"Shall we guess stones then?" Lin Junbi asked.0

"You're such an exceptional Go player; are you sure you don't want to give me a three-stone advantage, Young Master Lin?" Cui Dongshan asked. "That way, once you win, you'll have bragging rights on top of a copper coin."0

Lin Junbi reached into a jar to pull out some Go stones as he sighed with an exasperated expression. "Do you have to be so shameless all the time? I understand that we're both cultivators, but can we not at least follow the rules of the mortal world when it comes to guessing stones?"0

Cui Dongshan was leaning over the Go board with his eyes wide and his ears peeled, clearly intending to gain an advantage in guessing stones. Lin Junbi had ways through which he could conceal the sound of the Go stones clacking against one another, but he was unable to glean Cui Dongshan's cultivation base, and if the latter were an earth immortal, then it wouldn't even matter.0

Cui Dongshan sat back down with a sheepish expression.0

Lin Junbi had undoubtedly come out on top in that brief exchange. By following the rules and setting an example, he had forced Cui Dongshan to also follow the rules with him, even if the latter was an immortal of the Upper Five Tiers. The mental warfare had begun even before the commencement of the game, and Jiang Guancheng and the other bystanders were very impressed.4

In order to ensure "fairness," Cui Dongshan proposed that they toss a lesser heat coin instead to decide who would get to play first. As luck would have it, he guessed right and would get the first move.3

Yu Juanfu couldn't help but shake her head in exasperation and dismay upon seeing this.1

The game began, and Lin Junbi played an opening from the Little Peach Blossom Spring Manual, which was a very rare and obscure Go manual.0

What was great about this opening was that it led to aggressive positions and fast games. It had been proven to be subpar opening at the very highest...1