Three Months Later

Huo Yuhao climbed out of bed, surprised to find that his perspective seemed somewhat different.

He walked to the mirror and discovered that his body was covered in a thick layer of dead skin.

After shaking it off, he looked at his reflection again.

Huo Yuhao felt a sense of daze, as if the person in the mirror had been reborn compared to before.

First was his height; at only twelve years old, Huo Yuhao had previously possessed a more boyish frame.

Now, however, it was completely different. Huo Yuhao had grown a full ten centimeters, reaching about one meter seventy-five.

His facial features had become increasingly refined, and overall, he looked more like a handsome young man.

Then there was his physique. He clenched his fists and could feel a surge of abundant power radiating from them.

His bare upper body looked sturdy and robust, full of strength compared to his former thin and weak self.

"Teacher, is this the effect of the refined Whale Rubber? It's truly powerful; I feel as if my entire body has been reborn!" Huo Yuhao said with pleasant surprise.

But Electrolux's voice did not ring out.

Instead, it was the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm that answered: "Yuhao, Elder Yi has fallen asleep."

Huo Yuhao was stunned, and then a sea of white clouds appeared before his eyes as he entered his Spirit Sea.

In the Spirit Sea, the gray bead that represented Elder Yi's resting place had lost most of its luster, appearing increasingly dim.

With a sorrowful expression, Huo Yuhao knelt and kowtowed respectfully to the bead that symbolized his teacher.

"Yuhao, don't be sad. Didn't Elder Yi say he would wake up once you break through to level 20?" Brother Sky Dream comforted him from the side.

"By the way, Yuhao, Brother has good news for you. Remember those ten clusters of Brother's life essence from when we first fused? They can increase the age of your Spirit Rings. Before, your body could only withstand thousand-year Spirit Rings, which is why your first four Spirit Skills were all around the thousand-year level."

"But now that your physical strength has surged, you can withstand Spirit Rings over ten thousand years old. So, your first four Spirit Skills are now all at the ten-thousand-year level. Isn't that amazing? Hehe."

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm wiggled its chubby body, speaking as if asking for credit.

"Mm, I see. Brother Sky Dream, that really is amazing!" Huo Yuhao smiled, patted its plump body, and praised it.

This time, he had forcibly used the Mangekyō Sharingan, and the toll on his body was severe. If not for Elder Yi and Tian Meng, even if he had recovered, his condition would have been far worse than it was now.

Therefore, Huo Yuhao felt deeply grateful to them.

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm wiggled its round body, but unable to shake off Huo Yuhao's hand, it looked at him with some resentment and said, "Yuhao, Brother is tired too and needs to sleep for a while. Call me when you are confident and ready to head to the Far North. I will take you there then and give you a surprise."

As the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice faded, Huo Yuhao withdrew from his Spirit Sea.

He was surprised to find that it was already broad daylight; it seemed to be the next morning, and it was almost time for class.

He tidied up briefly and hurried toward Shrek Academy without a moment's delay.

At the same time, in a room on the island in the center of Sea God Lake, a young woman slowly regained consciousness.

"No!" the girl in red screamed, waking up from her stupor.

"Don't kill me!" she muttered, her face still etched with deep fear.

In her dream, she had seen an endless sea of black flames, and she was trapped within those eerie fires.

Amidst the black flames stood a figure. Ma Xiaotao tried desperately to see the person's face, but she couldn't make it out.

A few minutes later, she finally regained her senses and sat up on the bed, cold sweat dripping from her forehead.

Someone outside seemed to have heard the commotion and pushed the door open to enter.

Yan Shaozhe looked at the pale-faced Ma Xiaotao and asked with concern, "Xiaotao, how are you feeling? You've had a narrow escape this time. Do you remember what happened before you passed out, or who you encountered?"

At these words, the image of that young figure and the eerie black flames flashed through Ma Xiaotao's mind again. She shook her head blankly. "Teacher, I don't know who that was. I only remember that my Evil Fire became uncontrollable, and then I met a young man—he seemed to be just a boy. He could use a terrifying type of flame; my Phoenix Evil Fire couldn't resist it at all."

Yan Shaozhe pondered for a moment. "I see. I know of that flame; it is indeed extraordinary, and its level is even above your Phoenix Evil Fire, reaching the level of Ultimate Fire. But that is not the most important thing. Xiaotao, do you remember who used Ultimate Ice to freeze you before you lost consciousness?"

"Ultimate Ice?" Ma Xiaotao's expression changed. She remembered being frozen by a beam of blue light before she blacked out, but she had been completely numb at the time. She clearly remembered that the blue light had also come from that young figure.

Could that person possess both Ultimate Ice and Ultimate Fire martial souls?!

How was that even possible?

A thought that even she found incredible emerged in Ma Xiaotao's mind.

In the end, Ma Xiaotao just shook her head and said, "Teacher, I don't know. Perhaps my soul power was exhausted and I fainted."

Yan Shaozhe's face was full of regret. "What a pity, what a pity. If we could find that Ultimate Ice spirit master and have you cultivate together, it might solve the Evil Fire problem in your martial soul and help your flames reach the level of Ultimate Fire!"

"If I could find this person, Xiaotao, I would even want you to become a pair. That way, in the future, you could completely cast off the shackles of your martial soul and soar to the heavens. But now... alas."

Ma Xiaotao blushed. "Teacher, what nonsense are you talking about? I wouldn't marry someone I don't like just for the sake of my martial soul."

Although she said this, Ma Xiaotao kept recalling the young figure she had seen by Sea God Lake. Even though she hadn't seen his face clearly, she remembered his general build perfectly.

I will find you! Ma Xiaotao secretly resolved.

In the classroom of the Freshman Class One, Wang Dong listened listlessly to the teacher lecturing at the blackboard, feeling drowsy.

Why did I even come to Shrek? If I had known it would be like this, I would have been better off staying at the Clear Sky Sect. At least there, I had Big Dad and Second Dad to play with.

Wang Dong felt annoyed.

The homeroom teacher for Freshman Class One had long since been replaced by a middle-aged man with the cultivation of a Spirit Emperor. Although he was somewhat better than Zhou Yi, his lectures were routine and lacked any real innovation.

This made Wang Dong secretly regret coming to Shrek. The Clear Sky Sect taught all of this material anyway; why had he bothered coming to this godforsaken academy?

For some reason, Wang Dong suddenly recalled a figure—a face he found rather annoying.

Their first meeting, the conflict in the dormitory, and the second time, watching that person steal the spotlight in front of the entire class.

Thinking of that arrogant temperament and the way he never took anyone seriously, a nameless fire suddenly ignited in Wang Dong's heart. Huo Yuhao! I know why I came to Shrek now. I will definitely defeat you!

He made a secret resolution in his heart.

Sitting beside Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao watched his face change expressions repeatedly and thought to herself, Sigh, Wang Dong is great in every way, but he's just too chuunibyou. Compared to him, I actually like that Huo Yuhao a bit more. If I'd known, I would've sat next to him back then. Sigh.

If Wang Dong knew what Xiao Xiao was thinking, he would probably roll his eyes again.

How cringe!

Just like that, time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, the freshmen's initial three months of study had passed.