One Thousand Years Later

For Huo Yuhao, the days that followed could be described as both painful and pleasurable.

During the day, he shuttled back and forth between the Martial Soul Department and the Soul Guidance Department, absorbing a massive amount of knowledge; at night, he was often "hijacked" by a red figure—Ma Xiaotao.

To avoid the accident that occurred at the bottom of Sea God Lake last time, Ma Xiaotao had learned her lesson.

She no longer waited until her Evil Fire was nearly uncontrollable before seeking out Huo Yuhao, instead adopting a strategy of "small, frequent meals."

As soon as she felt the slightest bit of heat in her body, she would immediately drag Huo Yuhao to her inner courtyard dormitory to "extinguish the fire."

Consequently, a strange spectacle appeared in the Shrek inner courtyard.

Every two or three days, the famous freshman from the outer courtyard, Huo Yuhao, would be hauled into the inner courtyard by Ma Xiaotao.

"Yo, Xiaotao, bringing your little man back again?"

Passing inner courtyard senior sisters would look at the pair, covering their mouths to giggle with ambiguous expressions in their eyes.

"Go, go, go! Stop talking nonsense, this is... this is treatment!" Ma Xiaotao's pretty face turned beet red, and she glared back fiercely, but the hand gripping Huo Yuhao showed no sign of letting go. In fact, she gripped him even tighter, and her pace quickened, looking quite a bit like she was fleeing in a panic.

Huo Yuhao, meanwhile, was dragged along with a helpless expression. He had long since grown accustomed to such teasing, even managing to wave and greet the senior sisters with a smile.

Once inside the dormitory, the door was shut, cutting off the clamor of the outside world and leaving them in their own private space.

Whatever they did inside, who would ever know?

"Yuhao, hurry, get on the bed..." Ma Xiaotao called out.

Huo Yuhao rubbed his forehead. It was clearly just a simple matter of using Ultimate Ice to suppress the Evil Fire, so why did Ma Xiaotao always say such shocking things?

I suspect you're seducing me, but I have no evidence.

As the treatments deepened, Ma Xiaotao also discovered this secret—every time Huo Yuhao helped her suppress the Evil Fire, not only did her soul power circulate more smoothly, but its growth rate far exceeded the norm.

Huo Yuhao seemed to benefit as well, his soul power climbing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In Yan Shaozhe's office.

"You're saying that in the process of suppressing the Evil Fire, your soul powers resonate and increase significantly?" After hearing Ma Xiaotao's report, Yan Shaozhe's eyes lit up instantly like two giant lightbulbs.

"Yes, Teacher." Ma Xiaotao hesitated slightly. "We tried a martial soul fusion, but it failed. This improvement is purely derived from the complementarity of our attributes and... the blending of our auras."

"That's it!" Yan Shaozhe slapped his thigh, pacing the office in excitement. "Ultimate Ice and the mutating Ultimate Fire. This is a match made in heaven! Xiaotao, if not for the trouble of the Evil Fire, you should have broken through to the Soul Saint realm long ago with your talent. Now, Huo Yuhao is the key to unlocking your shackles!"

As he spoke, Yan Shaozhe mysteriously pulled a yellowed ancient book from a shelf partition and shoved it into Ma Xiaotao's hands.

"This is a dual cultivation secret technique treasured by the academy, called Dragon Phoenix Harmony. Although the name is a bit tacky, the effect is domineering and specifically designed for soul masters with complementary attributes to cultivate together. Take it and find an opportunity to try it with Yuhao."

"Dual... dual cultivation?!"

Ma Xiaotao held the scorching secret manual in her hands, her pretty face turning red to the roots of her ears, and she even stuttered, "Teacher, this... this isn't appropriate, is it? Our age gap is too large..."

"Those who cultivate, why get hung up on age?" Yan Shaozhe looked at her with a 'disappointed in you' expression. "Besides, that kid's mental maturity is like an old monster; he's as steady as a rock. That Wang Dong in the outer courtyard, and that Xiao Xiao, which one of them isn't devoted to him? If you don't make your move now, you won't even get to drink the soup later!"

Ma Xiaotao froze.

That's right, Wang Dong.

Ordinary people might be deceived by Wang Dong's male attire, but as a top student at Shrek, Ma Xiaotao knew that a beautiful martial soul like the Radiant Goddess Butterfly was only passed down to women, never men.

Wang Dong had enrolled disguised as a boy.

Over the past two months, watching Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong come and go together and live in the same room, a strange sourness had long since welled up in Ma Xiaotao's heart.

That night, in Ma Xiaotao's dormitory.

After the Evil Fire was suppressed, a lingering, amorous atmosphere permeated the air.

Huo Yuhao was preparing to pull away and leave, but he noticed Ma Xiaotao with her head lowered, her fingers tightly clutching the hem of her clothes, as if she were making a difficult decision.

"Sister Xiaotao, what's wrong?" Huo Yuhao asked softly.

Ma Xiaotao took a deep breath, suddenly raised her head, and handed the Dragon Phoenix Harmony to Huo Yuhao. Being coy was simply not her personality.

"Yuhao, Teacher gave me this."

Huo Yuhao glanced at the cover and understood instantly, a playful smile curling at the corner of his mouth: "Dean Yan is really... thoughtful!"

"Will you... will you look down on me for being older?" Ma Xiaotao bit her red lip, a hint of unprecedented humility and anxiety flashing in her eyes.

Usually decisive and swift, she was now caught in a whirlpool of emotion, becoming completely unlike herself.

"I know Wang Dong is a girl, and I can see Xiao Xiao's feelings for you. They are the same age as you, and their cultivation is at a similar stage; they are more suitable to walk with you than I am. And I am six years older than you..."

At this moment, the domineering and fiery Flame Demon who appeared before others had vanished, replaced only by a young girl feeling insecure in the face of love.

"If you mind, I can wait for you, or... you can just reject me."

Ma Xiaotao said with a trembling voice. She even humbly indicated that as long as Huo Yuhao could dual cultivate with her, even if she were just a passerby in his life, and even if he had others besides her, she would accept it.

After all, as things stood, Huo Yuhao was the partner most suited to her, the one who could help her resolve the flaws in her martial soul.

Huo Yuhao looked at the girl who had let down her guard for him and couldn't help but swallow hard.

He knew very well that Ma Xiaotao's affection for him was not yet enough to make her make such a concession.

The temptation of increasing her strength through dual cultivation was the primary reason.

However, having lived two lifetimes, to say he had absolutely no thoughts when such a stunning beauty was laid out before him, ripe for the taking, would be lying to himself.

Huo Yuhao knew clearly that his next response was of the utmost importance; it was the key to whether he could completely break through the defenses of Ma Xiaotao's heart.

He reached out and gently took hold of Ma Xiaotao's trembling hand, interlacing their fingers.

"Sister Xiaotao, look at me."

Huo Yuhao's voice was not loud, yet it carried an unquestionable firmness.

"Age? What is that, really?"

"In the eyes of mortals, six years is not even considered a chasm. And in the eyes of us soul masters, or even gods, what does six years amount to?"

Huo Yuhao's gaze was burning. "If our goal is to become a Title Douluo, our lifespans can reach several hundred years; if we become gods, our lifespans will be eternal."

He gazed affectionately into Ma Xiaotao's flustered eyes, speaking each word clearly and deliberately:

"A thousand years from now, the difference between you and me will be nothing more than a tiny fraction."

"As long as we become gods, true love is eternal."

Boom—!

Ma Xiaotao felt as if a brilliant firework had exploded within her mind.

A thousand years from now...

Becoming a god...

This young man's ambition was truly grand!

And his promise was so romantic and overbearing!

All of her inferiority, hesitation, and anxiety vanished into thin air at this moment.

Ma Xiaotao could no longer control the surging emotions in her heart; she threw herself into Huo Yuhao's arms, hot tears streaming from her eyes as she held tightly onto this little man who was six years her junior, yet had given her a sense of security she had never known before.

"Yuhao... we will become gods together!"

"Mm, together."

That night, the red candles flickered, and two hearts completely merged as one.

As for that book, Dragon Phoenix Harmony, it naturally came in very handy.