The Chess Game on the Plate, Stealing the Heavenly Emperor's Authority

Cheng Yue was speechless at the merit as well.

He had just been bored, recalling how in his old novels, those idle almighty beings could comprehend the Dao just by playing chess. He wanted to see if he could do the same.

Who would have thought it would stir up such a commotion?

It took him only a moment to figure it out. Legend had it that Go was born when the Xuanyuan Yellow Emperor casually drew seventeen horizontal lines and ten vertical lines.

He never expected that he, too, would accidentally snatch some of humanity's merit.

And it was the Yellow Emperor's merit at that.

Thinking it over, Cheng Yue was left speechless, even starting to mutter inwardly.

[Ancestor, forgive me. This was just a whim, a spur-of-the-moment thing!]

After all, who among them wasn't a Descendant of Yan and Yellow Emperor?

But since he had already obtained this merit, he would have to grant humanity even greater benefits in the future.

He had already achieved some cultivation success. When humanity emerged in the days to come, he would enter their ranks first and teach them the Daoist Canon.

He figured that way, humanity could live a bit more freely.

Having said that, Cheng Yue pressed his forehead, a troubled look on his face, then tapped lightly.

The knowledge of Go flowed into Fuxi's mind.

At that moment, Fuxi was mostly stunned.

His master had casually created this game of Go, and it had actually drawn heavenly merit.

A hint of envy flickered in his eyes.

But what amazed him even more was the game itself.

He understood all its rules.

Now, looking at the Go board, the black and white stones embodied the principle of Yin Yang.

And they contained countless profound uses.

He turned his gaze back to the board before him.

Amid the crisscrossing lines, Cheng Yue picked up a stone and set it down casually.

Fuxi, staring at the board, seemed to be stirred.

The board before him was no longer just a board.

It was the myriad stars in the sky, or even the Primordial World Continent itself.

He looked at the single stone Cheng Yue had casually placed.

It was like a star, or like a living being.

"Fuxi, still don't understand the rules?"

A voice snapped the distracted Fuxi back to reality.

Coming to his senses, he looked at Cheng Yue before him, then shook his head.

"Disciple understands now, just not yet practiced."

Cheng Yue shook his head and said, "No matter. Take it slow. This game—learn it slowly, play it slowly, and you'll master it in time."

Fuxi nodded, then picked up a white stone from the side and placed it on the board.

Seeing Fuxi had made his move, Cheng Yue began to play as well.

The two faced off, and every move Cheng Yue made seemed effortless.

But for Fuxi, each step was agonizingly difficult.

The game in his eyes had transformed; it was no longer an ordinary match.

The stones in his hand were no longer ordinary pieces.

In Fuxi's view, playing Go had become as arduous as placing stars one by one into the firmament.

After just ten moves, Fuxi's face suddenly flushed red, then a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

His aura weakened, and his face turned pale.

He trembled as he recovered, then looked at the board again. It had returned to normal.

Like an ordinary board.

Cheng Yue, sitting there, looked at Fuxi before him.

He was completely stunned.

He turned his head and glanced at the board.

"What the hell? It's just a game of chess!"

Fuxi's expression turned awkward, even tinged with regret.

"Master, this disciple's cultivation is too low. I cannot continue the match."

Cheng Yue sighed and nodded.

The pieces still lay on the board before them.

"Should we call Xiao Wa over to try? After taking a hit, she might settle down for a while."

Fuxi stood frozen on the spot.

This master was truly a devil—even thinking of dragging his own sister into this.

But that was a bit too ruthless. A backlash like that was no easy pain to bear.

"Forget it. This little disciple might end up scheming against me someday."

Cheng Yue touched the Golden Wheel of Merit behind his head, then drew out a sliver of merit.

He tapped it directly onto Fuxi's body.

"Alright, go back and heal."

Fuxi clasped his hands in a bow, turned, and left, returning to the side hall.

But once back, sitting there, his mind was still trapped in that chess game.

At the Purple Cloud Palace, Di Jun was about to step through the door when he suddenly felt a daze.

His expression shifted.

With a hint of tension, he turned his head to look back toward the Primordial World.

After a brief glance, he stood still.

Behind him, Eastern Emperor Taiyi, watching his Elder Brother stop, grew curious.

Why did he turn back? Had something happened?

He followed his gaze—two beautiful women were chatting and laughing as they walked toward the Purple Cloud Palace.

A smile crept onto his lips.

"So that's it, Elder Brother. If you like them, go for it."

Di Jun snapped back to reality at the words and glanced at Eastern Emperor Taiyi.

"Taiyi, what did you just say?"

Eastern Emperor walked ahead with a grin.

When he reached the two female immortals, he spoke with a smile.

"Might you two be Xihe and Changxi from the Moon Star?"

The two women nodded. Changxi recognized Eastern Emperor Taiyi.

"Eastern Emperor, do you have some instruction?"

Eastern Emperor pointed at Di Jun instead.

"Fellow Daoists, my Elder Brother has admired you both for a long time. You are the Moon Goddesses, and we are Innate Spirits of the Sun Star. How about becoming our Dao Companions?"

Xihe frowned immediately, and Changxi's brow furrowed as well.

"Sister, let's go. This one's true spirit must be malfunctioning."

Xihe nodded in agreement.

As they passed Di Jun, Changxi shot him a glare, let out a cold snort, and entered the Purple Cloud Palace.

Di Jun was speechless. His younger brother was a bit dense—was there something wrong with his head?

When Eastern Emperor came over, he still carried a hint of anger.

"Those two are so ungrateful. If they became Dao Companions, they'd be empresses. How dare they be so insolent."

Di Jun let out a quiet sigh, then spoke directly.

"Brother, what you did—how do I even say this? I just sensed someone moving the stars. That's something only the Heavenly Emperor's authority can do."

Once the Heavenly Emperor had taken his seat, the rules governing the movements of all stars were set. No one but the Heavenly Emperor could so easily alter their heaven-ordained orbits.

Blowing up a few minor stars was still possible.

But key stars? That was impossible.

Yet now, without any command from him, the stars had already shifted from their fixed paths.

"Is someone stealing my authority as Heavenly Emperor?"

Eastern Emperor tensed up immediately.

"Then we should return to the Heavenly Court at once!"

Di Jun shook his head after a moment.

"It's fine. My Heavenly Emperor status is still intact, and the stars' movement has already been restored. The Quasi-Sage method is what matters now. We'll discuss this after I return."

Eastern Emperor Taiyi nodded. That made sense—the Quasi-Sage status was the true priority.

"Let's go. Time to attend the lecture."

Fuxi likely never expected that altering the stars' movement and stealing a sliver of the Heavenly Emperor's authority would bring such backlash.