Little Huo's Makeover! Haki Ya Volunteers Herself!

"Tian Meng, there aren't any Soul Beasts in this pond, are there?" Huo Yutong stood by the water, hesitant.

"No, just a few ordinary fish. Go ahead and wash. I'll keep watch for you and the little girl."

Tian Meng took on a spiritual form, her translucent figure floating above the pond. She thumped her chest and gave Huo Yutong her word.

Of course, Tang Ya couldn't see any of this.

Fish?

Something stirred in Huo Yutong's heart.

If there was one thing she did best, it was grilling fish.

Back at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, she had often caught fish in the river and grilled them for her mother. She could catch a few now and let Tang Qi taste her cooking later.

At the thought, her hand went instinctively to her waist.

Nothing.

A sudden wave of panic surged through her.

Where was her White Tiger Dagger? It was the keepsake her mother had left her.

Noticing her panic, Tian Meng spoke up. "I saw it with Tang Qi."

So Tang Qi had picked it up.

Huo Yutong breathed a sigh of relief. She nodded, looked around, and picked up a forked branch from the ground. Then she took off her cumbersome shoes and socks and stepped into the water on bare feet.

Coolness shot from the soles of her feet through her whole body, refreshing her to the core. She narrowed her eyes in pleasure, then flicked the branch out with quick hands and sharp eyes, spearing fish.

After a few swift strikes, a pile of fresh fish flopped and leaped on the bank.

"Little Huo, what are you doing?" Tang Ya stared from the shore, dumbfounded.

Huo Yutong carried the fish ashore and gave her a brilliant smile. "I'll grill some for you all in a bit."

"Grilled fish!"

Tang Ya's eyes lit up, and she waved her arms in delight. "Grilled fish, grilled fish, my one true love!"

"Let's absorb the Mystic Water Pills first! I can't wait."

As she spoke, she eagerly reached for Huo Yutong's clothes.

"What are you doing, Xiaoya?" Huo Yutong protested coyly, instinctively clutching her collar.

"Oh, why so shy?"

Tang Ya grinned wickedly and deliberately glanced at Huo Yutong's chest. "Absorbing a Mystic Water Pill forces out a lot of impurities. Especially with your talent, Little Huo... Ahem. You'll need a good wash."

"Oh, come on. You're not that much bigger than me," Huo Yutong retorted softly, blushing.

"Huh? What did you say?"

An hour later.

Huo Yutong had changed into an outfit matching Tang Ya's. She looked down at the little pond, now thoroughly filthy, and the tips of her ears turned red.

Were there really that many impurities inside me?

"Come on, Little Huo! Let's go eat grilled fish!" Tang Ya urged, pinching her nose.

Huo Yutong answered, picked up the fish from the shore, and hurried back.

Her steps were light. It felt as though an invisible shackle had been lifted from her body.

Tang Ya pulled Huo Yutong along and hid her behind her back as though concealing a treasure.

Then she suddenly stepped aside, revealing the girl from head to toe.

"Ta-da! The brand-new Yutong makes her dazzling debut!"

Tang Qi looked up.

The girl wore a pink-and-yellow bow matching Tang Ya's in her soft, fluffy blue hair. A black-and-white maid dress covered her slender figure, its apron and skirt falling in layers above white stockings.

She clasped her hands before her and kept her head lowered, only lifting a pair of watery blue eyes through her hair to look shyly at Tang Qi.

"All right, all right! Tang Qi, you haven't even blinked. You're making Yutong blush!"

Tang Ya held several fish, teasing him with every word.

Damn Haki Ya! Slandering me in public? She's courting death!

"Right now, the most important thing is grilled fish!"

Tang Ya grabbed the fish and started toward the pond, but Bei Bei stretched out a hand to stop her.

"Xiaoya, let me do it. I can't have you cleaning fish yourself."

Bei Bei smiled warmly, his tone sincere.

Tang Ya paused. After a moment's hesitation, she shoved all the fish into his hands. "...All right. Thanks, Bei Bei."

Xiaoya smiled at me!

In an instant, Bei Bei looked as though he had been pumped full of three pounds of chicken blood. His whole face glowed with energy.

He scampered off toward the pond with the fish, his steps almost skipping.

Meanwhile, Tang Ya stood where she was, hands on her hips, studying Tang Qi thoughtfully.

Suddenly, she issued an order with a perfectly straight face. "Tang Qi, go gather some firewood."

The air fell silent for a second.

Tang Qi slowly turned his head and gave her an odd look.

Had he heard her right?

Tang Qi rose with a half-smile. "Haki Ya, you seem to have forgotten something."

Tang Ya blinked. "What?"

Tang Qi clasped his hands behind his back. "I'm the Tang Sect Leader now."

He turned away. "Here are your assignments. Both of you, remember them."

"Tang Ya, gather firewood. Yutong, grill the fish."

Huo Yutong nodded obediently and pulled Tang Ya, whose cheeks had puffed up with anger, away with her.

"He... he actually ordered his Sect Leader around!"

Tang Ya stamped her foot indignantly. Then her eyes darted, and she caught hold of Huo Yutong, who was walking ahead.

"Yutong, gather the firewood for me, would you? Your Sect Leader's in a good mood today. I'll let you try my cooking!"

Ever since the Iron Blood Sect had destroyed the Tang Sect, she had made her own way at Shrek Academy and often cooked for herself.

For one thing, prices at Shrek were high. For another, she needed to save money to revive the Tang Sect.

Seeing Tang Ya so full of enthusiasm, Huo Yutong smiled helplessly. "All right, I'll gather the firewood."

She had taken only two steps when she turned back, her expression earnest. "Xiaoya, you're not the Sect Leader anymore."

"You! Oh! Why are you two like this? Ugh." Tang Ya trembled with indignation.

A little later, the four of them sat around a campfire.

Tang Qi eyed the grilled fish in her hand, half charred and half bloody, with open disgust. "Haki Ya, have you ever grilled a fish? If you can't do it, let Yutong take over."

"Nonsense! I may never have grilled fish before, but don't you just keep turning it over?"

Tang Ya stubbornly shot back.

"Ta-da! Tang Sect Tang Ya's grilled fish, made with love, fresh off the fire!"

She held it high and waved it proudly before them.

Tang Qi frowned at the sight. Huo Yutong silently turned her head away.

Tang Ya huffed and looked to her last hope.

"Bei Bei, do you want some?" She blinked at him, her face full of anticipation.

Ignoring the other two's expressions, Bei Bei accepted the fish with faintly trembling hands, disbelief written all over his face.

This... Xiaoya had grilled this fish herself? And she'd made it "especially" for him?

Dean Yan Shaozhe wasn't entirely right. Sometimes a man did have to grovel a little. Keep at it long enough, and everything he wanted would be his!

Wasn't the "grilled fish made with love" Xiaoya had prepared for him proof enough? It had no looks, aroma, or flavor to speak of, but the feeling behind it was real.

Bei Bei took a bite and ate with obvious relish, his face brimming with happiness. Huo Yutong and Tang Qi stared at him, dumbfounded.

While the three weren't paying attention, Tang Ya finished grilling a second fish.

She held the pitiful result up before her eyes and couldn't help curling her lip.

"How could it possibly taste bad..."

She closed her eyes and bit into it.

"Ugh! Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"

Tang Ya spat it straight out and flung the fish into the nearby grass in a huff.

"It tastes awful!"

Seeing her so dejected, Huo Yutong felt sorry for her and took over the grilling. "Xiaoya, let me do it."

Once the goddess of grilled fish took over, it took only a moment for a soul-stealing aroma to spread through the air.

Tang Ya, who had been wallowing in disappointment, snapped her head up. Her eyes gleamed green.

Even Bei Bei, still locked in a fierce struggle with his "grilled fish," froze for a moment.

At the sight of the grilled fish's golden, crisp skin, Tang Ya's mouth watered uncontrollably.

When the first skewer reached her hand, Tang Ya pounced like a starving tiger. "Now this is grilled fish! What was that thing I made?"

Bei Bei stared blankly at Tang Ya.

Your subjects were ready to fight to the death, Your Majesty. Why did you surrender first?

An indescribable bitterness welled up in Bei Bei's heart. He fought even harder with the grilled fish in his mouth.