by Translator: Pokka; Author: 我本纯洁 (I Am Pure); Licensed From: Migu
His immediate surroundings turned into a sea of lightning. Even as the sin dragon suffered immense pain from the lightning rain, Xiang Shaoyun attacked with saber intent, slashing through the sin dragon's scales.
The attack drove the sin dragon mad, and the dragon roared, "Damnable human! I will bury you here!"
With a roar, he unleashed a massive amount of sin vicious energy from his body—a type of energy unique to sin dragons. The energy was terrifying, and anyone who touched it would immediately rot away and die. The sin vicious energy spread everywhere, forcing Shang Jifeng and Lady Shura to retreat even farther away.
Shang Jifeng shouted a reminder, "Young Master Xiang, watch out for the sin vicious energy! Don't get in contact with it!"
The reminder seemed to have fallen into deaf ears, as Xiang Shaoyun shrouded himself with lightning energy, making him look like a god of lightning immune to all poison. Before the sin vicious energy could even approach him, the silver lightning power destroyed it. Xiang Shaoyun was completely unharmed.
Sin Dragon's Somersault!
When the sin dragon saw that his sin vicious energy was ineffective, he was forced to use his trump card. He somersaulted, sending wave after wave of black energy toward Xiang Shaoyun. The waves of energy displayed a shocking power, destroying a large majority of Xiang Shaoyun's lightning energy.
Xiang Shaoyun raised his brow and immediately pushed his defenses to the maximum. It was at that moment that the waves jolted him away and rotted all his defenses.
Fortunately, he had been able to erect his defenses in time. If the black energy had come in contact with his body, he would have likely suffered greatly. Of course, the sin dragon would not stop at that. He continued attacking, sending waves of black energy that blasted at Xiang Shaoyun like a tornado.
"Trying to kill me with just this? Dream on!" Xiang Shaoyun flickered around without stop, and after finally avoiding the incoming attack, he counterattacked.
In his fury, his killing intent surged as boundless lightning energy converged around him. His saber slashes flew everywhere. He swung his saber again and again, sending out numerous saber intents and summoning a massive amount of lightning energy. Both were capable of destroying everything in their paths.
Rumble! Rumble!
The entire marsh seemed to have been turned upside down by the bombardment of attacks. The sight of the mighty Xiang Shaoyun filled the entirety of Shang Yafang's heart. Growing up, the person she worshiped most was her elder brother. In her memories, her elder brother was the genius of geniuses that nobody could compare with.
But now, it seemed like her elder brother was incomparable to Xiang Shaoyun. It was no wonder her elder brother respected Xiang Shaoyun so much. With the saber energies and lightning bolts flooding the sin vicious energy out of the marsh, the battle's result was already obvious.
When everything settled, Xiang Shaoyun could be seen hovering in the air. He was completely unharmed, while the sin dragon was filled with wounds. The sin dragon's head was nowhere to be seen, and his corpse was in the midst of falling from the sky.
Xiang Shaoyun waved his hands around as he started controlling the sin dragon's fall. At this time, Shang Jifeng, Lady Shura, and the others approached him.
"Young Master Xiang, truly amazing. You killed the sin dragon with only a few attacks," praised Shang Jifeng.
Shang Yafang also flew over, her eyes glistening as she said, "Big Brother Shaoyun is so amazing and strong!"
Xiang Shaoyun smiled. "Jifeng, you are strong enough to do the same as well. You should really stop hiding your strength."
"No, if I fought that dragon, I would only have 50-percent confidence in winning. I won't be able to win as easy as you did," said Shang Jifeng honestly.
"Alright. I'll be keeping this corpse on me for now. When we find more sin dragons, you guys can attack. I will keep watch," said Xiang Shaoyun as he stowed the sin dragon corpse.
Once again, the group set off. In the coming three days, they weren't as lucky. Instead of finding sin dragons, they ended up being chased by some poisonous beasts. They looked rather sorry, constantly escaping from the beasts.
Shang Yafang was able to see how terrifying the beasts could be, and her horizons expanded. At the same time, she also started tempering herself by personally fighting when they encountered Demon Kings. She was doing her best to increase her strength.
Shang Jifeng was gratified to see this change in his sister's behavior. After all, Shang Yafang had grown up sheltered. She had never witnessed much cruelty, and if that continued, it wouldn't be beneficial for her growth.
After a few more days, they finally found two sin dragons who were respectively killed by Shang Jifeng and Lady Shura. After killing three sin dragons, their mission was complete.
By now, they should return. Shang Yafang couldn't hold back her curiosity and asked, "Big brother, I heard that there's a Sin Dragon Pond in the Nisha Range. There, you can find sin dragon vines, a type of sovereign-grade herb. There is also a concentration of sin dragon energy there. It helps hasten the formation of your draconic aura. Why don't we go take a look there?"
"There's such a place?" Xiang Shaoyun was astonished.
Shang Jifeng smiled bitterly and said, "Yes, but that place is important to the sin dragons and is guarded by Sovereign sin dragons. If we go, it's no different from suicide."
Chapter 651: Honor the Young Sect Master
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.
Chapter 652: Sin Dragon Pond
Seven days passed in a flash. Xiang Shaoyun had spent the past seven days traveling within the Nisha Range, and apart from encountering some beast attacks, he had also gathered some herbs. He treated the trip as a tempering expedition.
Money had also been released to the outside world, preventing him from lazing about in the astral cosmos sea all day long. In fact, Money's realm was now above Xiang Shaoyun's, and he was capable of doing many things himself.
After traveling for seven days, Xiang Shaoyun finally arrived near the Sin Dragon Pond, and he started seeing the occasional sin dragons moving about. A lot of them were Demon Kings, while some were Demon Emperors.
Fortunately, they did not normally reside together. Otherwise, it wouldn't be easy for Xiang Shaoyun to sneak into their territory. There were two particular times when he and Money encountered the attacks of two powerful sin dragons. Both times, he was so frightened he immediately turned invisible while Money turned tiny again. That was how they had survived the sin dragons.
Near the Sin Dragon Pond, Xiang Shaoyun felt like he was walking on thin ice. Each step he took further increased the nervousness he was feeling.
Soon, he found a hidden location where he could hide. The smell on him completely vanished, and he even managed to get some sin dragon's smell on him. He had obtained the scent from the sin dragon he had killed earlier. By covering his smell, he prevented the sin dragons from smelling him while he was concealed.
It was a trick he had learned from an ancient text he had once read, and it was rather practical to use. And in such a manner, he was able to avoid detection. Often, the sin dragons were able to smell some faint sin dragon smell. They had assumed that the smell was something they had left behind, so none of them placed much thought into what they had just smelled.
Xiang Shaoyun had managed to make use of knowledge he had learned from a book, displaying the benefit of reading a lot of books.
The sin dragon aura is getting really thick here. So where is the pond exactly? thought Xiang Shaoyun as he spread out the senses of his Nether Soul Domain.
Everything in his surroundings appeared in his mind, allowing him to observe them with clear clarity. Soon, he sensed that above a nearby mountain was a lake exuding thick vicious energy. The energy was so dense it was hard to see the lake clearly. There were also numerous tiny sin dragons fighting each other around the lake.
Evidently, the lake was the so-called Sin Dragon Pond. About a dozen powerful sin dragons were hovering above the peak. Even the weakest of them was a peak Demon Emperor. The nearer a sin dragon was to the pond, the stronger it was. As for those nearest the pond, they were absolutely Demon Sovereigns. There were also a few spots where he couldn't sense properly, and there might be even stronger sin dragons at those spots.
Xiang Shaoyun was fearful as he thought, No wonder Jifeng was so serious when he was warning me. This is most definitely a place laden with danger. It won't take me long to rush over to the pond. The issue is how I can get some sin dragon energy and escape smoothly.
The sin dragon energy was impure due to the large amount of sin vicious energy within it. Purifying the energy wasn't so easy either. A lot of people had obtained the sin dragon energy but had gotten themselves killed after failing to purify it.
Thus, Xiang Shaoyun considered collecting a portion of sin dragon energy into his astral cosmos sea. But after some thought, he decided it was unfeasible. After separating from the Sin Dragon Pond, the sin dragon energy would start dissipating. The astral cosmos sea would not be able to keep it around for long. It was even more impossible to store the entire Sin Dragon Pond into his astral cosmos sea. He was not strong enough for that.
My only option is to stay in the pond for some time and absorb as much as I can, decided Xiang Shaoyun.
With his current strength, he coul
d stay invisible for an hour. That was far from enough time to absorb a large amount of sin dragon energy and purify it. But he did not have too many options left. He had reached this place risking his life for the sake of the sin dragon energy. He definitely couldn't return empty handed.
Having made up his mind, Xiang Shaoyun turned invisible as Money hid on his skin to turn invisible as well. He then rushed straight toward the pond. He was quite far away, but with his speed, he was able to arrive quickly.
He could sense the sin dragon energy in the pond, and it gave him goosebumps. Fortunately, he had tempered his flesh greatly and could block the energy outside his body. Any other person would not be able to adapt to such an environment and would be forced to block the energy with their own astral energy.
Xiang Shaoyun scanned his surroundings, looking at the small sin dragons fighting each other around him. They displayed a ferocity far surpassing that of regular demonic beasts. Since sin dragons were hard to tame due to their ferocious nature, nobody bothered turning them into mounts.
Xiang Shaoyun did not have the time to think too much. Just as he was about to dive into the pond, half a sin dragon head emerged from the pond. The sight turned his entire body cold.
The newly emerged sin dragon was staring right in his direction. From the complicated runes on its head, it was obvious this sin dragon was terrifyingly powerful. It could very well be a peak Demon Sovereign. A sin dragon at this level could probably kill him with a flick of its tongue. He had an urge to flee, but he stayed rooted, not daring to budge.
Please don't notice me! Please don't notice me! Xiang Shaoyun prayed inwardly.
Sure enough, the sin dragon had not noticed Xiang Shaoyun. Once again, the head submerged into the pond. At that, Xiang Shaoyun heaved a breath of relief and quickly moved to the other side of the pond, getting as far as possible from that sin dragon. He headed toward the other end of the pond, preparing to go enter from there. But there, he found numerous ferocious vines growing at the pond's shore. The vines were filled with thorns, and any carelessness would cause one to be pierced.