Upon hearing Mr. Wuliu's words, Prince Pingbian's eyes flashed: "You handle this matter."
Mr. Wuliu nodded and suddenly spoke with implication: "There is a big problem in the Northern Land that we need to resolve early."
Prince Pingbian knew that Mr. Wuliu was referring to the Inspection and Supervision Department's army. The fifty thousand troops of the Inspection and Supervision Department were like a knife inserted into the Northern Land, making them fear to act rashly.
"After the Demon Race army crosses the borders, tell them to first resolve the trouble left by the Inspection and Supervision Department." Prince Pingbian said.
Upon hearing Prince Pingbian's words, Mr. Wuliu said: "I have an idea. Currently, countless waters are accumulating here. Why doesn't Your Highness use this water to flood those fifty thousand troops? Then use the water to sweep through the Northern Land, causing countless civilians to become displaced and impoverished. We can slightly guide the situation and raise numerous anti-Prince armies, then join forces with the Demon Race army, and together march into the Divine Land, expanding our territory, and seizing the opportunity to swallow the surrounding vassal states..."
Mr. Wuliu's plan was dastardly. The impact of flooding the Northern Land would be fatal, causing an unknown number of civilians to become displaced and, in order to survive, they would be coerced by the Yellow Heaven Dao and Prince Pingbian's mansion to invade the surrounding vassal states.
Upon hearing the plan, even Prince Pingbian gasped, showing a hint of hesitation in his eyes: "The Northern Land is our foundation. Isn't this the same as severing our foundation?"
"Your Highness, the Northern Land is already in this state. Is there any foundation left? Once the Demon Race crosses the borders and the court sends troops to fight, if the flames of war ignite in the Northern Land, everything will turn to ashes. We might as well take the initiative and seek a chance of survival in adversity. When our territory is in chaos, we'll influence the surrounding vassal states, dragging them into the turmoil. With our strength, there's a high probability that we can annex the surrounding vassal states. By then, use the major vassal states to support our Northern Land. If this chaos continues, and the flames of war spread across the Great Victory, perhaps we can open a new horizon."
Prince Pingbian sighed slightly: "Has the situation deteriorated this far?"
"To transform into the Dragon and Walking Flood Dragon, we've already given everything. Moreover, during the time of transformation, countless water vapors gathered in the Northern Land. If the ancestor succeeded, he could guide the water vapor, which would not be an issue. But now that the ancestor failed, the accumulated water vapor will erupt, retaliating against the entire Northern Land's destiny. In the future, the Northern Land will be flooded. We have no choice." Mr. Wuliu laughed bitterly.
Prince Pingbian, feeling disinterested, waved his hand weakly: "Go do it!"
"Yes!"
Mr. Wuliu replied respectfully.
While they were talking, Zhang Chen had another scene.
As Zhang Chen tugged the chain, Zhang Shicheng's Dragon Soul was drawn over, glaring angrily at Zhang Chen: "Ant, it's you again! Release me quickly, or I'll make you pay!"
"Make me pay? Ancestor, you are already in dire straits, how can you make me pay?" Zhang Chen said with a smile.
Upon hearing Zhang Chen's words, the veins on Zhang Shicheng's forehead bulged, showing a trace of awkwardness in his eyes. After all, he was an old fellow who had lived for hundreds of years. After weighing the pros and cons, he ultimately chose to lower his head: "Lad, you and I have no irreconcilable hatred between us. Why fight to the bitter end? Whatever you demand, just say it. Ancestor will fulfill it as long as I can. Wealth and glory? Or a beautiful wife and concubines? Or perhaps heavenly and earthly treasures? Just speak, I will grant them all to you!"
Zhang Chen's face turned dark upon hearing Zhang Shicheng's words: "No hatred? Indeed, you and I have no hatred, but I have a deep blood feud with your Prince Pingbian's mansion, unending until death! If you don't die, my heart will not be at peace!"
Zhang Chen didn't hesitate, directly recounting all the grudges between himself and Prince Pingbian's mansion, especially emphasizing how he twice saved Zhang Xiaohua's life, causing his eyes to redden. After finishing recounting, Zhang Chen glared angrily at Zhang Shicheng's soul: "Do you think there is no hatred between me and your Prince Pingbian's mansion? Can this hatred be resolved?"
Zhang Shicheng listened to Zhang Chen's words, his face turning green, realizing that the reason Zhang Chen repeatedly opposed him was actually here. Even his last physical body destruction was all due to his family's unworthy descendants, who attempted to kill Zhang Chen through labor servitude for revenge, proactively pushing him forward.
Hundreds of years of planning, generations of effort, all ruined due to such a trivial matter, leaving Zhang Shicheng feeling stifled and his mentality on the verge of collapse.
"Unworthy descendants! Unworthy descendants!" Zhang Shicheng gritted his teeth in hatred, his soul emanating fluctuations, showing signs of madness.
He failed in the transformation into the Dragon and Walking Flood Dragon twice, both times disrupted by Zhang Chen, truly encountering his nemesis.
"Young man, as long as you release me, I am willing to stand up for you. I can arrange to have that unfilial offspring tied up before you, allowing you to do whatever you wish—slice him into a thousand pieces or extract his soul. There's no enmity between us, so why create such a large grudge? You've lured my soul here, but you can't truly control it. In seven days, my soul will turn into a vengeful spirit haunting you, clinging to you every step of the way. Won't that be troublesome for you?" Zhang Shicheng looked at Zhang Chen, his voice and attitude beginning to soften, yet still carrying a faint sense of threat.
Zhang Chen understood his threat immediately. His implication was that if he turned into a vengeful spirit, with his powerful cultivation, he could kill everyone around Zhang Chen.
"Since I dared to lure your soul here, how could I not be prepared?" Zhang Chen's face displayed a cold smile. He pointed towards the cave behind him. "Can you sense the qi mechanism in that cave?"
Zhang Shicheng's Dragon Soul suddenly changed color. The flames in that Eight Trigrams Furnace, even Xie Lingyun's Yin Spirit could sense them outside the cave; how much more so someone like him?
"Does it have to be this way?" Zhang Shicheng's face was very unpleasant at this moment.
Zhang Chen did not answer Zhang Shicheng, but instead, he slowly walked into the stone cave. Upon seeing this, Zhang Shicheng's Dragon Soul wanted to escape, to return to its flesh. But as he took a few steps, the sound of chains clinking echoed like a spell, pulling Zhang Shicheng's soul towards the cave.
Zhang Shicheng struggled desperately, but the chains wouldn't yield. He could only shout helplessly, "No! Absolutely not! You can't do this! Let's talk things out. Even if it's to become a slave, this ancestor accepts it. You mustn't take things to the extreme."
Faced with a life-and-death crisis, Zhang Shicheng's attitude finally softened. He was now an Eleventh Tier soul. Even without a body, he could transform into an Eleventh Tier Divine Soul Dao cultivator, which was higher than the Yang God—still a great master. He hadn't lived enough yet, so why would he willingly die?
Reaching his level of cultivation, reshaping his body wasn't impossible. Why would he be willing to die just like that?
Zhang Chen looked at Zhang Shicheng, seeing the groveling on his face, and couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion. No matter how strong you are, when caught in such a predicament, you're just like an ordinary person.
"Don't blame me, blame the Prince Pingbian's Mansion for provoking me. But don't be afraid, I won't scatter your soul to the winds. I am currently refining a magical treasure; I'll fuse your soul into it. You will exist eternally with my treasure, a different form of continuation." Zhang Chen said with a sly smile.
Upon hearing these words, Zhang Shicheng was immediately horrified. What did it mean to live in another form?
Talk about a cursed continuation! You're the one who wants to be fused into the treasure.
"Young friend, I'm willing to be a slave, just grant me a way out," Zhang Shicheng pleaded abjectly.
"I'd like to grant you a way out, but your power is too immense. I can't restrain you. What if you use my loved ones to bargain against me in the future? Wouldn't I be raising a tiger to court calamity?" Zhang Chen looked at the Eight Trigrams Furnace before him and said to Zhang Shicheng, "Will you jump in yourself, or shall I send you inside?"
Feeling the terrifying flame inside the Eight Trigrams Furnace, as if recalling something, Zhang Shicheng's spine suddenly straightened, no longer cowering as before. "Hahaha! Hahaha! Young man, you wish to fool me! This ancestor has seen through your schemes."
Zhang Chen was left bewildered by Zhang Shicheng's wild laughter. "What do you mean?"
Zhang Shicheng pointed at the Eight Trigrams Furnace and said, "The fire inside this furnace is raging; you can't handle it. You can only bring my soul here, but you can't control it. If you want my soul to enter the Eight Trigrams Furnace, you'd have to go in yourself first, then drag me in. I refuse to believe it—do you really have the ability to jump into that furnace and drag my soul out afterward?"
Zhang Shicheng's voice was filled with triumph. Seeing that Zhang Chen was unable to deal with him, his attitude changed dramatically. Zhang Chen couldn't do anything about him; the one who should be worried was Zhang Shicheng. Didn't he fear that if Zhang Shicheng became furious, he could kill everyone Zhang Chen saw?
If Zhang Shicheng's body was cut down, and his soul clung to Zhang Chen, what did he have to fear? He had nothing to lose compared to Zhang Chen who had everything.
The two stared at each other, Zhang Chen observing Zhang Shicheng's once submissive face now filled with arrogance. Various unfathomable thoughts flickered in Zhang Chen's mind.
"Boy, if you kneel, prostrate yourself thrice and kowtow nine times to me now, and obediently release my soul, I might spare your life. Otherwise, I'll haunt you forever, kill everyone you ever see, slay all your relatives and friends. You weigh your decisions carefully," Zhang Shicheng's voice was full of arrogance. "Not just that, I want you to submit to me, become my Guardian Divine General, or I will never let you go."
Upon saying this, Zhang Shicheng became excited. After all, Zhang Chen's sinister methods, if grasped by him, would open up an entirely new world.