Nightfall
chapter-560

560 Heaven’s Will

An uproar rose among the cultivators who were looking at the chess board with bewilderment.

They had figured out the White’s strategy and thought it would definitely lose the game. The old monk in yellow robes had decided to end the game and let the black horse-drawn carriage go up the mountain. But Sangsang seemed to decline his kindness as if she, the Lady of Light, knew how to solve the conundrum.

The monk was shocked. He looked at the carriage and frowned. Although he appreciated the girl’s courage and wit, he did not expect that she could win this match. He thought even if she was the dignified Lady of Light at West-Hill Divine Palace, it was very rude of her to decline his offer.

As a reclusive Elder at Lanke Temple, he felt offended at Sangsang’s declination. He then coldly sat at the stone table, took a black chess piece from the urn, and placed it on the chessboard.

The chessplayer from South Jin Kingdom did not expect Sangsang’s declination as well. He sighed while shaking his head, “Do you think you can win?”

Sangsang lifted the green curtain of the carriage to see the black chess piece’s position. She found it was very beautiful under the reflection of daylight and then she said a position.

Mo Shanshan picked up a white chess piece and put it gently on the chessboard. It appeared brighter, as if it were going to dissolve the adjacent black chess piece.

The monk was slightly irritated at this.

However, when he saw the white chess piece’s position, he became solemn as he found its movement to be completely different from what he had studied for years. The white chess pieces on the board were aimed in another direction, as carefully as an arrow.

The White’s movement was beyond his expectations, and so he was silent for some time before his next move.

Just as the monk’s old fingers left the black chess piece, Sangsang’s slight voice rose again. She did not hesitate but guided the next move of another white chess piece.

The monk’s long silver-white eyebrows slowly rose as the autumn wind blew.

He looked at the mixed black and white chess pieces competing on the chessboard. Suddenly, a very strong sense of vigilance ignited within him.

The chessplayer from South Jin Kingdom uttered another cry. He bent down to closely observe the board.

Sangsang’s voice continued to rise from the black carriage.

White chess pieces were continuously taken out of the urn by Mo Shanshan and calmly placed on the stone chessboard.

The monk’s eyebrows were now being raised more frequently. A look of urprise appeared on his old face as if he were witnessing something impossible.

The South Jin Kingdom chessplayer’s exclamations also became more frequent. He bent forward to be closer to the board and widened his eyes. He seemed to see the white chess pieces come to life.

Sangsang’s voice continued to sound beneath the green tree.

Four or five chess pieces were placed on the stone board.

The monk looked unprecedentedly serious. The slightly trembling robe revealed his nervousness and there were beads of sweat on his forehead.

“It seems that the White is going to win. How could it be possible?”

The monk murmured to himself in a low voice as he stared at the chessboard. His body seemed to stiffen, taking ages for him to take a black chess piece from the urn.

“How could it be possible? The White’s every step was very risky. One error will lead to failure. And as the game goes on, every step becomes riskier and the calculation becomes harder. I have gone through many games all my life and I know no man can defy the heaven’s will. Even if the girl was a math genius, can she defy the heaven’s will?”

The South Jin Kingdom chessplayer glared at the chessboard. He waved his right hand and murmured in a hoarse voice as if he wanted to help the monk calm down or release his own shock and anxiety.

He took several smooth chess pieces from the urn and played with them in his trembling right hand, trying to calm himself. He said in a trembling voice, “It’s impossible.”

The Messy Phase Game was profound. Only now were spectators starting to discover the great changes happening on the chessboard. Whilst some were still confused, they saw the old monk’s sweat on his forehead and the chessplayer’s reaction and guessed the situation had changed greatly.

Sangsang was still giving instructions, though she seemed a little bit tired. Her instructions were clear and accurate without pause. It seemed that she did not need any time to think about her next move.

The monk played more slowly. He carefully placed his black chess pieces after thinking for a great time. His yellow robe had become drenched with sweat.

There were more and more chess pieces on the board. The Black and the White were silently fighting against each other, just as darkness and daylight did during dawn and dusk.

It was very quiet. One could only hear the clear and crisp sound of the chess pieces falling on the board, the rustle of the green trees in the autumn wind, and the sound of waters flowing through deep mountain streams.

As time went by, the morning light had left Wa mountain. Before noon, the game was about to end.

The monk’s right hand slightly trembled in the autumn wind; between his fingers there was a black chess piece. He looked at the serried chessboard and hesitated for he did not know how to make his next move.

The South Jin Kingdom chessplayer stared at the board for a long time. His eyes were extremely dry and bloodshot and he kept rubbing the chess piece in his right hand. He did not realize that the sharp debris had scratched his palm and he had blood dripping along his clenched fist and falling on a green leaf on the ground.

He suddenly woke up and looked up at the silent black carriage with awe and horror. His voice trembled, “It’s heaven’s will! It’s heaven’s will!”

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The monk struggled to stand up and bowed to the black carriage.

At that moment, the spectators finally confirmed that Sangsang was the winner and exclaimed. The cultivators versed in Go looked at the chess pieces with silent amazement. A feeling of admiration grew inside their hearts.

People looked up at the black carriage with a look of awe in their eyes.

Earlier, they bowed to the carriage in awe to show their respect for the authority of Lady of Light and the power of West-Hill Divine Palace. But now, it was her wit on the chessboard that won their respect.

Since they were cultivators, they knew what the pure wit stood for.

In the past two years, cultivators had vaguely learned that the inheritor of the former Divine Priest of Light was in Chang’an City. However, because of West-Hill Divine Palace’s obscure attitude, they did not know what kind of person the Lady of Light was.

Later, when they knew she was the daughter of one of the officials in Tang Dynasty and the handmaiden of Mr. Thirteen from the Academy, they started to wonder what potential or ability she had to impress the Divine Palace and be selected as an inheritor. Now they finally understood.

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Even Ning Que found it hard to believe that Sangsang had solved the conundrum. He was happy of course, especially when he recalled the scene when Sangsang’s crisp voice echoed in the silent Wa mountain. He felt somewhat sentimental, as if the little girl he knew had grown up.

When the old monk bowed and conceded, Ning Que suddenly noticed that the monk from Xuankong Temple under the bridge leaned forward behind curtains as if he was very interested in Sangsang. Ning Que grew alert again.

He looked away from the monk and asked, “Can we go up the mountain now?”

Monk Guan Hai witnessed the entire procedure and sincerely praised, “The legendary Lady of Light is indeed able to defy the heaven’s will. Senior Brother, please.”

The Big Black Horse saw their respect for Sangsang and thought to himself that, although she was plain looking, she was indeed able-minded; he could not help but cheerily snort. The horses who were grazing on the ground beside streams heard the snorting and became afraid subconsciously. They ran up toward the grass slope in a hurry.

The carriage slowly drove onto the stone bridge and crossed Jumping Tiger Stream.

The cultivators looked at the carriage disappearing into the depths of Wa mountain in awe.

The South Jin Kingdom chessplayer suddenly thought about something. He rushed onto the stone bridge and ran toward the carriage.

The man successfully crossed the bridge even though he did not solve the conundrum. The old monk in yellow clothes should have stopped the somewhat crazy chessplayer, but he was just staring at the chessboard in silence.

He had studied the Luanke conundrum for decades and was confident to know everything about it. But now, he suddenly realized he did not understand it at all.

If he did not play the game today, the Black must have been defeated before Sangsang showed her awesome will. However, it was because he understood the conundrum more than anyone else in the world, he persisted for a longer time and his mind was greatly damaged.

There was a strong autumn breeze.

The monk’s body suddenly shook and blood spilled over his lips.

“Luanke conundrum features its uniqueness and complexity. But its creators must not have expected that one girl could solve it merely by calculation.”

He wiped the blood with his sleeve and looked at the black and white chess pieces on the board. He said, “The conundrum is meaningless now since it has been solved by someone who can defy the heaven’s will. I’ll leave it here.”

And then he waved his sleeve and took a leaf away from the chessboard.

Cheng Ziqing frowned and asked, “Master, what will you do with the conundrum?”

“The conundrum has been solved. You can cross the stream as you wish.”

After finishing his words, the monk left gracefully.

Hearing his words, the cultivators under the big tree were overjoyed and all walked toward the stone bridge. A Taoist from the Kingdom of Song, known as an addict of chess, was left behind and he came to the stone table. He looked at the board and tried to pick up a white chess piece but found he couldn’t.

The old monk had somehow embedded the black and white chess pieces in the board. From this day, the Luanke conundrum was left forever under the green tree beside Jumping Tiger Stream in Wa mountain and it would never change. There were only two of the legendary Three Conundrums left in Wa mountain.

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