Chapter 171: Chapter 155: The Chessboard in the Garbage Dump_1

“Qian Ning has come to pay respects to Senior Li!”

The voice of Mu Qianning came through.

In the small courtyard, Li Fan also revealed a slight smile, saying,

“Come in.”

Outside, Mu Qianning, Fire Spirit, and others immediately pushed the door open and entered.

The moment they stepped into the courtyard,

Jiang Li’s whole body jolted violently, as if he had seen something inconceivable.

“This aura, this supreme path of chess… intermingles with the Myriad Dao, harmonizing with heaven and earth…”

He was shaking, through and through.

If the perfect and flawless path of chess was what he had felt in the small mountain village,

then the aura here, that ultimate essence and laws of chess… clearly made him feel that everything here surpassed “perfection”!

It was so vast that it couldn’t be gazed upon.

It was so ethereal that it couldn’t be touched.

It was so profound that it couldn’t be peered into!

He felt as if he were a drop of water in the presence of a vast ocean.

The only thing he could do… was to worship!

“Paying respects to Senior Li.”

Fire Spirit and Mu Qianning then stepped forward, bowing deeply to Li Fan.

Li Fan said with a smile,

“No need for such formalities, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you all. By

the way, who might they be?”

His gaze then fell upon Jiang Li and Wu Dade.

Feeling Li Fan’s gaze, Wu Dade immediately felt a bit nervous and looked towards Jiang Li.

However, at this moment, Jiang Li only glanced once at Li Fan.

Then suddenly, he “thump” knelt down on the ground and said,

“Junior Jiang Li, pays respects to the master!”

“Having seen the master’s supreme path of chess today… Jiang Li is satisfied with this life!”

He prostrated himself, his words brimming with respect!

Upon seeing Li Fan, he understood.

All the nuances of chess, all the laws…

They all originated from the “Senior Li” before him!

He deeply realized that the other party’s path of chess had reached an ethereal realm; he might appear young, but he must be a Chess Grandmaster overlooking the rise and fall of the Myriad Realms, an observer of the birth and death of the universe!

Before such a predecessor, one must show the utmost courtesy!

Seeing this, Zi Ling was also taken aback.

What was going on?

Was he here to seek apprenticeship?

He looked at Fire Spirit and Mu Qianning.

“Reporting to Senior, these two… come from the Diming Realm!”

Fire Spirit spoke up, saying,

“Just today, a rebirthed individual came to the Diming Realm, unparalleled in the path of chess, challenging the chess players of the Myriad Realms!”

“He speaks arrogantly, pressing us and saying that if nobody from the Heavenly Realm can beat him, from then on we must become his vassals…”

Upon hearing this, Li Fan was immediately startled.

What? A rebirthed individual?

The concept of rebirth was something Li Fan had only seen in novels!

And a rebirthed individual… they’re generally the protagonist’s character!

Could it be that he had actually encountered the protagonist of this world???

Li Fan immediately felt envious.

Damn it, look at him, reborn twice, reaching the pinnacle of glory, whereas I…

am just so pitiful, struggling at the edge of heaven!

“And these two, named Jiang Li and Wu Dade, Jiang Li is the former Saint Heir

of the Chess Immortal Sect…”

Fire Spirit continued, recounting how Jiang Li had played his games, how he had been badly beaten, and finally, his defection from the Chess Immortal Sect among other things.

But, she didn’t mention a single word about cultivation, because she understood that Senior Li, having retired to live among mortals, had long grown weary of the affairs of the Cultivation World!

After listening, Li Fan was also a bit surprised.

That rebirthed individual was so ruthless?

Jiang Li only allowed the chess players of the Heavenly Realm to make a few moves, and he was beaten up, even to the point of being killed??

Even if they’re the protagonist, isn’t that a bit too much?

“Now, Xiao Yan, Little Chess Saint, and all the high-ranking chess experts we could find have been defeated…”

Fire Spirit sighed and said,

“So, I had no choice but to come visit Senior!”

After speaking, they all looked at Li Fan nervously.

Li Fan also instantly understood.

It must have been from the last time Lu Rang was in the outside world that he had given Lu Rang some advice on playing chess, which is how Mu Qianning and the others knew he understood the game.

They were here to ask for his help!

But this time, it might involve the affairs of cultivators.

After all, their rival was a reborn individual.

Li Fan had always been reluctant to get involved with the affairs of cultivators. Because he knew that in the eyes of cultivators, mortals were nothing but ants, easily killed with the flick of a finger!

If he were not careful and caught the attention of a cultivator, wouldn’t that spell disaster?

It was better to lay low in the village, enjoying his humble existence!

But he still had to help Fire Spirit and the others with their request.

After thinking it over, he turned his gaze to Jiang Li, who was kneeling on the ground.

“Since you understand chess, stand up and discuss the game with me, how about it?”

Li Fan spoke.

—”Discuss” is an elegant term for playing chess.

He wanted to see Jiang Li’s skill at chess; if possible, he might provide some tips, teach him one or two decisive strategies so he could go back and defeat Chen Xuanbei…that should be enough.

It would save him from having to step in himself and being resented by a cultivator!

Hearing these words, Jiang Li, kneeling on the ground, was momentarily stunned.

He looked at Li Fan incredulously and was at a loss for words.

He himself…had the chance to “discuss” chess with such an extraordinary being?

What kind of incredible opportunity was this?

He simply couldn’t imagine it!

“Young Master Jiang, why don’t you stand up quickly?”

Fire Spirit also spoke with delight.

Senior Li was clearly planning to provide guidance to Jiang Li, so that Jiang Li could take his place in battling!

After all, although Chen Xuanbei was a reborn individual, compared to Senior Li, he was not much more than an ant. How could they possibly ask Senior Li to take action personally?

It was then that Jiang Li hurriedly stood up, bowed deeply to Li Fan, and said,

“How dare I perform poorly in front of the master…”

“Don’t be polite, come now,”

Li Fan said, “Zi Ling, go find my chessboard and bring Go pieces…

Because he had no opponents normally, even if Li Fan occasionally felt like playing, he could only play against himself.

And when playing against himself, he didn’t need a chessboard, as the intersections of the board were in his hands and in his mind.

So, the chessboard had been gathering dust, and Li Fan wasn’t even exactly sure where he had put it.

Zi Ling got up to look for it and, after searching for a long while, came back holding a dusty chessboard.

“Master, I found it… It was in the firewood pile!”

Her voice was tinged with complexity as she continued,

“However, Brother Lu Rang has chopped it with a kindling ax a few times, leaving two cracks in it…”

Upon hearing this, Li Fan immediately smiled, having forgotten about this incident.

Previously finding too many items cluttering up his space, he had thrown the chessboard into the firewood pile, intending to use it as firewood.

Lucky that Lu Rang hadn’t broken it to pieces, or they would have trouble finding a single chessboard now.

“No matter, as long as the lines are clear, that’s enough,

he said.

Zi Ling then placed the chessboard on the stone table and set up two boxes of chess pieces on either side.

It was a dusty chessboard, whose intersections were distinctly drawn with black and white lines!

Who knows how many years it had endured, and even after a long time in the firewood pile, it showed no signs of fading whatsoever.

This chessboard was rather peculiar; its lines had no designed boundaries at the edges!

At that moment, the dusty edges of the chessboard were clearly nicked with two knife cuts, slightly split open!

“Please, sit down—”

Li Fan spoke indifferently.

Jiang Li took a deep breath, deeply bowed to Li Fan, and then sat down opposite him.

As he settled down, his gaze fell upon the dusty chessboard.

And once again, Jiang Li froze!

He stared at the chessboard before him, his eyes filled with disbelief.

As if he had seen a ghost!