You're Offering Me Our Xuanqing Pills as Payment?

Ma Xiaotao soon reached Yang Jian's side. Even though she had already learned what he looked like from the portrait, she couldn't help being surprised by his strikingly handsome face when she saw him in person.

Her surprise was only momentary, though. Ma Xiaotao hadn't forgotten why she'd come. She didn't even look to see who else was at the table; all her attention was fixed on Yang Jian.

"You're Yang Jian, right?"

Seeing Ma Xiaotao's flushed, peach-blossom-like expression, Yang Jian could naturally guess why she'd come looking for him. She had Evil Fire acting up inside her and urgently needed to vent it.

When he'd fought Zhou Yi, he'd used the power of Ultimate Water to suppress her Red Dragon Martial Soul. Any Titled Douluo-level expert who'd watched that fight would have had little trouble realizing that he possessed Ultimate Water.

And as Yan Shaozhe's disciple, the dean of the Martial Soul Department, Ma Xiaotao would naturally have heard about it too.

"That's me."

Seeing how excessively calm Yang Jian was, Ma Xiaotao, who could still keep her wits about her, froze for a moment. When she spoke, she unconsciously changed the words she'd planned to say.

"There's something I need your help with. Could you... come with me?"

If he'd been an ordinary water- or ice-element Soul Master, Ma Xiaotao wouldn't have been so polite. But Yang Jian was rumored to have defeated a teacher from the Outer Court, and his calm, confident demeanor made her soften her tone without even realizing it.

At that, Ye Qingyuan's eyes widened.

Over the past few days, plenty of girls had tried to approach Yang Jian, but this was the first time she'd seen someone like Ma Xiaotao come right out and ask him for help.

That didn't stop her from feeling hostile toward Ma Xiaotao, though.

Yang Jian stood up. At just twelve years old, he was even a little taller than Ma Xiaotao. Xiao Bai, who'd been gnawing on a bone, lowered it as Yang Jian moved, then leaped lightly straight into his arms.

"Why should I help you?"

Ma Xiaotao had assumed Yang Jian was standing up to go with her. At his question, her expression stiffened, and a sudden, nameless anger flared in her heart.

Realizing that her Evil Fire was acting up again, Ma Xiaotao's expression shifted. She forcibly suppressed her anger, then casually took two jade bottles from her Soul Tool.

"How about these two bottles of Xuanqing Pills as payment?"

At that, Yang Jian's expression turned strange. Beside him, Ye Qingyuan almost burst out laughing.

"Senior sister, that's not much of a reward."

Ye Qingyuan took five jade bottles from her Soul Tool and set them on the table. They looked almost exactly like the two bottles in Ma Xiaotao's hand.

Ma Xiaotao was dumbfounded.

Even at Shrek Academy, one of the continent's top institutions, Xuanqing Pills were considered among the finest cultivation resources. Otherwise, Yan Shaozhe wouldn't have paid a fortune to order them from the Star Luo Empire Offering Hall. Normally, only Inner Court students were entitled to them.

Yet the girl in front of her was clearly a newly enrolled Outer Court student. How could she casually produce five bottles of Xuanqing Pills?

Could this girl be connected to the Star Luo Empire Offering Hall?

That was the only way she could casually have five bottles of Xuanqing Pills. After all, they weren't pills you could buy just by having money.

So... had she just offered someone their own pills as payment?

Ma Xiaotao silently put the jade bottles away, regretting that she hadn't done her homework before coming.

While fighting her Evil Fire in the Inner Court, Ma Xiaotao had heard that a Soul Master with Ultimate Water had appeared in the Outer Court. She'd taken one look at the portrait and hurried straight over.

She should've asked her teacher first and gotten the details before coming.

Ma Xiaotao took a deep breath and looked Yang Jian straight in the face. "What kind of payment do you want? Name your price. If it's within my power, I'll give you whatever you ask for."

Yang Jian gave Ma Xiaotao a puzzled look.

What happened to the Inner Court's two living volcanoes? What happened to the Flame Maniac?

Why was Ma Xiaotao speaking to him so calmly?

She was blushing, and a faint red glow seemed to rise from her body, but her breathing was steady. She'd probably just weathered an outbreak of Evil Fire and was now in a relatively calm period.

In theory, Ma Xiaotao was still more or less a normal person at times like this.

Being able to talk normally was better than dealing with a rampaging madwoman.

"Tell me what you need help with first. Once I know what it is, I can decide what you should pay me, right?"

Ma Xiaotao didn't hesitate. "I heard you possess Ultimate Water, so I need you to use it to help suppress my Evil Fire."

"My Martial Soul is the Evil Fire Phoenix, and I'm tormented by Evil Fire every moment of the day. Soul Masters with water or ice attributes can ease my pain, but as my cultivation improves, ordinary water-element Soul Masters are no longer effective. Your Ultimate Water can help."

"As long as you can suppress my Evil Fire, you can name whatever conditions you want."

Evil Fire Phoenix Ma Xiaotao!?

Bei Bei finally remembered Ma Xiaotao's title, and his expression changed slightly.

In the Inner Court, Ma Xiaotao was considered the most outstanding student after Zhang Lexuan. Though she hadn't been in the Inner Court long, she'd already broken through to Soul King.

Bei Bei had heard Zhang Lexuan mention her name plenty of times.

Of course, what he'd heard even more often were the rumors about her being one of the Inner Court's two living volcanoes.

Suppress her Evil Fire?

That was a completely new excuse. He'd never heard it before.

Tang Ya glanced at Ma Xiaotao, then at Ye Qingyuan, but said nothing. She wanted to see how Yang Jian would deal with this, and Ma Xiaotao's scorching aura was also making her uncomfortable.

An Evil Fire Phoenix...

A trace of surprise flashed in Ye Qingyuan's eyes. Her great-grandfather had told her about bird-type Martial Souls in the Soul Master World, so she knew a little about the Evil Fire Phoenix.

For thousands of years, Ma Hongjun, one of the Shrek Seven Devils, had passed down the Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul through his descendants. As a top-tier Beast Martial Soul, the Evil Fire Phoenix was powerful, but its inheritors were constantly plagued by Evil Fire. The slightest misstep could let the Evil Fire invade their bodies and cause them to explode.

The only solution was to vent the Evil Fire.

Male Soul Masters had it somewhat easier. At least they could purge the Evil Fire that way. But female Soul Masters, unless they were willing to debase themselves, had to endure its torment constantly, suffering unbearable agony.

And Ma Xiaotao clearly wasn't the sort of person who'd debase herself.

Ye Qingyuan couldn't help feeling a little sympathy for her.

Seen that way, it seemed... understandable that this senior sister had come to her second brother for help?

"I don't need you to get rid of the Evil Fire for good. Just help me suppress it."

When Yang Jian didn't answer, Ma Xiaotao thought he was still hesitating and quickly added, "As long as you can do it, I'll accept anything—Soul Rings, Soul Bones, or any other conditions."

With Yan Shaozhe as her teacher, Ma Xiaotao had plenty of confidence when she made that offer.