Phoenix Evil Fire Ma Xiaotao

A few minutes later, Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao left the Inscription Room. Each held a newly crafted second-tier Milk Bottle and a second-tier defensive Soul Tool, their expressions complex.

Comparing oneself to others only invites frustration; it was one thing that Chu Feng possessed immense strength and peerless talent, but it was quite another that his aptitude for being a Soul Engineer was equally formidable.

They had initially hoped to keep pace with Chu Feng, but it now seemed that if things continued this way, they wouldn't even be able to see his taillights, let alone qualify to form a team with him.

The two did not linger. Both felt a fire burning in their hearts, determined to cultivate diligently from this day forward so as not to be left too far behind by Chu Feng.

As for Chu Feng, he remained behind to inscribe higher-tier Soul Tool cores.

Crafting the Milk Bottles had been a spur-of-the-moment decision after seeing Ning Tian, intended to facilitate future cooperation with the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.

As for why he specifically chose the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, it was because their reputation was better than that of the various merchant guilds. Merchant guilds were driven by profit and would stop at nothing to achieve their ends; while the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect was also profit-driven, the likelihood of them killing the goose that laid the golden eggs was much lower—at the very least, they were better than the guilds.

His original goal was to inscribe 5th-tier Soul Tool cores, have custom shells assembled, and sell the finished products.

With his current strength, inscribing a 5th-tier core took only half an hour. Including the array core and the precious alloy shell, the total cost was no more than 10,000 Gold Soul Coins, yet a complete 5th-tier Soul Tool started at 100,000, with better ones fetching up to 200,000—the profit margins were absurd.

As for 6th-tier Soul Tools, the materials were not high in value but were extremely scarce, impossible to purchase unless one was a Soul Engineer. Wang Dong was not a Soul Engineer, so being able to acquire materials for 5th-tier cores was already quite an achievement.

The next few days would depend on the attitude of the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect. Chu Feng would wait only three days; if there was no reply by then, he would have no choice but to seek cooperation with some merchant guilds.

As for the Soul Engineer Association in this world...

That thing was utter garbage, even more treacherous than the merchant guilds. Chu Feng would rather die than have any contact with such an organization.

By evening, Chu Feng finished his work on the Soul Tools.

After dinner, he bypassed the Freshman Teaching Building, followed the southern edge of Shrek Square eastward, and arrived at the shores of the academy's Sea God Lake.

Although his spiritual power made inscribing 5th-tier array cores relatively easy, the sheer volume had left him somewhat fatigued, so he came here to clear his mind.

The Sea God Lake occupied a vast area, larger than most of the main campus. In the distance, a thin mist hung over the water, creating a picturesque atmosphere.

Across the lake lay the most mysterious part of Shrek Academy: the Inner Court, the sacred site of cultivation that countless Outer Court students yearned for.

Shrek students were incredibly diligent; after dinner, they would either head to the Soul Fighting Arena or go to cultivate, rarely wasting time here.

Chu Feng came by almost every day. It wasn't that he had nothing better to do, but rather that he was waiting for someone.

"Why hasn't Ma Xiaotao shown up yet? My little whip has been starving for action~" Chu Feng sat on a lakeside bench, feeling somewhat sullen.

He had been staking out this spot for days, yet he still hadn't encountered Ma Xiaotao. He wasn't sure if it was the butterfly effect or something else, but it was strange.

Shrek Academy was filled with beauties, but he had a deep impression of Ma Xiaotao—a top-tier, fiery-tempered older sister type. If he could win her over, life would certainly become much more colorful.

Chu Feng squinted and rested for an hour, but nothing happened.

Just as he was about to leave, his heart stirred, and he quickly looked toward the opposite side of the Sea God Lake.

Despite the obscuring mist, his Fiery Golden Eyes granted him astonishing vision. At a glance, he saw a red fireball appear on the far side of the lake; looking closer, he realized the fireball seemed to have wings.

As the figure approached, Chu Feng finally saw the fireball's true form: a woman in red with a fiery figure. Unfortunately, she wore a mask, hiding her face. Her long, fiery-red hair flowed behind her, and her eyes were blood-red. She seemed to have lost her reason, her expression twisted and savage, radiating a peerless, murderous aura like a berserk soul beast.

She moved with incredible speed, her toes skimming the water like a dragonfly. Every step carried extreme heat, instantly evaporating the lake water beneath her feet and sending up clouds of white steam, which she then left far behind.

From a distance, she looked like a red speedboat, reaching the center of the Sea God Lake in just a few breaths, heading directly toward Chu Feng's position.

"Finally waited for you~"

Chu Feng grinned. He believed in his "Luck" talent; as long as he desired it, such low-probability events would almost always succeed.

After waiting for several days, he had finally caught her.

Ma Xiaotao's Phoenix Evil Fire required not only an ice or water-attribute martial soul to neutralize it, but also a partner of the opposite sex.

When her strength was low, she could use heavenly treasures to suppress it; Yan Shaozhe was the Dean, so he naturally had plenty of resources.

But as her strength grew, she needed to vent the fire, which was why Ma Xiaotao had sought out Xu Sanshi.

Given Ma Xiaotao's arrogance, it was naturally impossible for her to do that with Xu Sanshi... so she could only choose to reduce the backlash of the Phoenix Evil Fire through combat.

Xu Sanshi's martial soul was water-attributed and focused on defense.

Every time, Ma Xiaotao would beat Xu Sanshi until he was frantically "spraying water," which was the only way to barely suppress the evil fire.

But as Ma Xiaotao's cultivation increased, Xu Sanshi's "water" was no longer enough. Coupled with her haughty personality, she looked down on trash like him, yet she had to grit her teeth and suppress it. Eventually, she couldn't hold it back, leading to this current eruption of evil fire.

Watching Ma Xiaotao charge toward him like a madwoman, Chu Feng remained leaning against the wooden bench by the shore, unhurriedly condensing a thick ice whip over thirty meters long in his hand.

As the Ice Whip appeared, the temperature around Chu Feng plummeted. The lake water within a hundred-meter radius of the whip instantly froze into solid ice, radiating a terrifying chill.

This was the Mystic Ice Domain that Chu Feng had cultivated to its initial form. Don't let the large range fool you; in reality, it wasn't particularly strong... it could only suppress enemies within the domain by about 10%. However, it had an additional bonus against fire-attribute targets, reaching 20%. Combined with his comprehensive combat power, which was already comparable to a Soul Emperor, it was more than enough to suppress Ma Xiaotao.

As Chu Feng pondered, Ma Xiaotao reached a point a hundred meters in front of him, entering his Mystic Ice Domain.

Even so, Chu Feng could still feel the scorching wave of heat rushing toward him, a testament to how powerful her Phoenix Evil Fire was—an average Soul Emperor would be no match for her.

Ma Xiaotao's reason had long since been eroded by the evil fire; she was practically a half-evil soul master, and the desire for slaughter had almost completely consumed her.

"Die--"

Ma Xiaotao had spotted Chu Feng from afar. Under the erosion of her murderous desire, she surged toward him, carrying a massive wave of fire over a hundred meters long.

"About time~"

Chu Feng saw this and raised his hand slightly.

In an instant, the Ice Whip in his hand slowly came to life like a dormant ice dragon awakening, then, carrying endless frigid air, it lashed out toward the terrifying wave of fire in the distance.

Looking from afar, two terrifying figures, one blue and one red, collided heavily.

"BOOM—"

A massive explosion rang out, as if a bomb had been dropped into Sea God Lake, instantly whipping up waves a hundred meters high, while the powerful shockwave leveled everything within a hundred meters of the lakeshore.

Fortunately, there were not many students at the scene, and most had already fled when Chu Feng released his Mystic Ice Domain, so there were no casualties.

However, the students who witnessed this scene were all left with their jaws on the floor. This was the Outer Court, after all; where on earth did such a powerhouse come from, daring to brawl in a public place? It was simply...

Too cool...