Chapter 35: Grilled Fish and Idle Chatter; Is Tang Ya Poaching Talent?

"By the way," Xu Sanshi said, courting disaster, "Little Yuhao is Elder Mu's personal disciple. Sister Xiaotao, you seem to be supposed to call him..."

"BOOM!"

Scorching flames erupted from Ma Xiaotao's body, and she glared at Xu Sanshi with extremely ill intent.

You are really itching for a beating, aren't you!!!

Xu Sanshi had been prepared and dodged behind Huo Yuhao.

"Little Yuhao, look, your grand-niece is about to hit someone! Hurry up and rein her in!"

Ma Xiaotao's clenched fist could not fall. After all, Huo Yuhao was her "little grand-uncle." If she were to strike now, Yan Shaozhe would surely weep as he gave her a severe lecture.

She became even more infuriated!

Fortunately, Huo Yuhao was a sensible person who understood the difference between those close to him and others. After all, Sister Xiaotao had once stolen a soul bone for him; how could he let her feel aggrieved?

He flew up using his spiritual telekinesis and sat cross-legged in the air, nonchalantly eating his grilled fish, leaving the flightless Xu Sanshi stranded on the ground, frozen and afraid to move.

Ma Xiaotao approached with clenched fists, grinning with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. Xu Sanshi wore a smile even uglier than crying.

"Sister Xiaotao..."

"Go to hell!!!"

Ma Xiaotao didn't even bother using her martial soul; she beat Xu Sanshi until he was crying for his parents, sending him and his Mysterious Underworld Shield flying together. It was sheer violence.

The others watched the show with amusement, except for Jiang Nannan, who had a gloomy face. The more tenacious Xu Sanshi acted, the more she loathed this persistent annoyance. Now that the transaction was complete, why was he still putting on this charade of deep affection? If it weren't for the fact that Xu Sanshi’s backing was too powerful and she still had a mother to look after, she would have killed him.

"Strange, why do I feel like there's a backstory between this senior and Brother Sanshi?" Huo Yuhao muttered.

"They are a couple in the physical sense," Zhuge Lan chimed in. "The Mysterious Underworld Sect has a secret technique that allows the Mysterious Underworld martial soul to awaken early. Jiang Nannan consummated the marriage with Xu Sanshi during the ritual."

"Ah?" Huo Yuhao was surprised. "So that's how Brother Sanshi's unstable martial soul evolution came about... That senior is quite pitiful."

"It doesn't stop there," Zhuge Lan said with a chuckle. "Jiang Nannan made a voluntary sacrifice as a trade to save her mother, which left her with deep psychological trauma. Yet, this Xu Sanshi just clings to her, insisting on pursuing her."

Oh, this...

Huo Yuhao dropped his grilled fish, his brows furrowed tightly. If it were to save his mother, he would also be willing to sacrifice everything. Thus, he could empathize deeply. This Xu Sanshi was truly... utterly oblivious!

Zhuge Lan opened the floodgates. "It’s one thing for Xu Sanshi to pretend to be deeply affectionate, but he isn't even faithful. During his so-called pursuit, he hasn't spent any less time frequenting flower houses. As a result, he was even caught by others. A normal person would have moved on by now, right? Not him. He just keeps on chasing!"

Zhuge Lan shook his head repeatedly. He truly looked down on Xu Sanshi; he was just like a remade version of Dai Mubai, putting on the persona of a prodigal son turning over a new leaf.

Huo Yuhao’s view of Xu Sanshi changed as well. Putting himself in her shoes, if he were Jiang Nannan, having to endure all this while still biting his tongue for his mother’s sake, he would be suppressed to the point of breaking.

Wang Dong handed him an iced drink at the right moment, and he gulped it down in one go.

"Hah—"

Wang Dong, flapping his wings, looked speechless. "You’re the one grilling the fish; don't you know to take a few bites yourself?"

"I just thought since everyone was waiting, I’d give it to you all first," Huo Yuhao said, scratching his head.

"You really are too considerate of others," Wang Dong sighed helplessly. "You should think more about yourself."

"We're all friends, it's a small matter," Huo Yuhao said dismissively.

Little did they know, this grilled fish party had added nearly 500 Fate Points. How could he not work hard?

After being well-fed, the two descended. Everyone had already been introduced and was chatting casually. It was rare to not have to think about cultivation or studies, just idling away the time. It was very pleasant.

Everyone participated enthusiastically, except for Jiang Nannan, who sat on the edge. At first, they thought she was just cold, until she spoke a few words and the still-bruised Xu Sanshi would immediately interject. Huo Yuhao realized she was being forced into silence, but he had no standing and couldn't say much. He would just have to wait and see.

Half an hour later, Ma Xiaotao had vented her anger and returned, feeling satisfied. The black-and-blue Xu Sanshi leaned over to Huo Yuhao’s side.

"Little Yuhao, use your ability to take a look at Nannan, will you? Does she have any room for her martial soul to evolve?" As he spoke, he took out a ceramic bottle and placed it before Huo Yuhao. "This is a Mysterious Water Pill. Keep it."

Ma Xiaotao snorted and also took out a wooden box, slapping it down in front of Huo Yuhao. "These are two Soul Ascension Pills. Their quality is no worse than the Mysterious Water Pill. Each soul master can only take one in their lifetime; they can increase soul power from level 30 to 31 without any negative side effects. What’s with that look? I was asked by the teacher to pass these on; I didn't take them myself."

Given by the senior brother, then. Huo Yuhao smiled and accepted them, thanking Ma Xiaotao and Xu Sanshi before activating his Spirit Eyes to look at Jiang Nannan.

A few seconds later, he shook his head with regret. "Senior Jiang's Soft-Bone Rabbit martial soul is very stable, and her soul ring configuration is also quite reasonable. My Holy Fire Sect records mention that Xiao Wu, one of the original Shrek’s Seven Devils, had this martial soul. Following that soul skill combination, there shouldn't be any issues."

"Of course, if Senior Jiang is interested, she can join my Holy Fire Sect and try the Tendon-Changing Classic; it might provide some help. If she is favored by Brother Lan in the future and taken as a disciple, that wouldn't be a bad thing either. Oh, right, Brother Lan is even stronger than the teacher!"

Xu Sanshi sighed, seemingly lamenting for Jiang Nannan. On the contrary, the person in question had a flicker in her eyes, hearing the "subtext" in Huo Yuhao's words.

"Hey! Joining my Tang Sect is also fine!" Tang Ya interjected. "And it’s not a conflict. Join the Tang Sect first, then the Holy Fire Sect—you can learn the ultimate techniques of both." Seeing the talented group, she couldn't help but want to strengthen her sect.

Unfortunately, without Huo Yuhao as the link and with the Holy Fire Sect as a superior option, the declining Tang Sect wasn't attractive enough.

"I am willing to join the Holy Fire Sect," Jiang Nannan said softly. "As long as I can... I will definitely succeed!"

[Fate of Jiang Nannan rewritten, +5000 Fate Points!]

So many? It seems leaving Xu Sanshi will indeed make Jiang Nannan’s life better. Having accepted this "gift," Huo Yuhao made up his mind to help her.

"That's great," Huo Yuhao said, seizing the opportunity. "Sister Ya is right; joining the Tang Sect and then the Holy Fire Sect doesn't conflict. So, Sister Ya, Brother Beibei... Brother Sanshi, do you want to join the Holy Fire Sect as well?"

Tang Ya really hadn't expected that she would be the one being recruited after failing to recruit others. To be honest, she was tempted. Beibei had talked about the wonders of the Tendon-Changing Classic for the past two days. But... as the Sect Master of the Tang Sect, what would it look like if she joined the Holy Fire Sect? She could only regretfully shake her head and refuse. Seeing this, Beibei naturally followed suit and refused.

Huo Yuhao didn't mind and looked at Xu Sanshi; this was the main target.

"No problem!" This time, Xu Sanshi didn't hesitate at all. "Wherever Nannan is, I am!"

[Fate of Jiang Nannan and Xu Sanshi rewritten, +250 Fate Points!]

This number... I'm afraid that Xu Sanshi joining has caused Jiang Nannan's fate to decline, which in turn affected me. Tsk! Should I find a way to get Xu Sanshi expelled from the Holy Fire Sect?

At this moment, Ma Xiaotao and Wang Dong, who had both suffered before, stood up together.

Ma Xiaotao spoke first: "Don't forget the initiation ritual."

Wang Dong was a step behind, locking eyes with Ma Xiaotao. They saw the schadenfreude in each other's eyes.

—If I had to suffer through it, no one else can escape!

Xu Sanshi’s eyes narrowed, thinking of some evil rituals. Huo Yuhao slapped his forehead. He had thought that when Xiao Xiao joined the sect, he hadn't mentioned it in front of the whole class, so perhaps they had already forgotten. You lot, however...