109: The exquisite chess game, the Daoist's challenge!

At the end of the medicinal garden was a vast square.

In the center of the square stood a magnificent palace.

The palace soared into the clouds, with flying eaves, upturned corners, and glowing with iridescent light.

Above the palace gate hung a huge plaque with three large, elegantly written characters.

They exuded a Dao charm that seemed to suppress myriad ages.

Purple Mansion Palace!

That towering, sky-piercing seven-colored light beam.

It was precisely from the top of this grand hall that it shot into the sky.

Everyone was awestruck by the grandeur of this divine palace, and for a moment, they all stopped in their tracks.

Ying Chengju was the first to rush to the front of the hall.

He looked at the tightly shut palace gate, his eyes burning with intense greed.

"Open for me!"

He roared, activating the remaining power of his Innate Hegemon Body.

He punched fiercely at the main gate!

However, just as his fist was about to touch the palace gate.

Buzz!

A transparent light barrier appeared out of thin air.

Ying Chengju's punch, which was powerful enough to shatter mountains, landed on the light barrier, yet it had no effect whatsoever!

Instead, the backlash from the Restriction caused his Qi and blood to churn.

"It's a Restriction!"

"Such a powerful Restriction! Even the Seventh Prince'sOverlord Fist (Hegemon Fist) can't move it an inch!"

The other Cultivators who arrived shortly after also changed their expressions upon seeing this.

Some Nascent Soul Cultivators, disbelieving, made their moves.

Various Magic Treasures and Divine Abilities rained down on the light barrier.

The result, however, was the same as Ying Chengju's.

The light barrier remained unmoving, as if it had existed since ancient times, unshakable.

Just as everyone was at a loss and growing anxious.

The gray-robed elder, Wandering Cultivator Lingxi, who had been hiding in the crowd, slowly walked out.

He looked at the light barrier, and a hint of understanding flashed in his cloudy eyes.

"There's no need for everyone to waste your efforts."

He stroked his beard and said in a deep voice, "This is no ordinary protective Restriction, but a trial personally set by the Purple Mansion Dao Lord."

"To enter the Purple Mansion Palace and obtain the Legacy, one must pass three consecutive trials!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's gaze converged on him.

"Three trials? What kind of trials?"

A Cultivator asked eagerly.

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi didn't keep them in suspense. He pointed to the empty space in front of the light barrier and slowly said, "The first trial is called the Path of Questioning the Heart."

The moment his voice fell, a path composed of seven-colored halos slowly extended from the calm light barrier.

It led directly to the main gate of the Purple Mansion Palace.

On that path, light and shadows flowed, constantly changing... as if leading to another world.

"The Path of Questioning the Heart tests the Dao Heart of a Cultivator."

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi's voice became incredibly solemn: "Stepping onto this path, all your obsessions, all your Heart Demons, all your distracting thoughts will be infinitely magnified."

"If your Dao Heart is even slightly wavering, you will instantly sink into an illusion, never to recover!"

"At best, your cultivation will plummet; at worst, your Heart Demon will backfire, and your Divine Soul will be annihilated!"

Hiss!

Hearing this, everyone present couldn't help but gasp.

Testing the Dao Heart!

This was a hundred times more perilous than testing cultivation or combat power!

Cultivation could be achieved through arduous training, and combat power could rely on Magic Treasures.

But the Dao Heart, this intangible thing, could not be seen or touched.

No one dared to claim that their Dao Heart was flawless.

For a moment, the crowd, who had just been impatient, all hesitated.

They looked at each other, and not a single person dared to try first.

"Hmph! Spreading alarmist rumors!"

Just then, a cold snort rang out.

A burly Demonic Path Nascent Soul Cultivator with a fierce face stepped forward.

His face was full of disdain: "We Cultivators are inherently Heaven-Defying, fighting against people and against the Heavenly Dao! If we can't even guard our own true Heart-Nature, what kind of immortality are we cultivating, what kind of Dao are we seeking!"

"A mere Path of Questioning the Heart, watch me break it!"

With that, he let out a loud laugh and, without hesitation, stepped onto the path of light.

Everyone's hearts were in their throats.

They watched as the Demonic Cultivator stepped onto the Path of Questioning the Heart. The first few steps were steady.

But after less than ten steps, his pace suddenly halted, and the arrogant expression on his face instantly vanished.

It immediately turned into an expression of struggle and pain.

"No! It wasn't me who killed them! They forced me!"

He suddenly let out a roar, his eyes turning blood-red.

Devilish Qi surged around him, and he began to frantically attack the surrounding air.

"Master! Why are you so biased! Why!"

"Junior Sister! Wait for me! Don't go!"

He seemed to be trapped in some terrifying illusion, at times frenzied, at times grief-stricken.

He gesticulated wildly on the Path of Questioning the Heart.

Pfft!

After only a few breaths, he suddenly spat out a large mouthful of black blood, and his entire body, like a kite with a broken string, was violently flung out of the Path of Questioning the Heart by an invisible force.

Accompanied by a dull thud.

He fell heavily to the ground, his body convulsing, frothing at the mouth, and his eyes rolling back.

Although he didn't die, his Nascent Soul Stage cultivation rapidly plummeted.

In the blink of an eye, he dropped to the Golden Core Stage.

His aura was even more chaotic, his eyes vacant, and his mind unclear.

He was completely crippled!

Seeing this scene, everyone's scalps tingled, and a chill ran through their hearts.

A powerful Nascent Soul Demonic Cultivator, just like that, was crippled!

This Path of Questioning the Heart was even more terrifying than they had imagined!

With the first failure, there would be a second.

A Righteous Path Cultivator, who prided himself on his firm Dao Heart, didn't believe in evil.

He also stepped onto it.

The result was not much better than the Demonic Cultivator's. He was tempted by endless power and beauty, eventually getting lost in the illusion, also suffering heavy injuries and being thrown out, his cultivation plummeting.

Immediately after, a beautiful female Cultivator stepped onto this path, but she was trapped by past Inner Demon Tribulations, shedding tears, unable to move an inch, and eventually her mind collapsed.

She turned into a foolish madwoman.

The tragic state of three consecutive individuals was like a basin of ice water, extinguishing the last bit of hope in everyone's hearts.

The entire area in front of the Purple Mansion Palace fell into a deathly silence.

Everyone looked at that seemingly beautiful, yet extremely perilous path of light.

Their faces were filled with fear and retreat.

This Path of Questioning the Heart was actually so terrifying.

One must know that those who could Cultivate to the Nascent Soul Stage had all passed the Heart Demon Tribulation. At the very least, their Dao Heart should be firmer than that of ordinary Cultivators.

At least they should be able to walk further!

But now, it seemed that none of these three could walk a hundred steps!

The power of this Path of Questioning the Heart was truly imaginable.

At this moment, when no one dared to step forward.

A figure in green, Chen Xu, slowly walked out from the back of the crowd.

Visibly, Chen Xu ignored the surprised gazes of the surrounding Cultivators.

There was not a ripple on his face.

"What is he going to do?"

"Is he also going to challenge the Path of Questioning the Heart?"

"Even figures like Ying Chengju haven't moved yet; this guy is actually so confident?"

For a moment, everyone's gaze focused on Chen Xu.

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi's cloudy eyes narrowed slightly, gleaming with light.

Ying Chengju stared intently at Chen Xu's back, his eyes full of disdain.

He wished Chen Xu would die on this Path of Questioning the Heart.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

Chen Xu's foot gently stepped onto the Path of Questioning the Heart.

Buzz!

The moment he stepped onto the path of light, the scene before Chen Xu's eyes suddenly changed.

The magnificent Purple Mansion Palace disappeared.

The noisy Cultivators also disappeared.

He seemed to be in an endless Chaos.

The next moment, illusions arose!

Supreme power, the temptation of eternal life, beauties capable of toppling kingdoms... various Incarnations of desire appeared one by one before him.

Following that were various scenes from his previous life on Earth.

His parents' expectations, friends' betrayals, societal pressure... Then, the various concerns of this life, Bu Yifan's gentleness, Sun Xiaoyue's charm, Qin Rouer's dependence, and his son Chen Daoxuan's adoring gaze... Finally, the world-destroying Demonic Tribulation, the dying curse of Pojun Demon Lord.

And the seven kill demon star from beyond the realm, capable of overturning this world!

Countless illusions, countless distracting thoughts, surged towards him like falling leaves.

They wanted to devour and drown his consciousness!!

However, there was not a ripple on Chen Xu's face.

He just walked quietly.

His Dao Heart was the Grandmist Dao Heart!

The Grandmist is the origin of all Dao, the source of Chaos!

These so-called illusions, so-called desires, so-called Heart Demons, in the face of the Grandmist Dao, were but fleeting clouds, insignificant dust!

They could not stir up even a hint of Heart Demon or desire in Chen Xu's heart.

Chen Xu's steps were neither rushed nor slow, firm and powerful.

One step, two steps, three steps... He walked like this, strolling leisurely, as if on flat ground.

That relaxed feeling, as if he wasn't walking a Path of Questioning the Heart where death was almost certain.

Outside.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

They stared blankly at the figure in green, steadily advancing on that colorful and strange path.

Without the slightest pause, without any struggle.

His expression, from beginning to end, was terrifyingly calm.

Ten steps!

Twenty steps!

Fifty steps!

One hundred steps!

Under the numb and shocked gazes of everyone, Chen Xu's figure completed the entire Path of Questioning the Heart, standing firmly in front of the Purple Mansion Palace's door.

He turned back and calmly glanced at the group of stunned Cultivators behind him.

Then, he turned around and pushed the door open.

Rumble!

The heavy gate of the Purple Mansion Palace was easily pushed open by him!

Silence!

Deathly silence!

"Passed... passed it?"

"He just... just walked through it like that?"

"How... how is this possible! How terrifying is his Dao Heart?!"

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi's ancient, unperturbed face was now filled with shock. He murmured, "As firm as divine iron, as pure as glazed glass... No, that's not right!"

"This child's Dao Heart is actually so tenacious and terrifying?!"

"Is there truly nothing in this world that he cares about?"

Thinking of this, Wandering Cultivator Lingxi couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.

Ying Chengju was even more thunderstruck, his entire body frozen in place.

His supposedly invincible Innate Hegemon Body had lost.

Now, even the opponent's Dao Heart was so firm.

For a moment, his heart was filled with a sense of defeat!

"Damn it!"

"Damn bastard."

He roared, his eyes blood-red.

He rushed onto the Path of Questioning the Heart regardless!

With Chen Xu as an example, the other Cultivators also seemed to be stimulated.

They gritted their teeth and followed... However, after Chen Xu pushed open the door, the scene before him was not the Legacy ground he had imagined.

Instead, it was an even larger, vast square.

The square was empty.

The moment Chen Xu stepped into the square.

Crack! Crack!

On the ground, countless mechanical plates flipped over.

One after another, humanoid Puppets, cast entirely from black profound iron and wielding sabers, spears, swords, and halberds.

Slowly rose from the ground.

Red light flashed in the eyes of these Puppets.

His body exuded a terrifying aura comparable to that of a Late Golden Core Stage.

There were a hundred of them!

And behind those hundred Puppets stood three even larger Puppet leaders, their auras having reached the Early Nascent Soul Stage!

"Puppet Formation?!"

Chen Xu couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

This second trial... was it actually testing combat power?

Just then, Ying Chengju also roared, breaking through the illusions of the Dao Heart Path and rushing in.

Although his Dao Heart was not as strong as Chen Xu's, his Innate Hegemon Body had a formidable will, and he managed to endure it.

However, his face was even paler, and he had expended a great deal of energy.

He saw Chen Xu standing safely in front and then saw the hundred powerful Puppets.

The anger and jealousy in his eyes almost burst forth.

"Die for me!"

He couldn't lose again!

He wanted to use his strength to crush this man in front of him and prove that he was the strongest!

Ying Chengju roared and charged actively towards the Puppet army!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

He pushed his Hegemon Body to its limit, like a humanoid Vicious Beast.

He charged wildly through the Puppet formation.

With one punch, a Golden Core Puppet was smashed, dented, and sent flying backward.

With one kick, a battle saber aimed at him was directly shattered!

He abandoned all defense, exchanging injuries for injuries, and charged madly through the Puppet formation in a barbaric manner!

Sparks flew, and the clang of metal was incessant!

It had to be said that his Innate Hegemon Body was indeed formidable; attacks that could heavily injure ordinary Nascent Soul Cultivators.

Landing on him, they only left white marks.

He was like an indestructible war hammer, forcefully smashing a bloody path through the Puppet formation!

A moment later, he emerged from the Puppet formation, covered in injuries and panting heavily.

He stood at the other end of the square.

He turned around and looked at Chen Xu, who was still standing still.

A smug look appeared on his face.

Although he was disheveled, he had passed!

He wanted to see how this guy, whose Physical Body was also formidable, would get through this Puppet array!

However, Chen Xu's next move.

Made the smile on his face instantly freeze.

Facing the hundred Puppets that surged like a tide.

Chen Xu did not charge in like him.

He just slowly raised his hand.

Hum!

An ancient, azure longsword appeared in his palm.

myriad ages azure cloud sword!

Chen Xu flicked his wrist, performing a sword flourish.

The next second, he moved.

His figure, like an azure lightning bolt, actively charged towards the Puppet army.

Visibly, there was no earth-shattering sword light around him.

Nor was there any world-destroying sword momentum.

He merely weaved and dodged continuously within the Puppet crowd.

The longsword in his hand, each time it was swung, was as swift as a startled swan and incredibly precise.

Whoosh!

A faint purple Sword Qi flashed from the sword tip, disappearing into the eye socket of a Puppet.

The Puppet, which was raising its battle-axe, instantly stiffened, and the red light in its eyes dimmed.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Chen Xu's figure, like a phantom, moved through the gaps of clashing blades and swords.

The longsword in his hand, each time it was swung, precisely struck the connecting joints of the Puppets.

Or the central node of their Spiritual Qi circulation.

With one sword strike, a Puppet would lose power and freeze in place.

In just a dozen breaths of time.

When Chen Xu's figure passed through the other end of the Puppet formation.

Behind him, a hundred Puppets, including the three Nascent Soul-level leaders, all stood still like sculptures, unmoving.

Chen Xu was still dressed in azure, spotless.

Let alone being injured, not even his breathing was in the slightest bit disordered.

He walked to the end of the square and stood beside Ying Chengju.

He put away his longsword.

And this scene also filled the Cultivators who followed with immense shock.

Visibly, these Cultivators who came later all had pale faces, sweat constantly dripping from their heads, and some even had traces of blood flowing from their seven orifices!

Clearly, the Dao Heart Path trial had already made them walk a tightrope between life and death.

Now, seeing Chen Xu pass easily.

Their mood became even more complex.

"All... all solved?"

"O-one person? How did he do it?"

"I just saw... he seemed to just walk around inside?"

"Monster! This guy is simply a monster!"

All eyes looking at Chen Xu were filled with reverence.

If the first trial, the Dao Heart Path.

Showcased Chen Xu's Dao Heart, as firm as divine iron.

Then this second trial proved to everyone that he possessed terrifying combat power that matched his Dao Heart and crushed everything!

Heart-Nature, wisdom, and combat power, all three were top-tier!

How could such a Prodigy exist in this world?!

Ying Chengju listened to the gasps of surprise from the surroundings.

Feeling the gazes directed at him.

He only felt a burning pain on his face, as if he had been slapped countless times in public.

"Damn it!"

He clenched his fists abruptly, his expression completely out of control.

Where did this uninvited guest come from?!

Just then, in the deepest part of the square, the tightly shut stone door let out a heavy rumble and slowly opened.

The third trial!

Everyone's breathing instantly hitched!

Everyone's gaze swept over, temporarily suppressing the shock Chen Xu had brought deep in their hearts.

Ying Chengju roared frantically in his heart!

I cannot lose again!

Absolutely not!

This third trial, no matter what it is, I must be the first to pass!

I will ruthlessly trample this bastard underfoot!

However, when everyone saw the scene behind the stone door.

They all froze.

Behind the door was neither a mountain of blades and a sea of fire, nor an supreme palace.

Instead, it was an incredibly vast and empty hall.

In the center of the hall, only a giant chessboard quietly floated.

The chessboard was made of an unknown material, entirely translucent white.

It exuded a soft glow.

On the chessboard, black and white pieces were crisscrossed.

Forming an extremely complex chess game.

Just one look made people feel dizzy, and their hearts trembled slightly.

"This... what is this?"

"The third trial is playing chess?"

Everyone looked at each other, their faces full of confusion.

Just then, the grey-robed old man, Wandering Cultivator Lingxi, slowly walked out again.

He looked at the chessboard, and a solemn expression reappeared in his eyes.

"This is no ordinary chess game."

"This is... the Divine Chessboard!"

"Laid out personally by the Purple Mansion Dao Lord in his later years, it contains the great Dao of Heaven and Earth and the principles of stellar movement."

"For a thousand years, countless talented and brilliant individuals have come to challenge it, but no one has been able to solve it!"

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi sighed deeply and continued, "This trial does not test cultivation, nor does it test combat power; what it tests is a Cultivator's comprehension of the Heavenly Dao, and it tests a person's wisdom and vision!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire hall erupted in an uproar!

Testing wisdom and vision?

This was a thousand times harder than competing in combat power!

Which of the Cultivators present wasn't a ruthless character who had fought their way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood?

They were confident in their strength.

But few dared to claim that their wisdom could surpass ancient and modern times!

For a time, the atmosphere in the entire hall became extremely strange.

Everyone looked at the profound chessboard, their brows tightly furrowed, yet no one dared to step forward.

This was the most difficult trial!

"Hmph! Playing tricks!"

A furious shout broke the silence.

It was Ying Chengju!

He had already been consumed by jealousy and unwillingness.

He no longer cared about so many things.

"I am the Seventh Prince of Great Zhou, a noble of imperial blood! In terms of wisdom and vision, how could I lose to you common folk!"

He roared and strode quickly towards the chessboard.

He fundamentally did not believe in any principles of the Dao; in his view, absolute power.

Could crush all schemes and tricks!

Ying Chengju's eyes widened, and he frantically pushed his overbearing and peerless will to its limit. His Divine Thought rapidly transformed into an invisible heavy hammer, smashing fiercely towards the chessboard!

He wanted to use his will to forcibly deduce.

And crush this so-called Divine Chessboard!

However, the moment his Divine Thought touched the chessboard!

Hum!

The seemingly calm chessboard suddenly erupted with ten thousand rays of light!

Ying Chengju only felt as if his Divine Thought had crashed into a wall.

"Pfft!"

Ying Chengju was struck by lightning, spitting out a large mouthful of fresh blood and staggering back seven or eight steps.

His Divine Thought was even more intensely painful.

Making him almost kneel on the ground.

It should be known that physical pain could still be endured.

But the pain of the Divine Soul was completely unbearable!

Visibly, his eyes showed a look of horror!

In that instant, he felt as if his Divine Soul was about to be torn apart by the terrifying Dao rhythm contained within the chessboard.

Directly torn into pieces!

This chess game actually had the power to retaliate!

"Idiot."

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi looked at his disheveled appearance and shook his head disdainfully.

Then, he straightened his robes and slowly walked forward.

Unlike Ying Chengju's crude approach, he respectfully bowed to the chessboard.

Only then did he sit down cross-legged.

He did not immediately try to make a move, but instead closed his eyes, his entire mind seemingly slowly merging with the chessboard.

His fingers constantly calculated and deduced in the Void Realm.

Traces of Spiritual Qi were born and extinguished at his fingertips.

Time passed bit by bit.

An hour later.

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi's originally calm face gradually began to show fine beads of sweat, and his complexion became increasingly pale.

Clearly, deducing this chess game was also a huge drain on him.

Another half an hour passed.

Wandering Cultivator Lingxi suddenly opened his eyes, a hint of understanding flashing within them. He raised his hand and pointed remotely at an empty space on the chessboard!

Hum!

A grey chess piece, condensed from his Divine Thought, slowly fell.

As this chess piece fell, on the chessboard.

Several black pieces instantly turned into dust!

The originally deadlocked chess game was actually revitalized in one corner by him!

"It moved! The chess game moved!"

"Senior Lingxi is indeed amazing! He actually deduced a move!"

Seeing this, everyone's spirits were lifted.