"Ah, why are you two so curious at such a young age? How to explain the affairs of the Dragon Clan? It's not something that can be explained in a few words." Chen Xi dodged the question while helping Qi Yu place a white chess piece on the board.
Yan Hua glanced at where he placed the piece and couldn't help but tease, "Look at your terrible move. You could have won if you hadn't placed it there. Now, this piece is just a gift for me."
As he spoke, he captured the piece with a black one.
Chen Xi took a deep breath and then sadly dropped the chess piece he was holding aside. "I'm not playing anymore, not playing anymore. I lose to you eight out of ten times. I only win by luck the other two times, otherwise, it's unpredictable."
After speaking, Chen Xi lay on the ground, patting the floor and protesting, "This is too unfair! Why do you always win when we play chess? And you can win even when you're multitasking! Qi Yu, Si Qing, you two play another round with him. I don't believe you two still can't beat him."
Qi Yu actually agreed.
She no longer asked about the Dragon Clan and instead held a chess piece, staring intently at the board, contemplating.
She even used the method of Heavenly Dao deduction to analyze every move she made.
The advantage of this method was that it allowed her to foresee her next mistake in advance.
But the disadvantage was that Qi Yu was exhausted after each game, and it only invited Yan Hua's merciless mockery:
"If you two don't know how to play, why not try a different game? Always competing with me in chess makes me win against all three of you, which is quite embarrassing."
Yan Hua said this, but his demeanor while playing showed no signs of embarrassment at all.
Qi Yu was so flustered by the game that she forgot what she had intended to say when she first came over. She fought her way through the game with her chess pieces, only to lose to Yan Hua in the end.
Yan Hua felt that winning game after game was becoming uninteresting, so he took the initiative to suggest, "How about this? Let's switch to a different game, or perhaps offer some rewards. It's too demotivating for you three to keep losing one after another. I'm losing the desire to play."
Yan Hua's words made the three people on the opposite side, who were always losing and looked dejected, grind their teeth.
Qi Yu: "Master, you're too arrogant. Don't you think you're going too far?"
"Talking too much big talk can easily lead to a chipped tooth, so be careful. That's the best course of action." Si Qing sat beside Qi Yu, picking up a white chess piece. "Master, one person is not enough. Then let's have the three of us. I don't believe all three of us still can't beat you."
Chen Xi immediately chimed in with a shout, joining the lineup.
Yan Hua did not object at all, even giving the impression that they could find more reinforcements, facing them alone as if facing an army of thousands: "Let alone three people, even if 30 of you come, I won't be afraid. Isn't it just a game of chess? How difficult can it be?"
Qi Yu closed her eyes and grumbled, "Why would we need 30 people for just a game of chess? The three of us are enough."
"Exactly, the three of us are enough," Si Qing said, studying the overall situation of the game.
Chen Xi was responsible for being at the forefront, charging forward and causing chaos.
However, Yan Hua's single mind was more than enough for the three of them.
So, even though the three of them had one person strategizing, one observing the overall situation, and one charging forward chaotically, in the end, they still lost to Yan Hua by a single move.
"Waaah, waaah," Chen Xi squatted beside them, dejectedly rubbing his hair.
Qi Yu and Si Qing were more composed. Since they would lose no matter how they played, and even playing together would result in a loss, they decided it was better not to continue and humiliate themselves further. It was too boring.
Yan Hua watched them with a smile. Seeing that the three of them were still regretting their losses, he couldn't help but shake his head. After finishing a pot of hot tea, he slowly said, "Actually, regarding the matters of the Dragon Clan, if you really want to hear about it, it's not impossible to tell you. However, I can tell you, but you cannot spread it outside."
"Because these are things from a very, very long time ago. If you spread them around and cause a lot of rumors about the Dragon Clan, it will only bring you unnecessary trouble."
Qi Yu, who had been too focused on the chess game, had almost forgotten about this. Hearing him say this, she immediately widened her eyes and nodded.
Yan Hua gathered his thoughts and after a while, slowly said, "From my generation onwards, the Dragon Clan has always been prosperous in offspring. However, due to an incident, they suffered heavenly retribution, and their offspring gradually became sparse."
Chen Xi cupped his cheeks in his hands and sighed, "I remember when the Dragon Clan suffered heavenly retribution, it seemed like you, Yan Hua, helped to bear the heavenly lightning tribulation."
"So you know about this too," Qi Yu looked at Chen Xi. "I was talking about the reason for the Dragon Clan's sparse offspring."
"Having lived for so long, of course, I know. Even if I don't deliberately try to understand, I still know the reason. It's just that this matter is really difficult to talk about openly." After speaking, Chen Xi added, "I remember the initial reason for suffering heavenly retribution seemed to be because a member of the Dragon Clan ate humans in the mortal world."
"At that time, some members of the Dragon Clan committed many sins in the mortal world, and there were even instances of dragons devouring humans. Therefore, they ultimately provoked heavenly retribution." Yan Hua gently patted a nearby tree trunk with his dragon tail, causing many petals to fall. He cupped them in his hand. "Of course, this is just the explanation given to the public. In reality, the reason was not simply because dragons ate humans."
Qi Yu pursed her lips. "In ancient times, when there were no laws, it's undeniable that such phenomena occurred. However, at that time, it wasn't just the Dragon Clan that engaged in such behavior."
But it was only the Dragon Clan that later suffered heavenly retribution and whose offspring gradually dwindled.
Qi Yu felt that there must be a hidden reason.
Yan Hua probably hadn't revealed everything, as he had just said it was the public explanation.
However, despite her thoughts, Qi Yu knew when to stop and didn't press further. Instead, she shifted the topic to another matter. "Master, speaking of which, your chess skills are so brilliant and outstanding. I think it's a waste for you to just be the mascot of the Evergreen Sect. Have you considered opening a special course among the disciples to teach them chess? With your skills, they would only need three years to become invincible."
Qi Yu had immense confidence in Yan Hua's teaching quality.
Perhaps it was due to the master's filter that Qi Yu firmly believed Yan Hua was more reliable than herself.
Although, in reality, this was indeed the case.