Chapter 138

Li Mubai squinted at the piece and the shifts in the deadly energy it stirred, slowly drew another puff from his pipe, then calmly flicked his own dark red piece forward.

His move did not target Bai Ze’s piece, but landed in a seemingly insignificant corner at the edge of the arena.

“Snap!”

Another soft click.

Where the piece landed, the nearby deadly energy slightly calmed, yet the overall pressure of the board did not lessen—in fact, with both pieces now placed, the pressure became more tangible, and an invisible, massive chessboard woven from deadly energy slowly took shape above the arena!

The game had officially begun!

Neither side spoke again, fully absorbed in the invisible board.

Bai Ze moved with lightning speed, each step radiating unwavering confidence; his pieces consistently landed at key nodes or turning points where deadly energy converged, guiding these wild, dragon-like streams of deadly energy to weave an ever-tightening net of slaughter and temptation.

With every move, the deadly energy on the board grew denser, dark red light flickering, faint cries of ghosts and wails of spirits echoing, striking at Li Mubai’s spirit.

Li Mubai, by contrast, appeared calm and even lazy.

Before each move, he took two slow puffs from his pipe, squinting for a long while—as if this were not a life-or-death duel, but a casual pastime in his own backyard.

His moves often came unexpectedly, landing in areas where deadly energy was thin, appearing utterly useless.

Then, at times, he placed a piece right at the heart of the raging deadly energy, barely avoiding disaster as he severed Bai Ze’s formation.

His pieces, unlike Bai Ze’s grand, overwhelming force, were like precise nails driven into the gaps of the deadly energy’s flow—always, without warning, dissolving Bai Ze’s seemingly unstoppable attacks and subtly redistributing the accumulating pressure.

On the board, dark red light flickered constantly: sometimes Bai Ze’s side surged, deadly energy rising like a tide, coalescing into grotesque phantom beasts that lunged at Li Mubai.

Then, moments later, Li Mubai’s scattered pieces stabilized his position, breaking apart and dispersing the deadly energy.

This was a battle without smoke or steel—more perilous than any clash of swords!

Their moves grew faster, the board more complex; on the invisible deadly energy chessboard, it seemed as if countless armies clashed and endless schemes brewed.

Beads of sweat formed on Li Mubai’s forehead; beneath his casual expression lay intense focus and rapidly draining mental energy.

Playing against Bai Ze, who understood all things, demanded exhaustive calculation and foresight—his consumption far exceeded ordinary imagination. His fingers, gripping the pipe, turned white with strain.

Bai Ze was no longer as composed as at first; the warmth in its eyes flickered uncertainly—Li Mubai’s play had given it immense trouble.

It tried to pierce Li Mubai’s strategy with its prophetic wisdom, yet found his moves as erratic as a celestial horse, leaving no trace, yet secretly aligned with some fundamental truth of heaven and earth.

“Master Mubai, your chess skill is supreme. Bai Ze is in awe.”

Bai Ze suddenly spoke, then placed a piece—right on a seemingly solid defensive node Li Mubai had built several moves prior.

“Snap!”

The moment the piece landed, the Fengyun changed!

The deadly energy around that node erupted instantly, like a dam breaking—a furious crimson flood surged along the board’s pathways, racing straight for Li Mubai’s spirit!

Simultaneously, the deadly energy previously dispersed and neutralized by Li Mubai now seemed linked by this single move, forming a vast, all-encompassing net of annihilation!

“Worse! Elder Li’s formation has been seen through!” cried someone from the human side, an expert in chess.

The overwhelming deadly energy solidified into countless snarling vengeful spirits, shattered weapons, blood-soaked landscapes—all the negative emotions and will to destroy from the battlefield, crashing into Li Mubai’s mind!

Li Mubai’s body jerked violently, his face turning as pale as paper; he barely swallowed back the blood threatening to burst from his lips.

The calm aura around him surged wildly, like a candle flickering in the wind.

“Old Li!” Zhao Tianji couldn’t help stepping forward, his eyes filled with worry.

Jiang Xia’s heart tightened; his Sharingan locked onto Li Mubai—he could see the invisible deadly energy, like parasitic worms, Fengkuang eroding Li Mubai’s soul.

Yet, in this moment of apparent doom, Li Mubai’s cloudy old eyes suddenly blazed with a wisdom that saw through all things!

“Brilliant move—starfire spreading across the land! Brother Bai Ze, truly formidable!” he rasped with a laugh, not panicked, but as if he’d found a rare kindred spirit.

He raised his pipe—not to smoke, but as if it were a judge’s brush—and with smoke as ink and his remaining spiritual power mixed with his own blood as pigment, he swiftly traced lines in the air before him!

He did not draw chess lines, but intricate, profound runes!

“All beings suffer; deadly energy is born of the mind. The myriad illusions of the mortal world are all false! Disperse!”

As he uttered his final whisper, the blood-red runes flew into the chessboard—not to directly oppose the raging deadly energy, but like spring rain, merging into it.

A wondrous sight occurred!

The surging flood of deadly energy, upon touching these runes, had its inner fury, hatred, and slaughter—gradually calmed and purified by a gentle yet unyielding force.

Though the total amount of deadly energy did not decrease, it changed: from a force of destruction, it slowly transformed into one no longer actively aggressive.

Bai Ze’s move, meant to deliver a fatal strike, had been undone by Li Mubai in a way no one could have imagined!

Not shattered—purified.

“What… what technique is this?!”

For the first time, Bai Ze showed shock—its prophetic wisdom could not fully comprehend the method Li Mubai had just used. “This isn’t chess! This is… the Path of Liberation? Itachi’ve touched this level?!”

Li Mubai panted, leaning on his pipe, chuckling: “Live too long, see too much—Itachi’ve got to find something different.”

“Brother Bai Ze, thank Itachi for the game. Your starfire spreading is brilliant—but Itachi forgot: the origin of deadly energy is the thoughts of all beings. Obsession can turn into deadly energy… and it can also be freed.”

As he spoke, the purified deadly energy on the board no longer obeyed Bai Ze—it subtly connected to Li Mubai instead.

Li Mubai drew a deep breath, seizing the moment when Bai Ze’s spirit was shaken and its control over the board momentarily slackened, and gently placed a single piece—long Ningju in his palm, forged from the purest deadly energy—onto a point on the board that seemed trivial, yet actually linked the entire game.

This move was the finishing touch—the eye of the dragon!

“Snap!”

A crisp, clear sound echoed.

The entire massive, invisible chessboard of deadly energy trembled violently!

All scattered, guided, and purified deadly energy, now linked by this single move, found its home—no longer wild, no longer chaotic. The figures of every fallen warrior appeared for an instant—human, beast—faces flickering, then dissolving into a single, long sigh, as if finally at peace.