At the very moment the crimson dot on the surface of Sea God Lake drew near, Xu Xingyu's pupils contracted sharply.
—No way. Don't tell me today's the day… that scene from the original timeline? The day Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong were attacked by the berserk Ma Xiaotao under the influence of her Evil Phoenix Flame?!
"Damn it!" Xu Xingyu cursed in his heart.He'd been so caught up last night planning Winter's mental power training, he'd completely overlooked the fact that this was the exact time Ma Xiaotao had gone berserk in the original story!
He cast a glance at Wang Dong'er, who was still in the middle of absorbing the spirit energy extracted from the mental-training soulsteel spheres.From her current state, he could tell she was at a critical moment. If he forcefully interrupted her now, it could damage her mental sea and potentially cause permanent backlash.
There was no time to relocate her. No way to flee with her before Ma Xiaotao arrived in her berserk, Phoenix-possessed state.Xu Xingyu clenched his teeth, then swiftly circulated his soul power, forming a protective barrier around Wang Dong'er using his martial soul.
"Stay safe… this time, I'll handle it."
He sprinted straight toward the danger zone, purple soul rings flickering around his body like flowing stars. The girl behind him was one of his wives-to-be—there was no room for retreat. No so-called hero should ever run when his woman was in danger.
At that moment, a piercing phoenix cry echoed across the waters of Sea God Lake. A figure, cloaked in searing red flames, descended like a meteor upon the lakeshore.
It was her.Ma Xiaotao, the Flaming Phoenix of the Inner Court. Soul Emperor rank. Fully berserk.
Her entire body was cloaked in blazing flames—yet within those crimson tongues of fire, faint streaks of eerie purple flickered. A clear sign of her condition: Evil Fire Possession.
As she raised her hand, the surging phoenix flames around her prepared to incinerate everything in sight.
Xu Xingyu acted immediately.
"Third Soul Skill—Ziweixing Divine Barrier!"
A majestic violet-gold shield of starlight erupted before him, encasing Ma Xiaotao in a protective yet isolating dome of astral energy. But Ma Xiaotao was no ordinary Soul Emperor—her flames began to hammer the dome relentlessly, cracking it piece by piece with sheer destructive might.
"This won't hold long…" Xu Xingyu's eyes narrowed.There was no choice.
"Dragon God Martial Soul—Awaken."
In an instant, shimmering nine-colored dragon scales rippled across Xu Xingyu's body, his figure lengthening, limbs strengthening. Claws, horns, a dragon's tail—all manifesting in brilliant light. He had become a Dragonkin, halfway between man and god.
The Ziweixing Divine Barrier shattered the next moment.Ma Xiaotao burst forth, now fully consumed by her Phoenix Bloodline's berserk state.
She roared, crimson wings erupting behind her. The flaming silhouette of a massive phoenix loomed over the lakeshore, heat distorting space. Her fire had nearly reached the level of Extreme Fire. But beneath that fiery majesty, corruption lingered—purple fire crackling like hellish lightning.
Xu Xingyu responded with a mighty Dragon Roar.
The golden soundwave, imbued with the supreme might of the Dragon God's pressure, slammed into the fire phoenix. Even in her berserk state, Ma Xiaotao faltered—her soul origin trembling before the authority of a true apex predator.
After all, her Phoenix martial soul, while powerful, was incomplete—just a sliver of true divine phoenix lineage.If her bloodline had fully awakened, she might have withstood the suppression.
But there's no "if" in reality—only the cold truth.
The flaming phoenix projection flickered and shattered. Ma Xiaotao plummeted from the sky, slamming into the ground, body trembling under the suppression of the Dragon God's aura. She could no longer move.
Xu Xingyu's gaze remained cold as he raised his right hand. A chilling frost gathered at his fingertips—Extreme Ice, the perfect counter to her Evil Fire. Though he had only unlocked three elemental powers through his Dragon God martial soul—water, fire, and wind—his water attribute, under Gu Yuena's personal tutelage, had evolved into true Extreme Ice.
He released the freezing energy in a steady stream, bathing Ma Xiaotao's body in purifying frost.
Her burning soul power dimmed.The purple-black evil fire faded.Clarity returned to her face.
Only then did Xu Xingyu realize… Ma Xiaotao's white mask and outer robe had been incinerated in the battle. Though she still had a red battle skirt beneath, it did little to hide the fiery figure she possessed.
Fair skin flushed with residual heat.Curves that could make stars weep.And that face… even compared to Gu Yuena, it was breathtaking.
Xu Xingyu didn't bother hiding his gaze."She's even more stacked than Gu Yuena," he muttered to himself, eyes unabashedly trailing over her unconscious form.
Yes—among all the beauties he had seen, Ma Xiaotao's figure alone could easily rank top five.If purely judged on curves, perhaps she was number one.
But just as Xu Xingyu was about to take another good look…
Ma Xiaotao's eyes fluttered open.
Xu Xingyu tensed instantly and withdrew his Dragon God form. His ice energy, however, remained gathered in his palm.Just in case.
Yet even though her eyes opened, there was something off—her irises were still pure white.
"She's not fully conscious…?"
That's when it happened.
A blue flame suddenly ignited from Ma Xiaotao's chest, spreading rapidly across her body. It was cold yet hot, burning yet freezing. Ice formed on the ground around her—even as the flames surged higher.
Xu Xingyu's expression changed.
"…Yin Flame?!"
This wasn't normal fire.Unlike yang fire, which burned by releasing energy, yin fire burned by absorbing energy—devouring the life force and soul of anything around it. It was a flame that only existed in lands of death or ancient tombs—absolutely unnatural in the outside world.
So why… did Ma Xiaotao have this inside her body?
Before he could process further, Ma Xiaotao leapt toward him—arms flinging around his waist, holding him tightly.
Xu Xingyu froze.
Inside her body, two opposing energies were clashing violently—her Phoenix Flame and this sinister Yin Flame, constantly ripping at one another.No wonder she was losing control.
He was just about to try circulating his own soul power to stabilize her…
When suddenly—
She kissed him.
Not a peck. Not an accident.A real, full-force, soul-invading, toe-curling, oxygen-robbing kiss.
Xu Xingyu's mind blanked.He didn't even have time to resist.
In her arms, with her lips pressed to his, all he could do was passively receive the onslaught of Ma Xiaotao's burning, ice-cold energy—
—and before he knew it, darkness overtook him.
***
Lately, Dean Yan Shaozhe of the Martial Soul Department hadn't been in the best of moods.
Ever since the emergency Sea God Pavilion meeting—where his own teacher had proposed that Shrek Academy should begin gradually accepting the concept of soul spirits—his internal storm had yet to subside.
He was one of the staunchest opponents when soul spirits had first appeared.More than that—he'd personally been part of the team that stormed the Spirit Pagoda in protest, back when the world had only just begun accepting this "new path" of cultivation.And of course, he'd been among the many who received a brutal "lesson" from none other than Gu Yuena herself.
Ever since that fateful defeat, Yan Shaozhe had not only rejected soul spirits—He loathed the Spirit Pagoda to his very core.
Yes, he could see plainly how soul spirits greatly improved a Soul Master's cultivation. But just that alone was enough to make the Beast God Di Tian, the apex sovereign of all soul beasts, willingly ally with the Spirit Pagoda and act as its sword?
What kind of twisted fairy tale logic was that!?
The centuries-long enmity between humans and soul beasts—resolved just like that?Yan Shaozhe didn't buy it. Not one bit.If there wasn't some grand scheme behind all of this, then pigs could fly.
In his mind, the Spirit Pagoda had to be a shadowy force formed by shape-shifting soul beasts, created with one goal in mind:To control the human Soul Master world through the soul spirit system.
And when the Spirit Pagoda began establishing "Ranger Stations" in various soul beast habitats, all in the name of preventing indiscriminate slaughter…That was all the confirmation he needed.
They were trying to recreate what the Spirit Hall had done ten thousand years ago—Unify the Douluo Continent under their banner.
And now, his own teacher had dared to claim the soul spirit system might even have the approval of the gods?!
Worse still, there was talk of allowing the Spirit Pagoda to establish a branch within Shrek City.
Wasn't that just calling Yan Shaozhe petty and narrow-minded in front of the whole Pavilion!?
And those two so-called divine test candidates?He could begrudgingly accept Wang Dong'er. She hailed from the Clear Sky Sect, and may well have inherited traces of Tang San's divine Sea God power upon awakening.
But Xu Xingyu?The boy had talent, sure—but divine favor? No way.
From Yan Shaozhe's perspective, there were plenty of students in Shrek's Inner Court whose innate gifts outshined this junior Spirit Pagoda heir.His own proud disciple, Ma Xiaotao, was the prime example—already at Rank 65 Soul Emperor before twenty!
If not for the Evil Phoenix Flame tormenting her cultivation, she'd have stepped into the Soul Sage realm already.Such prodigies had only existed in the time of Tang San himself!
Yet even Ma Xiaotao had never received divine recognition…So why should Xu Xingyu?
Truthfully, Yan Shaozhe wasn't just indignant—he was envious.The Spirit Pagoda's rise was fast. Too fast.With their monopoly on soul spirits, they threatened to unseat Shrek's historic authority.
After all, controlling how the entire continent cultivates…That kind of power was enough to make even saints wary.
Although soul beast hunting had significantly declined since the rise of the Spirit Pagoda, powerful clans and academies—like Shrek—still operated on the old system.Which, naturally, made relations between Shrek and the Spirit Pagoda frosty, at best.
So now, what?Because the Spirit Pagoda had a so-called "god" and two divine candidates, Shrek Academy was expected to humble itself, admit its error, and reconcile?
Maybe the others in the Pavilion were willing.But Yan Shaozhe held his ground. He still didn't trust the Spirit Pagoda.
…Even if he didn't dare say so aloud during the Pavilion meeting.
Just thinking about it made his temples throb.
At present, all he could do was bide his time.Sooner or later, the truth would surface.
That was when the door to his office flew open, and his loyal subordinate—Director Du Weilun, in charge of the Outer Court—came sprinting in.
Before Yan Shaozhe could scold him for his reckless behavior, Du Weilun shouted with a pale face:
"Dean! Emergency! Ma Xiaotao has gone berserk—again! The Evil Fire has taken hold and she's fled the Inner Court!"
Yan Shaozhe stood up with a jolt."What?! No one stopped her!?"
"They tried," Du Weilun said bitterly. "Several Inner Court teachers engaged her, but she broke through and escaped. She's heading toward the Outer Court now!"
"I'll go myself!"Yan Shaozhe shot out of the office like a comet of soul power, racing along the corridor.
As he soared through the air, he cursed under his breath:
"Damn it! Wasn't she told to suspend training for now? The Evil Fire's already hard enough to suppress, and now that Yin Flame has awakened too—every outburst gets harder to contain! If this keeps up, I'll have no choice but to seal her soul power with shackles!"
Yes—he knew about the Yin Flame within her.It had first appeared a year ago.
Back then, Ma Xiaotao had also gone berserk—But was subdued by a then-unknown Outer Court girl: Jiang Nannan.
Her physique, the Taiyin Jade Body, released a unique type of Yin energy that completely suppressed Xiaotao's flames.At the time, Yan Shaozhe had seen it as a miracle cure.
So, with Jiang Nannan's consent, she began helping Xiaotao suppress the Evil Fire during outbursts.
At first, it worked perfectly.Until… it didn't.
One day, the Evil Fire began resisting the Yin energy—Not only that, it absorbed it, fusing with it to form a new and far more terrifying energy: Yin Flame.
Since then, every outbreak had grown worse.The ice bed once used to stabilize her was incinerated.
Left with no other choice, Yan Shaozhe stripped her of the Shrek Seven Devils captaincy and forbade further cultivation.
If she wanted her status back, she had to solve her condition.Shrek wasn't a playground for prodigies to endanger others.
Clearly, she hadn't listened.
As he neared Sea God Lake, Yan Shaozhe finally spotted her—
And to his utter shock, she was fighting with a student from the Outer Court.Worse… it was Xu Xingyu.
The very student giving him headaches.
But what stunned him most wasn't that they were fighting—it was that Xu Xingyu was winning.Xiaotao was being outmaneuvered at every turn.
Yes, she was berserk.Yes, her mind was fogged.But Xu Xingyu… was still only a Soul Elder!
He should've been slapped into a crater within seconds.
And then—
Xu Xingyu revealed a second martial soul.
A majestic dragon form burst forth, and a suffocating pressure engulfed the battlefield.
Even watching from afar, Yan Shaozhe could feel the aura of a true divine beast—not unlike that of the Dragon Clan itself.
At last… he understood why the Sea God Pavilion had chosen to back this boy.
And when Xu Xingyu released Extreme Ice to subdue Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire, Yan Shaozhe could barely contain his joy.
"Extreme Ice…! A natural counter! This boy is a treasure!"
He was already calculating how best to rope the kid into the Inner Court."Grudges with the Spirit Pagoda? Pfft. Who cares. We can just pretend nothing happened."
But just as he was about to step forward and express his thanks—
He froze.
Eyes widening.Face darkening.
"...."
"…Wait… WHAT THE HELL!? He's kissing her!?!?"