Chapter 1842 - 675: Idle Pieces

This old and young pair exchanged a few casual words, leaving Su Mo puzzled.

He couldn’t help but glance at Yang Xiaoyun.

Yang Xiaoyun smiled and said:

"Just now you left, and Sister Hua asked what we were doing.

"Upon finding out we were playing chess.

"She, eager for a challenge, couldn’t resist taking up the pieces and playing.

"Coincidentally, Bo Yan and Senior Zha arrived together.

"Seeing this, they stood silently aside, quietly observing...

"Later, Senior Zha saw Sister Hua’s high chess skill and asked her origin, only then did we learn that Sister Hua has quite the impressive background."

"...My lady, please don’t poke fun at me."

Hua Shiyi hurried to dismiss it:

"The family has declined, no longer as it once was.

"Now, with only this little skill, I can’t rely on it in Jianghu."

"Ah..."

The old beggar sighed again upon hearing this:

"The Hua family’s past is too distant, hard to recount.

"But even I’ve heard that in the past, your Hua family’s ancestors, using the Jade Butterfly Thousand Chapters skill, treated the art of chess as a tactical method of battle.

"Dominating and undefeated, they made quite a name.

"At their peak, even the Eight Sects were overshadowed by your Hua family."

Su Mo recalled earlier at Weiyang Palace, Hua Shiyi mentioned her family’s past, a reputation above the Tianjing Sect.

At the time, he didn’t think much of it, but now realizing that this chess expert was right beside him.

He hurriedly said:

"Please assist me in solving the chess puzzle, Shiyiniang."

"Are you referring to that end game?"

Hua Shiyi glanced at Su Mo and said with a smile:

"That has already been solved.

"However, according to the progression of this game, even if all abilities are exhausted, the battle is intense.

"In the end, all black pieces are eliminated, leaving only two or three white pieces.

"That’s how it looks..."

She pointed with her finger.

Only then did Su Mo notice the chessboard beside them.

With only a few white pieces left, looking lonely; however, judging by the game, the scene seemed quite unusual.

Su Mo furrowed his brow slightly:

"All black pieces eliminated?"

"Indeed."

Hua Shiyi nodded:

"It’s strange, since childhood, influenced by elders at home, I developed a fondness for chess.

"But even with exhausting changes, initially the white pieces were at a significant disadvantage.

"The black pieces rose and attacked, making a huge wave.

"But unexpectedly, the white pieces found an opportunity by chance, turned the tide, achieving revival from the brink of defeat.

"Creating a scenario where both sides suffered great losses.

"In the end, the white pieces won, and the black pieces were completely eliminated...

"Such an occurrence is quite rare."

"If not completely eliminated, this battle cannot be won?"

"Exactly."

Hua Shiyi’s expression was also odd:

"Where did you get such a game from?

"To determine victory or defeat on the chessboard, why must it be like this...

"Strangely, in this game, as long as a black piece remains on the board, there’s a chance for a comeback.

"Only by completely annihilating them can victory be secured.

"The peculiarity of this game is something I’ve only seen once in my lifetime."

Su Mo tightly knitted his brows.

This game was left by Dongmen Yong.

Earlier, Su Mo speculatively imagined the battle represented on the chessboard as a confrontation between Jinglong Association and Imperial Dao.

If it were indeed these two.

Could the game’s direction be Dongmen Yong’s orchestrated future?

However, which would be Jinglong Association, and which would be Imperial Dao?

His mind was uneasy, so he rearranged the chessboard, asking Hua Shiyi to solve it again.

Hua Shiyi did not refuse.

Each maneuver was a brilliant move.

Su Mo couldn’t help but admire, realizing appearances can be deceiving.

His own chess abilities were average, but he could see Hua Shiyi’s remarkable skills.

Watching her place the pieces, each move carried lethal intent.

Looking over the entire game, it was indeed filled with killing aura.

The white pieces nearly were wiped out under the black’s onslaught.

It seemed the black pieces would win, but with Hua Shiyi’s deft move, the tables turned.

Whole swaths of black pieces were removed from the chessboard.

The two sides were again at odds.

Only when every black piece was slain did the game truly end.

Su Mo remained silent throughout, simply observing the game closely.

Beside him, Yang Xiaoyun spoke quietly:

"Husband...

"Do you think the black and white pieces might not represent Jinglong Association and Imperial Dao, but rather Jinglong Association and us?"

"Huh?"

Su Mo was taken aback.

"Now, we’ve arrived in Xizhou, the battle at Imperial Court Mountain was in the open.

"We’ve directly clashed with Jinglong Association.

"Although we can’t say we have the upper hand entirely, the game seems to suggest significant advantages.

"If we continue the offensive, it may turn out like this chess scenario.

"Jinglong Association might take a huge hit, yet they would remain resilient.

"When least expected, they might reverse the situation, annihilating us?"

Yang Xiaoyun spoke with a strange expression.

"Why go to such lengths?"

Su Mo shook his head at these words:

"If they truly had that ability, why follow the arrangement of this game?

"Why would they sever their own arms..."

"That’s true."

Yang Xiaoyun nodded: "For the past few days, my imagination runs wild."

Su Mo gently patted her hand, gazed at the chessboard, pondering silently, before speaking softly:

"Though this chess game’s progression is intriguing, it need not be taken to heart.

"I’m more concerned about what Dongmen Yong’s purpose was in investing effort and heart power into studying such a game?"