The sky seemed to dim down in brightness due to the roar of the tiger.
The stench in the gusting wind was so pungent that it made people feel like vomiting.
But Chen Yun didn't have that thought at the moment; his entire body was tense.
To come across a tiger in the wilderness alone could very well be meeting a tiger that has become spiritual, and with no weapons, it is likely that your life will end at the tiger's mouth!
Chen Yun unconsciously touched the Zhenkui amulet and fire sticks in his inner pocket.
Perhaps, the Zhenkui amulet is the only means of saving his life tonight.
Just as he was tensing up, the gusts of wind suddenly stopped.
Seeing this, Chen Yun took out the Zhenkui amulet and the fire sticks and lit the fire sticks.
If he really encounters a situation, he would immediately light the Zhenkui amulet.
Sa sa, sa sa.
It seems like something is stepping on the dried branches.
Chen Yun's heart began to throb fiercely, and his gaze remained fixed on the source of the sound.
In the next moment, a majestic and powerful creature, its eyes shining with white light, as large as a water buffalo, appeared!
Chen Yun's pupils suddenly constricted, and his entire body began to tremble uncontrollably.
According to the memories of his past life, even the largest individual among tigers, the Siberian tiger, has a theoretical maximum weight of no more than 700 pounds. But this enormous tiger before him, by eye estimation, is at least over a thousand pounds!
Done!
Tonight, he will die!
Chen Yun was so frightened that his legs wobbled.
However, the desire to survive did not make him lose his composure.
He instinctively wanted to light the amulet.
A surprising scene unfolded.
The large tiger with a white stripe on its forehead and a white mark above its nose coldly looked at him, then revealed a contemptuous "chuckle."
Yes, Chen Yun was very certain that the tiger showed these expressions!
In that instant, he finally confirmed that this was indeed a tiger spirit, an intelligent tiger spirit with spiritual intelligence.
In the next moment, the tiger verified Chen Yun's guess.
It spoke out in human words: "Young man, it's deep into the night and no one is about, quickly go home."
After saying this, it spat out a red beam of light that shot straight towards Chen Yun.
Before even the thought could occur to him, that red light had already enveloped the place where Chen Yun's arm was injured.
A strange itch came from the wound.
Looking down, he was astonished to see that his wound was healing at a visible speed.
In the blink of an eye, his arm, which was once covered in open wounds and bleeding profusely, had already completely healed.
If Chen Yun hadn't used the dim light of the stars to see a faint scar, he might really have believed that he hadn't been injured!
Chen Yun immediately knew that the tiger spirit had no ill intent, so he quickly kowtowed and bowed, "Thank you, senior, for treating my injury."
"Your injury was caused by me, so I should naturally heal your injuries."
The tiger spirit did not look at him again, but simply moved forward towards the Zhongshan Mountain.
Chen Yun wanted to say something more, but suddenly realized that the tiger spirit had completely vanished after its voice had faded.
"Huff, I almost scared myself to death."
He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
It was precisely because of this scare that Chen Yun dared not delay any further and hurried back towards the Zhongshan Mountain again.
...
At the foot of Zhongshan Mountain.
When Chen Yun arrived here, it was half an hour later.
He was about to go back to the Taoist temple along the way.
Suddenly, he saw the tiger spirit that had healed his injuries earlier.
At this moment, the tiger spirit seemed to be sleeping, sprawled limply under a large catalpa tree.
And under the shadow of this large catalpa tree, there were two men sitting together.
The two men sat opposite each other on the ground, with something seemingly placed in between them.
Chen Yun took a closer look and then realized who the two men were.
The middle-aged man facing north has black facial hair and thick eyebrows, wearing a helmet. On his left side is a iron whip, and on his right side is a black panther lying down.
The other middle-aged man facing south was also sitting there, but due to the angle, Chen Yun could only see his side face.
But just by looking at the side face, he couldn't help but secretly clap.
Perfect!
What a formidable man!
This man has a red, slightly tanned face, phoenix eyes, three beard strands, a long beard measuring one foot and eight inches, a sky-blue silk bandana tied around his neck, a red formal gown, a jade sash tied around his waist, and black formal shoes. Just by sitting there without even showing anger, he exudes an air of authority.
Chen Yun stood there and gazed at them for a while. He originally planned to continue on his way back to the Taoist temple.
But to his surprise, the two men seemed to have noticed him.
The man with a red, slightly tanned face suddenly spoke up: "You ungrateful young man, why do you still follow us here when Master Guan has told you to go home at once?"
Hmm?
Did you tell me to go home quickly?
Yes, it was the tiger spirit who said that.
Chen Yun thought in his heart that this senior might have been transformed into the tiger spirit.
He was somewhat taken aback and didn't have time to answer promptly.
The man with black facial hair and thick eyebrows laughed and said, "Brother Guan, he is a worker at the Taoist temple. He is now heading back to the temple, which is not following us here."
"Oh, I misunderstood."
The man with a red, slightly tanned face didn't even raise his head; it seemed like he had picked up something from in front of him, looking a bit indecisive.
Chen Yun originally wanted to pass by, but thinking about the "Guan senior" who had just treated his injuries, he hesitated for a moment and walked towards the two men and the two tigers.
Getting closer to the catalpa tree shade.
A feeling of coolness came over him.
This feeling of coolness had nothing to do with the cold weather. Chen Yun felt that it was more like the chill wind caused by the evil ghost he and Lin Chen and the others had encountered during their descent to deal with ghosts.
The only difference was that this chill was warm and comfortable, making him feel cool without being cold.
Although he couldn't figure out what was going on, Chen Yun still bowed deeply to the man with a red, slightly tanned face, "Thank you, Senior Guan, for healing my injury with magic earlier."
Senior Guan waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. You must not disturb us while we're playing chess."
Senior Zhao, although he looked stern and fierce, seemed to have a good temperament.
He smiled and said, "Little fellow, you don't need to be so formal with him. He's a rough character with an ego. The more polite you are, the more he'll take it for granted."
Senior Guan's phoenix eyes narrowed, and he snorted, "Guan reads the Spring and Autumn Annals; what do you mean by a 'rough' person? Play your damn chess!"
Guan reads the Spring and Autumn Annals?
Chen Yun was startled, thinking to himself that this man with a red, slightly tanned face might be Guan Yu, also known as the Guan Zhongyuan.
While the two men were talking, he looked up and saw a stone chessboard set in the middle between them, along with some stone and wooden chess pieces.
The chess pieces were made of different materials, seemingly to differentiate between allies and enemies.
They looked somewhat like chess.
Although the board had nine horizontal and nine vertical lines, and there were fewer pieces on it, it was somewhat like a game of chess.
Chen Yun quickly scanned the board and found no lines dividing between Chu and Han, nor any pieces like cannons.
There were only six types of chess pieces on the board, which were: King, General (elephant), Strategist, Cart, Sky Horse, and Six Marquis (foot soldiers).
Moreover, there was a die next to the chessboard, but he didn't know what it was for.
The next moment, Chen Yun understood.
He saw Senior Guan pick up the die and throw it, rolling a six.
He immediately laughed loudly, "I can move six steps with this die."
After speaking, he moved the Sky Horse six steps forward.
Senior Zhao also picked up the die and threw it, but it landed on one.
His originally black face turned even darker, and he moved a foot soldier without saying a word.
Chen Yun was confused and wondered what they were playing.
The two continued to play their game, completely ignoring Chen Yun's question.
Perhaps too curious about what the two were playing, Chen Yun simply stood there and watched them.
In no time, Senior Zhao and Senior Guan had played a few rounds of chess.
Chen Yun began to catch on to the game they were playing and realized that it might be an early version of chess.
Senior Guan won the first game but lost the next three or four games in a row, being ridiculed by Senior Zhao several times.
As a result, Senior Guan's face became somewhat red with embarrassment, but he couldn't argue with Senior Zhao because he was indeed outmatched. So, he turned his head and said to Chen Yun in an unenthusiastic tone: "You shouldn't be staying here at this time of night. What are you doing here? Are you making fun of Senior Guan?"
Ha-ha," Senior Zhao, feeling good from his consecutive wins, laughed and said, "Senior Guan, you don't need to take out your frustration on the disciples of Zhou Lili either. You're really not taking a loss well!"
Senior Guan didn't want to respond, just waving his hand at Chen Yun repeatedly, "Hurry up! Go away! Don't keep watching Senior Guan make a fool of himself any longer."
Seeing that everyone was pushing him away, Chen Yun knew he had no choice but to leave.
He made a bow and said goodbye, "Senior Zhao, Senior Guan, Chen Yun is taking his leave first."
Senior Guan didn't even respond to him.
It was Senior Zhao who smiled and nodded, "Oh, I'll ask Zhong Lixuanyuan for you."
"Could you tell me your esteemed name, sir?" Chen Yun asked politely: "I would like to inform the ancestor about it."
Senior Zhao smiled warmly, "I am Zhao Gongming. That guy who can't take a loss is called Guan Yunchang. He is the guardian deity of the Buddhist monasteries, known as the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and also a local king of ghosts. He holds a high position, so you must not provoke him."
Ah?
Zhao Gongming and Guan Yunchang?
Chen Yun was truly surprised.
He remembered that these two had long since become gods, so why would they appear here?
After careful consideration, he knew the reason.
Senior Zhao Gongming's temple is located on Zhongshan Mountain, so it was not surprising for him to appear here.
As for Guan Yunchang's presence here, it is likely that he and Senior Zhao Gongming are good friends, so he came specifically to visit his friend.
Chen Yun had another question. According to Senior Zhao Gongming's introduction, Guan Yunchang had not yet become a deity in Daoism, but was instead the guardian of Buddhist monasteries and a local king of ghosts. So why would he be associated with the tiger spirit?
Although he couldn't make sense of it, he bowed again, "Met Senior Zhao Marshal, Guan... Guan Bodhisattva."
Hmm, this time he used the titles of two deities.
Senior Zhao Gongming smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.
Guan Yunchang seemed to feel somewhat annoyed when he heard the word "Bodhisattva," "If Guan hadn't been born too late during the period when Sui unified the country, I wouldn't have ended up as a guardian of Buddhist monasteries. Never mind, let's see if I can become a deity in Daoism when the next deification takes place. Young man, go back to your Taoist temple."
Chen Yun was somewhat puzzled by Guan Yunchang's words.
Could it be that the process of being deified is not something that is done voluntarily by the people and the emperor, but requires the help of deities?
Moreover, from Guan Yunchang's tone, it seems that Daoist deities are more popular or hold a higher position than Buddhist deities in this world?
Just now, it's not the time to think about these things. These two deities are pushing themselves away from us.
To be honest, if it were someone else in front of him, Chen Yun would definitely turn around and run away without a second thought.
But the ones sitting in front of him are Zhao Gongming and Guan Yunchang!
Zhao Gongming is still okay.
What Chen Yun cares most about is Guan Yunchang.
In his previous life, who among the men hadn't read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"? Who hasn't known about the grandeur of Guan Yichang?
Chen Yun genuinely wanted to learn more about Guan Yichang.
But as the two of them were pushing him away, he couldn't find a reason to stay.
However, Chen Yun actually had a way to get close to these two deities.
He blinked and said, "Senior Zhao Marshal, General Guan, I see you are playing xiangqi.
Xiangqi, the original form of Chinese chess, was not called xiangqi at first; it was known as xiangxi.
Perhaps seeing that Chen Yun had not left yet, Senior Zhao Gongming even found him a bit chatty, so he only nodded indifferently.
Perhaps the title "General Guan" was more pleasant to hear for Guan Yunchang than "Guan Bodhisattva."
He didn't rush to send Chen Yun away as he had before; instead, he looked up and smiled, "Yes, it's xiangxi. What about it?"
Chen Yun saw that Guan Yunchang was interested and knew that he had an opportunity to get close to these two deities.
He spoke up, "Xiangxi is too simple and cannot fully reflect your military capabilities. I know a way of playing that can better demonstrate your military prowess."
"Oh?" Guan Yunchang showed interest, "Is that true?"
Senior Zhao Gongming also looked interested.
Chen Yun nodded, "It's true."
Guan Yunchang might not want to keep losing anymore.
He extended his hand, "But please explain it in detail. If the way you describe playing it is indeed more capable of reflecting military abilities than what I and Zhao Brother are playing, then Guan will definitely reward you."
Zhao Gongming teased, "You're not even here in person. A ghost wind brings you to the end of Zhongshan Mountain. What kind of heavy thanks can you give to Chen?"
Guan Yunchang said, "What do you care? Guan says he will give a heavy reward and he will!"
As he spoke, he looked at Chen Yun again, "Young man, please explain it."
When Chen Yun heard that he could make Guan Yunchang happy and even receive a reward, his eyes lit up immediately and said, "Alright."
He naturally had a specific way of playing xiangxi that he believed would more clearly reflect military abilities, compared to the game played by Zhao Gongming and Guan Yunchang.
That's right, it's the perfect xiangqi!
