I am Master Maoshan

Chapter 2382 Hikaru no Go
The old man seemed not to have noticed Mo Li's actions. He walked straight into the house, looked around, and then said, "Young friends, don't be nervous. I have come here with no ill intentions."

"Grandpa, please don't be so polite. Just tell me what's on your mind." Liu Jun looked at Mo Li with some doubt, and seeing that Mo Li remained silent, he had no choice but to reply.

Mo Li suddenly spoke, her tone icy: "Who exactly are you? Why do you have such a strange aura?"

The old man was slightly taken aback: "Young friend, you are indeed perceptive. The aura emanating from me is indeed somewhat special. However, I cannot reveal the reason for this at the moment. But please rest assured, I will never harm you."

Mo Li didn't believe him and took a step forward, saying, "Since you won't tell us, then don't blame us for being impolite."

As she spoke, the magical artifact in her hand began to glow faintly.

Seeing this, the old man quickly waved his hand and said, "Young friend, don't be impulsive. I've come here to ask you two for a favor."

Upon hearing this, Liu Jun became interested and said, "Help? What kind of help? Tell me."

The old man sighed and said, "To be honest, I've encountered some trouble. An evil force is lurking in the shadows, trying to sabotage my plans. My strength is limited, and I cannot deal with it alone, so I would like to ask you two young friends for your help."

Mo Li sneered and said, "Why should we help you? You won't even explain your own identity or the ins and outs of this matter."

The old man was silent for a moment, then said, "Young friends, this matter is a matter of life and death. If it is not resolved, it may lead to a series of terrible consequences. Moreover, I will reward you handsomely after it is done."

Liu Jun and Mo Li exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of hesitation in each other's eyes. On one hand, they did have doubts about the old man's identity and the veracity of his story; on the other hand, what the old man said was a bit frightening—how did it relate to human lives?

Just then, the little white fox suddenly rushed out from the corner, bared its teeth at the old man, and let out a fierce howl.

The old man looked at the little white fox, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, and said, "This spirit fox is quite extraordinary."

Mo Li seized the opportunity to say, "Look, even the spirit fox is so wary of you, how can we trust you?"

The old man sighed and said, "Young friend, this spirit fox only sensed the special aura on my body, which is why it acted this way. I assure you, it meant no harm."

Liu Jun thought for a moment and said, "Well, why don't we listen to what he has to say? After all, it's a human life at stake."

Mo Li hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded and said, "Alright, then tell me, what exactly happened?"

Seeing that they had agreed, the old man smiled and then slowly recounted what had happened.

As the old man recounted his story, Liu Jun and Mo Li finally understood that the seemingly ordinary yet eccentric old man before them was actually the spirit of chess.

The old man's surname was Li, and he was a chess master during the Qin Dynasty. In an era when chess was very popular, his chess skills were unparalleled. It is no exaggeration to say that this old man was the number one chess player of that time.

However, fate played a cruel trick on him. Master Li was obsessed with chess throughout his life, pouring all his heart and soul into the chessboard.

When he reached the end of his life, his soul should have entered the cycle of reincarnation, but his strong obsession with chess bound him tightly, making it impossible for him to break free.

By a stroke of luck, his soul became attached to a chess piece. That chess piece, originally just ordinary wood, became different because it carried his soul.

Time has passed. This chess piece, imbued with the soul of Master Li, has undergone countless changes along with the wheels of history.

Finally, the chess piece landed in the hands of a young man. The young man was a chess enthusiast, and his greatest pleasure was playing chess with others.

When he first touched the chess piece, he felt an invisible force drawing him in. He treasured it dearly and carefully took it home.

Master Li's soul has been dormant in this chess piece for thousands of years. These thousands of years have been long and boring for him.

The world around him was constantly changing, but he was trapped in this tiny chess piece, unable to communicate with the outside world.

However, this long period of silence also gave him enough time to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Gradually, his soul became increasingly powerful, as if it had come to life; in popular parlance, it had become a spirit.

Perhaps out of his love for chess, or perhaps to find someone who could pass on his chess skills, Master Li decided to appear in the young man's dream and teach him how to play chess.

For this young man, this was naturally a welcome opportunity, and he accepted Master Li's kindness without hesitation.

Since then, Master Li has often appeared in my dreams, patiently teaching young people how to play chess.

With the guidance of a master, the young man's chess skills naturally improved by leaps and bounds. He began to distinguish himself in various chess competitions, winning praise and applause from many people.

Originally just an ordinary chess enthusiast, he has now become a chess master in the eyes of many. His name has gradually spread throughout the chess world, and many people are looking at him with new respect.

But his good fortune didn't last long. As the young man's fame grew, he became arrogant and complacent. He no longer studied humbly as before, always believing that he had mastered all the skills of chess and no longer needed to ask others for advice.

Master Li saw this and was very anxious. He repeatedly tried to persuade the young man in his dreams, but the young man was too proud and wouldn't listen.

Finally, in an important match, the young man made a fatal mistake due to underestimating his opponent and being arrogant. His game was in dire straits, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't turn the tide. In the end, he lost the game, and his reputation plummeted.

After suffering such a heavy blow, the young man's world collapsed instantly.

His eyes were vacant, his face haggard, and he looked like a walking corpse whose soul had been ripped out.

He felt that life had lost all meaning, all the beauty had left him, and the future was nothing but darkness. So, this guy started to have suicidal thoughts, and the despair in his heart grew wildly like weeds, eventually giving rise to the terrible idea of ​​ending his own life.

Master Li witnessed all of this. Although he was quite angry that his disciple was disobedient and arrogant, it would be a lie to say that he had no feelings for him after all this time.

Seeing his apprentice's lifeless expression, he wished he could rush to his apprentice's side and slap him twice to bring him back to his senses.

However, he was anxious but powerless to do anything, because his only ability was to communicate with his disciple through dreams.

He originally intended to enlighten and comfort his apprentice in his dream, hoping to rekindle his hope for life.

However, the young man was so distraught that he was in a daze all day and couldn't fall asleep. Even when he was in bed, he would stare blankly at the ceiling, his mind replaying the painful images of his failures.

Master Li's ability to send messages through dreams can only be used when the other party is asleep. Now that his disciple is not asleep, his dream-sending plan will not work.

Watching his apprentice head towards despair, Master Li was extremely anxious. In the end, he decided to take a desperate gamble.

He forcibly broke free from the chess piece that had been attached to him for thousands of years. But after so many years, the chess piece had long since become one with him, and breaking free was not so simple.

However, to save his apprentice, he couldn't care less about anything else. The moment he forcibly broke free of the chess piece, a tremendous force struck his soul, leaving him feeling weaker than ever before.

But he gritted his teeth and persevered, because he knew that his apprentice's life was hanging by a thread.

He dragged his weakened soul through the world, searching for a corpse he could possess. Finally, in a dark alley corner, he found a body that had recently died.

Master Li was overjoyed and hurriedly floated toward the corpse, wanting to possess it.

However, after breaking free from the chess piece that had possessed him for thousands of years, he became too weak. As he approached the corpse, an invisible force blocked him, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not possess it. His soul wandered around the corpse, emitting painful groans.

Just when he was feeling desperate, by sheer chance, he sensed a faint presence, as if it were calling to him.

Then he followed the scent and ended up at the funeral supplies shop where Liu Junmo and the others were, which led to what happened next.

The three types of energy on his body also have their reasons. The corpse energy is what he picked up when he sought out corpses to possess; the yin energy is what he inherently possesses as a soul; and the human energy is what he picked up from his long-term association with his disciple.

"So, how are we supposed to save your apprentice?" Liu Jun asked anxiously, his face full of doubt.

"He's over at the Jiahe Bridge right now, and the situation is extremely critical. Please help me persuade him to stay. If we can calm him down, there might still be a chance." Master Li's voice trembled slightly, and it wasn't hard to imagine the anxiety he was feeling.

Liu Jun nodded slightly, just about to seek Mo Li's opinion, when he turned his head and saw Mo Li taking out a stick of incense and an incense burner from behind the counter.

The incense burner was exquisite and small, exuding an ancient and rustic aura, while Mo Li's movements were skillful, as if he had already prepared everything in advance.

Immediately afterwards, Mo Li took out one incense stick from the bundle, lit it gently, and carefully inserted it into the incense burner.

In an instant, a wisp of green smoke slowly rose and drifted in the air, carrying a mysterious power.

“This is Soul-Burning Incense,” Mo Li explained slowly with a solemn expression. “It can sustain the soul for a period of time. Master Li’s soul is unstable. If we don’t burn this, I’m afraid Master Li’s soul will dissipate before he even sees his disciple. At that time, there will be no way to save him.”

Upon hearing this, Liu Jun's eyes flashed with realization, and he immediately said, "Then let's set off quickly, time waits for no one."

So, the two, one a spirit and the other a fox, hurriedly got into the car. Originally, Liu Jun didn't want to bring the little white fox here, after all, he didn't know what the situation would be like on this trip, and bringing this little guy along would be quite inconvenient.

But this little rascal has a terrible temper; if I don't bring it along, it'll definitely cause chaos in the store and might even get into other trouble. So, I have no choice but to bring it along as well.

After getting into the car, Mo Li sat steadily in the driver's seat, skillfully maneuvering the steering wheel with focused eyes. Liu Jun carefully held the incense burner, placing it on his lap and protecting it tightly with both hands, as if afraid that even the slightest bump would affect the burning incense inside.

The car sped off in an instant, racing along the road.

Soon, they arrived at Jiahe Bridge. By then, Jiahe Bridge was already heavily congested, with long lines of vehicles stretching as far as the eye could see.

A large crowd had gathered in the middle of the bridge, and shouts and gasps could be heard from within. Red and blue lights were flashing – the lights of police cars and ambulances – indicating that something serious had happened.

Liu Jun's heart tightened suddenly, and he subconsciously hugged the incense burner tighter. He turned to look at Mo Li and said, "It seems that the situation is more serious than we thought. I wonder how Master Li's disciple is doing now."

Mo Li didn't say anything, but found a place to park the car and got out with Liu Jun.

Master Li's spirit floated beside them, his eyes filled with anxiety, constantly looking in the direction where the crowd was gathering.

"Let's go take a look," Liu Jun said, and he and Mo Li walked towards the crowd.

The little white fox followed closely behind them, occasionally letting out a few low cries, clearly stressed by the noisy environment.

When they finally managed to squeeze into the crowd, the sight before them made them gasp in shock.

Beside the bridge, a young man swayed precariously, his eyes vacant and helpless, as if he had lost all hope.

The wind howled around him, making his body sway even more, and he could fall at any moment.

"Disciple!" Upon seeing this scene, Master Li could no longer hold back and let out a sorrowful cry.

However, he was merely a spirit, while his disciple was a person, a living, breathing person, who at least hadn't jumped off the bridge yet and was still human. Separated by life and death, they couldn't hear each other and could only watch helplessly.