Ma Xiaotao

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Ma Xiaotao (马小桃)
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Shrek Academy; Inner Court; Shrek Seven Monsters
Occupation/Role	Soul Master; Shrek Academy team captain
Status	Active; Soul Sage at approximately Rank 74–76 165
First Appearance	Chapter 12

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Soul Emperor / six rings	12, 66	Initially wielded the unstable Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul; its evil fire could overwhelm her sanity.
Holy Phoenix	66	Her Martial Soul completed its evolution into the Holy Phoenix, granting sacred fire and ultimate flame after prior purification and final assistance from Huo Yuhao.
Soul Sage cultivation / six soul rings	98, 100	Broke through to Soul Sage cultivation but had not yet obtained a seventh soul ring, leaving her unable to use Martial Soul Avatar.
Soul Sage / seven rings	113	Acquired a hastily obtained ten-thousand-year seventh soul ring before the tournament's decisive duel. Because the ring was unsuited to her Holy Phoenix and was forcibly absorbed, it damaged her foundation 114.
Martial Soul Avatar	113, 114	Transformed into a massive platinum Holy Phoenix after obtaining her seventh soul ring.
Soul Sage / approximately Rank 74–76	165	Advanced several ranks over the two years following the tournament, though Li Qingming's unprecedented progression left her feeling eclipsed as Shrek's former leading young genius.

Background

Ma Xiaotao was an Inner Court senior at Shrek Academy whose Evil Fire Phoenix repeatedly drove her into violent, unstable states. During one such outbreak, she attacked Li Qingming and Wang Dong. Li Qingming used his ultimate sacred power and Angel Domain to purge the evil fire from her mind, restoring her sanity without defeating her directly 12.

She agreed to keep Li Qingming's ultimate sacred power secret in return for his continued help suppressing her evil fire. Their initial arrangement set a price of one hundred Gold Soul Coins per treatment, but she later visited him regularly over three months and ultimately gave him two hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins 12 13.

Li Qingming's sacred power gradually removed the evil influence from her Martial Soul. Her Evil Fire Phoenix began changing toward a Light Phoenix and then the Holy Phoenix, while Ma Xiaotao became increasingly attached to him due to her Martial Soul's instinctive submission to his superior sacred attribute 27 48 53.

When Li Qingming selected Angel Clan soul bones at Sea God's Pavilion, Ma Xiaotao led him to the hidden collection and personally handed him the right leg bone. She considered it repayment for saving her from eventual madness or becoming an evil Soul Master 49 50.

Although Li Qingming's purification had laid the foundation for her evolution, Ma Xiaotao sought Huo Yuhao's ultimate ice to preserve her fire attribute during the final transformation. This allowed her to awaken the Holy Phoenix and wield ultimate sacred flames, but her failure to inform Li Qingming damaged their already uneven relationship 65 66 67.

Shrek's leadership also regarded the Holy Phoenix as a valuable future bloodline inheritance. Mu En envisioned Ma Xiaotao's potential descendants as part of the academy's long-term effort to cultivate powerful Martial Soul lineages 139.

Appearance

Ma Xiaotao is a striking young woman with a fiery, phoenix-like presence. Her appearance is closely associated with red hair, crimson eyes, and the blazing wings of her Martial Soul.

• Long red hair, often spilling across her face during her first encounter with Li Qingming 12
• Beautiful facial features previously concealed beneath a veil 12
• Red eyes 12
• Fiery wings used for flight 13
• Golden wings and sacred flames after evolving into the Holy Phoenix 66
• A massive platinum phoenix form when using her Martial Soul Avatar 114

Personality

Ma Xiaotao initially presents herself as calm and aloof, but her Evil Fire Phoenix leaves her vulnerable to violent impulses and loss of control. After Li Qingming suppresses her evil fire, she becomes visibly shy and awkward around him, unable to maintain her usual composure in his presence 12 13.

She is deeply proud of her strength and the Holy Phoenix's potential. This pride makes her reluctant to apologize to Wang Yan after exposing too many abilities during the tournament, even when she recognizes that her choices created tactical problems for the team 98.

Her feelings toward Li Qingming are complicated by both gratitude and her Martial Soul's dependence on his sacred power. She seeks a reaction from him—jealousy, anger, or concern—but is frustrated by his persistent indifference 53 67. In battle, she is fiercely determined and willing to take great risks for Shrek Academy's honor 113 114.

Following the tournament, Ma Xiaotao continued cultivating rapidly, but Li Qingming's far greater growth diminished her standing as Shrek's foremost young genius. The comparison left her increasingly discouraged despite her own advancement through the Soul Sage ranks 165.

Abilities & Skills

Evil Fire Phoenix / Holy Phoenix Martial Soul

Ma Xiaotao's original Evil Fire Phoenix carried a dangerous evil-fire corruption. After prolonged purification and a final evolution, it became the Holy Phoenix, a sacred-fire Martial Soul with ultimate flame.

• Her Evil Fire Phoenix could overwhelm her mind with murderous intent and threaten to turn her into an evil Soul Master 12 50
• Li Qingming's sacred power gradually purged more than half of the evil fire and initiated her Martial Soul's transformation 27 48
• Her completed Holy Phoenix possesses sacred fire and true ultimate flame, allowing her to overpower Dai Yueheng's Evil-Eyed White Tiger 66
• The Holy Phoenix can still be affected by sufficiently powerful suppression, including ultimate ice and fallen power 66 115
• Its sacred fire has some purifying effect on corpse poison, though the effect was limited when she was exposed to it during an investigation mission 72
• During her defeat in the tournament final, the manifestation of her Holy Phoenix was destroyed by the resulting destructive-power blast, leaving her grievously injured 116

Sacred Flames

As a Holy Phoenix wielder, Ma Xiaotao commands high-temperature sacred flames capable of overwhelming powerful Soul Masters and Soul Engineers.

• Her golden flame attacks can manifest as falling meteor-like projectiles across the battlefield 104
• Her sacred flames place her above Ma Rulong in direct combat and make ordinary defenses ineffective 104
• Her fire can be drawn away or suppressed by specialized domain-type techniques and opposing fire control 100
• Her ultimate sacred flames were sufficiently powerful to threaten Class 7 Soul Tool defenses during the tournament final 104

Martial Soul Avatar

Ma Xiaotao's seventh soul skill transforms her into a colossal platinum Holy Phoenix.

• The Avatar drastically increases the scale and destructive power of her sacred flames 113 114
• She used the form against Li Qingming in the decisive tournament duel 113
• The hastily acquired seventh soul ring enabled the Avatar, but its poor compatibility with her Holy Phoenix and forced absorption damaged her foundation 114
• Li Qingming's Sin Prison Gate chained and corrupted the Avatar, leaving her unable to sustain it 115
• The Avatar was subsequently destroyed when Xuan Zi intercepted Li Qingming's destructive follow-up attack, with Ma Xiaotao caught in the blast 116

Flight

Ma Xiaotao can fly using the wings manifested by her Phoenix Martial Soul.

• She rapidly departed for Sea God's Pavilion after meeting Li Qingming 13
• She can transport others when necessary, though Wang Dong deliberately prevented her from accompanying Li Qingming during one journey 71

Relationships

• Li Qingming — Her evil fire was repeatedly suppressed by his ultimate sacred power, enabling her Martial Soul's evolution. She gave him a soul bone in repayment and developed attachment to him, though he did not reciprocate her feelings 12 27 50 53. Her unannounced decision to use Huo Yuhao for her final evolution alienated him further, and she was ultimately defeated by his fallen clone in the National Soul Master Tournament final 66 67 113 115.
• Yan Shaozhe — Her teacher and Shrek Academy's Martial Soul Department dean. He recognized Li Qingming's help as crucial to her Martial Soul's evolution 48. He supported her choice of the Holy Phoenix over the Light Phoenix because of its greater potential 139.
• Huo Yuhao — Helped complete her Holy Phoenix evolution using ultimate ice after she sought him out without informing Li Qingming 65 66 67. He later used ultimate ice while catching and assisting her after she was severely injured during the final duel 116.
• Wang Dong — Resents Ma Xiaotao's closeness to Li Qingming and considers her decision to seek Huo Yuhao disrespectful toward him 66 67 71.
• Wang Yan — Her tournament coach; their relationship becomes tense when he restrains her from competing and criticizes her decision to reveal too many abilities 98 108.
• Dai Yueheng — Fellow Shrek Seven Monster and teammate. She decisively defeated him in a trial battle after evolving into the Holy Phoenix 66.
• Xuan Zi — An elder who intervened to save her from Li Qingming's Sin Prison Gate and the destructive purple longsword, though she was severely injured in the process 115 116.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Evil Fire Suppression

Ma Xiaotao's unstable Evil Fire Phoenix brings her into contact with Li Qingming. His sacred power restores her sanity and begins a long-term process of purifying her Martial Soul 12 13.

Holy Phoenix Evolution

After months of treatment, her Martial Soul approaches complete transformation. She ultimately turns to Huo Yuhao and ultimate ice for the final step, awakening the Holy Phoenix and gaining sacred, ultimate flames 66.

National Soul Master Tournament

As Shrek Academy's strongest combatant and captain, Ma Xiaotao enters the tournament with Soul Sage cultivation, although she initially has only six soul rings and cannot use Martial Soul Avatar 98 100. Her Holy Phoenix dominates much of the team battle, but opposing tactics repeatedly target her strength and force her into difficult situations 98 100 104.

Final Duel with Li Qingming

Ma Xiaotao represents Shrek Academy in the final one-on-one duel against Li Qingming. She obtains a seventh soul ring in haste and uses her Martial Soul Avatar and sacred flames in an attempt to defend Shrek's glory, despite the damage the ring's forced absorption does to her foundation. Li Qingming's fallen power corrupts her Phoenix and defeats her. Xuan Zi saves her from a lethal follow-up attack, leaving her gravely wounded 113 114 115 116.

Tournament Aftermath

Seven days after Shrek Academy's defeat, Ma Xiaotao was among the senior team members ordered into confinement by Sea God's Pavilion. The punishment placed responsibility for the loss upon her generation while Xuan Zi avoided accountability for his own role in the disaster 125.

Over the following two years, she advanced to roughly Rank 74–76 through intensive effort and substantial academy support. However, her achievements were overshadowed by Li Qingming's rise to a fourteen-year-old Soul Sage and Level Seven Soul Engineer, contributing to her loss of confidence as Shrek's former leading prodigy 165.

Notable Quotes

“If it hadn't been for you, this Evil Fire Phoenix of mine would only have caused me to fall completely, turning me into a thoroughgoing madwoman, or an evil Soul Master...” 50