Chapter 371 Insights on Death
Lu Zhou stroked his beard and nodded as he looked at Yun Tianluo expressionlessly. “Are you ready?” “For what?”
“Death, of course…” Lu Zhou’s words were blunt and calm.
Yun Tianluo looked at Lu Zhou with his eyes that had seen many, many years pa.s.sed. The longer he looked at Lu Zhou, the more he felt something was amiss. He finally asked, “Aren’t you, Brother Ji?”
They were both old men who had one foot in their graves. Perhaps, it was not appropriate for them to speak of death in such a facetious manner. However, as Yun Tianluo thought more about it, he felt that it was precisely because they were at this point in their lives that they could speak about death in such a way.
Lu Zhou shook his head without saying anything Yun Tianluo laughed drily. He seemed slightly melancholic. He wanted to point out again that Lu Zhou’s great limit was coming sooner compared to him. In the end, he asked, “Surely, you’re not here just to have a chat, Brother Ji?”
Lu Zhou nodded. “To tell you the truth, I’ve come so that I can ask for your insight and experience when you attempted to attain the Nine-leaf stage.”
Yun Tianluo regarded Lu Zhou with a complicated gaze. He did not know why Lu Zhou would suddenly ask about this. After all, he could not compare to Ji Tiandao in this aspect. Everyone in the world knew about the might of the Evil Sky Pavilion’s Master. They knew he had long stood at the threshold of the Nine-leaf stage. Finally, he said with a sigh, “… If it weren’t impossible, I believe you’d be the first to attain the Nine-leaf stage, Brother
Ji.”
“That might not be the case,” Lu Zhou said calmly.
“Why do you say that?” “There’s bound to be someone who’s more skilled than we are. n.o.body can guarantee that there are no experts who decide to hide themselves from the world.” Lu Zhou paused. Then, he added with a light tone, “Besides, who said that it’s impossible?”
Yun Tianluo was taken aback.
A warm smile appeared on Lu Zhou’s weathered face.
The truth was often still and intangible, which confuses the mind. Although it was not understandable, it does not stop one from seeking it.
“A conversation with you trumps poring over books for ten years, Brother Ji. I’m enlightened.” Yun Tianluo waved his hand. The s.h.i.+eld barrier that Leng Luo set up before was dispersed. He looked behind him and said, “Bring me my chess set.” The Luo Sect’s master, Feng Yizhi, bowed and said, “At once.”
A short while later, an exquisite chess set was brought over.
Feng Yizhi placed the chess set reverently on the stone table and stood beside Yun Tianluo.
Yun Tianluo said, “Brother Ji, since my cultivation base is limited, why don’t we have a showdown in a game of chess?”
Lu Zhou stroked his beard as he looked at the chess set. In his memories, Ji Tiandao’s chess skills were great. However, Lu Zhou merely knew about the game of Go in his past life. Moreover, he never actually played it. How was he supposed to have a match? After appraising the chess set briefly, it seemed that it was different from ordinary chess sets.
There were 19 horizontal and vertical lines. There were also shallow and thin Formation veins carved onto the chessboard.
“Looks like your cultivation base has deteriorated considerably,” Lu Zhou said.
It was inevitable for a cultivator to lose his cultivation base when his great limit was near. It was quite impossible for Yun Tianluo to best Lu Zhou in a contest of cultivation bases. Yun Tianluo nodded. “I thought that you’d suffer the same fate… I’m surprised to see you’re doing far better than I’ve expected.”
They were not fools. Both of them had lived for nearly a millennium. Yun Tianluo could see that Lu Zhou was full of vigor. Once a person had enough experience, knowledge, they would have a keen eye for observation.
“Shall we?” Yun Tianluo picked a black stone.
“Aren’t we going to decide who picks which color, and who goes first?” Lu Zhou glanced at the stones.
“You’re older than me, Brother Ji. Surely, you won’t mind?” As Yun Tianluo spoke, he placed the stone on the upper-left corner.
Along the intersecting Formation veins, golden energy flowed and shone. The Formation veins on the chessboard were activated by the stone.
Lu Zhou understood. There was something else behind the chessboard.
The power flowed along the Formation veins.
At this moment, Lu Zhou picked a white stone and placed it on the lower-right corner.
Thud!
The stones sat across each other.
The holy land shone at this moment.
The disciples of the Three Sects backed away. They looked around at the changes in their surroundings with shocked expressions on their faces.
“Good.” Yun Tianluo offered his compliments.
Another stone was placed.
Energy surged.
With this move, countless energy blades circled above the holy land.
Lu Zhou’s expression was calm. He understood what was going on. This chessboard was the key to activating the barrier’s Formation. Open and close. Chess skills were not needed here. The important thing was for him to figure out how to break the Formation.
Lu Zhou focused on the Formation veins on the chessboard. He ignored the 19 lines completely. Energy shrouded the Formation veins. The energy seemed similar to the energy blades that appeared above the holy land. “The chessboard is the world.” Lu Zhou placed a stone.
Tap!
Another stone was placed.
The energy blades in the skies seemed to be swept away by a huge hand.
Yun Tianluo placed another stone.
The Formation shone brightly. Several energy blades spun and shot toward Lu Zhou in a neat formation.
“Get back.” Leng Luo, Pan Litian, and Little Yuan’er retreated to the edge of the holy land.
The Luo Sect Master, Feng Yizhi, leaped away from them and landed among the crowd.
Everyone was looking at the energy blades with shocked expressions…
Boom! Boom! Boom!
When Lu Zhou placed his stone, more energy blades burst forth in the holy land.
Their energy blades collided. After some time, the energy blades suddenly faded into thin air.
Yun Tianluo suddenly opened his cloudy eyes. He looked at Lu Zhou and make some noise out of shock. “Hm?”
Lu Zhou held a stone between two fingers. He was focused on the Formation veins on the chessboard.
Yun Tianluo felt as if the pent-up frustration in his chest had been dispersed as realization dawned on him. “I see…”
“What do you mean?” Lu Zhou did not look up.
“The lack of moves is the best move. No stones are better than having them… I’m impressed that you aren’t influenced by the lines under the circ.u.mstances, Brother Ji,” Yun Tianluo replied.
Lu Zhou was still looking at the Formation veins on the chessboard. ‘It’s not that I’m disregarding the lines. I don’t even know how to play.’
Yun Tianluo smiled faintly. He picked a stone and placed it on the chessboard.
Tap!
Another soft sound rang in the air.
This time, Yun Tianluo placed it at the center of the board. The Formation’s veins suddenly connected with the 19 lines.
A blindingly bright light shone on the holy land, obscuring everyone’s sight.
Lu Zhou c.o.c.ked an eyebrow and looked up. A slight frown could be seen on his face.
Yun Tianluo seemed to have disappeared. In his place was a peculiar sight… A young man was swiftly growing. His joy, anger, sadness, happiness, tough times, and good times played out before Lu Zhou’s eyes. The young man was cultivating painstakingly.
This was…
Yun Tianluo’s consciousness!
Lu Zhou had once guessed that his lost memories had been sealed inside the crystal through similar methods. He had confirmed this from Yu Shangrong.
Did Yun Tianluo attach his consciousness to the chessboard while he attempted the Nine-leaf stage?
The scene changed. The sun and moon crossed the skies. Night and day alternated.
Yun Tianluo sat in a world filled with energy.
Lu Zhou saw vast amounts of power gathering in Yun Tianluo’s dantian’s sea of Qi.
“The power of a peak Eight-leaf elite.” Lu Zhou could sense how mighty this power was.
It was expanding and growing at an extreme speed.
Was this the process of attempting the Nine-leaf stage? “Hm?” Lu Zhou saw that the Golden Lotus under Yun Tianluo behaved like a vortex that secretly absorbed the power. Only a Hundred Tribulations Insight avatar could produce a Golden Lotus. The Golden Lotus was like the roots of a tree which provided power for the leaves to grow. However, at the moment, the Golden Lotus was absorbing power. Yun Tianluo did not seem to notice this. Lu Zhou had difficulty believing this. He wondered, ‘Is this the reason his cultivation base deteriorated?’
Whizz!
The power dispersed. The Golden Lotus vanished. The surroundings returned to their original state.
Yun Tianluo held a black stone between his fingers and his arm was suspended above the chessboard.
Lu Zhou was in the same posture. They looked into each other’s eyes.