CHAPTER 54: I INVITE YOU TO BE AN OBSERVER OF THE CHESSBOARD

"But that boy is only eighteen, while you, Senior, were a legendary figure from hundreds of thousands of years ago. How could that possibly be?"

Blindman Lu set Little Pup down on the tea tray and casually scattered a few spirit pills for him to eat at will.

He cast a glance at Nantian Xiu, then turned back and brewed a fresh pot of tea. He reclined in his rocking chair and began sipping leisurely. "So what? Your granddaughter is also eighteen this year."

Hearing that, Nantian Xiu couldn't help but recall Lu Chen's astonishing talent. The explanation defied reason, but the more he thought about it, the more he found himself forced to accept it. "In that case, why did you show such killing intent toward me earlier? We've never even met."

"Killing intent? You simply know too many of his secrets. And with your cultivation standing at the peak of this world, I was concerned you might pose a threat to him."

Blindman Lu downed the last of the tea in his pot and continued, "But due to some recent changes, I've thought things through. I've decided to let you come with me and be part of the plan."

Just then, Little Pup's eyes flared with a brilliant violet glow. He let out a low growl at Blindman Lu.

Blindman Lu picked him up and whispered a few words into his ear. Little Pup gave a slight nod, then turned and left.

Nantian Xiu was too lost in thought to question Little Pup's departure.

Looking at Blindman Lu's expression, Nantian Xiu couldn't shake the feeling that he was being drawn into a trap. "Is this all because of Wan'er? She's been with me since childhood. She's never even met you before."

Blindman Lu replied, "Their fate, their meeting. Don't you find all these coincidences a bit too convenient?"

Nantian Xiu listened closely, and a possibility began to take shape in his mind. He stared at the cup of tea before him and muttered, "Fire poison, cold poison... could they be... twins by birth, sharing the same origin?"

He couldn't bring himself to believe such a sudden thought. "Could they have been destined for one another from the start? Could it be that—"

"Yes," Blindman Lu interrupted him, gently rocking in his chair as he spoke. "You could even say they were once a single whole."

Nantian Xiu grew increasingly alarmed and full of questions. "What do you mean, 'a single whole'? Senior, the more you speak, the more this feels like a trap."

His instinct as a cultivator told him that this conversation was revealing the truth of the world itself. This wasn't just about two people; it was the opening move in a game that spanned the entire continent. "Please, Senior, be honest with me. Will all of this affect the entire world?"

"Heh... you're sharper than I thought."

Blindman Lu formed a hand seal and summoned a chessboard in front of him. The board expanded outward, and he placed a single black piece at the very center, the Tianyuan point.[1]

Nantian Xiu stared at the board. "What's this? A lone piece placed at Tianyuan?"

To him, no sensible player would ever start a game by claiming the center outright.

"No, not one piece. Four."

Blindman Lu raised his hand and, with a swirl of spirit qi, conjured three more pieces—two white, and one black. He placed them around the central black piece, on its left, right, and bottom sides.

"The seasons are changing. Life is returning. Storms are gathering... and the heart of the world lies at Tianyuan."

Blindman Lu pointed at the two black pieces—one at Tianyuan, and one below it. "The piece at Tianyuan represents Little Lu. The one beneath it is Nantian Wan'er. Or you could also say that Wan'er is the center, and Little Lu is beneath."

Nantian Xiu got even more confused. "Then what about the two white pieces on either side?"

Blindman Lu glanced at the board. "Ah, those are unexpected variables—Jun Laoye and Nantian Yijian."

Nantian Xiu frowned. "Nantian Yijian? Jun Laoye? That name..."

The surname 'Nantian' was unique to their family line.

Blindman Lu looked back at him. "What? You recognize the names?"

Nantian Xiu shook his head. "I know Jun Laoye. He is the second young master of the Heavenly Rite Manor, but I've never heard of Nantian Yijian."

He thought for a moment, then added, "Still, only members of the Nantian Sect bear the surname Nantian. That's why I was surprised. He must be a recently emerged junior from the clan."

"He's the reason I came to you. He's the unforeseen variable in my plan. His sudden appearance completely overturned everything I had laid out in the Nantian Region."

Blindman Lu continued, "I used the Emperor Art to calculate the threads of fate. His karma is deeply entwined with Little Lu's. The rise and fall of your Nantian Sect is tied to him as well."

Nantian Xiu grew even more puzzled. "Emperor Art? Calculate? Rise and fall? That's impossible. There's no way the Nantian Sect would fall in this lifetime."

He had divined the future of the Nantian bloodline before, and the results had never hinted at anything like this. In his readings, the Nantian Sect was destined to produce a king in this era, one who would lead them to even greater heights.

Blindman Lu gave a mysterious smile. "Heh. But what if it's not fate... but manmade?"

"Manmade?"

"Hehehe. After all these thousands of years, do you actually believe the name 'Nantian' still deserves its ancient title—'South of the Colorful Clouds, a King by Birthright'?"[2]

That single line struck Nantian Xiu like a thunderclap.

The title "South of the Colorful Clouds, a King by Birthright" was bestowed by their very first ancestor. It was the origin of the name "Nantian." But for tens of thousands of years now, no one had ever lived up to it again.

Nantian Xiu forced himself to stay calm and lowered his head slightly. Deep down, he knew Blindman Lu wouldn't seek him out for no reason. "Senior, why would you say such a thing?"

"Senior?" Receiving no response, Nantian Xiu looked up and turned toward Blindman Lu. "Senior, surely there's a reason behind all this. Please, just speak plainly."

Blindman Lu waved his hand lightly. The chessboard before them dissolved with the wind.

He settled back into his rocking chair and continued swaying gently. "I've already told you. I want you to watch this grand game of the world unfold with me."

A gentle breeze blew through. A slender twig floated down from a treetop, landing on Blindman Lu's chest. "Everything in the Jianghai Region has already been set in motion."

Blindman Lu looked down at the branch, then casually tossed it to Nantian Xiu. "But Little Lu is growing too quickly. Just like a sapling needs pressure to grow straight, he needs stronger pressure to shape his path."

"We need you to return to the Nantian Region and use your influence to lay out a much bigger game. I don't think you'd want your little granddaughter following Lu Chen around, running for her life once the Dark Rebellion arrives."

As Nantian Xiu caught the twig, a faint trace of worry surfaced on Blindman Lu's face. That expression of concern looked strikingly similar to that of the mysterious face Lu Chen had once seen. "There's not much time left, for Little Lu, for me, or this continent."

Nantian Xiu listened in silence. He didn't have any knowledge about the things Blindman Lu spoke of, but his instincts as a cultivator told him this wasn't something he could ignore. It would decide his fate, the future of the Nantian Sect, and perhaps the destiny of the entire continent.

A whirlwind of thoughts surged through his mind. The youthful blood in his veins stirred, and he had the impulse to agree to Blindman Lu right away.

However, with the hundreds of thousands of years of the Nantian Sect's legacy on the line, as well as the reputation they had earned across the continent, he couldn't take that risk lightly.

Nantian Xiu couldn't help being conflicted between that newfound impulsiveness and the wisdom gained through over a thousand years of experience.

***

Ten minutes later.

He finally made his decision. In the end, reason prevailed over passion.

"Senior, I'd like more time to think it over before deciding whether to join your side. The path of cultivation isn't one to tread carelessly. But as for the arrangements you mentioned... I'll have someone handle them after we leave the secret realm."

"Heh, no rush. There's still time. But for now, we need to head to the heart of the Fire Region. Their trial is about to begin."

Without waiting for a reply, Blindman Lu took Nantian Xiu by the arm. With a single step, they broke through space and arrived at the Fire Region's core.

Nantian Xiu glanced behind him at the slowly merging rift in space. A strange sensation stirred in his meridians. His understanding of the laws deepened. "Senior, was that the Law of Space?"

He quickly circulated his spirit qi, trying to etch that feeling into his mind. This was exactly what he needed. The only way an Earth Core Realm cultivator could advance to the Human Core Realm was by sensing a law.

Blindman Lu chuckled. "It's just a small trick. In the Outside, it wouldn't even qualify as the Law of Space."

Nantian Xiu froze at his words.

The way Blindman Lu had just crossed through space was already the pinnacle of the Law of Space within the continent. Yet he still claimed that, in the Outside, such a technique wasn't even worth mentioning.

At this, Nantian Xiu's blood began to stir again. "Senior..."

Blindman Lu stood atop the mountain, gazing toward the center of the Fire Region. "What is it?"

Since meeting Blindman Lu, Nantian Xiu had felt something shift inside him. His long-dormant youthful ambition had started to flow once more. "Are cultivators in the Outside truly that powerful?"

"The Outside... everything there is on another level."

Hearing Nantian Xiu's question, Blindman Lu seemed to recall something and slowly said, "The first time we went out there, we were like children facing giants."

Nantian Xiu felt his blood heating up, as if a fire had been lit inside of him.

He had always taken steady, cautious steps on his path of cultivation. Just preparing for his breakthrough into the Core Breakthrough Realm had taken him nearly a thousand years.

In the eyes of his peers, he was a rare genius. But upon reaching this realm, he learnt the harsh truth that true prodigies could achieve the same in less than a century.

His thoughts drifted to the records of the Eastern Pole Continent.

More than ten thousand years ago, the Abyssal Demonic Spirit had invaded the Eastern Pole Continent, devouring the world's spirit qi.

The Seven Children defied fate and severed the demonic path. They sealed the passage to the Outside in the Northern Region and left behind the Heavenly Spirit-Gathering Disk cultivation method.

Even so, cultivation had been in sharp decline ever since. Countless legacies had been lost. In recent years, it was rare to even hear of someone sensing a law, let alone attaining the Dao and stepping into the Outside.

Human cultivators were able to absorb less and less spirit qi. That was why sayings like "ten years to absorb qi, a hundred years to regulate it" had become widespread.

In such an environment, Nantian Xiu had never once felt he was progressing slowly. He had always believed his cultivation speed was rather good.

Until now.

1. In the game of Go (A strategic board game that originated in ancient China over 2,500 years ago, played by two players who place black and white stones on a grid (usually 19x19), aiming to control more territory than the opponent.), Tianyuan (天元) is the center point of the board. It is the 10th row and 10th column on a standard grid. It's the most central intersection and often holds symbolic significance. ☜

2. Nantian translates literally to "Southern Sky." The name evokes a sense of grandeur, nobility, and celestial origin—often associated with divine favor or heavenly authority. As such, the title "South of the Colorful Clouds, a King by Birthright" perfectly aligns with the identity of the Nantian Clan. ☜