Ao Yao, you really are a charming little fellow

Ma Xiaotao nodded, lost in thought.

Approaching Ao Yao rashly would easily arouse his suspicion. Once he discovered that she could read his diary, the punishment meted out by that diary would likely be something she could not withstand.

For instance, the Pain of Ten Thousand Arrows Piercing the Heart she experienced last time.

If that were to happen again, she definitely wouldn't be able to hold on.

Therefore... she had to find a suitable opportunity, one that wouldn't make him feel suspicious.

Ma Xiaotao steeled her heart, her eyes shimmering as they lingered on Ao Yao for a moment before she turned and left.

[Ma Xiaotao has left... This person is so strange. Whatever, someone like that... no need to pay her any mind. The diary for today is about finished. Let me see, can I pull a golden legendary reward today!]

After a brief pause, the familiar and wonderful voice rang out in Ao Yao's mind once again.

[Congratulations to the host for completing a day of diary entries. Rewards are being distributed randomly...]

[Ding—Congratulations to the host for receiving the following rewards: Soul Power increased by one rank, all Soul Ring ages increased by one thousand years, and obtained Soul Tool crafting materials: Sinking Silver, Crystal Silver, Gold Crystal, and Multi-faceted Magic Gold (unlimited, use as needed).]

[Rewards have been distributed.]

No critical hit triggered again?

Ao Yao felt a wave of disappointment.

The diary entries from the past few days hadn't yielded anything good, and this reward was particularly poor. Aside from the Soul Power and Soul Ring age increases, which had practically become fixed rewards, there were only some Soul Tool materials he had no use for.

I've said it before, I'm not becoming a Soul Tool Master!

What use are these things to me?

Donate them to Shrek Academy? Don't make me laugh!

Donating these materials to Shrek Academy wouldn't even be as profitable as taking them to an auction house.

Come to think of it, he seemed to have accumulated quite a few good things... Perhaps he could wait until the holiday to visit an auction house and clear out his inventory.

Unlike Ao Yao, who thought he hadn't received anything good, Ma Xiaotao's breathing suddenly became much faster, and her body stiffened abruptly.

Fortunately, no one around her noticed her abnormality.

The notification sound that rang out in the minds of all diary copy holders was the reason for Ma Xiaotao's loss of composure.

[The daily diary record has ended. System is calculating...]

[Congratulations to Ma Xiaotao for appearing most frequently in the diary. Reward: Soul Power increased by three ranks, External Soul Bone: Phoenix Tail Feather (originating from a ninety-thousand-year-old Fire Phoenix soul beast). Reward is being distributed... Reward has been distributed.]

Ma Xiaotao's breathing turned ragged, her Evil Fire Phoenix martial soul manifesting uncontrollably, and a scorching heat instantly permeated the air.

Under the astonished gazes of the surrounding outer court students, Ma Xiaotao shot into the sky, instantly transforming into a streak of light as she departed.

Immediately after, a scorching warmth surged from her lower back, carrying a pure and domineering power of the Phoenix origin. It felt like a volcano that had slept for ten thousand years suddenly waking up, surging backward through her meridians.

Ma Xiaotao couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, her body trembling uncontrollably as the fabric at her lower back turned to ash under the high temperature.

Next, three golden-red feather phantoms slowly emerged from the base of her spine. The feathers were about ten centimeters long, their surfaces flowing with intricate flame patterns. At first, they were just faint halos, but they instantly burst into a dazzling red light.

By the time Ma Xiaotao uncontrollably fell back into her residence, the clothes on her body had been burned away by the intense heat, and the three agile tail feathers had finally condensed and manifested.

The three tail feathers clung to her lower back, their tips slightly curled, surrounded by tiny sparks of fire. The primary color of the feathers was a scorching crimson, and the shaft of each feather gleamed with a gilded luster. The patterns seemed to come alive, slowly flowing along the feathers, emitting a temperature even hotter than her own out-of-control evil fire!

Ma Xiaotao suddenly opened her eyes, a flash of crimson brilliance appearing within them.

This reward... it couldn't be better!

Up until now, if one excluded the soul beasts, the best reward any copy holder had received was Ning Tian's hundred-thousand-year Wisdom Skull.

But this External Soul Bone of hers, originating from a ninety-thousand-year-old Fire Phoenix... was definitely no worse than Ning Tian's hundred-thousand-year Wisdom Skull!

Although it was slightly inferior in terms of age, an External Soul Bone was inherently rarer and more precious than a skull bone. Especially since this External Soul Bone was exceptionally compatible with her, and could even vaguely suppress the evil fire within her!

This reward... was truly an unexpected surprise!

Compared to this reward, even the three-rank increase in Soul Power that allowed her to break through to the Soul Saint realm seemed less important.

Ao Yao, you really are a charming little guy...

Ma Xiaotao couldn't help but lick her lips, her brows slightly raised, and her gaze becoming increasingly fiery.

"Brother! Hurry up! We need to reach Shrek Academy as soon as possible!"

In the Mingdou Mountain Range, a rather handsome young man looked at the girl in front of him with some helplessness, unable to suppress a hint of resentment in his heart.

"Meng, Grandfather hasn't agreed to your request yet! Is this really okay?"

"Dummy! Grandfather has already headed toward Shrek Academy, what does that mean? It means he's already agreed! Even if Grandfather discovers we've left early, he won't be able to find any fault with it."

Hearing this, Xiao Hongchen couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.

As the most talented genius in the history of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Academy team, Xiao Hongchen was determined to defeat Shrek Academy and create a legend that had never existed before.

Yet, his younger sister had gone crazy, insisting on going to Shrek Academy to be some kind of visiting exchange student!

Wouldn't it be better to stay home quietly, cultivate, and wait for the Continental Advanced Soul Master Elite Competition to arrive?

And Grandfather was truly something else; he should have just found an excuse to reject his impulsive sister, but instead, he had foolishly agreed to her request and actually went to Shrek Academy to discuss it with them.

Sigh...

Xiao Hongchen couldn't help but let out a sigh.

This action caused Meng Hongchen to knit her brows slightly: "Brother, don't be such a killjoy! It's true that we are going to represent the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy to fight and defeat Shrek Academy. But that doesn't mean we can't go visit Shrek Academy right now!"

"Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated, right?"

Meng Hongchen smiled slyly, her bright, lively eyes blinking as she revealed a look of anticipation.

As for visiting Shrek Academy, she didn't actually have the leisure or interest for that.

What she wanted to do was see if that guy Ao Yao was really as handsome as he bragged about being!

And while she was at it, she wanted to get some benefits from that magical diary. Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones... External Soul Bones... just hearing about them sounded incredibly cool, didn't it?