The Prodigies War

Chapter 1633: Nine Palaces Go Game

Fog of chaos pervaded the area, as snow-white lightning silently flickered within it.

The cry that was filled with sorrow came from the ghostly white figure.

Lin Xun’s hair stood on end, and he felt like he was on the verge of breaking down.

That cry seemed to contain a peculiar power of sadness that directly reached the heart, like an arrow shot out of nowhere to pierce one’s state of mind!

“Run!”

Shun Ji grabbed Lin Xun and took a long detour.

Only when the bizarre fog was out of sight did he explain to him with a complicated expression, “According to legend, that was the soul of a heroic supreme being from the primeval era. He was an Emperor before death and did a lifetime of deeds for the world. His combat strength surpassed all his predecessors, and he once fought across the eight domains, slaying enemies left and right. Everyone turned pale at the mere mention of his name.”

Although it was just a legend, it was still amazing. If he could move unhindered across the eight domains, then how unparalleled was his powers?

“Unfortunately, in the primeval era, the Battle of Emperors outside the Great Emperor Pass was unprecedentedly intense, and the Emperor sadly died under the encirclement of the enemy due to an exhaustion of physical strength.

“His only regret was that he could not see his wife before his death. Now, his heroic spirit lingers here, refusing to dissipate despite the countless years that have passed and is still weeping in sorrow.” Shun Ji sighed again.

In the primeval era, that battle turned the world upside down. The Ancient Wasteland Domain was besieged by the eight domains, and the Emperor fought with his all, but in the end, he still could not escape death.

Whenever this tale was mentioned, everyone would let out an emotional sigh.

Lin Xun fell into a trance-like state, emotions welling up inside him. It was only after a long moment that he murmured, “That Emperor Elder is truly a sentimental person.”

“Ah, isn’t he? Since ancient times, the most sentimental will suffer more. Who would have imagined that he was the most powerful Emperor in the primeval era. He made a name for himself with his ruthless means and incredible strength and hailed as the Heartless Demon Emperor.” Shun Ji sighed again.

The Heartless Demon Emperor!

Lin Xun kept this name in mind. A demon dao Emperor of his generation, known for his ruthlessness and coldness, but when he died, his only regret was that he could not see his wife for the last time!

They continued onwards and soon Shun Ji led Lin Xun into a paradise-like area, where mystical mist swirled around, quaint buildings were lined up in rows, and thousands rays of divine lights rained down from the sky. It was a beautiful and spectacular sight.

Shun Ji came to a stop in front of a bronze temple hall and said, “This is where Mister Shen lives. Just wait here.”

Lin Xun asked, “Elder, can I ask when Mister Shen will return?”

Shun Ji thought for a while, then shook his head. “It’s hard to say. In recent years, enemies from the eight domains have frequently come to invade our territory, especially at the Vast Ocean Pass, the 37th stronghold. The battles there had been the most intense. Mister Shen and others are now defending the Vast Ocean Pass…”

After hearing Shun Ji talk about it, Lin Xun realized that the Great Emperor Pass stretched infinitely and spanned countless void worlds.

Therefore, it was divided into one hundred and eight strongholds, and each stronghold had a pass.

The passes were separated by great distances and even several world planes. To travel from one pass to another, one would have to rely on a special teleportation array!

For example, there were dozens of passes between the Vast Ocean Pass and the Sun Pass, which was where Lin Xun and the others were situated.

“Only when there is an urgent and important matter that would affect the battle situation on the frontline can we light the Emperor Aura Beacon and instantly convey the message to every pass. Little guy, if your matter is not urgent then I advise you to wait for now. The Emperor Aura Beacon should not be misused like that,” Shun Ji advised.

Lin Xun thought about it and agreed.

He was only entrusted by the golden cicada youth to bring the Ice Snow Leaf here. It was indeed not an urgent matter.

……

From that day on, Lin Xun stayed at Mister Shen’s residence in the Sun Pass, waiting for Mister Shen to return.

The Sun Pass was huge. Although it was said to be one of the strongholds of the Great Emperor Pass, in fact its city spanned three dilapidated suspended worlds.

More than thirty quasi-Emperor figures and hundreds of Saint-Kings were stationed here.

When there were no battles, these ‘old monsters’ who could make the entire Ancient Wasteland Domain tremble with a stamp of their foot were either training or doing their own things.

Although Lin Xun’s arrival attracted a lot of curious gazes, as time went on, no one paid attention to a ‘little guy’ like him anymore.

Lin Xun also enjoyed the leisurely time. This was his first time in the Great Emperor Pass, so he would occasionally wander around and appreciate the relics of the past.

But more often than not, he made use of the time to practice.

Now, his three cultivation paths, qi cultivation, physical cultivation and spirit cultivation, had long been integrated into one and his cultivation base had also reached the perfect True Saint Stage.

His next target was the Big- Saint Stage!

The Big Saint Stage emphasized on the word ‘big.’

Big but immeasurable, the greatest view had no fixed form, the most astounding sound was inaudible!

From ancient times to the present, no matter which clan it was, no matter what kind of writing it was, the big character was composed of two characters—‘one’ and ‘person.’

‘Only forty-nine of the fifty daos can be derived in the world,’ the ‘one’ represents the missing dao!

This ‘one’ crossed the ‘person’ character to form the character ‘big’ to represent that the great dao lies in the human heart.

The Big Saint Stage was to cultivate to a state in the Saint Stage where the ‘great dao lies in the heart and the body becomes immeasurable’.

The heaven and earth possessed beauty that was indescribable, the body had the great dao that was immeasurable!

Now, Lin Xun was only one step away from the Big Saint Stage.

Once he took that step, it was akin to ascending the heavens, wielding immeasurable power. If he failed to make that step then he would be stuck in the True Saint Stage for the rest of his life, unable to progress any further.

This was a chasm-like door that he had to cross!

For Lin Xun, his top priority was to study and figure out how to make a breakthrough and how to achieve the state of Big Saint through the supreme path.

However, he also knew that he must not rush this. Every step of the pursuit of the Saint Stage was extremely difficult. He had only reached the Supreme Saint Stage three years ago, and his speed of progress was already astonishing.

Moreover, breakthroughs were not achieved by just studying diligently and training hard.

One needed opportunities to comprehend the dao, opportunities to advance, and needed great perseverance to sharpen oneself.

Bronze Temple Hall.

On this day, Lin Xun woke up from meditation and counted the days. Half a month had passed since he came, but he had not heard anything about Mister Shen.

Letting out a sigh, he got up and headed out of the hall.

The sky was dusky, a huge star was orbiting around, and fragments of star debris were suspended in the void like islands.

Lin Xun strode forward leisurely. These days, he had become quite familiar with everything about the Great Emperor Pass, so he was not as tense as he was at the beginning.

The ‘old monsters’ stationed here were not interested in an ‘insignificant person’ like him.

A clamor of conversation and laughter rang from the distance, which was rather noticeable in this quiet and desolate Great Emperor Pass.

Lin Xun could not help but move closer to the source of the noise.

A lush green hill surrounded by magical mist came into his view. Waterfalls and springs flowed magnificently, shimmering in the beautiful sunlight.

A group of figures, men and women, old and young, were gathered on a plain in front of the lush green hill.

All their auras had been restrained, but even so, it still had an oppressive effect on the people. Even if a pack of male lions retracted their claws, they were still lions and could intimidate all other beasts!

This was a group of quasi-Emperors in the Sun Pass. Many Saint-Kings were also present.

In the center of the crowd, two people were playing a game of Go.

One was a slender old man with an iron crown on his head and the demeanor of an immortal being. He was dressed in a black daoist robe and exuded calmness.

Lin Xun recognized him. He was a quasi-Emperor called Ling Xiaozi and he was also a rune founder. He had a bit of fame in the Sun Pass.

After all, he had been guarding the Great Emperor Pass for eight thousand years!

Sitting opposite Ling Xiaozi was Shun Ji!

The masculine and gallant quasi-Emperor was red in the face at this moment, scratching his ears and cheeks, and seemed to be struggling a bit.

He stared straight at the Go board on the ground, as if he was facing a grave problem.

Ling Xiaozi grinned slightly, as if victory was within his grasp.

The other nearby quasi-Emperors all started laughing.

“Shun Ji, give up. You’re a rubbish Go player, do you think you can beat Ling Xiaozi in the Nine Palaces Go Game? You’re just bringing trouble to yourself.”

“Hurry, don’t waste time. Just admit defeat, then everyone can split the winnings from the bet.”

Some quasi-Emperors teased and mocked him.

“Old Man Shun, can you do it? I have bet three magical healing herbs on you. I am waiting for you to turn this around and win me a fortune.”

Some were exasperated and worried.

This match between Shun Ji and Ling Xiaozi was also a betting game, and all the old monsters nearby participated in it.

But clearly, more people placed bets on Ling Xiaozi compared to Shun Ji.

Lin Xun stared at them, speechless.

These old monsters must have been fighting here for too long and are too bored. It's just a game of Go, but they are actually treating it as a betting game for fun.

Lin Xun stepped forward and saw the so-called Nine Palaces Go Game.

A grid of nine palaces made from animal skin was spread across the ground. Each of the nine palaces contained an empty world.

To play, dao rune arrays were arranged in these empty worlds, which would determine the outcome of the game.

For example, if Shun Ji set up an array in the Qian Palace, then Ling Xiaozi would have to break the array, and if he failed to do so, Shun Ji would be crowned the winner.

Then, Ling Xiaozi would set up an array in the Kun Palace, and Shun Ji would have to break it, and so on.

The one who successfully broke an array will win that round.

And if they failed then they lost that round.

The Nine Palaces Grid was split into nine palace locations, which represented nine blank worlds. The game would be played nine times, and the winner was determined based on the final score.

This was the Nine Palaces Go Game.

It tested one’s rune skills.

Lin Xun saw that Shun Ji had lost five games in a row, while Ling Xiaozi had not lost a single match. There was no need to continue the game because Shun Ji had already lost.

However, according to the rules, if Shun Ji insisted on playing to the end, no one could stop him.

It was no wonder that those big shots were cackling. Shun Ji was doomed to lose and it was impossible to turn things around.