"Wh-where am I?"
In a simply decorated wooden cabin, a sexy, mature red-haired woman rubbed her head and slowly sat up in bed.
"Xiaotao, you're awake!"
Yan Shaozhe had been keeping watch by the bed. Seeing his prized disciple wake up, he could barely contain his excitement.
"Teacher!" The moment Ma Xiaotao woke and saw her teacher there, excitement filled her eyes.
The fact that her teacher was by her side meant that, despite losing consciousness from the fever, she probably hadn't caused any major trouble.
After checking on Ma Xiaotao, Yan Shaozhe's expression grew stern.
"You reckless girl! Do you know how much trouble you nearly caused?"
"I warned you not to cultivate until I found a way to suppress your Evil Fire again. Did you forget?"
"Consider this a lucky escape. You nearly killed three students from our outer courtyard!"
"Things have been especially sensitive lately, Xiaotao. If a male student with the Extreme Ice and Snow Martial Soul hadn't happened to be there..."
"This could really have ended in someone's death!"
Ma Xiaotao dropped to her knees without hesitation. "Teacher, your disciple knows she was wrong!"
"I was just so anxious! You know how long it's been since I could cultivate normally!"
"Watching my old companions reach new levels of cultivation while I stay stuck in place... I can't accept it!"
As Ma Xiaotao digested Yan Shaozhe's words, she suddenly realized something.
"Wait... Teacher, what did you say? A male student with the power of Extreme Ice and Snow stopped my rampage?"
Ma Xiaotao hurriedly sat cross-legged to meditate. She discovered that the Soul Power in her body could flow just like an ordinary Soul Master's.
Normally, her Evil Fire would flare up as soon as she cultivated. Now, it was as docile as a child.
"Teacher, where is that student?"
Ma Xiaotao's voice rang with excitement. He had suppressed her Evil Fire so thoroughly that she wouldn't have to worry about it for at least half a year.
She wanted to hear everything about that male student from her teacher right away. She didn't want to give up the state she was in now.
Yan Shaozhe watched his disciple go from repenting one moment to asking him for the man's whereabouts the next, and sighed inwardly.
"Xiaotao, I've warned you countless times to stop being so impulsive!"
"Besides, your Evil Fire was only just suppressed. Why are you so eager to ask about him?"
"And he was attacked by you not long ago. If you go looking for him now, he'll just give you the cold shoulder."
"Wait a while, until he's mostly forgotten what happened. Then you can go see him."
"Remember to be sincere and keep your temper in check. Otherwise, if he refuses to help suppress your Evil Fire, your teacher may really have to sign a contract of servitude!"
Ma Xiaotao stuck out her tongue. "It's not as bad as you make it sound."
"If he won't help me, I have plenty of strength and ways to make him!"
Yan Shaozhe wanted to break his disciple's habit of thinking with her muscles.
"How many times can you use that 'persuade him with reason' method? What if he can't take it and drops out?"
"I should warn you: this student has Twin Martial Souls, and the other one is a Body Martial Soul."
"If you drive him to the Body Sect, you'll be in serious trouble—and you can forget about having any peace!"
"Body Martial Soul?" Ma Xiaotao was startled by Huo Yuhao's talent. "A Body Martial Soul and an Ultimate Martial Soul? Is this some kind of cheat that's been left on?"
Yan Shaozhe said, "Who cares whether he's using a cheat? Just remember what I said. If you drive him away..."
"There'll be nothing left for the two of us at the academy... or in our future. Take it easy this time, understand?"
"Of course, if you manage to win him over, your teacher will support you!"
Yan Shaozhe looked at his disciple fondly. Her looks were second to none.
Huo Yuhao had a completely clean background, and ten thousand years ago, Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun had been members of the Shrek Seven Devils, fighting side by side.
Thinking about it, Yan Shaozhe realized that his disciple and Huo Yuhao seemed destined to meet.
"No." Ma Xiaotao flatly rejected Yan Shaozhe's suggestion.
"I'm not going to marry some man I don't even like just to suppress my Evil Fire!"
Yan Shaozhe smiled faintly. "Don't be so sure. Huo Yuhao is the White Tiger Duke's son. Your ancestors were deeply connected."
"While you were unconscious, your teacher dug up everything there was to know about him!"
"He's the White Tiger Duke's biological illegitimate son. For some reason—maybe his mother, or something else—the boy took his mother's surname from childhood."
"So we can poach him without feeling the slightest guilt. He has no chance of inheriting the White Tiger Duke's title anyway."
"If you two became a couple, I think everyone would be happy to see it!"
Ma Xiaotao said, "So he's that fellow Dai Yueheng's half-brother!"
"Then there's even less chance I'll fall for him. Dai Yueheng and I are the same generation!"
"If I married Huo Yuhao, I'd be a generation above him!"
As if something had occurred to her, Ma Xiaotao's face turned murderous.
"That guy is Dai Yueheng's younger brother? So that's how it is!"
"He has a younger brother with the Extreme Ice and Snow Attribute, and he didn't even think to tell me!"
"He must have been plotting to steal my position as Shrek's team captain for ages!"
Ma Xiaotao wanted to rush out and find Dai Yueheng so she could beat him up.
They'd been classmates for years, and later Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire had become so bad she couldn't even cultivate.
Yet Dai Yueheng had a younger brother with the Extreme Ice and Snow Attribute and hadn't said a word to her.
Yan Shaozhe advised her, "All right, don't be angry with him."
"Star Luo has finally produced a genius with an Ultimate Attribute. It makes sense that the Star Luo Empire would keep it quiet."
"Especially since the child didn't awaken this Martial Soul until he was nine."
"And the boy has another Body Martial Soul. If news of him spread everywhere..."
"There's no telling whether Huo Yuhao would have ended up at my Shrek Academy."
"Don't forget how overbearing those people are. Could a Body Sect genius with an Ultimate Martial Soul possibly escape their clutches?"
"This is already the best arrangement."
Yan Shaozhe was right. If Shrek and the Body Sect had fought over Huo Yuhao, he would most likely have been taken by the Body Sect.
Xuan Zi couldn't beat Du Busi, let alone fight him for Huo Yuhao—unless Mu En joined him.
Ma Xiaotao was young and fearless. In her eyes, Shrek was invincible, and Elder Xuan was invincible too.
"Is it really that serious? The Body Sect is nothing special. Shrek could take him from them if we wanted!"
"You child!" Yan Shaozhe knew his disciple's temperament.
"In any case, wait a few months before you go see Huo Yuhao."
"This time, to make up for the damage you caused, the academy paid six Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones!"
Ma Xiaotao parted her red lips. "Six Soul Bones? He's so greedy—he demanded six?"
Yan Shaozhe shook his head. "Six Soul Bones are nothing if they help us win over a genius like him."
"The academy was willing to pay that price because you provoked someone you shouldn't have!"
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