562: Chapter 562 Testing

When it came to taking Revered Masters, Liu Xuan was a professional!

From Li Changsheng of the Red Pine Sect's Talisman Hall at the very beginning, to Ancestor Qingyun, Immortal Revered Master Xiao, Shen Yunshu, and eventually True Lord Haoran—all of them were his Revered Masters in name.

Among these people, some became his father-in-law, some became his Dao Companion, and others were refined by him into Puppets. The Revered Master-Disciple relationship was nothing more than a relationship of interest; he felt no psychological pressure about taking Daoist Lord Lihuo as his Revered Master.

"Good, good, good!" Daoist Lord Lihuo nodded with satisfaction. "The fire-attribute Cultivation Techniques you practice are relatively easy to convert. First, follow Xihe to Cultivate. Once your magic power has been successfully converted, this seat will pass on the complete Legacy of the Lihuo Lineage to you. How does that sound?"

"I shall follow Revered Master's orders in all things!" Liu Xuan said respectfully.

No matter what he said, Liu Xuan agreed to everything. Once Daoist Lord Lihuo headed to the Biyou Pool, whether he lived or died was uncertain. He would just perfunctorily deal with him for now; the priority was to send him away as quickly as possible.

Liu Xuan desperately wanted Daoist Lord Lihuo to leave the Star Academy quickly, but Daoist Lord Lihuo was in no rush. He was very satisfied with and curious about this new Disciple.

"This Star Array is quite interesting. Although I am not a Formation Great Master, I have studied many Formation legacies. Star Arrays are extremely rare. Where did you get this Formation Plate?"

Daoist Lord Lihuo led Liu Xuan into the Star Palace. A large hand of flame reached out from behind him, easily plucking at the starlight power runes that formed the Star Palace.

The Star Array was different from most grand arrays in the Southern Border. Other places mostly used Earth Vein Grand Arrays, where the Formation's rank was supported entirely by the rank of the Spiritual Veins and a massive army of Cultivators. The Star Array, however, utilized High Grade Formation Plates, with a quality one level higher than the Spiritual Veins.

A peak Tier 4 grand array Formation Plate, and a rare Star Array at that—if set up on a peak Tier 4 or Tier 5 Spiritual Vein, it would be enough to contend with a Soul Transformation Dao Monarch. This item was considered a treasure even to Daoist Lord Lihuo.

A Sect Grand Formation! As the most complex thing in the Cultivation World, it was the most common means for Cultivators to overcome higher-level opponents.

In the Soul Transformation Sects of relatively barren lands like the Western Desert and Northern Plains, some Sect Grand Formations could not even compare to the Star Array Liu Xuan had set up.

"This array is called the Circumference of Heaven Stars Grand Array. It was obtained by chance by the Peach Blossom Demon Lord. It also included a Tier 4 Formation Legacy and arrangement techniques. Seeing that I had quite the talent for Formations, the Peach Blossom Demon Lord taught it to me."

Liu Xuan lied through his teeth. Anything hard to explain was blamed on Peach Blossom. In any case, Peach Blossom was at the Biyou Pool. If Daoist Lord Lihuo wanted to press the matter, he could go to the Biyou Pool and ask her himself.

Daoist Lord Lihuo did not press further. He looked directly into Liu Xuan's eyes and said in a still-gentle tone, "Can you give the grand array's permissions to your Revered Master?"

The Star Array was everything to Liu Xuan. Daoist Lord Lihuo’s move was to test whether he was being honest with him.

Of course, besides testing Liu Xuan, he was also quite curious about the few places in the Liu residence that blurred his Divine Sense's investigation, wanting to use this chance to see if anything was hidden within.

The few decades of Liu Xuan's growth were too legendary. Without seeing things clearly, Daoist Lord Lihuo could not feel at ease.

"This..." Liu Xuan showed a look of hesitation and did not speak for a long time.

Daoist Lord Lihuo's expression remained unchanged, but his tone sank slightly. "What, are you unwilling?"

"I am willing! Naturally, your Disciple is willing!"

Liu Xuan opened his right hand toward the Star Palace hall, and the sky full of starlight converged into a jade plate.

"By refining this item with Divine Sense, one can simply control the Star Array. Please have a look, Revered Master!" Liu Xuan stepped forward a few paces and presented the starlight jade plate with both hands.

Daoist Lord Lihuo took the jade plate. Instead of rushing to refine it, he looked at Liu Xuan and asked indifferently, "What are you so nervous about?"

"Revered Master, forgive me!" Liu Xuan bowed with his hands clasped, then waved his hand to withdraw the concealment barrier of the underground yin fiend space. "I have been collecting yin fiends and using yin fiend ghost cultivation to practice Body Refining. This violates a major taboo of the Dao Court!"

"However, I guarantee that I and the entire Liu Family only use the yin fiends for Body Refining cultivation. We have absolutely not committed any acts of the Evil Path or Demonic Path. I ask Revered Master to investigate clearly!"

Daoist Lord Lihuo's Divine Sense swept underground. The yin fiends were dense, and there were indeed some Cultivators practicing within, as well as some low-level ghost Cultivators absorbing and exhaling Yin Qi.

Just as Liu Xuan said, the Cultivators inside were all Disciples of the Liu Family, likely practicing a special secret Body Refining technique.

Aside from the concentration of yin fiends being a bit high, there was nothing unusual about the underground yin fiend space.

The ten thousand soul banner, the avici karmic fire mirror, the Nine Heavens Thunder Pool, as well as You Ming and You Ruo had all disappeared.

"yin fiends are evil things after all, and Body Refining is but a minor path. Do not mess with these things in the future!" Daoist Lord Lihuo rebuked him verbally, but he didn't actually care in his heart.

A Dao Court taboo? What did the Dao Court have to do with his Beast Taming Sect?!

The so-called Dao Court rules only worked in the Central Plains. This was the Southern Border; never mind using yin fiends for cultivation, even establishing a ghost cultivation Sect wouldn't be much of an issue.

Daoist Lord Lihuo's Divine Sense entered the jade plate in his hand. A moment later, his Divine Sense merged into the Star Array, instantly spreading across the entire Formation.

Liu Xuan's pupils contracted slightly. His previous nervousness was faked, but now it was real!

He wasn't nervous about Daoist Lord Lihuo seeing any secrets, but worried that this old fellow might suddenly attack.

If Daoist Lord Lihuo made any unusual move, he would forcibly take back control of the Star Array and then use every means at his disposal to give him a vicious blow before deciding whether to stay or flee based on the situation.

Because he was prepared to flee at any moment and had predicted Daoist Lord Lihuo's arrival in advance, the moment Liu Xuan sensed the Dao Lord's aura, he had stored all critical items into the Small World within his body, including his original true body!

What stood here now was merely an Incarnation formed from Essence Blood, which was why he felt safe letting Daoist Lord Lihuo's Divine Sense investigate. His Bloodline rank had also been thinned to only Tier 4 High Grade.

Even if he opened the array's barrier, Daoist Lord Lihuo would not see any secret information; at most, he would only see some unimportant things.

However! A Dao Lord's mind was hard to fathom. Not seeing any secret information didn't mean the old fellow wouldn't strike.

What Liu Xuan feared was him attacking without reason. If it came to that, he could only fight for his life!

When it truly came time to fight for his life, killing Daoist Lord Lihuo was unrealistic, but Liu Xuan was somewhat confident he could injure him slightly or heavily enough to scare him off.

Liu Xuan's Puppet Incarnation in the direction of the Black Death Marsh was already contacting the Ghost King Lianyue. If things went wrong, he would immediately move to the Black Death Marsh to take refuge.

Although Ghost King Lianyue was also not to be trusted, she was more reliable than Daoist Lord Lihuo. If all else failed, he would just let her suck a few mouthfuls of Yang Qi as previously planned.

The worst-case scenario did not happen. After Daoist Lord Lihuo's Divine Sense swept the entire Star Array, he returned the starlight jade plate to Liu Xuan and smiled gently. "Your Revered Master was just interested in a grand array that controls starlight power; I wouldn't actually steal your things!"

"Go on and attend to your business! This seat will rest in this Star Palace for a few days," Daoist Lord Lihuo said with a wave of his hand.

"As you command!"

Liu Xuan bowed and retreated. Just as he turned around, Daoist Lord Lihuo's voice rang out again.

"Do not spread the news of my arrival. Your Revered Master has his own plans."