Chapter 603: A Game of Chess

"Very well, since you insist, I won't stop you. After all, all good things must come to an end." Han Li sighed and said.

Jin Tong bowed to Han Li, then turned to leave.

"Wait, take these with you." Han Li called out to Jin Tong, flipped his hand, and produced a jade-green bracelet carved with phoenix patterns, tossing it over.

Jin Tong instinctively reached out and caught it.

"Inside is a map of this wild region, along with some spirit treasures and immortal jade stones, enough for you for a while. Besides that, there are a few Wuchang Alliance masks. If you need help, feel free to send me a message." Han Li said calmly.

As for Jin Tong, he didn't know quite what to feel—like a close comrade in battle, or like a daughter he had raised since childhood.

Jin Tong looked at the phoenix bracelet in her hand, a flicker of complex emotion in her eyes. Without refusing, she silently put it on her left wrist.

"Boss, I'll go with you." Pi Xiu suddenly called out, leaping to Jin Tong's side.

"Xiao Bai?" Jin Tong was startled.

"Boss, you said before you'd take me as your little brother—you can't go back on your word." Pi Xiu rubbed his head against Jin Tong and said.

"It's fine for Xiao Bai to go with you. If you encounter another powerful Devouring Immortal, you can hide inside his body." Han Li raised an eyebrow and said.

"Alright. I'll take you along, but you need to improve your strength quickly. If you become a hindrance, I'll kick you out immediately." Jin Tong thought for a moment, patted Xiao Bai's head, and said.

Pi Xiu immediately beamed with joy and nodded repeatedly.

"By the way, I once read about the Devouring Immortal in an ancient text. It said one appeared in the Gold Origin Immortal Domain, though its strength was unknown. That was a long time ago, so that Devouring Immortal might not still be there. If you can't find other leads, you can try your luck there first." Han Li pondered briefly, then spoke again.

"Gold Origin Immortal Domain... I understand. Thank you, Uncle. Take care." Jin Tong nodded slightly.

She gave Han Li one last deep look, then transformed into a golden rainbow, enveloping Pi Xiu, and flew off in a certain direction, disappearing at the horizon in an instant.

Han Li watched Jin Tong's figure vanish, and only after a moment did he withdraw his gaze.

"Let's go too." His expression quickly returned to calm, and he said quietly.

Soon, a green rainbow rose from the ground and sped off into the distance.

A moment later, at the edge of the sky not far away, space rippled, and two faint figures suddenly appeared—one tall, one short.

It was none other than Jin Tong and Pi Xiu, who had supposedly left.

"Uncle, it's not that I don't want to follow you, but what I'm about to face is beyond your imagination... It was hard enough to escape danger this time; I don't want to burden you any further..." Jin Tong murmured to herself, gazing at the fading green trace on the horizon.

"Boss, why do you have to do this? Although I haven't been with Master long, my instincts as a wild true spirit tell me that Master is blessed by heaven and definitely not afraid of you being a burden..." Pi Xiu Xiao Bai said hesitantly.

"Are you saying I'm a burden?" Jin Tong whirled around, staring at Xiao Bai with a displeased tone.

"No... no... I mean... Boss, you are wise and mighty, with unparalleled cultivation, and you're not afraid to travel alone..." Xiao Bai quickly changed his tune.

"Although I've recovered some memories now, there are still things I'm not clear about. But I vaguely sense that I'm not just an ordinary spirit insect. Xiao Bai, since you call me boss, I won't treat you badly. As long as you help me reclaim what's rightfully mine, you can eat whatever you want from now on." Jin Tong sighed softly and said seriously.

"Boss, rest assured. From now on, I'll follow your lead. Whatever you tell me to eat, I'll eat!" Xiao Bai stood straight on all fours and said solemnly.

"You've been around that bootlicker Mo Guang too long. You haven't learned much else, but you've surpassed him in flattery. Let's go. According to this map, the Gold Origin Immortal Domain is not close." Jin Tong curled her lip, turned, and flew off into the distance.

"Hey, Boss, wait for me... Speaking of Mo Guang, that guy..." Pi Xiu Xiao Bai quickly galloped after her.

...

Northern Black Mountain Immortal Domain.

A deep valley covered with lush green bamboo groves, with a clear, babbling stream winding through it. On both banks, mist rose among the bamboo, and from time to time, the crisp, melodious calls of birds could be heard.

Deep in the forest, one could occasionally see snow-white deer with plum-patterned markings on their backs wandering.

In the middle section of the stream, where the terrain was steepest, the river twisted and turned, with rugged rocks lining the banks. At a large bend, the water slowed and pooled into a green, deep pond.

To the left of the pond was a large flat rock, on which sat a middle-aged man in a green gauze robe, strumming a dark purple zither.

He had regular features, a handsome face, and long black hair flowing behind him, giving him an otherworldly air. His ten slender, snow-white fingers plucked, strummed, and brushed the strings, producing beautiful sounds like flowing water, tinkling and pleasant.

Not far from him, a black-haired old man and a white-haired old man sat facing each other, with a square chessboard between them. They took turns placing stones, commanding the board.

The black-haired old man was impeccably dressed, not a single wrinkle, with his black hair tied up high and neat. He looked clean and sharp, like an unsheathed sword, fully displaying his edge.

His opponent, the white-haired old man, was much more slovenly. He wore a moon-white robe embroidered with scattered flame patterns, his shoulders slumped, one hand propping up his head, his hair disheveled, and his eyes sleepy, giving him a particularly lazy air.

The black-haired old man held white stones, his style aggressive and decisive. Each move landed with a sharp crack on the board. The white-haired old man, however, deliberated slowly, placing each stone gently and silently.

The black-haired old man seemed accustomed to this and never urged him. After each move, he would close his eyes and contemplate the ninth or even tenth move ahead.

"Old Ghost Rehuo, your slow and sluggish nature is unbearable. If I didn't know your background, I'd suspect you were an ancient turtle spirit that cultivated into a human!" A brown-robed old man watching from the side couldn't stand it anymore, took a big gulp of wine, and laughed.

"A dog's mouth can't spit out ivory. Fellow Daoist Duan hasn't said anything, so why are you, old drunkard, butting in? Go, go, go, drink your horse piss elsewhere!" The white-haired old man glanced up at him sideways, without much anger, and scolded.

"That game with Lu Guanzi from Xiangyang Valley—how long did it take? You dawdled for thirty years, right? In the end, that ninth-dan master couldn't take it anymore and resigned..."

Before he could finish, the white-haired old man raised his voice and interrupted:

"Lu Guanzi heard that a stunningly beautiful true immortal female cultivator had come to Caifeng Valley, so he couldn't sit still. Otherwise, that game could have lasted another twenty years."

"Stunningly beautiful, my ass! I went to see her myself. Her chest, her butt, her face... at best, she's average-looking. Only someone like Lu Guanzi would appreciate that. I'm not impressed." The brown-robed old man raised an eyebrow and shook his head.

The white-haired old man rubbed his chin, his gaze fixed on the chessboard. It seemed his position was gradually weakening, and he began to seriously consider his next move, ignoring the brown-robed old man.

"Burp... Talking to you guys is really boring. I wonder what Fellow Daoist Li is up to, still hasn't shown up." The brown-robed old man belched, turned to look toward the valley entrance, and muttered.

The green-robed man who had been playing the zither pressed his hands on the strings, and the music stopped abruptly.

"I heard Fellow Daoist Li has been refining a batch of 'Five Stone Pills' recently. I sent him a message the day before yesterday, but he hasn't replied. I think he's still in seclusion." He turned to the brown-robed old man and said.

As soon as he finished speaking, a young man in a green robe with a somewhat pale complexion emerged from the bamboo grove, walking slowly along the riverbank toward them.

He was tall, with ordinary features and no particular aura—the kind of person who would be lost in a crowd.

It was none other than Han Li, wearing a Reincarnation Palace mask that changed his appearance.

It had been over four hundred years since he parted ways with Jin Tong and Xiao Bai in the wild borderlands.

Han Li had been living in the Floating Cloud Mountains for nearly two hundred years.

"Yo, Fellow Daoist Li, you're here! Come, come, have a few drinks with me." The brown-robed old man immediately stood up from the ground and called out loudly.

The two chess players also put their stones back into the pots and stood up one after another. Only the green-robed zither player remained seated cross-legged, but he smiled and looked over.

A smile appeared on Han Li's face. His steps became illusory, leaving a series of afterimages along the riverbank, and in an instant, he landed on the flat rock.

"Fellow Daoist Rehuo, Fellow Daoist Jingyang, Fellow Daoist Duan, Fellow Daoist Ziqi... I've been busy refining pills lately and missed your invitations. Please forgive me." Han Li stepped forward, greeted the four on the rock, and said with a smile.

"No worries, no worries. You're an alchemist, after all; refining pills is your main business. Unlike us old fogies who have nothing better to do, we have time to indulge in these worldly pleasures." The white-haired old man, known as Rehuo Xianzun, waved his hand and said with a smile.

He was originally a grand elder of a mid-sized sect in the Black Mountain Immortal Domain. By nature lazy and unwilling to manage sect affairs, he had dumped all his responsibilities onto a fellow disciple and retreated to the Floating Cloud Mountains to enjoy his leisure.

Despite his slovenly appearance, he was actually the highest in cultivation among the four on the rock, having reached the late Golden Immortal stage.