Living in the deep palace

"Cough cough cough... You're going to kill me!! You brute!! You crude brute!!"

The remnant soul of the Skeleton Lord was now just a faint skeleton outline, draped in a tattered soul robe, and clutching a broken scythe in its hand.

He pointed at Su Chen, trembling with anger.

"This Refining Spirit Crystal is a supreme treasure of the soul. If I were to refine it slowly, I could recover some of my soul power! You...you actually shattered it directly?!"

"What a waste!!"

Su Chen patted the crystal powder off his hands, not taking it seriously.

"Refine it slowly?"

"I don't have the time or the patience."

"Moreover……"

Su Chen took a step forward and instantly arrived in front of the Skeleton Lord.

At this moment, he still retained the residual power from devouring the shadow of the ancient god. That towering cloud of blood energy, though invisible, appeared to the Skeleton Lord's soul like a scorching sun, burning his soul with pain.

"You are too weak right now."

Su Chen looked down at the remnant soul of the Skeleton Lord, which only reached his waist, and spoke indifferently.

"Instead of relying on that broken stone to recover, you'd be better off following me and living the good life."

"Eat...eat and drink well?"

The Skeleton Lord was stunned. He looked at Su Chen's young yet domineering face, and then felt the terrifying energy fluctuations within Su Chen's body, which were like an abyss.

That is... the origin of the ancient gods.

Moreover, it is the origin that has been completely tamed and assimilated!

"you……"

The soul fire in the Skeleton Lord's eye sockets contracted violently.

Only at this moment, after being freed, did he truly see Su Chen's condition clearly.

"Your physical body... has already completed the 'Ancient God transformation'? Even... surpassed the original Ancient God?"

"How can this be?!"

"That old devil's will is incredibly domineering; anyone who tries to merge with him will be possessed! How could you not only be unharmed, but actually consume him as nourishment?!"

"You... what kind of monster are you?!"

The Skeleton Lord was truly terrified.

He has seen geniuses, prodigies, and madmen.

But he had never seen anyone like Su Chen... who treated the sixth realm like a buffet!
Such an existence, defying common sense, was unheard of even in the ancient era when gods rose together!

Who I am is not important.

Su Chen reached out and gently placed his hand on the illusory shoulder of the Skeleton Lord.

laugh--

A wisp of pure Origin Soul Power flowed into the Skeleton Lord's body through his palm.

This soul power carries a trace of the law of "life".

The originally weak and fragile Skeleton Lord, who was on the verge of dissipating at any moment, had his soul body solidify instantly under the nourishment of this power, and even the broken scythe in his hand became sharp.

"This……"

The Skeleton Lord's eyes widened as he felt the long-lost sense of comfort within his body.

"Is it comfortable?" Su Chen asked with a smile.

"Comfortable...comfortable..." The Skeleton Lord nodded subconsciously.

"Call Master."

"……what?"

"What? You don't want to?" Su Chen's power changed slightly, and the life force instantly transformed into a devouring power.

“Don’t don’t don’t!!!”

The Skeleton Lord was so frightened that his soul almost left his body, and his previous air of power vanished instantly.

Just kidding! A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle!

This kid is clearly a ruthless person who will devour people without spitting out the bones, and his strength is unfathomable. If he really makes a move, this old man of mine will have to die here today!
"Master!! Master Su!!"

The Skeleton Lord immediately put on a fawning expression; the speed at which he changed his face was simply astonishing.

"From this day forward, you are my master!"

"Your humble servant, Hai Zun, is willing to serve you faithfully, even unto death!"

"Well, good."

Su Chen patted his dog's head (skull) with satisfaction.

"That's right."

"What senior and junior? That's too formal."

"Everyone is trying to make a living in this cutthroat world, and whoever has the bigger fist is right."

"Since you call me master, I will not treat you unfairly."

Su Chen turned around and looked at the top of the main hall.

There, on the throne that originally belonged to the shadow of the ancient god, a token emitting a faint golden light now floats quietly.

The token is hexagonal, made of neither gold nor jade, and engraved with intricate star charts and divine inscriptions.

【Imperial Decree】.

In other words, it's what the Ancestor specifically requested.

"That thing..."

Following Su Chen's gaze, the fawning in Hai Zun's eyes instantly turned into deep apprehension and disgust.

"Master, that thing... is a trap."

"I know."

Su Chen nodded, but didn't rush to take it.

"Chen Sheng left a note outside saying that it was a dog leash."

“That’s right!” The Skeleton Lord floated to Su Chen’s side and said in a low voice, “Back then, Chen and I stormed into this place, thinking that if we got this token, we could control the entire ruins and even inherit the mantle of the sixth realm.”

"But the moment we touched it, the will of that ancient god was awakened."

"This is not a control center at all, it's a 'slave contract'!"

"Once you refine it, your soul will be forcibly connected to the brain of the ancient god—the Divine Court. You will become his puppet, guarding this corpse until he is resurrected!"

"Chen is quite clever. He sensed something was wrong after just one touch and severed the connection despite the backlash."

"And I... in order to cover his escape, I fought back fiercely, and as a result, I got trapped in that broken rock."

At this point, the Skeleton Lord sighed, feeling somewhat resentful.

"So, Master, you absolutely must not touch this!"

"Touch it and you're doomed!"

After listening, Su Chen thoughtfully stroked his chin.

"A slave contract..."

"It seems that old bastard Xu Zu really did have bad intentions."

"He wants me to be this puppet, and then he can indirectly control this ancient god's corpse by controlling me?"

"What a plan."

Su Chen sneered.

However, he did not show the slightest fear.

On the contrary, that familiar "appetite" rekindled in his eyes once again.

"pit?"

"There were no pits in this world originally, but as more people filled them in, they became flat land."

"Since this is the 'key' to the brain, even if it's a hot coal, I have to hold onto it."

"But before that..."

Su Chen looked around the magnificent Imperial Palace.

Looking at the floor paved with primordial divine stones, at the lampposts formed from the essence of stars, and at the decorations filled with divine radiance.

"It's all here."

"We can't go home empty-handed, can we?"

"Hun Tian!!"

Su Chen shouted loudly, his voice penetrating the main hall and reaching outside.

"I'm here!!"

The Demon Lord of Hun Tian and his entourage, who had been waiting outside the hall, rushed in immediately upon hearing the summons.

When they saw the mess inside the hall, the disappearance of the ancient god's shadow, and only a lewd skull floating beside Su Chen, they were all stunned.

"My lord, is this... is it over already?" Ba Shan was dumbfounded.

Where is that shadow?

"have eaten."

Su Chen said it casually, as if he had just had a late-night snack.

"Now that you're here, let's get to work."

Su Chen pointed to the main hall.

"move."

"What?" No one reacted. "I said, move it!"

Su Chen waved his hand, exuding heroic spirit.

"Pry this floorboards off!"

"Pull this pillar out!"

"Take this lamp down!"

"Even this plaster on the wall... anything with energy, scrape it all off! Pack it up and take it away!!"

"Where I, Su Chen, have walked, no grass grows, only pits remain!!"

"ha?!!"

Upon hearing this order, not only were Hun Tian and the others dumbfounded, but even the Skeleton Lord next to them was so shocked that his eyes almost popped out.

"Master...?"

"This is the Imperial God Palace! It's the core of the ancient god's heart! You...you're going to tear it down?!"

"Demolition?"

Su Chen corrected him.

"No, this is 'rational redistribution of resources'."

"The ancient gods are all dead, who are they going to show off this nice renovation for?"

"Why not take it back to build my Immortal Realm?"

"Do it!!"

At Su Chen's command, the bandit army from the deepest hell finally reacted.

"okay!!!"

"Brothers! Grab your weapons!!"

"That pillar is mine! Nobody can take it!!"

In an instant, the once solemn and majestic Imperial Palace was transformed into a bustling demolition site.

The giant spirit swung its axe to smash the wall, Meng Po directed the ghosts to pry open the floor, and the Hun Tian Demon Lord even grabbed a divine pillar as thick as two people could hug and pulled it out.

"This...this is simply..."

The Skeleton Lord watched this scene, his soul in disarray.

Having spent so many years in the Void Realm, he had witnessed murder and robbery, as well as the extermination of entire families.

But this is the first time I've seen something like this, where even the floor tiles are targeted...

"Too...too brutal."

"So...so professional."

The Skeleton King muttered to himself.

For some reason, seeing the bandits' practiced movements, the last vestige of his "awe of the ancient gods" vanished completely.

Instead, there was a strange...excitement?
"Oh shit!"

The Skeleton Lord suddenly cursed and swung his broken scythe.

"That lamp holder is the one I've got my eye on! It's made of a 'Soul-Stabilizing Stone'! It'll be of great use to me! Put it down right now!!"

He also joined the robbery.

Standing on high ground, Su Chen looked at the chaotic yet vibrant scene and nodded in satisfaction.

Then, he turned around and walked alone toward the floating [Emperor's Decree].

"bring it on."

"Let me see, you're just a dog leash..."

"Or the key to open the treasure vault."

Su Chen reached out and grabbed the token.

……

[Ancient God Ruins - Imperial Palace - Main Hall Throne]

The hexagonal [Emperor's Token] lay quietly in Su Chen's palm.

It wasn't heavy; it was as light as a feather. But the instant he touched it, Su Chen felt as if he were holding up an entire galaxy.

hum-

Without any warning, a vast, cold, and unquestionable supreme will surged into Su Chen's mind like a flood bursting its banks, flowing through his palm.

In that instant, the world before Su Chen's eyes changed.

The Emperor God Palace has disappeared, and the Skeleton Lord, the Demon Lord of Chaos, and others have also vanished.

He stood alone in a vast, boundless golden void. Above him, an enormous pair of golden eyes coldly gazed down upon him.

There was no kindness in that gaze, only a scrutinizing look at a tool.

"Kneel down."

Those two words, like a divine decree, would brand the mark of a slave deep within Su Chen's soul.

Immediately afterwards, countless golden divine runes appeared in the void and quickly wove together into a contract.

[I hereby bestow upon you the decree of the Emperor God, and grant you the power of an ancient god.]

From this day forward, you are my servant, to guard my body and suppress the heavens.

When I return, I will grant you eternal life!

This is a tempting pie in the sky.

If it were an ordinary fifth-realm cultivator, faced with such a promise of "eternal life" and the readily available power of the sixth realm, they would probably have been moved to tears and knelt down in gratitude.

But Su Chen stood in the void, his back straight, like a javelin stuck there.

He looked at the golden contract and suddenly smiled.

The laughter rose from a low murmur to a high pitch, eventually turning into a mocking, maniacal laugh.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

"A servant of the gods? A guardian? Awaiting your return?"

Su Chen pointed at the enormous golden eyes, laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out.

"Old man, have you been sleeping in that brain for too long and damaged your brain?"

"Or do you think I look like a dog?"

boom!
Those golden eyes suddenly narrowed, the void trembled, and a terrifying pressure descended like ten thousand divine mountains.

"presumptuous!!"

"I am the master of the Sixth Realm! To be my lackey is the greatest fortune you, an ant, have ever attained in your entire life!!"

Is this the truth?

Su Chen ignored the oppressive aura, and the Origin Dao Fruit within his body emitted a faint blue light, isolating him from all mental pressure.

“The Void Ancestor sent me to collect this thing, saying it was a ticket to the other side.”

"So, the so-called 'ticket' is just selling yourself into slavery, becoming your watchdog?"

"This is no Emperor God's Decree."

Su Chen raised his hand, looking at the token in his palm that was still trying to burrow into his flesh.

"This is clearly a collar!"

"And it's a... poorly made, low-quality collar!"

"You're courting death!!" The golden eye in the void erupted in utter fury. "Since you refuse to be a slave, then die! Annihilate your soul!!"

Countless golden chains shot out from the contract, heading straight for Su Chen's soul.

in the real world.

The Skeleton Lord, who had been staring at Su Chen, suddenly saw Su Chen's body stiffen, and the token in his hand burst out with dazzling golden light. Countless golden runes spread wildly along Su Chen's arm, as if to envelop his entire body in a cocoon.

"Oops!!"

The Skeleton Lord let out a miserable cry, his soul trembling violently.

"He's been infected! This kid's been infected!!"

"That's the ancient god's 'spell of enslavement'! Once you're enslaved by it, your soul will be forcibly rewritten!"

"Oh no... I finally managed to find someone to rely on, but it turns out they're not very bright and insisted on touching that hot potato!"

The Demon Lord of Chaos and Ba Shan and the others were also terrified. They wanted to go forward to help, but they were blasted away by the golden light and could not get close at all.

Just when everyone thought Su Chen was about to become an ancient god puppet.

Click.

A crisp cracking sound suddenly rang out.

Su Chen's hand, which was wrapped in golden light, slowly but firmly clenched.

"You want to put a collar on me?"

Su Chen lowered his head, his voice hoarse, yet carrying a chilling aura that sent shivers down one's spine.

"My neck is too stiff."

"Your chain... isn't strong enough!"

"Origin Law Definition: False authority is all... garbage!!"

boom! ! !
Within Su Chen's body, the [Chaotic Gluttony] power, which had been ravenously thirsty, was no longer devouring, but rather utterly destroying and repelling!

The blue flames of origin spewed out from between Su Chen's fingers.

That was no ordinary fire; it was the fury of the "self," the will to "freedom"!

"Smash it...!!!" (End of Chapter)