Lu Zheng picked up a white piece, scanned the chessboard for a moment, then chose a position and gently placed the piece.
Wan Song, the Taoist, nodded. This move was not beyond his expectations.
However, he still pondered for a moment before placing a black piece.
Seeing Lu Zheng immediately engage in a chess match with Wan Song, Song Kaichuan was not surprised. Thus, he remained silent, sitting to the side of the two, quietly observing the game without a word.
Soon, Song Kaichuan’s mind sank into the game. His vision flashed, and the chessboard vanished from his sight, replaced by a sea of clouds with two divine dragons.
The black dragon’s claws and fangs were sharp, carrying a roaring black wind like a blade, unstoppable in its momentum.
The white dragon’s scales were tough, spewing layers of white mist like a curtain, impenetrable.
The current situation showed the black dragon on the offensive and the white dragon on the defensive. However, Song Kaichuan could see that the black dragon was steadily advancing, while the white dragon was gathering strength.
Once the white dragon fully amassed its power and erupted, the outcome of the battle between the two sides was still uncertain.
However…
Song Kaichuan blinked. He noticed that the white dragon’s strategy suddenly changed. Instead of solely defending and gathering strength, it began to subtly show its claws, harassing the black dragon.
“Hmm?” Song Kaichuan blinked again, pulling his mind back from the game. He saw Lu Zheng place two white pieces in seemingly idle positions. The defence was indeed less tight than before, but it directly targeted the weak points of the black pieces, making the black side somewhat uncomfortable.
The black side could, of course, ignore this and charge forward with its attack. But in doing so, its rear would be unstable, and who knew what the white pieces might achieve by breaking through at that point.
The black side’s style was inherently one of fierce frontal attacks but with a stable rear.
Thus, with Lu Zheng’s idle moves, the black side had to patch up its weaknesses. Though its attack remained fierce, it struggled to break through the white side’s defence.
A glint flashed in Wan Song’s eyes, showing a hint of surprise.
He hadn’t expected Lu Zheng to shift the white side’s strategy so quickly, and after two moves, the white side still hadn’t fallen into a clear disadvantage.
Lu Zheng kept his eyes on the chessboard, his mind racing, contemplating the next steps.
He had just deduced the upcoming trends of the black and white pieces. Though the white side hid a needle in its softness and, once fully powered, would erupt like a tempestuous wave, unstoppable.
However, the black side’s attack was ferocious, not a reckless charge but a methodical advance with a solid rear.
Thus, even if the white side erupted, it would struggle to break through the black side’s attack and then forcefully assault its defence.
In the end, it might result in a balanced stalemate, neither side winning nor losing.
Since that was the case, Lu Zheng naturally wouldn’t continue following the momentum.
Wan Song had played against himself countless times, deducing this style and strategy. It would be difficult for Lu Zheng to turn the tables and defeat the black side under such steps.
If so, it was best to immediately change the formation, harass sporadically, disrupt the black side’s offensive rhythm, delay step by step, harass at every turn, bide time for change, and seek an opportunity to win.
A glint flashed in Wan Song’s eyes, clearly guessing Lu Zheng’s intentions.
This idea wasn’t brilliant. What was brilliant was that after Lu Zheng shifted his strategy, they had exchanged seven moves, and the white side still hadn’t been breached under the black side’s attack.
Wan Song nodded, the appreciation in his eyes growing stronger.
The white side’s defensive counterattack strategy had already progressed halfway. Anyone with decent chess skills could follow the momentum and hold on for a long time, making it hard to discern skill levels in the short term.
Lu Zheng, however, was different. Changing strategy midway, he had to forge a new path without letting the white side’s defence collapse. That was far more difficult than following the momentum.
Since you aim to bide time for change, I’ll attack with overwhelming momentum, leaving no flaws, and see how you manage to delay.
Wan Song remained steady as a mountain, his black pieces patching up weaknesses, giving the white side no chance to disrupt or seize victory through chaos.
“Impressive!”
Lu Zheng, holding a white piece, pondered for a long time before placing it.
Wan Song smiled faintly and placed a black piece on the board.
Lu Zheng smacked his lips. Wan Song had blocked another of his backup plans.
This time, he had truly met an evenly matched opponent. Lu Zheng couldn’t help but feel fortunate that he had asked the Jade Seal to enhance his chess skills before coming. Otherwise, in this first meeting, he might have truly faltered.
But now…
Lu Zheng placed a piece. I still have three backup plans. Let’s see if you can block them all!
“Snap!” Wan Song followed with a piece, blocking another of Lu Zheng’s backup plans.
Lu Zheng, “…”
…
From sunrise to sunset, three full days passed, and the chess match between Lu Zheng and Wan Song finally concluded.
The result was…
Lu Zheng’s plan to bide time for change didn’t succeed. He found no flaws in the black side.
But Wan Song’s black side attack couldn’t maintain its unstoppable momentum to completely defeat the white side.
A draw!
The black dragon retracted its claws, the white dragon folded its scales, both sides evenly matched, ceasing the battle.
“Phew!”
Song Kaichuan let out a long breath, stroking his beard with a smile. “Old Pine, what do you think of young Lu’s chess skills?”
A trace of a smile appeared on Wan Song’s ancient, refined face. “This old man finally has a worthy chess opponent.”
Song Kaichuan raised an eyebrow, nearly pulling off his own beard.
Damn it, I’ve played chess with you for hundreds of years, and I’m not qualified to be your opponent?
Smacking his lips, shaking his head, and calming himself, Song Kaichuan continued, “Then why not quickly set up that dream chess game for us to study together?”
Song Kaichuan had wanted to see that dream chess game several times, but Wan Song had never shown it to him, leaving him itching with curiosity.
He hadn’t expected Lu Zheng to play Wan Song to a draw. Surely, he could now piggyback on this and get a glimpse of that chess game?
“No rush, no rush,” Wan Song said with a calm smile, full of interest. “Young Lu took over midway and played with me for three days, but it wasn’t fully satisfying. This time, let’s start from the beginning.”
Lu Zheng’s eye twitched. “Senior, please allow me to report. After playing for three days, this junior is somewhat exhausted and truly unable to play another round.”
Chess is mentally taxing, isn’t it? Especially against such a master. With Lu Zheng’s limited cultivation, after this game, his mind was faintly dizzy, unable to endure another round.
“My apologies for being abrupt,” Wan Song said regretfully. With a flick of his hand, a pile of pine nuts appeared out of thin air in front of Lu Zheng.
“These pine nuts have a refreshing effect. Eat a few, young friend, and you’ll feel better,” Wan Song said. “There are still some sights to see on Wan Song Mountain. Take your time, young friend. We’ll play again tomorrow.”
Another handful of spiritual pine nuts. Are these things really worthless to a thousand-year-old demon?
Lu Zheng promptly stored the pine nuts, keeping one out. He cracked the shell and put the seed into his mouth.
A fresh fragrance filled his nose, spiritual energy entered his body, refreshing his mind and aiding his cultivation.
With just one nut, Lu Zheng felt the true qi in his body become slightly lighter.
“Thank you, Senior!” Lu Zheng clasped his hands in gratitude.
Wan Song nodded. “You’re welcome. Rest for now, young friend. Old Song and I will play a round first.”
Lu Zheng rose and left the table. As he walked, a thought suddenly struck him, and he asked, “Who is the master of that dream chess game?”
Wan Song didn’t hide it. “In my dream, I entered the divine mountain, and the immortal called himself Red Pine.”
