Chapter 1354 - 982: Refining the Corpse Ancestor

Upon hearing Zhang Chen’s words, the Corpse Ancestor couldn’t help but feel frustrated. Was it that he didn’t want to go? Obviously, he was being blocked from entering.

If he were in the Spiritual World, with the thick Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi there, he could at least retain the combat strength of a Golden Immortal.

"Due to an accident, there’s a formidable enemy of mine in the Spiritual World who prevents me from entering. If you join forces with me, it would be effortless for us to infiltrate the Spiritual World." The Corpse Ancestor continuously tried to entice Zhang Chen, having sensed something amiss, as if he was being schemed against, and his head seemed to lose perception, attacked by a strange force.

"Ancestor, it’s better to remain silent. Once I refine you into my puppet, I can naturally explore the Spiritual World myself. Why would I need your assistance?" Zhang Chen said with a hint of smugness in his voice.

The Corpse Ancestor was momentarily stunned, realizing that after all this time, this young boy wasn’t swayed at all; he didn’t heed his words at all.

In the next moment, the Corpse Ancestor began to cursed angrily: "Boy, do you truly believe you can subdue me? I’m telling you, it’s impossible; you shouldn’t indulge in such fantasy."

"Don’t ever give me a chance to escape; otherwise, I will carve you into a thousand pieces," the Corpse Ancestor continuously threatened Zhang Chen.

Taking his words seriously, Zhang Chen responded: "You’re absolutely right, Ancestor. I will never give you a chance to escape. Rest assured, I’ll keep a very close watch on you."

The Corpse Ancestor fell silent upon hearing this, unwilling to waste more words with the ant before him.

With things as they were, it’s akin to a tiger falling into plain and being bullied by dogs. What could he do?

The secret chamber fell into silence. Five days swiftly passed, and on the fifth day, the Corpse Ancestor was completely refined by Zhang Chen’s Corpse Control Skill, becoming Zhang Chen’s puppet.

Looking at the Corpse Ancestor, Zhang Chen asked, "Ancestor, shall we make a deal?"

"A deal? What kind of deal?" The Corpse Ancestor looked coldly at Zhang Chen.

With a smiling face, Zhang Chen replied, "I’ll send you to a place that can prevent the loss of Origin Essence Qi, and all you have to do is help me deal with enemies at critical moments when I’m in danger. How does that sound?"

Listening to this, the Corpse Ancestor coldly stared at Zhang Chen: "We can make the deal, but you must remove the Body-Stabilizing Rune from me."

"Of course! Once we’ve made the deal, we’d become allies in the same trench, and naturally, I wouldn’t treat you harshly anymore." Zhang Chen said with a cheerful smile.

As he spoke, Zhang Chen extended his hand, and the Body-Stabilizing Rune attached to the Corpse Ancestor flew out, landing in Zhang Chen’s sleeve.

"Boy, you truly dare to remove the Body-Stabilizing Rune!" The Corpse Ancestor, now free, revealed a killing intent in his eyes as he moved his limbs.

"Now that we’ve struck a deal, I certainly need to liberate the Ancestor from his shackles." Zhang Chen wore a smile, seemingly gentle and harmless like a neighborhood youth.

"Haha, truly a fool!" The Corpse Ancestor sneered: "Given your stubbornness, I won’t torture you, but will swallow you to replenish my lost Origin and give you a swift end."

"Is the Ancestor planning to renege?" Zhang Chen asked upon hearing this.

The Corpse Ancestor chuckled coldly: "Indeed! You dared disrespect me, and it’s already mercy that I don’t seek vengeance. Do you expect me, an Ancestor, to adhere to promises with an ant like you? Preposterous!"

As he spoke, the Corpse Ancestor stepped forward, intimidatingly approaching Zhang Chen, but when he was only three steps away, his body unexpectedly lost control, falling to his knees before Zhang Chen.

"What?" The Corpse Ancestor was stunned, trying to command his legs to stand, but it seemed they were governed by another force, unable to move at all.

"What did you do to me?" The Corpse Ancestor, flustered and panicked, looked up at Zhang Chen, eyes filled with rage and fear, finally realizing the gravity of the situation.

Zhang Chen sighed softly: "Why did you even bother? Since I dared to release you, how could I not have means of control? How do you wish to die now?"

"I’m a being impervious to calamities; you think you can kill me—it’s just dreaming!" Despite realizing his body’s loss of control and feeling extremely anxious, the Corpse Ancestor stubbornly refused to submit.

Glancing at the Corpse Ancestor, Zhang Chen stayed silent, instead controlling one of his hands to slowly reach for its own head: "I wonder if Ancestor’s hands can pull off its head and dismantle your impervious body. Oh, and my thunder, I wonder if it can reduce your corpse to ashes?"

Zhang Chen spoke as he slowly extended his hand, a terrifying thunderlight of unseen nature gathering in his palm, where countless laws converged, embodying the ultimate mystery of Thunder’s Punishment.

"Colorless Divine Thunder!" the Corpse Ancestor recognized at a glance the terrifying Qi mechanism in Zhang Chen’s palm, his eyes wide open in disbelief.

"Stop! I think we can still negotiate!" The Corpse Ancestor, realizing something was amiss as his own hand grasped his head, quickly softened his tone.

He was reluctant to give up his life; otherwise, why struggle in the Spiritual World?

"Oh? Does the ancestor have something more to say?" Zhang Chen asked.

"Who exactly are you? I don’t believe you are from this world. It’s already almost the End of the Dharma Era; there shouldn’t be someone as defiant of the heavens as you!" The Corpse Ancestor questioned Zhang Chen, knowing he was a Primordial Daluo Golden Immortal. Although his original essence Qi was fading, his foundation remained. To refine him as a puppet would require at least a Daluo Golden Immortal level being, and the Colorless Divine Thunder was even more outrageous, not a power any living being could master—not even a Primordial Saint could possess it—since it’s the supreme authority of the Heavenly Dao, containing the powers of lawlessness, lost Path, and End of Dharma.

"You need not dwell on who I am, ancestor. What you should consider now is how to persuade me to let you live." Zhang Chen withdrew the Colorless Divine Thunder, quietly observing the Corpse Ancestor.

"If you can provide me with a secret realm where my origin won’t deplete, I can serve you. However, there must be a limit to how many times I can be used, as I am already running on fumes at present and can’t act too often." The Corpse Ancestor said to Zhang Chen: "If you recklessly use me, eventually my origin will be exhausted, and I will die. You might as well kill me now."

Zhang Chen glanced at the Corpse Ancestor: "You overthink, ancestor. My intent is not to exploit you without benefits; I possess abundant Innate Qi. Every time you assist me, I will provide a substantial amount of Innate Qi as a reward, ensuring your origin won’t be completely depleted."

"You have Innate Qi? How can that be! In the current state of the Great Thousand Worlds, even Postnatal Qi is hard to preserve, let alone Innate Qi? Such Qi cannot be born in this world; don’t think you can fool me!" The Corpse Ancestor scolded Zhang Chen, evidently not believing his words.

In this End of Dharma Era, even Postnatal Qi no longer exists; otherwise, how would the Immortal Dao decline? Innate Qi is even more unlikely.

Zhang Chen said nothing, merely pulling a strand of Innate Qi from his palm. No sooner did it appear than it naturally dissipated into Heaven and Earth, astonishing the Corpse Ancestor, who stared wide-eyed at the Innate Qi as if doubting his own sight.

Once the Innate Qi completely dissipated, the Corpse Ancestor’s gaze returned to Zhang Chen, a hint of fanaticism in his eyes: "Where did you get Innate Qi?"

Zhang Chen didn’t respond to the Corpse Ancestor but asked, "Ancestor, do you think this deal is doable?"

"Of course! As long as you provide unlimited Innate Qi, I can serve you indefinitely!" The Corpse Ancestor replied immediately upon hearing.

Upon hearing, Zhang Chen unfolded the Ice Hell, where snowflakes danced within a ten-zhang area around him: "Please, ancestor, enter my Ice Hell to evade the calamity."

The Corpse Ancestor took one glance and immediately recognized the mysteries within the Ice Hell, promptly praising it: "What a fine place! Truly a fine place!"

He said this while stepping into the Ice Hell, finding an empty prison to nestle into.

Seeing this, Zhang Chen closed the Ice Hell. After a brief contemplation, a crevice opened in his Middle Thousand World, through which a stream of Innate Qi flowed like a spring into the Ice Hell where the Corpse Ancestor resided. The Corpse Ancestor’s original essence was severely depleted, significantly weakening his strength, so Zhang Chen needed to use the Innate Qi to restore his power.

As soon as the Innate Qi entered the Ice Hell, the Corpse Ancestor was overjoyed: "Good! Good! Good! With the Innate Qi you provide, this place can also curb the depletion of my origin. Given the quantity of Innate Qi you are offering, it won’t take ten thousand years for me to recover to my peak. By then, perhaps I can hope for the Heaven and Earth reversal. Rest assured, hereafter I shall look up to you, and if you require my action, I won’t utter a single ’no’."

The Corpse Ancestor’s jubilant voice reverberated within the Ice Hell, greedily absorbing the Innate Qi.

Upon hearing, Zhang Chen gave the Corpse Ancestor a glance but said nothing more before completely concealing the Ice Hell. He wouldn’t trust the Corpse Ancestor’s lies; if that old wretch regained peak strength, his first move would be to crush Zhang Chen. However, Zhang Chen had already controlled the Corpse Ancestor using the Corpse Control Skill, ensuring that even if the Corpse Ancestor returned to his peak, he could not escape Zhang Chen’s grasp.

Technically, with the Queen Mother of the West as his trump card, Zhang Chen didn’t need to subdue the Corpse Ancestor. The Queen Mother of the West was already enough to anchor his position, but Zhang Chen wasn’t concerned about the present; he was considering the future when Heaven and Earth might one day revive spiritually. At that time, who knows how many Primordial Daluo might emerge, and Zhang Chen feared the Queen Mother of the West alone wouldn’t suffice.

After refining the Corpse Ancestor, Zhang Chen exited his secluded chamber, ordering a servant to summon Zhang Gaqi. Soon Zhang Gaqi appeared before Zhang Chen with respect: "Patriarch, you have emerged."

Presently, Zhang Gaqi holds immense respect for Zhang Chen, viewing him not as a junior but as the leader of the Zhang Family.

"What’s the situation outside? Any movements from the Great Victory Royal Family?" Zhang Chen asked.

"The Great Victory Royal Family has quieted down considerably, but Kyoto is quite lively. Previously, a Mysterious Space collapsed, and countless treasures fell from the void. Currently, within Kyoto, people are constantly fighting over the treasures, and even the Imperial Guard cannot fully suppress the chaos. Moreover, some demon beasts from that Mysterious Space have revived, secretly wreaking havoc anew, causing Kyoto to be quite chaotic!" Zhang Gaqi reported.