I picked up skill fragments in the demon world.

Chapter 1045 Suitable
As the Corpse Ancestor absorbed the magnetic power of heaven and earth that was being nurtured by the vast world, his mouth split open in a wide grin.

Zhang Chen looked at the smiling Corpse Ancestor, and a slow smile also appeared on his lips: "Very good! I can rest assured now."

He made three excellent points. First, the Corpse Ancestor could absorb and withstand the impact of primordial magnetic power. Second, his own divided soul could also control the other party. With the Corpse Ancestor here, his protective power would be flawless. If any tomb raiders dared to come here, Zhang Chen would teach them a lesson. Third, with the Corpse Ancestor here, his supernatural powers would protect the entire feng shui formation. With the power of a Primordial Golden Immortal, he could ensure that this feng shui formation would remain undamaged despite the vicissitudes of time.

"When I thought of benefits, the first person that came to mind was our ancestor," Zhang Chen said with a smile, offering a compliment.

"You're quite something, kid. You actually came up with such a way to get through this tribulation. Many ancient gods and demons wouldn't have thought of this, but you've ingeniously come up with it. I'm very impressed with you." The Corpse Ancestor praised Zhang Chen while absorbing the primordial magnetic power between heaven and earth.

Zhang Chen smiled upon hearing this: "Ancestor, there's no need to praise me. I have something to trouble you with."

"Speak freely about what you need," the Corpse Ancestor replied.

"My soul fragment resides on that high platform; I'll have to trouble the Ancestor to protect it for me," Zhang Chen said.

"Don't worry, as long as I, your ancestor, exist here, no one can shake your soul," the Corpse Ancestor confidently assured him.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Chen bowed solemnly to the Corpse Ancestor: "In that case, thank you very much, Ancestor."

Then Zhang Chen took his leave and went far away along the gate. Wherever he went, the underground palace continued to collapse. Controlled by Zhang Chen's Five Elements Authority, the five-thousand-meter-long underground palace was completely buried.

“Unless someone mobilizes hundreds of thousands of laborers, no one will be able to dig this place up again.” After looking at the completely collapsed underground palace, Zhang Chen flashed and arrived at the thatched hut on the back mountain, where he sent someone to summon Wu Yang.

"Greetings, Great Teacher." Upon seeing Zhang Chen, Wu Yang immediately knelt down and bowed respectfully.

"Is there anyone who needs my help?" Zhang Chen asked.

Upon hearing this, Wu Yang quickly shook his head: "Thanks to you, Huang Tiandao is united and no one dares to disobey my orders. Now Huang Tiandao has been completely incorporated into the Northern Lands and has become a force under the jurisdiction of the Northern Lands."

"What? It's been incorporated into the Northern Lands?" Zhang Chen was taken aback upon hearing this. After a moment of stunned silence, he asked, "None of the elders and lords of the Yellow Heaven Path have raised any objections?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yang shook his head: "Things went more smoothly than expected."

Zhang Chen remained silent for a while before saying, "Since that's the case, I'm relieved. I'm leaving the North now. Will you see me off?"

Zhang Chen asked Wu Yang to see him off, which was also to support Wu Yang and to show Huang Tiandao's group that he favored and supported Wu Yang.

"I'll prepare a small feast for you, and ask the elders to hold a farewell ceremony for you," Wu Yang asked tentatively.

Zhang Chen shook his head upon seeing this: "No need! It's not like you won't come again! You only need to secretly guard the underground palace; that's the only task I'm giving you."

Wu Yang nodded upon hearing this: "Unless my Wu family is wiped out, I will never allow anyone to disturb the underground palace."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen glanced at Wu Yang and said, "There's no need for that. There is a terrifying being in that underground palace that still possesses the world-destroying power from the mysterious era. If you encounter a force that you can't fight against in the future, just ask them to excavate it. You only need to be responsible for burying the underground palace again afterward."

Wu Yang was stunned upon hearing this, his eyes filled with astonishment.

Previously, everyone was speculating whether Zhang Chen had placed some treasure or arranged some strange entity in the underground palace. But who knew that he had actually suppressed a terrifying entity in the underground palace, and it still retained the power of the mysterious era. If anyone really got greedy and rashly broke in, they would probably die without a burial place.

Wu Yang saw Zhang Chen off as he descended the mountain, which prompted many elders, disciples, and followers to come and see him off. The procession stretched for dozens of miles before Zhang Chen boarded the large ship that Wu Yang had prepared in advance and headed north.

“We’re going home. By now, many of them should have been sent to the Middle Thousand Worlds, right?” Zhang Chen stood at the bow of the ship, looking at the Huang Tiandao group whose figures were getting smaller and smaller, a hint of longing in his eyes.

Since leaving the North, to my ten years of seclusion in Huangtiandao, four and a half years in the underground palace, and the three years of travel to and from there, nearly twenty years have passed. The North must have changed beyond recognition.

The large ship sailed northwards, where various lords awaited them, presenting their invitations to request an audience with Zhang Chen. However, Zhang Chen turned them all away. A bunch of lowly karami wanted to see Zhang Chen? That was simply wishful thinking.

The journey upstream was much slower than Zhang Chen had anticipated; it took him at least three years to reach the capital from Qingcheng Mountain. Zhang Chen gazed into the distance, his eyes filled with reminiscence. When he arrived in the North, it remained as quiet as ever; his whereabouts were unknown to the North.

The docks in the north were bustling with activity, and countless large ships blocked out the Yellow River. As far as the eye could see, there were sails everywhere, and the horizon was nowhere in sight.

"The North is more than ten times more prosperous!" Zhang Chen looked at the docks, where large groups of people were constantly coming and going, and a look of satisfaction appeared in his eyes. Now the North is peaceful and prosperous, and has entered a period of explosive population growth. Its economic prosperity and development have also reached an unprecedented level.

"Let's dock," Zhang Chen instructed the helmsman.

With a command, the large ship slowly headed toward the dock. A man dressed in official robes, holding a command flag, directed the ship to the helm and then shouted, "The ship is docked. Two taels of silver per day."

The boatman at the helm was shocked: "Two taels of silver? Why don't you just rob me!"

"Stop or not, it's up to you! If you're not going to stop, then hurry up and move the ship away." The manager said arrogantly.

Although Huang Tiandao's steward was furious, he dared not delay Zhang Chen's business and could only grit his teeth and hand over the money. Only then did the steward holding the command flag say, "You're smart to know what's good for you!"

Zhang Chen frowned slightly upon seeing this. Having come from a poor background, he knew the value of two taels of silver: "Go and inquire about it."

Upon hearing this, the boatman glanced at the foreman in the distance, a smug look on his face, then scurried off the boat to gather information. A short while later, he reported, "Sir, the regulations of the Northern government stipulate that large ships pay 200 coins per day, medium-sized ships 100 coins, small ships 50 coins, and smaller boats 10 coins per day. However, those officials in charge of the canal transport are secretly embezzling and raising prices. Because the Zhang family, the royal family of the Northern Kingdom, controls the docks, everyone is angry but dares not say anything."

The boatman sent to escort Zhang Chen was no ordinary man; his linguistic artistry was at its peak. His words subtly revealed two crucial pieces of information: first, the Zhang family controlled the northern docks; second, rampant corruption ravaged the northern docks.

Zhang Chen was stunned for a moment upon hearing this: "The Zhang family's business? In just twenty years, it has already reached this level?"

Zhang Chen was stunned. He thought of the inescapable pattern of later dynasties. Without his presence, his Northern Dynasty probably wouldn't last many years.
At this moment, Zhang Chen suddenly realized that the power he had built in the North was illusory and that with his demise, the entire North would probably disappear into the river of history in just a few years.

“When a family grows large, it becomes difficult to manage. Besides, even though we are all of the same clan, everyone has their own selfish desires and wants to take a piece of the family. This is the worst aspect of human nature, so you don’t need to be sad,” the steward comforted Zhang Chen.

Zhang Chen glanced at the other person, never expecting them to say something like that: "What's your name?"

"My surname is Yin, and I don't have a given name." When the steward heard Zhang Chen ask his name, he immediately knew he had made it big and quickly replied, his voice full of joy.

"Your surname is Yin? I wish to bestow upon you a name, what do you think?" Zhang Chen asked.

"Please, esteemed teacher, bestow upon me a name." Upon hearing this, the steward immediately knelt down and bowed respectfully to Zhang Chen.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen nodded, his gaze sweeping over the surging river, and a flash of inspiration struck him: "I will bestow upon you the title 'Tang,' and you shall go to the Pingbian Prince's Palace to serve tomorrow."

"Thank you, great and wise teacher." Upon hearing this, Yin Tang immediately knelt down and kowtowed repeatedly.

Zhang Chen waved his hand, then lightly disembarked from the large ship and slowly walked towards the Pingbian Prince's Mansion.

The entire northern land is now in a state of unspeakable prosperity. People come and go, and the faces of the people are glowing with health, indicating that they are living quite well. On the bustling streets, small vendors are constantly calling out their wares. The entire northern land is in an unprecedented state of prosperity, and people dressed in fine silks and satins are everywhere on the streets.

"The development of the North is quite good," Zhang Chen thought to himself as he walked down the street.

Just as these thoughts were flashing through his mind, he suddenly heard a cry of alarm from afar, followed by the rapid sound of hooves. A dozen or so wild horses galloped through the streets, knocking people and horses over as they scrambled to avoid them. Some unlucky souls who couldn't dodge in time were thrown into the air, spitting blood and seemingly beyond saving.

Zhang Chen looked at the galloping steed and saw that the riders were all fourteen or fifteen-year-old boys, who were laughing arrogantly and looking at the people they were knocking over in the street with great arrogance.

"Whose young man is this, riding his horse so recklessly in the street?" Zhang Chen stared at the young man charging around, dumbfounded and asked in disbelief.

A vendor next to him quickly made a 'shh' gesture to silence him: "You dare to criticize him here? Don't you want to live? That's the eldest grandson of the Prince of Pingbian, the future Prince of Pingbian. What's it to ride a horse in the street? He's even killed people in the street before. You dare to talk about him in the street? Don't you want to live?"

Zhang Chen was stunned upon hearing this, staring in disbelief at the group of young men riding horses. The leader of the group was particularly striking; he was so beautiful and delicate, like a porcelain doll, that he couldn't believe he could commit such a heinous act.
(End of this chapter)