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Yuwen Tuo held up two fingers. "Two conditions. If you agree, I'll help her."
Yan Shaozhe said, "Alright, state them!"
"The first is compensation. You know that every time I help Ma Xiaotao cultivate, my Soul Power is greatly reduced. The next time will likely be the last, and the most crucial one. The drain on my Soul Power will be much greater than before. Therefore, I want three Soul Ascension Pills, and additionally, give me a high-grade Soul Bone² of at least fifty thousand years as compensation. That shouldn't be excessive, right?" Yuwen Tuo proposed his first condition.
Although, given the current condensation of his Soul Power, even Ma Xiaotao probably couldn't absorb much anymore, it didn't hurt to exaggerate the severity.
To this, Yan Shaozhe agreed without a second thought. "Fine. The Soul Ascension Pills and the Soul Bone, I can have someone deliver them to you immediately."
He had already planned to give Yuwen Tuo two Soul Ascension Pills; now it was just one more, which was affordable.
Besides, a person could only benefit from one Soul Ascension Pill in their lifetime; a second one would be useless. Yuwen Tuo asking for more must be for his friends – Xiao Xiao³, Cao Jinxuan⁴, or perhaps Lian Yue⁵ – anyway, they were all Shrek people. No matter who consumed them, Shrek wouldn't lose out.
A fifty-thousand-year Soul Bone was indeed very precious, but compared to a Soul Sage above Rank 70 with an Ultimate attribute, it seemed rather insignificant.
After all, what did it mean for a Soul Master with an Ultimate Martial Soul to break through Rank 70?
Firstly, Ma Xiaotao's strength at that time could potentially contend with a Titled Douluo⁶ to some extent. Secondly, after reaching Rank 70, an Ultimate Martial Soul enters a period of rapid cultivation. Ma Xiaotao's cultivation speed would surpass even those with Innate Full Soul Power, and she could achieve the rank of Titled Douluo within a few years.
This deal was not a loss.
Yuwen Tuo held up his second finger. "Second condition: I agree to help Ma Xiaotao, but only after one month. Right now, ninety percent of Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire has been resolved; she won't be in danger in the short term. Let her wait another month. During this month, I want you to let me leave Shrek."
Yan Shaozhe moved closer to Yuwen Tuo, placing a hand heavily on his shoulder and speaking in a low voice, "Kid, are you trying to pull a fast one on me?⁷ If I let you leave Shrek, how do I know you won't just leave and never come back?"
Yuwen Tuo smiled. "Heh, it's simple. As a Super Douluo⁸, surely you wouldn't be unfamiliar with a simple technique like Hidden Force⁹, right? Additionally, you can send someone to watch me, but I will only accept Sister Luochen. Because she's the only person in the Inner Court I don't dislike."
"Kid, what do you need this one month for?" Yan Shaozhe didn't agree immediately, instead asking.
"It's been a long time since I've been home. Trapped in a small room for six whole years... The New Year is approaching soon. I want to make a trip home to sweep the graves¹⁰ of my family. And also wander around a bit," Yuwen Tuo said, not lying.
He indeed had his own plans, but visiting the graves was also true. He hadn't seen those grandparents, uncles, and aunts in six years; he could be considered quite unfilial.
Ling Luochen stepped forward at the right moment to plead, "Dean, please grant Little Tuo this request. Shrek has confined him for too long already. He only asks for one month. I promise, I will go with him, protect him well, and bring him back completely intact within one month."
This was something she had agreed upon with Yuwen Tuo beforehand. Since Yuwen Tuo had won the freshman championship, she had to help.
Hearing this, Yan Shaozhe couldn't help but show a trace of guilt. In the end, this matter was indeed Shrek's fault towards Yuwen Tuo.
For six whole years, they hadn't even given him a single chance to pay respects to his family graves.
He glanced back at Ma Xiaotao's tightly shut door. Although Ma Xiaotao couldn't emerge from seclusion due to fear of the Evil Fire seed erupting again, it was also true that ninety percent of the surface Evil Fire had been purified.
Never mind one month, even within half a year, she wouldn't be in danger. She was currently just worried about triggering the Evil Fire again and didn't dare to rashly break through to Rank 70 and leave seclusion.
"Alright!" A light glowed in Yan Shaozhe's palm. He suddenly turned and struck Yuwen Tuo's chest, although seemingly causing no harm on the surface. Then he spoke, "Remember, return within one month, and there will be no issue."
He agreed, but with his disciple involved, he couldn't afford not to take precautions.
What he had just implanted into Yuwen Tuo's body was a strand of Hidden Force. It wouldn't cause problems within a month, but if the time limit was exceeded, it would erupt and shatter Yuwen Tuo's heart.
This Hidden Force contained his Radiant Phoenix power; only he in the entire continent could dispel it.
If Yuwen Tuo didn't want to die, he would have to return on time.
"Very well. Then the deal is struck. Within one month, I will definitely return on time. An agreement forged, unstoppable by myriad mountains," Yuwen Tuo promised.
"Thank you, Dean!" Ling Luochen thanked Yan Shaozhe before leading Yuwen Tuo away from the Inner Court.
Cai Mei'er walked out from Ma Xiaotao's room. She had been inside taking care of Ma Xiaotao, successfully suppressing the potentially recurring Evil Fire.
"I didn't expect you would actually agree to let him go for a month," Cai Mei'er said, somewhat surprised.
"Ai, I had no choice either," Yan Shaozhe sighed heavily. "I let him go for many reasons. Firstly, this kid's fire is incredibly condensed now, impregnable. Even for me, killing him might be effortless, but forcefully using his fire like before is already impossible. His Martial Soul has no openings left to exploit. Therefore, to save Little Tao, we can only rely on his willingness. I never expected that six years of Evil Fire tempering, instead of polluting his pure fire, would actually forge it to such purity and condensation. Secondly, I truly saw determination in Yuwen Tuo's eyes just now. His 'rather be shattered jade than intact tile' this time was not a joke. He's just a child, after all. Six years have already stretched his nerves¹¹ to the limit. We can't push him any further, or else it will inevitably lead to mutual destruction¹². He dies, and Little Tao remains forever trapped by the Evil Fire – that's something I don't want to see."
"Thirdly, for six whole years, I never allowed him to visit his family graves even once. On this point, I truly wronged him. His request is reasonable. Besides, Little Tao has enough time, Yuwen Tuo will have Luochen watching him, plus the threat of my Hidden Force, there shouldn't be any problems. Fourthly, although he only permitted Luochen to follow, that's just openly. Secretly, I can still send people to follow and protect him discreetly."
"Forcing a child like this... is this truly the way Shrek should act?" Cai Mei'er shook her head. "Shao zhe, let me send someone to deliver the things the boy needs. You shouldn't see him again."
Although she felt sorry for Yuwen Tuo, she felt even more heartache for her husband. If not for Little Tao's situation, she knew her husband wouldn't resort to forcing a child like this. She imagined he must have suffered the pangs of conscience these past few years, and might even develop inner demons¹³ in the future.
She pitied Yuwen Tuo, felt heartache for her husband, and certainly wouldn't betray her husband. Therefore, the best she could do was try to ensure the quality of the Soul Ascension Pills and Soul Bone chosen for Yuwen Tuo was as good as possible, considering it compensation.
The next day, early morning.
After waking up early and eating breakfast, everyone arrived at the classroom early. From the time Yuwen Tuo stepped out of his room until now, today marked the last day of the semester, and also the start of the holiday.
Zhou Yi¹⁴ instructed, "Everyone, even though it's the holiday, don't think you can relax completely. You must remember, among all academies on the continent, Shrek has the highest elimination rate because we don't keep elites; we keep 'monsters'. When you return next year, there will be promotion assessments focusing on practical combat. If you play too much during the holiday and forget how to fight by then, don't blame me for being ruthless."
"Additionally, all freshmen who wish to advance to the second year must reach Rank 20 and obtain their second Soul Ring. Those who haven't reached the second ring yet need to work hard."
Her words were almost explicitly directed at Huo Yuhao¹⁵. After these few months of cultivation, he was the only one left in the class who hadn't reached the second ring.
The class monitor having the lowest rank in the class – because of this, Class One had constantly been mocked by other classes.