Bai Yue thought he had understood Gu Qingfeng's chess strategy.
He believed the young man had been using his white pieces to force Old Monster Jin's black pieces to change, thereby leveraging Jin's transformations to Move Qiankun.
But after witnessing the fourth game firsthand, he realized this wasn't the case at all.
The young man's white pieces hadn't forced anything—not even once. Every change was made voluntarily by Old Monster Jin. Moreover, Bai Yue had been watching the game from the side the whole time, and he too felt each move was the correct one. After each move, he would repeatedly analyze the board, confirming it wasn't a trap, nor a scheme, and wouldn't give the opponent any leverage.
Several times, Old Monster Jin had even deliberately passed up opportunities to change the board, intentionally scrambling the layout. Even so, he still lost.
He lost just as inexplicably as before. Even after losing, he was left dazed, unsure which step had been wrong.
Upon careful review, not a single move seemed mistaken, yet he felt every move was wrong.
This was truly bizarre!
Bizarre to the extreme.
Neither Old Monster Jin nor Bai Yue had ever encountered such a strange situation.
As for the young man, from beginning to end, he just sat there leisurely against the pavilion pillar, one leg crossed over the other, holding a wine jug and taking casual sips, a faint smile on his face—composed, unruffled.
No!
Not composed, nor unruffled.
But rather, utterly casual.
When playing chess, he wasn't serious either, as if just playing casually, not giving it a single thought, as if he had never regarded Old Monster Jin as a worthy opponent from the start.
"Still playing?"
Gu Qingfeng waved a hand, sweeping the pile of Spirit Treasures and resources beside Old Monster Jin into his possession. "If not, then that's it. It's getting late; time to head back and rest."
Old Monster Jin had no capital left to play, nor did he dare continue.
But losing so much this time, he simply couldn't accept it!
Three Upper Mystic Grade Spirit Treasures, plus a heap of other Spirit Treasure resources—this was already the majority of his life's savings, painstakingly accumulated over centuries. Some of these items had nearly cost him his life. Now they were all gone, fallen into the hands of this mere Golden Core cultivator.
Old Monster Jin was someone who had weathered great storms, but even he couldn't bear losing the bulk of his fortune in one go.
Seeing Gu Qingfeng rise to leave, Old Monster Jin shot to his feet with a *whoosh* and barked, "Wait, kid!"
"What's up?
Want to gamble more?"
Gu Qingfeng looked Old Monster Jin up and down. "Seems you've got nothing left to wager, right?"
"Kid!
You dare look down on this old man? Just because I don't have it on me doesn't mean I don't have it at home! You wait right here. I'll go fetch it now."
"Forget it. Small bets are for amusement; big bets harm the body."
Gu Qingfeng chuckled. "Besides, I've won so many games from you, I'm almost embarrassed. Another day, perhaps. We'll play again if there's a chance."
Old Monster Jin darted over, blocking Gu Qingfeng's path. "No! We must gamble!"
"If we gamble again, you'll still lose."
"Don't you get cocky, kid!"
Old Monster Jin was fuming, his old face flushed red, teeth gritted as he said, "Just because I'm not your match doesn't mean others from our Wuse Mountain aren't."
"Oh?
You're from Wuse Mountain?"
"You damn kid, you don't even know who I am?"
"Truly, I don't."
"Fine, kid. You've got guts. You wait here. I'll go back right now and call someone to gamble with you!"
"The Nine Solitary Elders of Wuse Mountain—each possesses unique skills. There seems to be one proficient in chess... what's his name? Cangsong? Don't tell me you plan to invite that venerable elder to gamble with me?"
Of the Nine Solitary Elders of Wuse Mountain, Gu Qingfeng only knew Senior Ku Mu personally. As for the other eight, he had seen them but didn't know them. He had only met that chess-proficient Cangsong once or twice.
"My master has no leisure to play chess with a little brat like you."
"Oh?
You're Cangsong's disciple? That means you're also one of the Eighteen Swords of Wuse Mountain? My apologies for the disrespect."
Gu Qingfeng smiled, then added, "Aside from Cangsong, is there anyone else at Wuse Mountain skilled in chess?"
"Plenty! You just wait here!"
With that, Old Monster Jin turned and left swiftly without looking back. As he departed, he told Bai Yue to keep an eye on Gu Qingfeng and make sure he didn't run off.
Gu Qingfeng glanced at the sky; it seemed to be deep night.
He stretched lazily, then sat back down in the pavilion. Noticing Bai Yue across from him staring with a peculiar look in his eyes, Gu Qingfeng laughed. "I'm not some young maiden. Is it necessary to stare at me like that?"
Bai Yue's old face flushed red. He quickly coughed dryly to cover his embarrassment. "This humble one is Yuan Shu of the Hunyuan Sect. May I ask young brother's..." To avoid unnecessary complications, Gu Qingfeng only gave his surname, Gu.
Typically, this was considered impolite and disrespectful, especially since the other party was a senior from the Hunyuan Sect. Though Bai Yue felt somewhat uncomfortable, he didn't press further, merely replying courteously, "So it's Young Master Gu."
...
The night was deep and quiet.
The disciples of Wuse Mountain were not resting; they were still busy with matters related to the Five-Color Flower bloom.
When the Five-Color Flower bloomed, the Five-Color Spirit Vein beneath Wuse Mountain would also undergo changes. To guard against any mishaps, all the various formations across Wuse Mountain had to be recalibrated—this was done every year.
And this year was even more different.
Aside from adjusting all formations, they also had to help Elder Ku Mu organize various Musical Scores.
This wasn't just the Five-Color Flower Gathering; it was also Elder Ku Mu's farewell ceremony. After this year, Elder Ku Mu would seclude himself in the back mountains, never concerning himself with worldly affairs again. The reason Elder Ku Mu was sharing the Musical Scores he had collected over his lifetime was to make a contribution to the musical arts community of the Great Northwest Frontier, as he was once one of the top music masters in the region.
At this moment.
In a garden within Wuse Mountain, two women were organizing a chest of ancient Musical Scores for Elder Ku Mu.
One of the women wore jade-green robes, possessing a gentle, moving, and serene beauty—a beauty that was elegant and transcendent. She was Qingxi, the leading figure among the younger generation of Wuse Mountain disciples.
The other woman appeared to be around seventeen or eighteen, with a somewhat adorable appearance. She was her junior sister, Qinglian.
Both were diligently organizing the Musical Scores.
Some of these scores were ancient, some incomplete; most needed to be recopied. Fortunately, after many days of work, they were almost done.
"Senior Sister, do you think Grand-Uncle will truly go into seclusion?"
Qingxi nodded.
"Will we still be able to see Grand-Uncle in the future?"
"Silly girl, Grand-Uncle is only secluding himself, not leaving. Seclusion just means he won't bother with mundane matters of the outside world anymore."
"Ah...
Then will Grand-Uncle still care about matters concerning our Wuse Mountain?"
"Perhaps."