My Bathtub's Pretty Spacious

At dismissal, the classroom was bustling with students.

Lin Feng was packing his schoolbag when he suddenly heard a familiar call from the front door: "Xiao Feng! Over here! Hurry up!"

He looked up and saw Ma Xiaotao waving vigorously at him, her red hair especially eye-catching in the crowd.

"Xiaotao, you're in such a good mood today. What brings you here to pick me up in person?" Lin Feng hurried over, unable to resist teasing her.

"I've got huge news for you! Come with me. I'll tell you when we get to my dorm." Ma Xiaotao beamed, her eyes crinkling as she grabbed his hand.

"Shh, keep your voice down," Lin Feng said softly. "If our classmates hear, it'll reflect badly on you."

"What's there to be afraid of? You're my most precious Junior Disciple Brother. If anyone dares to gossip, I'll roast them over a fire!" Ma Xiaotao said nonchalantly, already spreading her fiery wings behind her. "Hold on tight!"

Before Lin Feng could react, she leaped out of the corridor with him in tow, drawing the gazes of the new students below.

"Whoa, what a fierce presence... I mean her Martial Soul! Could she be a senior from the Inner Court?"

"No idea, but wasn't the one she dragged away Lin Feng from Class Nine? That kid's really lucky with the ladies..."

In no time, Ma Xiaotao had carried Lin Feng to her single dorm room like a little chick.

"Xiaotao, can we walk next time? I'm a little carsick." Lin Feng steadied himself against the wall.

"Your senior sister's in a good mood today. Next time, we'll do whatever you want." She answered with a smile, then released her Martial Soul without warning.

One yellow, one purple...

Wait, that Second Soul Ring?!

Lin Feng immediately noticed something was off. "How did your Second Soul Ring...?"

"Good eye, Junior Disciple Brother." Ma Xiaotao proudly lifted her chin. "That's right, it's a Thousand-Year Soul Ring."

"But wasn't it a Hundred-Year Soul Ring this morning? What happened?" Lin Feng had already guessed most of the answer. It had to be related to his Burning Art.

"That's the good news I wanted to tell you." Ma Xiaotao leaned closer happily. "When you absorbed my Evil Fire earlier, the Phoenix flame you gave back to me was incredibly pure. It actually increased the age of my Soul Ring. I didn't even notice at first, not until this Second Soul Ring, which was over eight hundred years old, broke through to a thousand."

Lin Feng pondered. "Seems similar to what happened with my First Soul Ring. Both were boosted after absorbing flames."

At that moment, Ma Xiaotao looked like a little cat that had discovered treasure, her eyes sparkling as she gazed at Lin Feng. "Exactly. So you'll have to work hard for me from now on, Junior Disciple Brother. We'll improve together—the more, the better."

"No way! I'm still young..." Lin Feng could already foresee a miserable future of regular dual cultivation and having to hand over his flames.

"Since you came to my dorm today," Ma Xiaotao said, her eyes shining brighter, "let's strike while the iron's hot and soak in the hot spring while we cultivate. My bathtub's pretty spacious. It's no worse than Sea God Lake."

"Xiaotao, don't!"

"Come on, let your senior sister see how much you've improved!"

Inside the bathroom, steam billowed at times and ice crystals formed at others, light and shadow intertwining until the scene inside was impossible to make out.

An hour later.

Lin Feng came out of the bathroom clutching his lower back.

After devouring the source of the Mystic Ice Spirit Flame, his Huang-tier Burning Art had evolved to the Xuan-tier.

But for his Xuan-tier Burning Art to devour the source of the Phoenix Evil Fire, it still seemed far too difficult. He would have to wait until it evolved to the Earth-tier.

Until then, he would have to endure this miserable dual-cultivation routine. Ma Xiaotao had thoroughly latched onto him.

Improving a Soul Ring was all well and good, but his life mattered more.

While Ma Xiaotao was still busy getting dressed up, Lin Feng fled the lair in the dead of night.

The next morning, at Bright Phoenix Courtyard on Sea God Island.

"Teacher, may I request a detailed list of all the fire-attribute Soul Masters in the academy?" Lin Feng asked respectfully.

Yan Shaozhe set down the book in his hands and looked at him with some confusion. "Why do you suddenly want that?"

Lin Feng carefully explained what had led to Ma Xiaotao's Soul Ring breakthrough.

After listening, Yan Shaozhe chuckled and shook his head. "That girl. Something this important, and she didn't even come tell me first. It seems you, her Junior Disciple Brother, carry a little more weight in her heart than I do."

"Teacher, you're joking," Lin Feng said hurriedly. "I've only known her for a few days. How could I compare with you?"

"Then what do you plan to do with the list?"

"This disciple wants to find high-tier fire-attribute Soul Masters and try to transform their flames through devouring. We could help each other cultivate and improve together."

"A fine ambition." Yan Shaozhe nodded approvingly, stood up, and took two thick books from the shelf. "Take this Fire Attribute Soul Beast Illustrated Handbook as well. It may be useful for reference."

"Thank you, Teacher." Lin Feng accepted them with both hands.

But he already had his own ideas: flames from Soul Masters were far superior to flames from Soul Beasts.

After all, people could cultivate together every day and make progress together, but it was difficult to find Soul Beasts of the same kind every day, let alone hunt them.

As he looked through the list, a familiar name caught his eye: "Wu Feng, New Student Class Nine, twelve years old, Martial Soul: Red Dragon..."

"Teacher, may I copy this list?"

"No need to trouble yourself. Just take it and use it, but don't share it with anyone else."

"I understand. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."

"Go ahead... Wait." Yan Shaozhe suddenly called him back, a meaningful smile flickering in his eyes. "There's one person missing from this list."

"Who do you mean, Teacher?"

"Me." He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his expression gentle. "My Bright Phoenix Martial Soul possesses both light and fire attributes. If you need help, you can come to me as well."

Lin Feng froze and hurriedly waved his hands. "With my current level of cultivation, how could I dare devour your flames, Teacher? That would be like a moth flying into a flame..."

His Xuan-tier Burning Art couldn't even devour the source of the Phoenix Evil Fire. How could he possibly set his sights on Yan Shaozhe, a Super Douluo?

"Don't worry. There's plenty of time." Yan Shaozhe laughed heartily as he watched his disciple leave, his eyes filled with anticipation.

For several days in a row, Lin Feng followed the list and visited several fire-attribute Soul Masters, but he came away empty-handed each time.

Their flames each had their own distinctive qualities, but none had condensed into a source, let alone a nascent source. They couldn't meet the requirements for cultivating the Burning Art.

Powerful high-tier fire-attribute Martial Soul users like Ma Xiaotao and Yan Shaozhe were few and far between—encounters like those were hard to come by.

"How could I have forgotten that tomboy? She's right nearby."

Just as Lin Feng was about to give up hope, he suddenly smacked his forehead and thought of Wu Feng, who sat in front of him.

Everything he'd done before had been like traveling far afield in search of something close at hand.

Wu Feng's Red Dragon Martial Soul was one of the highest-tier fire-attribute sub-dragon species. Unless something unexpected happened, it should be able to produce Red Dragon Heart Fire.

This flame was fierce and unyielding, domineering and immensely destructive. It could be counted among the finest beast flames.

Lin Feng found Wu Feng training alone at the cultivation field specially set aside for new students at Shrek Academy.

With only a slight circulation of the Burning Art, Lin Feng discovered a nascent source of Red Dragon Heart Fire in her heart.

"Let's make a deal." Lin Feng got straight to the point.

"I'm busy." Wu Feng raised her red eyes and gave him a cool glance.

"I can purify your Red Dragon Heart Fire," Lin Feng said calmly, offering a reason Wu Feng couldn't refuse. "I can make your Martial Soul's quality rise to another level."

"What did you say?!" Wu Feng hurriedly stood up, unable to believe her ears.