The Legend of Futian

Ye Futian looked at the chessboard in his Life Palace. The World Tree swayed with swooshing sounds again, signaling that the board had become yet another of his Life Spirits.

It had been quite a while since he had last constructed a Life Spirit using Freedom Meditation, and the reason behind it was he had been second-guessing himself. All the Life Spirits he had within him covered all the elements. He even had a spirit type Life Spirit: the Guqin Spirit. Emperor Ye Qing then bestowed him with another Life Spirit, and that enabled him to have two spirit type Life Spirits. As such, Ye Futian had been thinking that since he had gotten all elements covered with all his Life Spirits, he should not have been able to construct yet another one.

That was until one of said Life Spirits was destroyed. However, it went without saying that he had never attempted such a thing. To have a Life Spirit destroyed was to damage one’s roots. Even if he were to be put into a situation where he was near death and there was no way out of his predicament, it was something so crazy that he would not have dared pull off, even though he might have such thoughts at such moments.

And yet, another Life Spirit emerged and it was one that did not absorb the powers of the world to do so; the Life Spirit simply emerged in his Life Palace. He thought that it might have been due to the fact that the Chess Spirit that emerged was one without a corresponding element. He had no idea if the Chess Spirits of others carried elements, but the one before his eyes was devoid of any elemental powers.

Regardless, it did not matter. The emergence of the Chess Spirit enabled him to spend less spiritual power on imagining the games in his mind. Furthermore, it also enabled him to run simulations in a more accurate manner.

He flashed and his consciousness appeared on the chessboard. The game began to change. He stood in Liu Zong’s shoes instead of his own to look at the entire game. Observing the game from another perspective enabled him to acquire yet another kind of experience. Liu Zong was indeed a genius at chess and it seemed that he indeed was able to pull the best moves.

Ye Futian continued switching his perspectives afterward, going on to stand in the shoes of Yang Lan, Li Kaishan, and the other nine students of the Chess Saint, observing their way of playing and how the game unfolded. It was a totally new feeling for him.

“Interlocking Matrix.” Ye Futian walked around on the chessboard. He was able to see in greater clarity after a while.

In the world of martial arts, there was no way that the way of chess would have been something simple. The way of chess and matrixes were interconnected, simulating matrixes using a game of chess, making playing a game of chess seem like laying out a matrix.

Every single one of the nine students was laying out their own matrixes, which meant that there were nine matrixes. However, all nine matrixes were interlocked instead of existing independently, merging one’s matrix with that of the other, enabling attacks and defenses to be pulled in a single move, thus making it invincible. Such was the true essence of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.

Liu Zong was an impeccable genius. He seemed to have realized that very trait of the game, and as such, had gone on to use their powers to restrain the nine matrixes, employing nine different play styles. At the same, Liu Zong himself served as the core of such workings, enabling the matrixes to truly fuse. After all, they were incapable of merging as one single mind, unlike the nine students who laid out the matrixes, who were the students of the Chess Saint. While all nine of the students had nine different play styles, they seemed to work as one at the same time, without a clear distinction between one another. Looking from their perspective, the nine who were playing then were destined to lose.

The Interlocking Matrix needed to be broken if there was to be any way to break the game. However, the nine matrixes were interlocked in such ways that there was hardly any weaknesses to be found.

How are we going to get through this? Ye Futian then recalled the piece that Liu Zong had him place during the day. His thoughts went into overdrive and the pieces on the board flew about in great speed, turning into how it had been back then. He placed the piece as per Liu Zong’s instructions.

From a certain perspective, placing the piece at such a location was a godlike move, a move which forcefully tore a rift in the formation of matrixes of the opponent. It was no surprise why Zhou Ziyi and the others glared at Ye Futian furiously back then. They knew the intricacies behind that very spot. He then switched to Yang Xiao’s place, wanting to see how he would have placed the next piece.

He waved his arm and the game began to unfold at great speeds per his will, where a myriad of changes appeared on the board. Ye Futian finally stopped and he then looked at one of the spots with a startled expression.

So this is how it is eh? He finally knew where that sense of crisis originated from. He had never expected the game to have one such lethal move hidden away. That one move was simply unbelievably frightening.

Is there actually a way out of this game?

Ye Futian observed the changes of the game closely, finding the interlocking matrixes actually resembled the nine games laid out by the old men somewhat as if the game he was playing now evolved from those other games. Yet all nine were interconnected, bringing a power more frightening than the nine games combined to bear.

Ye Futian continued studying the game and ran the simulations in a frenzy. The pieces changed at great speeds, with changes seen every single moment, and all of the changes were etched into Ye Futian’s mind. That enabled the quality of his play style to process at breakneck speeds as if he had read and comprehended all books of the way of chess in one single night.

First light appeared before he knew it. Ye Futian opened his eyes. The bits of mist and dew had wet his clothes.

Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu, who was sitting by his side, and smiled gently. Yuan Hong and Yu Sheng were sitting crossed-legged and training behind them. Other than them, there were also a handful of people who had stayed at Chess Peak the entire time.

Ye Futian extended his hand and brushed the hair on Hua Jieyu’s forehead. Hua Jieyu slowly opened her eyes and turned to Ye Futian, smiling gently as she did.

“You’re awake,” Ye Futian said gently.

“I never slept. I was meditating all the while,” Hua Jieyu replied softly. “How about you? What are you feeling?”

“I’m fine. I was able to get a better understanding of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, but it was still a difficult thing to break it. I’m even wondering if I’ll get a chance to do so,” Ye Futian said. The emergence of the Chess Spirit was not to say that his play style had evolved to such a standard that it would have continued evolving without him having to train. That would have been ridiculous. It simply meant that he had become better at comprehending the way of chess. He had achieved more in that one single night than he had studying the days prior.

“Is there anything you can’t do?” Hua Jieyu’s eyes were smiling. They seemed to carry blind faith in Ye Futian’s abilities.

“True indeed. I’m able to kidnap the fox after all. There is hardly anything I can’t get done,” Ye Futian quipped playfully, earning him a glare from Hua Jieyu.

The sun rose gradually as the new day unfolded before them. More and more people came up to the mountain. Chess Peak was once again a rowdy place. Many were discussing if there was a chance of breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.

There perhaps was no way to break the game even after three months had passed. It was, after all, something left behind by the Chess Saint, and it was no surprise that there was still no one capable of breaking it.

Zhou Zichao, Zhou Ziyi, Han Jing, and the others arrived one after another. They saw the chessboard as well as Ye Futian, who was near the board. They glanced at him plainly, probably still rather irked over what happened the day before. After all, they felt that they had been close to breaking the game. If they were to do it all over again, there was no way Yang Xiao and the others would have given them another chance.

Yang Xiao and the others arrived as well, walking to where the crowd was. He was seen smiling and saying, “This is the second day. All are welcomed to try to break the game at any moment.” They stepped onto the dazzling chessboard after that, waiting for someone to break through it. However, there was no one who was in a hurry to do anything. Everyone knew that as of that moment, Liu Zong was the only one who proved capable of doing anything against the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Anyone else would have been able to do little but try.

Liu Zong, Mo Jun, and the others from Xihua Sacred Mountain arrived, and all eyes were on Liu Zong. He stood where he stood the day before. Mo Jun stood below and the others from Xihua Sacred Mountain stood silently behind.

“We have been able to threaten the game with nine working in formation. Liu Zong, are we going to try again today?” Zhou Ziyi said as she turned to look in Liu Zong’s direction.

“The nine students of the Chess Saint are of one mind. Nine different play styles and yet they look like one. Even if we were to try again, it would still be difficult to break the game.” Liu Zong said, “I will not be playing the game today.”

He was there on that day to watch.

“If there had not been some accidents, there would still be a chance for us. If we were to replace him with another, we might still stand a chance,” Zhou Ziyi said. That ‘accident’ she was talking about was naturally Ye Futian.

Many instantly turned their eyes to Ye Futian.

Liu Zong glanced at Ye Futian. He had reviewed the game after going back the day before. He had doubts about things. While there was still deliberations to be made regarding if that move of his had been correct or not, he had too felt a danger lurking somewhere. However, he had not been able to figure out where that sense of crisis originated from. He took all the steps Yang Xiao would have taken next into consideration, but he had not been able to be certain of where Yang Xiao would have actually placed the next piece.

Ye Futian looked at Zhou Ziyi. Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the others were rather irked. That girl had been accusing Ye Futian since the day before and went on to bring the issue up again. The person she meant to replace was Ye Futian.

“Out of the nine who played yesterday, your play style was the worst. It was full of weaknesses,” Ye Futian said as he looked at Zhou Ziyi. His voice was calm, without even the slightest tinge of anger. He was simply making a statement as he saw it.

Having reviewed all the play styles of everyone the night before, he had indeed found Zhou Ziyi’s moves to be the worst. If it had not been for Liu Zong covering up for her again and again, they would have lost a lot sooner.

Zhou Ziyi turned her eyes at Ye Futian and said with a displeased look, “So you’re blaming me for the loss we suffered then?”

“Of course not.” Ye Futian shook his head. “It was a game played by all nine of us on one side, and the loss was because of all nine of us. Everyone had a part in failing the game, which meant it was naturally not the mistakes of any one individual. But, your play style was indeed the worst out of the nine.”

The strength of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game lied within all nine players playing as one, complementing each other and melding nine play styles into one. However, they never had such trust in each other to begin with. They were doomed to fail right from the very beginning.

Many looked at Ye Futian dumbfounded. His voice was a calm, lighthearted one, yet it carried certainty within like none other. It was as if his words were nothing but the truth.

Zhou Ziyi glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes. He actually comes back and bites me in the face? Accusing my play style to be worst in front of everyone.

However, that calm, tranquil attitude seemed to be one making a conclusion, as if what he said was the very truth.

“What do you base your words on?” Mo Jun looked at Ye Futian and said.

Ye Futian turned to look at Mo Jun and said calmly, “Try it out and you’ll know.” He had not responded to Zhou Ziyi the day before and he did not argue with Mo Jun over anything. He indeed had not placed that piece per Liu Zong’s instructions, and on the surface, it seemed that he was the one who caused the loss they suffered as the game went on, even though there was no way they would have won.

It was completely normal for them to be irked. However, Zhou Ziyi brought the matter up again that day and went on to diss him further and repeatedly. If he, the Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State were to simply let her continue doing so, no one would be impressed of his generosity; they would have simply joked about the Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State being an incompetent fool!