After the initial shock, Yan Shaozhe quickly regained his composure.
No matter what, he had held a high position for many years and was a Title Douluo-level powerhouse in his own right. You could say Yan Shaozhe lacked the noble grandeur of the Bright Phoenix, or that his mentality was lacking, limiting his achievements—but you couldn't deny this old man's cunning.
He was already very old, and for something like immortal herbs, the earlier one consumed them, the better.
Yan Shaozhe's age and cultivation level meant that consuming an immortal herb wouldn't bring him much benefit. But he had a disciple—Ma Xiaotao, the Blazing Phoenix.
Ten thousand years ago, Ma Hongjun, the Blazing Phoenix, consumed an immortal herb that purified and elevated his flame, allowing his Blazing Phoenix to completely evolve into a Fire Phoenix with Ultimate Fire. Later, he even obtained a fortuitous opportunity that advanced his Fire Phoenix further, turning it into a Nine-Headed Fire Phoenix.
Yan Shaozhe remembered the name of that immortal herb very clearly—the Phoenix Crest Sunflower.
Nine months ago, Ma Xiaotao had once gone berserk due to the backlash of her evil fire. At that time, she lost control and attacked Lin Yun, only to be frozen by the Ice Jade Scorpion, Qing'er, using the Frost King's Wrath.
After that incident, the evil fire in Ma Xiaotao's body was purified to a great extent, allowing her to avoid its backlash for several months. But that was only a temporary solution, not a permanent cure.
Before long, Ma Xiaotao's evil fire erupted again. Now, she could only suppress it by lying on a cold jade bed deep within the Golden Tree on Sea God's Island.
Yan Shaozhe had originally planned to ask Lin Yun for a favor after the advancement exams—to use his tamed Ice Jade Scorpion to suppress Ma Xiaotao's evil fire, giving her the ability to participate in this year's Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament.
The torment of the evil fire made it difficult for Ma Xiaotao to maintain her sanity, let alone compete in the tournament. But not letting her participate wasn't an option either. Among this year's students under twenty years old at Shrek Academy, Ma Xiaotao had the highest soul power—already at the level of a 66th-ranked Soul Emperor.
Dai Yueheng, the next strongest, was a full four ranks below her at only 62nd rank. And the Blazing Phoenix martial soul gave Ma Xiaotao formidable offensive power, making her the undisputed core of the team's assault system.
If there were no other options, Yan Shaotao wouldn't have risked letting Ma Xiaotao compete with the danger of her evil fire erupting. In the original story, when Ma Xiaotao mentioned rejoining the team, the soul tool department student had to be kicked out—Yan Shaozhe hadn't planned to let her participate in the tournament at all. It was only because Huo Yuhao fused with the Ice Empress and gained the Ultimate Ice attribute, which could suppress Ma Xiaotao's evil fire, that she was able to compete.
Now, it was the same. To make this year's team stronger, Yan Shaozhe had already decided to ask Lin Yun for help.
But…
"Rather than using the Ice Jade Scorpion to suppress it, why not solve Xiaotao's evil fire problem once and for all?" Yan Shaozhe gave Lin Yun and Xiao Xiao beside him a deep look before vanishing from the spot in a flash.
This wasn't something he could decide on his own.
He understood the value of immortal herbs—they were worth exchanging for a 100,000-year soul beast. But asking Yan Shaozhe to pay such a price to trade with Lin Yun for an immortal herb was something he couldn't bear to do.
However, where there's a will, there's a way.
Yan Shaozhe wasn't blind—he could see the relationship between Lin Yun and Xiao Xiao. Back in his youth, he had been quite the romantic himself. Cai Mei'er, Xian Lin'er, and Feng Ling made up three of his conquests, all of whom were Title Douluo-level female soul masters. And those were just the ones worth naming—there were plenty more.
He prided himself on "understanding" Lin Yun's way of thinking. If he could gift an immortal herb to his little girlfriend, then wouldn't his own stunningly beautiful disciple also be able to make Lin Yun obediently hand over an immortal herb?
Yan Shaozhe's calculations were flawless.
Ma Xiaotao was his disciple, and he had full confidence in her loyalty to Shrek Academy. She would never abandon the academy for the sake of a romantic relationship.
(Bibi Dong: ?)
(Hu Liena: ?)
(Qian Renxue: ?)
(Huo Yuhao: ?)
(Wang Qiu'er: ?)
(Gu Yuena: ?)
This way, he could freeload an immortal herb from Lin Yun while also ensuring Ma Xiaotao captured his heart. Even if Lin Yun didn't join Shrek Academy in the future, Ma Xiaotao—who would never leave—would naturally form an alliance with him and receive his support.
Thus, Ma Xiaotao's evil fire problem would be solved, the issue of how to win Lin Yun over would be solved, and he himself wouldn't have to pay an exorbitant price.
Three birds with one stone!
Yan Shaozhe felt like an absolute genius—so much so that even the "Little Genius" smartwatch brand would have to beg him to be their spokesperson.
Lin Yun had no idea Yan Shaozhe had so much internal drama going on, nor that he had boldly guessed Lin Yun possessed immortal herbs just from seeing Xiao Xiao's Nine Cauldrons martial soul and was already plotting.
Though the thought process was abstract, Yan Shaozhe had indeed guessed correctly—the end result was right.
Glancing at the high platform and noticing that the white-robed, hypocritical old man had already vanished, Lin Yun narrowed his eyes but didn't dwell on it. Instead, he turned his attention to Ning Tian and Wu Feng's exam in the Beast Fighting Zone.
He wasn't worried.
Because he wasn't alone.
First, this was Shrek Academy. No matter how shameless the academy might be behind the scenes, no matter how much they loved brainwashing people, those were still behind-the-scenes matters. At least on the surface, they still had to maintain some dignity.
Moreover, with Mu En around, Yan Shaozhe couldn't openly force Lin Yun to do anything.
Even if he truly went mad and tried to rob Lin Yun, the Ice Empress hidden in his embrace wasn't just for show. A 98th-ranked Super Douluo with an Ultimate attribute—Lin Yun wasn't looking down on them, but aside from Mu En borrowing the Golden Tree's power, everyone else would be like clay chickens and pottery dogs in front of the Ice Empress.
Even if Mu En personally intervened, the Ice Empress could hold out long enough for the Ten Thousand Demon King to arrive. With two Super Fierce Beasts gathered in one place, Lin Yun could practically walk sideways through the academy.
As for other underhanded schemes?
Lin Yun could only say he wasn't Huo Yuhao—he didn't have a taste for Shrek Academy's empty promises, nor was he interested in their sweet talk. He only liked to eat the sugarcoating and spit the bullet back out.
To be honest, Lin Yun actually hoped Yan Shaozhe would try something. Otherwise, he wouldn't have an opening to exploit!
After all, after The Dragon and Phoenix Entwined and The Dragon and Phoenix in Harmony, Teacher Qing Ye hadn't released any new works in a long time!
Shrek had been too peaceful lately—almost a year without any major scandals. Lin Yun felt this was unacceptable. He had come to Shrek Academy to stir up trouble, yet now it seemed like all he did was cultivate and date.
"I'm truly damned! I've become the very thing I swore to destroy. No, I must make up for lost time—I need to create another major scandal for Shrek!"
Thus spoke the so-called Beast Monarch.
(End of Chapter)
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