When the four finished their dinner and returned to the academy, night had already fallen.
After parting with Tang Ya and Jiang Nannan, Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena headed toward the white freshmen's dormitory.
As they walked, Huo Yuhao suddenly asked, "It seems like you're in a good mood today?"
Although he didn't know the reason, the understanding they'd built over the years made it clear to him that Gu Yuena seemed to be in an unusually good mood today.
For instance, she would squeeze his hand now and then, and swing it a bit more than usual. Thinking about it, this change seemed to have started after they encountered Tang San in the afternoon.
"Am I?" Gu Yuena blinked her eyes innocently, then calmly changed the topic, "By the way, you still owe me a hug. When do you plan to make good on that?"
"Huh?"
Huo Yuhao was surprised. "Didn't we hug before?"
"You agreed to a trial, so the reward doubles," Gu Yuena explained as she glanced at him. "Or were you thinking of going back on your word?"
Huo Yuhao's mouth twitched. He looked around briefly before lowering his voice.
"You were the one who said we should hold it a bit longer. This last hug was definitely already double the time…"
"That's because you agreed to it, and we were hugging continuously, so it only counts once."
Seeing Gu Yuena's expression remain unchanged, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but have several sweat drops on his forehead.
Whether it was Tang Ya's influence or something else, he felt that Gu Yuena had been acting stranger over the years. Especially since coming to Shrek, this feeling had grown even stronger.
But unlike with Tang Ya, he'd never sensed any kind of lustful intent from Gu Yuena. Unable to understand the reason, he could only attribute everything to her curiosity.
Just as he was about to bargain with her, he noticed in his peripheral vision an elderly figure lying in a chair on the open ground in front of the freshmen's dormitory.
Shrek's current Sea God Pavilion Master, Mu En.
Gu Yuena also noticed the figure, pausing briefly and seeming somewhat surprised by the elder's power.
She narrowed her eyes, staring intently at the frail-looking old man.
Mu En, however, appeared every bit the elderly man he seemed, struggling to push himself up from his chair. His dim eyes scanned the two of them before finally landing on Huo Yuhao.
"Would this young student have a moment to chat with this old man?" Mu En's familiar voice reached Huo Yuhao's ears.
Seeing his teacher from his previous life appear before him once again, Huo Yuhao trembled slightly.
After a moment of silence, Huo Yuhao turned to Gu Yuena. She understood his intent without needing any words.
After giving Mu En a deep look, Gu Yuena walked past him, then sat on the steps of the dormitory entrance, watching Huo Yuhao quietly.
Seeing this, Mu En looked at Huo Yuhao with a hint of amusement. "It seems your little girlfriend is wary of this old man."
Huo Yuhao chuckled noncommittally. "What would you like to talk about, sir?"
"I just wanted to see what was so special about the one Le Xuan has taken such an interest in," Mu En said with a faint smile, without hiding his intentions.
"To be honest, the freshmen this year have piqued my curiosity more than usual. Among them, your companion is the one I find most mysterious — even a little terrifying."
"That, however, has only made me pay more attention to you, Huo Yuhao. To have someone like her by your side, maybe you're the most extraordinary one here."
As an Ultimate Douluo, the fact that he couldn't detect any unusual traits from her was unusual in itself.
With Huo Yuhao, Mu En could sense his overwhelming energy and soul power immediately, even though he was only at the second ring. The incongruity of his strength was evident to Mu En.
This seemed reasonable in his eyes: talented individuals often had unique encounters and secrets. It would be strange if they didn't.
However, Gu Yuena was different. In his view, she was an entirely ordinary soul master, whether by her soul power, vitality, or spiritual energy — all at a mere Soul Elder's level.
Her soul rings indicated otherwise, though, as she wielded three purple soul rings, suggesting she was far from ordinary.
It was strange, even ridiculous.
Even with his experience of over two centuries, Mu En found this baffling and even slightly frightening.
This girl either had a powerful tool to mask her abilities, or she was far stronger than him.
Judging from the unease he felt and the sense of reverence stirring in his own Light Sacred Dragon bloodline, he concluded it was likely the latter.
Her mere presence at Shrek was a huge potential risk.
He couldn't simply ignore her just because she seemed non-hostile. That would be irresponsible to the academy's safety.
Fortunately, the connection through Zhang Lexuan offered him a way to gauge her intentions.
"I heard from Lexuan that you let an evil soul master go. Can you tell me why you did that?"
"Why?" Huo Yuhao paused, then replied calmly, "Because I believe that kindness and integrity shouldn't be reasons for bleeding and suffering."
Mu En was silent for a moment. Just from this response, he understood why Zhang Lexuan had grown so attached to this young man.
In a world where self-interest had become the only guiding principle and survival of the fittest the ultimate truth, someone like him stood out.
After a while, Mu En couldn't help but sigh, "You're the most unique child I've ever met."
Before he could finish, a sneering voice sounded from afar.
"Empty words. Kid, we know all this, but sacrifices must be made for society's stability. Evil soul masters are the enemies of all humanity. We have to kill them before they grow into a real threat! Letting one go could result in countless innocents suffering tomorrow!"
Huo Yuhao turned to see Xuan Zi, who was holding a chicken leg and a wine flask, striding towards them. He looked at Huo Yuhao with cold eyes and asked, "What about the countless innocents who have been killed in the past ten thousand years under the suspicion of being evil soul masters?"
"That's a necessary sacrifice for societal stability!" Xuan Zi scoffed, frowning, "Do you think Shrek students haven't sacrificed enough fighting evil soul masters?"
Mu En's brows furrowed, his tone stern as he called, "Xuan Zi!"
Yet Xuan Zi ignored the rebuke. He felt he'd found the moral high ground against the youth who had once insulted him in Star Dou Forest.
"If we let evil soul masters roam free, imagine the damage they could inflict! To prevent such horrors, we must make ruthless choices!" he declared. "Almost every year, inner court disciples die fighting evil soul masters. Does Shrek complain?"
His eyes bore into Huo Yuhao. "Are those people more noble than our inner court disciples?"
"They aren't more noble, but sacrifice and slaughter are not the same!" Huo Yuhao's voice was equally intense.
"Choosing to face death while knowing the outcome is a sacrifice. Forcing the innocent to face death is slaughter!"
Recalling the expression of a young man he'd encountered, Huo Yuhao's voice grew icy.
"They did nothing wrong but strive to survive. Yet, some trample on that simple wish in the name of so-called justice, pushing them into their graves!"
Xuan Zi froze, but before he could respond, Mu En's voice cut through with even more authority.
"Xuan Zi!!!"
The fierce reprimand stopped Xuan Zi mid-sentence. He clenched his fists, clearly not pleased but unwilling to continue speaking.
Mu En then turned to Huo Yuhao, offering an apology.
"I apologize for Xuan Zi's words, child."
(End of Chapter)
After saying goodbye to Gu Yuena at the stairway, Huo Yuhao saw a tall figure quietly waiting in front of his dorm room.
Moonlight streamed through the corridor windows, casting light on her figure. Despite the loose black robe she wore, her captivating curves were impossible to hide. A few playful strands of red hair peeked out from her hood.
Because her hood was low, only the lower half of her face was visible. Her alluring, moist red lips occasionally pursed and sometimes bit gently, as if she were holding something back.
It seemed she had noticed Huo Yuhao from the moment he entered the hallway, as her light pink eyes were locked onto him.
"You're Huo Yuhao, right? I'm Ma Xiaotao, an inner court disciple. The senior sister should have told you about me."
While speaking, Ma Xiaotao looked Huo Yuhao up and down, the junior that Zhang Lexuan had personally recommended.
Not bad-looking. Did senior sister become a class advisor in the outer court just because of this junior? If anyone was the most popular in the inner court, it would undoubtedly be Zhang Lexuan.
Not only the male disciples, but also many female disciples held deep respect for this senior sister.
Especially for someone like Ma Xiaotao, who was a reserve team member in the previous Soul Master Tournament. After witnessing Zhang Lexuan's dominance on the field firsthand, she had already considered Zhang Lexuan her idol.
And now, even before meeting this junior recommended by her idol, she had witnessed such an impressive scene.
She remembered that when Zhang Lexuan had told her about this, she had laughed and asked about Huo Yuhao's situation.
"Senior sister, did you go to the outer court just for this junior? Is he special in some way?"
"Well, let's just say, spend some time with him, and you might understand. No exaggeration—he's more special than anyone else."
Those words, a mix of joking and seriousness, echoed in her mind. After seeing Huo Yuhao's confrontation with Elder Xuan, Ma Xiaotao suddenly began to understand what Zhang Lexuan had meant.
It had nothing to do with talent or appearance.
She found herself admiring his somewhat naive ideals, wanting to see how his ideals—so out of place in this world—might bring change to this harsh world.
"I saw what happened just now," Ma Xiaotao said softly, pausing, "You did great."
"Uh?"
Huo Yuhao looked up instinctively, meeting Ma Xiaotao's serious gaze, and shook his head with a chuckle.
"It was just a kid's empty boast."
Ma Xiaotao's lips curved slightly. As she moved closer, she caught a faint fragrance with a hint of coolness from him, which made her feel refreshed, even suppressing the evil fire within her slightly.
But before she could be pleased, the evil fire inside her seemed provoked, surging up even more violently.
The sudden, intense surge caught Ma Xiaotao off guard, leaving her with just enough time to let out a muffled sound before her body went limp and she collapsed.
This startled Huo Yuhao, who quickly reached out and caught her before she could fall.
"Sister Ma, are you okay?"
Hearing his voice fading in and out beside her, Ma Xiaotao felt her body temperature rising sharply. She took deep breaths of the air around Huo Yuhao, forcing out her words, one by one.
"I'm fine… the evil fire flared up suddenly. Let's go inside…"
"Okay."
Although unsure why her evil fire had flared up, Huo Yuhao, having his previous life's experiences, didn't panic. Supporting her, he reached for the key and unlocked the dorm door.
Creak—
The old dorm door creaked loudly in the silent corridor.
Even through their uniforms, Huo Yuhao could feel her extraordinary softness pressing against him, the accompanying heat making him feel like he was holding a furnace.
Remembering past experiences, he stopped himself from immediately releasing his ice attribute martial soul. He took a quick look around the empty corridor before guiding Ma Xiaotao inside the dorm room.
With the door shut, only Ma Xiaotao's heavy breathing filled the dark and quiet room.
Looking at Ma Xiaotao, her face flushed as if she were intoxicated, Huo Yuhao felt his throat tighten. Without hesitation, he released his Ice Emperor martial soul.
The terrifying chill spread from Huo Yuhao, instantly suppressing Ma Xiaotao's heat and wrapping around her body.
As if transported from the summer sun into an icy winter, the temperature in the room dropped sharply. Her sweat-soaked uniform even started freezing as frost crept across it.
Ma Xiaotao shivered, pressing closer to Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao's eyes twitched, an odd familiarity hinting that he had been "run over" by a big truck again.
He had expected this outcome, though.
If he had released his martial soul in the corridor, Ma Xiaotao might have made a sound, and he'd have no reputation left at the academy...
With his previous life's experience, Huo Yuhao knew he couldn't miss this chance to temper his body through the evil fire suppression.
Back then, each time he helped Ma Xiaotao suppress her evil fire, his physical strength improved significantly in the fire-and-ice tempering.
"Xiaotao…?"
After a few attempts to call her name without response, Huo Yuhao prepared to carry her to the bed.
He slowly tightened the chill, trying to prevent it from damaging his bedding. Then he slid his hand under her waist to lift her up.
Feeling the return of heat like a wave, Ma Xiaotao let out a faint moan, clinging tighter around his neck.
In a moment, her pink eyes looked at him, filled with a complicated, hazy emotion.
...
(End of Chapter)
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