“Pa.”

“Pa.”

“Pa.”

…

One sound, then another.

All the sounds of chess pieces falling.

Jian Chou’s mind had completely sunk down, immersed in this chess game.

She had her own considerations in her heart, yet this didn’t hinder her from playing this game seriously.

Too familiar.

That chess style was truly too familiar to her.

Whether it was summer afternoons in the Marquis Xie’s mansion, or in the gentle wind at Ten Li Pavilion, it was always that same hand, the hand holding the chess piece, placing one piece after another.

Sometimes frowning in thought, sometimes lowering his eyes with a slight smile.

No matter what expression was on the face of the person sitting across from her, that style of play had never changed—

Always stable, cunning, killing, and risky.

Finding life in desperate situations was his best move.

Jian Chou didn’t know who was on the other side of the chess board, but as piece after piece fell, that familiar feeling became increasingly terrifying.

The smile at the corner of her lips gradually deepened.

Jian Chou’s gaze became extremely bright, very much like the dazzling stars in the sky.

“Pa!”

On the opposite side, another black piece was pressed down, like a black long sword that directly cut off the hidden line she had laid, showing no mercy!

Obviously there were still so many, so many maze-like formations on the chess board, even large loopholes that could let the opponent gain two full points, yet the opponent completely ignored them, directly targeting the layout she planned to scheme for the next ten moves!

Cunning, ruthless, and extremely accurate!

Especially this style of strangling all potential hidden dangers even at the cost of abandoning greater interests…

Those originally bright eyes became almost blazing at this moment!

This time, she truly couldn’t help but laugh out loud, delighted to the extreme—

Red Butterfly Fairy had given her a great gift!

Since beginning to play chess, she had been pondering who her opponent could be.

That lingering sense of familiarity kept making her recall a certain person from the past.

Jian Chou was in the Red Dust Three Thousand Realms, where all her thoughts would be detected by Red Butterfly of this realm. The person playing chess with her, though their style was almost identical to Xie Buchen’s, might not necessarily be him but could be something like an “inner demon.”

The person playing against her might not be Xie Buchen, but perhaps her own memories.

Until just before that black piece fell, Jian Chou hadn’t dared confirm the vague guess in her heart.

But the moment this black piece fell, everything was confirmed.

In her memories, she indeed had Xie Buchen’s chess style, but this move just now was definitely not something the Xie Buchen in her memories would have made.

That was a move of desperate counterattack, in Xie Buchen’s style, yet far more brilliant than in years past!

The Red Dust Three Thousand Realms could peer into her heart, but it had no creative power itself.

If the one playing chess with her across the board was the consciousness of this realm itself, it certainly wouldn’t be so brilliant!

Besides Xie Buchen, who else could it be?

“Fellow Daoist Xie… it’s been quite a while…”

A chess piece condensed from starlight fell to Jian Chou’s fingertip, flickering in her murmuring voice, and in the moment she curved her lips in a smile, she gently pressed it onto the chess board.

“Changed again?”

The great demon Red Butterfly’s Red Dust Thousand Zhang Lamps had quite mysterious aspects.

Xie Buchen looked at the starlight white piece that appeared from nowhere on the chess board, couldn’t help but feel somewhat curious—how exactly did Red Butterfly Fairy manage this?

When he first started playing chess, Xie Buchen thought this game came from his own mind.

After all, that non-existent opponent on the other side, with every move, seemed to be no different from the chess played by his beloved of the past.

It was a gentle chess style, carrying a kind of natural control over the entire game, only more bloodthirsty.

Like a scholarly general on the battlefield who suddenly changed, his battle robe stained with blood, his entire visage becoming ferocious…

He was still pondering whether this chess style was truly hers, when unexpectedly, that style transformed and became cunning.

The general on the battlefield removed his armor and became a slippery wandering sorcerer.

Traps, deception, concealment…

All sorts of tricks were played by the opponent in turn.

By mid-game, the opponent’s chess style had changed several times.

From steady killing to slippery evasion, then to careful calculation, finally becoming a kind of unpredictable treachery…

That feeling was like combining the chess styles of countless famous scholars under heaven, finally fusing into the two words “treachery.”

When you thought he would be decisive and killing, he would suddenly strike like a cunning fox, taking one of your pieces; when you thought he would pester relentlessly, he would decisively abandon a city without attachment to battle; when you thought he would seize this opportunity to advance triumphantly, he would instead abandon the great territory and turn to attack corners you had previously ignored…

You take one of my pieces, I swallow one of your points.

On the chess board, there were exchanges, the war was simply deadlocked, difficult to determine victory or defeat.

A vague, indescribable feeling quickly swept through his heart, but Xie Buchen couldn’t quite grasp it.

Too fast, that feeling was too fast…

And too subtle.

So subtle that he couldn’t imagine for a moment how his “opponent” could have such a chess style.

“Pa.”

Another white piece condensed with starlight fell.

Xie Buchen’s pupils suddenly contracted.

Under the wind and rain corridor, all the misty rain seemed to pause for this move full of killing intent!

Kill!

A chess move with chilling killing intent!

Completely changing from the previous slippery treachery, like after countless feints and laying heavy veils of deception, finally revealing the bright blade!

It cut through the gloomy darkness, cut through the heavy mist and rain, and completely cut through all the previous illusions!

The entire mist-shrouded chess board suddenly shifted momentum, carrying a trembling coldness.

Even Xie Buchen, long experienced in battle situations and having seen all kinds of changes, couldn’t help but draw in a sharp breath seeing this sudden transformation.

If it were someone with weaker composure standing before this chess board, seeing this move’s change, they would probably be scared into a cold sweat.

This familiar yet strange feeling—how long had it been since he’d experienced it?

Xie Buchen suddenly began to doubt.

He had played many games with the Jian Chou of the past, but he had never used his full strength, and Jian Chou had never truly treated the chess games as life-and-death battles, so they played “leisurely chess.”

In leisurely chess, there was much casual intent.

Where did all this killing intent come from?

Was it her?

Or was it just this realm’s “killing intent” toward him?

His slender fingers gently turned once, and the surrounding mist and rain seemed to be drawn by this turn of his finger, instantly gathering toward his fingertip.

A black piece appeared quietly like this.

Faintly, water seemed to flow within the chess piece, rotating, leaving tiny ripples on the smooth surface.

Whether it was her or not, what did it matter?

In the end, killing was necessary.

Anyone standing opposite him—

Nothing more than the word “kill”!

Using killing to counter killing!

“Pa!”

Another piece full of bloody qi!

The moment Xie Buchen raised his hand to place the piece, ripples rose again across the entire chess board, like waves spreading toward all sides!

Xie Buchen’s eyebrows and eyes, like ink-painted landscapes, originally appeared leisurely and expressive, but at this moment carried an additional hint of killing intent.

Raising his hand to place pieces was both light as clouds and wind, and full of murderous aura!

“Pa.”

“Pa.”

“Pa.”

“Pa.”

…

One piece faster than the next, the sound of jade colliding was almost incessant!

The faster Xie Buchen’s speed, the faster his opponent’s follow-up speed.

When he played chess, he always used extremely fast speed to pressure his opponent. Speed easily led to mistakes—once there was any laxity, one wrong move would lose the entire game.

And he was most meticulous in his thinking.

But that opponent placing white pieces across from him was not inferior to Xie Buchen in mental meticulousness at all!

Not only was he not confused by the maze he laid, he could even easily see through all his disguises, pointing directly to the center. Each move was like a thrust sword, constantly approaching his vital points, his heart!

If there were observers at this moment, they would probably break into cold sweat with just a glance at this chess game!

Xie Buchen’s eyes overflowed with brilliant light, calculating gleams constantly flashing from his eyes, raising his hand to place pieces without hesitation.

Again came the sound of rain beating chaotically on lotus leaves.

Compared to the slow first half, the second half was simply like a violent storm, in a blink advancing from mid-game to endgame!

The black and white pieces covered most of the chess board in the void, you in me, me in you, making it difficult to tell which side held the advantage.

Three lamps, two lamps…

Pa!

Another piece fell, another lamp lit!

The bright flame almost instantly sent up a wisp of blue smoke, then was scattered by the encroaching moisture, melting into the mist and rain, disappearing.

The entire wind and rain corridor had somehow reached its end.

The mist and rain over the entire lake showed no sign of clearing, with only one azure lamp standing at the end of the mist and rain.

Xie Buchen’s gaze was calm, unmovable as a mountain.

Having played chess extensively, even when fighting to such an endgame, his emotions could hardly fluctuate much.

The more intense the chess game, the calmer his heart became.

But strangely…

As if there was some mysterious connection, Xie Buchen’s finger pressing on the chess piece suddenly trembled.

His opponent’s first move to Tianyuan had no advantage whatsoever.

But…

What if the opponent was also a living person, a “companion” trapped in these Red Dust Thousand Zhang Lamps?

The number of pieces placed equaled the azure lamps on this wind and rain corridor!

If there was still one azure lamp where he was, wouldn’t it be the same for his opponent?

And the next move was exactly the opponent’s turn!

His brow suddenly moved, as if all the mist and rain over the lake trembled with it.

Rustle…

Misty rain.

In the silence over the entire lake, Xie Buchen raised his head toward his opposite side, toward the opposite side of the chess game, and looked!

It was a pure white chess piece, condensed with the most brilliant starlight, held in an unadorned, plain hand…

Just like this, appearing from nowhere before him!

Without warning!

Like a delicate hand from beyond the heavens, reaching into the mist and rain over the entire lake, reaching into his field of vision, gently and slowly placing down that starlight chess piece.

“Pa.”

The entire chess board suddenly transformed—all the black pieces seemed to become the backdrop of the vast night sky, setting off those bright star points!

“Bang!”

Almost the moment this white piece fell, Xie Buchen without hesitation suddenly struck the entire massive chess board with his palm, while a new black piece condensed at his fingertip the moment his palm fell, falling toward the board together!

The moment the chess piece fell, the last azure lamp was also lit.

On the wind and rain corridor shrouded in mist and rain, infinite golden light suddenly radiated, piercing through the gloom.

“Crash!”

Almost simultaneously, Xie Buchen’s palm force had surged forth, directly destroying the entire chess board!

Using the rebound force from that palm, Xie Buchen’s azure robe fluttered as he instantly rose from the ground, about to plunge into that brilliant golden light…

Unfortunately, he had already lost the initiative—how could he match that cold light cutting through space!

As if tearing apart this wind and rain corridor realm itself!

The moment Jian Chou’s chess-holding hand fell, the Deer-Cutting Blade was already in her other hand. The instant Xie Buchen struck the chess board with his palm, she had already slashed out!

Blazing blade light rolled backward from one end of the corridor to the other!

Crash—

The entire corridor crumbled under this blade light!

Xie Buchen, within the corridor, had almost nowhere to escape.

In the swaying of his heart, in the spiritual energy flying wildly throughout the world, in the endless rolling ruins, he finally saw that figure again.

The figure carved into his heart, impossible to erase.

“Pff!”

The blade light arrived, almost slashing across his chest!

Yet he couldn’t move his gaze away—

On her face was the confidence of having everything under control, the flawless strategy of methodical planning!

Through countless waters and mountains, through hundreds of turns and thousands of detours…

It was her after all.

In the Red Dust Thousand Zhang Lamps, he had…

Miscalculated one step, lost to her by one move!