This move indeed caught the old man by surprise.
It was not the method of suicide, for he had pondered for thirty years and had naturally tried the approach of clearing the board by suicide, a forceful restart.
However, there had never been a precedent of struggling to a certain point before smoothly committing suicide.
Nevertheless, the old man had contemplated this endgame for thirty years, with every piece’s position and role etched in his mind. Although some pieces had been cleared, the black pieces still held a significant advantage.
After five consecutive moves, the old man’s eyes flickered slightly, as the moves before the board was cleared had a subtle impact on his strategy afterward, making his moves less smooth.
“Interesting.”
…
The two played thirty-one moves in succession. The old man played increasingly slowly, while Lu Zheng played faster and faster. By now, they had surpassed the longest game from three days prior.
Although the old man played more slowly, he still held the advantage, suppressing the white pieces firmly.
Until…
Lu Zheng placed a piece, committing suicide to a large portion of his pieces.
“Hmm?”
After the old man removed the pieces, he suddenly realised something was amiss.
Although the white pieces were still at a disadvantage, their arrangement faintly suggested a potential to overtake.
“Competing head-on, showing weakness to the enemy, striking unexpectedly, turning the tide, then making another surprising move.”
The old man murmured to himself, “Good strategy, excellent solution.”
Lu Zheng placed another piece, each move flowing smoothly. In contrast, the old man, despite holding the advantage, found his moves increasingly awkward, as maintaining his advantage became more challenging.
Each move required long deliberation, each piece placed with utmost care. From moonset to sunrise, until the sunlight from the crevice above the cave shone down for the second time, their game finally concluded.
The old man lost by half a piece.
“Senior, thank you for letting me win!” Lu Zheng let out a long breath, clasping his hands in respect.
The old man stared blankly at the stone board. After a long pause, he slowly raised his head. “Letting you win? I exerted all my strength, yet it was indeed difficult to reverse the defeat.”
Lu Zheng blinked, thinking to himself that he was just being humble.
“This solution, did you come up with it after returning?” the old man asked again.
“Indeed,” Lu Zheng nodded. Seeing the old man’s expressionless face, he added consolingly, “Actually, after I went back, I kept thinking about it, racking my brains for a long time before figuring it out.”
The old man frowned. “A long time?”
Lu Zheng blinked and fell silent.
“I thought for thirty years, and from the time you left to your return, you thought for…”
The old man paused, then looked at Lu Zheng, pondering for a moment.
“Three days?”
Lu Zheng: “…”
The old man: “…”
The two sat in silence, wordless for a long time.
Just as Lu Zheng was wondering whether to take his leave for safety’s sake, the old man suddenly broke into a grin.
Startled, Lu Zheng instinctively prepared to cast the True Cloud Spell and escape to the modern world.
“Well done! Fine strategy. I never imagined that after sitting in contemplation for thirty years, I’d be outdone by your three days of thought,” the old man nodded, his smile warm, showing no sign of intending to eliminate Lu Zheng out of jealousy.
Lu Zheng breathed a sigh of relief. “I made a fool of myself. Perhaps it’s because I’ve studied more chess manuals, so I had more ideas.”
Perhaps because the endgame had been solved, the old man’s eyes and demeanour grew noticeably livelier and more natural.
“Oh? Studied more chess manuals?” The old man pondered, then nodded. “That makes sense. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have devised such an unpredictable solution.”
“And…” the old man continued, “it also requires a foundation in chess skill to execute this solution to its fullest.”
“You flatter me, senior,” Lu Zheng said. “It’s also because this endgame was so well-designed. It allowed the white pieces to cut off the black pieces’ retreat at the critical moment. The further the game progressed, the easier it became for the white pieces, while the black pieces were increasingly constrained, unable to continue. Otherwise, with the black pieces’ early advantage, the white pieces would have struggled to turn the tide.”
The old man nodded. “My old friend is indeed a master of this art. If the opportunity arises, I’ll introduce you. As fellow chess enthusiasts, meeting through chess would make for a fine tale.”
Lu Zheng only smiled, not responding.
“By the way,” the old man suddenly said, “you’ve broken his endgame. I must go and have a good talk with him. Do you have any plans recently? Care to join me for a trip to the Southern Border?”
Good heavens, so his friend was a great demon from the Southern Border?
Lu Zheng shook his head repeatedly. “No time, I’m terribly busy and really can’t get away.”
“I see,” the old man nodded. “Then I’ll go find him later…”
At this point, the old man seemed to recall something, then clasped his hands and said, “By the way, I am Song Kaichuan. Pleased to meet you, young friend.”
Lu Zheng hurriedly returned the courtesy. “Lu Zheng, an outer disciple of the White Cloud Temple. Pleased to meet you, senior.”
“Oh, young friend Lu,” Song Kaichuan noted Lu Zheng’s name discreetly, recalling that Lu Zheng had mentioned it before, but he hadn’t paid attention, which seemed a bit impolite.
“Where does young friend Lu reside now?”
“Tonglin County, three hundred miles southwest,” Lu Zheng replied.
“Not far,” the old man said. “Just a couple of steps away.”
“By the way, I’m heading to the Southern Border. You can come to this cave anytime. Feel free to take the stalactite spring water. As for the stalactite essence, just leave some of the core liquid and don’t take it all at once,” Song Kaichuan told Lu Zheng.
Lu Zheng quickly waved his hands. “I wouldn’t dare. Being able to take some stalactite spring water each month is already more than enough for me.”
“Very well, as you wish,” Song Kaichuan said, unconcerned. “Go ahead and take this time’s share. Let’s head out together.”
Lu Zheng shook his head. “I took four bottles three days ago. That’s enough for now.”
“Fair enough. Let’s go.”
Song Kaichuan waved his hand, collecting the black and white pieces from the board into stone bowls beside it. With the endgame solved, the board wouldn’t be needed for a while.
Lu Zheng followed Song Kaichuan out of the stalactite cave, arriving at a small platform on the cliff.
Song Kaichuan flicked his right sleeve, uttering, “Close.”
Lu Zheng saw the cliff tremble slightly. The walls on either side pressed inward, and the cave entrance shrank. In just a few breaths, it was reduced to a barely visible crevice.
Lu Zheng: ⊙_⊙
“Young friend, whenever you need to…” Song Kaichuan turned to Lu Zheng, then paused. “Do you know the Earth Traversal Technique?”
Lu Zheng smiled politely. “No, I don’t.”
Song Kaichuan blinked. “No matter, it’s simple. With your talent in chess, you’ll probably master it in three to five days.”
Song Kaichuan tapped Lu Zheng’s forehead, and Lu Zheng felt a set of incantations for the technique imprint in his mind.
“The Earth Traversal Technique allows swift movement through earthen ground, though it’s slightly slower in rocky terrain and may damage the stone’s integrity,” Song Kaichuan explained. “But it’s just a passage, no big issue. I discovered this cave using the technique, leaving a cracked stone path. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have been able to collect the stalactite spring water from outside.”
“Understood,” Lu Zheng nodded.
“When you need to collect the stalactite spring water, just use the Earth Traversal Technique to enter,” Song Kaichuan said.
“I’ll enter from here, since it’s already a passage, to avoid damaging the cave’s environment,” Lu Zheng replied.
“That’s best,” Song Kaichuan agreed.
“Well then, I’m off. When I return, I’ll visit you in Tonglin County for a game of chess.”
With that, Song Kaichuan descended the cliff, naturally sinking into the ground and disappearing.
