I picked up skill fragments in the demon world.

Chapter 1021 Pit

Zhang Chen obtained the roster from Xie Xuan and turned back into the palace. By then, it was already dark. The next moment, countless Blood God Children flew out and disappeared into the night.

Now that Zhang Chen has attained the power of a Celestial Immortal, and with the improvement of his Blood Path cultivation, his Sound Law has entered a more profound and unfathomable realm. The entire Northern Land is shrouded in his Sound Law. Although he does not recognize the people on the roster, as long as he knows their names, he can find out their surnames and given names. He can find out most of them through conversation, and then, relying on the memories of countless Blood God Children, he can find out the voices and appearances of the remaining people and then secretly harm them.

His bloodline cultivation has reached the Dao Fruit level. Although suppressed by the power of the end of Dharma, his Blood God Child is still invincible in the North.

Apart from Zhang Chen's close associates, there are no tenth-tier experts in the North, not to mention ninth-tier experts, and even eighth-tier experts are rare.

No one knew that, overnight, the entire northern lands had been transformed.

Of course, Zhang Chen only controlled some key figures. The targeted elimination of the northern region still needs to be carried out. However, with the assistance of Xie family father and daughter, and with Zhou Qiucheng, Zhong Wubai, Zhong Xiang, Pingbian Wang and others in charge, plus Zhang Chen in charge of suppressing the situation, it will not be difficult to cleanse the northern region.

However, in order to minimize the losses, we should take a gradual approach, like boiling a frog in lukewarm water, and do it subtly and gradually.

Zhang Chen's return caused a stir in the North, but the wave quickly subsided. With Zhang Chen's intentional seclusion, the wave of his return gradually subsided. The entire North seemed to have undergone some changes, but it also seemed that everything was the same as before, without any other changes.

What has changed is that, quietly, some people have left the North, some families have declined, and some families have even disappeared without a trace. What hasn't changed is that for the people of the North, life remains peaceful, and the entire North has fallen into a rare state of tranquility.

The Zhang family of Kyoto quietly took root and flourished in the north, encroaching on the industrial chain and taking a share of the pie. The Zhong family also settled down, with countless disciples and followers being placed in key positions in the north, replacing the original guards.

While the northern lands were quietly changing, Zhang Chen arrived at the tomb of the Empress. He stared at the ruins for a long time without saying a word. He felt that he should make plans sooner, or at least arrange some measures.

I painstakingly built this world, but I can't even enter it. Is there anyone who can reason with me?
Zhang Chen felt like he'd been utterly screwed over.

The next moment, Zhang Chen unleashed his divine power, activating his Earth Element authority and beginning to move mountains and overturn seas. A terrifying aura soared into the sky, alarming countless forces in the North and countless hidden experts within a radius of tens of thousands of miles. Seeing the powerful aura that Zhang Chen unleashed, and the momentum that surpassed the twelfth rank, everyone trembled and fled. Even the experts who did not leave the North secretly went into hiding, concealing themselves even more deeply.

The earth was moving, the veins were trembling, and the heavens and earth were shaking. Zhong Xiang stood in Jinling City, remotely sensing the terrifying aura emanating from Zhang Chen. His eyes were filled with shock: "Now that the great calamity of the end times has begun to sweep across the land, he can still unleash such terrifying power. It seems that he has not been affected by the calamity at all. It's simply astonishing."

Zhong Wubai clicked his tongue in amazement: "This guy has no demeanor of a great master at all. He has always been hiding his true colors, and no one has ever been able to see through his true nature. It seems that he has really not been affected by the Great Calamity of the End of Dharma."

At this moment, Zhang Chen mobilized the laws within his body and continuously wielded the Earth Element Authority. After being amplified by the power of the law, the Earth Element Authority's power increased dozens of times, and Zhang Chen was able to control it with ease.

As for the issue of consuming magical energy, Zhang Chen wasn't too worried. One golden pill refined by the Queen Mother of the West was enough for him to consume for a whole day.

As Zhang Chen used his supernatural powers to alter the earth's veins, the feng shui formation was continuously repaired and rebuilt.

Zhang Chen spent three full days using his supernatural powers, consuming three golden pills refined by the Queen Mother of the West, before he could successfully construct the feng shui formation, and secretly made improvements to it.

Finally, at a certain moment, the earth's magnetic field shifted. Zhang Chen withdrew all his magical power, and then his figure flashed into the Imperial Daughter's Tomb. Sensing the energy of the feng shui array in operation, a look of satisfaction appeared in his eyes: "With the isolation provided by the feng shui array, the rate at which my inner essence is draining away has slowed down by a full thirty times. If it were someone with a lower cultivation level, the rate at which their inner essence is draining away would be even slower."

Zhang Chen's cultivation was too high, like the bright moon in the night, which even the darkness could not obscure. On the contrary, the small candle flame was inconspicuous in the darkness and would not be affected.

“However, this place is completely useless, because I can’t stay here and not leave. As long as I go out, my inner essence will be lost and I can’t replenish it. This place can only give those old guys who don’t want to die a glimmer of hope, so that they won’t do something desperate before they die and cause any trouble.” After walking around the feng shui formation, Zhang Chen walked towards the outside.

Do you think Zhang Chen built this feng shui formation for himself? Or did he build it as a place for Xie Lingyun and others to eke out a living?
wrong!

Zhang Chen built this shelter for the various powerful figures hidden in the North. The great calamity of the end of Dharma will become increasingly severe in the future, and those extraordinary individuals whose lifespans are nearing their end may do something desperate. Zhang Chen built a sanctuary to give those in dire straits a false hope, so that they will not be driven to desperation and take risks.

Zhang Chen returned to the Prince's mansion and was met by Zhong Xiang, who was waiting in the courtyard. Zhong Xiang looked worried and said, "Now that we are in the midst of the Great Calamity of the End of Dharma, won't it have a serious impact on you to use your supernatural powers like this?" Zhong Xiang's eyes were full of worry.

Hearing Zhong Xiang's words, Zhang Chen smiled smugly: "Since I've already taken action, why would I do something I'm not sure of? You can rest assured. Besides, this is something that has to be done. For the sake of the stability of my northern lands, paying a certain price is worthwhile."

Zhang Chen explained his purpose in building the feng shui array, then said to Zhong Xiang, "Spread the message that the Great Calamity of the End of Dharma is approaching. Our Northern Lands have built a sanctuary that can delay its arrival, or even allow people to truly escape it. Any cultivator in our Northern Lands who possesses extraordinary power and is willing to serve us for three years will be qualified to enter and escape the calamity, awaiting the opportunity for the world to turn upside down. As for those who are unwilling to serve, as long as they are willing to offer treasures of sufficient value, they can also enter and escape the calamity, awaiting the arrival of the world's upheaval."

Zhong Xiang was a smart man. After hearing Zhang Chen's words, he immediately understood what Zhang Chen meant: "You want to lock them all up and keep them under centralized surveillance?"

"That's just a reason. My real idea is to let them enter the formation to avoid the calamity. The calamity inside the formation is at least thirty years slower than the outside world. By the time the calamity of the end of Dharma reaches the tomb and they realize something is wrong, the Great Thousand World will have already completely ended the Dharma. When they come out of the tomb, they will immediately turn into ordinary people and it will be difficult for them to cause any trouble. They won't be able to cause any more trouble." Zhang Chen's voice was full of pride.

He was an exceptionally intelligent man, and with his wisdom, it was not difficult for him to foresee how crazy those who possessed extraordinary powers would become in order to prolong their lives once they knew they were about to die, and what kind of trouble they would cause.

Bloodshed is inevitable in this world, and countless innocent people will be implicated. If some of the catastrophes can be reduced, Zhang Chen would be happy to do so.

Zhong Xiang nodded upon hearing this, noting down Zhang Chen's words, and then added, "Our territory has shrunk considerably. If the North wants to develop vigorously, it cannot do without land..."

The territory of the Pingbian King's Mansion in the past had long been divided up by the demon race and Huang Tiandao. Now, the Pingbian King's territory is only one-third of what it used to be.

"Tell the demon race and Huang Tiandao to hand over the territory of the Pingbian Prince's Mansion to me, or they will face the consequences!" Zhang Chen's words were very forceful.

"The demon race and Huang Tiandao have quite a few powerful experts. Would it be inappropriate if we were to take a too hard stance?" Zhong Xiang asked hesitantly.

"Hehe, in the past, I might have been a little wary of them, but now...?" Zhang Chen's eyes revealed a hint of disdain, his gaze filled with a trace of contempt: "In my eyes, all the experts in the world are nothing but chickens and dogs. The only one who can make me feel wary is probably the mysterious Peacock Ancestor of the Demon Clan."

Zhang Chen was genuinely wary of the Innate Peacock. If the other party was indeed the Peacock Ancestor he knew, Zhang Chen felt it was best to keep a low profile.

That Peacock Ancestor was far too powerful, especially with his mastery of the Five-Colored Divine Light and various other innate supernatural abilities. Zhang Chen was extremely wary of him.

Zhang Chen and Zhong Xiang chatted for a while, and then Zhong Xiang left to arrange Zhang Chen's plans.

As news of Zhang Chen's construction of the refuge spread, the entire northern lands were in an uproar, and that uproar then spread throughout the world.

Is there a refuge in the North where one can escape calamity?

At this moment, all the cultivators and families who had mastered extraordinary powers were in a state of frenzy.

By now, the news of the coming of the Great Calamity of the End of Dharma is no longer a secret. All extraordinary cultivators are in a state of despair, unable to see the road ahead or any hope. At this moment, news suddenly came out from the North, and the whole world was shaken.

Only an hour after the news was released, a long line had formed in front of the Pingbian Prince's Mansion. All the cultivators in the North had gathered there to verify the authenticity of the refuge.

Meanwhile, the various families in the north who possessed extraordinary powers lined up to visit the Pingbian Prince's Mansion to inquire about the situation.

Zhong Xiang did not show up herself. Instead, she arranged for the King of Pingbian to receive everyone and personally led them into the ancient tomb of gods and demons. All the cultivators who entered the ancient tomb of gods and demons noticed the abnormality and found that their crumbling and dissipating origins had actually stabilized.

The cultivators and families were overjoyed. They looked at each other with ecstatic eyes and handed over their pledges of allegiance to the Pingbian Prince's Mansion.

(End of this chapter)