183: The pinnacle of chess

“Finally... finally!”

Emperor Gaozong stared at the Chessboard before him. As long as he placed this final piece, he could break the formation and properly teach this brat a lesson.

Although he had been delayed for over an hour, it was better than losing.

“Brat! Let's continue then!”

Emperor Gaozong laughed heartily and heavily placed the final piece.

The victory and defeat were decided.

Zhou Yan's expression was unsightly. He covered his face with his hands, as if anticipating the fate that awaited him.

“Brat, aren't you going to admit defeat? Do you want to stall for a bit longer?”

Emperor Gaozong was no longer irritable; his heart was now filled with joy.

The matches during this time allowed him to discover that Zhou Yan had a time limit for placing pieces. If he timed out, the Chessboard would forcibly control him to place a piece.

Thus, the opponent was merely making a final struggle.

“Hehe...”

“Hahaha.”

When Emperor Gaozong heard the strange noises coming from Zhou Yan, a sense of ominous foreboding flashed through his mind.

Sure enough, Zhou Yan put down his hands, revealing an equally pleasant smile on his face.

Emperor Gaozong's smile, conversely, gradually froze.

“Damn it, what are you laughing at!”

“Your Divine Ability is about to be lifted, what's so funny!”

Zhou Yan was laughing like an Imposter at this moment, and the more he laughed, the more uneasy Emperor Gaozong felt.

“Time is almost up, you brat pretending to be a ghost!”

Time flowed by second by second.

Emperor Gaozong felt that this was the first time in all these years that he had experienced such immense pressure.

Zhou Yan maintained that eerie smile until the very last second.

Time's up!

Emperor Gaozong had accurately calculated the time in his heart and was about to breathe a sigh of relief, only to find himself still trapped by the restraints of the Chessboard.

“How could this be?”

“What did you do!”

Zhou Yan Buyu, merely silently watching the "Request Rematch" prompt visible only to himself.

Initiate rematch?

NPCs don't have the right to refuse a rematch.

Senior Emperor Gaozong, oh Senior Emperor Gaozong, I told you I could play chess with you all day long.

The pieces on the Chessboard were cleared, and the sides swapped positions.

Zhou Yan quickly placed a piece and made a “please proceed” gesture toward him.

Looking at the match that had started again, Emperor Gaozong clutched his head and let out a desperate scream.

“No—!”

At this moment, inside the Qingxu Grotto-Heaven.

Long Tianxing was riding his Flying Sword, swiftly rushing toward the Sect Main Hall.

Many Disciples along the way saw him and rushed forward, wanting to strike up a conversation.

But Long Tianxing maintained a cold face and gave very perfunctory answers.

“Junior Brother Long, good morning.”

“My morning is not good.”

“Senior Brother Long, my cultivation hasn't been smooth recently. Could you give me some pointers?”

“If your cultivation isn't smooth, then talk to me when it is.”

“Senior Brother Long, I...”

“Shh, I don't want to hear what you're saying now. Save it for the me of tomorrow.”

Long Tianxing placed a finger against his lips, tilted his head, and softly “shushed” everyone, immediately drawing a wave of infatuated gazes.

The female Cultivators covered their faces in ecstasy. Some even lost their composure and dropped their Magic Treasures, which fell into the clouds below. Among them were also a few male Disciples.

He equally attacked everyone with his words while accelerating his flight toward the Hall.

Just then, a casual remark from a Disciple nearby caught his attention.

“Junior Brother Long, congratulations on reaching first place on the Earth Ranking.”

He was originally going to respond casually and leave, as he had already accumulated enough honor.

“What's so great... Wait!”

Long Tianxing abruptly stopped his Flying Sword and flashed back.

“What did you say!”

That Disciple was startled. He had just offered a casual congratulation. He hadn't expected the usually aloof Long Tianxing to react so excitedly, leaving him momentarily flustered.

“Just congratulating Junior Brother on reaching the top of the Earth Ranking...”

Long Tianxing showed joy upon hearing this and hurriedly pressed for details.

“When did I reach the top? What about Zhou Yan?”

Seeing the surrounding Disciples gradually gathering, that Disciple felt a bit nervous.

“It was during the time you were injured and recuperating. You reached the top with your Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivation.”

“As for Junior Brother Zhou... he hasn't been first on the Earth Ranking for a long time.”

Long Tianxing's smile grew wider after hearing this. He laughed loudly and left on his Flying Sword. Before he left, he seemed to whisper.

“Zhou Yan, oh Zhou Yan, you're only so-so.”

“I've been recuperating for so long, yet your cultivation hasn't progressed at all. Even my past self could easily surpass you. It seems you are no longer worthy of being my opponent.”

Looking at his receding figure, that Disciple wore a confused expression.

As soon as Long Tianxing left, a group of Disciples immediately swarmed over.

“You said Junior Brother Zhou isn't first on the Earth Ranking anymore?”

“How is that possible? Didn't he slay a Foundation Establishment Cultivator while still in the Qi Refinement Stage?”

“And I heard he had already Broken Through to Foundation Establishment before my last seclusion. He should be even stronger now, right?”

Another Disciple echoed.

“That's right. Although Senior Brother Long had already Broken Through to Foundation Establishment Mid-Stage before being struck by lightning, he also recuperated for a long time.”

“Even if Junior Brother Zhou hasn't Broken Through, his strength couldn't possibly stagnate. There's no reason for him to be so dazzling in the Qi Refinement Stage and then mediocre in the Foundation Establishment Stage.”

“In that case, shouldn't the position of Saint be chosen for Long Tianxing?”

Hearing everyone chatter away, that Disciple felt a headache coming on.

“Every single one of you starts endless discussions as soon as you hear gossip, but all your information is second-hand.”

“You only listen to the excitement and don't bother verifying the actual situation, right?”

Everyone was momentarily speechless.

They indeed rarely paid attention to the details of the rankings, being typical “Cloud Spectators.” They would heat up discussions about topics, but when asked to check the actual ranking list, they were too lazy to look it up.

“Sigh, I really give up on you all.” That Disciple sighed and explained.

“Your information is outdated. Junior Brother Zhou was transferred to the Heaven Ranking several months ago with his Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation.”

“Huh?”

“What!”

“How is that possible!”

Amidst everyone's exclamations, he shook his head.

“I thought the same as you at first. After all, the Heaven Ranking doesn't just look at potential; it requires concrete battle achievements.”

“Generally, Prodigies accumulate power before bursting forth. When they are the right age, their strength isn't enough, and when their strength is sufficient, they are already too old. That's why entering the Heaven Ranking is extremely difficult.”

“Most people can only make it onto the list during the Core Formation Stage. Junior Brother Zhou is only in the Foundation Establishment Stage, which certainly makes it hard to believe.”

“But in reality, his battle achievements are astonishing.”

“In that battle a few months ago, he used his Foundation Establishment cultivation to slay two Core Formation Cultivators. Although those two had their cultivation restricted within the Secret Realm, they were Core Formation Cultivators nonetheless, so this achievement is undeniable.”

“Even Junior Brother Wang Yao barely managed to deal with one Core Formation Cultivator after being severely injured, and he successfully entered the Heaven Ranking because of it.”

“Think about it: Junior Brother Wang barely dealt with one after being severely injured, yet Junior Brother Zhou easily handled two.”

“If Junior Brother Wang can make the list, then there's even less doubt about Junior Brother Zhou, right?”

“Moreover, Sixth Elder personally verified it. According to him, although Zhou Yan was still in the Foundation Establishment Mid-Stage at the time, his combat power had reached the Core Formation level, and not just ordinary Core Formation.”

“Not to mention, Junior Brother Zhou successfully Broke Through to the Core Formation Stage not long ago. His cultivation has advanced significantly, and he can probably fight a Nascent Soul Cultivator now.”

The crowd initially exclaimed or discussed, but after hearing everything, they fell completely silent. If they remembered correctly, Zhou Yan was still a Mortal before descending the mountain.

Even Long Tianxing, who possessed a Water Single Spiritual Root and was blessed with great Luck, only managed to Break Through from the Qi Refining Late Stage to the Foundation Establishment Mid-Stage during this period.

Let alone themselves.

For a moment, everyone was speechless. They dispersed in confusion, feeling that perhaps they should go to Longmen Town to undergo some “Mortal World Refinement of the Heart.”

On the other side, Long Tianxing, having learned that he had surpassed Zhou Yan, regained his usual composure.

An opponent he surpassed would never have a chance to surpass him again. Facing someone destined not to catch up in the future, he naturally lost some interest.

Not long after, Long Tianxing arrived in front of the Hall. He casually lifted his Spell, and the Flying Sword flew back toward its original owner.

He adjusted his robes, which had been ruffled by the wind, and walked into the Hall with standard steps, wearing a smile that was three parts unrestrained and four parts casual.

His eyes revealed two parts aloofness, six parts confidence, and one part arrogance.

Meanwhile, inside the Royal Treasury.

“Can I only choose six items?”

Zhou Yan looked at the already defeated and weary Emperor Gaozong and shamelessly asked one more question.

Seeing the other party display an expression that said, “Ask again and I'll beat you,” Zhou Yan knew when to quit and happily walked toward the pile of treasures.

Emperor Gaozong looked at his retreating figure, let out a long sigh, his eyes filled with exhaustion.

Playing chess isn't scary, and stalling for time isn't scary either.

But if you play chess with an idiot—you can't win quickly, you're forced to waste time with him, and you're tormented by the Great Time-Stalling Technique—it's an absolute torment.

This was even more unbearable than when he had to tutor his son on the assignments given by the Imperial Tutor back then.

Right now, he genuinely wanted to smash Zhou Yan to death.

If he had known he would suffer this torment in his later years, he truly should have learned a move or two of the Law of Time back then.

That way, he could go back to the moment he first beat Zhou Yan, let himself experience it a few more times, and cultivate his temperament.

Zhou Yan didn't know what this serious-faced, inwardly active old Senior was thinking. He only knew one thing.

He had struck it rich this time!