Douluo: Divine Fire Xuanyuan

Chapter 436 The Death of Ma Xiaotao

"Master, did you win?" Cao Jinxuan asked excitedly.

The commotion in the city was huge, and he really wanted to go in and see what was going on, but he remembered Long Aotian's words and couldn't go in and cause trouble. Plus, Nana was there to dissuade him, so he barely managed to hold back.

"With me taking action, how could I possibly be defeated!" Yuwen Tuo laughed. "We have won a great victory! Shrek Academy, except for that tree, no longer exists!"

"Truly worthy of being our master!" Cao Jinxuan was filled with shock. He never expected that the four of them could actually defeat Shrek Academy, which had stood on the continent for ten thousand years.

Yuwen Tuo sighed inwardly. That's what he said, but it's only on the surface. There's still a long way to go before Shrek Academy can be completely destroyed!

"Sigh—" Just as they were rejoicing, a sigh rang out, the tone filled with displeasure.

It was Long Aotian. Upon seeing this, Yuwen Tuo laughed and said, "Senior Brother Long, you're really no good. My Xiao Xiao and Qiu'er both defeated Title Douluos, but you still couldn't defeat that Gong Changlong in the end!"

"You brat, I came here to help you out of kindness, and you dare to make fun of me?" Long Aotian hooked his arm around Yuwen Tuo's neck and shook him violently. He was determined to shake the brains of this heartless brat until they were evenly mixed up.

"Hehe, Senior Brother Long, don't take it so seriously. Your fighting styles and Xiao Xiao's are completely different. Xiao Xiao is a mechanical monster, while you are a numerical monster. Xiao Xiao defeated Qian Duoduo mainly because of the mechanical advantage. In terms of numerical values, she is still inferior to Qian Duoduo overall. Your fighting style, on the other hand, is pure numerical crushing. Although your strength is now close to that of a Title Douluo, Gong Changlong is a veteran powerhouse who has been a Title Douluo for many years, and his fighting style is the same as yours. In terms of numerical values, he is no less than you. So of course you cannot win easily," Yuwen Tuo comforted him.

"Tch, once I get my eighth spirit ring, I'll make sure to defeat that Bow Longlong the next time I see him," Long Aotian said.

The group quickly flew dozens of miles away from Shrek Academy, then landed on a hillside for a short rest.

Besides Long Aotian, the only other people who came this time were Cao Jinxuan and Nana.

Vina, Ye Guyi, Ji Juechen, and Lian Yue did not appear.

This is to be expected. Vina's identity is too special. She will be the one to inherit the throne of the Heavenly Soul Empire in the future. There are still many Shrek Academy graduates in the Heavenly Soul Empire. If she makes a move, the country will surely be in chaos.

Ji Juechen was still recovering from serious injuries. Ye Guyi joined Ghost Valley to deal with evil soul masters. Shrek Academy had no grudge against her, so she naturally wouldn't meddle in other people's business.

Lian Yue is the simplest one. She is weak and is a support type, so Cao Jinxuan was worried about her safety and didn't let her come along.

"Qiu'er, Xiao Xiao, Senior Brother Long, you've all expended a lot of soul power. Take this opportunity to meditate and recover. This isn't the Soul Beast Forest; it's quite safe here," Yuwen Tuo said. "Jin Xuan, Nana, come with me for a moment!"

"Yes, Master!"

"Yes, my benefactor!"

The two followed Yuwen Tuo to the side.

Yuwentuo reached out and tapped the soul tool, releasing a fiery red-clad girl—it was Ma Xiaotao.

But at this moment, she had completely lost her former domineering and spirited demeanor. She was extremely weak and lying on the ground, struggling even to open her eyes.

This must be what happens when the oil is almost gone and the lamp is about to burn out.

"Yuwen Tuo, why didn't you just kill me?" Ma Xiaotao asked Yuwen Tuo haltingly. At this moment, her gaze was clear, and there was not much hatred in her eyes.

He was probably about to die, so he was at peace with it.

“Even if I don’t kill you, you won’t live much longer,” Yuwen Tuo said.

"I know, so... what do you want to say to me after bringing me out?" Ma Xiaotao asked hopefully. Being able to have a good talk with the person she liked before she died would make up for some of her regrets.

Yuwen Tuo shook his head. "I don't have that much free time. But you still have most of your soul power left, and I don't want to waste it. How about giving it to my disciple and friend instead?"

He wouldn't absorb other people's power, but he had no qualms about absorbing Ma Xiaotao's power, because Ma Xiaotao had absorbed his power for six whole years.

It turned out that they had their eyes on her remaining skills, and Ma Xiaotao felt a little disappointed.

“Okay, I’m willing to give it to you, and I’m willing to give it to you voluntarily. Can you say something to me one last time?” Ma Xiaotao said.

Absorbing power and voluntarily giving it up are two different things.

When power is transferred from one person to another, some loss is inevitable. Even if Long Xiaoyao infused his power into Huo Yuhao, it would only raise him from level 95 to level 98.

This is under the condition of voluntary absorption; if it were forcibly absorbed, even more would be lost. "Okay, I agree," Yuwen Tuo replied. "Jin Xuan, Nana, come here!"

"Yes!" The two walked up to Ma Xiaotao together.

Just like before, Yuwen Tuo used his own flames to merge with Ma Xiaotao's flames, drawing out her power. Since Ma Xiaotao did not resist, this time it went even more smoothly than before.

Yuwen Tuo then transferred the absorbed power directly to Cao Jinxuan and Nana.

About half an hour later, the four of them slowly finished their practice. Ma Xiaotao had lost 99% of her power, leaving only a little bit to keep her alive. Yuwen Tuo wanted to keep his promise and talk to her.

Nana and Cao Jinxuan suddenly realized that they had reached level 70, and in reality, they should be far more than level 70, but they didn't realize it because they didn't have spirit rings.

After losing all her martial arts skills, Ma Xiaotao's body became even weaker. She was only clinging to life by her willpower, and it was estimated that her breath would dissipate within a quarter of an hour. However, as if she had a final burst of energy before death, her spirits actually improved.

Keeping his promise, Yuwen Tuo sat down in front of her and said, "Ma Xiaotao, just say what you want to say to me."

"Yuwen Tuo, I'm sorry. I've owed you these words for over a decade, and now I'm repaying them." At this moment, Ma Xiaotao was able to speak fluently.

Yuwen Tuo nodded. "I accept your apology. Have a safe journey."

Ma Xiaotao was taken aback. Yuwen Tuo had accepted her apology so easily. So she mustered up her courage and said, "If there is an afterlife, please don't hate me anymore. I will find you, and we can start as friends, okay?"

"Okay, I hope you won't be so domineering and unreasonable in your next life. Be gentler and cuter. Look how gentle Sister Luo Chen is, how cute Xiao Xiao is, and Qiu'er is both sweet and salty!" Yuwen Tuo laughed.

Ma Xiaotao clearly hadn't expected Yuwentuo to be so agreeable all of a sudden. Most importantly, the hatred in his eyes was gone. "You don't hate me anymore?"

“I don’t hate anymore. My purpose in seeking revenge was simply to vent my anger and resentment. Now, I have taken back everything you owed me, with interest. You are also nearing the end of your life. The great revenge has been taken. If, after taking revenge, I had to live with hatred and bitterness every day, how tiring would that be?” Yuwen Tuo said.

"Although there is a saying that obstructing someone's path is like killing their parents, in my heart, the path and family are actually incomparable. As for those who harmed my family, like Xu Tianran, I cannot forgive him even if he is dead, because I cannot forgive him on behalf of my deceased family. But you only harmed me personally, without harming my family and loved ones. Therefore, I can represent my own position. And my position is that once the revenge is taken, the hatred will naturally end."

“Ma Xiaotao, although my grudge against Shrek Academy is not over yet, from your personal point of view, my grudge has been avenged. And since it has been avenged, I will naturally no longer hate.”

"Thank you, Yuwen Tuo, thank you!" Ma Xiaotao closed her eyes with a smile. Before dying, she heard Yuwen Tuo no longer hate her, and suddenly death no longer seemed so terrifying. No matter how domineering and selfish she was, at least her feelings weren't fake.

In the last second before she breathed her last, Ma Xiaotao used the last bit of her power to force all the soul bones out of her body.

Her control over her soul power was exquisite. While she was alive, these soul bones could not leave her body. She was able to hold back her last bit of soul power, and then, just a second after she died, the accumulated soul power was released from its suppression and burst forth, forcing her already dead soul bones out of her body.

As expected of someone Shrek Academy has devoted so much to nurturing, she actually possesses four soul bones, though they are all located in her limbs.

The right leg is a soul bone from the same fire spirit beast, at least ten thousand years old, and comes with a skill that was used in the competition: accelerated flame jets.

The right arm is a fiery, exploding arm, and comes with the skill Phoenix Burst Strike.

The left arm is the left arm bone of the Fire Demon Bloodthirsty Claw, which comes with the skill Bloodthirsty Claw.

Her most powerful feature is her left leg, which must be the 100,000-year-old soul bone she obtained from hunting 100,000-year-old soul beasts. That Blood Soul Array technique originated from this soul bone.

These were Ma Xiaotao's belongings. She knew that even if she didn't do this, Yuwen Tuo and the others would still take her soul bones. Rather than have her body torn apart, she might as well offer them up herself, at least she could keep a whole corpse.

Yuwen Tuo stood up and said, "Jin Xuan, let her rest in peace."

"Yes, Master, about the tombstone..." Cao Jinxuan had no objections. After all, Ma Xiaotao had given him so much power, so it was only right that she be buried.

“There’s nothing particularly praiseworthy about her, but there’s no need to be derogatory either. Just write it normally,” Yuwentuo said.

Cao Jinxuan nodded, "Write normally, I understand!"

Nana also stepped forward to help, and with her assistance, a grave was soon erected in the mountains. The tombstone bore only five simple characters: "Grave of Ma Xiaotao".

The letter is hereby issued by Cao Jinxuan, a disciple of Yuwen Tuo, on behalf of his master!
Indeed, it's neither praise nor criticism.

(End of this chapter)