Ma Xiaotao Comes Calling

After trying several more times without getting anywhere, Lu Ran had no choice but to give up for now.

He returned to the outside world.

Now that he had broken through to a new level, he naturally had to keep cultivating.

Lu Ran sat cross-legged once more.

He guided Soul Power through his meridians, drawing in the energy in the air. His body absorbed it and filtered out the impurities, until it became another current of Soul Power coursing through his meridians.

The stronger a person was, the broader their meridians became. Soul Power also flowed faster, allowing them to draw in even more energy.

This should count as a kind of siphoning effect.

The area around the Golden Ancient Tree was probably one of the places with the densest Soul Power on Douluo Continent. The only place that could compare was likely Lake of Life. The Soul Power was so dense that it poured into his body on its own.

Without deliberate cultivation, he could barely absorb the Soul Power that flowed in.

But that alone proved just how incredible the Golden Ancient Tree was.

Just then,

Lu Ran sensed that someone seemed to be pacing outside his door, hesitating. A few times, they came close as if to knock, but ultimately gave up.

Who was it?

Lu Ran opened his eyes in puzzlement and got up to open the door.

He wasn't worried at all that the person might want to harm him. After all, this was the Sea God Pavilion.

As he approached, he could even hear the other person's hesitant sighs.

He opened the door.

Standing outside was a stunning red-haired girl.

Her fitted red dress did nothing to conceal her alluring figure. Beneath her ample chest was a slender waist that looked delicate enough to clasp in one hand, and her long, fair legs were shapely and straight.

The Red-haired Girl clearly hadn't expected Lu Ran to open the door first. Looking at his rather handsome face,

she glanced around, left and right, but found no one to shield her. With a guilty look, she could only say, "Um... I'm... no, no, my name is... Ma Xiaotao."

"Um... I'm Ma Xiaotao. I just wanted to... get to know you."

"And also... um... um..."

That was it.

After saying that, she awkwardly lowered her head, looking just like someone trying to strike up a conversation. Unfortunately, she couldn't see her own toes.

Lu Ran looked to his left and right. There wasn't anyone there. He looked behind her too, but there was no one there either. Yan Shaozhe was nowhere to be seen.

He stepped aside and gestured for her to come in. "Why don't you come in and sit for a bit?"

"Huh?"

Ma Xiaotao froze, her beautiful eyes full of confusion. She'd already prepared herself to be turned down.

"You're not going to reject me?"

Lu Ran asked in return, "Why would I reject you?"

"Because I'm acting weird!"

Ma Xiaotao said as if it were obvious.

"..."

Lu Ran couldn't help thinking how honest she was.

Ma Xiaotao regretted saying it as soon as the words left her mouth. What if Lu Ran really wouldn't let her in?

After all, her teacher, Yan Shaozhe, was the one who'd sent her.

Yan Shaozhe had insisted that she come over. The best-case scenario was that they became good friends; the worst was that they at least got acquainted. She had to make it happen. If she didn't, he'd ban her from cultivating for a whole month.

"C-can I come in?"

Ma Xiaotao pointed toward the room with her index finger and asked tentatively.

Lu Ran continued to gesture for her to enter. "Please."

Ma Xiaotao breathed a sigh of relief and hurried inside, bringing a faint fragrance with her.

Once inside, she secretly surveyed the whole room with her beautiful eyes.

It was simple and tidy, with nothing unnecessary. A small blue-and-white flower sat on the windowsill.

So this was what the inside of the Sea God Pavilion looked like.

It was her first time here.

"Have a seat."

Lu Ran turned to pour her a cup of tea. The tea was a pale green. "Dean Yan sent you, didn't he?"

"Huh?!"

Ma Xiaotao jumped, suddenly feeling as if he'd seen right through her. "You... no, I came here on my own."

On the way over, Yan Shaozhe had told her to say that she'd wanted to come herself, rather than that he'd asked her to. The two explanations had completely different implications.

"Only four people know that I live in the Sea God Pavilion: Mu En, Dean Yan, Dean Xian, and Sister Lexuan. So how did you know where I live?"

Lu Ran looked at Ma Xiaotao.

"I heard there's a Flame Maniac in the Inner Academy. She's highly talented but has a fiery temper, and she has some problems with her cultivation that require someone else to keep her in check. Could that be you?"

Lu Ran's eyes seemed able to see right through her thoughts.

Ma Xiaotao felt guilty under his gaze and wilted.

She could only come clean. "It was my teacher who sent me."

"But mostly... mostly, I just wanted to... get to know you. Get to know you."

She kept nodding, as if trying to convince herself that what she was saying was true.

Lu Ran pressed on. "If you only wanted to get to know me, why didn't Dean Yan come with you?"

"After all, he's your teacher, and he and I know each other well."

Lu Ran knew why Ma Xiaotao had come, and he knew Yan Shaozhe had to be behind it. If he couldn't figure that out after all this, he'd truly need his eyes checked.

But he kept pressing her, making Ma Xiaotao say it herself. She was impulsive by nature; if he couldn't keep her in check from the start, who knew how badly she might push him around later?

He had to stay on top.

Ma Xiaotao was utterly defeated. Head drooping, she could only admit the truth.

"I really did just want to get to know you, but..."

"But you want me to help suppress your Evil Fire."

"My teacher said I didn't need to bring that up at first," Ma Xiaotao protested, then realized she'd said the wrong thing and hurried to explain. "No, that's not what I meant."

"It's just..."

She realized she couldn't explain herself, so she decided to throw caution to the wind and tell him everything.

"My Innate Soul Power was level nine. You said I'm talented, but my teacher says I'm not as talented as you."

"My Martial Soul is the Evil Fire Phoenix. You may have heard of it, or you may not have. It's better if you haven't... No, I mean, this Martial Soul has a serious drawback. I'm plagued by Evil Fire."

"At best, the Evil Fire burns through me. At worst, I can even lose control and go berserk."

"It's had a huge impact, making my cultivation much slower."

"All these years, my teacher has been finding Soul Masters with Ice and Water Attributes, as well as gems, to help suppress it. But as my Soul Power has increased, those methods have become less and less effective."

"More importantly, the Inner Academy... is short on talent. There are even fewer Soul Masters who can help me..."

Lu Ran felt that "short on talent" wasn't a phrase she'd come up with herself. It sounded more like something Yan Shaozhe would say.

"So my teacher wanted me to come to you... He hopes you can help me suppress my Evil Fire..."

Ma Xiaotao sat surprisingly demurely, her head drooping, legs pressed together and hands clasped in her lap. But she wasn't looking at Lu Ran at all; her gaze wandered, and she drew out an "um..." after every sentence.

At thirteen or fourteen, she really didn't know how to ask for help. With her temper, she usually went about things in a much more direct way.

"Sure."

Lu Ran agreed.

"Okay..."

Ma Xiaotao's spirits sank. She'd have to take the punishment when she got back...

"Huh?!"

She suddenly looked up, her beautiful eyes shining.

She'd already braced herself for rejection. Why had he suddenly agreed?

"You'll help me?"

"Shouldn't you refuse?"

Lu Ran asked in return, "Why would I refuse?"

"Because..."

Ma Xiaotao hesitated. "Suppressing my Evil Fire... will be exhausting."

"It'll take a lot out of you."

"It's not more than I can handle."

Lu Ran said it casually.

The reason he agreed was simple: Shrek had helped him so much, whether by saving his life, helping him awaken, or giving him vast resources.

He remembered all of it.

He could go elsewhere and receive vast resources too, but the fact remained that he owed Shrek.

And a favor owed had to be repaid.

He couldn't take it for granted when others helped him, then think about what was in it for him before helping them.

That would be far too selfish.