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

Chapter 943: Chapter 944 The Order of Moves Has Changed

“Amitabha, I did not expect the young friend to have such skills, truly admirable,” the Monk remarked, clearly impressed. “You were even able to see through a game that even the Chess Saint had regretfully lost. Your future is boundless!”

“Fellow donors, this old monk believes that our urgent priority should be to go down and explore the real ancient tomb. We should not waste time here,” Monk Pudu said with a chuckle.

“Exactly, exactly. But how should we go down? The chessboard doesn’t seem to give any hints,” another remarked.

Upon hearing this, everyone agreed and began to search around the stone platform, hoping to find some kind of Formation or secret mechanism.

“Boy, did the chessboard give instructions on how to enter the real tomb?” Blood Soul asked Li Xiaobai, word by word.

“I do not know. It only said that I won,” Li Xiaobai replied honestly, shaking his head.

“Hmph, I hope you’re telling the truth. If you dare deceive me, you will die a miserable death!”

Not daring to be negligent, Blood Soul also joined the group searching for the mechanism, not wanting to fall behind.

Meanwhile, the pattern on the chessboard changed again. In Li Xiaobai’s eyes, the board seemed to slowly dissolve and contort into an ‘S’ shaped silver thread on top of the stone platform.

The two stone stumps were positioned on either side of the silver thread, and the entire third level of the stone platform evolved into a Tai Chi Diagram, with Yin and Yang Qi flowing mysteriously and unpredictably.

Turning his head to look at the others, they were still searching by themselves for the hidden mechanisms, a scene that seemingly only Li Xiaobai could see.

“Sss! Brother Liu, did you not see anything?” Li Xiaobai asked Liu Jinshui.

“Hmm? See what?” Liu Jinshui was puzzled.

“You two sit on the stone stumps; those two stumps are the key spots of the Formation,” the old voice in the void said once more.

“Thank you for your guidance, Senior,” they said gratefully.

The two did as they were told and sat on the stone stumps. In an instant, a great halo of light filled the air, and a massive Yin Yang Grinding Disc evolved in the void, swirling like a star, causing the entire ancient building to tremble gently.

“It’s a Formation! Those two stone stumps are the key spots of the Formation!”

“How dare they! Knowing the secret of this stone platform and trying to monopolize it!”

“I knew these two were up to no good. When they broke the puzzle earlier, they must have received a hint to enter the tomb and deliberately kept it from us!”

The cultivators noticed the anomaly of the stone platform and were furiously enraged, their figures blurred as they rushed toward Li Xiaobai and Liu Jinshui. But in the next second, one black and one white light flashed, and the two young men instantly disappeared without a trace. The third level of the ancient building was restored to its original state, with a chessboard and two stone stumps quietly set there as if waiting for the next chess player to challenge it.

The onlookers stood in a dumbstruck silence. Had those two young men entered?

“Damn it!”

“This scoundrel actually played us for fools. If I ever come across him again, I’ll flay him alive!”

With an angry expression, Blood Soul’s Blood Qi dispersed, sweeping in all directions and causing the multitude of Earth Immortal Realm cultivators to shiver and dare not move.

“Senior, the chess puzzle has been solved. Just place a piece at the ‘sky’s center’ to open and win the game. Let’s play another round. If we win, that boy won’t get far!” said a young cultivator by his side, with a sycophantic look, knowing that Blood Soul held a prestigious position within the Blood Demon Sect and this was a thigh worth clinging to.

“You’ve done well. Indeed, we all now know the solution to the puzzle, and we can roughly guess how to activate the Formation and enter the tomb below,” Blood Soul said, a smile spreading across his face as his gaze fell approvingly on the young cultivator.

“Yes, Senior! We know the method. Once we get in, all those treasures will still be yours!” The young cultivator was pleasantly surprised, feeling honored by Blood Soul’s recognition. Things were looking up!

But the words that followed from Blood Soul sent chills down his spine.

With a broader smile on his face, Blood Soul said, “Very well, since that is the case, you go and give it a try. If you can break through the chess puzzle, you may join our Blood Demon Sect in the future!”

The young man’s smile stiffened.

“Predecessor, my cultivation level is still weak, hardly adequate for such an important task; please find someone more capable.”

“You go up when you’re told to go up. Didn’t you just say you knew the method to break through the game? What’s there to be afraid of? Just start by playing the “Heavenly Origin” move, and then sit on the stone stump. Don’t dawdle, get going!”

Blood Soul’s expression turned gloomy in an instant, his eyes emanated a cold blood-red glow as he stared at the young man and said, “Or do you wish to become its nourishment?”

“I… I’ll go!”

The young man trembled, uncontrollably swallowing his saliva as he looked at the blood-colored heart in the void, his steps shaky as he took a seat at one side of the chessboard.

“Junior Qi Xin seeks guidance from the senior!”

Swish-swish-swish!

The chessboard was straightforward with no fancy tricks, directly carving out two characters: “Heavenly Origin!”

Qi Xin: “???”

He was dumbfounded, and so were the cultivators watching nearby. Why did the chessboard make the first move this time?

If it plays the “Heavenly Origin” move first, how can they possibly play?

“What’s happening here, why did the tomb owner go first this time? Could it be the opening posture was incorrect?”

“That said, whoever plays the ‘Heavenly Origin’ move in this game wins. Now that the chessboard made the first move, doesn’t that leave no room for us to play? How are we supposed to play this?”

The cultivators were all abuzz. This was an unsolvable situation, wasn’t it?

“Senior, shouldn’t I be the first to hold the pieces?”

Qi Xin asked weakly.

“Swish-swish-swish!”

The chessboard showed a touch of humanity, engraving a line of characters: “Second game, I go first, and you lose!”

The crowd realized that before Li Xiaobai, the chessboard had never lost, so the order had always been for the challenger to go first, but now it had lost once, so naturally, the sequence changed to it moving first.

Only by winning against it would the order of play change again, but how could that be possible?

The method for winning the game was now a dead end; they couldn’t break it, preventing them from entering the real tomb.

“Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!”

The sound of cutting through the air came, from far to near, a chain with a silver hook shot forth, piercing Qi Xin’s chest, firmly fixing him in mid-air as blood gushed out like a fountain.

“Senior, save me!”

The young man’s eyes were filled with terror, struggling desperately in the air, calling for Blood Soul’s aid, but Blood Soul paid him no attention, still staring fixedly at the chessboard, for he had lost an opportunity to touch the treasure!

“Be quiet!”

Behind Blood Soul, the Heart of the Blood Demon pulsed, and a tentacle stabbed into Qi Xin’s forehead, instantly draining him into a mummy, as a blood-hued light flashed in the void.

“Sin Value: Five million!”

“Amitabha, Amitabha!”

Master Pudu clasped his hands together and incessantly chanted Buddhist sutras, seemingly performing last rites for the young cultivator named Qi Xin. @@novelbin@@

“This Li Xiaobai is indeed quite interesting, I wonder whether it was an act of spontaneity or a premeditated plan that he won a round by mistake. No wonder Helmsman Beichen paid him such attention. It seems today this great tomb is out of our reach. The news here could, however, be reported to the Helmsman first.”

Wu Chengjue looked at the empty chessboard, his eyes glittering with unusual light.

“Amitabha, esteemed ones, since we cannot enter, we might as well wait outside. They have to come out at some point. At that time, we can inquire about what’s happening below, right?”

Monk Pudu said slowly with a smile on his face.

“The master is right. They will eventually come out. Then, won’t they be at our mercy?”

“Good!”

“Very good!”