Zhenlong Chess Game

After Qiao Feng left, Chen Feng and the others, including Fan Bailing, left the Apricot Forest. After all, the people from the Western Xia First-Rank Hall would soon appear, and Bei Su Qing Feng was no laughing matter. He had no desire to try it.

The You Brothers took You Tanzhi back to Juxian Village, while Xue Muhua went to visit a famous physician in Jiangnan. Fan Bailing said he hoped Chen Feng would help him solve an endgame, and took him straight to Henan.

Leigu Mountain.

Fan Bailing brought Chen Feng to a hollow in the mountains. From a distance, they could see a Go board carved into a cliff there. The words "Zhenlong" were engraved above it, and black and white pieces were scattered across the board like stars—a Go endgame, unmistakably.

Beneath the cliff, an old man with silver hair and white robes sat quietly.

Fan Bailing brought Chen Feng beneath the board, bowed to the old man, then said to Chen Feng, "This is the Zhenlong Chess Game. Feel free to give it a try, young friend."

"Shouldn't we go greet that old gentleman?" Chen Feng asked, though he already knew the answer.

"That's Mr. Congbian. He's deaf and mute, but he was the one who set up this Zhenlong Chess Game." Fan Bailing explained it to Chen Feng, though his heart was bitter.

The eight of us fellow disciples were expelled from the sect, and our master, Su Xinghe, had pretended to be deaf and mute ever since. He hadn't been able to speak for thirty years. Fan Bailing had brought Chen Feng here desperately hoping he could solve the Zhenlong Chess Game.

"I see." Chen Feng bowed to Mr. Congbian, then turned his gaze to the Zhenlong Chess Game.

Looking at the board, Chen Feng chose the white move that Xu Zhu had used to solve the puzzle back then, then silently began to work out how the game would unfold.

Before he knew it, Chen Feng had started placing pieces. Not only that, he had solved the Zhenlong Chess Game with ease, and without using Xu Zhu's method.

Afterward, he entered the hidden cave and gained Wu Yazi's seventy years of inner power. He learned the Xiaoyao Sect's peerless martial arts, rampaged across the world of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, and returned to his own world with an overwhelming advantage, earning an SSS-Class rating.

After that, his progress became unstoppable. Elite Grade, Master Grade, Grandmaster Level—countless system announcements made him the most mysterious and powerful person in the world.

Money, status, and beautiful women came one after another. Anyone who stood in his way met certain death.

Then his identity was exposed, and people from various factions took his parents hostage to threaten him. But he remained unmoved, believing they weren't his real parents, and their deaths were the result.

As his parents in this body died, their faces suddenly became those of his parents from Blue Star, then changed once more into his own. Chen Feng jolted, and all the visions vanished.

Chen Feng woke with a mouthful of blood, then slumped, utterly drained. Fan Bailing hurried over to support him, his heart sinking.

Chen Feng knew he had fallen into an illusion. In Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, both Murong Fu and Duan Yanqing had fallen into illusions because of their obsessions, nearly losing their lives.

And Chen Feng had also figured out that his greed was what had drawn him into the chessboard's illusion.

Even though he'd told himself that he was here to inherit the Xiaoyao Sect's legacy, and that he didn't mind failing the mission, deep down he still enjoyed being admired by others and getting those system announcements.

But the illusion had struck him like a wake-up call: gaining power had made him lose himself. He'd become a slave to power, and in the end, he would bring about his own destruction.

Chen Feng was glad he had chosen the world of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils this time. The Zhenlong Chess Game had taught him that without a strong heart, great power would only make him lose himself.

Chen Feng gently pushed away Fan Bailing's supporting hand, then solemnly bowed to Su Xinghe. He sat quietly on the ground, closed his eyes, and calmed himself.

"Elder Fan, would you help me place the pieces? I'll play black." After a few minutes, Chen Feng opened his eyes. He still chose to play, but this time he wasn't thinking about how to obtain the Xiaoyao Sect's legacy. He simply wanted to take on the rare Zhenlong Chess Game.

Seeing that Chen Feng wanted to try again, Fan Bailing was about to dissuade him when Su Xinghe gave a slight nod. He then stood beside the stone-carved chess box, picked up a piece, and tossed it toward the spot Chen Feng had indicated.

As time passed, their moves grew slower and slower. Chen Feng studied the board for a long time before each move, but showed no sign of falling into an illusion.

He had only one goal in mind: to win.

He forgot his original reason for coming here and forgot how Xu Zhu had won the game. All that remained was the pride of a Grandmaster Chess player.

As more pieces were placed, Chen Feng's black stones fell into greater and greater danger. In the end, after thinking for more than ten minutes, Chen Feng sighed.

He knew the game was all but decided, yet he couldn't win through superior skill alone. Just as Fan Bailing thought he was about to give up, Chen Feng called out another position.

When the black stone landed, the white stones immediately closed in, capturing a large group of black stones. But the situation had become clearer: he had put himself in a desperate position to find a way out.

Chen Feng's move made the other two men's eyes light up. Even Su Xinghe, who had spent thirty years studying the game and had worked through countless possibilities, had never considered that move.

In Go, players all sought victory. Most people wouldn't think of a tactic that meant putting themselves in a desperate position to find a way out.

Su Xinghe had already grasped the extent of Chen Feng's skill. From here on, black was certain to win. The Zhenlong Chess Game had been solved.

At the thought, Su Xinghe laughed aloud. He reached out and pushed Chen Feng toward the section of cliff beside the board, where the two characters "Xiaoyao" had been carved. Then he struck out with a palm from a distance, sending Chen Feng straight into the cliff.

After Chen Feng entered the stone wall through a method that belonged in a fantasy world, he knew his greatest gain from this trip to Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils was assured.

Outside, once Chen Feng had entered the stone wall, Su Xinghe raised a hand. A white stone shot up and slammed into the mountaintop opposite the cliff bearing the carved chessboard.

With a bang, a figure was knocked off the mountainside by the stone.

"What's this?" Fan Bailing was startled when he saw the figure fall from the mountain.

"That was an informant for the traitor Ding Chunqiu. He's been stationing people here to keep watch all these years, and they send a report every seven days. You have four days left. Once that Xiaoyao fellow has received the inheritance, take him away at once and go into hiding. After he has fully mastered our master's power, he can come out and deal with the traitor Ding Chunqiu." Su Xinghe looked at his disciple and spoke slowly.

"You... Master, you aren't coming with us?" Fan Bailing asked hurriedly, taken aback by Su Xinghe's words.

"If Ding Chunqiu doesn't receive a report for seven days, he'll know something has happened here. He'll definitely come out from Xingxiu Sea. I'll buy you time. You eight fellow disciples are to go into hiding with the new sect leader and conceal your identities." With that, Su Xinghe hurried away.

Fan Bailing was left behind, anxious and wanting to follow, but not daring to.