Chapter 146 The Chess Saint's Palace

Orchid's Lament Realm.

A crescent moon hung in the sky at night. In a royal mausoleum, a red light appeared, and the guards in the mausoleum all fell into a deep sleep.

A figure appeared before the tombstone of Prince Yan, Lu Qingheng—a young girl dressed in white gauze. After staring at the tombstone for a long time, she reached out, and a passage opened in the tomb. This passage led to the burial chamber below, and she transformed into a streak of azure light, flying into the chamber.

The tomb chamber contained many funerary objects, and the main chamber held a coffin made of Phoebe zhennan wood. Han Wei stood before the coffin, and with a wave of her hand, it opened. It was empty; there was nothing inside. In both her past and present lives, she hadn't looked at the coffin, not wanting Lu Qingheng to be restless even in death. But it was empty, utterly empty.

Han Wei stared at the empty coffin, silent as a stone sculpture, and then lay down inside. As she lay there, staring into the void, the image of Lu Qingheng appeared before her eyes.

She saw him standing under the pear tree, smiling.

She murmured:

"God, you are actually God, where are you?"

"Why aren't you showing up? Why aren't you reporting back to me? Why don't you come and report back to me?"

Han Wei suddenly sat up from the coffin.

————

Heavenly Court, Qingwei Palace.

Lotus blossoms bloomed along the avenue, and in the grand palace beside the lotus pond, veils fluttered in the breeze. The Heavenly Emperor, dressed in white, was playing chess with Ling'er.

Ling'er held the jade-like chess piece in her chubby little hands, deep in thought, and it took her a long time to make a move. Just as the Heavenly Emperor was about to make his move, the terrible chess player Ling'er immediately took back her piece.

"Wait, wait, I... I'll move to another spot!" Ling'er giggled, picked up her chess piece, and moved to another location.

Despite his shamelessness, he kept losing.

Ling'er was very discouraged and lay on the chessboard, saying, "Playing chess is so boring."

"That's because your chess skills are terrible," the Heavenly Emperor said bluntly.

Ling'er puffed out his cheeks, full of resentment, making his chubby little face even more adorable. Suddenly, he remembered something: "Your Majesty, it's another imperial examination. Do you still want to continue your agreement with Yi Jun?"

The Heavenly Emperor raised his head, lost in memories.

He was reincarnated as a demon 460,000 years ago, named Bai Li. At that time, he was obsessed with chess and had a close friend named Yi Jun.

Yi Jun was just as obsessed with the way of chess as he was. Together with Yi Jun, they established the Chess Saint Palace and invited chess masters from all over the world to play chess there.

His last game of chess with Yi Jun lasted for 1,500 years. In the end, Yi Jun died from exhaustion of his energy. Before he died, he told the Heavenly Emperor that he wanted someone to finish the game for him.

The Heavenly Emperor agreed.

After that, the Chess Saint Palace would be opened once every epoch, inviting chess masters from all the heavens and myriad worlds to play against each other until someone was found who could finish that game.

It has been 129,600 years since the Chess Saint Palace last opened, another era has begun.

The Heavenly Emperor nodded: "Yes, it's time to reopen the Chess Saint Palace."

As he spoke, he put down the chess piece in his hand.

————

The Azure Realm.

This is Panlong Mountain, a massive mountain range that undulates like a giant dragon coiled on the earth. At the head of this dragon's head, a peak rises tens of thousands of feet high. At the very top of this peak stands a magnificent palace. This palace is shrouded in clouds and mist, clouds so mysterious and unpredictable that even True Immortals and Earth Immortals cannot perceive the scene within with their divine sense.

The palace was deathly silent, as if there wasn't a single living creature inside.

Deep within this palace lies a coffin. It is a jade coffin, shrouded in a faint, ethereal glow. Inside the coffin lies a young man with long brown hair, dressed in a purple robe, and possessing unparalleled handsome features.

The man remained motionless, like a corpse. Yet, his noble bearing exuded a powerful and chilling aura.

Suddenly, the man opened his golden eyes.

The jade coffin opened, and the man transformed into a streak of light, flying out of it and landing on the ground. A cute little cat appeared out of nowhere and jumped to the man's feet.

The man stepped outside, one hand behind his back, his long hair blowing in the wind. He gazed at the sky, his eyes seemingly reflecting the sun, moon, and stars. Golden ripples appeared throughout the palace. When these ripples touched the statues, they came to life; when they touched the screens, the people behind them moved; when they touched the murals, all the figures in the murals came out.

Suddenly, the deathly silent palace became lively.

The cultivators near Panlong Mountain sensed an unusual aura and looked up to see the clouds covering the main peak of Panlong Mountain dissipate, revealing a magnificent palace. The palace was surrounded by a peaceful light, like a celestial palace standing in the clouds.

"Look, look!"

"It's the Chess Saint Palace, the Chess Saint Palace has appeared."

"Really?!"

Several monks shouted excitedly.

Some young cultivators looked bewildered. One male cultivator in the Integration stage asked his master, "Master, what is the Chess Saint Palace?"

The white-bearded old man beside him said:

"The Chess Saint Palace was founded by two great masters who were skilled in chess 450,000 years ago. No one knows the exact strength of those two great masters. All that is known is that they were obsessed with the way of chess and invited top chess players from all the heavens and myriad worlds to play chess at the Chess Saint Palace."

"Every time a player becomes a champion, a chess competition will be held, and anyone who achieves a ranking will receive a reward."

"What kind of reward?" asked the male cultivator in the Integration Stage.

“There are so many, they’re all great opportunities. I’ve heard even immortals participate. What great opportunities could there be? Alas, it’s a pity your master isn’t good at chess, otherwise I would have gone to join in the fun too,” the white-bearded old man laughed.

The male cultivator in the Integration Stage laughed and said, "What's there to be afraid of? Since we're just here to join in the fun, what difference does it make whether we're good at chess or not? If you're not going, Master, I will."

“My disciple, you have a good attitude. Shall we, master and disciple, join in the fun?” The white-bearded old man laughed heartily.

So the master and disciple flew towards the Chess Saint Palace.

News of the opening of the Chess Saint Palace spread quickly, and countless cultivators flocked to Panlong Mountain. Soon, the entire Qingxuan Realm knew about the opening of the Chess Saint Palace. In less than two months, top chess players from many realms, including the Void Spirit Realm, the Cloud Wilderness Realm, and the Mi Luo Realm, became excited and rushed to the Chess Saint Palace.

While the entire Panlong Mountain, and even the entire Qingxuan Realm, was bustling with activity, Han Wei was exploring an ancient ruin. This ruin was filled with rare and exotic plants, all of which were over 100,000 years old, much to her delight.

Han Wei began cultivating within these ancient ruins. After absorbing these rare and precious materials, she finally transformed from a Wood Spirit Body into a Wood King Body. With her evolution, many fruits grew on the enormous Dao Seed Divine Tree in her sea of ​​consciousness, and she suddenly possessed 365 Divine Wisdom Dao Fruits.