A man from the Big Dipper, starting his charlatanship at Mount Tai.

Lin Xiu raised his hand and put the Chaos Qi elder, along with the previously seriously injured black-robed elder, into the Golden Battle Banner, to be retrieved from his memories later.

.......

Li Xiaoman stood in the center of the room, her black hair slightly disheveled and her white clothes stained with dust, but her eyes had regained their clarity.

Seeing the Dao Lord standing between heaven and earth, like a towering war god, Li Xiaoman took a deep breath, tidied her appearance, quickly walked to the Dao Lord, and respectfully bowed:

"Xiaoman greets Senior Daoist. Thank you for saving me. I will never forget this kindness and will do my utmost to repay it."

Although Li Xiaoman's voice was cold, her posture was exceptionally respectful.

After all, this is the renowned Dao Lord! A peerless powerhouse who suppressed the imperial weapons of other imperial clans!

"Pfft~........cough cough cough cough!"

Seeing Li Xiaoman's respectful attitude towards the Dao Master, Ye Fan almost burst out laughing. Fortunately, he also had the self-discipline of an actor and forced a cough to stop his laughter, although his shoulders still twitched a few times.

Chapter 165: Emerging from the tiger's den only to fall into the wolf's lair?

Dao Master? Senior?

Others might not know, but how could he not? This imposing and unfathomable "Dao Lord" is simply Lin Xiu's alternate account! A top-tier henchman that can be remotely controlled to put on a show!

Recalling the ups and downs of today, Ye Fan felt as if he had a mouthful of blood stuck in his chest.

Lin Xiu summoned him to meet his ex-girlfriend; he clearly had ulterior motives! What talk of meeting with the Ruthless Clan? He was obviously waiting to see him make a fool of himself, and using his "Ancient Sacred Body" as bait to lure in powerful figures from the Ruthless Clan!

Damn it! I got scammed again! Another embarrassing moment in my life!

This is not a place to stay for long. If we stay any longer, who knows what other tricks Lin Xiu will play on him.

Ye Fan made a quick decision, cupped his hands towards the golden armor, and spoke rapidly:

"Senior Dao Master, now that this matter is settled, I remember that the Holy Lord has entrusted me with important matters, so I will take my leave first!"

After saying that, he slipped away and turned to run away. His back view looked guilty and flustered.

The armor within the chaotic energy nodded slightly, and the Dao Lord's calm voice rang out:

"can."

Seeing that Lin Xiu agreed, Ye Fan felt as if he had been granted a pardon and slipped away even faster.

Lin Xiu watched Ye Fan flee like his tail was on fire through the armor, and chuckled to himself.

Well done.

Ye Fan is at least somewhat perceptive.

If he refuses to leave, the rest of the show will be quite difficult to act.

.......

Li Xiaoman didn't care about Ye Fan's departure.

Compared to her awkward ex-boyfriend, the Dao Lord before her, wielding an imperial weapon and possessing astonishing combat power, was her only hope at this moment. Only by relying on such a powerful figure could she truly escape the relentless pursuit of the Ruthless Clan.

She bowed gracefully, about to continue with some words of thanks, when the Dao Master spoke first.

"I am aware of the matter concerning the Ruthless lineage. If you have any requests, you may discuss them with the Holy Lord. I am merely the Holy Lord's protector and am not involved in specific matters."

"what?"

Li Xiaoman was stunned, a hint of surprise appearing on her usually cool face.

Holy Lord? Discuss with Holy Lord?

She subconsciously looked up, her gaze passing over the golden armor and landing on Lin Xiu, who had been standing quietly watching from behind.

She had always believed that the Dao Lord, whose strength had reached the Great Power realm and who wielded an Imperial Weapon, was the true ruler of the Tianxuan Holy Land. Although Lin Xiu was strong, he was young and most likely a Holy Son.

But now it seems that Lin Xiu is the Holy Lord of Tianxuan Holy Land? And this Dao Lord senior is just the Holy Lord's protector?

The Daoist Master seemed to sense her confusion and added:

"To be precise, Lin Xiu is the Supreme Holy Master of this sect, wielding great power over the Holy Land."

"As for me, I am merely a humble protector."

Li Xiaoman: "......"

Li Xiaoman opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say for a moment. She just felt that the way this senior Daoist Master spoke was somewhat familiar.

Before she could think it through, the Dao Master continued:

"In short, all matters here shall be handled by the Supreme Holy Lord. I have other important business to attend to, so I will take my leave."

As soon as he finished speaking, a complex void array instantly lit up, engulfing his figure. The next moment, the Dao Lord's figure completely disappeared, as if he had never existed.

Gone...gone? Just like that, gone so easily?

Li Xiaoman stared blankly ahead, somewhat lost. Had her greatest reliance and hope been so easily "handed over" to Lin Xiu?

After all that, we still have to deal with Lin Xiu?

Li Xiaoman turned her head, her cool gaze tinged with a hint of helplessness.

"Master Lin..."

Li Xiaoman bit her lower lip, lowering her posture even further than before.

Since the Dao Master had made it so clear, Li Xiaoman didn't hesitate any longer and immediately confronted Lin Xiu.

"Master Lin... Thank you so much for saving us today, along with Senior Daoist. Xiaoman and Senior Brother Hua are willing to offer up all the scriptures of the Ruthless Man's lineage that we obtained, only asking that you, Master, give us a place to stay and protect us."

This was the most valuable bargaining chip she could think of at the moment. The legacy of the Ruthless Great Emperor was enough to tempt any holy land.

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiu smiled slightly and shook his head.

"Young friend Li, you may have misunderstood."

"My actions were partly motivated by the desire to collect the ruthless man's scriptures to enrich my Holy Land's library. But the main reason... was for Ye Fan."

"what?"

"For Ye Fan?"

Li Xiaoman couldn't believe how this matter was related to Ye Fan. She had thought that Lin Xiu had simply called Ye Fan over to use him as bait.

"That's right, for Ye Fan."

Lin Xiu sighed, looking as if he had really put in a lot of effort.

"Li Xiaoman, do you know that in order to master the Devouring Heaven Demon Art, there is one crucial element that is indispensable?"

Li Xiaoman's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't expected Lin Xiu to address her as Li Xiaoman. After thinking for a few seconds, she replied:

"This junior has only mastered a portion of the ruthless secret techniques and has not been taught the core demonic arts. As for the key points... I do not know them in depth."

"Then I'll tell you."

"To achieve perfection, the Devouring Heaven Demon Art must devour the Ancient Sacred Body, whether it is alive or dead. In short, the essence of the Sacred Body is essential. This is also why that ruthless person's lineage wanted to take me as a disciple."

Li Xiaoman raised an eyebrow. Well, she did know about this. Hua Yunfei had indeed told her that if they wanted to fight against the Holy Son of Yao Guang, they had to deal with Ye Fan first.

"Master Lin, is the Holy Body really that special?" Li Xiaoman couldn't help but ask.

“Of course the Holy Body is special.” Lin Xiu nodded.

"Within the origin of the Holy Body lies the Great Dao code for recombining one's own advantageous genes, which can help the demonic art to be completely perfected, recombining countless origins and evolving chaos."

"Moreover, the purer the bloodline of the Holy Body, the better the effect of absorbing its origin to enrich one's own Great Dao code. That's why the Ruthless lineage is so obsessed with Ye Fan."

Li Xiaoman listened, but something felt off.

"Master Lin... why do you... know so much about the Ruthless Clan and the Devouring Heaven Demon Art?"

Li Xiaoman felt that Lin Xiu's understanding of the Devouring Heaven Demon Art had exceeded the cognitive scope expected of ordinary geniuses from holy lands. Even the lords of holy lands might not be able to know everything about the mysterious and unpredictable inheritances of ruthless individuals.

"why?"

Lin Xiu laughed heartily.

"Of course it's because I also cultivate the Devouring Heaven Demon Art?"

The next second, Lin Xiu slowly raised his hand, palm facing upwards, and a miniature black vortex gradually formed, emitting a strange Daoist aura that devoured and melted everything.

Li Xiaoman: "........."

Li Xiaoman's expression froze instantly, unsure of what to say.

She had always wanted to break free from the control of the ruthless lineage.

Now, she has finally managed to use the power of the Dao Lord to eliminate the ruthless branch of the Daoist sect.

She thought she had escaped a fiery pit and found a powerful backer. But then Lin Xiu told her... he also practiced the Devouring Heaven Demon Art!

What's going on in the cultivation world of Beidou? Is everyone secretly practicing the Devouring Heaven Demon Art?! Is this technique some kind of wildly popular cultivation method?!

Wait... Devouring Heaven Demon Art?

Li Xiaoman suddenly remembered that before he arrived in Beidou, Lin Xiu had "borrowed" blood from his classmates!

Both then and now, Li Xiaoman believed that Lin Xiu might have practiced some kind of evil cultivation technique that required blood.

Now it seems that Lin Xiu is clearly practicing the Devouring Heaven Demon Art!

However, even so, there was still one thing that Li Xiaoman didn't understand.

"Master Lin, are you sure you are cultivating the Devouring Heaven Demon Art? As far as I know, blood alone is not enough to support the cultivation of the Devouring Heaven Demon Art."

"Of course I cultivate the Devouring Heaven Demon Art. As for why it doesn't require an origin, I think you, Li Xiaoman, are not qualified to know... What do you think?"

Li Xiaoman: "........"

“What Master Lin said is true. Xiaoman did not intend to learn your unique method; she was just asking the question subconsciously.”

"Now that this matter is settled, Xiaoman will take you to see Senior Brother Hua and have him fulfill his promise to you and hand over all the ruthless cultivation techniques we have learned."

Li Xiaoman certainly had no intention of offending Lin Xiu; she only wanted to finalize her cooperation with Lin Xiu as soon as possible and seek his protection.

However, Lin Xiu waved his hand and said...

"No, no need."

“I have special means to bypass restrictions and obtain the scriptures and secret techniques that others use for cultivation.”

"So, I don't need you anymore."