Meanwhile, Chen Xuan remained completely unaware of Su Tianyi’s activities.

He would have never guessed that his random actions would have awakened something deep within her, let alone that she would utilize the seal he left behind to pleasure himself.

At that moment, he had already left the underground cavern and returned to the surface.

However, he did not immediately head back to their temporary resting place.

Instead, he stopped some distance away from the ruins. After confirming that no one was nearby and setting up a concealment formation, he extended his divine sense.

Two objects materialized above his palms.

One was a small sphere of black-and-white liquid that revolved endlessly, its aura gradually growing stronger with every passing moment.

The other was a golden ring.

Seemingly made out of bronze or a similar material, it looked both ordinary and extraordinary at the same time, much like an ancient relic that had gone through countless ages.

Chen Xuan’s gaze lingered on the ring and observed the traces of its surface.

The information he had obtained from it resurfaced in his mind.

This treasure was known as the Death-Binding Ring.

Inspired by the Beast Taming Rings used by various beast-taming sects, it possessed only a single function: controlling refined corpses.

As long as the gap in strength was not too great, its user could command a corpse as though they were controlling a puppet, without the need to possess any knowledge regarding corpse refinement.

The Death-Binding Ring followed the same principles as the Beast Taming Ring.

It possessed no fixed grade.

In fact, it was similar to an Artifact rather than a conventional magic weapon, save for its inability to evolve on its own and its lack of consciousness.

Chen Xuan was surprisingly familiar with its name.

Not because he had ever seen one before, but rather because it had been recorded in the ancient archives of the Myriad Souls Sect.

According to those records, the Death-Binding Ring had once been one of the sect’s core inheritances.

Although the forging method had been lost long ago—leading later generations to rely entirely on the Myriad Souls Banner—the ring was mentioned repeatedly throughout the inheritance records.

’Could that skeleton have belonged to an ancestor of the Myriad Souls Sect?’

’Perhaps that’s why I encountered no resistance throughout the entire process.’

’To an outsider, I can easily be mistaken for a Myriad Souls Sect disciple. If the inheritance’s recognition methods identified me as such, it would make sense why I faced no resistance.’

Regardless of the reason, the outcome remained unchanged.

With the Death-Binding Ring in one hand and a Soul Formation zombie sealed in the other, Chen Xuan already knew what he needed to do next.

With a thought, the Yin-Yang Prison expanded.

The black-and-white sphere flew out from his palm and descended before him, rapidly growing until it reached the size of a small prison cell.

A narrow opening appeared along its walls.

Through this "window", the zombie could be seen lying motionless within.

Several hours had passed since its capture, but it had only failed to break free; it now seemed even more firmly restrained than before.

Chen Xuan nodded in satisfaction.

The effectiveness of the Yin-Yang Prison had surpassed even his most hopeful expectations.

However, he hadn’t come here to admire his own creation.

After one final glance at the zombie, he poured Spiritual Energy into the Death-Binding Ring and tossed it into the prison.

There was no need for him to do anything.

The moment it sensed the aura of a refined corpse, the ring reacted on its own.

Golden light erupted from its surface.

It floated above the zombie before descending and wrapping around its neck like a collar. Then it tightened around it.

The zombie’s entire body trembled violently.

As the golden radiance faded and the ring itself dissolved into particles of light, the creature’s eyes snapped open.

A savage green glint streaked through its pupils, making the scene eerie and terrifying.

Chen Xuan, however, showed no fear. The only emotion he had was surprise.

Sensing the close connection between him and the ugly creature, using which he could control it as he wished, he was caught off guard.

The process of using the Death-Binding Ring had gone far smoother than he expected.

Before coming here, he had already prepared for a prolonged struggle. He had assumed he would need to weaken the zombie repeatedly before gradually forcing it into submission.

However, the results proved otherwise. Everything had been resolved in an instant.

’It truly deserves its reputation.’ 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

’With a treasure like this, even the most ignorant cultivator could become a corpse-refining master overnight.’

Chen Xuan judged as he passed a message through their connection.

Instantly, the zombie rose to its feet. Climbing out of the gap in the prison, it emerged into the outside world and began absorbing the surrounding Spiritual Energy.

At a rate that was visible to the naked eye, its shriveled flesh gradually filled out.

The wounds covering its body slowly healed. Its aura climbed higher and higher with every passing moment, steadily approaching its original state.

Excitement flashed through Chen Xuan’s eyes.

He knew that once the zombie had fully recovered, it would possess genuine Soul Formation combat power.

One had to know that this was a cultivation base that only the ancestors of the major sects possessed.

With such a zombie under his control, Chen Xuan could be considered to have reached the apex of the Tianxuan Domain.

’Moreover, this is just the beginning...’

’I don’t know what realm this person reached before his death, but it certainly wasn’t merely the Early Stage of Soul Formation.’

’Given enough resources and the proper opportunities, he may recover far more of his former strength.’

’Perhaps... he could even go beyond it.’

As the thought crossed his mind, the lingering sense of unease in Chen Xuan’s heart gradually faded.

Whether it was confronting the demonic factions or venturing into the Nine Origins Sea, he was now surging in confidence.