Chessboard (3)

Yun Lintian stared at the chessboard between them. He had never been particularly skilled at the game—his life had been one of cultivation and battle, not leisurely strategy. But the challenge in Ping Heng's eyes was unmistakable.

If you want my power, prove you can wield it.

"I'll play," Yun Lintian said.

He reached for a black pawn—and the moment his fingers touched the piece, the world shifted.

A crushing weight pressed down on his shoulders. His breath caught in his throat as his vision blurred, then sharpened with terrifying clarity. The chessboard was no longer just a board—it was the world.

Every piece represented a force of existence. The pawns were mortal lives, flickering like candles in the wind. The knights were warriors, bound by honor and blood. The bishops were faith and knowledge, the rooks the unyielding foundations of reality. The queen—limitless potential. The king—the fragile core of it all.