Before absolute strength, Xiang Shaoyun was left with no choice but to be subservient. He was still young and had a long road ahead of him. He also still had a mission to accomplish, and he had no intention of dying prematurely here. A real man would know when to bow and when to stand tall. There was no shame in that.
"Come down here," said the human face.
"Down? Where?" Xiang Shaoyun asked, confused.
"Just come to the bottom of the pool. I will be waiting," said the human face before the soul power forming the face dispersed.
The rather wondrous scene shook Xiang Shaoyun. His belief that an absolute expert had been here was reaffirmed. He dared not dally about and quickly jumped into the pool. The instant his body touched the soul spring water, he was flooded by a wondrous sensation, feeling as if his soul was about to ascend to the heavens. Strands of energy started flowing into him, pulled in by the Nether Soul Domain. His soul felt like it was being baptized, and it flooded his entire body with a comfortable sensation akin to soaking in a hot spring during a cold winter.
Xiang Shaoyun was fully intoxicated in the sense of comfort when the voice rang out again, "Enough. Get down here. You will have plenty of time to enjoy it later."
Xiang Shaoyun shivered when he heard the voice. He did not dare to waste any time and directly dove down into the pool. When he arrived at the bottom, a certain force surrounded him and pushed away the soul spring water around him. An opening appeared before him, and he was pulled into it.
After Xiang Shaoyun entered, the opening closed up again, with him continuing to fall downward. He had a feeling this was the inside of the Soul Stone Mountain, but he also had a feeling that this was a space created by a unique formation.
After a while, he finally landed on the ground. It was a pitch-black enclosed room, and an ordinary person would be as good as blind here. But Xiang Shaoyun was able to see clearly. The space was about 300 square meters in size. Apart from the glossy and clean stone walls, there was nothing special about the space.
"Lord, where are you?" Xiang Shaoyun asked when he found nobody around.
"Here," the voice rang out again.
At the same time, sounds could be heard from the wall behind Xiang Shaoyun. He turned around and found a dry figure imprinted on the wall, as if that figure had become one with it. If one did not pay great attention to the wall, one could easily miss this detail.
Xiang Shaoyun had a far better eyesight than many people and was thus able to get a clear look at the figure on the wall. And that gave him yet another fright.
The figure on the wall was a wizened person who looked more like a corpse, a bag of bones. It was as if the person's vitality had completely dried up. His messy hair drooped down his head to completely cover his face, his person constantly emanating an intensely creepy sensation. Even in such a condition, he had still been able to display such mighty soul power. It was obvious how terrifying an existence he was.
"Lord, you..." Xiang Shaoyun was completely speechless.
"Are you scared?" asked the person slowly.
Although his voice could be heard, his mouth wasn't moving. He did not resemble a living being at all. But Xiang Shaoyun was sure that the voice had come from this person. He was merely using a soul transmission method to directly send the words to him. Physically uttering those words were not required in such a situation.
"N-no, of course not. I was merely curious," answered Xiang Shaoyun after a slight hesitation. He mustered some courage before stepping forth and asking, "Lord, do you have an errand for me?"
While Xiang Shaoyun was approaching, the person's hair suddenly flared, revealing a pair of ghostly eyes. The eyes glowed with a green radiance, looking more like two clumps of ghostfire. They were capable of causing one's hair to stand on end, and Xiang Shaoyun was so frightened he came to a halt.
Fortunately, he wasn't exactly a coward. He was able to quickly compose himself and stabilize his footing before looking straight into that person's eyes, waiting to see what the person wanted of him.
"Resemblance...the resemblance...," the person muttered. Emotions flared in the green eyes, but the withered body still remained completely still.
"Lord, do you have an errand for me?" Xiang Shaoyun repeated his question.
"What is your family name?"
Xiang Shaoyun blanked out slightly before answering, "This kid's family name is Xiang, with the given name Shaoyun."
"Xiang...and the resemblance...is he really the descendant of master?" The person suddenly grew excited.
As his emotions stirred, his messy hair whipped about, revealing the terrifying face once again. The face was exactly the same as the face Xiang Shaoyun had seen earlier, with the exact same scar on it.
Xiang Shaoyun did not understand what the person was getting at, but he had an inkling that things might turn for the better for him.
"Lord, who is your master, if I may ask?" Xiang Shaoyun probed.
"Haha, my master is the undefeated being across the nine heavens and the ten lands," he proclaimed, howling with laughter.
When Xiang Shaoyun heard that, he thought with derision, Sure, why are you trapped here if so?
Of course, he would not dare vocalize that thought. Rather, he replied respectfully, "Lord, you are already such a mighty and unrivaled existence. Just what kind of amazingly brilliant individual is your master?"
"Kid, don't bother flattering me. Tell me. Do you come from the super clan, Xiang Clan? Is your ancestor Xiang Dingtian?" he asked impatiently.
Xiang Shaoyun replied, "Yes, I come from the Xiang Clan, but I am not sure if it is the same Xiang Clan. After all, the Xiang Clan is a big clan with many branches, and I don't know who my ancestor is."
In truth, Xiang Shaoyun knew his origin very well, and he was also aware that his father had bad opinions of the Xiang Clan. As for who his ancestor was, he was truly clueless. Oddly, the Overlord Skyslaying Saber within him suddenly stirred, seemingly trying to rush out of his body.
"You don't even know your ancestor's name? Are you still worthy of being a descendant of the Xiang Clan?" questioned that person resentfully.
Xiang Shaoyun asked curiously, "Lord, do you happen to be surnamed Xiang as well? Are we actually family?"
"You don't need to know that. Now, remove your soul defense. I need to find out if you are actually the descendant of the Xiang Clan," said that person coldly.
Xiang Shaoyun replied with some hesitation, "No, I don't think that is required. I have my own way of proving my identity."
He then activated the lightning bone within him. The innate purple lightning flared up around his body while the apparition of a purple dragon appeared behind him. The dragon roared, appearing incredibly valiant.
The person grew excited again. "It's the Xiang Clan's lightning bone. Haha, yes, there is no mistaking it."
It was at this moment that the Overlord Skyslaying Saber within Xiang Shaoyun finally went mad and charged out of his body by itself.