Stars Arrayed as a Board, Heaven and Earth Set Their Pieces

As the chessboard flew away, not only Gao Song noticed it, but everyone else's attention was also drawn to the spinning cloth.

However, a strange feeling arose in the minds of the scholars afterward. They were drawn into the swirling gazes, and they couldn't distinguish east from west, as if their minds were being pulled into a vortex.

Immediately following, with a thought, points of light suddenly flickered on the chessboard, like starlight, rotating with the chessboard and giving the impression of the Stars Shift. Then, a fiery sun suddenly appeared from the end of the chessboard, as if rising from the horizon, circling once, and then setting again. After that, a bright moon rose from the sea.

Immediately afterwards, everyone felt a surge of life, a wave of heat, a refreshing breeze, and the bitter cold of winter. Spring, summer, autumn, and winter flashed by, and wind and rain arrived, nourishing all things.

What's going on?

Upon seeing the various changes on the chessboard, Gao Song's expression changed drastically. But after this shock, he regained his senses and looked again, only to find that he had missed his target.

"Huh?"

At this glance, where was the chessboard rotating in the air?

His gaze shifted to the table, where he noticed the chessboard was perfectly placed, without a trace of it having been thrown away.

"Could it be an illusion?" The thought crossed Gao Song's mind again, and he had a hunch, but before the thought could linger, he heard a renowned scholar behind him exhale a long sigh, and a murmur of discussion arose—

"I just saw the Stars Shift."

"You saw it too? I seem to feel the changing of the seasons."

"And then there's the cycle of the sun and moon..."

These sounds reached Gao Song's ears and immediately made his heartstrings twitch.

If it were just one person having a mistaken belief, that would be one thing. But listening to these conversations, it's clear that many Confucian scholars have similar experiences. This can't be a coincidence; it's an inevitability.

Could it be...?

As Gao Song pondered, his attention turned to Qiu Yan sitting at the table. Qiu Yan was sitting upright, his pen already put down, silently waiting for the ink on the chessboard to dry.

Seeing him like this, Gao Song recalled something, and a memory popped into his mind—

That was the scene where Qiu Yan stopped drawing and waited after finishing the chessboard.

"It seems Qiu Yan didn't do anything wrong, and the chessboard didn't fly into the air. But how did those illusions come about? Why did I and the other students see the same thing?"

For a moment, his heart skipped a beat, and doubt arose within him—

"This Qiu Yan might have used some kind of supernatural magic. If that's the case, then as long as we spread the word, we can isolate him immediately!"

The Supreme Sage teacher Confucius said, "The Master did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits; he respected ghosts and spirits but kept them at a distance." This has long been an unspoken rule among Confucian Way and Scholar Forest. Some things are fine to do in private. But if they are brought into the open and exposed, then one must bear the consequences.

However, as Gao Song was pondering these things, he heard a whisper. Listening intently, he realized it was Qiu Yan reciting something in a low voice—

"The stars revolve, the sun and moon shine in turn, the four seasons govern, Yin-Yang transform, wind and rain bestow their blessings..."

The voice was very low, and it was difficult to hear clearly without careful listening, but now that it had entered Gao Song's ears, it shook the latter to his core.

This sentence is from Sage Sun's "On Heaven," describing all things in the world. Gao Song listened to it, pondered it carefully, and finally realized that what he had just seen on the chessboard was precisely what was described in "On Heaven."

"Could it be that what we just witnessed wasn't an illusion, but rather the thought that Qiu Yan had in mind as he wrote, which, along with the tip of his brush, solidified on the ink, rose up, and then influenced everyone's thoughts?"

Seeing Qiu Yan's calm and composed expression, staring at the pen placed to the side, and appreciating the subtle charm revealed in the ink marks on the chessboard, Gao Song's mind finally opened up.

"Was the illusion just now a product of his artistic vision?"

Thinking about it this way, Gao Song's opinion of Qiu Yan changed again, from initial anger to vigilance, until now, when he realized that Qiu Yan was incorporating his insights into "The On Heaven" into his writing, creating a misleading impression on the reader, which made him realize that the situation was not good.

But it was too late to back down.

Someone brought over two boxes of chess pieces and placed them on the table.

Seeing this, Gao Song took a deep breath, cleared his mind, and sat down opposite Qiu Yan.

The scholar who brought the chess pieces stepped forward and said, "Please, both of you, decide who goes first."

Qiu Yan waved his hand and said "please". Gao Song didn't stand on ceremony and grabbed a handful of white pieces from the box. Qiu Yan also raised his hand and grabbed two black pieces.

This is the game of guessing the game. One person takes a handful of white pieces, and the other person takes one or two black pieces. They guess the game by taking one piece, which is an odd number, and two pieces are an even number.

The two sides were paired up. Gao Song had five white pieces, which was odd. Qiu Yan guessed wrong and lost the initiative. Gao Song then took the black pieces and made the first move.

In fact, with Qiu Yan's perception, even without seeing, he could distinguish between odd and even just by hearing and touching. However, the reason he let Gao Song go first was something he deliberately created.

Snap!

Gao Song's chess piece landed on the board, and through a layer of cloth, it collided with the table, making a crisp sound.

"Um?"

As the chess piece was placed, a sudden thought struck him. The chessboard in his vision began to distort, with the horizontal and vertical lines floating and shifting, releasing a surge of vitality and a touch of artistic conception that stirred his heart!

A faint aura of Sage silently enveloped Gao Song, permeating his body.

The next moment, his entire being surged with energy and vitality, flowing down his arm and fingertips, and into the chess piece!

Subsequently, a Sage Spirit latent within him was unleashed—

The former kings abhorred this disorder, therefore they established rites and principles to regulate it, to nurture people's desires and satisfy their needs, so that desires would not be exhausted by material possessions, and material possessions would not be subjugated by desires...

"What Gao Song has learned is indeed the way of Treatise on Rites!"

Sensing the changes in the spirit and energy of the person opposite him, Qiu Yan narrowed his eyes, focused his mind on the chessboard, and aligned his thoughts with the horizontal and vertical lines. Immediately afterward, his perception entered a vast world, filled with mountains and rivers, with the sun, moon and stars, and the changing seasons. As far as the eye could see, there was no end in sight.

Standing on this land is a person; who else could it be but Gao Song?

However, this person was not True Person, but a condensed thought. If viewed from above, one could even see that the entire earth was crisscrossed with paths, and beneath the soil seemed to lie a vast, interconnected chessboard.

The figure formed from that thought was emanating a spirit of Treatise on Rites, spreading and radiating outwards.

In fact, from the moment Qiu Yan saw Gao Song, the Sage Sun Spirit within his soul was stirred, and he sensed a similar aura emanating from the other. He made a guess, realizing that what Gao Song was learning must be the Way of Sage Sun, and that it involved the Sage Spirit and was related to the legendary Sage Manuscript in the Ritual Reverence Academy.

Now, this speculation has finally been confirmed.

"The manuscript of Sage Sun obtained by the Ritual Reverence Academy is very likely the 'Treatise on Rites,' which is not among the nine chapters in my mind. It is a good opportunity to learn from it and draw inferences from one instance to another!"

Qiu Yan's previous unsuccessful attempt to seek his advice left behind a passage on Treatise on Rites, which served as a catalyst. This passage remained in Gao Song's mind, drawing out classical texts from his memory. Therefore, when he made his move, it was this passage that he focused on.

As Qiu Yan pondered, his insights into the principles of propriety in Way of Sage Sun were also transmitted into the chess pieces, merging into that vast, empty world.

This world is not real, but rather formed through the spirit of the writing and the combination of Qi and Blood. It seems mysterious, but it is actually just a world of consciousness constructed in the subconscious by using a chessboard and chess pieces to guide the player's consciousness, thus making it easier for Qiu Yan to explore and to make the game concrete.

This is also why Qiu Yan set up the chess game. Sometimes, playing chess is more direct than asking for advice in words. The game expresses the mind and the thoughts clash.

Snap!

Qiu Yan put down his chess piece, releasing a profound insight that merged into the chessboard and spread outwards.

Instantly, the mental world of the two subconscious minds changed dramatically. Qiu Yan's figure appeared opposite Gao Song, and the two faced off.

This scene, though seemingly mysterious, is actually just two chess pieces on a chessboard, intertwined and subtly arranged in a strategic layout, in Gao Song's mind.

However, the moment he placed the piece, his energy surged, and his insights flowed out, allowing him to understand a clue and guess Qiu Yan's purpose.

He then looked up at Qiu Yan, his expression somewhat complicated.

"This Qiu Yan, though he speaks arrogantly, genuinely wants to learn from you; his sincerity is admirable..."

As he pondered, he hesitated for a moment, sensing the flow of his thoughts.

"However, it seems a bit wasteful to reveal one's Sage thoughts in this way, to let the other party know with every move one makes in chess."

Now that he knew the opponent's purpose and sensed the extraordinary nature of the chessboard, Gao Song only had two choices: give up or continue.

If he were to give up, regardless of the reason given, he would inevitably be accused of cowardice, and his reputation would be damaged if word got out.

However, if this continues, Gao Song's understanding of Way of Sage Sun will be passed on with each chess piece, which will undoubtedly cause him concern, given his years of diligent study.

For a time, they were caught in a dilemma.

Just then, as Qiu Yan's piece landed on the board, the entire board changed again. Gao Song, a faint current flowing through the piece into his heart. Instantly, he gained many insights, which were also the Way of Sage Sun, but purer and more profound and comprehensive than what he had comprehended!

The insights he displayed were certainly the result of many years of experience, but Qiu Yan's feedback was in no way inferior, and perhaps even superior!

"What exactly is Qiu Yan's plan? He actually released his inner insights. Could it be that, as he said, he came here to verify what he has learned? Although there is exchange between different schools of thought, most of the time it is just debate, using it to make a name for themselves, establish prestige, and finally spread their doctrines. Is this Qiu Yan's plan the same? But he hasn't joined any academy, so whose doctrines is he spreading?"

With some skepticism, Gao Song placed his second piece on the board.

ps:

Thank you to "Justice Pest" and "Wan Xia Xia La" for the donations!

The second update will be later.