Xiang Shaoyun's interest was piqued, and he asked, "Where is the Sin Dragon Pond?"

"Young Master Xiang, you can't be thinking of going there, right?" Shang Jifeng asked anxiously.

"Hehe, I think so," said Xiang Shaoyun with a smile.

"Young Master Xiang, I know you're strong. Not to mention the Sovereign Realm, you still have quite a distance from the peak Emperor Realm. Or are you thinking that you will be able to survive the Sin Dragon Pond with your nether prison devil puppet? I suggest you forget that. Not even Uncle Chen can easily survive that place," said Shang Jifeng.

Xiang Shaoyun gave it some thought before saying, "I am not so arrogant to believe I can fight a Sovereign. But I have a way of hiding myself. Not even Sovereigns can detect me. That is why I wanted to go take a look. Even if I'm discovered, I will be able to escape unscathed. Just tell me the location."

Shang Jifeng had no choice but to tell Xiang Shaoyun the location.

"Young Master Xiang, you really shouldn't push yourself regarding this," Shang Jifeng advised again.

"Don't worry. I won't joke around with my life. You guys return to the academy first. Don't keep our brothers worried," said Xiang Shaoyun.

And thus, Shang Jifeng, Shang Yafang, and Lady Shura left. After all, the Sin Dragon Pond was a dangerous location. They wouldn't be much help, and it was impractical to use the Shang Clan's Sovereigns to help. It was a matter of principle. Because of that, they had no reason to remain.

Once the others left, Xiang Shaoyun summoned Winter Frost and Summer Flame. After a few days of recuperation, the two had recovered considerably. When they first sensed Xiang Shaoyun's summon, they ignored him. But the moment Xiang Shaoyun chanted the curse, they started rolling about in pain as if they had gone mad. It was a pain that their strength couldn't negate. Ultimately, they were forced to answer the summon obediently.

"Do you want to escape? Too bad that is no longer possible," said Xiang Shaoyun with a sneer.

"I'll kill you!" roared Summer Flame, who had a rash temper. He attempted to quickly kill Xiang Shaoyun before he could muster a reaction.

But the moment the thought surfaced in his mind, something in his soul was triggered, putting him in the same immense suffering yet again.

By the side, Winter Frost, who saw everything, broke out in cold sweat and said, "Y-young sect master, please spare Old Summer. He won't dare harbor the same thought in the future."

"How about you? Will you harbor the same thought?" questioned Xiang Shaoyun.

Winter Frost quickly waved his hands. "No! I will definitely not harbor such thoughts! In the future, we will honor the young sect master!"

He knelt down on one knee, swearing fealty to Xiang Shaoyun. As for Summer Flame, the torture had destroyed all his anger. He quickly begged for forgiveness, "Young sect master, s-spare me, please! I won't dare to repeat my mistake!"

Only then did Xiang Shaoyun lift the torture. He said, "After both of you fell under my control, I am able to sense any thoughts you have. I can will for the destruction of your souls at any time."

He wasn't threatening them with lies, and they could also sense the intense murderous intent deep in their souls. The realization made them break out in cold sweat. They were both old geezers who had lived for over 2,000 years. After the many things they had experienced, they should possess a wit surpassing many other people.

And yet they had both fallen under the control of a young Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator like Xiang Shaoyun. The fact that they had no way of resisting caused their hearts to grow cold. This young man was already so heaven-defying at such an age. It simply signified that it was only a matter of time before he regained the Ziling Sect.

"Now tell me about the sect and Di Batian," said Xiang Shaoyun after sitting down. The two obeyed and told him everything they knew. As he listened to the changes within the sect all these years, his heart filled with bitterness.

Under Di Batian's lead, the internal disturbances of the sect had been eliminated. The entire sect was now firmly under Di Batian's control, while the senior members who refused to obey had either been executed or banished. The sect was now akin to his personal kingdom.

One could say that the present Ziling Sect was no longer the Ziling Sect of the past. In fact, Di Batian was even considering changing the sect's name.

Upon hearing that, Xiang Shaoyun raged, "Di Batian, you old dog! A day will come when I harvest your head and feed it to the dogs."

Growing up, Di Batian was the uncle he respected most. Only upon the betrayal did he realize that this uncle was a wolf in sheep's clothing. From then on, he had developed an utmost hatred toward this uncle.

Xiang Shaoyun also learned that Di Batian had recently gathered a large number of people for an expedition in the Dragon Phoenix Mountain Range. They were preparing to explore the recently discovered underground palace.

Originally, Winter Frost and Summer Flame were supposed to join them as well. A sneer formed on Xiang Shaoyun's face as he thought, Di Batian, I will ensure you suffer a great loss from this expedition.

Without any hesitation, he sent Winter Frost and Summer Flame to Dragon Phoenix Mountain Range so that they could gather more information for him. The two did not dare to disobey and did as told.

Xiang Shaoyun hesitated whether he should go as well and observe what was going on before reacting accordingly. But after some thought, he decided to first pay the Sin Dragon Pond a visit since sin dragon energy could be found there. Sin dragon energy was, in truth, a kind of impure draconic energy. After purifying it, one would be able to grow one's draconic aura and improve one's strength.

Xiang Shaoyun's plan was to borrow the sin dragon energy and reach the second-stage Dragon Ascension Realm before doing anything else. His lightning and gold stars had reached perfection for his current level, whereas his other stars had never stopped working hard gathering energy. All his stars were now near perfection for his level, and it was time for him to break through.

Since a shortcut was possible, he naturally decided to take some risk and give it a try. The nether prison devil puppet wasn't the reason why he was so courageous. Rather, it was because of his trait of invisibility. His plan was to sneak into the Sin Dragon Pond and get what he needed undetected.

After making up his mind, Xiang Shaoyun headed toward the Sin Dragon Pond according to Shang Jifeng's directions.

Along the way, he exercised extreme caution and made use of the Nether Soul Domain to sense everything ahead of him. He only advanced when he was sure there was no danger awaiting him. Even so, some demonic beasts good at concealment still caught him by surprise, and they nearly inflicted heavy injuries on him.