Chapter 1726: Chapter 70: The Red King and the Blue King
"...Which side are you on, after all?" Su Ming’an glanced sideways.
"Well, objective evaluation, objective evaluation." Xiao Love said.
Su Ming’an could still see the Source Point, yet all of them seemed to be stepping on a layer of semi-transparent colorful cloth, which separated them from reality, placing them upon a virtual black-and-white chessboard.
He suddenly noticed the upper right corner’s barrage was extremely chaotic, unlike usual, and he instinctively took a glance—
...
[Live Broadcast Room·Line 2938192]
[Does anyone feel this scene is familiar—this moment when Su Ming’an is pulled from the Source Point to a new game.]
[Yes... It feels a bit...]
[Like entering virtuality from reality.]
[I figured it out! Isn’t this what Yamada Machiichi is doing on that side? I’m a player who returned from the frontline, I’ve seen it! Yamada Machiichi and they pulled up a cloth to obscure the High Dimensions. Now these people of Su Ming’an are also separated from the Source Point by a colorful cloth!]
[Is the enemy using the same weapon as us?]
[Don’t tell me the Lord of Dreams is Su Ming’an.]
[The Lord of Dreams is also known as "Lord of Games," why couldn’t it be an acquaintance like Starfire’s friend or something.]
[Stop, stop, quickly stop.]
[ORZ...]
[As for the curtain... either tear it from the inside or tear it from the outside...]
[Why does our Number One Player have to go against Him? Why not bring us home sooner.]
[Here we go again, no quarreling allowed! Su Ming’an must have his own ideas!]
[Blind trust, you’ll know regret when you’re abandoned by the Dimensional Ascended Su Ming’an.]
[Has the barrage reverted to its genuine self? Wasn’t the agreement to trust the Number One Player, who started this "betrayal talk" again?]
[Speechless.]
[We had many opportunities to go home, but Su Ming’an walked forward single-mindedly. If not blame him, then who.]
[Without him, we wouldn’t have had so many chances! We’d have been wiped out before the Luowasha instance!]
[Help! Stop arguing! You’re just like those deceased who voted [support] and [against], game like life truly doesn’t deceive me.]
[I’m Su Ming’an’s son, you are not allowed to insult my dad!!! (angry) (angry) (angry)]
[How is there still Junior Wa.]
[Maybe today is the last day of life, calling dad will be too late.]
...
Su Ming’an withdrew his gaze.
"The curtain...either tear it from the inside or tear it from the outside..."
He squatted down, caressing the colorful curtain beneath his feet. Being within the Source Point, no matter how powerful the Lord of Dreams, couldn’t forcibly impose a game, but as long as He pulled them into a Void He controlled, a new game could unfold according to His rules.
"There are ways to break the situation. First, let the Source Point realize there’s High Dimensional interference, but we’re all within the curtain, can’t return." Su Ming’an touched the soft curtain, pondering, "Second, break the curtain with absolutely overwhelming force, which requires me to use the reward just obtained, transplanting cosmic organs, but I haven’t breached First Level God, there’s considerable risk. Third, we proceed step by step to finish this game... No, I can’t play His game, this would mean handing over initiative to Him."
His gaze tilted slightly.
"Fourth, utilize a third party or even a fourth party..."
"Whirr—!"
Suddenly, a burst of light illuminated.
Su Ming’an’s attire suddenly seemed unreal, then turned into a robe with bright red as the base, inlaid with golden patterns, and a scepter with a bright gold crown appeared in his hand.
—Red King.
And directly opposite him, on the distant end of the chessboard, clad in deep blue king garb, wearing a water-blue crown, was Lu.
—Blue King.
...
[Factions randomly assigned as follows:]
[Red Faction:]
[Queen: Evelyn]
[Knight: Xiao Xiao]
[Pawn: Si Nian]
[Rook: Agnes]
[Bishop: Joy]
[...]
[Blue Faction:]
[Queen: Violet]
[Knight: Rimu Sheng]
[Pawn: Yang Changxu]
[Rook: Leslie]
[Bishop: Anqi]
...
The game was about to begin, but no one wished to play it.
"Boom—!" Violet immediately blasted the edge of the chessboard, yet no reaction occurred.
"Ugh!" Si Nian, who attempted to rush out of the chess grid, shuddered violently, as if hitting a soft curtain, instantly bounced back.
"Damn it, can’t get out..." Rimu Sheng murmured.
Everyone’s gaze focused on the two "Kings"—Su Ming’an and Lu. By basic chess rules, once the King is "checkmated," the game ends. If they truly could only play this game...
Suddenly, Xiao Xiao sighed, scratching her head full of messy hair: "Thankfully Zhenzhen isn’t here. Su Ming’an, I can’t decide for others, but if we really can’t get out... only one person can live, that person must be you. I’ll do my best to help you."
He lacked the spirit of self-sacrifice, but had no choice, might as well be flamboyant one last time.
"Me too..." Yang Changxu said.
Si Nian clenched his fist, visibly unwilling. He had just exchanged for the "Resurrection Right" and had not yet revived Chun Tang.
"——It’s too early to say such things," Su Ming’an said calmly.
The blazing flames, much like the most intense dawn glow, as the young king stepped forward, firmly gripping his scepter, gazing up at the boundless starry sky above. He stood amidst the black and white squares of the chessboard world, like a scorching drop of blood, instantly becoming the focus point.
"Lü God, take action."
The others, along with billions of people in the live broadcast room, were shocked and immediately looked over—who is Lü God? When did he get here?
"Swish!"
From under the curtain, a pure white wolf leaped out—it was the same white wolf, Shen Lv, that had read the rules when the ten-round game first began.
Su Ming’an recognized it immediately as Lü God; such a simple trick of reversing names to fool people was outdated. After being deceived twice by "Captain Mu—Lü Shu" and "Asasto—Yasa Akto," Su Ming’an became extremely sensitive to names.
The white wolf had just appeared and hadn’t said anything when the Blue King suddenly moved.
"Swish!"
His ocean-like blue hair swayed, and before the "World Chessboard" officially began, the blue-haired man, holding a scepter, appeared before Su Ming’an in the next moment.
Lu’s sudden advance was too unexpected, not giving any notice, stepping within one step of Su Ming’an.
Su Ming’an’s pupils contracted. Whatever Lu intended, his internal vigilance triggered instantly, releasing the divine power he had suppressed for so long.
His divine power had always been usable, only held back to avoid being targeted by the Source Point. Now was the perfect time!
"Boom——!!!"
In an instant, a magnificent white daffodil exploded on the black and white chessboard.
As his long hair swayed, a halo of stars circled his forehead, rainbow-hued white tendrils unraveling thunderously from his spine, unfolding layer by layer. From afar, they resembled grand and mysterious Angel’s Wings formed by countless tendrils of light, evoking a vast and grand feeling.
Compared to before, it seemed that something transcended in Su Ming’an, post Source Point Trial, though he had yet to notice it.
The scepter in his hand transformed into a gleaming white longsword, raised instantly.
The erupting divine power momentarily broke through the constraints of game rules, tearing asunder the scarlet king’s robe on his body.
He was merely habitually on alert, instinctively guarding against the sudden proximity, not truly believing Lu would act. However, the next moment, his pupils suddenly tightened.
"Clang——!"
The man dressed in a blue king’s robe, his back suddenly sprouting three pairs of matching sea-blue bat wings, wielded a trident of crystal-like clarity from who knows when, stabbing upward!
Divine power erupted suddenly!
Like a sun instantaneously exploding, the aftermath swept out. Yang Changxu and others shielded their faces, struggling to breathe. Rimu Sheng took a deep breath of the cold air; he had just exchanged his authority, touching the verge of becoming a god, yet before true deities, his "purchased" status was insignificant.
"——!" Why did these two suddenly start fighting!? Even Violet’s intelligence couldn’t comprehend it.
"So they always had their original power?" Leslie realized.
"You already used your exchange reward?" As soon as Su Ming’an engaged, he immediately sensed something off about Lu’s strength, clearly spiking to a Second-level God pinnacle.
Lu said nothing, launching another attack.
Simultaneously, it seemed Su Ming’an saw something that made his hand pause briefly. Yet he quickly raised his sword, divine power surging like a tidal wave.
The white wings spread out, his presence like a Judgment Angel descending to the Mortal World, with tendrils lifted high, extending to the distant Star Sea. With divine power enhancing it, the top-tier Charm and Missionary Halo and other passives fully exploded, devoid of any seduction, making one feel as if gazing at vast, boundless rivers, a surge of awe filling the chest.
He didn’t question "why," nor did he wait for explanation, as though he was always prepared for betrayal, skilled enough to surprise anyone.
"Clang——!"
Lu retreated several steps, the black and white chessboard unmoved, surviving such a massive impact intact, where outside would have been landslides and sea splits.
Su Ming’an crouched low, gripping a sword in one hand, with the other forming a claw, a terrifying aura emanating from the explosive purple-black flames, the power of "Devour" spreading, reaching towards Lu’s chest.
At the same time, he paused again, as if he sensed something anew.
...
[All participants have arrived, the "World Chessboard" is about to begin, participants please return to your positions.]
...
"Swish!"
A wall of water rose abruptly, with azure light frantically gathering, layer by layer, and a semi-transparent ocean shield constructed instantly.
"Sizzle——!"
As a red-hot iron cutting into cold oil, a sharp corrosive sound erupted. Su Ming’an’s Devouring Claw tore through layer after layer of the water curtain effortlessly, landing viciously on Lu’s right arm, guarding his chest!
A suppressed groan of pain forced its way out of Lu’s throat.
The moment the purple-black flames touched, the flesh on Lu’s right arm instantly dissolved, and worse, the flames didn’t halt, like ravenous worms, greedily corroding along the bone upwards, making a terrifying "sizzle" noise, like a famished beast.
Agony and a sense of weakness from divine power being drained assaulted Lu simultaneously, his face instantly twisting, veins bulging at his temples.
Only by facing Su Ming’an directly can one sense his overwhelming strength.
With the "Devour" authority unleashed, it seemed as if a Pandora’s Box had been opened, the tangible purple-black aura pouring out wildly, with even the black and white chessboard emitting a corrosive "sizzle." No one dared to confront it directly; even deities needed to avoid its sharpness. Violet and the others couldn’t even speak, minds blank.
Compared to the much gentler "Faith," "Devour" was a pure destructive force, all its power channeled into extreme sharpness and extreme destruction, obliterating everything in its path, even power of equal Positional Rank couldn’t resist. This potent weapon unexpectedly fell into Su Ming’an’s hands, emitting intensely frightening light.
To the naked eye, the black and white chessboard was shrouded in ominous purple-black light, filled with dense danger.
Even when wielding it, Su Ming’an felt alarmed. No wonder in one conclusion prompt he’d seen if he used the "Devour" authority recklessly to enhance himself, he would soon consume everything including Zhai Xing, losing himself, and ultimately becoming a Cosmic Dominator...This was a power with extremely high limits, solely dependent on whether the user could control it lucidly.
In merely a few seconds of fully wielding it, he already sensed his soul tainting with the purple-black contamination. In hindsight, the Inorganic God was so eager to devour him partially due to its own self-loss, driven by hunger, willing to take the risk of being obliterated to descend and consume him.
If unable to contend with the Radiant Mother God, the "Devour" power would serve as his ultimate weapon, but how to regain clarity...might depend on whether Su Rin could harmonize his soul. Additionally, whether the seemingly decorative yet peculiarly effective "Faith" authority could pull him back.
"Splash——!"
Thoughts racing, in less than half a second, Su Ming’an swung the Yarman Sword in his right hand!
"Clang——Crack!"
The trident and the Bright White Divine Sword collided strongly for the second time!
This time, Lu didn’t last even half a second; the blue divine power aura distorted fiercely, the trident cracking open, emitting a wail.
"...!" Lu let out a breath that was all but shattered, retreating seemingly exhausted.
His sea-blue eyes stared at Su Ming’an, as if trying to convey something.
However, just as Su Ming’an’s Devouring Claw was about to reach—
Su Ming’an’s movement stalled for the third time in barely perceptible pause.
Exceptionally brief, more subtle than before. A glimmer of pondering flashed in his eyes, cold as ice.
