A Little Roast Chicken

[Today was another beautiful day.]

[It felt great not being in Zhou Yi's class! The courses were much easier than Class One's, and Teacher Mujin was just as helpful and dedicated to teaching her students. She was definitely much better than Zhou Yi.]

After taking his usual jab at Zhou Yi, Ao Yao left the classroom with Ning Tian and Wu Feng.

Over the past few days, Ao Yao had explored most of Shrek City. Just as he'd expected, Shrek City didn't allow places of entertainment like brothels to operate.

He'd expected as much, but learning the truth still left Ao Yao a little disappointed. He'd lost even the inclination to leave Shrek Academy and wander around Shrek City.

Shrek Academy had two cafeterias, one for the Inner Court and one for the Outer Court. The Inner Court cafeteria was open only to Inner Court students and teachers, and it was completely free. The Outer Court cafeteria served the entire school, but charged for its food, with prices a little higher than those at the shops in Shrek City.

Of course, only some of the food was more expensive.

Soul Beast meat and various delicacies were a little pricier, but ordinary dishes cost about the same as they did outside. So Ao Yao still preferred the Outer Court cafeteria, since it was closer.

It definitely wasn't because every time he walked through the city, he thought about how such a huge place didn't even have a brothel or anywhere like it, and felt sad.

"I'll have a serving of Scaled Magic Crocodile stew and a bowl of Wind Spirit Bird tonic soup, please.³

Eating with a young lady like Ning Tian, who came from the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, had its perks. At the very least, he didn't have to pay for meals.

As for whether he felt ashamed about letting a girl pay for him... Ao Yao didn't feel the slightest bit guilty.

Getting a girl to spend money on you was a skill in itself!

He earned his meals with his own abilities. Why should he feel guilty?

What? You think people would scorn and despise him for acting this way?

No... They were just jealous.

Who didn't want to find themselves a rich woman these days?

Just as Ao Yao was busy stuffing his face, a sudden commotion broke out in the cafeteria.

He looked toward the source of the noise, and saw a figure in brilliant red standing at the entrance.

She had a graceful figure, and her blood-red Inner Court uniform stood out conspicuously in the Outer Court. With long crimson hair, a slender build, and an icy, ferocious aura, she seemed like a terrifying Soul Beast. A wide berth opened around her, with no one daring to approach.

Ao Yao noticed that the air around her was faintly warped. Wherever she walked, wisps of mist rippled across the ground beneath her feet.

There was no doubt that she had a stunning figure. Her ample chest stretched her already form-fitting uniform into a rather exaggerated curve. The only pity was that she wore a red veil over her face, making her true appearance impossible to see.

"That's an Inner Court senior!"

"Why would an Inner Court senior come to our Outer Court cafeteria?"

"That senior has such a great figure. If only I could spend a night with her..."

"Hey... Are you trying to get yourself killed? She's one of the two notorious living volcanoes in Shrek Academy's Inner Court—Senior Ma Xiaotao, the Flame Mad Demon! If she hears you say that, she'll burn every last hair off your body!"

[Huh? That's Ma Xiaotao?]

[That figure... No wonder they call her a little roast chicken!]

Little... roast chicken?

Ma Xiaotao, who had secretly slipped out of the Inner Court and into the Outer Court cafeteria, paused. Beneath her veil, her expression stiffened slightly.

That didn't sound like a compliment!

Ma Xiaotao's temper flared at once. But remembering the Pain of Ten Thousand Arrows Piercing the Heart she'd suffered, along with her Evil Fire's latest outbreak, she raised her brows and forced down her anger. She went to a random serving window, got herself a meal, and sat down.

She had come to try her luck.

Even if she never said so aloud, she was quite eager for the Diary's rewards.

Whether it was a boost to her Soul Ring's age, an increase in her Soul Power, or a hundred-thousand-year Soul Bone, any of them would significantly improve her strength. What's more, the Diary's rewards might even unlock the grand prize. If she could get the Martial Soul Evolution reward, perhaps she wouldn't have to endure the torment of her Evil Fire anymore.

[Ma Xiaotao... Judging by her surname and Martial Soul, it's not hard to guess that she's descended from Ma Hongjun, one of the original Shrek Seven Devils from ten thousand years ago. Ma Hongjun ascended to the Divine Realm, but he failed to inherit the First-Level God Fire God's position. He could only settle for inheriting the Second-Level God Phoenix God's position.]

[But a Second-Level God couldn't bring anyone else into the Divine Realm, so he and his wife, Bai Chenxiang, Tang San's cousin, were separated across the realms. In that case, it made perfect sense that Ma Hongjun had descendants.]

[But here's the problem: by the time Ma Hongjun met Bai Chenxiang and they had children, he'd already solved the flaws in his Martial Soul. He was no longer affected by the Evil Fire, and he'd successfully evolved his Martial Soul into a Fire Phoenix.

Even if he had descendants, they would most likely inherit a pure Fire Phoenix, not a flawed Evil Fire Phoenix.]

[So... Ma Xiaotao is more likely descended from the children Ma Hongjun had with the women in the pleasure quarters when he was letting off his Evil Fire in his early years. Back then, Ma Hongjun was a shameless womanizer, sleeping around everywhere. There was a good chance he left descendants behind. It made perfect sense that descendants born this way would inherit the original Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul he'd had!]

[By the time it reached Ma Xiaotao's generation, her Evil Fire problem had become very serious. If Yan Shaozhe hadn't brought her back from outside, she probably would've died from the Evil Fire invading her body before she ever made it this far in her cultivation.]

[Yan Shaozhe may have been an idiot in plenty of other ways, but bringing Ma Xiaotao back to Shrek Academy was one of the few good things he'd done.]

Ma Xiaotao paused in the middle of eating, a slight unease stirring in her heart.

Ao Yao really did know a lot about her situation!

Her ancestor really was Ma Hongjun, one of the original Shrek Seven Devils from ten thousand years ago. But she wasn't descended from Ma Hongjun and his wife, and her Evil Fire problem really had become as serious as Ao Yao had said.

Still, Ma Xiaotao wasn't happy to hear Ao Yao slander her teacher.

Ever since bringing her back from outside, her teacher had cared for and guided her devotedly. Even after her Evil Fire problem emerged, he'd kept searching for a solution. Although he'd made little progress, Ma Xiaotao had always held her teacher in deep regard.

To her, Yan Shaozhe was like a father as well as a teacher.

Ao Yao...

Don't you dare insult the teacher I love!