Chapter 103: Victory and Defeat

In the mundane world, gold, silver, and copper coins serve as currency, but in the Spirit Wilderness, various jade stones function as the medium of exchange among cultivators, each type gradually evolving to fulfill different purposes.

For instance, there are jade stones used to test a person's innate aptitude. The Dao Sect in the southwestern mountains discovered a rare Qingzhuo jade capable of measuring Daoist body talent. Other sacred sites within the sect also possess similar immortal jades to assess one’s cultivation potential.

The translucent jade stone now placed before Shen Yu is among the most common in the Spirit Wilderness: the Boundary-Defining Jade. When a person reaches a specific strength threshold, the jade reacts by glowing.

Shen Yu gazed at the jade. The crowd watched him silently. The three members from the Qingxu Sect looked down with indifferent eyes. If one couldn’t even pass the simplest test, they wouldn’t even be worth their attention.

At that moment, footsteps sounded. Shen Yu said nothing but walked forward, gently placing his hand on the center of the jade. A faint radiance emerged in the spacious, somewhat dim room, glowing softly before stabilizing.

Withdrawing his hand, Shen Yu ignored the astonished gazes and resumed inspecting the formation array. Silence hung heavily among the onlookers.

The steward from the Four Directions Pavilion glanced quietly at the woman in yellow and then declared, “Passed.”

Shen Yu’s expression remained calm. Now at the Dongzhen Realm, while he seemed somewhat behind among the top young talents in the cultivation world, in such mundane tests, he could already be considered a genius, even an anomaly.

In the Dao Sect, the young disciples he met there might one day become the strongest cultivators in the entire Spirit Wilderness, which made his current realm seem unimpressive, perhaps even inferior.

But in truth, at his age, being at the Dongzhen Realm was remarkable—almost godlike.

The eldest daughter of the Nangong family, who had maintained a lazy expression, let her beautiful eyes flicker. She pointed to the enormous formation array and smiled, “Young master, would you care to try as well?”

Shen Yu paused briefly and honestly replied, “I don’t know how.”

“You don’t know? Then you can learn.”

A teasing voice came, but this time it wasn’t Nangong Rou speaking. Instead, it was an elderly white-haired woman from the Qingxu Sect seated at the front. Her face, covered in wrinkles like gnarled tree roots, contorted into a sinister smile.

In a voice that grated unpleasantly, the old woman said, “Though our two disciples here from Qingxu Sect aren’t as proficient as Miss Nangong in formations, we know enough to play. How about a little match?”

Nangong Rou grinned maliciously, her gaze flickering between the two.

---

Almost all conflicts in the world arise from trivial matters. As one of the four great families of Qianliu City, Nangong Rou had witnessed many squabbles since childhood, having been treated like a treasured gem. Thus, she found the current situation quite interesting.

Yang Family’s old servant shook his head slightly at Shen Yu. Yang Pan’er tugged Shen Yu’s sleeve, made a face at the old woman, and angrily said, “No one wants to play with you!”

Having been influenced by her family’s environment for years, Yang Pan’er naturally sensed the ill intentions behind the old woman’s words.

The sinister old woman’s lips twitched as she sneered mockingly, “If Miss Yang marries our young sect leader in the future, then we’ll all be family. By seniority, you’d have to call me Aunt. It’s painful to suffer from harsh words.”

Yang Pan’er sprang up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Before she could retort, a wave of a hand cut her off.

Shen Yu said calmly, “How do you want to play?”

“Playing on the formation array is like commanding troops in a battle in the mortal realm. Naturally, there are winners and losers. If someone loses, then...” The old woman’s eyes flickered with amusement as she finished, “They have to crawl out.”

Shen Yu smiled faintly, “Crawl out?”

A tall young man behind the old woman sneered, “Yes, crawl on the ground like a turtle.”

Nangong Rou said nothing, quietly playing with her fingers.

Shen Yu turned and asked, “Do you know how to play?”

Yang Pan’er blinked and said, “I do, but I’m not very good.”

Shen Yu nodded, “That’s enough.”

...

The formation array was a rectangular platform about twenty zhang long and ten zhang wide. It depicted mountains, rivers, valleys, cities, and lakes.

Surrounded by ethereal spiritual energy emitting a faint blue glow, the two players faced off, commanding figurines as soldiers. They deployed troops across the array, engaging in battle. Victory was claimed by the side that successfully occupied the opponent’s largest city.

The Qingxu Sect’s representative was the tall young man who had spoken earlier.

With the steward’s announcement, the two began their deployment.

Yang Pan’er appeared nervous and adopted the most conservative strategy, setting guards at every key point on the array, determined to hold her positions to the end.

Unfortunately, her understanding of the game was shallow. As the opponent's powerful offensive pressed in from all sides, her defenses quickly fell apart, and the situation turned dire.

Her opponent was unhurried, gradually concentrating all forces on the array, slicing away like a dull blade, humiliating her mercilessly.

Shen Yu watched the battle silently.

This game resembled chess, but with varying numbers of pieces and a greater emphasis on deduction and stratagem.

Though Yang Pan’er knew the basic rules, rigidity in understanding was no match for witnessing practical application.

---

With each critical pass breached and city seized, Yang Pan’er’s frown deepened, her expression growing increasingly distressed and pitiful.

“That’s enough,” Shen Yu said.

The crowd was momentarily stunned.

The confident Qingxu Sect disciple smiled, “Are you conceding?”

Shen Yu shook his head, “I’ll take over.”

...

Shen Yu took Yang Pan’er's place.

Few believed the tide would turn in his favor. Even Nangong Rou, the one with the deepest formation comprehension, thought the outcome was sealed—no chance for a comeback.

The situation was lost.

The Qingxu Sect disciple, convinced of victory, laughed, “You’ve only observed for less than a quarter of an hour. Do you think you’re one of those genius formation tacticians from the Celestial Secrets Pavilion?”

Shen Yu said nothing, quietly observing the array.

He disliked idle talk, and those whom he would call geniuses certainly were not the ones this man mentioned.

Then, Shen Yu’s right hand gently rested on the edge of the formation array.

The azure mist swirled rapidly atop the array, shifting like storm clouds gathering, as if sounding the horn for a counterattack.

...

Time passed, moment by moment.

Finally,

Shen Yu withdrew his hand from the array. The azure mist before him slowly calmed.

The Qingxu Sect disciple’s eyes filled with an incomprehensible expression, his face blank, then he slumped into a nearby chair.

The game was over.

Shen Yu had won. Naturally, he had won.

No one spoke, not even Nangong Rou, whose previously lazy face had turned grave.

Shen Yu turned his head, then looked back at the formation array. Finding some aspects still lacking, he frowned deeply.