The Same As Ever

Xu Yan looked at Qin Tian with a strange expression and said, "Old Sir Qin, your chess skills are... hard to describe!"

He had thought that Qin Tian, having lived so long, would have extraordinary chess skills, but he had overestimated him.

Qin Tian's chess skills were surprisingly terrible, just like Qin Yudie's.

The moment Xu Yan thought of Qin Yudie's way of playing chess, he suddenly understood.

So Qin Yudie learned chess from Qin Tian. No wonder they were equally bad.

"Old Qin, let me play a game with Senior Xu," Jiang Taiyuan said.

Playing chess itself was secondary; the main reason was that he wanted to experience the Great Dao more profoundly.

Playing chess with Senior Xu was essentially an immersion in the Great Dao.

This was a great opportunity!

Xu Yan played chess with Jiang Taiyuan with a sliver of hope, but after Jiang Taiyuan made his first move, his hope was dashed.

Jiang Taiyuan's chess skills were even worse than Qin Tian's. They were truly one worse than the other.

After just a few moves, Jiang Taiyuan lost, and lost completely.

However, he was very happy. The next game of chess made his understanding of the Great Dao deeper, and he was even closer to the second level of the Sea of Consciousness.

After that, Qin Tian and Jiang Taiyuan took turns playing chess with Xu Yan, which brought back the joy he felt when he used to torment Qin Yudie.

Moreover, since his opponents were two old men, he didn't need to hold back out of pity. He basically didn't go easy on them, defeating Qin Tian or Jiang Taiyuan within a few moves each time.

The more thoroughly they lost, the happier Jiang Taiyuan and Qin Tian became. They left happily, having benefited greatly from playing chess with Xu Yan, far more than from a period of secluded cultivation.

Therefore, they decided to play chess with Senior Xu more often in the future, as experiencing Senior Xu's Great Dao was the best way to cultivate.

"Little Fox, do you think these two old men have a masochistic streak? They're so happy even after being thrashed," Xu Yan asked.

It was one thing for him to be happy when he thrashed others, but why were Qin Tian and Jiang Taiyuan, the ones being thrashed, even happier than him?

Su Jiuer thought to herself, That's because they can experience Dao charm, which is a rare opportunity.

However, compared to Qin Tian and Jiang Taiyuan, she was the one who benefited the most. Living with Xu Yan, she could feel the natural Dao charm he exuded with every movement, every gesture.

She had even become somewhat addicted to this life, having someone take care of her daily needs while constantly sensing Dao charm.

This kind of life was impossible anywhere else but here with Xu Yan.

"These people, they're back again!"

Xu Yan saw Murong Yue and her group, who had tried to take Su Jiuer away last time, and said with some concern.

He didn't understand why these people were so insistent on taking Su Jiuer away. If they liked foxes, they could just buy one; why steal someone else's pet?

However, this time he intended to talk things through with them, so he didn't close the door. Hiding wasn't a solution. If they came every day, he couldn't close the door every day, otherwise, he wouldn't be able to do any business.

"Senior, we've come with sincerity this time. If you're willing to give us the Little Fox, this pill is yours!"

Murong Yue walked to the front of the shop and looked at Xu Yan, who was standing at the entrance. She took out a pill in a small box, opened it, and said.

After returning to the Murong Family last time, she had told her family that the Little Fox was with the Supreme Elder of the Tianren Sect. Her family then gave her this Nine Revolutions Returning Yang Pill and instructed her to trade it for the Little Fox.

The Nine Revolutions Returning Yang Pill could increase lifespan. Since the other party was the Supreme Elder of the Tianren Sect, he must be very old and would likely agree to trade the Nine Revolutions Returning Yang Pill for a little Fox Demon.

Murong Yue believed her family's reasoning was sound. Otherwise, if Xu Yan, as a Supreme Elder of the Tianren Sect, maintained the appearance of a young man, he must be a cultivator who cherished his lifespan.

"A pill? I don't want this thing," Xu Yan raised an eyebrow and said, "Let's come inside and talk properly. I'm not an unreasonable person, but you have to give me a reason why you want to take the Little Fox away."

After saying that, he walked into the shop and sat down at the table, ready to have a good talk with Murong Yue.

Murong Yue's delicate eyebrows furrowed. She hadn't expected Xu Yan to refuse the Nine Revolutions Returning Yang Pill.

However, since he was willing to talk, it meant there was still a chance.

This time, Murong Yue only brought two clan members with her, a total of three people, who stepped into the outer hall of the small shop.

The world before their eyes instantly changed. Endless rules of the Great Dao evolved into various phenomena.

There were infinite stars and flying swords raining down upon them.

The two people behind Murong Yue's legs went weak, and they directly fell to the ground outside the door, blood trickling from their lips.

Murong Yue herself was not much better. Her face was extremely pale, and her breathing was difficult.

Fortunately, these Dao intents did not deliberately release their power to suppress them; otherwise, they would have already died.

Seeing the two people Murong Yue brought fall outside the shop, Xu Yan said, "Miss, the two people you brought are a bit weak. Why did they just fall outside the door like that?"

He had initially thought they were all cultivators, given their imposing aura, but it turned out they were just pretending. They were actually very weak.

Murong Yue's expression was very unpleasant. At this moment, she realized that Xu Yan could not possibly be the Supreme Elder of the Tianren Sect.

Because the Tianren Sect would not have such a powerful expert!

She suppressed the shock in her heart and bowed to Xu Yan, apologizing, "Senior, I'm sorry. We won't disturb you again."

After saying that, she fled as if escaping, carrying her two clan members away.

After leaving Xu Yan's shop, Murong Yue was still filled with lingering fear.

She never expected that Tianren City would hide such a senior expert. Everything in the small shop was natural and contained the profound principles of the Great Dao.

Those paintings, calligraphy, and wooden puppets all contained the Supreme Great Dao. Even a trace of Dao charm emanating from them was enough to suppress and kill her.

She thought to herself that the Tianren Sect Supreme Elder's token must have been a ruse, meant to allow him to live in seclusion in Tianren City and avoid others knowing he was a reclusive expert.

Murong Yue quickened her pace, wanting to return to her Family quickly.

She wanted to tell her Family to stop cooperating with the Demon Tiger Clan. That Little Fox was not to be trifled with!

Xu Yan sat in his shop, completely bewildered.

The other person had entered with an extraordinary aura, only to flee as if escaping in the blink of an eye, even apologizing to him.

No matter how he looked at it, this was not normal.

It was truly strange; there were so many weird people these days.

Su Jiuer looked at Xu Yan on the table with adoration. She had spoken out to insult the Murong Family, but the Murong Family's eldest daughter not only dared not retort but actively apologized.

So cool!

She felt proud along with him, thinking, You want to catch me? Not a chance!

In the following days, no one from the Murong Family appeared, clearly having given up on capturing Su Jiuer.

However, a group of people in black entered Tianren City. There weren't many of them, but each one exuded a powerful aura.

These people were all cultivators of the Demon Race, and they had only one goal: to capture Su Jiuer!