Ma Xiaotao Visits

After trying a few more times and finding absolutely no leads, Lu Ran had no choice but to give up for the moment.

Returning to the outside world, Since he had broken through to a new level, he naturally had to continue his cultivation.

Lu Ran sat cross-legged once again, Manipulating his soul power to circulate through his meridians, he drew the energy in the air closer. After being absorbed by his body and purged of impurities, it finally became one with the surging soul power within his meridians.

The stronger one became, the wider their meridians grew, allowing soul power to circulate faster and draw in even more energy.

This could be considered a form of siphon effect.

The area around the Golden Ancient Tree was likely one of the regions with the highest concentration of soul power on the entire Douluo Continent; the only place that could compare was probably the Lake of Life. The concentration of soul power was so high that it surged into his body automatically.

Although the soul power that surged in without deliberate cultivation was almost impossible to absorb, It still served as proof of just how terrifying the Golden Ancient Tree truly was.

Next, Lu Ran sensed someone pacing outside his door. They seemed quite hesitant, approaching several times as if to knock, only to give up in the end.

Who was it?

Lu Ran opened his eyes in confusion and rose to open the Gate of Opening.

He wasn't the least bit worried that the person intended to harm him; after all, this was the Sea God Pavilion.

As he drew closer, he could even hear the person's hesitant sighs.

Pushing the door open, He was met by a red-haired girl of stunning beauty.

The form-fitting red dress could not conceal her exquisite figure; beneath her prominent, towering chest was a slender waist that could barely be grasped by a hand, and her fair, long legs were perfectly round and straight.

The red-haired girl clearly hadn't expected Lu Ran to open the door first. Looking at that rather handsome face, She glanced left and right, realizing there was no one to shield her, so she had to say with a guilty conscience: "Um... I am... no, no, my name is... Ma Xiaotao."

"Yeah... my name is Ma Xiaotao, I just wanted to get to know you."

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

That was it.

After speaking, she lowered her head in embarrassment, looking exactly like someone trying to pick someone up, though it was a pity she couldn't see her own toes.

Lu Ran looked left and right, but there was no one there. He looked behind her, and there was no one there either; Yan Shaozhe was nowhere to be seen.

He stepped aside and gestured for her to enter: "Come in and sit for a while."

"Huh?"

Ma Xiaotao was stunned, her beautiful eyes filled with confusion. She had been prepared to be rejected:

"Aren't you going to refuse me?"

Lu Ran countered: "Why would I refuse?"

"Because I look very strange!"

Ma Xiaotao said as if it were a matter of course.

"..."

Lu Ran sighed internally at how sincere she was.

Ma Xiaotao regretted her words the moment she said them. What if Lu Ran really didn't let her in?

After all, it was her teacher, Yan Shaozhe, who had sent her here.

Yan Shaozhe had insisted she come, saying the best-case scenario was becoming good friends, and the worst-case was at least getting to know each other. It had to be done, and if she failed, he would forbid her from cultivating for a month.

"I... can I come in?"

Ma Xiaotao pointed her index finger toward the room, asking tentatively.

Lu Ran maintained his gesture of invitation: "Please."

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

Once inside, her beautiful eyes secretly observed the entire room.

It was simple and clean, with nothing superfluous. A small pot of blue and white flowers sat on the windowsill.

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

It was her first time here as well.

"Please, sit."

Lu Ran turned to pour her a cup of tea, the liquid a pale green: "It was Dean Yan who sent you, wasn't it?"

"Huh?!"

Ma Xiaotao was startled, suddenly feeling as if she had been seen through. "You... no, it was me who wanted to come."

Before coming, Yan Shaozhe had instructed him to say that he had come of his own volition, not because he had been requested to; the objectives of the two were completely different.

"Only four people know I live in the Sea God Pavilion: Elder Mu, 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 Court—someone with high talent but a fiery temper, and whose cultivation has some issues that require others to suppress it. That wouldn't be you, would it?"

Lu Ran's eyes seemed capable of seeing right through her thoughts.

Ma Xiaotao felt guilty under his gaze, her heart faltering.

She had no choice but to confess, "It was indeed my teacher who sent me."

"But I mainly... I mainly just wanted to... get to know you, just get to know you."

She nodded her head repeatedly, as if trying to convince herself of what she was saying.

Lu Ran remained relentless: "If you just wanted to get to know me, why didn't Dean Yan come along?"

"After all, Dean Yan is your teacher, and I am quite familiar with him."

Lu Ran knew why Ma Xiaotao had come, and he knew Yan Shaozhe was behind it. After all, with her acting like this, he would have to be blind not to see it.

But he insisted on pressing her step by step, forcing Ma Xiaotao to say it herself. Ma Xiaotao had an impulsive personality; if he didn't suppress her from the very beginning, there was no telling how she might try to dominate their future interactions.

He had to be the one on top.

Ma Xiaotao was completely defeated. With her head drooping, she had no choice but to come clean:

"It is true that I just wanted to get to know you, but..."

"But I need you to help me suppress my Evil Fire."

"My teacher said I wouldn't need to at first," Ma Xiaotao defended herself, then realized she had phrased it wrong and hurriedly explained: "No, that's not what I meant."

"It's just..."

She realized she couldn't explain it, so she simply threw caution to the wind and confessed everything:

"My Innate Soul Power is level nine. You said my talent is high, but my teacher says my talent is inferior to yours."

"My Martial Soul is the Evil Fire Phoenix. You may or may not have heard of this Martial Soul, and it's better if you haven't... no, I mean, the Martial Soul has very strong side effects. I am plagued by the evil fire."

"At best, the evil fire invades my body; at worst, I could even suffer a cultivation deviation."

"The impact is significant, causing my cultivation speed to be very slow."

"Over the years, my teacher has been finding Ice-type and Water-type soul masters and gemstones to help me suppress it, but as my soul power increases, the effectiveness of these methods has been getting worse and worse."

"More importantly, the Inner Court... is suffering from a lack of talent, and there are even fewer soul masters who can help me..."

Lu Ran felt that the phrase "suffering from a lack of talent" was not something she had thought of, but rather something Yan Shaozhe would say.

"So, my teacher wanted me to come find you... hoping you could help me suppress the evil fire..."

Ma Xiaotao's sitting posture was unexpectedly well-behaved. Her head was drooping, her legs were pressed together, and her hands were clasped on her lap. The only thing was that she wasn't looking at Lu Ran at all; her gaze was drifting, and she dragged out an "um..." sound with every sentence she spoke.

At only thirteen or fourteen years old, she really didn't know how to beg for help. Given her temper, she usually used more direct methods to get what she wanted.

"I can."

Lu Ran agreed.

"Alright..."

Ma Xiaotao felt dejected; she was going to get it when she went back...

"Hm?!"

She jerked her head up, her beautiful eyes shining brightly.

I was already prepared to be rejected, so why did he suddenly agree?

"You agreed?"

"Shouldn't you have refused?"

Lu Ran countered: "Why would I refuse?"

"Because..."

Ma Xiaotao said hesitantly: "Helping me suppress the evil fire... is very tiring."

"The consumption will be huge."

"It's not like I can't handle it."

Lu Ran spoke very casually.

The reason he agreed was simple: Shrek had helped him too much. Whether it was saving his life, helping him awaken, or even providing him with massive resources, he remembered it all.

Although he would eventually go elsewhere and could obtain massive resources there as well, the fact remained that he owed a debt to Shrek.

And if one owes a debt, one must repay it.

He couldn't just take it for granted when others helped him, while only considering his own benefits when helping others, could he?

That would be too selfish.