Chapter 1463

Then the wave of the Golden War swept across the land——

The Aohema people welcomed a king. His name was Caesar, and he liked to play chess with himself. Those she regarded as pawns—whether titan giants or golden descendants—before each war against the gods, she would often think of the childhood eccentric, as if from birth she had dwelled in a confined space.

"Playing chess with oneself—isn't that too lonely?" the princess at the time did not understand.

But today, the ruler finally understood that the rise of the Fire Pursuit Journey was like adding oil to a blazing fire; amidst the constant waving of flags and shouting, she finally had the chance to sit in contemplation.

……

Behind the king there were often officious ministers who liked to gossip, inquiring about the rise and fall of the old state.

One account says Caesar's cruel laws once sent his mentor to the tribunal; another says he showed favoritism, treating an enemy state's hostage as a royal teacher. All these are vague.

"It's fine, that was indeed the verdict I personally proclaimed." Caesar said frankly, "My teacher was an enemy state's hostage imprisoned by my father and brothers."

"Her homeland broke the treaty; according to the law she should be put to death. But she taught me chess, and on her tombstone is inscribed the title 'my teacher'—what harm is there?"

At that time the princess personally gathered the relics, yet on the ground she saw an unfinished game.

The mute smile of the eccentric seemed to echo in her ears—laughing at the fate of being destined to dwell in solitude from birth, and also laughing that her equal in chess skill was the princess of the enemy state.

"My teacher, is this the last game you left for me?"

She repeatedly simulated the progression of the unfinished game; even after ascending to the throne, in her dreams she often saw black and white intertwining, pressing and devouring each other.

And that obscure truth, during later, more difficult contests, would suddenly flash into mind——

An unfinished game is never not a lifelong obstacle for one's opponent.

——

Luo Xiaohei's War Record

"Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela put her own teacher to death as well?"

Watching Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela alone deduce under candlelight, Xiaohei drooped his ears and softly asked Luye: "Senior sister, why can't she spare her own teacher? Her power is already great, isn't it? Letting her teacher have a way to live isn't that easy?"

"Not so." Luye, hearing this, also shook his head with a calm expression, "Her teacher's death is because her homeland betrayed the treaty. According to the 'law,' he should be executed. This is not a matter of whether Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela wants to or not, but whether she can open this breach."

"But, if she just nods… who could oppose?"

"That's exactly why she must not nod." Luye said word by word, "If she lets her teacher off because he is her teacher, the fairness of the 'law' would vanish. The law is important precisely because under it everyone is equal. No one can escape its sanctions—not even those who establish or enforce it, they cannot stand above it."

"Even Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela herself, when amending the law, must pay with the life of a Demigod, she herself……"

Before his words had finished, Luye's throat felt as if something were lodged in it.

Bean-sized beads of sweat slowly slid down her cheeks……

An unfinished game.

Caesar gave his life to amend the law.

Is it not that, for Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela, the Fire Pursuit Journey she founded is also an unfinished game she left for Laigushi?

As long as she dies, Laigushi can no longer find any way to break the ultimate agreement from her; she has turned her own death into an obstacle that this lifetime's Laigushi cannot overcome.

——

Caesar's army first entered the northern domain's state, passing through city gates scorched by war.

"Another tyrant!" the angry child shouted.

A stone thrown from above struck the girl's crown. The crowd gasped and stepped back——fearing the king's wrath would befall them.

The girl reached out, not to straighten the crown on her forehead, but to help up the shrinking child.

"I have heard that the old law here decrees that assaulting a crowned person merits decapitation. But the crown I wear is not this state's, so the old law should also be abolished."

A few days later, Goldweave surprisingly noticed that askew caps and tilted crowns had become the fashion of this state, likely to spread along with Caesar's royal name.

……

The so-called heroes with golden blood flowing in their veins all possess the quality to vie for the fire seed. Could this not be the gods' scheme?

To have the heroes slaughter each other, so they can hide in the ruts of the old law, laughing coldly.

Who turned the world into a chessboard, using a clear-cut river to demarcate the boundary between gods and men?

"Sword Banner Viscount, Chanting Wind Viscount, Dragging Stone Viscount, Breaking Blade Viscount, Winter Rain Viscount…… hear my command——

The girl stood before ten thousand troops, holding her staff.

Today I insist on crossing the 'Rubycon' river, gathering the heroes' might, to launch the undertaking of slaying the gods.

Half of the fire seeds are wholly in her grasp; the concealed 'scheme' Titan could no longer hold back, letting out its words: 'Hehehe! Petite little queen, grow a bit taller! I truly fear you can't catch up to my swift legs.'

Caesar summoned the heroes for discussion; after pondering, he finally called it off. Having already anchored the shoulder spine of the 'earth' beast, and also letting that airborne bandit fortuitously live a few more days.

The Breaking Blade warrior laughed loudly——

"Our king excels at open stratagems; dealing with the 'scheme' is indeed difficult. But why is there not a single fish in sight?"

Caesar laughed, saying, "She probably doesn't like the taste of cat, and has sneaked into the bath alone."

……

The years spent shoulder‑to‑shoulder with the viscounts seemed not so long ago. Only after the heroes' battles ended did they notice that Caesar's figure gradually drifted away from the crowd.

"The king's way is a solitary crusade; someday we will only be able to see her back." The swordsman of Zoulang also felt heavy-hearted.

After the drunken revelry ended and everyone left their seats, the two, through each other's eyes, perceived a vortex deeper than their own fates, and remained silent for a long time.

"Come, share a drink with me, beloved minister." Finally Caesar broke the silence, "Compared to the taste of blood and salt, I occasionally also yearn for your honey brew……

——

Absolute Zone Zero

"Yearning for your honey brew…… Is the mermaid's honey brew really that delicious? Could it be any different from the honey brew at the banquet? Doesn't drinking too much of it just make one drunk?"

In the tea‑house immortal, Ju Fu Fu bit into her pork bun while speaking indistinctly.

Yi Xuan sat opposite her; hearing this, he also paused slightly while holding his teacup, and sighed helplessly: "Fu Fu, next time go sit with the new initiates of Guanli and share a meal."

Fu Fu froze completely: "Huh? Why, Master?!" She hurriedly turned, seeking help, glancing toward Ye Shunguang beside her: "Junior sister, could that 'honey brew' be a metaphor?"

Ye Shunguangye had a troubled expression: "This… how should I explain? Honey brew is still honey brew, naturally not something else. Just whether this cup of honey brew has been mixed with other feelings is hard to say. After all, the relationship between these two…… has long ceased to be an ordinary ruler‑subject bond."

... After all, no subject would wish for the king to leave his heart, nor would any king, on his deathbed, pay much attention to where his subjects go. Xiao Guang thought to himself.

"However, Master, why do those people all say that Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela is a 'tyrant'? In my view, she isn't particularly tyrannical." Seeing Master and Junior Sister both wearing a secretive expression, Ju Fu Fu simply changed the subject.

"Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output Thus we output keludela was never a killer to begin with; as for whether she is a 'tyrant', a 'wise ruler', or a 'muddled ruler'… these are all later people's sayings. Under the new law established by Caesar, some benefited, some were deprived of everything, so the Caesar they speak of varies, yet each is part of her."

——

"Regarding the impending destruction and the eternal ongoing calculation. The Antikythera people will recount everything in detail."

""Originally, this is the old world I want to rebel against.""

"In the maiden's countenance there was not a trace of sorrow; on the contrary, she was more solemn and lofty than ever."

"Who said that kings on a chessboard cannot see each other?"

"I am the king of Aohema; I have faced the gods directly, so why should I fear the 'law' hung high after the gods?"

""Break the old law into pieces, to serve as kindling for the new law.""

"Without counting the cost."

"This is Caesar's lifelong creed, from beginning to end, never changed."