"Ancestor." They bowed to their ancestor and their eyes fell on the young man.
"You guys go and rest by yourselves." The old man waved his hand, signaling them not to be restrained and to rest on their own.
"Yes." The monks responded, then stepped back a few steps and sat down again. Some of them practiced cross-legged, while others sat cross-legged in meditation.
"Young man, can you play chess?" the old man asked with a smile.
“A little bit.” Fengjiu said.
"That's perfect. We are free anyway, so let's play chess to kill time!" The old man took out a small four-legged table and placed it between the two of them. He also took out a set of chess pieces and handed the white piece to Fengjiu.
Fengjiu didn't say anything else, she just sat on a well-cut log, and started playing chess with the old man, holding the white piece. When the two of them started playing, the old man looked normal, and his speed of playing was not slow. However, as more and more pieces were placed on the board, his speed slowed down significantly.
Just like now, when it was his turn to play, he was holding a chess piece and thinking about it, and couldn't make a move for a long time. Fengjiu was not in a hurry, and watched quietly. Finally, seeing that he was indeed playing slowly, she took out the wine from the space and asked: "Old friend, do you want to drink a cup?"
"No, no, I haven't figured out how to make this move yet!" The old man said without raising his head. After thinking for a long time, he finally put down the chess piece. Just as he was about to look up and tell the young man that it was his turn, he saw that the white piece had already been put down.
Looking at the position where the white piece landed, he glared and asked, "You don't even need to think when you play chess?"
"Generally speaking, not necessary." Fengjiu said with a smile, and at the same time raised her head to take a sip of wine, watching the old man thinking indecisively again. When he placed his chess piece again, the next moment, Fengjiu also placed her chess piece.
"You lose." Fengjiu smiled and said to the old man while looking at Heizi who had nowhere to go.
The old man blew his beard and said, "Let's play again!" While sorting out the black and white pieces, he said, "I have never met an opponent in chess, so how could I lose to you, kid!"
"In fact, I only lost half a piece." Feng Jiu said with a smile, while pushing the divided chess pieces in front of the old man: "How about you play the white piece!"
"No, no, I'm still the black piece, let's play again." He gestured, cheered up and continued playing.
So Fengjiu played two more games with him. The old man lost both games, and by half a piece. Finally, the old man looked at Fengjiu and sighed, "Today I have met a master. I have to admit defeat."
Feng Jiu smiled and said, "It was just luck."
Hearing this, the old man smiled, put away the chessboard, looked at Fengjiu and asked, "I still don't know what your name is, young friend?"
"Everyone calls me the Ninth Young Master." She said after taking a sip of wine.
"Ninth Young Master?" The old man was slightly startled, then smiled and said, "Then I'd better call you Young Friend."
As the two talked, Fengjiu learned from their casual chat that the old man had been stuck at the Immortal Venerable level for a long time. Seeing that there was no hope for advancement within the family, he thought of trying to climb the Immortal Ladder.
"Ninth Young Master?"
A surprised voice came, which startled Fengjiu who was chatting with the old man. She turned around and saw that it was the team she met in the mangrove forest.