At Yang Jian's reminder, Ma Xiaotao showed much more restraint. Though she still let out a soft, coquettish moan every now and then, she was at least behaving herself a lot better.
Yang Jian finally settled down and began helping Ma Xiaotao suppress her Evil Fire.
Fortunately, Ma Xiaotao's attribute was only top-tier fire, not Ultimate Fire. If it had been Ultimate Fire, the clash between two ultimate attributes could have caused them to collide head-on if he guided them even slightly carelessly. On top of that, although his combat strength rivaled that of a Soul Emperor, his Soul Power cultivation was only at level thirty-eight. Ma Xiaotao's Soul Power, above level fifty, was more than enough to suppress him instead.
The situation now was just right.
With the suppressive power of his Ultimate Water attribute, he could keep Ma Xiaotao in check.
The alternating warmth and heat sent Ma Xiaotao into a wonderfully strange state. She couldn't describe what it felt like. There was a faint trace of pain, but compared with the agony of her Evil Fire flaring up, it barely stirred her. Instead, it gave her an inexplicable sense of pleasure.
And with the gentle warmth of the Ultimate Water attribute, Ma Xiaotao felt as if she were floating in a sea of clouds, her whole body light and airy. It was the first time she had felt such blissful comfort since the Evil Fire had arisen inside her.
What was more, as time passed, Ma Xiaotao was surprised to discover that the Evil Fire inside her didn't seem to be merely suppressed deep in her bloodline for a short time, as before. Instead, it had... diminished a little?
Ma Xiaotao's beautiful eyes widened slightly as she looked at Yang Jian in surprise.
At that moment, wisps of white mist rose from Yang Jian's body, clinging to its surface. The parts of him visible to Ma Xiaotao had reddened slightly, and his entire body was radiating heat.
Ma Xiaotao wasn't stupid. She could tell what was happening.
Yang Jian hadn't simply chosen to suppress the Evil Fire inside her. He was trying to guide it out of her!
And the outlet he had chosen was none other than his own body!
This was completely different from what they had agreed on beforehand... They had agreed that he would use the Soul Power of his Ultimate Water attribute to suppress her Evil Fire. But what he was doing now was essentially drawing the Evil Fire into his own body!
Ma Xiaotao bit her lip lightly, a strange glimmer rising in her eyes.
Even with Yang Jian's Ultimate Water attribute, the Evil Fire probably wouldn't hurt him. But this was still far too reckless!
Before long, though, Ma Xiaotao had no attention left to spare for that.
As the Evil Fire inside her diminished, Ma Xiaotao was astonished to find that the Soul Power bottleneck that had troubled her for so long had loosened slightly!
Perhaps she could seize this chance to break through in one fell swoop!
As for Yang Jian, who had helped her so much... A trace of guilt surfaced in Ma Xiaotao's heart, but more than that, a surge of gratitude swept through her.
The Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul was said to be a top-tier Beast Martial Soul, but in truth, it still fell short of the top tier. The root of the problem lay in the Evil Fire. Only the purest Phoenix Martial Soul could count as a top-tier Beast Martial Soul. The Evil Fire was more like an impurity within the Martial Soul itself.
What Yang Jian was doing was essentially helping Ma Xiaotao remove some of the impurities from her Martial Soul. Naturally, she could feel the change within herself, and it was only normal for her Soul Power Level to improve as well.
However, Yang Jian hadn't drawn the Evil Fire into himself simply out of saintly compassion.
The Evil Fire was a fatal flaw for Ma Xiaotao, but to him, with his Silver Howl Divine Dog and its Ultimate Chaos attribute, it was nothing to worry about.
Even after entering his body, the Evil Fire couldn't stir up any trouble. On the contrary, it gave him a chance to gain some control over the fire attribute.
Even if the Evil Fire didn't reach the level of Ultimate Fire, gaining control of the fire attribute ahead of time would help him absorb Ultimate Fire in the future. It would even benefit him considerably when he gained control of the Ultimate Darkness attribute later on.
After all, the Evil Fire contained some darkness attribute as well. Otherwise, Ma Xiaotao's Martial Soul couldn't have mutated into a Black Phoenix, making her the Holy Spirit Cult's saintess.
Under Yang Jian's guidance, the Evil Fire within Ma Xiaotao surged into his body without end, flowing through his meridians without causing any harm.
Yang Jian didn't even need to use the Soul Power of his Ultimate Water attribute. The Evil Fire was firmly suppressed until it merged into his Soul Power.
Ma Xiaotao had successfully broken through her Soul Power bottleneck, and the aura around her had begun to stabilize. But she seemed to have lost consciousness, leaning against Yang Jian without realizing it.
Feeling the soft body pressed against him, Yang Jian slowly opened his eyes. A deep crimson flickered in their depths, and the aura around him had likewise stabilized.
He hadn't completely purged all the Evil Fire from Ma Xiaotao. He had only drawn some of it into his own body.
Even so, it was enough to improve Ma Xiaotao's condition considerably. Now she could cultivate and unleash her full strength without restraint, no longer needing to worry about the Evil Fire flaring up.
And he had reaped plenty of rewards as well.
By using his Ultimate Chaos attribute to suppress and control the Evil Fire, he could now unleash its full power. It was practically as if he had refined the Evil Fire.
Besides that, the Soul Power he had only recently advanced had improved once more. He was still some distance from level thirty-nine, but if he did this a few more times, he could break through to level thirty-nine—and even reach level forty.
Looking at Ma Xiaotao lying against him, Yang Jian reached out and patted her cheek.
"Wake up. Don't sleep. How can someone as young as you even fall asleep?"
At Yang Jian's words, Ma Xiaotao slowly came to and opened her eyes. They were now completely clear. For more than ten years, ever since her Martial Soul Awakening, she had been tormented by the Evil Fire.
She had no choice but to endure it in silence, unless she chose to give herself over to depravity.
But now, she had never felt anything so wonderful.
The Evil Fire inside her had diminished considerably, and the rest showed no sign of stirring. It had fallen completely silent. In this state... even by the most conservative estimate, it could last for several months!
Before, she wouldn't even have dared to imagine such a thing.
Ma Xiaotao pushed herself upright, a blush rising across her face.
"Thank you..."
"You're welcome. We agreed on this beforehand, after all. It was our deal, and I was only keeping my word. Besides, your Evil Fire didn't hurt me. If anything, it helped me."
As he spoke, Yang Jian got up from the bed and straightened his clothes.
Then Ma Xiaotao's earnest voice came from behind him. "That's not the same."
Before you continue