Above the floating island at the Dragon Pinning Sect:
Whoosh!
A figure wrapped in white mist flew out of the floating island.
It was Ding Rui. She had gone over silently to the floating island, then flown to a nearby summit with an unsightly expression.
“The Twenty-Nine Line-Pair World Go Puzzle? A significant part of it has been solved, but it is still not completely solved. However, the rebound intensified. Humph!” Ding Rui appeared sullen.
“Division Master! Division Master!” A subordinate quickly ran over.
“Yes?” Ding Rui turned her head to look at that subordinate.
“Division Master’s worries came to pass. Gu Hai managed to bring Ding Dong to his side. Ding Dong brought him to see Long Wanqing!” that subordinate whispered.
Ding Rui narrowed her eyes. “Gu Hai is indeed a person who does not know his place. Humph!”
“Fortunately, we monitored them at all times. Otherwise, we might not have noticed!” That subordinate smiled.
“Let’s go over!” Ding Rui revealed a faint sneer.
——
At the palace hall where Long Wanqing was:
“Gu Hai?” Long Wanqing looked at Gu Hai in shock.
“Hall Master, it has been a long time!” Gu Hai smiled.
“Why are you here? Weren’t you…” Long Wanqing looked at Ding Dong.
Ding Dong knelt before Long Wanqing and pleaded for mercy. “Hall Master, please spare me. Ding Rui forced this humble one into this. I had no choice. I have been very polite and considerate of Hall Master over this period!”
Long Wanqing looked at Ding Dong in shock. How did things turn out like this?
Huh?
Long Wanqing turned her head to look at Gu Hai. Did Gu Hai turn Ding Dong to his side? How can that be true? He could even make Ding Dong defect?
“Hall Master, there’s no need to worry too much. Whether I come or not, you will be safe. Your maternal grandfather already laid traps outside the Dragon Pinning Sect.” Gu Hai smiled.
“Oh? My maternal grandfather is here?” At first, Long Wanqing showed joy on her face, then shock followed.
“His own daughter died. As a father, how could he do nothing? This time, he only used the Dragon Pinning Sect to set out bait, luring out that big fish. The three thousand Go puzzles will all be solved soon. Then, that big fish will immediately appear. For now, I can only ask Hall Master to endure this wrong to avoid startling the enemy. The traps are laid far away, so most people will find it hard to notice. As for your safety, given your maternal grandfather’s capabilities, he has long since been monitoring it.”
Ding Dong suddenly quivered as he showed horror on his face.
Long Wanqing looked at Gu Hai in shock. At first, she felt pleasantly surprised. Then, her face betrayed great confusion.
Suddenly, Gu Hai winked at Long Wanqing with his left eye, showing a hint of laughter.
Long Wanqing was a brilliant person. She immediately understood the situation from Gu Hai’s small action.
That was a lie? I was wondering how Gu Hai could possibly know my maternal grandfather. If Grandfather came, would there even be a need for traps? He could deal with the whole situation by himself. He wouldn’t need to send Gu Hai to scout things out.
Seeing Gu Hai’s current serious appearance and thinking about his earlier wink made Long Wanqing want to laugh. This Gu Hai is too cheeky. To think that he managed to scare Ding Dong to this extent?
Showing a solemn expression, Long Wanqing said seriously, “Ding Dong, what else would you like to say to me?”
“Hall Master, this humble one had long wanted to forsake darkness for light. However, I never had an opportunity until Mister Gu’s advice granted me enlightenment!” Ding Dong insisted anxiously.
“Oh? You wanted to forsake darkness for light long ago?” Long Wanqing asked solemnly.
“Yes. Ding Rui forced me into this. Although she is my aunt, the members of my Ding Clan have to listen to her. We are all her pawns. She was also the one who arranged for me to be the Dragon Pinning Sect Master!” Ding Dong confessed.
“Oh? She arranged it?” Long Wanqing revealed shock on her face.
“Yes. Fifty years ago, my Ding Clan sent many members to the Thousand Islands Sea to expand its influence in the Thousand Islands Sea’s various islands. This subordinate was sent to Nine-Five Island. After arriving, I came upon the Dragon Pinning Sect and found it pretty good, so I joined them. Initially, I was just an elder of the Dragon Pinning Sect. When Ding Rui dropped by, she helped me kill the old sect master and the people in my way quietly to push me to the sect master position. The price of that was listening to all her instructions.” Ding Dong smiled bitterly.
“Ding Rui?” Long Wanqing frowned.
“Why did you not discover the dragon vein here back then?” Gu Hai asked.
“I really did not discover it back then. Perhaps the old sect master knew about it. However, I did not, as Ding Rui had killed the old sect master. I never noticed until Ding Rui arrived one month or so ago and searched the entire Dragon Pinning Sect with all her might. She saw a stone platform in a corner of the floating island. That stone platform looks unremarkable, and we normally use it for unloading miscellaneous goods. It is located in the corner of a secluded courtyard. Who could have expected that to be the trigger?” Ding Dong smiled bitterly.
“Trigger? What do you mean?” Gu Hai asked.
Ding Dong looked at Gu Hai.
“Just take it as telling the hall master’s maternal grandfather. As for the results, it will depend on your performance.”
“Yes, yes, yes! This is how it went!” Fluster immediately appeared in Ding Dong’s eyes at the thought that Long Wanqing’s maternal grandfather could hear everything here.
“That was a Go puzzle with twenty-nine line-pairs. There were Go stone bowls at the side as well. At that time, one of Ding Rui’s disciples got curious and tried placing a Go stone on it. After he played that move, his Go stone got taken. In that instant, an intense pressure appeared out of nowhere, and that disciple exploded.
“Nothing remained after that loud explosion—no blood, no organs, no body, no bones, nothing. That disciple got reduced to powder and scattered with the wind.
“If not for a companion, no one would have discovered the explosion.
“To think that one can die from playing Go!” Ding Dong said in a horrified voice.
“Then?”
“Then…then, Ding Rui figured out that the stone Go board was the key. Even after flipping through all the books in the Dragon Pinning Sect, she could not find anything about it. There was only an instruction. That courtyard was a forbidden area. Hey, that’s right. I remember now. When the Hall Master’s mother brought Meng Tai and the other Elite Hall disciples here twenty years ago, they stayed in that courtyard!” Ding Dong suddenly recalled.
Gu Hai and Long Wanqing exchanged looks, appearing exceptionally grave.
“What happened after that?” Gu Hai asked.
“After that…after that, Ding Rui noticed the strangeness of the Go board but did not dare to play it. Instead, she attempted to destroy it. She swung her sword with all her might. There was a loud boom. However, the Go board did not break. Instead, boundless clouds and fog appeared and filled the surroundings in an instant, and three thousand Go puzzles appeared in the surroundings,” Ding Dong explained.
“Oh?”
“When looking at the floating island from the Go board, the floating island was no longer earth and buildings but a transparent independent space with a barrier. The shape of the independent space was that of the floating island. Inside was a golden dragon that appeared stuck in the independent space. The dragon tried to twist and turn but could not move at all,” Ding Dong explained.
“The Twenty-Nine Line-Pair World?” Gu Hai raised his eyebrows.
Gu Hai recalled Ninth Young Master mentioning it. The complete Twenty-Nine Line-Pair World Go Puzzle could manifest a world. However, it was not that imperfect mental world he had experienced. Instead, it could contain the physical body.
“The Dragon Pinning Sect? In the end, it is true to its name. The dragon vein is forcefully pinned here, unable to move?” Long Wanqing’s eyes lit up.
Ding Dong smiled bitterly. “That might be the origin of the name. Unfortunately, the old sect master is dead, so I do not know!”
“You can’t go in?” Gu Hai asked.
“We can’t go in. Although we can see inside, a large ritual array surrounds it. The ritual array will kill anyone who attacks the barrier of the independent world. However, when Ding Rui solved one of the Go puzzles, the Go stones on the twenty-nine line-pair board moved. After that, we realized that the Twenty-Nine Line-Pair World Go Puzzle is extremely complicated. Directly solving it is very dangerous. However, the three thousand Go puzzles were derived from it. One is fine if one fails to solve a derivative puzzle, but the Go stones on the twenty-nine line-pair board move if one solves it. Perhaps if we solve all the three thousand Go puzzles, we can undo the ritual array and enter that independent world,” Ding Dong explained.
Gu Hai narrowed his eyes. “So, that’s why Ding Rui offered huge rewards and invited everyone to solve the Go puzzles?”
“Yes!” Ding Dong smiled bitterly.
“According to what I understood from Venerable Liu Nian, Ding Rui is a smart person. Why did she find solving the Go puzzles difficult?” Gu Hai asked, frowning.
“I know why. Ding Rui does not specialize in Go!” Long Wanqing replied.
“Oh?”
“She specialized in music and did not study Go!” Long Wanqing added.
“Music?” Gu Hai parroted, bewildered.
“Music and Go are two different directions. Many cultivators also study music, Go, calligraphy, or painting. You should be simultaneously pursuing the Go Dao. Back then, Old Mister Guan Qi was the strongest in the Go Dao,” Long Wanqing explained.
“Music, Go, calligraphy, or painting?” Gu Hai parroted, showing surprise on his face.
“That’s right. Each one is a major system on its own. You will understand in the future. Unfortunately, Ding Rui is quite poor at it. She is not music material. When a skilled musician plays the zither, it can even form a storm of sword Qi, destroying everything!” Long Wanqing exclaimed.
“Oh? Have you seen it before?” Gu Hai raised his eyebrows slightly.
Long Wanqing nodded. “I have seen Duke Lu Yang play the zither on the battlefield. His Breaking the East Wind resulted in countless sword qi shredding a one-million-strong cultivator army, completely wiping them out. The sword qi swept through the mountain and rivers, leveled the battlefield, and reduced it to rubble. Death energy filled the place; living creatures find it hard to survive there.”
“Duke Lu Yang?” Gu Hai raised his eyebrows.
“You will hear of him in the future!” Long Wanqing explained.
Gu Hai nodded.
“Ding Rui captured me to force me to hand over the Dragon Luring Jade,” Long Wanqing said.
“Oh?”
“The Dragon Luring Jade can lure out the dragon vein and store it,” Long Wanqing explained.
“So, that’s what’s going on!” Gu Hai said in a heavy voice.
“The Dragon Pinning Sect? Ding Rui wants to undo the Twenty-Nine Line-Pair World Go Puzzle and use your Dragon Luring Jade to capture it. A good plan. Unfortunately, she covets the gains ahead, unaware of the danger behind!” Gu Hai said coldly.
Ding Dong felt worried. The danger behind? Is it that big fish or Long Wanqing’s maternal grandfather?
“Hall Master…” Ding Dong looked towards Long Wanqing.
“I will plead for mercy on your behalf. Perhaps Grandfather already heard it, and it’s already fine,” Long Wanqing said indifferently.
“Many thanks, Hall Master! Many thanks!” Ding Dong said gratefully.
“What should we do now?” Long Wanqing looked at Gu Hai.
——
Boom!
A loud sound rang out as Ding Rui burst open the doors to the hall where Long Wanqing stayed.
“Where is she? Where is Long Wanqing?” Ding Rui shouted.
The two guards at the doors looked at the empty hall in confusion. There was a strange hourglass-like contraption with Go stones falling out in the hall, making clacking sounds.
“I don’t know, either. After Ding Dong brought that black-clad man away, I heard this sound in the hall, so I thought the hall master was still playing Go in there. I have no idea at all!” that guard said in shock.
“Oh no! Black-cloaked? Long Wanqing was hiding in the black cloak that person wore!”
“Black cloak? Division Master, are you saying that two people hid in that black cloak when they came out?” the other guard exclaimed.
“Back then, Ding Dong even instructed us to watch the hall carefully. We did not expect this, not at all!” the group of guards said anxiously.
“How long has it been since they left?” Ding Rui glared.
“They just left! Just now!” that guard answered.
“Hurry! Activate the Dragon Pinning Sect’s protective ritual array and seal off the sect. Don’t let anyone out!” Ding Rui shouted with a glare.
“Yes!”
