Undying Life

Chapter 854: Yang Nine Yin Six

Zhong Shan and the Nine-Tailed Princess left the Second Chess Plaza. With this token, they could now enter the so-called Yan Hai Yun Mountain.

As soon as they returned to the Nine-Tailed Princess' Mansion, she said to Zhong Shan, "Zhong Shan, you truly are my lucky star. We are about to head to Yan Hai Yun Mountain. Rest for a day, and tomorrow come with me to a place. I hope the old man from the Ziyang family was right."

"The old man from the Ziyang family?" Zhong Shan asked, slightly surprised.

"Yes, nothing much. He's a fate manipulator. Originally, he came to find a traitor from the Ziyang family, and I happened to meet him. I had him read my fortune, and he said that I would have great fortune at Yan Hai Yun Mountain this time. So, I must go," the Nine-Tailed Princess explained directly.

"A fate manipulator? A fortune-teller?" Zhong Shan raised an eyebrow.

Zhong Shan's son, Zhong Xuan, had been a fate manipulator but had died in a battle against Kong Xuan.

"Fortune-telling? I don't know. I think they can only predict some things. For example, the old man from the Ziyang family who read my fortune. He came to hunt down a traitor, but that traitor died on his own without being hunted. If he had known earlier, why would he have come? Fortune-telling can only predict so much," the Nine-Tailed Princess shook her head.

"Indeed," Zhong Shan nodded.

After just one day of rest, Zhong Shan and the Nine-Tailed Princess set off from Qingqiu.

At this moment, the Taichu Sacred King's attitude was quite peculiar. Normally, a vassal king like Zhong Shan would not be allowed to leave Qingqiu. However, the Nine-Tailed Princess managed to take Zhong Shan out. They encountered some interceptions along the way, but after the Nine-Tailed Princess showed her command token, they were let through.

At Sima Qianjun's residence.

"Young Master, Zhong Shan and the Nine-Tailed Princess left Qingqiu yesterday!" a servant reported.

"What? How can Zhong Shan leave? Is he violating the vassal agreement?" Sima Qianjun's eyes widened.

"No, the Nine-Tailed Princess showed a Taichu Order, and everyone had to let them pass," the servant explained.

"A Taichu Order? Let them pass? What is the Sacred King thinking? How can Zhong Shan leave Qingqiu?" Sima Qianjun said angrily.

"Young Master, be careful with your words!" the servant said fearfully. Speaking against the Sacred King was a grave offense.

"Careful my ass! This is my house, and if something happens, you won't escape either. Get out!" Sima Qianjun shouted, extremely irritable.

The servant retreated in fear.

Zhong Shan and the Nine-Tailed Princess flew south, traveling for about a month.

"We're here," the Nine-Tailed Princess said with a satisfied smile.

Her enchanting face, when smiling, seemed to change the world around her. A wild goose flying overhead bizarrely stopped flapping its wings and plummeted straight down the mountain.

"What a sin!" Zhong Shan shook his head.

The Nine-Tailed Princess stopped above a valley. Below, in the forest, numerous foxes were running around. Seeing the Nine-Tailed Princess descend, most of the foxes were momentarily stunned, clearly struck by her enchanting aura.

"What is this place?" Zhong Shan asked.

"Wait for me on the mountain! I'm going to retrieve something my father left for me," the Nine-Tailed Princess said.

"Alright."

The Nine-Tailed Princess descended into the valley and tapped on a large rock in a specific pattern. Soon, a cave entrance appeared in the mountain, and the Nine-Tailed Princess darted inside.

Zhong Shan, not curious enough to follow her, waited patiently, thinking about Yan Hai Yun Mountain and what might await them there.

"Yin～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～!"

At that moment, a phoenix cry pierced the sky. Zhong Shan saw a red phoenix soaring into the sky from the mountain before him. It was an energy phoenix. Following it, a golden dragon ascended.

"What is Nine-Tails doing in there? No, wait!" Zhong Shan realized in astonishment that it wasn't from the mountain where Nine-Tails was, but from all directions. Countless divine beast phantoms, including phoenixes, qilins, dragons, and cranes, rose into the sky, filling it with their presence. Rainbows arched from the ground to the heavens.

Immortal music filled the air, and a fragrant aroma spread everywhere. The entire sky was bathed in boundless rosy clouds, creating an extremely beautiful scene.

"What... what is this?" Zhong Shan stared at the sky in amazement.

Heavenly omens? Is another world being created? Such auspicious signs? It can't be a coincidence that I happened to be here, right?

"Zhong Shan, what's happening?" The Nine-Tailed Princess's voice suddenly came from beside him.

At some point, she had returned to his side.

"I'm not sure yet, but it looks a lot like when I created my world," Zhong Shan frowned.

"Is someone else creating a world?" The Nine-Tailed Princess's eyes lit up.

"Not sure yet," Zhong Shan shook his head.

The two stood at the peak of the mountain, waiting for a day.

After a day, the magnificent scene in the sky suddenly began to retreat. The phantoms of divine beasts gradually disappeared, the immortal music stopped, and the fragrance dissipated, as if nothing had happened.

Zhong Shan was slightly surprised, as he had now confirmed that this was not the creation of a world.

But if it wasn't that, what had caused such a dramatic celestial phenomenon in this region?

"I know what it is!" The Nine-Tailed Princess's eyes lit up with understanding.

"You know? You know what it is?" Zhong Shan asked in surprise.

"Of course, who do you think I am?" The Nine-Tailed Princess replied proudly.

"So, what is it?"

The Nine-Tailed Princess glanced at Zhong Shan with a haughty look. "Is that how you ask your lord as a retainer?"

Zhong Shan: "...!"

"You haven't even called me 'Lord' yet. Call me 'Lord,' and I'll tell you," she teased.

Zhong Shan was speechless.

"Never mind, if you don't know, just forget it!" Zhong Shan shook his head, refusing to give in.

"Who said I don't know? The Sacred King told me himself," the Nine-Tailed Princess said, frustrated.

"I'm also a Sacred King, how come I don't know? If you don't want to say, then forget it," Zhong Shan, unwilling to call her 'Lord,' retorted.

"Sigh, you're so stubborn. Fine, I'll tell you. But when we get to Yan Hai Yun Mountain, you'll have to help me more," the Nine-Tailed Princess said, exasperated.

"You can count on it," Zhong Shan laughed.

Seeing Zhong Shan's smile, the Nine-Tailed Princess could only shake her head in exasperation.

"A new Saint has been born, causing celestial phenomena! This is happening all over the world," the Nine-Tailed Princess explained.

"A Saint? How do you know?" Zhong Shan asked, surprised.

"A few hundred years ago, a Saint died, remember?"

"Yes, I was in the Small Thousand World at the time and witnessed the blood rain from the sky, the heavens mourning," Zhong Shan nodded.

"There are nine Saints in the Yang Realm. If one dies, another must be born to maintain balance in the heavenly way," the Nine-Tailed Princess said proudly.

"Nine Saints in the Yang Realm, and now a new one has been born?" Zhong Shan pondered.

"Yes, that's why we saw such a grand phenomenon. The balance must be restored," the Nine-Tailed Princess affirmed.

"In the Yang Realm, there are nine Saints? Only nine?" Zhong Shan asked.

"Of course, haven't you heard of 'Yang Nine Yin Six'? The ultimate number for Yang is nine, and for Yin, it's six. The Yang Realm can only have nine Saints, and the Yin Realm can only have six. Anyway, they are all ancient beings. I wonder who the newly born Saint is. I hope it's someone close to us, like Zhuangzi," the Nine-Tailed Princess explained.

"Zhuangzi isn't a Saint?" Zhong Shan asked, puzzled.

"I heard he's close but not quite there yet. By the way, I heard that during your world-creating event, Confucius' disciples and Zhuangzi's disciples almost fought because of you. What's the story there?" the Nine-Tailed Princess suddenly became gossipy.

Zhong Shan was speechless.

"Come on, tell me!" she urged.

"I think it's getting late. If we don't hurry, we'll miss the event at Yan Hai Yun Mountain!" Zhong Shan changed the subject.

After another month of travel, they finally arrived at the so-called Yan Hai Yun Mountain.

Yan Hai Yun Mountain was an island in a mist-covered sea. The thick fog made it impossible to find directions.

"We're late! We're late!" The Nine-Tailed Princess was anxious.

"What a grand formation, covering the entire sea?" Zhong Shan squinted in amazement.

"Exactly. Without a guide, you'll be completely disoriented inside!" The Nine-Tailed Princess was visibly worried.

Just then, a golden boat suddenly flew through the fog.

"A cloud ship?" The Nine-Tailed Princess's face lit up with joy.

"Cloud ship, over here! Take us to Yan Hai Yun Mountain," she called out.

The golden boat quickly approached. A creature with a human body and a fox's head was steering it. Zhong Shan found the 'fox-man,' or perhaps 'man-fox,' extremely peculiar.

"This is my token from the Nine-Tailed Princess' Mansion. Take us in!" The Nine-Tailed Princess handed over Zhong Shan's token.

The strange creature took the token, inspected it carefully, and said, "Okay!"

The way it spoke was very mechanical, almost robotic.

Zhong Shan and the Nine-Tailed Princess boarded the boat, with Zhong Shan still staring curiously at the creature.

"Curious, right? It's a puppet, designed to navigate the formation of Yan Hai Yun Mountain," the Nine-Tailed Princess explained with a smile.

"A puppet?" Zhong Shan asked, intrigued.

"Of course, otherwise, how could it look like that?" the Nine-Tailed Princess replied.

Zhong Shan examined the puppet closely, marveling at its intricate design.

"Has the Soul Game started?" The Nine-Tailed Princess asked the puppet.

"It started ten days ago," the puppet replied.

"So soon? We're late. Hurry up, faster!" The Nine-Tailed Princess urged.

"Yes!"

The cloud ship sped through the mist-covered sea. Despite its impressive speed, it took an entire day and night to reach a fog-shrouded island.

The island was enormous.

"Quick, follow me!" The Nine-Tailed Princess said, pulling Zhong Shan towards the island.

Flying above the island, Zhong Shan noticed numerous foxes running around. The dense forests and the abundance of spiritual energy made it clear that this place was special.

In the center of the island stood the highest peak, surrounded by smaller peaks. Each smaller peak was crowded with people, likely the qualified chess players.

On a protruding terrace halfway up the central peak, a massive chessboard was set up. Two people were seated on either side of the board. One of them was Mr. Li, whom Zhong Shan recognized.

Opposite Mr. Li was an old man with white hair and a white beard. They were deeply engrossed in their game.

"That old man is the First Chess Sage of the Feng Tomb Domain, an elder of the fox clan. The Chess Sage Chimei! He is the one who organized this Soul Game," the Nine-Tailed Princess explained.