it, I will!"

Blue lightning tore through the darkness, driving straight toward Lu Jing's face.