The shimmering gate, suspended in the vast expanse of the sky, suddenly began to flicker with an otherworldly glow, casting ethereal lights across palace. It was a sight to behold, as if the heavens themselves were opening their doors. The moment it started, everyone understood that the time had come, a pivotal moment foretold by the paragon, signaling the urgency to act.
Heeding the paragon words, everyone began to seal their cultivation, a complex process involving the channeling of their inner energy to seal their essence.
"Let’s go," Liang whispered, his voice barely louder than a breath, Without another word, he turned towards the gate.
Dong Rui hesitated for a mere moment, her eyes flickering with a mix of anticipation and uncertainty. Yet, as she watched Liang’s unwavering figure advance, a spark of courage ignited within her, With a firm nod to himself, Dong Rui followed, stepping into the unknown.
Together, they moved towards the flickering gate.
***
Azurefeather let out a laugh and headed toward the gate, with the rest of the Alliance members in tow.
The group of twenty-four experts made quick work of crossing the gate.
**
As Liang and Dong Rui stepped through the ancient gate, they were immediately enveloped by a surreal atmosphere, transporting them into an ethereal dimension unlike any they had encountered before.
Beneath their feet, the ground was an intricate mosaic of three perfectly aligned squares, each shaded in monochrome hues of gray, white, and black, resembling a cosmic chessboard woven into the very fabric of the universe.
"Fascinating," Liang murmured, his eyes sparkling with awe as they adapted to the brilliance surrounding them. "The Qi here—the vital life force of heaven and earth—is astonishingly dense. This place... it’s uniquely suited for delving deep into the mysteries of the Path."
"That’s precisely its allure," Dong Rui replied, her voice tinged with a reverent sigh. "This Chessboard of Origin is no ordinary artifact. It was discovered by the Chess Paragon himself, nestled within the treacherous depths of the Yin-Yang Abyssal Mountain Range during his youth."
"Oh?" Liang’s curiosity piqued."It been such a long time?"
Dong Rui nodded solemnly. "Indeed. The Yin-Yang Abyssal Mountain Range was a domain of legends, revered long before the era of Florie’s ascendancy. It’s a cradle of mysteries."
A mischievous smile played on Liang’s lips. "Let’s see what other mysteries we can unearth here." With a casual wave of his hand, three chess pieces materialized in the air, spinning slowly: a Black Knight, a White Pawn, and a Gray Pawn.
"What rotten luck," Liang muttered, a bitter smile touching his lips as he regarded the new pieces. In the game of chess, pawns were the least powerful, often sacrificed first.
"It seems fate enjoys its games," Dong Rui remarked, casting a sympathetic glance toward Liang.
Conversely, the pieces in front of Dong Rui were of substantially higher value: a White Queen, a Black Rook, and a Gray Bishop.
"Sometimes, it’s all a matter of perspective," Liang said after a moment, his voice steady. "Even pawns play a crucial role in the grand scheme of things. Combined with your pieces, we have a formidable array. It’s not all bad luck."
"Now what?" Dong Rui’s brow furrowed as she scanned their unfamiliar surroundings.
"We have to advance," Liang stepped forward, his movements tentative yet determined.
Boom!
An unseen force repelled him, sending him stumbling backwards, his expression one of surprise. Dong Rui’s eyes narrowed, ae she raised her foot, poised to take a step herself but then hesitated. A moment later, she withdrew her foot, a puzzled frown creasing her forehead. "Strange, we can’t move forward."
Liang shook his head, a thoughtful glint in his gaze. "I see," he murmured, finally piecing the puzzle together. With a fluid motion, he flung the Knight chess piece into the air.
Boom.
The piece vanished without a trace. In its stead, a knight clad in gleaming black armor, atop a majestic black steed, materialized. The air seemed to thrum with power around them.
Liang felt an instantaneous bond with the figure, a connection so deep it was as if their essences were intertwined. He stood in awe for a brief moment before regaining his composure.
Suddenly, with an authoritative yank on the horse’s reins, the knight commanded the steed.
Woosh!
The magnificent creature leaped, moving one square in a vertical direction and another in a horizontal, mimicking the move of a knight on a chessboard.
Heart pounding, Liang stepped forward once again.
This time, his foot landed safely on the ground. He let out a sigh of relief, The path ahead seemed clearer now.
"I see," Dong Rui murmured, her eyes sparkling with a sudden realization. "We must initiate the game by moving our pieces first."
She was poised to cast her piece onto the board when Liang interjected, "First, attempt to tread in the squares I traversed—those that were under the Knight’s path."
Upon hearing this, Dong Rui’s gaze wavered momentarily with uncertainty. Yet, she took a tentative step forward.
"Nothing happened!" she exclaimed in relief. With careful movements, she navigated through the newly accessible squares until she stood by Liang’s side.
"It appears the squares respond to both of us indiscriminately," Dong Rui observed with a bright smile.
"Excellent, this will speed our progress considerably," Liang chuckled in agreement. "Given the limitations of my pieces, I doubt we’d have made much headway on my own."
The Knight, bound by the rules of their mystical chessboard, could leap across three squares in a single bound, unlike pawns which, aside from their initial move, can only advance one square at a time.
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Mirroring the Knight’s previous actions, Liang directed it to jump another three squares, with Dong Rui closely following.
"Perhaps it’s time to test my pieces," Dong Rui suggested, a hint of dissatisfaction coloring her words.
"I wouldn’t mind," Liang replied with a light chuckle. "But first, let’s explore the extent of our current piece’s abilities."
Once more, Liang maneuvered the Knight. True to form, it leapt in an ’L’ pattern, covering three squares. "Thus far, the Knight has consistently jumped thrice in succession," he observed thoughtfully.
"Now, for the fourth attempt," he announced, yet despite his intentions, the Knight remained stationary.
"Why isn’t it leaping again?" Dong Rui’s brow furrowed in slight frustration.
Liang could only shake his head. "It seems incapable."
"Really?" Dong Rui’s eyes widened in surprise. "So our movements are restricted to three consecutive jumps."
Liang nodded solemnly. "Probably a limitation unique to pieces of grade one."
"Then it’s time for my pieces to illuminate the game," Dong Rui declared, a cunning smirk painting her features as she elegantly flicked her stone onto the board.
Instantly, a small but intricately designed tower materialized, its stones shimmering with an ethereal glow. With a mere thought from Dong Rui, the tower vanished, only to reappear twenty squares away, as if carried by an unseen force, its vertical journey defying the logic of the board.
Dong Rui’s smile widened as she expertly manipulated the tower once more. With a graceful gesture, it obeyed her silent command, vanishing and reappearing another twenty squares distant.
"Again," Liang urged.
Nodding in agreement, Dong Rui focused, and the castle complied, moving yet another twenty squares It’s foundation seemed to merge with the board, seamlessly integrating into its new position.
"Again," Liang repeated.
"I can’t," Dong Rui shook her head.
"So three times are the limit," Liang observed, his eyes flickering thoughtfully. "But for how long?"
"We would have to wait and see then," Dong Rui replied.
"I don’t think we have the luxury of time," Liang said solemnly, turning his gaze towards the horizon where two figures began to materialize out of the fading light.
"How well do you know them?" Dong Rui asked, her eyes narrowing slightly. Although she had seen them at the gathering, her knowledge about the two Alliance members was sketchy at best.
"Windchaser and Greenthumb," Liang eyes flickerd coldly as he pronounced their names.
***
"Do you see them, brother?" Windchaser inquired nonshelently.
"I can. They are the Dong Clan’s saintess and the mysterious guy."
"Good, this should be an easy task," Greenthumb let out an elated chuckle.
Suddenly, between both parties, the ground began to shift and move as if alive. Behind them, the tiles on the ground started to disappear one by one, leaving behind nothing but a gaping dark void that seemed to swallow the light.
"Greenthumb, look!" Windchaser exclaimed, pointing upwards with a mixture of surprise and alarm
Above them, the very fabric of the sky began to contort and undulate, as if reality itself was being reshaped. Suddenly, two gates materialized out of the tumult - one enshrouded in darkness, the other gleaming with purity. In that moment, a message was silently conveyed to every mind present, clear and resonant: "The victor shall earn the right to choose their gate of entry first!"
Without warning, a piece glided effortlessly through the air, hovering above Dong Rui and Greenthump. In front of Dong Rui, a white queen materialized, her figure emanating an aura of authority and grace, the intricate details of her gown and crown shimmering in the light. Conversely, before Greenthump appeared a black king.