He didn't even need to think about it — Yang Kai knew those words were directed at him. He hesitated for a moment, then figured that fortune or misfortune, it wasn't something he could avoid. His Fire Element power was already fully condensed, so he had nothing left to seek. Steeling himself, he leapt out of the Ruyi Bag.
In an instant, several pairs of eyes turned toward him, carrying the weight of scrutiny.
Yang Kai's skin prickled. The young man sitting across a Go board from Situ Kong let out a cold, sinister chuckle that made Yang Kai's heart pound. This guy wouldn't happen to be so outraged that he'd lash out at him, would he? If so, there'd be nothing he could do to defend himself.
Fortunately, both the scrutinizing gazes and the young man's cold laughter lasted only a heartbeat. The next moment, no one was paying him any attention.
Yang Kai let out a silent sigh of relief and quickly ducked behind Situ Kong, quietly exhaling.
A hostile gaze came from his side. Yang Kai turned his head and found himself staring into the gem-like eyes of the proprietress.
He forced a smile and cupped his fists, lowering his voice: "Proprietress!"
Her beautiful eyes blazed with fury, and she hissed through clenched teeth: "You brat — look what you've done!"
Yang Kai laughed awkwardly and shrank back another two steps, positioning himself beside Bai Qi. The proprietress seemed furious, and though he didn't know why, it was best to keep his distance.
Bai Qi quietly gave him a thumbs-up, his expression one of sheer admiration, which left Yang Kai speechless.
Only then did he notice that his Ruyi Bag was currently in Situ Kong's hand. It was clear that during the earlier struggle, the First Inn's owner had come out on top — otherwise the bag wouldn't have ended up with him.
"What's the situation now?" Yang Kai couldn't make sense of the scene. He didn't understand why Situ Kong had grabbed the Ruyi Bag yet was still sitting here playing Go, and with no one he could ask, he could only probe Bai Qi for answers.
Bai Qi glanced left and right, then transmitted his voice quietly: "The honored guests are settling their dispute through a contest of Go skill. This is the last opponent — as long as our owner wins this game, he'll claim the Golden Crow's corpse."
Yang Kai stared, dumbfounded: "They're settling it through Go skill?" Hadn't they been fighting tooth and nail just moments ago? How had things suddenly shifted from a martial contest to an intellectual one? The turnaround was way too abrupt.
Besides, if Situ Kong had already snatched the Ruyi Bag, why not just run? Why sit there and play Go to determine who was better?
But on second thought, if he could run, he wouldn't still be here. Everyone present was a High-Order Open Heaven cultivator. Situ Kong might have won the first exchange and grabbed the bag, but if the others teamed up, even he wouldn't stand a chance — no matter how powerful he was.
The same applied in reverse: whichever High-Order Open Heaven cultivator got the bag, the rest wouldn't let it go without a fight.
It was an inescapable stalemate — someone would inevitably end up being ganged up on by the rest! That was probably exactly why they had switched from a martial battle to a scholarly one!
No effort, no exertion — just sitting down and resolving things peacefully. Why not?
But from what Bai Qi had just said, it was clear that even in Go, Situ Kong held the upper hand. Yang Kai's knowledge of Go was shallow — he could understand the game and play a few casual rounds, but that was about it. So whether Situ Kong or the young man was stronger at this point, he couldn't tell from the board.
Reading their expressions, however, it was obvious that Situ Kong radiated the confidence of someone who had everything under control. The young man, on the other hand, kept furrowing his brow, looking troubled, and his pace of placing stones was far slower than Situ Kong's.
Judging by the situation, Situ Kong was bound to defeat his final opponent — it was only a matter of time.
Growing bored of watching, Yang Kai was more concerned about his Ruyi Bag. The Golden Crow's corpse was out of the question — it had fallen into Situ Kong's hands, and there was no getting it back. Besides, with his Fire Element power now perfected, there was no need to make enemies over it.
But he still wanted his Ruyi Bag. He had no idea whether Situ Kong would return it. If the man took that as well, the loss would be enormous.
His face twisted into a knot of conflicted thoughts…
Just then, a clattering crash rang out, startling Yang Kai. He looked up to see that the Go board sitting between Situ Kong and the young man had been flipped over. Black and white stones scattered in every direction. The young man surged to his feet, his face twisted with disgust: "I'm done. This is pointless."
Flipping the board mid-game — that was one hell of a way to conduct oneself.
Situ Kong rose as well, smiling: "I thank you for the match!"
The young man glared at him coldly: "Don't get smug. You've merely lived a few years longer. Against anyone else, I wouldn't lose!"
Situ Kong replied calmly: "Living a long time is its own advantage."
The young man scoffed: "Live long, die early! I hope the next time we meet, you're still this spirited. Farewell!" With that, his figure blurred and transformed into a wisp of dark mist, streaking off into the distance.
The guy actually left just like that, without the slightest hesitation.
The other High-Order Open Heaven cultivators saw this and took their leave one after another. Not a single one offered congratulations — they probably weren't in the mood to celebrate someone else's victory. The only reason they'd stuck around until now was to see how this final round played out. Now that the result was in, there was no reason to linger.
In the blink of an eye, all outsiders were gone. Only the people of the First Inn remained.