Ma Xiaotao

Biodata

Name	Ma Xiaotao (马小桃)
Alias(es)	Phoenix Holy Maiden — designation used by the Holy Spirit Cult 57
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Shrek Academy, Inner Academy 47 48
Occupation/Role	Inner Academy student; Fire Phoenix Soul Master
Cultivation	Rank 67 Soul Emperor 47 48
Martial Soul	Fire Phoenix 47 48
Status	Deceased; killed by Zhongli Wu during the assault on Shrek Academy 58
First Appearance	Chapter 47

Background

Ma Xiaotao had endured the instability of evil fire within her Fire Phoenix Martial Soul since childhood. The condition caused severe pain whenever her cultivation reached a critical point; Shrek’s efforts could only suppress it temporarily. 50 52

When Huo Yuhao entered Shrek under the identity Xuelian, she immediately recognized the significance of his Extreme Ice and its Hundred-Thousand-Year Spirit Ring. His ice was the first force to suppress her evil fire effectively. 47 50

Appearance

Ma Xiaotao is a young woman who commonly wears fitted red clothing. Her bearing is proud and forceful, with faint flames often rising from her body. 47

• Fiery-red attire and a Fire Phoenix aura 47
• Proud expression and assertive manner 47 48
• Crimson flames produced by her Fire Phoenix Martial Soul 48 50

Personality

Ma Xiaotao is outspoken, competitive, and impulsive. She initially challenges Xuelian with teasing confidence, but readily acknowledges the shock of being defeated by his Extreme Ice. 48

Her usual boldness conceals a deeply compassionate nature. After the massacre at Green Mountain Town, she is devastated by the loss of the students she had reassured and struggles with guilt over being unable to protect them. 55 56

She is also fiercely loyal to Shrek. Witnessing its elders and students fall drives her to attack Zhongli Wu despite the overwhelming difference in power. 58

Abilities & Skills

Fire Phoenix Martial Soul

Ma Xiaotao possesses a fire-attributed Fire Phoenix Martial Soul, manifested as a blazing phoenix phantom. 47 48

• Uses powerful crimson flames in direct combat. 48
• Burned three Evil Soul Masters to ash during the attack on Green Mountain Town. 55
• Her flames are hindered by the evil fire within her body and are naturally suppressed by Xuelian’s Extreme Ice. 48 50

Ice-and-Fire Dual Cultivation

Her soul power forms an unusually strong attraction with Xuelian’s Extreme Ice. Their joint cultivation suppresses her evil fire and restores her flame power to a purer, steadier state. 50

• Gained half a rank of soul power after cultivating with Xuelian. 51
• Requested daily cultivation sessions after experiencing the relief it provided. 51
• Considered Xuelian her first real hope of permanently overcoming the evil fire. 52

Relationships

• Huo Yuhao / Xuelian — Her cultivation partner and trusted companion. She grows attached to Xuelian after he suppresses her evil fire, fights beside him at Green Mountain Town, and confides her grief to him after the massacre. She does not know his true identity. 50 52 55 56
• Mu En — Shrek’s Pavilion Master. He encourages her to cultivate with Xuelian because their opposing attributes can stabilize her condition. 49 50
• Yan Shaozhe — Dean who recognizes that Xuelian’s Extreme Ice can help suppress her evil fire. 48 50
• Xuan Zi — Elder and leader of the Evil Soul Master mission. His absence during the Green Mountain Town attack contributes to the students’ deaths; Ma Xiaotao confronts him in grief afterward. 55 56
• Zhongli Wu — Holy Spirit Cult leader who identifies her as the Phoenix Holy Maiden and personally kills her during the attack on Shrek. 57 58

Story Role / Major Arcs

Xuelian’s Entry into Shrek

Ma Xiaotao encounters Xuelian at Shrek’s gate and is stunned by his Extreme Ice, Rank 62 cultivation, and Hundred-Thousand-Year Spirit Ring. She challenges him during his Inner Academy trial but loses after eighteen exchanges, as his ice suppresses both her flames and her evil fire. 47 48

Cultivation Partnership

After Xuelian becomes Mu En’s disciple, Ma Xiaotao eagerly seeks his assistance. Their dual cultivation stabilizes her Fire Phoenix power, raises both of their soul power by half a rank, and begins an emotional bond that she does not fully understand. 50 51

She introduces him to the Inner Academy, shares her secluded lakeside retreat, and tells him about the suffering caused by her evil fire. 52 53

Green Mountain Town Massacre

Ma Xiaotao recruits Xuelian for Shrek’s mission against Evil Soul Masters. When Green Mountain Town is attacked, she attempts to charge into the enemy force, but Xuelian restrains her because the attackers vastly outnumber them. 53 55

She fights alongside him and kills several Evil Soul Masters, but the assault leaves only seven of the sixteen students alive. Grief-stricken, she mourns the dead and later breaks down while speaking with Xuelian in the infirmary. 55 56

Death During the Fall of Shrek

The Holy Spirit Cult identifies Ma Xiaotao as the Phoenix Holy Maiden and dispatches Zhongli Wu, Long Xiaoyao, and Ye Xishui to Shrek while she remains injured. 57

During the academy’s destruction, Ma Xiaotao watches Shrek’s elders fall and charges Zhongli Wu in fury. He kills her with a single black-light strike before she can attack. 58