Chapter 153 - Three Begets All Things of the World

"Gu Hai, you have solved the weiqi game!? If you accept the inheritance, wouldn't the weiqi of life and death be over? Grandmaster and the others would be rescued!?" Long Wanqing broke out with a sudden cry of happiness.

"Yes, Father, no matter what, you have to take it first!" Gu Qin also shouted happily.

Gu Hai, sitting before the weiqi board, had a slight furrow on his brow, for he still remembered the helplessness of the Ninth Young Master, who was so bound after he became the Ninth Young Master that he was looking for his subst.i.tute everywhere!

Others may not know what the inheritance was, but Gu Hai sure had some idea; the Eighth Young Master! If he received the inheritance, he would become the Eighth Young Master!

Gu Hai sank into silence for a while.

"Gu Hai, quickly accept the inheritance, then the earth dragon vein will also be yours! I will give my Dragon Drawing Jade to you!" Long Wanqing cried out anxiously.

The earth dragon vein!

It was one of the reasons why Gu Hai hadn't hesitated to come over.

At first, the earth dragon was not indispensable. However, when Yao Zhengtian pa.s.sed him the book, An Introduction to Empyrean Dynasties, he realized that the earth dragon vein was absolutely necessary.

Today, an opportunity to get the earth dragon vein was presented to him, should he still give up? If he gave up this time, would the same opportunity present itself in the future?

Gu Hai was silent for a good long while.

The countless cultivators in the vicinity were looking at Gu Hai in confusion. They were also wondering why Gu Hai was hesitating.

Only after having pondered for a good long while did Gu Hai came to a decision. He gradually picked up a piece and placed it at the Tian Yuan location.

Just as Gu Hai placed his piece, the peony flower blossomed into a resplendent golden glow before starting to turn transparent. Apart from the weiqi of life and weiqi of death, the rest of the flower turned transparent. With that, Gu Hai and his men seemed to be standing on a giant flower!

The golden glow, on the other hand, was coming from under the peony flower, from a huge dragon head.

The peony flower was suppressing a huge golden dragon head. It was just a head, and yet it was thirty thousand zhang in length (~100 km). It looked rather hideous as it roared. Nonetheless, it was helpless against the peony flower, unable to move an iota, and was extremely angry at the moment.

In between the dragon head and the great peony flower, there appeared to be an eight-colored fist-sized peony flower. The eight-colored peony was rotating at a slow speed, as beautiful as a dream. The eight glows emanating from it had a mesmerizing pull. One could see densely packed small characters vaguely amid this glow.

"That's the earth dragon vein!"

"What is that fist-sized peony flower? There seem to be many characters floating inside!"

"Was the inheritance that Meng Tai and the others mentioned referring to Elder Guanqi's inheritance?"

"Is that eight-colored flower Elder Guanqi's inheritance?"...

The fifty thousand cultivators outside suddenly turned excited.

If the earth dragon vein could turn everyone into wolves, then, Elder Guanqi's inheritance could do even more. It would surely lead to the strongest inheritance in the world!

Without a moment of delay, hundreds of cultivators stepped forward, rus.h.i.+ng towards the huge transparent peony flower.

"It's mine!"

"b.a.s.t.a.r.d, don't you dare try to fight with me!"

"It's mine, mine!"...

Hundreds of cultivators swarmed towards the giant peony flower.

A suction force suddenly emerged on the peony flower, dragging everyone rus.h.i.+ng towards the flower into the weiqi of death, turning them all into weiqi pieces in the blink of an eye. They disappeared, just like that, before everyone's eyes.

A thousand charging cultivators were completely sucked into the weiqi of death.

The cultivators outside were shocked out of their frenzy, looking at the scene before them in a daze.

"Why is this happening like this? It's not fair, why can Gu Hai and the others enter the weiqi of life, while when we step on it, we are sucked into weiqi of death? Why?"

"Is it because Gu Hai has solved the weiqi of life, so no one is allowed to enter it?"...

Dazed, countless cultivators looked at the giant transparent peony, looking at the earth dragon vein suppressed below and Elder Guanqi's inheritance. Everyone's blood started to boil, but only being able to watch and not being able to get to it made them extremely depressed.

Long Wanqing's eyes went wide as she looked below her feet. With everything below her feet turning transparent, the dragon vein entered her sight. But there was an even more exaggerated thing than the dragon vein... Elder Guanqi's inheritance!

"This...this...!" Long Wanqing cried out in surprise.

Gu Hai, on the other hand, had another furrow on his brow after just a glance.

"I have a doubt! Why are there three kinds of weiqi pieces on the weiqi of death? Black pieces, white pieces, and also another type, the transparent pieces! I wonder whether Elder Guanqi left some solution or not!?" Gu Hai stated skeptically.

In regards to Gu Hai's question, Long Wanqing, Gu Qin, and the others looked confused, wondering why Gu Hai was asking about the weiqi of death at this time!

Suddenly, the white-haired old man sitting right across from him smiled slightly and said, "My creator has indeed left a clue, my opponents seems to have guessed it! The clue my creator gave is: 'dao begets one, one begets two, two begets three, and three begets all things, [three] is the source of all!'. Three weiqi pieces represents three forms!"[1]

"Three forms?" Gu Hai sank into meditation as his brow furrowed again.

After pondering for a good long while, Gu Hai's expression changed as he said, "Three is the source of all? Three, it's all-inclusive? I once heard that Buddhism also had such explanations. The Buddhists have three Buddhas; Buddhas of past, present, and future!

“Is this weiqi game also like that? If the black piece is placed first, that fallen black piece represents the 'past'; a piece that had already been placed in the past. The unplaced white piece represents the 'future'; a piece that would be placed in the future. Then, what represents the 'present'? The black piece is placed, the white piece is to be placed, then, 'now', the now is the piece that is yet to be placed, but is the most likely move deduced in the player's mind. It's the weiqi piece inferred in the mind, an imaginary weiqi piece, it's not some real weiqi piece. Therefore, the transparent weiqi pieces on the weiqi of death aren't real weiqi pieces, but rather the deduced imaginary weiqi pieces?"

A slight smile bloomed across the white-haired old man's lips as he looked at Gu Hai. "I also have no idea! My creator didn't explain it to me, I only know that 'three' is all-inclusive. As for the rest, you should study and understand on your own! Please place your piece and accept the inheritance given to you by my creator!"

Gu Hai, looking at the white-haired old man, had a complex look on his face.

Then, he turned his gaze at the weiqi board, only to see an extra white piece already lying on it; apparently, the white-haired old man had already made his move. Taking a deep breath, Gu Hai placed another piece.

Tok!

Suddenly, terrifying tremors ran through the huge transparent peony, and crack after crack appeared on it. Even the eight-colored fist-sized peony was slightly trembling, as if it would rush towards Gu Hai.

So long as Gu Hai placed another piece, the eight-colored peony would break through the giant transparent peony and rush towards him!

"Please make your move!" the white-haired old man repeated, placing a white piece.

Gu Hai, on the other hand, frowned slightly as he inquired, "What is this inheritance? How useful is it to me?"

"According to my creator's testament, the moment you solved the game, you had already received most of the inheritance, in fact!" the white-haired old man answered.

"Oh?" Gu Hai was a little confused.

"You have comprehended the 29x29 weiqi game, haven't you? You have understood that 'the ways of heaven are impartial', Heaven and Earth aren't benevolent, the common people are weiqi pieces for them. The creator's inheritance consists of the heavenly dao inheritance, which is the foundation, and the rest is just non-essentials. In that eight-colored peony is just the inheritance of techniques, that's all.

“No matter how strong a technique is, it could never compare with the heavenly dao. You have already received the heavenly dao. The techniques in the eight-colored peony are just gilding the already refined gold, that's all. The earth dragon vein below is ranked last, it is even more superfluous. The peony, the king of flowers, is the inheritance for the king! It's the way of founding a Dynasty deduced by the creator. It will a.s.sist you in founding a nation, and help you take a different path than the creator!" the white-haired old man stated in a heavy voice.

"Way to found a Dynasty? Deduced by Elder Guanqi himself? Why didn't Elder Guanqi establish his own nation?" asked Gu Hai, unsure.

"Because founding a nation wasn't the creator's forte! He would be unable to reach the pinnacle in it. However, he could stand atop the world's peak in the dao of weiqi. Therefore, Elder Guanqi gave up on establis.h.i.+ng a dynasty, and chose to fight the heavens with the dao of weiqi!" the white-haired old man explained.

"Founding a dynasty wasn't Elder Guanqi's forte? Then, his inheritance is not necessarily the best!?" state Gu Hai calmly.

"Yes! But when all is said and done, he was stronger than the rulers of a majority of the royal and imperial Dynasties!" the white-haired old man explained.

"If no one could solve this game, then a majority of the inheritance, the heavenly dao inheritance, would be lost, wouldn't it? The most others could obtain would be the inheritance of techniques and the dragon vein, correct?" Gu Hai pressed.

"Only those who can understand the dao of weiqi can obtain the inheritance of heavenly dao, or else they are unable to get the inheritance," the white-haired old man nodded his affirmation.

"What do I have to pay in order to obtain the inheritance?" Gu Hai asked, perplexed.

"When you place another piece, just don't resist the eight-colored peony when it enters your body. There are thousands upon thousands of techniques in the eight-colored peony, all of which have the creator's stigma. Just relax your whole body and don't resist, let the eight-colored peony read your memories, and leave my creator's stigma in your body. From then on, you will be the Weiqi Empyrean Court's successor. The Weiqi Empyrean Cour disciples will listen to your commands, and your order will be the creator's order!" the white-haired old man explained.

"Read my memories!? Leave Elder Guanqi's stigma in the depth of my soul!?" Gu Hai immediately narrowed his eyes.

"Yes, because that is the only way to accept the inheritance of techniques!" the white-haired old man explained once more.

Gu Hai narrowed his eyes. There was a weiqi piece pinched between in his finger. Originally, he was about to place it on the board, but at this moment, he slowly took it back.

Branding Elder Guanqi's stigma onto the depths of my soul! Then, I too would strive to get rid of the Eight Young Master's ident.i.ty with all my effort, just like the Ninth Young Master! Gu Hai didn't want to do that. Moreover, he would never allow anyone to read his memories, even those who were already dead!

"Gu Hai, place your piece. Elder Guanqi is already dead. Do you know how many people on the Divine Continent would go crazy just to get their hands on this inheritance of techniques?" Long Wanqing said anxiously.

Gu Hai just shook his head. "Although the benefits are great, the risks are far greater! You don't understand the dreadfulness of Elder Guanqi's stigma!"

"Oh?" A furrow crept up on Long Wanqing's brow.

The nearby Gu Qin's expression changed as he took a deep breath and said, "Father, how about you let me accept the inheritance of techniques?"

"Hah?" A frowning Gu Hai looked over at Gu Qin.

"Father, I still remember mother's death like it happened just yesterday. I was incompetent, and was unable to do anything. I want to avenge mother. Father, you have been doing everything you can, but I don't want to become your burden, I want to share it! There is an opportunity before me, I can't give it up in vain! I am willing to accept this risk!" Gu Qin stated in a firm and resolute voice.

"There are too many risks, you would not be able to bear them!" Gu Hai said, shaking his head.

"Back then, I could only survive because father and mother picked up a freezing child from the snow. I am already satisfied. Furthermore, it's such a huge inheritance, so what if there are risks? At most, I will die! I don't care!" Gu Qin affirmed once more.

"No!" Gu Hai shook his head; he didn't want Gu Qin to be placed in any kind of danger.

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TL Notes:

[1] Dao begets One (nothingness; or reason of being), One begets Two (yin and yang), Two begets Three (Heaven, Earth and Man; or yin, yang and breath qi), Three begets all things. All things carry the female and embrace the male. And by breathing together, they live in harmony...