I'll give her the life she deserves

"Chu Ge."

"May I call you that?"

An unknown amount of time had passed.

On the road to Shrek City, Ma Xiaotao suddenly stopped, tilted her head up slightly to look at the young man beside her, and spoke.

"Of course."

Chu Ge nodded, his expression calm.

"Is there anything you like to eat?"

"There's quite a lot of good food around the academy, but I'm not sure what to treat you to."

Ma Xiaotao looked thoughtful as she surveyed the rows of shops outside the academy, clearly unable to choose one.

For someone who suffered from a touch of indecision, making a choice really was rather difficult.

"Anything will do. I'm not picky."

"Or is there something you particularly like and would recommend? That should be pretty good."

Chu Ge considered it briefly and spoke frankly.

Actually, he had wanted to say he wasn't all that hungry, but seeing how hard she was thinking about it, he decided eating a little wouldn't hurt.

"My top recommendation..."

At that, Ma Xiaotao's eyes instantly lit up. His suggestion had clearly helped her find an answer.

"Chu Ge, come with me."

"That place has really amazing grilled fish. Why don't we have that?"

Smiling as she spoke, she motioned for him to follow her and headed toward a grilled fish shop.

"Mm..."

Chu Ge nodded at her words, though a thought stirred in his mind. A grilled fish shop?

If they were going to a grilled fish shop, perhaps it was one he had visited before.

Sure enough, before long, the two arrived at a grilled fish shop called Tasty Bites-the very shop Chu Ge had previously visited with the two youngsters.

"Two skewers of grilled fish, please."

Ma Xiaotao walked over, deftly took a few copper coins from her Soul Tool, and soon returned with two skewers of grilled fish, handing him the slightly larger, more fragrant one.

"Chu Ge, the grilled fish here is delicious."

"Go on, try it."

With a smile on her face, Ma Xiaotao handed it to him and began introducing it.

"It certainly looks good."

Chu Ge accepted it and played along, without telling her he had already eaten here.

"Of course."

"This place's grilled fish is top-notch even in Shrek City. Naturally, it's delicious."

Ma Xiaotao answered with a smile and raised her thumb as she spoke, clearly very fond of the grilled fish here.

"It really is."

Chu Ge nodded. The grilled fish really was delicious, and Ma Xiaotao really had very little experience treating someone to a meal.

After all...

Who treated someone to a meal by buying grilled fish at a roadside stall?

"Hmm? Those are..."

Chu Ge polished off his grilled fish in no time, and his gaze soon fell on two girls approaching the shop together from nearby. They were none other than the close friends Huo Yudie and Tang Wutong.

"Yudie, Wutong."

His voice wasn't loud, but Huo Yudie seemed to sense him through some unspoken connection. She immediately spotted him, a smile spreading across her face.

"Master."

She promptly grabbed Tang Wutong, who was still lost in wandering thoughts, and jogged toward him, reaching his side in moments.

"Master?"

Ma Xiaotao froze, even pausing midway through eating her grilled fish. She hadn't expected him to have such an adorable disciple.

"Brother Chu."

"Who is this lady...?"

Tang Wutong also looked at Chu Ge, though her gaze inadvertently drifted toward Ma Xiaotao beside him, filled with curiosity.

Could she be... Brother Chu's girlfriend?

Huo Yudie wondered the same thing, and the question weighed even more strongly on her mind.

"This is Xiaotao, a disciple of Dean Yan Shaozhe and a senior student of yours in the Inner Court. The dean asked her to show me around the city."

"She's already a Soul Emperor, you know. She's a role model worth learning from."

Chu Ge explained with a slight smile.

"A role model? I just have a little talent, that's all."

Ma Xiaotao grew a little embarrassed at his words and hurriedly shook her head.

"Xiaotao, this is my disciple, little Yudie, and her good friend Wutong. They're both very sweet girls."

Being called sweet by Chu Ge soon brought a faint blush to both Huo Yudie's and Tang Wutong's cheeks, leaving them positively delighted.

"Since you're here, girls..."

"Let me treat you to grilled fish."

Ma Xiaotao glanced toward the grilled fish shop as she spoke, then went over to buy another two large skewers, placing one in each girl's hand.

"Thank you, Sister Xiaotao. We'll leave you and Brother Chu/Master to it. We won't disturb you."

Somewhat overwhelmed by Ma Xiaotao's generosity, the two girls thanked her sweetly.

With that, seemingly afraid of interrupting the pair's conversation, they decided not to linger. After all, Senior Xiaotao wouldn't always be with him; this was just a one-time outing.

"You're welcome~"

Watching the two girls head off, Ma Xiaotao smiled and shook her head, seeing them on their way.

Nobody could dislike such adorable little girls, and she was certainly no exception.

"Chu Ge, that cute girl is your disciple? I never imagined you'd already taken one."

Ma Xiaotao soon turned her gaze back to the man beside her, speaking with curiosity and pleasant surprise.

"Yes."

Chu Ge smiled and nodded. Although the experience had been rather fantastical, having a disciple like her was still very nice.

"That's impressive."

"I didn't expect you to have a disciple at such a young age."

Ma Xiaotao spoke from the heart.

They were clearly the same age, yet outside of cultivating, she was still trying every possible means to keep her Evil Fire from erupting, while he already had a little disciple. Perhaps that was simply the gulf between one person and another.

"Doesn't that leave you with less time to cultivate?"

She couldn't help asking. Teaching a student surely took a lot of time, especially since he had also come to Shrek Academy to become a teacher.

"Taking time away from cultivation... it's not too bad."

Chu Ge wasn't particularly concerned. With the system's rewards, his soul power increased very quickly. Just absorbing a Soul Bone last night had raised his soul power by a level.

The Bursting Endless Right Arm Bone and the hundred-thousand-year Light Wisdom Skull-even though he had absorbed only those two, they had raised his cultivation by two levels.

Now that was a fast way to gain levels!

"Would you mind telling me why you took a disciple?"

Unable to suppress her curiosity any longer, Ma Xiaotao looked at him and asked.

Although she thought he was very impressive, taking a disciple at their age seemed quite unnecessary. Raising one's own cultivation was what mattered most.

"Why I took a disciple..."

"An arrangement of fate, I suppose."

Chu Ge couldn't really explain it. How would he know why Huo Yudie had wanted to become his disciple back then? Perhaps it was fate.

"Fate?"

Ma Xiaotao listened intently.

"She's all alone now. Fate made me her teacher, so I'll take good care of her."

"All alone?"

At those words, Ma Xiaotao's expression visibly faltered, and her smile faded away.

She had once been an orphan too. Only because her teacher had found her and brought her home did she have everything she possessed today.

"Her family is gone."

"Her enemies are still alive."

That made her heart tighten even further.

She couldn't imagine how such a young girl could keep going on her own.

"I'll give her the life she deserves."

Chu Ge spoke with a smile.

This wasn't merely about helping her.

It was also about doing right by that little Yuhao who, starved of love, had been so easily led astray and later trained like a dog.

But he wasn't Yudie, after all.

Her mother's death had been unavoidable, but she had once had an older brother who loved her, and she would never follow that same old path of being tamed...

"Take care of her."

"The life she deserves."

Hearing those words, Ma Xiaotao couldn't help drifting into a daze.

The scene of her teacher bringing her home all those years ago began to surface faintly in her mind.

Her teacher had wanted her to live a better life too.

He always had.

Recalling Huo Yudie's happy smile earlier, she found that, at this moment, Chu Ge's figure had grown taller in her eyes.

PS: This suddenly went premium, and I can't even skip posting a premium chapter on the first day. Damn.

(End of chapter)