Crafting an Immortal Race with Daily Hexagrams

Second floor of the Black Water Pavilion.

Before Shen Yuan lay an empty chess board.

He had been staring at this empty board for several days.

After Shen Wenxing arrived on the second floor, he slightly cupped his hands without making a sound to disturb him.

After a long while, Shen Yuan slowly raised his hand, pinching a black piece from the chess box on the left, placing it in the lower-left corner of the board.

"What happened in the Laishui River?"

After placing the piece, Shen Yuan spoke in a deep voice without looking up.

Shen Wenxing slowly walked over, sitting cross-legged, and briefly explained the situation of the Laishui River.

After hearing his explanation, Shen Yuan fell into contemplation.

The Shen Family could rise from being ordinary farmers to their current status as a Fetal Breathing Immortal Race because of the White Jade Turtle Shell he picked up from the Laishui River a hundred years ago.

At first, he thought it was just a coincidence that the White Jade Turtle Shell appeared in the Laishui River.

Now it seems that a great secret is truly hidden at the bottom of the Laishui River.

"City walls... Yin Qi..."

"It must be some kind of Secret Realm again."

"With the current volatile situation, it’s indeed more prudent not to explore actively."

As Shen Yuan spoke, he took a white piece from the chess box on the right and placed it on the bottom center line.

"What arrangement was made for the little fellow who discovered the river’s secret?"

Shen Wenxing replied, "I had Chongming arrange a place for him to stay on the mountain."

Shen Yuan continued his game against himself.

"This is akin to soft detention; if word gets out, it won’t sound good and might arouse suspicion."

"The little fellow is a Body Cultivator; find an opportunity to take him as your disciple."

The hand holding the chess piece paused slightly, and Shen Yuan smiled faintly, saying, "Anyone chosen as an heir by the Secret Realm cannot be an ordinary person."

"Alright."

Shen Wenxing agreed solemnly, his gaze sweeping over the few pieces on the chess board, feeling that his father was scheming something.

Yet, he did not inquire further, merely slightly cupped his hands before leaving the Black Water Pavilion.

Without looking up, Shen Yuan picked up another black piece and placed it on the board.

...

The black piece fell resolutely between his fingers.

On the chess board in front of them, the black and white pieces intertwined, with both sides clearly having played nearly fifty moves.

This was already a considerable advancement for Wen’an, who was previously a novice in Chess Dao.

"Are all Sword Cultivators this straightforward and stubborn?"

"I told you long ago those three pieces were doomed, yet you insisted on struggling so long, losing twelve more in the process."

As a white piece fell, the Old Man with a Conical Hat chuckled as he took away fifteen black pieces completely surrounded, claiming a large empty area on the board.

Without any expression on his face, Shen Wen’an picked up a black piece and placed it onto the board.

In one move, he also claimed five white pieces.

"Was this your goal?" The Old Man with a Conical Hat frowned slightly and asked.

Shen Wen’an said nothing, and calmly picked another black piece from the board, tossing it lightly onto the board, conceding the match.

This made the Old Man with a Conical Hat’s expression change.

"Forget it, forget it!"

He waved his hand, collecting the chess board and boxes before him. Standing up slowly, he gazed at Shen Wen’an with a complex expression, "This old man was too stubborn, wasting half a year."

"Actually tried teaching a fool to play chess..."

"Leave, don’t be a nuisance to me anymore."

The Elder with a Conical Hat turned with a slight indignation, as if he couldn’t bear to look at him again.

Watching the slightly hunched back, Shen Wen’an also had a complex expression. After a long silence, a hint of respect flashed in his eyes as he slightly bowed and cupped his hands, "Thank you, senior, for your guidance and teaching over the past six months."

Upon hearing this, the Elder with a Conical Hat abruptly turned and said, "Guidance? Teaching?"

"You must be imagining things."

"I just played chess with this old man for half a year to kill time."

"Now, be off."

Before his voice had finished echoing, a black piece appeared in his hand with a flash.

Bending his finger, he flicked the black chess piece with an unstoppable force, striking Shen Wen’an’s chest and causing his body to turn into a stream of light, shooting toward the distance.

"Alas!"

Seeing Shen Wen’an disappear, the Elder with a Conical Hat sighed lightly before sitting cross-legged on the boulder, turning into a statue-like figure.

After being carried hundreds of miles by the power of that black chess piece, Shen Wen’an finally regained mobility.

He slowly reached out, circulating the Sword Element Power within his body, and picked up the chess piece suspended in front of his chest. After examining it carefully for a while, he placed the piece into his Storage Bag and flew towards the Cyan Ruo Sword House.

At the Thousand Feet Cliff.

The two sat opposite each other.

After hearing Shen Wen’an’s account, Huang Lingshan, who was making tea, had a somewhat peculiar expression.

"That old fellow really made you play chess for half a year?"

Shen Wen’an took the teacup she handed him, shook his head with a wry smile, "I could feel he wanted to teach me many things."

"But... his path is ultimately not the one I wish to follow."

"What he taught wasn’t suitable for me."

After taking a sip of tea, Shen Wen’an sighed and continued, "I did not meet that senior’s intentions."

Throughout the months, the Old Man with a Conical Hat infused many things into their matches, all of which Shen Wen’an understood clearly.

Yet, he couldn’t align with some of these things, and this was also why the old man ended up somewhat angry.

He probably sees me as a stubborn mule.

"During these six months, something major happened in Danzhou again."

Huang Lingshan did not delve deeply into the matter of the Old Man with a Conical Hat, and Youran picked up the teacup in front of her, speaking softly, "In Qishan, the Immortal Sect known for gathering intelligence, Tingfeng Valley, was annihilated."

"Whoever did it seems to have meticulously planned it. The entire Tingfeng Valley was flattened overnight, and all disciples outside were precisely assassinated."

Tingfeng Valley!?

Upon hearing this, Shen Wen’an was quite surprised.