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Yuwen Tuo walked out of the room, his body weary.
His Soul Power had decreased somewhat again. Fortunately, his Soul Power was more condensed now, unlike before when dropping from Rank 20 to Rank 10 meant his acquired Soul Power was completely wiped out in one go. This time, he had only dropped one rank, now standing at Rank 37.
It was barely within Yuwen Tuo's acceptable range. Thankfully, starting today, he no longer had to worry about Ma Xiaotao continuing to drain his Soul Power and could focus on cultivating. Moreover, he had ways to eventually reclaim this ultimate power from Ma Xiaotao. He had helped her achieve the Ultimate Fire, but he had also intentionally left behind a huge hidden danger.
Outside the door, quite a few people were already waiting. They were all the upper echelons of Shrek Academy; aside from the Sea God Pavilion elders, all the other Titled Douluo were present.
Yan Shaozhe, at the forefront, stepped forward and inquired, "Yuwen Tuo, how is the situation?"
"Why ask when you already know, Dean? Didn't you see the beam of Ma Xiaotao's Ultimate Fire light shooting towards the sky just now?" Yuwen Tuo retorted sarcastically. "Rest assured, she's fine now. Her Soul Power rank has stabilized at Rank 70, and the source fire, purified by pure fire over many years, has accumulated thickly and finally evolved completely into Ultimate Fire. Let her stabilize for a bit, and then you can take her to hunt for her seventh soul ring. If there are no signs of the Evil Fire relapsing within half a year, it means it's completely eliminated. If any problems arise during that period, just come directly to me."
This last sentence was deliberately said by Yuwen Tuo, intended to plant a seed of caution in Yan Shaozhe's mind. The Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament was not far off. Ma Xiaotao would definitely participate. At that time, she would be fighting daily. To prevent any unexpected relapse of the Evil Fire, Yan Shaozhe would certainly insist on having Yuwen Tuo accompany the team.
Then, many of his plans could begin to be set in motion.
"Excellent! An Ultimate Martial Soul Soul Master is a rare sight even once in a thousand years, and one who has surpassed Rank 70 at that! Little Tao's potential is immense, likely not much inferior to Teacher's back then," Yan Shaozhe exclaimed excitedly.
"Haha, Old Yan, this is a blessing for our Shrek Academy," said a man wearing glasses nearby. This was Qian Duoduo, the Vice Dean of the Soul Tool Department, a Rank 94 Titled Douluo. Standing beside him was a tall woman, his wife, the War God Douluo, Xian Lin'er.
She spoke up, "This isn't just about Ultimate Fire. Little Tao's Martial Soul is also the Phoenix. It's practically the strongest Beast Martial Soul combined with the strongest elemental attribute power."
Although the Martial Soul Department and the Soul Tool Department had always been competitive, they were ultimately part of the same power structure. How could they not be happy about Ma Xiaotao becoming so powerful?
These Titled Douluo were immersed in their joy, completely ignoring the youth staggering away, exhausted from excessive exertion. Perhaps to them, Yuwen Tuo's only value was this utility.
Just as Yuwen Tuo walked outside, weakened and stumbling, about to fall, a pair of hands suddenly appeared and caught him.
"Little Tuo, are you alright?"
"Sister Luochen, I'm so sleepy!" Yuwen Tuo looked at the person who had arrived and weakly collapsed into her arms.
Ling Luochen gently stroked Yuwen Tuo's hair. "Sleep well."
The joyful Titled Douluo inside contrasted sharply with the youth outside, utterly drained of energy. Not a single person came to show concern for the true hero who had brought Shrek an Ultimate Fire Soul Master; all their attention was on Ma Xiaotao.
Ling Luochen couldn't help but clench her fists. Shrek, once like a holy land in her heart, now seemed tainted by an indelible shadow.
Little Tuo, she thought, I used to hope you would let go of your resentment and cultivate properly at Shrek. Now, it seems I was wrong. There's no future for you here. Don't worry, Sister will definitely help you leave this place!
Ling Luochen brought Yuwen Tuo back to his dormitory. Seeing the extremely weak Yuwen Tuo, Xiao Xiao's heart filled with pity and worry. "How did Tuotuo become like this? His face is so pale!"
Ling Luochen explained what had happened. Xiao Xiao's heart filled with resentment. Shrek again! Why do they keep harming her Tuotuo time after time? If Shrek hadn't held him back, with his Innate Rank 20 talent, the one renowned throughout the world and receiving everyone's attention right now would surely be Yuwen Tuo before her, not that Ma Xiaotao. For the first time, she simultaneously regretted and did not regret coming here. She regretted seeing the hypocritical side hidden beneath Shrek's righteous facade, but didn't regret it because coming here allowed her to meet Yuwen Tuo.
Asleep, Yuwen Tuo had a dream. This time, he didn't dream of the two previous vague figures, but of a very clear person with naturally mismatched blue and brown eyes – the "Yin-Yang Demon Pupils" – and bronze-colored hair. It was his master, the real Yuwen Tuo.
"Master!" Yuwen Tuo stepped forward and called out.
But his master didn't reply. Instead, his palm turned over, and flames swirled upon it – precisely the Evil Fire absorbed from Ma Xiaotao. Then, the Evil Fire condensed into a human shape, forming an identical clone. This was clearly the Divine Fire Clone mental cultivation method; his master was teaching him how to use it.
Yuwen Tuo watched his master perform the technique from beginning to end. His mind followed suit, and he subconsciously began circulating the energy in the same way.
After a long while, his master finally spoke, "Little Tuo, it's time for you to wake up. Remember, you are my, Yuwen Tuo's, disciple, the soul of the Xuanyuan Sword, inheritor of the Kunlun Mirror's space-time power. Anyone who bullies my disciple will meet a terrible end. Those fellows – if you cut down even one less than you should, don't bother coming back to see me. Even if you do, I will expel you from my tutelage." With that said, he waved his hand forcefully.
In reality, Yuwen Tuo suddenly awoke with a start. "Master!"
He then realized he was back in his room somehow. Recalling the last person he saw seemed to be Ling Luochen, he figured she must have brought him back. He tried to sit up but noticed his hand seemed to be held by someone. Turning his head, he saw a small, green-haired loli slumped beside his bed, tightly gripping his hand.
It was Xiao Xiao. It seemed Xiao Xiao had been taking care of him here for a long time.
Yuwen Tuo smiled slightly and gently pulled his hand free.
Recalling the dream he just had, he circulated the Divine Fire Clone mental cultivation method. Flames surged in his hand, and he discovered his Fire Elemental Power had actually become significantly stronger again.
Just as he had expected, Pure Fire Martial Souls most feared corruption by other flames, yet they also feared it the least. The difference lay in whether one possessed a superior fire attribute cultivation method. The Divine Fire Clone method was clearly sufficient. His Pure Fire had purified the Cold Fire from the Ice Fire Mystic Phoenix that day, as well as Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire, using them all to strengthen himself. Now, the power of his flames was already beginning to approach that of Ultimate Fire. Not only that, but he could also freely use the freezing power of the Cold Fire and the corrosive power of the Evil Fire at any time.
"Hehe, Pure Fire embraces all fires, with infinite potential. That saying is indeed true." Yuwen Tuo pushed his palm forward, and immediately, another version of himself appeared in the room.
After incorporating the Cold Fire and Evil Fire, the power of his flames had finally reached the level where he could manifest a clone. However, this Divine Fire Clone was only newly formed and still very weak, possessing perhaps only twenty percent of the main body's strength. His master's clone, condensed during his peak, could perfectly replicate his entire power. If the clone and the main body cooperated seamlessly, the actual combat power increase could potentially be far more than double. He was indeed still far from that level.
Yuwen Tuo gave a mischievous smile and controlled the clone to step forward and gently shake Xiao Xiao's body.
Xiao Xiao was shaken awake. Seeing Yuwen Tuo already out of bed, she said joyfully, "Tuotuo, you're awake! How's your recovery?"
The clone didn't speak, but a voice came from the side, "Not great. My body is still very tired. I need Xiao Xiao's comfort to recover."
Xiao Xiao froze, turning her head towards the bed, only to see Yuwen Tuo still lying there.
She let out a terrified scream, "Ah!! Tuotuo! How did my Tuotuo become two?"
Hearing Xiao Xiao's scream, Ling Luochen quickly rushed in, still holding a bowl of medicinal soup. It turned out she had been outside brewing medicine for Yuwen Tuo – the kind that rapidly restored Soul Power.