The fruit's bright-red branches and leaves instantly smeared across Huo Yuhao's face, and the juice quickly seeped into his skin.
Huo Yuhao's scalp prickled, and an inexplicable heat surged through his body.
Fortunately, Tian Meng's voice came just then. "Huo Yuhao, channel the Ice Attribute Magic Core and release its cold energy. It might suppress the effects for a while."
Without hesitation, Huo Yuhao immediately reached into his system space. A wave of cold spread from his body, easing the heat considerably.
At the same time, Mu Jin sensed the chill Huo Yuhao released. Driven by the heat, she instinctively pulled him into her arms to absorb it.
Mu Jin had shrunk somewhat, but she was still two and a half meters tall. Her clothes had nearly been torn to shreds during their flight.
Caught off guard, Huo Yuhao's face ended up pressed against Mu Jin's chest.
The feeling...
But Huo Yuhao quickly stopped thinking about it.
Fortunately, thanks to the Soul Tools Huo Yuhao had set up earlier, and because Mu Jin had already been near the edge of Star Dou Forest, they were able to make good time.
Their speed had slowed, but they were still moving quickly. Before long, they had left the forest's outer reaches.
Soul Beasts had a strong sense of territory. Once the two were beyond their territory, the beasts stopped pursuing them, and Huo Yuhao finally breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
But soon...
Huo Yuhao's heart lurched again. He looked at Mu Jin.
"Teacher Mu, you—you should try to steady yourself."
Huo Yuhao looked at Mu Jin's reddened eyes, filled with feverish desire. She seemed to be looking at him as if he were a little lamb ready for slaughter.
Mu Jin shook her head.
"Kid, what are you thinking? I may not be your homeroom teacher, and I may have a grudge against Zhou Yi, but I know right from wrong. I'm not so heartless as to lay a hand on a child who hasn't even grown a single hair."
Mu Jin gritted her teeth again, forcing herself to endure.
Huo Yuhao didn't hesitate. He had a way to help Mu Jin detoxify.
But before he could say anything,
the heat surged through Mu Jin again. Without hesitation, she pulled Huo Yuhao even closer with a domineering grip.
Huo Yuhao was just about to speak when something abruptly blocked his mouth.
Mu Jin's body shuddered, and the strange sensation grew even stronger.
Then she shot Huo Yuhao an embarrassed glare and strode straight ahead.
Just then, Mu Jin spotted an abandoned village. She took Huo Yuhao with her and raced toward it.
Before long, Mu Jin found a well, but it had run dry, with not a drop of water in it.
At that point, Mu Jin finally couldn't hold on any longer. She fell to her knees.
She had taken a forbidden drug, then endured a long run. The drug had affected her severely. Under normal circumstances, she could have resisted the heat in her body, but now she was struggling to do so.
Mu Jin's mind was growing hazy. When she looked at Huo Yuhao, instinct took over. Some sense of restraint remained in her mind, but she was already on the verge of losing control.
Just then, a refreshing chill suddenly washed over Mu Jin.
"Teacher Mu, you'll feel better if you use this."
As he spoke, Huo Yuhao took out a second-tier Ice Attribute Magic Core.
Mu Jin stared at the Magic Core in Huo Yuhao's hand, startled. "The energy you released earlier wasn't the attribute of your Martial Soul."
Huo Yuhao looked confused. "Teacher Mu, my Martial Soul is my eyes."
Hearing this, Mu Jin immediately came to her senses.
She had been poisoned while they were being pursued, leaving her thoughts in disarray. That was why she had overlooked this.
Without hesitation, Mu Jin took the second-tier Ice Attribute Magic Core and sat cross-legged to absorb its energy.
At the same time, Mu Jin knew she owed Huo Yuhao for this.
But she couldn't worry about that now. She had to deal with the heat first; they could discuss everything else later.
Huo Yuhao finally let out a quiet sigh of relief and sat down cross-legged.
He had been poisoned too, and an inexplicable heat was spreading through his body.
Fortunately, the Ice Attribute Magic Core had suppressed the poison earlier, and it was no longer as serious.
Then, without hesitation,
Huo Yuhao suddenly discovered that when he circulated the Flame Mantra, he could absorb the heat contained in the sunlight even though there was nothing much inside his body.
Perhaps it was because this world was different.
Wisps of fiery energy poured into his body without end, helping him resist the poison within him.
Meanwhile,
Huo Yuhao glanced at Mu Jin, curious to see how she was doing.
But the moment he looked over, he sucked in a sharp breath.
Mu Jin had shrunk a little more, but she was still huge.
Then Huo Yuhao noticed that Mu Jin's changing size and their earlier, frantic run had caused her clothes to tear and fall away, leaving her entirely exposed before him.
And because Mu Jin was still resisting the poison, her red lips parted and closed as she breathed.
As for certain places...
Huo Yuhao couldn't help glancing over.
Suddenly, Huo Yuhao sensed something and whipped his head toward a patch of grass nearby.
There was grass there, thick and dense.
And hidden in that dense grass was a well.
It didn't look very deep, and it wasn't dry. A little water was slowly flowing inside.
Without hesitation, Huo Yuhao walked toward it, thinking he should cool himself down with some water.
Time passed, and before long, noon arrived.
Huo Yuhao had completely expelled the poison from his body and had even taken a bath.
By then, Mu Jin had also completely purged the poison from her body. The Ice Attribute Magic Core had naturally shrunk as well.
Mu Jin walked up to Huo Yuhao. "Huo Yuhao, thank you. Just tell me what you want as compensation."
Mu Jin had just gone into an abandoned house nearby and changed into a simple outfit.
Huo Yuhao accepted the second-tier Magic Core Mu Jin brought over and didn't hesitate. "Teacher Mu, you know what I want, don't you?"
Mu Jin thought for a moment and guessed what he meant. "You really want me to teach at your academy?"
Huo Yuhao nodded. "Yes. Like I said, you don't need to resign from your teaching position at Shrek Academy. You only need to register as a teacher there."
Mu Jin considered his words before replying. "Shrek Academy has no strict rule forbidding its instructors from teaching elsewhere. But no one has ever dared to open a second academy in Shrek City, so you're taking advantage of a loophole."
Huo Yuhao nodded. "I wouldn't put it that way. But since there's no rule against it, does that mean you're willing?"
Mu Jin looked at Huo Yuhao and fell silent for a moment before answering. "Fine. Since you saved me, and the academy has no strict rule against it, I can teach at your academy. But I spend most of my time at Shrek Academy, so I can only teach there once in a while."
Huo Yuhao nodded with a smile. "No problem. My school doesn't have any students yet."
Mu Jin...
Mu Jin was speechless for a moment...
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