I picked up skill fragments in the demon world.

Chapter 972 Taking refuge
If Zhang Chen hadn't had other schemes, Dugu Qiu's guidance would indeed have been a clear path, perhaps offering a chance to confront the royal family and preserve himself. However, Zhang Chen had already planned out the future, ensnaring everyone in the game.

Zhang Chen's only concern now is whether the Great Victory Royal Family can withstand the attack. If they are overthrown by the six major families, and both sides suffer heavy losses, there will be no one to deal with the corpse, and he will be in a real predicament.

"Many thanks to my godfather for his plans, but unfortunately, this is not the path for Zhang Chen. I, Zhang Chen, have always preferred the straightforward to the crooked. No matter what mountains of knives or seas of fire lie ahead, or what countless calamities lie before me, I, Zhang Chen, will forge ahead without hesitation. When I was a penniless child, the Prince of Pingbian could not subdue me; now that I have mastered countless skills and supernatural powers, the court cannot subdue me either. As for the court's plans, they are indeed flawless, but who will ultimately have the last laugh remains to be seen." Zhang Chen bowed solemnly to Dugu Qiu.
"Godfather, lead the way. Let's go into the palace to meet the Great Victory King."

Upon hearing this, Dugu Qiu sighed softly: "Before I came here, I knew I couldn't persuade you. If you were someone who could assess the situation, the North wouldn't have been in such great turmoil. However, the Great Victory Royal Family is not like the North; the difference in strength between the two sides is like heaven and earth, incomparable. You must be careful, lest you accidentally ruin yourself."

As they were talking, Dugu Qiu led the way, guiding Zhang Chen all the way to the inner palace and into the palace where the Great Victory King resided.

King Dasheng was sitting at his desk reviewing memorials when the old eunuch Dugu Qiu stepped forward and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, Zhang Chen has arrived."

Without even looking up, the Great Victory King said, "Summon him in."

Zhang Chen walked in from outside the main hall, arrived at the center of the palace, and bowed to the Great Victory King, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

The Great Victory King raised his head and glanced at Zhang Chen before waving his hand and saying, "Rise."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Zhang Chen straightened up.

The Great Victory King put down the commemorative document in his hand, took out a piece of white paper from the side, and asked Zhang Chen, "Do you know what this is?"

"I don't know." Zhang Chen shook his head, inwardly cursing the Great Victory King for being an idiot. He hadn't even read the document, so how could he possibly know what was recorded on it?
"This is your pardon decree," the Great Victory King said unhurriedly.

Zhang Chen remained silent upon hearing this, simply standing there quietly.

“As long as I affix my seal to it, this document will take effect, and you will be a free man in the capital. But if I do not affix my seal, you will be a criminal, and if I so desire, everything you possess now will vanish in an instant, including the position of head of the Zhang family that you have worked so hard to obtain, which will be taken away in a moment,” the Great Victory King said to Zhang Chen.

Zhang Chen remained silent upon hearing this, simply watching Da Sheng Ren Wang. Da Sheng Ren Wang felt as if he were performing a double act by himself, and felt a slight, indescribable embarrassment in his heart.

Seeing that Zhang Chen did not respond, the Great Victory King continued, "Your performance in the academy was quite good, but you also bear responsibility for the disappearance of the world anchor at the last moment. I can pardon you or I can not pardon you. You are now in a situation where you can be pardoned or not, and it is all up to me."

"I will obey Your Majesty's orders without complaint," Zhang Chen said, bowing respectfully.

Upon hearing Zhang Chen's words, the king was furious and his words caught in his throat. A look of helplessness appeared in his eyes. According to the normal script, shouldn't Zhang Chen be kneeling down and begging for mercy, and then the king would give him a chance to redeem himself?
What do you mean by 'entirely at Your Majesty's command'? That's utterly absurd!
All his words were wasted! He was shut down by the other party's casual remark.

Zhang Chen's eyes swept over the Great Victory King, his mind filled with wicked amusement. How could he not know what the Great Victory King meant? But he deliberately refused to play along with the Great Victory King's act.

However, the Great Victory King was indeed the Great Victory King, and unfazed by embarrassment, he continued, "Logically speaking, I shouldn't pardon you, since you didn't complete the mission perfectly. But you've put in a lot of effort to seize the position of Zhang family head, and it would be a pity if I didn't pardon you, letting your efforts go to waste. So I've decided to give you another chance. As long as you lead the Zhang family to submit to the Great Victory royal family and help me eliminate the six major families, I can affix this seal to the document. Not only will you retain the position of Zhang family head, but you can also legitimately annex the other six major families and take over their assets. From then on, the six major families will be absorbed by your Zhang family and the Gong family. Under your leadership, the Zhang family will progress to an immeasurable level, and surpassing the Zhang family's ancestors will not be a problem."

Upon hearing the words of the Great Victory King, Zhang Chen almost burst out laughing. The other party was treating him like a child. However, he still suppressed his sarcasm and bowed respectfully to the Great Victory King: "Your Majesty, I have no way out. I am willing to serve the Great Victory royal family, even at the cost of my life."

"Is he truly willing to go through fire and water?" Upon hearing Zhang Chen's choice, the Great Victory King's face immediately lit up with a smile, his tense and dignified expression dissipating into a gentle one.

"Indeed," Zhang Chen replied respectfully. The Great Victory King wore a gentle smile: "Words are not enough; we'll have to see your actions."

At this point, the Great Victory King took out a black banner from his bosom: "This banner has the power to control people's souls. As long as a person drips blood onto it, they will be controlled by the banner's owner. As long as the banner's owner has a thought, hellfire will ignite, burning the person's soul and eventually purifying it to ashes."

After speaking, the Great Victory King casually tossed the banner, which then floated in front of Zhang Chen: "Let me see your sincerity, whether it is truly sincere or just empty words."

Upon hearing the words of the Great Victory King, Zhang Chen looked at the banner with a subtle expression in his eyes. This banner was actually a primordial spiritual treasure, with turbid energy flowing around it and a terrifying divine power emanating from it. Even Zhang Chen couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

Zhang Chen examined the banner and noticed the turbid air emanating from it. He was puzzled. Normally, innate spiritual treasures circulate pure air, and turbid air is the nemesis of pure air. How could an innate spiritual treasure be conceived within it?
He couldn't discern the origin of this innate spiritual treasure at all. His eyes swept over the treasure before him, and a rare look of caution appeared in his eyes, because he sensed a dangerous aura emanating from the banner.

Just as countless thoughts were flashing through Zhang Chen's mind, and he hesitated whether to simply flip the table and run away, the Queen Mother of the West's voice rang in his ears: "This item is a spiritual treasure crafted by the Witch Clan. It is a natal magic weapon forged by the Ancestral Witch who controls the soul. Its power is among the best of all innate spiritual treasures. Countless ancient powerful beings have perished under this banner. But do not be afraid. This banner has been damaged. Although its power is still strong, it has a flaw. Your Nine Revolutions Profound Technique can use this flaw to evade the constraints of this treasure."

The Queen Mother of the West, with a thought in her mind, had already imparted the incantation to avoid this treasure. With Zhang Chen's current cultivation level, he instantly grasped all the key points.

Just as Zhang Chen hesitated, the Great Victory King spoke, his warm smile gradually disappearing as he glared at Zhang Chen: "What, you don't even dare to shed a drop of blood? Are you just trying to fool me with empty slogans?"

The Great Victory King's expression had turned ugly, and his eyes were fixed on Zhang Chen with a menacing gaze.

Zhang Chen, regaining his senses, quickly apologized: "How dare I deceive Your Majesty? It was only upon first seeing this treasure that I saw its fierce and malevolent nature, which made my soul tremble and caused me to lose my composure. Your Majesty, please calm your anger, I will now bleed you."

As soon as Zhang Chen had a thought, he saw a drop of blood fly out from a wild boar that had just evolved in the small world and land on the banner in front of him.

Although the Queen Mother of the West taught him how to avoid the banner, Zhang Chen dared not be careless; he always kept a watchful eye on the Queen Mother of the West.

Seeing Zhang Chen drip his blood onto the banner, the Great Victory King, a satisfied expression on his face, withdrew the banner. He then carefully sensed the source of the blood drop and discovered it was directly in the direction of Zhang Chen's (small world). He nodded in satisfaction: "My dear minister, your loyalty to Great Victory is evident to heaven and earth, and I am greatly pleased. Rest assured, I am not an unreasonable person. I will only ask your Zhang family to contribute without receiving any benefits. As long as your Zhang family contributes, you can choose to annex two of the six great families. In this way, the Gong family will annex two, and the Great Victory royal family will annex two, thus dividing the six great families in one fell swoop."

"Your Majesty, I thank you. The entire Zhang family will serve you to the death." Zhang Chen bowed respectfully.

"Come with me, and let's discuss how to destroy the six great families." The Great Victory King led Zhang Chen out of the palace and arrived at a side hall, where they saw Gong Xufeng, the head of the Gong family, and the seven ancestors of the Great Victory royal family sitting in the palace.

After exchanging greetings, the Great Victory King asked, "What are your thoughts on the annihilation of the six great families?"

“We still need to use swift and decisive measures to kill the six direct descendants in the capital. Without the command of the direct descendants in the capital, the other branches will definitely fight on their own, or even split up and establish their own households. At that time, it will not be difficult to wipe out the six major families.” Zhang Chen said, “We can ask three twelfth-order gods to take action, which will be enough to easily accomplish this task.”

Zhang Chen also wanted to take advantage of the situation, so he instigated the deities of the imperial court to take direct action.

But upon hearing this, the Great Victory King shook his head: "What you're saying isn't realistic. You've lived on the border for many years and don't know that the innate spiritual treasures of the eight great families can be used in the capital."

(End of this chapter)