Chapter 60: The Exquisite Chessboard

A pile of enormous stone statues might not be enough to leave one speechless—yet the sight of a single claw truly startled Xiao Zhang. Just the claw alone, belonging to a statue of unimaginable size, stretched more than ten meters long. Was this the white dragon Lya had spoken of?

Lya stared at the statue before her, utterly transfixed for a full minute before letting out a long breath. “I never imagined the white dragon would look like this!”

Xiao Zhang glanced at Zhao Bai and spoke in a low voice, “Once we go in, no matter what happens, stick close to me. Understand?”

Zhao Bai nodded calmly.

The three of them strode forward, taking dozens of steps, nearly setting foot amidst the forest of statues when—

Suddenly, a prompt appeared in Xiao Zhang’s vision system!

Prompt: You have entered the boss area of this instance. Final quest unlocked: Enter the altar, defeat the guardian, and prevent the white dragon from awakening! Note: This is an S-level difficulty instance. Rewards will be calculated based on quest completion and contribution.

Note: If the white dragon awakens, the boss will change to the white dragon.

After reading the prompt, Xiao Zhang’s expression changed at once. He looked up to see Zhao Bai and Lya both bearing grave expressions—they had clearly received the same message.

Prompt: A player has entered the boss area. The white dragon is about to awaken. Countdown to awakening: two hours.

One hour, thirty minutes, twenty-seven seconds remaining.

Damn! Xiao Zhang felt his scalp tingle!

He exchanged a look with Lya, both of their faces growing even more somber. From this information, two key points became clear: first, they had to defeat the guardian; and more importantly, someone had already entered the Epang Palace before them—by approximately thirty minutes.

Xiao Zhang understood that the system’s reference to “players” didn’t only mean the “descenders.” Anyone who entered the instance was considered a player.

But did “someone entered first” mean an awakened one, or a real player?

No one knew!

After all, when the three of them had been trapped in that magma chamber, they’d received a prompt that a player had entered!

“Quit dawdling—let’s go! Who knows how far the others have gotten with the quest?” Lya’s voice was tense as she dashed toward the altar, Xiao Zhang close behind.

The two of them reached the altar gates in one breath, only to be greeted by a shocking sight:

Corpses lay scattered haphazardly at the entrance to the altar!

There were men and women, each dressed differently—clearly other instance entrants, though it was impossible to tell whether they were players or awakened ones. Nearby, fragments of broken humanoid statues lay strewn about.

These poor souls had died gruesomely; some were reduced to mere pulp.

“They must have been killed by the guardian!” Lya said quickly. “Be careful!”

Xiao Zhang and Zhao Bai readied themselves for battle. “So what do we do?”

“We’ll figure it out inside!” Lya narrowed her eyes. “I have to complete this quest, no matter what it is!”

Without further ado, she strode up and kicked the massive black door—at least five or six meters high!

Boom! The impact resounded dully—Lya’s kick was clearly powerful.

But the door didn’t budge. At that moment, Zhao Bai noticed two red dots moving toward them.

“Monsters incoming!” Zhao Bai warned the others.

Lya, undeterred by her failed attempt, prepared to kick the door again. Xiao Zhang hurriedly grabbed her from behind. “Hold on, let’s clear the monsters first!”

Prompt: Please use a key to open the door. (Note: Without a key, you can kill the guardian to gain entry.)

Xiao Zhang’s face grew tense. “Looks like those poor souls died here because they didn’t have the key and were killed by the guardian.”

Lya’s eyes flickered. “What key?”

Examining the door, Xiao Zhang found a groove that matched the candlestick he’d yanked down earlier.

At that moment, Zhao Bai’s system showed that the two monsters had arrived.

Watching the two creatures swoop down, Zhao Bai glanced at his system’s helpful warning: Flying Yaksha—current strength insufficient, combat fatality rate 100%. Suggest self-termination.

“Shit!”

“Zhao Bai, where’s that candlestick?” Xiao Zhang called. He didn’t hold out much hope—it might’ve been lost long ago.

Lya glanced at Xiao Zhang, thinking he’d found a solution, and instantly drew her twin swords, charging the two Flying Yaksha.

“Catch!” Zhao Bai tossed the candlestick he’d previously pocketed to Xiao Zhang.

Xiao Zhang caught it and fitted it into the groove. Instantly, with a click, his hand was locked in place—and a transparent chessboard appeared on the door.

Prompt: Hidden quest activated—Linglong Chess Game.

Xiao Zhang stared, dumbfounded, at the black and white stones. He didn’t know the first thing about go!

Zhao Bai, intent on helping Lya, was promptly shut down by a sharp retort—“Stay out of the way, slacker!”—and wandered over to Xiao Zhang for consolation. “What’s this thing?”

Xiao Zhang had barely made five or six moves before becoming completely lost. Zhao Bai peered at the board. “Is this five-in-a-row?”

“Five-in-a-row, my ass!” Xiao Zhang nearly laughed in exasperation. “It’s go, go!”

Another prompt appeared: Linglong Chess Game initiated. If the player fails, they will be erased by the chess game.

Xiao Zhang: What the...

“I can’t play any more!” Xiao Zhang tried to pull his right hand free, but it was locked tight. “If I keep going, I’m dead!”

Zhao Bai scratched his head in frustration. He couldn’t help with the monsters, nor with the chess game!

At that moment, Lya casually flung aside the heads of the two Yaksha and strode over to Xiao Zhang.

Zhao Bai glanced at the lifeless monsters and shuddered—this woman was not to be trifled with! In such a short time, she’d dispatched two creatures that could have finished him off.

Lya glanced at Xiao Zhang’s predicament. “Seriously? Figures you’d be a rookie.”

Since the hidden quest was activated, the door wouldn’t open even if the guardian was slain.

“If you’re so good, you do it!” Xiao Zhang tried to move aside, but his hand was locked in place.

Rolling her eyes at him, Lya took over the chessboard. “You’ve made a mess of this game!”

Because she had to play, she leaned in close to Xiao Zhang. Lya seemed unfazed, but Xiao Zhang felt awkward and tried to shift his position.

“Don’t move! You’ll mess me up!” Lya snapped.

Xiao Zhang could only give in, maintaining the awkward posture while watching Lya play.

Zhao Bai, observing the two, couldn’t help but shoot Xiao Zhang a middle finger.