Early in the morning.
Zhu Ziyang and Ma Xiaotao walked out of their room; Yan Shaozhe had already left.
Zhu Ziyang's face was etched with deep weariness; the sudden relaxation of highly strained nerves naturally led to profound fatigue, coupled with the emptiness from his depleted spirit power, making Zhu Ziyang only want to go back to sleep.
In contrast, Ma Xiaotao looked exceptionally well, radiating an unprecedented sense of ease and joy, her pink eyes filled with delight, excitement, and exhilaration. The Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower's medicinal properties were incredibly potent, completely eradicating the Evil Fire that had infiltrated her bones. Her Spirit could finally shed the name Evil Fire Phoenix and become a true, genuine super Spirit, the Fire Phoenix.
Yes, after shedding the evil power, Ma Xiaotao's Spirit possessed the true Ultimate Fire.
Currently, Ma Xiaotao's spirit power cultivation was at level 64, and the remaining medicinal power of the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower had increased her spirit power by two levels.
"Ziyang, I owe you more and more, Big Sister!" Ma Xiaotao affectionately put her arm around Zhu Ziyang's shoulder, sighing as she spoke, a captivating glow in her pink eyes.
"Haha, don't worry about it. Between us, what's there to owe?" Zhu Ziyang chuckled, his mind involuntarily recalling the scene he saw upon waking, feeling a rush of blood. He quickly shook his head, dispelling those thoughts, and said, "Sister Xiaotao, I want to go back and rest. See you this afternoon."
"Oh, oh!" Ma Xiaotao immediately nodded in agreement upon hearing this. "Then you go quickly. I also need to experience the changes in my Spirit."
"Bye, Sister Xiaotao." Zhu Ziyang immediately walked towards his room.
"Ziyang," Ma Xiaotao called out suddenly, watching Zhu Ziyang's departing back, "I apologize to you on behalf of the teacher."
"Sister Xiaotao, this has nothing to do with you!" Zhu Ziyang paused, then shook his head faintly without looking back, saying, "I don't want to talk about this right now."
Zhu Ziyang left, and Ma Xiaotao stood rooted to the spot, silently sighing. Neither of them were fools; how could they not realize that all of this was Yan Shaozhe's scheme?
Although the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower's medicinal properties were somewhat intense, with Ma Xiaotao's strength and will, she could have fully absorbed its properties on her own. However, the truth was that the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower's medicinal properties became incredibly violent, so violent that Ma Xiaotao alone couldn't suppress it, requiring Zhu Ziyang's combined efforts to do so.
But, this was too much of a coincidence, as if it had been meticulously planned.
In fact, it was indeed a scheme, and the person who schemed against them didn't even try to hide it. After Zhu Ziyang and Ma Xiaotao subdued the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower's medicinal power, they discovered a wisp of spirit power that caused the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower's medicinal properties to go out of control. It was a wisp of spirit power containing both light and phoenix aura, which unequivocally revealed the identity of that person.
Both of them were well aware of Yan Shaozhe's intentions behind this scheme. Yan Shaozhe had never given up on the idea of bringing them together, and this time he even wanted them to consummate their relationship directly! If Zhu Ziyang hadn't been calm enough, he might have truly fallen into the trap. Zhu Ziyang also once again understood why Mu En was so deeply disappointed in Yan Shaozhe.
To achieve his goal, he actually even schemed against his own disciple, using this crucial juncture for Ma Xiaotao to deliberately provoke the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower's medicinal properties, making them violent, and then luring Zhu Ziyang into the trap. Although he maintained good control, preventing Ma Xiaotao from being injured by the violent medicinal properties, the process, which should have been smooth, became arduous, and Ma Xiaotao also suffered quite a bit.
Yan Shaozhe's impression in Zhu Ziyang's heart had plummeted to rock bottom; compared to him, Xuan Zi was much more likable. After all, Xuan Zi was just foolish, while Yan Shaozhe had impure motives.
After returning to his wooden house, Zhu Ziyang collapsed onto his bed and immediately fell asleep. Soon, snores began to rise.
— —
Ma Xiaotao found Yan Shaozhe.
"Teacher, why did you do this?" Ma Xiaotao demanded angrily.
"Xiaotao, I did all this for your own good!" Yan Shaozhe looked at the furious Ma Xiaotao, a hint of bitterness on his lips. He thought his disciple would understand him, but he didn't expect to end up alone after all.
"Hoo…" Ma Xiaotao tried hard to calm her tone. With a pleading look, she said, "Teacher, I understand your intentions, but please, stop interfering in matters between me and Ziyang! Can you?"
Yan Shaozhe stared blankly at Ma Xiaotao, his eyes complex. After a long while, he slowly spoke: "Alright! I promise you, I will no longer interfere in your affairs."
"Thank you, Teacher!" Ma Xiaotao couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, an apologetic expression appearing on her face. She said, "Teacher, my tone was a bit harsh just now. Please forgive me."
"It's nothing." Yan Shaozhe waved his hand, his tone a mix of relief and self-mockery. He said, "Xiaotao, you are more opinionated than your teacher, and your personality is more decisive. Sometimes, I even wonder if Lin'er is your true teacher!"
"Teacher, I…" Seeing Yan Shaozhe start to feel sorry for himself, Ma Xiaotao immediately spoke, wanting to comfort him.
"Alright, don't mind my thoughts." Yan Shaozhe interrupted Ma Xiaotao, saying, "Let's test the changes in your Spirit instead."
"Mm! Okay!" Ma Xiaotao had no choice but to nod in agreement.
— —
By the time Zhu Ziyang woke up, it was already one o'clock in the afternoon.
He immediately sat up, examining his own changes. After helping Ma Xiaotao absorb the Phoenix Cockscomb Sunflower, Zhu Ziyang had also gained some benefits. First was the improvement in his spirit power; after absorbing the Immortal Herb's medicinal power that Ma Xiaotao had diffused, his spirit power broke through to level 53. Aside from the advancement in spirit power, his greatest gain was the enhancement of his Ultimate Ice.
His ice element affinity exceeded 95 points, and the Ultimate Talent associated with Ultimate Ice finally manifested. Ultimate Ice only had one Ultimate Talent, while Ultimate Light possessed two, which showed the gap between the high-level light element and the conventional ice element.
The Ultimate Talent of Ultimate Ice was called Ice Might, a passive aura. When Zhu Ziyang used his Heavenly Frost Sacred White Dragon Spirit, this aura would spread out from him as its center, causing psychological deterrence to all surrounding living beings, making them fear Zhu Ziyang and lose the courage to proactively attack.
This was an aura similar to Dragon Might, highly effective against ice elemental creatures, and its effect on non-ice elemental creatures depended entirely on Zhu Ziyang's strength.
"It can certainly be used in conjunction with Reign Over The World!" Zhu Ziyang stroked his chin and quickly figured out how to use Ice Might, nodding in satisfaction.
"Lord Ziyang, you're awake!" Xingcai, who had been standing in the room for a long time, walked over, her eyes filled with affection and reverence. She rubbed her head against Zhu Ziyang, happily exclaiming.
"Hmm, long time no see, Xingcai!" Zhu Ziyang smiled broadly, reaching out his hand and stroking the fur on Xingcai's neck. He said, "You've come out of seclusion, so it seems you've made some breakthroughs!"
Six months ago, Xingcai had entered seclusion in the Golden Ancient Tree's underground World, a chance naturally given by Zhu Ziyang.
Now that she had emerged from seclusion, her cultivation had impressively reached three thousand five hundred years! Her body size had also finally left its infancy and entered its juvenile stage, with her height and length nearly matching her mother's. Once a Starry Unicorn reaches its juvenile stage, its physical growth ceases; only the horn on its head and the wings on its back continue to grow, while other parts stop.
"Mm, mm, mm!" Xingcai nodded excitedly, saying, "I'm already a five-thousand-year-old Spirit Beast! I can defeat ten of my former selves!"
"Hahaha, then you're truly amazing!" Zhu Ziyang burst into laughter upon hearing this, and an idea suddenly popped into his mind. If Xingcai were sent into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, would its special environment also have an effect on her? One year there would be equivalent to ten years in the outside World. If Xingcai cultivated there, with her racial talent, wouldn't she be able to reach the level of a ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast in just ten years?
This thought greatly intrigued Zhu Ziyang, and he mused that once his strength was sufficient to deter the Immortal Herbs in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, he would immediately send Xingcai into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to test it out!
"Come on, I'll take you out for a stroll!" Zhu Ziyang thought, standing up and patting Xingcai's head, he said.
Xingcai happily agreed, immediately following Zhu Ziyang out of the room. Zhu Ziyang mounted Xingcai, riding her across Sea God Lake and galloping on the grassy banks of Sea God Lake.