Treatment Complete, an Advance on the Reward?

Outside the Quiet Pavilion.

Time seemed to slow. The blazing sun sank toward the horizon, staining layer upon layer of cloud the blood-red of sunset.

Before the closed doors, Cai Mei'er paced anxiously. Her beautiful eyes, usually so dignified and commanding, were filled with unease.

"Why is it taking so long? There hasn't been a sound from inside..."

Cai Mei'er's hands twisted the folds of her loose, dark-green robe as her eyes kept darting toward the motionless doors.

The clash between Ultimate Ice and the Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul was perilous. Though she was the vice dean of the Martial Soul Department and a level ninety-five Super Douluo, a great weight still hung over her heart.

She wanted to investigate, but whenever she recalled Dongfang Hao's words about "meeting each other with nothing to hide," two hot streaks of crimson rose across her beautiful, mature face.

If she walked in on something she should not see... how could she face the two juniors afterward?

"Ah... mmh!"

Just as Cai Mei'er wrestled with her doubts, a woman's soft cry suddenly rang out from the hall!

It pierced the quiet dusk, startling and seductive. Cai Mei'er froze where she stood!

Boom!

A scorching rush of heat shot from Cai Mei'er's lower belly to the crown of her head. Her fair face flushed so deeply it looked ready to bleed!

"Xiaotao, that girl... don't tell me... don't tell me they really have..."

Cai Mei'er bit hard on her lower lip, her chest rising and falling sharply. She felt embarrassed and angry, yet beneath it all lurked a trace of sour jealousy she did not even notice.

Cai Mei'er could not have known that, though the scene inside was intimate in the extreme, it was not what she imagined.

Boom!

A violent storm of Soul Power raged at the center of the hall. Dongfang Hao and Ma Xiaotao's clothes were in disarray, leaving broad stretches of pale and muscular skin pressed together. Ice-blue and scarlet light formed a rapidly spinning Yin-Yang Vortex that devoured the surrounding energy of heaven and earth.

Hum!

At one moment, a crisp, muffled crack suddenly came from deep within Dongfang Hao's previously tranquil Qi Sea!

Under the overwhelming force of the Divine Heaven Skill, the bottleneck that had held Dongfang Hao firmly at level twenty shattered like rotten wood!

Level twenty-one!

But his momentum had yet to fade. Driven by the fierce counterflow of Ma Xiaotao's unyielding Soul Emperor power, the dark-gold Soul Power around Dongfang Hao jolted. His aura surged again, breaking through another barrier as easily as a bamboo stalk splitting down its length!

Level twenty-two!

Two levels in succession!

"You bastard! You little beast!"

Sensing the successive surges of Soul Power from the boy beneath her, Ma Xiaotao's beautiful face twisted with fury. Her eyes blazed, and her teeth ground together.

She had taken the lead to dispel the Evil Fire, yet this little bastard had used his strange, domineering technique to pin her down and had even drawn on her Soul Emperor cultivation to advance two levels!

He was practically sitting on the neck of his senior sister from the inner court and lording it over her!

"Break, damn you!"

The fierce humiliation and her will to win roused the pride in Ma Xiaotao's bones. Her eyes reddened as she ignited all the Evil Fire that had accumulated within her for months!

Break first, then rise anew!

Protected by Dongfang Hao's Ultimate Ice, she had no need to fear losing control!

Crack!

A sharp report rang through Ma Xiaotao's body, like a chasm collapsing!

The level sixty-four bottleneck that had trapped her for months finally tore open!

Level sixty-five!

Boom!

A wave of scorching fire, far purer than before and faintly stripped of its violent impurities, burst from deep within Ma Xiaotao!

At the same time, the last remnant of power flowing back into Dongfang Hao reached its natural conclusion. Dark-gold Divine Heaven Soul Power roared through his limbs and bones, bringing his cultivation to a steady stop at...

Level twenty-three!

"Phew..."

As the storm finally subsided, two ragged breaths escaped their throats almost at once.

Drenched in fragrant sweat, Ma Xiaotao slumped into Dongfang Hao's arms as though all her strength had left her. Her long legs trembled faintly from the violent clash of power. Though exhausted, her slightly reddened eyes shone with incredulous delight.

Not only had the Evil Fire been suppressed, but she had also broken through the Soul Emperor barrier that had held her back for so long. Had she not experienced it herself, she would never have believed such a miracle possible!

Dongfang Hao exhaled a long white breath and wiped the sweat from his brow. A grin tugged at his lips as he felt the dark-gold Soul Power within him, now far denser than before. He was secretly delighted too.

This method of cultivation, beneficial to both sides, was nearly as fast as consuming a heavenly treasure!

Rumble.

Just as the two in the hall began to relax.

Cai Mei'er sensed that the commotion inside had died down. After waiting outside like an ant on a hot pan, she could restrain herself no longer. She flashed forward and burst in!

Yet when the Titled Douluo saw the scene inside, she stopped dead.

On the hall's couch, their clothes hung open, exposing broad stretches of pale skin and a muscular chest. Their entwined position was startlingly intimate. But... the garments that mattered most were still intact and in place.

Clearly, they had not crossed that final line.

"Phew..."

The weight hanging over Cai Mei'er's heart finally fell away. Yet even as relief washed through her, she saw the deeply satisfied flush on Ma Xiaotao's face and the boy's hand resting so freely around her waist. A trace of jealousy and resentment passed through Cai Mei'er's eyes, unnoticed even by herself.

"Xiaotao, how... how do you feel?"

Cai Mei'er took a deep breath and forced her tangled thoughts aside. She stepped forward and asked with concern.

"Dean Cai! I did it!"

At the sight of Cai Mei'er, Ma Xiaotao reluctantly sat up from Dongfang Hao's embrace. Awkwardly straightening the torn clothes across her chest, she said with unrestrained joy, "The Evil Fire inside me has been suppressed! And I broke through to level sixty-five!"

Shock filled Cai Mei'er's eyes. She nodded in relief, then turned a complicated gaze on the black-clad boy rising calmly to his feet.

"You... did well."

Cai Mei'er bit her lower lip as she spoke softly.

Dongfang Hao straightened his robe at an unhurried pace. His Golden Eyes lifted, sweeping over Cai Mei'er's full, mature figure and Ma Xiaotao's alluring form. Then he clasped his hands behind his back, a faint, cold smile curling his lips.

"Vice Dean Cai, by our agreement, I've done more than was required for this first treatment."

He paused and looked straight into Cai Mei'er's evasive eyes, his words laden with meaning.

"So... of the three treasures from the Treasure Appraisal Fair you promised me, could I have the first one in advance?"

Cai Mei'er blinked, then gave a helpless smile. "You really won't let yourself lose out in the slightest, will you? Are you that impatient? What caught your eye?"

Dongfang Hao licked his dry lips. A flash of eagerness passed deep in his eyes.

"For the first one... I naturally want that piece of Whale Rubber!"

Once Huo Yuhao took the bait and the legendary Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue appeared...