Chapter 20

It was rare to see his old friend so flustered, and Abbot Guangyuan could not help but follow his gaze.

Those skilled in martial arts naturally possessed keen eyesight, and soon, Guangyuan locked onto the figure.

The person was dressed as a young man, though their gait and posture lacked the poise of a practitioner; if anything, they appeared frail. It was not particularly cold at this time of year, yet they were still wrapped in a fur-collared cloak.

"Is there something wrong with this child?" Abbot Guangyuan asked.

He and Song Jiuzhi were old friends. Song had long ago detested the power struggles within his family and left early on to study martial arts at the Star-Pattern Sect. He had always been a man of indifferent nature, and as his cultivation deepened, his ability to temper his temperament had reached a state of perfection. There were few who could shock him now, yet here he was, rattled by the appearance of a young man. It was truly intriguing.

"No, it is just... he looks somewhat familiar." Pulling back his shocked expression, Song Jiuzhi spoke, though after a long pause, he added hesitantly, "What is that child's identity? Could you help me inquire?"

So, he was concerned after all.

Abbot Guangyuan smiled and shook his head, but not wishing to trouble his friend, he beckoned to a disciple nearby: "Guangzhi, go inquire about that child’s background."

Believing it might be related to the intruders who had attacked the sect, Guangzhi did not delay and went to investigate immediately.

Everyone attempting to pass the trial had to be registered. Ye Xiyin’s group had been registered by Zi Buyu, and their identities were all on the list. As for Ye Xiyin’s identity, Zi Buyu made no attempt to conceal it. After all, they were here seeking medical treatment, and it was only natural to show sincerity; there was no need to lie about such things.

Taking the list, Abbot Guangyuan was slightly surprised. "It is actually the child of Ye Junyan."

"I recall Ye Junyan’s child being a daughter."

"Perhaps they changed into male attire to evade pursuit," Guangzhi suggested.

"What did he come for?"

"I asked about that as well. According to the disciple who arranged his entry, it seems he was afflicted with 'Cold Poison,' and has come to the Shi Sect specifically to request the Diamond Sutra to purge it."

"A pity. If he had arrived two days earlier, I could have made an exception and treated him first," Abbot Guangyuan sighed.

The Shi Sect had crossed paths with Ye Junyan before. Although the man was unconventional in his ways, he had once helped the Shi Sect resolve a case, and there was some friendship between them. If his child needed help, the Shi Sect would naturally not leave them be.

However, Ye Xiyin had arrived at the wrong time. The Shi Sect had already announced that only those who cleared the Heaven-Earth Chess Game could receive treatment. To make an exception now would be unfair to everyone else.

"Actually, there is no need to worry. The people accompanying him are not simple; they might just be the first to clear the Heaven-Earth Chess Game," Guangzhi noted.

Having been focused on Ye Xiyin’s information, Abbot Guangyuan only now looked at the people helping Ye Xiyin navigate the game. When his eyes swept over the names of He Qiting, Xu Ziche, and the others, he was genuinely startled. He had heard of them, of course, and knew their strength in the pugilistic world was not to be underestimated. He simply had not expected them to be helping Ye Xiyin.

"I have never heard of these people having any connection to Ye Junyan. How did they cross paths?"

"Could they have ulterior motives, using Ye Xiyin’s situation to achieve something else?" Guangzhi, whose mind was entirely occupied with the sect's safety, offered his suspicion at the right moment.

"With their strength, there is no need for that," the Abbot shook his head.

Still, for some reason, these people were willing to protect Ye Xiyin. But the affairs of the world have their own causes and conditions; to dig to the very bottom would be tedious.

Having gained a rough understanding of the situation, Abbot Guangyuan handed Ye Xiyin’s information to Song Jiuzhi. "Do you know him?"

Song Jiuzhi shook his head, but his expression remained complex.

"Are you certain Ye Junyan’s child is a daughter?" he asked again.

"Is that not set in stone?" Guangzhi asked, puzzled. "The story of how Ye Junyan retired from the martial arts world for his daughter is still being told to this day. That is precisely why people do not believe he would abandon his child."

Yet, to this day, there was still no news of Ye Junyan.

"Perhaps he attained a higher state of existence and departed?" Abbot Guangyuan joked, his gaze landing on Song Jiuzhi.

His friend remained deeply worried, looking especially suspicious now that he knew Ye Xiyin was a girl disguised as a boy. But then, there was no reason for Ye Junyan to raise a boy as a girl.

Channeling inner energy into his eyes, Abbot Guangyuan looked at Ye Xiyin once more. From his features, it was indeed difficult to tell his gender, leaving one only with the impression of his exceptional looks. Yet, upon looking again, Abbot Guangyuan felt those features were strangely familiar. Where had he seen them before?

"Do you not feel that this child gives a sense of déjà vu?" Guangyuan asked.

Hearing this, Song Jiuzhi’s lips curled, though he could not truly smile. He simply said, "An illusion, perhaps. Good-looking people always resemble one another. The Heaven-Earth Chess Game is about to begin; let us observe the challenges."

The intent to change the subject was glaringly obvious. As an old friend, Guangyuan could see it, but he thoughtfully refrained from pressing, following Song’s lead and turning his attention to the game.

"I only wonder if anyone has noticed the hints you arranged, old friend." Thinking of what the participants were about to face, Guangyuan was full of interest.

Down below, the players before the Heaven-Earth Chess Game spoke with the Shi Sect disciples one by one and entered the board. Ye Xiyin and his group did the same. However, unlike the average NPC, other players entered in groups of five, but for Ye Xiyin, he remained in a "follow" state. Unlike last time, Ye Xiyin did not enter the game itself, but instead stood outside the board to watch.

He Qiting and the four others stood within the chessboard. Above, in the sky, hung a miniature version of the entire board, filled with black and white pieces; the five of them seemed to have become pieces themselves. On this board, the black pieces occupied half the territory, while the positions for white were pitifully few.

The most bizarre thing was that there were no monsters in this Heaven-Earth Chess Game; instead, black and white pieces the size of human heads stood in their places.

"It seems I have a step counter here?" Qingyun Qiuyue said. The others echoed this. Their positions were different, and the number of steps they gained varied. Before them, many black pieces rose and fell.

Xu Ziche tentatively attacked a black piece in front of him and was surprised to find that the thing actually had a health bar. The bar was not thick, and as a healer, Xu Ziche could solo it successfully. Following his prompt, the others realized this and attacked the pieces closest to them.

After clearing almost all the pieces they could reach, Qingyun Qiuyue said suspiciously, "Is something wrong? These pieces have no attack power and such low defense; we cleared them in no time. Is the Heaven-Earth Chess Game really this easy to pass?"

"Perhaps it has to do with the steps?" Juexin, being more meticulous than her, pondered. "Our steps are limited. Could it be that we must destroy all the black pieces while our steps remain?"

"Speaking of which, if we don't move, many pieces cannot be attacked. Maybe this Heaven-Earth Chess Game is a game of managing these steps?" Xu Ziche said, wanting to move to test it out.

"Don't move yet."

"None of you move!"

Two voices sounded almost simultaneously—one from He Qiting in the party channel, and the other from Ye Xiyin watching from outside. This inexplicable rapport left everyone stunned, and then they began to tease them.

Qingyun Qiuyue: "This really deserves an 'Inseparable Minds' achievement."

Everyone agreed, yet they truly listened, remaining still and waiting for the two to explain.

He Qiting forbade them from moving out of a desire to reasonably plan their limited resources. Games were always like this; they gave you generous values early on, giving you the illusion that you could experiment with these resources at will. Once the players recklessly wasted them, they would realize they had become paupers. Afterward, they would either have to spend money or fall behind others.

Details determine success or failure. He Qiting was very familiar with such little tricks, so he naturally stopped them from stepping on the landmines.

As for Ye Xiyin, he had simply remembered where this chess game looked familiar. The memory of studying chess manuals late into the night flooded back. A good memory proved useful once again. The board before them was very similar to a manual he had studied the night before; the only difference was that it was mostly filled with black pieces, with very few white ones.

As it happened, the total number of moves the group could make was exactly equal to the number of white pieces.

He immediately voiced his discovery, and the information contained within left the group truly shocked.

"No way? Is it that ridiculous?" Qingyun Qiuyue was dumbfounded.

Zi Buyu also said, "If that’s the case, then I suspect that 99% of people will fail the first time they try to clear the Heaven-Earth Chess Game."

As for the remaining 1%, it was naturally them, who would likely be carried by Ye Xiyin.

The facts proved this to be true. About fifteen minutes later, the area outside the Heaven-Earth Chess Game was in total chaos.

[Nearby]
One Sand Sculpture: "F*** 'Test of the Sword,' the developers are a******. What kind of trash is this? Have you even played your own game? Is this something humans can play?"

Meng Ran: "'Test of the Sword' is the most fun game I've ever played. In other games, you wouldn't be one-shotted... wait, haha. It's not me one-shotting the monsters, it's the monsters one-shotting me. 'One hit for 999' is not a dream, it's just the monsters getting the full gameplay experience →_→"

Yaoguang Yanyu: "What’s wrong? What’s wrong? I was about to enter the dungeon, but looking at this, something feels off. What actually happened?"

It started from when the players entered the dungeon. Like He Qiting and the others, the players quickly discovered the mechanics of their steps and attacking the pieces. The difference was that they were not as cautious with their step planning. Upon discovering they could attack pieces by moving, the players began to act immediately.

As for the different colored pieces appearing where they moved, even if some noticed, they could not guess the reason for a while.

But the situation was not what they imagined. When their steps were exhausted, "Chess Spirits" were born from the pieces that had not been destroyed. The Chess Spirits' attack and defense were on par with their own strength. Who could have imagined that the pieces where they moved were actually allies? As a result, because some people planned poorly, their allies were pitifully few while the enemies were powerful. After their own Chess Spirits were defeated, they were assimilated. In the end, surrounded by countless Chess Spirits, they were quickly exhausted and wiped out, expelled by the game.

Amidst all this, the group led by He Qiting, who remained high on the dungeon leaderboard and had been inside for quite some time, stood out.

The still-furious players clicked on the spectator mode, swearing to see who this team was that remained steadfast in the dungeon. Once they entered, they erupted.

Wait, what was going on? Why was this team configuration different from theirs? Why was there an extra person in the team, and why did they seem to be acting as the commander?

[World]
Gentleman's Smile: "@Test of the Sword, may I ask if we are all playing the same game? Why do He Qiting and his team have outside assistance?"