Chapter 1322 - 950: The Grand Wedding

Zhang Chen’s heart was filled with emotion. In years past, this world seemed like an infinite sea, harboring countless ferocious sea beasts. But ever since the ocean began to dry up, countless fish and shrimp perished on the riverbeds, and some colossal creatures vanished mysteriously. The more Zhang Chen pondered, the more he felt the waters ran deep.

In the past, when the primordial power from beyond chaos invaded, the Queen Mother of the West sent a message to the outside world, ’Do not enter,’ but it was struck by the Power of Thunder Punishment from the Heavenly Dao and turned into two words: ’Enter!’ Countless mighty old beings were deceived into entering by that Power of Thunder Punishment, among whom there must be strong ones on par with the Queen Mother of the West, yet they remained unknown, merely sleeping somewhere.

"But as the Heavenly Dao enters the End of the Dharma, it is great news for ordinary beings, providing greater chances to survive as they are freed from the persecution of those ancient beings. For ordinary beings, it is indeed good, but for those supreme existences, it’s a calamity, a near-catastrophe!" Zhang Chen secretly cursed inwardly.

"What are you thinking about?" Hu Li the Immortal noticed Zhang Chen daydreaming and approached to ask.

Zhang Chen smiled at the question, "I still have a favor to ask of you."

"You have something to ask of me? That’s rare!" Hu Li the Immortal regarded Zhang Chen with curiosity, looking him up and down.

Zhang Chen pointed in the direction of the imperial city, "Now I am in charge of the Zhang Family and have become the Patriarch. I fear the Great Victory Human King will take underhanded actions against me in the future. If anything happens, I would still need you to watch over things from the outside for a while to buy me time to contend against the Great Victory Royal Court."

"Are you really going to fall out with the Great Victory Royal Court? What happened? How does the Great Victory Royal Court dare to fall out with you? Aren’t they afraid you’ll overturn their rule, considering how despicable and shameless you are?" Hu Li the Immortal’s voice was filled with curiosity.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen’s face immediately darkened. This bastard’s mouth truly was venomous.

"Kid, since you are at odds with the Great Victory Royal Court, why not go all the way and side with my Demon Race? Join forces with us to conquer the Human Race. Should my Demon Race capture Kyoto, we could anoint the Zhang Family as the leader of the Human-Demon Race, commanding all of the Human-Demon Race. Then, I would integrate all humans into the Human-Demon Race, making you the true leader of the Human Race. How about it, pretty generous of me, right?" Hu Li the Immortal proposed, patting Zhang Chen on the shoulder.

Hearing this, Zhang Chen furrowed his brow, "Are you sure you can call the shots for the Demon Race? Don’t forget, you still have an old ancestor above you."

Speaking of the Demon Race’s ancestor who could arm-wrestle the Great Virtuous Master, Zhang Chen immediately perked up and asked with curiosity, "What’s the background of your Demon Race’s ancestor?"

"Their origins are mysterious, invincible upon emergence, even I am overshadowed. No one can discern their root foot." Hu Li the Immortal shook his head, indicating he didn’t know the opponent’s origins.

"Strange!" Zhang Chen wore a look of surprise, "Supposedly, at such a realm, such racial conflicts should be of little interest. Why would they actively involve themselves in such struggles?"

"If you mention this, I have some guesses. The opponent should be drawn to the fate of this world. Only the fate of this world could attract such ancient existences," Hu Li the Immortal speculated.

"Fate? What does he want with fate?" Zhang Chen’s face showed a trace of surprise.

"Probably related to the slumber of those ancient beings," Hu Li the Immortal said.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen pondered. Since he couldn’t fathom the intent of the other party, he would continue to watch indifferently. As long as he forged ahead fearlessly, all secrets would eventually reveal themselves.

"I’m getting married in a while, would you like to have a drink?" Zhang Chen asked.

"If you’re holding the wedding outside the capital, even if you don’t invite me, I would still go for a drink. But since you’re hosting the wedding in Kyoto, I daren’t step in rashly, lest I end up skinned and made into a quilt," Hu Li the Immortal promptly declined.

"It seems the Dragon Qi within the imperial city does impose heavy restrictions on you, leaving you so apprehensive. It’s the first time I’ve seen this." In Zhang Chen’s eyes, Hu Li the Immortal had always been fearless by nature. Now, seeing his dread towards the imperial capital, Zhang Chen became ever more vigilant of it, realizing he hadn’t plumbed the true depths of the imperial city.

"Dragon Qi represents the power of the earth, suppressing all evil. Though I have reached the Twelfth Tier, that is a force from the Ancestral Vein of the earth, embodying the will of the earth. How could I dare to offend it?" Hu Li the Immortal shook his head repeatedly.

The two drank another can of wine, meticulously plotting about Chen Sanliang’s discourse and how to leverage it to counter the Academy’s influence in aiding Zhang Chen.

"How much do you know about the foundation of the Great Victory Royal Court?" Zhang Chen asked after finishing his exchange with Hu Li the Immortal.

"No matter how deep the foundation of the Great Victory royal family is, as long as you take action against the Great Victory royal family, our Demon Race will support you unconditionally," Hu Li the Immortal promised Zhang Chen.

Zhang Chen glanced at Hu Li the Immortal, put down his wine bowl, and stood up, "Give my regards to Mr. Chen."

After speaking, Zhang Chen had already disappeared from the spot, Hu Li the Immortal stared in wide-eyed amazement at the place where Zhang Chen had vanished, not knowing how Zhang Chen had left.

Upon returning to the Academy, Zhang Chen’s days seemed to quiet down again. With the trouble that occurred among the ancestors of the Chai Family, the entire Chai Family’s actions suddenly stabilized. The claw once extended towards the Gong Family was gradually withdrawn. The Great Victory royal family focused all their efforts on collecting materials to repair and patch the Two Realms Passage. After all, securing the lives of their ancestors was the most important thing.

Without the Chai Family fanning the flames from behind, the situation between the Gong Family and the Zhang Family tended to stabilize. However, to maintain appearances, the two families occasionally engaged in various skirmishes and contests. But these skirmishes and contests were all kept within a controlled range by subordinates to avoid the two sides igniting a true flame.

Though the Great Victory Dynasty assists, collecting all the materials needed to repair the Two Realms Passage is extraordinarily difficult. The Chai Family may possess all under heaven, but the materials for building the Two Realms Passage are exceptionally rare and precious, considered unparalleled treasures. They not only include materials to patch the passage but also some private goods Zhang Chen mixed in opportunistically.

The passage of time flies by quickly, and in the blink of an eye, the day for formalizing the marriage proposals arrived. Zhang Chen invited the elders of the Zhang Family to the Zhong Family to propose, exchanged the characters, and set the wedding date for a month later.

Then another month passed, and the day of Zhang Chen’s wedding arrived. The father and daughter of the Xie Family, Zhou Qiucheng, Dugu Qiu, and others who had existing ties with Zhang Chen, all showed up without exception.

Among the Eight Great Clans, except for the Gong Family, groups from the remaining six families came to the Zhang Family to attend the feast.

Zhang Chen has now become the patriarch of the Zhang Family. The dust has settled, and the wood is made. Even if people’s hearts are vexed due to Prince Pingbian, they could only pinch their noses and accept it. No one dared to send no representative to attend Zhang Chen’s wedding for fear of future enmity affecting the unity within the Eight Great Clans.

Not only the Eight Great Clans, but those nobles and officials clinging to the Eight Great Clans, as well as court officials, all came to congratulate. Even Elder Grandmaster Ji Zun personally came to offer his congratulations.

Moreover, within the Great Victory royal family, a prince representing the Human King also arrived at the scene, secretly observing Zhang Chen’s supporters, or accurately speaking, watching the supporters and foundation of the Eight Great Clans.

Zhong Xiang, draped in a red veil and adorned in a crimson robe, after bowing to the hall with Zhang Chen, was directly invited into the back courtyard.

As for whether Zhang Chen lacked a high hall, he bowed to Mrs. Zhang. Over the years, Mrs. Zhang had painstakingly cared for Zhang Chen and the three little ones, warranting Zhang Chen’s bow.

Next came the process of the groom toasting the guests. After Zhang Chen finished filling the cups of the guests with wine, the Patriarch of the Lei family stood up, his eyes fixed on Zhang Chen: "Zhang Family Patriarch, now that people from the Eight Great Clans are all present, this old man has one matter to inquire about and requests the Patriarch to resolve the old man’s doubts."

Zhang Chen followed the voice, looking at the Patriarch of the Lei family, revealing a hint of aversion in his eyes. Today was his wedding day, and the other party starting this out of nowhere surely wasn’t kind.

"What does the Patriarch of the Lei family want?" Zhang Chen asked nonchalantly.

"How should we deal with Prince Pingbian? If Prince Pingbian truly sides with the Great Victory royal family, when our Eight Great Clans play our last card, our Eight Great Clans would face a precarious position. All this trouble was brought upon by you, shouldn’t you provide us with an explanation?" The Patriarch of the Lei family inquired.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen remained composed, "Prince Pingbian’s Mansion is but a trifling matter, already exhausted by me, now it is merely an empty shell. I have killed its sole successor, Zhang Xiaohua, yet no retaliation ensued. What kind of threat can Prince Pingbian’s Mansion pose? Even if he sides with the Great Victory royal family, so what? Prince Pingbian’s Mansion is merely an empty shell, not worth mentioning!"

"You speak lightly, but that is the last nail in the Northern Land and also our Eight Great Clans’ reliance. It’s the result of decades of concerted effort by our Eight Great Clans, consuming endless effort and resources. You say it should be destroyed; where does that leave us? Today you must give us an explanation. If you can pull the lineage of Prince Pingbian’s Mansion back onto our chariot, it would be tolerable. If not, please step down as Patriarch to avoid further provoking Prince Pingbian," the Patriarch of the Lei family spoke without mercy.

Zhang Chen’s face turned somber upon hearing this. Today was his wedding day, and the other party’s demeanor clearly showed no respect.

"When did matters of the Zhang Family fall under your Lei family’s jurisdiction?" At this moment, the Third Uncle stood up, glaring at the Patriarch of the Lei family:

"If you continue drinking the wedding wine with us, we will welcome you in the spirit of the Eight Great Clans’ camaraderie. But if you intend to ruin this occasion, we disregard the face of the Eight Great Clans!"