You really do think of nothing but yourself!

After that brief interlude, Huo Yuhao focused on grilling fish for everyone.

As Huo Yuhao sprinkled his Secret Sauce over the fish, grilled golden and crisp outside yet tender within, a rich aroma rose from them.

"That smells amazing!"

Hearing those familiar words, Huo Yuhao and Bei Bei turned toward Tang Ya almost by reflex.

Tang Ya flushed slightly under their gazes and hurriedly waved her hands. "It wasn't me this time!"

Everyone then turned toward the source of the voice.

They saw a tall girl with long, wavy red hair.

She stood not far away, looking toward them with curiosity.

"Senior Xiaotao."

Bei Bei and Tang Ya exclaimed simultaneously when they saw her.

The newcomer was Ma Xiaotao, a disciple of Yan Shaozhe, the dean of the Martial Soul Department.

Ma Xiaotao nodded slightly to Bei Bei and said:

"Oh! Bei Bei, Tang Ya, it's you two. Long time no see!"

As the Martial Soul Department dean's disciple, Ma Xiaotao knew Bei Bei. In fact, direct disciples like them who had grown up in the inner court all knew one another and got along fairly well.

However, Bei Bei had argued with Mu En a few years earlier. Afterward, he had moved out of the inner court and had not returned for years. This had left a certain person there deeply heartbroken, making the inner court's female disciples rather cold toward him.

Still, when it came to love, they could not really blame anyone else. They could only privately feel that their eldest senior sister deserved better.

Bei Bei seemed to notice the attitude in Ma Xiaotao's voice, but he did not mind. He knew it was his fault that he had not returned to the inner court to see their eldest senior sister all these years.

With that thought, he turned and held out a hand to Tang Ya. But he did not regret it.

Taking in the little gesture between the two, Ma Xiaotao pursed her lips and turned away. It had nothing to do with her anyway. She would leave that headache to Mu En and the others!

As Ma Xiaotao turned, her gaze met Huo Yuhao's, who had also turned his head.

She looked at his handsome face, his conspicuous short blue hair, and his horns.

Her heart stirred. She had never expected to run into Huo Yuhao, whom she had been thinking about day and night for days, simply by going out for a walk. The instant she saw him, his name slipped from her lips.

"Huo Yuhao!"

"You know me, senior?"

Hearing this senior call out his name directly took him quite by surprise.

While Huo Yuhao was still stunned, Bei Bei leaned close and whispered, "Yuhao, this is Senior Ma Xiaotao, a direct disciple of Yan Shaozhe, the dean of the Martial Soul Department."

Understanding flashed through Huo Yuhao's eyes at Bei Bei's explanation. So she was the disciple of one of Shrek Academy's senior figures. No wonder Senior Ma knew his name.

What Ma Xiaotao said next confirmed his guess.

Ma Xiaotao rushed excitedly up to Huo Yuhao and said:

"My name is Ma Xiaotao. I've read your file. I've been looking for you these past few days."

"Looking for me?"

"Yes."

Ma Xiaotao watched Huo Yuhao with a gleam in her eyes. Heaven only knew how miserable she had been these past few days without cultivating. Fearing that her evil fire would erupt, Yan Shaozhe had forbidden her from cultivating.

Fortunately, she had decided on a whim to take a stroll that day and run into Huo Yuhao. Otherwise, who knew how much longer she would have had to endure it?

"Senior, you're a little too close."

In her excitement, Ma Xiaotao had actually grabbed Huo Yuhao's hand. And because too much evil fire had built up inside her, her voice carried a hint of seductive charm.

With every breath she took, Huo Yuhao felt a scorching wave of air wash over his face.

"Oh, sorry. I got a little excited."

Only after Huo Yuhao's reminder did Ma Xiaotao snap out of her daze and realize that the distance between them had become rather intimate.

With the others giving her strange looks, even someone as easygoing as Ma Xiaotao felt as though her cheeks were about to burn.

"Um, senior, did you need something from me?"

Huo Yuhao found it strange that Ma Xiaotao had been searching for him these past few days. He hardly knew anyone at Shrek Academy. Surely his "dear big brother" had not sent her?

After thinking it over, Huo Yuhao dismissed the idea. He had kept a very low profile during his years in Star Luo City.

Besides, even if Dai Yueheng knew, given his relationship with Dai Huabin, he was unlikely to round up two vanloads of thugs at Shrek Academy to come after him.

"Junior Huo, your martial soul is ultimate ice, right?"

Ma Xiaotao's words dispelled his doubts. So she was here because of his martial soul!

"Why do you ask, senior?"

Having received Huo Yuhao's confirmation, Ma Xiaotao suppressed the excitement that nearly made her jump for joy. "Junior Huo, could you use your martial soul to do me a favor?"

"A favor?"

As though afraid Huo Yuhao would refuse, Ma Xiaotao wore a rare, pleading expression.

There was just over a year left before the Continental Advanced Soul Master Soul Fighting Tournament. If she could completely resolve her martial soul's evil fire problem, she was confident she could reach Soul Saint level during the tournament and bring Shrek another championship.

"Junior Huo, please. As long as it's within my power, I'm willing to do anything."

Bei Bei, who stood nearby and knew the circumstances, could not help grumbling inwardly:

Xiaotao, you really do think of nothing but yourself!

Just then, the beings within Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness sensed the abnormality in Ma Xiaotao and spoke up to warn him.

"Yuhao, there's something wrong with this girl. Her martial soul probably has a defect."

Hearing this, Huo Yuhao quietly activated his Spirit Eyes Martial Soul. With its enhancement, he could clearly see streams of dark red gas filling the senior's body.

Her entire body was like a volcano that might erupt at any moment.

He could only try to calm her first:

"All right, all right! Calm down first, senior. Since we're already here, let's eat first! Whatever it is, can we talk about it after we've eaten?"

Huo Yuhao was inclined to agree to Ma Xiaotao's request. Besides collecting a little interest from Dai Huabin and securing Shrek Academy's support, he had another very important reason for coming here: he wanted to obtain a cultivation method for an ultimate martial soul from Shrek.

He had previously asked the Snow Empress whether she had a cultivation method for ultimate ice. Unfortunately, she had explained that Soul Beasts and humans had completely different bodies, so Huo Yuhao could not use her method. At most, she could teach him her self-created supreme techniques, the Snow Empress's Three Absolutes.

Thus, when he heard that Shrek Academy had produced ultimate martial souls on three occasions, he began wondering whether he could come to Shrek and find a cultivation method for one.