I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, So I’ll Max Out My Defense

Chapter 940: Chapter 941: Chess Saint Is Defeated

Having said that, the Chess Saint sat upright and said to the empty stone stump on the other side, “How should this game be played, I ask the senior to delineate a path.”

“Buzz!”

The chessboard trembled, and on one corner, four characters appeared: blind chess, you first.

They lingered for only a second before vanishing from sight,

The Chess Saint understood intuitively and did not put on airs, saying with a strong voice, “Thank you, senior!”

“Fourteen, four!”

Swoosh!

No sooner had the sound ended than the board was marked with another line of small characters: “Four, four!”

Chess Saint: “Sixteen, sixteen!”

The small characters on the chessboard manifested: “Four, sixteen!”

One man, one board, the game was played in such a manner, with no pieces on the board, the placements only in the mind. The difficulty level could be said to have reached the peak. Not only must one remember their own moves, but also keep track of the opponent’s placements and deduce the optimal moves—all within the mind. The audience didn’t dare to breathe aloud, all holding their breaths as they stared intently at the board.

Li Xiaobai only understood the initial few exchanges as both sides vied for the star points, followed by a series of small and large flying formations and other standard sequences. But after that, he knew nothing at all. Looking around, several other cultivators wore similar expressions. Although they didn’t understand, they couldn’t help but keep watching.

Though there was nothing on the board, one couldn’t help but feel the tension was extreme.

No one dared to speak; the place was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. As time ticked away, the Chess Saint’s pace of speech slowed down, beads of sweat as big as beans slid down his cheeks, he bit down on his cheeks causing them to protrude, veins throbbed visibly on his neck, and his eyes, bloodshot, fixed unwaveringly on the chessboard before him, evidently under unimaginable pressure.

People began to grow anxious; if the Chess Saint was defeated, then no one here would be able to win this game. They wouldn’t be able to enter the real tomb below.

“Have a Huazi.”

Li Xiaobai lit a Huazi and tossed it to the edge of the board. Wisps of smoke drifted into the Chess Saint’s nostrils, and he involuntarily inhaled before suddenly straightening his hunched back, his eyes shining with a fervent light.

“Brilliant game, brilliant game indeed!”

A hint of joy appeared on the Chess Saint’s face, the wrinkles smoothening out in an instant, and his speech suddenly quickened.

“Eighteen, two!”

“Seventeen, three!”

Watching the Chess Saint, whose skills had improved because of an unknown object, everyone’s eyes flashed with astonishment. What was this treasure they had never seen before? Judging by its burning speed, it was likely a disposable item.

“Hmm? What’s this scent?”

The smoke slowly spread, wafting into the noses of the many cultivators present.

The cultivators only felt refreshed, as if their internal organs had been cleansed, and they experienced a slight increase in enlightenment. Many of the puzzles they had encountered on their path of cultivation seemed to resolve themselves at that moment.

“What is this thing that can enhance our enlightenment like this!”

“Damn, my understanding of the Cultivation Technique has ascended a new level, just from stabilizing I’ve actually broken through a bottleneck!”

“No wonder the Chess Saint had such a reaction. It was because of this treasure. Who is this young man to possess such a secret treasure? Could he be from some major power?”

A storm of surprise arose in everyone’s hearts. They knew their own cultivation levels best, and if this item worked for them, then if it were to be taken back to their sect, it could instantly elevate the Sect Disciples by a notch!

Blood Soul Monk Pudu and the others looked at Li Xiaobai with different eyes. They had initially thought he was just a troublemaker, but it turned out he had such valuable items on him. The worth of these items was no longer just about having abundant Immortal Stone Resources.

If they could possess that treasure, it would be a significant leap in development, not just for them personally but also for their sects!

“Silence!”

“To observe the game of chess without comment is the mark of a true gentleman!”

The leading crone chastised sternly, her gaze sweeping over the crowd, immediately silencing their excited clamor.

Suppressing the restlessness in their hearts, the cultivators once again turned their attention to the chess game, reasoning that the young man was not going anywhere at the moment, so there was no need to rush. They would wait for the Chess Saint to break the game before capturing the youth for a thorough interrogation to learn the secrets of the treasure.

But when they looked at the chessboard again, their expressions turned to shock once more.

At that moment, the Chess Saint’s face was covered in sweat, his brows almost twisted into a knot, his whole body shivering uncontrollably, his eyes filled with a deep sense of fear.

His lips trembled and moved for a long time, but he was unable to announce the next move.

Meanwhile, the stick of incense had burned down more than half but was still not finished. @@novelbin@@

“What’s going on? With this divine object assisting him, why does it seem like the Chess Saint is under even greater pressure?”

“Is this chess game so formidable that even a being like the Chess Saint is about to be defeated?”

The cultivators were in an uproar, unable to contain their shock. They could not see the situation on the chessboard, but it was clear that the Chess Saint was now in a difficult situation.

“So that’s how it is, that’s how it is!”

“This isn’t just a game of chess, it’s about the balance between good and evil, yin and yang!”

“The outcome was decided at the first move. I lost when I placed my first piece on a star point; this game is about grand strategy, and my strategy was too narrow!”

The Chess Saint murmured to himself, looking somewhat dispirited and without making another move, he stood up with a somewhat vacant gaze and bowed deeply to the chessboard.

“It is I who has lost, and I am thoroughly convinced of my defeat. The breadth and grandeur of the senior’s spirit are not something I, who am obsessed with the chessboard, can compare with.”

“To die here, witnessing the moment someone breaks the game, would also be a fortunate thing.”

The Chess Saint walked to the edge of the stone platform, ready to embrace death.

“Old Xiang, what are you doing!”

The crone shouted in alarm and flickered in an attempt to carry the Chess Saint away.

“Old Xiang, it’s just a game of chess. What are you so upset about? Surely a few of us with Half-Saint cultivation levels cannot be killed by a dead person, right?”

“Let’s fight our way out!”

The elder hastily went forward to grab the Chess Saint. Behind them, the others, looking at the still empty chessboard, felt an inexplicable chill rise in their hearts. It was just a game of chess, yet it spurred a Half-Saint Strong Expert to contemplate death.

It was somewhat too shocking to hear.

If they had not seen it with their own eyes, they would not have believed it themselves.

“Quick, look! The hook on that ancient tower moved!”

A cultivator shouted, pointing ahead. A faint blue light flickered in the distance, and a silver hook, as if alive, shot toward the Chess Saint’s position.

“Damn, they’re reaping souls, Old Xiang, dodge!”

The elder flicked his wrist and threw the Chess Saint, who was in a dazed state, out of the way, while a brush materialized in mid-air and he wrote a huge “freeze” character to hold the hook in place.

“Damn it, trying to reap my brother’s soul? Let’s take it down!”

The crone roared with rage, her hands flashing with a pair of twin swords that sent several cold glints chopping the silver hook into pieces.

But what followed caused everyone’s hair to stand on end. One hook disappeared, and in its place, tens, if not hundreds, of hooks slowly rose into the air, flickering as if searching for a target they fancied.

The elder exclaimed in horror, “Goodness gracious, no wonder this could grind a Half-Saint to death. We’ve stirred up a hornet’s nest!”