Chapter 036: Return to Liyue!

If Vorthis couldn't beat Morax at Go, did it mean someone else couldn't do it for him?

What's more, the one facing Morax at Go now was none other than an intelligent chessboard, created by Vorthis himself using the Authority of Manifestation.

By rounding up the logic, wasn't this equivalent to Vorthis playing against Morax?

Taking it a step further, didn't that mean Vorthis had essentially defeated Morax?

"Oh, I'm such a clever little genius!"

"This game, I concede."

With the intelligent chessboard's final move, all of Morax's paths to victory were sealed.

The formation was complete, leaving Morax with no chance of survival!

The chessboard's skill was indeed profound, though there was one thing Morax found hard to grasp.

How could someone like Vorthis, with mediocre Go skills, create such an extraordinarily skilled chessboard?

Wasn't that... unreasonable?

However, when he considered the existence of the Authority of Manifestation, it all started to make sense.

"What do you think, Guizhong?" Vorthis said, his face glowing with pride. "I told you, Morax would never beat my intelligent chessboard."

Anyone unaware might have thought he himself had triumphed over Morax.

"The changes within the game are countless," Guizhong observed. "This intelligent chessboard drew Morax step by step into the abyss, until the overall formation left him no room to maneuver.

"Such skill is truly astounding. I'm curious, though—how did such a small chessboard come to hold such immense intelligence?"

Standing by as a spectator during the match between Morax and the chessboard, Guizhong gradually grasped the essence of Go and even discerned some of the chessboard's strategies.

As the saying goes, "The onlooker sees clearly."

Initially, Guizhong had thought Morax would win, but she never imagined that such a seemingly simple chessboard could exhibit such profound wisdom.

Guizhong, who loved mechanical arts, was immensely curious about the principles behind the chessboard, even though she knew it was created using Vorthis's Authority of Manifestation.

When she voiced her curiosity, Morax also perked up, intrigued.

"How did you achieve this?"

"My idea is actually quite simple. The chessboard operates on countless possibilities, which decrease as the game progresses."

"The core ability of the intelligent chessboard is simulation. It can simulate thousands of potential moves by the opponent and respond accordingly, achieving victory through sheer calculation."

Vorthis explained the principles behind his creation in simple terms.

Hearing this, both Guizhong and Morax finally understood.

So that's how it worked.

Simulating thousands of potential moves... Didn't that essentially mean Morax was playing against thousands of opponents simultaneously?

How ingenious! But how exactly was this design implemented within the chessboard?

"Um, well…" Guizhong hesitated before finally asking, "Could I borrow it for study?"

She knew her request might seem a bit unreasonable, but the intelligent chessboard was far too fascinating for her to resist!

Vorthis nodded readily. "Of course! If you like it, Guizhong, just take it. Think of it as a gift from me."

With that, the chessboard floated into Guizhong's hands.

Simultaneously, a white glow appeared in Vorthis's palm, and a new intelligent chessboard materialized in his hand.

Even though Guizhong had seen Vorthis use his Authority of Manifestation before, she couldn't help marveling at it every time. How could such a power exist? The world seemed to favor Vorthis too much…

"Hehe, well then, Guizhong, we'll be off now. Oh, take this."

"This is called a Communication Talisman. In case of emergency, tearing it will transmit up to ten seconds of speech directly to me."

Before leaving, Vorthis handed Guizhong a yellow talisman.

Although talismans existed among the adepti of Jueyun Karst, Vorthis clearly wasn't well-versed in their creation. This was simply another product of his Authority of Manifestation.

Guizhong accepted the talisman with a nod, then eagerly returned to her palace, eager to dismantle the chessboard and uncover its secrets.

Vorthis, on the other hand, looked forward to seeing if his manifested creations could truly be studied by others.

After a nod from Morax, the two leapt into the air and vanished as specks of light above Guizhong's domain.

Back in Liyue, Vorthis resumed his usual laid-back lifestyle.

But he wasn't entirely idle. Building on the intelligent Go chessboard, he manifested an intelligent chessboard and even added a Gomoku mode to the Go board.

Vorthis truly considered himself a genius.

A year passed, and the people of Liyue once again celebrated a bountiful harvest. With plentiful grain in every household, the citizens no longer worried about food.

In the same year, Morax accepted two groups of refugees displaced by wars among other Gods' territories.

Hearing of a land nestled within the mountains called Liyue, governed by the benevolent God of Geo Morax and the God of Manifestation Zennos, the refugees traveled across treacherous terrain to seek sanctuary.

Under the protection of the two Gods, Liyue's citizens enjoyed peace and prosperity, free from hunger or external threats.

After an incident involving the God of Sandstorm demanding the return of the refugees—only to be slain by Morax's spear—other Gods became reluctant to provoke this "god of slaughter."

With no interest in expanding his territory, Morax posed no threat to their ambitions. Why risk annihilation for no gain?

As for the refugees? They couldn't care less.