Mu Qingyu was someone who had reached the Dragon Ascension Realm before 30 years old. This was a showcase of remarkable talent. In the past, he had fought Feng Xiaosha once and had only suffered a slight defeat by a single move. Since then, he had become Feng Xiaosha's follower. In fact, he was also one of the Dragon Phoenix Academy's special-recruit disciples.

He cultivated the powers of wood and flame, possessing an outstanding combat prowess. He also had a powerful unique flame within him, a flame that allowed him to ignite the chains in the Imperial Nether Prison. Xiang Shaoyun was astonished, but he wasn't the least bit anxious.

"Qingyu, save me!" Wang Xin begged for help. Mu Qingyu did not give up on his companion. He shot several flaming beams from his finger and freed Wang Xin from the chains as well.

"Xiang Shaoyun, if you know what's good for you, release us. It will benefit all of us. Otherwise, you will suffer alongside us!" said Mu Qingyu coldly.

When he saw how calm Xiang Shaoyun was, he gave up on his thought to immediately attack. The calmness was proof that his opponent did not fear his flame.

Beside him, Wang Xin was furious. "What's the point of talking to him? Just kill him!"

"Haha, if he is really capable of doing so, he wouldn't have bothered trying to intimidate me," Xiang Shaoyun roared with laughter. "I wanted to kill both of you, but I've changed my mind. Both of you shall submit to me."

He started chanting his curse, sending numerous ancient symbols flying through the air toward the two. At the same time, numerous chains shot out once again and tied Wang Xin up. As for Mu Qingyu, he was already on guard. He reacted immediately and unleashed the green flame within his body, burning everything in his surroundings.

"The Nether Soul Domain might be scary, but it is still something formed of soul power. Therefore, a power of extreme yang like my flame is its nemesis. I refuse to believe you can resist my flame!" shouted Mu Qingyu confidently.

Sure enough, his green flame destroyed the ancient symbols and chains. At the same time, Mu Qingyu charged Xiang Shaoyun's soul body.

"Perish!" Mu Qingyu shouted as he slashed forward with his flaming saber, creating a tiger-shaped green flame that furiously bit at Xiang Shaoyun's soul body.

There was no mistake in Mu Qingyu's judgment. Unfortunately for him, he was unaware of the ghostrunes that also lived in the Nether Soul Domain. His failure was already predetermined. Before his attack could even reach Xiang Shaoyun, he felt his soul under attack, assaulting him with intense pain.

It was at that instant that the attack he had launched crumbled. He had to prioritize guarding his soul. Otherwise, he would be in deep trouble. Like the heart, one's soul was also vital for survival. The moment it was destroyed, there was no hope of survival.

Alas, he was completely incapable of guarding against the incoming soul attacks. Even though he was a Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator whose soul had already taken form, he couldn't resist the attacks. At the same time, Xiang Shaoyun took the chance to chant his curse again. One ancient symbol after another drifted through the air and entered Mu Qingyu's head, branding his soul.

Mu Qingyu was already having a hard time dealing with the attacks from the ghostrunes, and with the invasion of the ancient symbols, his defense nearly crumbled apart. On the brink of collapse, he begged, "Spare me! I am willing to submit!"

He was afraid that his soul would be erased just like that. If he allowed that to happen, he would die a complete death. Xiang Shaoyun ignored him and continued chanting. Not far away, the tied up Wang Xin felt a chill down his spine. He struggled repeatedly, unleashing an unending torrent of gold energy in hope of escaping his predicament. Unfortunately, all his struggles bore no result.

"Damn it! What to do? What to do?" Wang Xin cursed anxiously. Before he could think of anything, Mu Qingyu's defense finally crumbled apart. A brand was etched deep into his soul.

"Ahhhh!"

Xiang Shaoyun continued chanting, giving Mu Qingyu a sensation that countless needles were stabbing into his head, causing Mu Qingyu to wail miserably. The wails were so miserable that Wang Xin felt his legs go limp in fear.

"Xiang Shaoyun, release me, or I will self-destruct by exploding my body! I refuse to believe your Nether Soul Domain can survive the explosion!" Wang Xin was left with no choice but to issue such a threat.

"Ignorant," Xiang Shaoyun replied with disdain. It was then Wang Xin's turn to enjoy Mu Qingyu's treatment. And just like that, two special-recruits of the Dragon Phoenix Academy became Xiang Shaoyun's subordinate.

Done with subduing them, Xiang Shaoyun removed the Nether Soul Domain and heaved a breath of relief as he muttered, "The Nether Soul Domain fears the flames of extreme yang the most. This is a fatal weakness. Looks like I have to temper it with Yun Flame in the future. Perhaps I will get a pleasant surprise out of it."

He then looked at Mu Qingyu and Wang Xin, who were prostrating on the ground like stray dogs. With a grin on his face, he said, "I am now your master. Understand?"

The two no longer dared to resist as they replied weakly, "Yes, master."

"Very well. I have some soul spring liquid here. Consume them and heal up before returning to Feng Xiaosha's side. As for how to explain what happened here, think of something yourself. Oh, don't let me sense any malice toward me. I can kill you with a single thought," said Xiang Shaoyun as he gave the two a drop of soul spring each.

After the repeated tortures, the two were greatly frightened of him. They did not dare to show any disloyalty. In this situation, they couldn't even commit suicide if they wanted. That was how scary the Nether Dragon Soul Headband's control was.

Xiang Shaoyun had no intention to stay any longer. After retrieving the storage rings of the five he killed, he refined a large amount of spirit stones to regain his energy before resuming his travels toward the Dragon Phoenix Academy. After a few days of continuous battles, he had a sensation that he could no longer suppress his strength. He was going to break through to the next stage anytime soon. In fact, if it wasn't for the armor he wore suppressing him, he would have broken through by now.

However, he was very grateful that he had obtained the armor from Ugly Gambler. It allowed him to suppress his cultivation base repeatedly, forging an increasingly stable foundation. He hadn't traveled for long when he noticed Tang Longfei and company returning. He met up with them and asked, "Big Brother Tang, why are you returning?"

"When we saw that you weren't returning, we thought something bad happened to you. Now that you're fine, we won't have to worry anymore," said Tang Longfei. In fact, they had enough time to reach the academy. However, they ultimately decided to look for Xiang Shaoyun, worried that something bad might have happened to him. It was clear Tang Longfei was a person loyal to his friends.

"Don't worry. I won't die so easily. Let's go. Travel at top speed. I believe we will reach the academy soon!" said Xiang Shaoyun confidently.