Chapter 110: Both Illusion and Reality

Time passed quickly during the confinement.

It seemed... a bit too quickly.

Ma Xiaotao, confused, was led out of her room by Yan Shaozhe, ending her year-long confinement.

She walked outside in a daze, still feeling the confusion stirring in her chest. Even though a year had passed, she still hadn't found an answer.

...But was this year really over too quickly? It wasn't that Ma Xiaotao particularly liked her time in confinement, but when she tried to recall what she had done over the past year... she felt like she hadn't done anything. Each day seemed to blur together, spent merely idly staring at the walls of her bedroom...

Her memories of this year felt fuzzy, almost like when people occasionally can't remember what they had for dinner last night... It also felt like time had been stolen from her.

Something felt off.

But when she thought carefully, she couldn't pinpoint any specific problem. Perhaps it was simply the dullness of being confined with nothing remarkable happening during that time? Ma Xiaotao absentmindedly scratched her head, finally giving up on thinking about it.

In reality, it was impossible for her to have spent an entire year in an illusion.

Wang Rui had wanted to test her reaction but never intended for her to be imprisoned for a year. He didn't have any eye techniques that could accelerate time, like some powerful soul masters. He merely muddled Ma Xiaotao's perception of time's passage, creating the illusion that a long time had passed, and filled her mind with images of confinement.

If Ma Xiaotao weren't so intuitive, she probably wouldn't have noticed the discrepancy right away.

After a series of tests, Yan Shaozhe finally brought his disciple back to his office.

The results from the tests showed that the evil aura in Ma Xiaotao's martial soul had subsided. It no longer surged with the intent to erupt like before, so it seemed that the year of confinement had been beneficial for her.

"You didn't rush to cultivate your soul power during this year, and the negative energy in your martial soul has calmed down quite a bit. The tendency for it to spiral out of control has been contained," Yan Shaozhe said, pleased. "You've always been too impatient. You need to remember that haste makes waste. You're already quite talented, so you shouldn't be reckless. I hope you've learned your lesson and remember not to be too greedy in your cultivation..."

Yan Shaozhe's chattering sounded like a fly buzzing. Ma Xiaotao was nodding absentmindedly, as though she wasn't really listening, her eyes glazed over.

"The Soul Master Academy's Soul Fighting Tournament will be starting soon. If you adjust your state, you can still make it... I hope you can be there before the top eight round and make your debut as a secret weapon."

This was Yan Shaozhe's compensation for locking up his disciple for a year.

Based on the evaluations, he believed that Ma Xiaotao's condition was stable and that she was ready for the competition.

Ma Xiaotao had always wanted to participate in the tournament. She had worked hard in her training to prepare for it. Under normal circumstances, hearing this news would have made her jump with joy, but now she seemed lost and staring blankly out of the window.

Yan Shaozhe's heart skipped a beat.

Could it be that the recent events had dealt a heavy blow to this child? He had wanted her to learn a lesson, but if it caused irreparable damage, that would defeat the purpose!

"Xiaotao, are you listening to me?" Yan Shaozhe asked, furrowing his brow.

"Mm," Ma Xiaotao muttered, still staring at her feet. "Nothing's wrong. I'll leave now."

She stood up and left without another word.

Yan Shaozhe couldn't sit still as he thought about what was happening.

He knew his adopted daughter's personality well.

Ma Xiaotao was young and innocent, her life almost entirely revolving around cultivation. She was at an age where the world seemed to be either black or white, with no room for gray areas. Plus, her personality was straightforward, not one to tolerate any nonsense... And it seemed like she hadn't moved on from the accident that happened a year ago. She still carried guilt in her heart.

This meant that she might act emotionally, making decisions that weren't in the best interest of the academy.

Yan Shaozhe had originally thought that the tournament would help distract her, but it seemed that she hadn't gotten past the recent events.

He couldn't just sit idly by.

...

Yan Shaozhe's guess about his adopted daughter's behavior was spot on. Ma Xiaotao, who acted quickly, was now standing in the academy's archives.

She was rushing around, a dark expression on her face, and the staff in the archives didn't dare stop her.

"Accident involving soul hunting?" she murmured as she looked at the file in her hands.

Only two students had left the academy around this time last year. It didn't take long for her to find their records, which also included their home addresses.

Ma Xiaotao temporarily pushed aside the question of whether she should continue cultivating. After her confinement ended, the first thing she wanted to do was visit the families of the two students, apologize, and try to make amends.

If she made a mistake, she would take responsibility for it. Ma Xiaotao wasn't the type of coward who would refuse to admit when she was wrong!

However, Shrek Academy had clearly not made the cause of the students' deaths public. No one in the outer academy knew that they had been killed by her own loss of control.

But the record was neatly written, without a single flaw.

"But this isn't right..." Ma Xiaotao gritted her teeth, dropping the file as she turned to leave, looking like a streak of crimson flame.

Right was right, wrong was wrong. The mistake she made was being covered up by the academy, and that felt like an insult to her, like a needle pricking the back of her neck.

Older people might find it hard to understand this mindset, but only the young, who haven't experienced much of the world, can be so fixated on right and wrong. It's similar to how young workers feel uneasy about taking paid breaks, as they haven't yet learned to relax in such situations. It's a kind of pure foolishness.

Maybe in a few years, Ma Xiaotao would be able to ignore the ghosts of those two students, but for now, she couldn't bring herself to do so.

All she could see were black and white, with no room for gray.

...This was probably what people meant by a headstrong young person.

So, when Yan Shaozhe found her, she was packing her things.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to visit the families of those two students," Ma Xiaotao said quietly.

"You're not going!" Yan Shaozhe's face went pale, nearly spitting up blood. He had known it—if the child was quiet, she was definitely up to something. "The academy has worked hard to suppress this matter. Why cause trouble? Put your things down!"

"I made a mistake, so I should take responsibility for it," Ma Xiaotao said, holding her neck high, refusing to lower her head.

The two of them argued, neither able to persuade the other. After all, Ma Xiaotao's personality was as stubborn as a mule. No one could change her mind once she set it.

Yan Shaozhe was so angry that he almost overturned the table. In a fit of frustration, he shouted, "Whether you're right or wrong, the academy cannot be wrong. Do you want to ruin the reputation of Shrek Academy, which has been built over thousands of years? Grow up, Ma Xiaotao! What's the point of going over there? All you'll do is give people more ammunition to attack us! Do you want everyone to think that the younger generation of Shrek's inner academy disciples are all crazy?"

Shrek's reputation had been maintained by generations of people. Though Yan Shaozhe loved his adopted daughter, in his heart, Shrek was more important than anything else.

Ma Xiaotao retorted, "Then fine, I'll just leave—"

"Smack!"

She was slapped, the sound echoing through the room.

Yan Shaozhe's face turned ashen. "What nonsense are you talking? You're confined! If you can't figure out what you did wrong, you're not leaving Sea God Island!"