"Then how do you plan to obtain your fifth Soul Ring? Do you want me to help?"
Tang Ya lifted her head. Her eyes still glistened with unshed tears, and her voice held both concern and a faint, barely perceptible sadness at being unable to do more.
"Don't worry. I have a plan," Lin Feng said evenly, with a confidence that put her at ease. "Just focus on getting your luggage ready over the next few days. Leave everything else to me."
"Mm." Tang Ya nodded and asked no more. She simply held him quietly for a little longer before slowly releasing her arms.
Though her embrace had ended, its warmth remained. But that familiar helplessness, born of her own inadequate strength, crept into her heart once more.
Standing beside Lin Feng, whose light seemed to shine brighter by the day, she always felt so small, with so little she could do for him.
If only she had a legendary bloodline and power like the Blue Silver Emperor.
Lin Feng kept Tang Ya company in the little shop for a while. Only after a cup of tea had gone cold did he get up.
"I have some things to take care of in the Inner Court. Get some rest early."
"All right. Be careful on the way."
After saying goodbye to Tang Ya, Lin Feng took a list of Shrek Academy's fire-attribute Soul Masters from his storage device.
He had already visited everyone on the list from the Outer Court. Now, naturally, he turned his attention to the Inner Court, with its deeper foundations.
His finger slid down the list, finally stopping at a name.
"Wu Ming, twenty-six years old. Martial Soul: Golden Crow. Level sixty-five Power Attack System Battle Soul Emperor, known as the Golden Crow Saintess..."
Ever since successfully devouring Yan Shaozhe's Bright Phoenix Fire Origin, Lin Feng had gained considerable confidence in devouring the flames of Soul Emperors and those stronger than them.
Wu Ming's Golden Crow Martial Soul was a divine bird, born alongside the sun and said to be a close relative of the Phoenix. Though the Golden Crow True Fire it produced had yet to reach the level of Ultimate Fire, it came close and was on par with Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire Phoenix.
Lin Feng soon reached the Inner Court. After asking around, he learned only that Senior Sister Wu Ming had gone somewhere secluded on Sea God Island.
He followed her trail and eventually sensed powerful fire-attribute Soul Power fluctuations in a remote, wooded corner of Sea God Island, along with... the faint sound of water.
His Spiritual Detection spread over almost instinctively—
In a clear forest lake, he saw a figure bathing in the water.
Beneath the surface, her curves were indistinct. Her long golden hair spread like seaweed, glimmering in the sunlight.
Lin Feng's heart skipped. He immediately realized this was wrong and was about to withdraw his Spiritual Detection.
But the person in the lake seemed to react even faster.
"Splash—!"
With a soft splash, a figure swept gracefully out of the lake, scattering sparkling droplets.
In the next instant, a pair of golden wings unfurled behind her. With a gentle flap, they steamed away the moisture around her.
Lin Feng's gaze inevitably fell upon her completely bare, graceful figure. He felt a rush of blood shoot straight to his head—and his nose.
Though the Golden Crow Saintess was already over twenty-five, she looked like a woman in her early twenties, around Ma Xiaotao's age.
Her features weren't as bright and dazzling as Ma Xiaotao's, but she had a fresh, spirited beauty of her own. Her brows and eyes were like a painting; she was unquestionably a beauty.
Wu Ming calmly picked up the clothes by the shore and put them on one by one, every movement natural and unhurried.
Still, her gaze seemed to sweep, almost imperceptibly, toward the direction from which Lin Feng's Spiritual Detection had come. The corner of her lips lifted into a faint... inscrutable, slightly teasing smile.
Once dressed, she glanced toward him one last time. Then her golden wings beat, and she vanished in a streak of light.
"Junior Brother, did you enjoy the view?"
A woman's voice, tinged with amusement, came from behind him. Lin Feng jolted in fright.
"Damn... Senior Sister, I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to. I'm Lin Feng, and I came to see you for something important."
Lin Feng hurriedly turned to explain, inwardly crying out that this was bad.
Senior Sister Wu Ming had appeared silently behind him, still wearing that seemingly gentle smile that made his skin crawl.
Lin Feng's instincts told him that this woman was definitely a smiling tiger.
Earlier, when he'd asked where she'd gone, he had noticed the fear in the Inner Court students' eyes whenever they mentioned her name. It was exactly like the guards at the academy gates when they saw Ma Xiaotao.
"Oh? Something important?" Wu Ming raised an eyebrow, her tone still light. Her next words sent a chill down Lin Feng's neck. "Then I'll give you a chance, Junior. Give me a reason I'll find satisfactory, or else..."
Her smile deepened as her fingertip brushed Lin Feng's cheek. "I can't promise those wandering eyes of yours will remain intact to enjoy the scenery."
Lin Feng had guessed right. This senior's danger level was probably no lower than Ma Xiaotao's had been when she was plagued by Evil Fire and prone to wild mood swings.
It seemed few high-level female Soul Masters with fire attributes were harmless—from Ma Xiaotao to Zhou Yi, and now Wu Ming.
He'd just have to subdue her by force.
Lin Feng said no more and quietly began circulating the Burning Technique.
A wisp of dark red, nearly black flame rose from his palm, radiating a fearsome, violent aura.
"This is... Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire Origin?!" The smile vanished from Wu Ming's face. Disbelief flashed in her eyes as she stared at the flame. "You... You have an Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul too? No, your aura's different..."
"Senior Sister, look at this." Lin Feng's expression remained unchanged.
The wisp of dark red Evil Fire in his palm abruptly turned pure gold-red. Its earlier violence vanished, leaving only the pure, sacred aura of the Phoenix True Fire.
"Th-this is pure Phoenix True Fire?! You... How did you do that?" Wu Ming's pupils contracted. This time, her surprise was even greater, edged with shock.
Her thoughts surged. How could one person so easily control and transform two top-grade flames with opposite properties that nevertheless shared the same origin?
Seeing the emotions flicker across Wu Ming's face, Lin Feng knew the time was right. He spoke slowly. "If I told you that I helped Senior Sister Ma Xiaotao completely purify the tangled Phoenix Evil Fire inside her, and helped her Martial Soul evolve into a pure Fire Phoenix with the attribute of Ultimate Fire, would you believe me?"
Strength and facts laid out before someone were always more convincing than empty words.
Wu Ming stared fixedly at the pure Phoenix Fire. The shock and doubt in her eyes gradually gave way to understanding.
The smile disappeared from her face, replaced by solemnity—the instinctive yearning a Soul Master felt for a higher level of power.
Her Golden Crow Martial Soul was a top-tier fire-attribute Beast Martial Soul, a divine bird said to rival the Phoenix in legend. It was only a few steps away from the legendary Ultimate Fire, yet those few steps were the most difficult of all.
If this young man was telling the truth, and he could purify Ma Xiaotao's Phoenix Evil Fire, did that mean... he might also be able to help her purify her Golden Crow True Fire, and perhaps even touch that legendary realm—the Ultimate Fire of the Three-Legged Golden Crow?
The thought made her heart race.
"Tell me, what do you need me to do? Or what are your conditions?"
Wu Ming took a deep breath, tamping down her roiling thoughts. Then she looked sharply at Lin Feng and got straight to the point.
Before you continue