"Master, why have you come to see me today?" Jianping asked, somewhat puzzled.
The Sword Elder smiled, his withered face showing signs of age, and said, "Getting old, I just wanted to see how much you've grown."
"But seeing you like this now makes me quite satisfied. Your Sword Dao training is not bad."
Li Chen stood to the side, somewhat speechless. Mutual flattery?
What do you mean by "his Sword Dao is pretty good"? Jianping's current level can crush any of his peers, so if that's considered good, then does that mean everyone else is "trash"?
Jianping nodded slightly and said, "Master, did you really come to Canghai Pass just to show us the scenery outside the pass?"
"Still..."
The Sword Elder shook his head, his sharp gaze fixed on Li Chen, and said, "Today, I'm taking him somewhere."
"Me?" Li Chen pointed to himself, somewhat bewildered.
How did their issues get involved with me again?
The Sword Elder tapped the ground with his cane and said, "You've come with me; you should be able to fly, right?"
Before Li Chen could react, a gust of wind rose up from beneath their feet.
The group instantly soared into the sky. The Sword Elder and Jianping stood on their small canes, while Li Chen flew through the air using his abilities.
A violent whistling sound kept blowing behind him, increasing his speed.
But it still couldn't match the speed of the Sword Elder's cane.
Like a long spear piercing the night sky.
Fortunately, Li Chen had unlimited energy; otherwise, he would have been exhausted long ago from flying at such a high altitude for so long.
I don't know how much time has passed...
The opportunity for the Sword Elder to guide Li Chen seems to have arrived.
However, Sword Elder and Jianping have already disappeared.
Only one small courtyard stands here.
The aroma of vegetables wafted from the courtyard, and the dim yellow light illuminated the scene inside.
Li Chen did not land in the courtyard.
It was at the entrance.
He hesitated for a few seconds before knocking on the dilapidated wooden door.
A few seconds later, a very childish voice came from inside.
Who is it?
Click~
The wooden door opened, and instead of the Sword Elder, a little girl in a red cotton-padded jacket appeared. Her face was very cute, and she also had a slight air of heroism.
What puzzled Li Chen was that the energy fluctuations emanating from the Sword Elder were clearly pointing to this place.
Why have they disappeared?
And who is this?
Before Li Chen could hesitate, the little girl who opened the door said in a childish voice, "Strange brother, why are you here so late at night instead of going home?"
Li Chen glanced inside; the scene clearly indicated it was someone else's home, and he didn't want to disturb them.
He then said gently, "Excuse me, little sister, I'm sorry to bother you."
"You've come to the wrong place. You can't open the door for strangers again."
The little girl's big eyes blinked, and she said, "Aren't you a stranger?"
"Strange brother!"
Li Chen gave a wry smile, wondering why following the guidance of the energy had led him to the wrong place. Was it underground, or perhaps in the air?
At that moment, an old voice came from inside the house.
"Qiuqiu, stop fooling around, let that young man in."
The little girl stuck out her tongue, her face showing a hint of helplessness, and said, "Strange brother, let's go inside."
"Grandpa is looking for you."
Then he turned and jogged into the back courtyard.
Li Chen asked with some confusion, "Grandpa? Could it be that old man from earlier?"
Then he went inside.
The moment one foot stepped inside, the entire world seemed to transform into a different scene.
Night turned into day.
What was just a dilapidated courtyard has now been transformed into a paradise.
The sound of high mountains and flowing water, and waterfalls, filled the air.
A crystal-clear pond appears here, with a pavilion made of mahogany in the middle.
The little girl had already run into the pond, stepping on the stone path laid out on it.
An elderly man in the pavilion looked at him with a faint smile.
"This..." Li Chen was greatly shocked.
After all, the world changes quite rapidly.
One moment it's night, the next it's day; one moment there's knocking on dilapidated doors and windows, and the next moment we're in a breathtakingly beautiful landscape—it's truly incredible.
Li Chen slowly walked over the moss-covered stones.
He wanted to know about this old man, or rather, why the Sword Elder had brought him here.
Looking at the goldfish swimming in the pond, he couldn't tell the difference between the real fish and the fake ones for a moment.
Because he could sense that these goldfish were alive, and that blood was flowing in their bodies.
After walking to the pavilion...
The old man patted the little girl's head, saying with a touch of affection.
"Qiuqiu, go play first."
"I have something to discuss with this young man."
The little girl nodded with a smile, then ran off happily.
The old man chuckled, "Isn't she adorable? That's my granddaughter."
"Hahaha."
Li Chen pursed his lips, hesitated for a few seconds, and then asked, "Is there something you need from me?"
Up to this point, he was still completely unaware of the situation. The Sword Elder had guided him to this place, where he met this old man.
Clearly, this old man was the same person the Sword Elder had mentioned earlier.
The old man smiled and said, "I do have something to discuss with you. Please have a seat."
With a wave of his hand, a stone table suddenly appeared in the pavilion, with a chessboard engraved on it, but no chess pieces.
"Sit?" Li Chen asked, somewhat puzzled. There were no chairs here, so how could he sit?
Then it occurred to him that the old man might be testing his abilities.
With a flash of his eyes, Li Chen summoned two chairs made of energy that appeared beside the stone table.
The old man stroked his beard and chuckled, "Not bad, not bad."
He then sat down directly in the chair.
Seeing this, Li Chen didn't say anything more, but sat down and looked at each other.
"Come play a game with me, and I'll tell you why I'm looking for you."
But how do you play without pieces or moves?
Li Chen frowned. His ability could create chess pieces, but it required a high degree of control, since each piece needed to be the same size and length, and a game of chess could take a long time.
The old man looked at him with a smile.
Li Chen sighed, and two round chess boxes made of energy appeared on the chessboard in front of him.
One chess piece after another began to appear inside.
The old man laughed and said, "I'll take the white pieces."
Waiting for the pieces to land.
Li Chen had played chess before, and Yu Qingnian had taught him. After all, when they were in Magic City, Yu Qingnian would sometimes ask him to play a couple of games in his office.
The old man didn't make a move, but instead looked at Li Chen.
Li Chen slowly said, "My chess skills are not good, you go first."
Although he was playing black, he still chose to give up the pieces.
After all, the person in front of us is an elderly man, and he deserves our respect.
The old man stroked his beard and said, "Good."
He stretched out his hand, picked up a white piece, and suddenly the entire courtyard was filled with turmoil.
Behind him appeared an incredibly fierce human figure, like a white tiger opening its blood-red maw to look at him.
With a "bang".
The white piece falls.
Li Chen came to his senses, greatly shocked by what he had just witnessed. Playing chess could actually conjure up a human being, and the aura of that human being was even emanating the feeling of the Calamity Realm.
He looked at the chessboard and saw that the white piece had actually landed directly in the center.