Huo Yuhao's arrival naturally caught Fan Yu's attention. He remembered that boy's heaven-defying Soul Skill perfectly, but why had Zhou Yi brought him here now?
"Fan Yu, I want to let this boy join the Soul Tool Department early."
Zhou Yi's words struck like a thunderclap, leaving Fan Yu stunned for a long moment. If he remembered correctly, students weren't supposed to start learning about Soul Tools until their third year, were they?
Seeing that Fan Yu was at a loss, Zhou Yi began recounting the injustice she had suffered. What had originally been a perfectly ordinary class assignment based on registration order became, in her telling, a calculated scheme to target the Soul Tool Department: a Soul Master with deep ties to the department had been denied even a single Soul Elder-level student.
"You do make some sense, but why call it a calculated scheme?"
After hearing Zhou Yi out, Fan Yu nodded thoughtfully, but still couldn't understand why she thought it was a calculated scheme.
"Think about it. I've held the senior teacher title for years, and I've always been known for turning ordinary students into geniuses. So assigning students who are weak on the whole to my class seems perfectly reasonable."
"And with my teaching philosophy, I can train even the weakest students into a championship team. To keep me in check, they specifically assigned two Soul Elders to Mu Jin's class, then had Mu Jin, who's never beaten me, provoke me into making a bet. Not only could they trick a Soul Bone out of me, they could also deal a blow to me—and, by extension, the Soul Tool Department!"
Seeing how convincingly Zhou Yi presented her case, Fan Yu hesitated. It might have sounded like a coincidence, but there were too many coincidences. A team with one Soul Elder and two deadweights had conveniently been assigned to make Zhou Yi lower her guard and take the bet. However he looked at it, it seemed like a trap set just for her.
He was starting to be persuaded, too. But he couldn't decide on his own to add a Martial Soul Department student to the Soul Tool Department. He'd have to ask Qian Duoduo and the others what they thought. Once they experienced Huo Yuhao's Soul Skill for themselves, there'd be no need to waste their breath arguing the matter...
After that, Zhou Yi and Fan Yu took Huo Yuhao to see Qian Duoduo. After experiencing Huo Yuhao's Soul Skill firsthand, Qian Duoduo was stunned. He swore to himself that even if it meant fighting Yan Shaozhe, he'd bring the boy into the Soul Tool Department...
He could even bring Xian Lin'er into it. The Soul Tool Department's fate was at stake, so she'd surely stand with him.
Meanwhile, Su Qing, locked in an inner struggle on the other side, was resting his head on Zhang Lexuan's lap as they chatted. They'd only just been halfway through a kiss when Su Qing's body went limp and he toppled onto the bed. Zhang Lexuan was confused; she even thought he was trying to seduce her. She'd just started to unbutton his clothes when he told her that his attack had used up all his Soul Skills, leaving him weak.
Seeing Su Qing sprawled there, of course she couldn't let the opportunity pass. After teasing him mercilessly, whether from a sudden pang of conscience or for some other reason, she gently laid his head on her thigh and let him rest there. Zhang Lexuan's face was flawless from every angle. Waking from a dream with the person he loved before his eyes was a feeling Su Qing was thoroughly enjoying. That was the upside of being with an older woman: big sisters knew how to take care of you.
"Lexuan, I gave you my first kiss. You have to take responsibility for me!"
Su Qing's voice was soft and limp, every word seeming to gently tease Zhang Lexuan's heart and set it itching.
Hearing Su Qing's words, Zhang Lexuan smiled. Her mesmerizing eyes narrowed slightly. So he was an innocent young man after all—no wonder he was so easy to tease. She'd always thought he was playing hard to get.
"Oh? So should I sit on the edge of the bed, smoke a cigarette, and say something about taking responsibility for you?"
With the way Su Qing had just spoken, paired with his stunning, androgynous face, he looked exactly like a beautiful wife bullied by her husband's boss, pleading, 'Look at what you've done to me. Please don't fire my husband!'
"Lexuan, you know so much. You even know about post-coital cigarettes. You must have..."
"Knock, knock, knock—"
Just then, someone knocked on the door again. The two exchanged a look, both baffled. Who would interrupt them at a time like this?
"Come in!"
Zhang Lexuan was the one who answered this time. There was nothing shameful about her relationship with Su Qing, so there was no need to hide from anyone.
"Creak—"
The door opened, and a red-haired woman timidly walked in. Though she seemed surprised by their strange position, she didn't ask about it. Instead, she obediently closed the door and stood by it with her head lowered.
"Ma Xiaotao? Did Yan Shaozhe send you here?"
People didn't visit without a reason. Zhang Lexuan didn't believe Ma Xiaotao had come here without someone behind it. She was even secretly relieved she happened to be here today. Otherwise, if someone had taken advantage of the weakened Su Qing and made the deed a fait accompli, where would she go to demand justice?
"N-no. I came on my own. I don't want to make Teacher worry about my Evil Fire anymore."
Ma Xiaotao's voice was a little hoarse. Clearly, the Evil Fire had tormented her badly lately. Seeing Yan Shaozhe looking troubled day after day, she truly didn't want to trouble the teacher who treated her like his own daughter. So, believing that if she needed to ask someone for help, she should do it herself, she'd asked for Su Qing's dormitory number and hurried over. Who knew Zhang Lexuan would be here today, making the situation rather awkward?
At her words, Zhang Lexuan looked back at Su Qing. Meeting her questioning gaze, Su Qing nodded slightly and said softly, "Three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins per treatment."
"Okay!"
Seeing that he'd agreed, Ma Xiaotao's face lit up. Three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins wasn't much for her. She'd saved up quite a bit over the years doing inspection missions, and once her Evil Fire was stabilized, she could keep earning money through those missions. That way, even if she came every week to suppress the Evil Fire, she wouldn't go broke.
As for why neither of them mentioned eliminating it completely, the reason was simple. Just like with Tang Ya, the evil attribute of a Martial Soul came from its Martial Soul Origin. Forcibly removing it could turn a once-brilliant Soul Master into an ordinary one at best; at worst, damage to the origin could drastically shorten their lifespan—or even kill them on the spot.
Yan Shaozhe naturally knew this, which was why he had spent all these years searching for a method that could eliminate the Evil Fire while also restoring the Martial Soul Origin.
After receiving the good news, Ma Xiaotao thanked them and immediately flew to the Sea God Pavilion. She had to tell her teacher and make him happy.
"Why did you only ask for that much? I thought you'd make an outrageous demand and ask Yan Shaozhe for a Soul Bone. As the dean of the Martial Soul Department, he's hardly short on those."