Desolate Devouring Art-Chapter 931 - Scheme

Like two sharp swords, Liu Wuxie's gaze pierced into Liu Lin's eyes.

Before Liu Lin could react, two golden imprints shot into his eyes, heading straight to his soul sea. The golden imprints were the Conversion Art Liu Wuxie had comprehended, drawn directly from the pool of faith.

Liu Lin only felt a searing pain in his soul sea before his consciousness gradually faded away.

The onlookers in the surroundings had no idea what had happened. They assumed that Liu Wuxie wanted to kill Liu Lin.

They gradually lost their interest and began to leave.

After about five breaths, most of the onlookers had left, with only a few left behind.

When Liu Lin slowly opened his eyes, the murderous intent had vanished, replaced with reverence and devotion. He looked at Liu Wuxie like he was gazing upon a divine being, ready to kneel and worship at any moment.

When the Conversion Art infiltrated Liu Lin's soul sea, Liu Wuxie immediately sensed a figure forming within the pool of faith—it was Liu Lin himself, sitting in the pool with unwavering devotion. Streams of faith force flowed steadily into the pool, directed entirely toward Liu Wuxie.

Most importantly, Liu Wuxie realized with a single thought that he could erase Liu Lin's figure from the pool. If he did, Liu Lin would die instantly. This meant that Liu Lin's life no longer belonged to him from that moment onward.

Liu Lin stood before Liu Wuxie like a loyal servant awaiting his master's orders.

"Tell me, who visited Liu Sheng yesterday?" Liu Wuxie asked.

He had noticed the drastic change in Liu Sheng's aura after their encounter, and it was clear something significant had taken place the night before.

"Master, a black figure came to look for Liu Lin last night, but I don't know what they discussed," Liu Lin said.

His actions shocked the bystanders, who were still lingering nearby.

Everyone turned to look at Liu Wuxie with fear in their eyes. "Did Liu Lin just address Liu Wuxie as 'master'? What did Liu Wuxie do to him?"

"It's probably a soul-controlling technique that allowed him to control Liu Lin. Liu Lin will recover once it wears off," a disciple speculated with an eye roll.

Through the pool of faith, Liu Wuxie could sense that Liu Lin wasn't lying. Even Liu Sheng hadn't seen the black figure's face last night.

"Go and find Liu Xiaotian's whereabouts for me. Establish contact with him immediately," Liu Wuxie said. He didn't kill Liu Lin as he could still use him.

Although Liu Lin had been converted into Liu Wuxie's devotee, he was still Liu Xiaotian's grandson, which made him a valuable pawn. Liu Wuxie hoped to uncover more information on the Golden Cauldron Pavilion through Liu Xiaotian.

Aside from submitting to Liu Wuxie, Liu Lin retained his independent thoughts as a person.

"Yes, Master!" Liu Lin bowed and left, not daring to disobey Liu Wuxie.

After watching him depart, Liu Wuxie turned his gaze toward the distant sky. During his battle with Liu Sheng, he had clearly sensed a malicious presence. Someone had been observing him, trying to probe his cultivation from afar.

He was certain that the source of the malicious gaze was the mastermind behind Liu Sheng.

"Miao Hanxuan!" Liu Wuxie thought of a person and was almost sure it was Miao Hanxuan.

Sadly, he had no evidence, as there were plenty of people who wanted him dead in the academy, such as the Profound Cloud Sect or the Scarlet Dragon Cult's disciples.

Threats were more deadly if they remained hidden, and what troubled him the most was the Soaring Bloom Order. The Black Plume Pavilion had never failed in their assassination, and his odds of survival were slim against such a colossal force.

He had to make a breakthrough quickly to reach the Spirit Profound Realm. Only then could he contend with experts at the Earth Profound Realm.

Based on his current cultivation, facing someone at the pinnacle of the Spirit Profound Realm was already his limit. Moreover, the enemies he had faced so far hadn't fully mastered multiple dao techniques.

He knew the top three on the Mortal Ranking were disciples of the Myriad Phase Cavern, who wielded multiple dao techniques and could fight those above their cultivation.

With Liu Sheng's death, the Mortal Ranking changed again, and Liu Wuxie was now in third place.

"Look! The Mortal Ranking for the top three ranks has changed for the first time in five years!" someone cried out.

The top three ranks on the Mortal Ranking had remained unshaken for half a decade, yet someone had finally broken the stalemate.

Crowds gathered in front of the monument where the Mortal Ranking was displayed, murmurs growing louder.

"Who is this, Liu Wuxie? Does he have a death wish to outrank Lei Yao?" roared a disciple at the pinnacle of the True Profound Realm when he watched Lei Yao fall to the fourth place.

"Go and inform Lei Yao about it!" voices rang out as disciples rushed off to deliver the news, eager to see how Lei Yao would respond—would he accept the change quietly, or challenge Liu Wuxie to reclaim his position?

After killing Liu Sheng, Liu Wuxie returned to the Heavenly Gate Peak with Han Feizi.

His three senior brothers' injuries had stabilized after receiving treatment, but their eyes were dull, and their spirits were wounded. Their defeat had left a scar on their hearts.

"Senior Brothers, I already know what happened. Tell me everything if you trust me, and we'll strike back within five days at most," Liu Wuxie said in a grave tone. Only they could resolve the knot in their hearts.

Even if he avenged them, the wound would linger. The only way to truly erase the scar was for them to redeem themselves through their own strength.

"Junior Brother, it's not that we don't trust you. It's our fault that we're not strong enough," Yu Zhibai said with a bitter smile. The pill from Liu Wuxie had already stabilized his soul sea.

Jiang Le sighed as they had been making swift progress since they could finally cultivate, reaching the fifth-level True Profound Realm in six months. Not only had they reclaimed five years' worth of lost cultivation, but they had even surpassed their peers.

Only Shen Rong looked unwilling to accept the loss.

"If I'm not wrong, you three fell into a trap. Try your best to recall what happened during the fight," Liu Wuxie said, looking at his three senior brothers.

Jiang Le possessed an extra meridian in his legs, granting him unmatched combat strength against cultivators of the same realm. Yu Zhibai's soul energy was exceptionally powerful and only a few could rival him in that field. And Shen Rong carried the legendary Kunpeng bloodline, placing him on par with true dragons in terms of physique.

With such formidable talents, their defeat made little sense—there had to be something they hadn't noticed.

"I remember now!" Jiang Le suddenly stood up, realization flashing in his eyes. "Our opponents were weaker than us at first, but then their strength spiked all of a sudden!"

He hadn't thought much of it at the time and had assumed they were simply concealing their strength. But with Liu Wuxie's prompting, he began to sense that something had been off all along.

"Second Senior Brother, how did your opponent defeat you with his soul energy?" Liu Wuxie asked.

"I'm not sure. At first, I had the upper hand, but his soul energy suddenly changed, with illusions appearing before me out of nowhere. That's when he beat me," Yu Zhibai recalled.

"And you, Third Senior Brother?" Liu Wuxie nodded and turned to look at Shen Rong.

"My case is different. The one who defeated me also possessed an ancient bloodline with super strength," Shen Rong explained. His opponent was someone who possessed the giant stag's bloodline.

Though the giant stag clan had declined, they had once flourished in ancient times.

With this, Liu Wuxie was certain that his three senior brothers were targeted.

"The enemies clearly studied all three of you beforehand," Liu Wuxie said, his voice calm but sharp. "The one who defeated First Senior Brother must have known that your strength lies in footwork techniques. That's why he used a spear."

The logic was simple: the longer the weapon, the greater the range and advantage it offered in combat. Judging by Jiang Le's injuries, it was obvious he had been wounded by a spear.

"A long weapon like that would be perfect to counter your footwork," Liu Wuxie continued. Though he hadn't witnessed the battle himself, he had pieced it together from their accounts with startling accuracy.

Not everyone at the True Profound Realm could execute dao techniques like Liu Wuxie, capable of striking down enemies from a distance of a few hundred meters.

His three senior brothers had recently reached the True Profound Realm and had not yet learned any spirit-grade martial techniques, let alone dao techniques. This meant they could only rely on their martial techniques to fight.

"The one who defeated Second Senior Brother must have cultivated a soul technique," Liu Wuxie continued, his tone sharp with clarity. "But his soul energy was clearly weaker than yours. That means someone must have helped him from the shadows, creating illusions, which is why you lost."

When he heard this, Yu Zhibai shot to his feet, fury flashing across his face.

"Junior Brother, what about me then?" Shen Rong asked. His two senior brothers were set up, but he had lost in a frontal fight.

"Your case is a little more complicated. I've never encountered the giant stag bloodline before, and I can't make any judgment about it. But based on the other two cases, it's clear we're being targeted," Liu Wuxie replied.

The giant stag bloodline was too rare, and Shen Rong wasn't a descendant of Kunpeng. His ancestor had only refined a blood essence belonging to Kunpeng, which was passed down to him.

"This is outrageous!" Yu Zhibai roared, his face flashing with murderous intent.

"Junior Brother, what should we do now? I can't take this lying down!" Shen Rong rose to his feet.

He could've accepted the outcome if they had lost in a fair fight, but not like this. The results had been manipulated, and that was a humiliation he couldn't ignore.

"We'll return the favor—with interest," Liu Wuxie replied with a cruel smile.

He was grateful that his senior brothers cared for him, and he wouldn't stand by now that they were being bullied.

"Junior Brother, just tell us what we have to do next," Yu Zhibai said, grabbing onto Liu Wuxie's shoulders.

They were willing to do anything as long as they could defeat their opponents.