Chapter 2619: The First Change in the Chess Game

It was White’s turn again, and Lu Ye stepped into the next square, his expression a mix of joy and sorrow.

The joy came from his injuries, which had largely healed after several rounds.

The sorrow stemmed from his inability to kill enemies, preventing his strength from improving.

Black Blood’s side was heavily guarding against him, offering no opportunity to strike. This made it impossible for Yuan Xi to help him, even if she wanted to.

After a brief wait, when it was Black’s turn, Lu Ye suddenly felt a violent tremor in the surrounding space. The tremor came and went quickly, disappearing in an instant.

This was clearly unusual. He quickly looked up at Yuan Xi and asked, "My lord, what's happening?"

The massive Yuan Xi now looked serious, her gaze sweeping across the entire chessboard. She said, "The rules of the game are evolving."

Lu Ye's expression froze. "Is that good or bad?" If the evolving rules benefited their side, it would naturally be cause for joy. But if they were unfavorable, it would be anything but. Under the rules of a supreme treasure, human power was insignificant, unless one possessed the strength to contend with it.

Yuan Xi replied, "It's not what you think. These rules aren't spontaneously evolving; they were always meant to appear gradually as the game progressed."

The Starry Sky Chessboard, a supreme treasure, was well-known. Although it hadn't appeared many times in the inner realm, each appearance had caused bloodshed, so naturally, many had studied it.

From the very beginning, Yuan Xi knew that the game's rules wouldn't remain static; they would change as the game progressed, just as they were doing now.

Now, the first change had arrived.

"Some items have appeared on the board," she continued, "similar to the dice you used before. The difference is, your previous dice could only be used on individual pieces, while these are useful to the players themselves. Simply put, if we can acquire these items, I can move our pieces two, three, or even more squares at once."

Lu Ye's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

He had previously wondered how the game would ever end, given the vast scope of the Starry Sky Chessboard, the immense number of squares, and the fact that players could only move their pieces one square at a time.

Now he understood that the game wouldn't continue indefinitely in the same manner; changes would occur at certain points.

Moreover, his current inability to move more than one square at a time left him helpless if targeted. However, if Yuan Xi could move him several, or even a dozen squares at once, Black Blood's targeting would become largely ineffective.

"My lord, are there any dice near me that we can contend for?" Lu Ye asked enthusiastically.

Yuan Xi shook her head. "No, the closest one to you is more than ten squares away. However..." After a slight hesitation, she added, "Never mind. Grand Commander, you should stick to the original plan. I'll arrange for others to contend for those dice."

A considerable number of dice had appeared on the chessboard, evenly distributed. Both players would now have to strategically deploy their pieces to fight for them.

Securing each die would provide a certain advantage, so neither Yuan Xi nor Black Blood could afford to concede an inch.

Yuan Xi quickly assessed the situation. Given the current distribution of White pieces, it seemed highly probable they could secure half of the dice, which was her target. As long as their side didn't suffer a disadvantage, everything was fine; they certainly couldn't let the enemy gain an upper hand.

While she was speaking with Lu Ye, Black Blood was also communicating telepathically with Jiao: "Jiao, there's a die three squares behind you. I'll move you there first to seize it."

For anyone else, Black Blood wouldn't have bothered to inform them. It was his turn, and he could move numerous pieces with a single thought.

But Jiao was different, and the die's appearance near him was rather awkward, specifically behind him.

This meant that moving Jiao would waste the previous three rounds of effort and disrupt the original plan of having Jiao confront Lu Ye.

So, after some thought, he decided to consult Jiao.

As he spoke, he specifically explained the significance and purpose of seizing the die, fearing Jiao might have other ideas.

"No!" Jiao flatly refused, shaking his head.

Black Blood frowned. "Why not?" Internally, he fumed. Jiao was utterly impractical. Didn't he understand the principle that one must sharpen their tools to do good work? Acquiring more dice would give him an advantage in moving Black pieces, making it easier to arrange a meeting between Jiao and that human military cultivator.

He had just meticulously explained everything, and yet Jiao dared to refuse him.

"This is a rare opportunity; I don't want to wait any longer," Jiao said, staring ahead as if he could see Lu Ye's position through the void.

While the outcome of the game certainly mattered for the overall situation, for him, the life-or-death battle between the Sons of Star Abyss was paramount. If he could kill Lu Ye, he could seize the Star Abyss blessing from him, which would greatly benefit him. This matter was of utmost importance, beyond comparison to anything else.

"Hmph, that's not up to you!" Black Blood snorted coldly. If Jiao wouldn't appreciate his good intentions, then Jiao shouldn't blame him for being unaccommodating.

As a chess piece, one must understand their role! After all, all actions of a piece required the player's command.

"Black Blood!" Jiao's voice was low. "If you dare to move me back, don't blame me for slacking off afterward!"

Black Blood paused, his brows darkening. "Are you threatening me?"

"You can try!" Jiao looked up, meeting his gaze without flinching.

Black Blood was furious!

At this precise moment, Yuan Xi from across the chessboard continued to press him: "What are you dawdling for? Make your move. Playing chess so slowly... Oh, why are you getting angry? Who are you mad at? Is some ungrateful piece not obeying?"

As she spoke, she cast a sidelong glance at Jiao's position.

She was clearly asking knowingly, which only infuriated Black Blood more, giving him a sense of his dirty laundry being aired.

He ignored Yuan Xi's taunts, momentarily hesitating over his move.

Fortunately, Jiao spoke again: "Black Blood, as long as you help me kill that human, I'll cooperate with you in whatever you want to do next!" His sole desire was Lu Ye!

Jiao offered a way out, and Black Blood readily took it. He nodded decisively. "Alright, then I'll defer to you!"

As he finished speaking, he gathered all his power and unleashed a palm strike towards Yuan Xi, while simultaneously moving numerous pieces with a thought.

Inside the square, Jiao felt the trace of being moved, and the direction was correct. His face instantly lit up with excitement. He suddenly reached into his embrace, pulled out a jade slip-like object, and slapped it onto himself!

The jade slip transformed into a white light that merged into his body, making him appear indistinct.

The next instant, he stepped forward, shooting out of his square like an arrow released from a bowstring, arriving at the adjacent location.

Normally, he would have stopped here, where two groups of cultivators were clashing. The Black pieces were clearly at a disadvantage, retreating steadily under the White pieces' assault.

The numerous Black pieces had been waiting for him to come to their aid, and seeing him, they were overjoyed. The White pieces attacking them, however, looked helpless.

Yet, to both sides' surprise, Jiao's body seemed utterly beyond his control. After arriving, he passed directly through the battle and plunged into the next square.

The fierce battle strangely paused for an instant, as pairs of astonished eyes watched Jiao's retreating figure.

The Black pieces' expectations turned to despair, while the White pieces were reinvigorated!

"What is that?" Yuan Xi, still dazed from Black Blood's palm strike, looked down at the board. Jiao had astonishingly crossed several squares in a row, relentlessly closing in on Lu Ye's position. He was now just two squares away from entering Lu Ye's territory.

She immediately understood that Jiao... seemed to have gotten a surprise too; otherwise, he couldn't have acted against the board's rules.

"Grand Commander, Jiao is coming! Be careful!" she quickly warned him telepathically.

Lu Ye, who had been bored to the point of stagnation, was startled to hear the City Lord's voice. "Jiao? Didn't you say he was still some distance away...?" He thought Yuan Xi had made a mistake.

However, before he could finish speaking, he saw Jiao's figure.

Right in the adjacent square!

At this moment, Jiao's speed was no longer as swift as before, and the white light enveloping him had dimmed. It seemed that the restriction of traversing squares consumed the white light covering his entire body.

Yet, Jiao's expression was utterly elated, his gaze fixed keenly on Lu Ye's position.

The next instant, he reached the boundary between the two squares and boldly charged in.

But this time, he couldn't cross the boundary as easily as before. Instead, he seemed to have plunged into a mass of soft mud, his speed drastically reduced, and his body frozen by an invisible restraint.

He froze for a moment, having never expected things to turn out this way, then met the equally stunned gaze of Lu Ye.

The scene was somewhat comical: Jiao was stuck in an invisible bind, half his body in the opposite square, and half in Lu Ye's square.

The white light on his body was almost gone, and he struggled with all his might, laboriously moving his body, trying to break free from the square's boundary restraint.

As the ringing sound of a blade echoed, Lu Ye moved like lightning, instantly appearing before Jiao. The Pan Mountain Blade pulsed with bright light, and he channeled all his strength into a heavy chop aimed at Jiao's head.

Not only that, but he also activated the sacred nature of his Blood Race lineage!

Regardless of how Jiao had managed it, or why he had suddenly appeared before him, this was absolutely a perfect opportunity to kill him.

This was practically a head delivered on a silver platter!

Lu Ye suddenly felt that his long wait and boredom had finally paid off.

This strike was arguably the strongest he could unleash, with absolutely no reservation, his sole aim to kill Jiao in one blow!

Lu Ye only regretted that he hadn't possessed his scabbard for long; otherwise, he could have delivered a drawing slash to Jiao.

However, this strike did not successfully hit Jiao. As the long blade descended, Jiao raised the short blade in his hand, blocking the edge of the Pan Mountain Blade.