Chapter Twenty-Three: The Earthly Fiends' Chess Manual (Part Two)

At this moment, Liu Baixi asked, “May I ask, sir, what kind of demonic book is the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess? How can it contain such a murderous technique as Ghost Chess?”

Eunuch Lin replied, “After Lord De passed away, I succeeded him as the keeper of the Imperial Library and also managed the Imperial Study. Five years ago, I thought myself already old, with little time left in this world. In my life, I dare say I have seen more rare and marvelous books than anyone else alive. Yet, that ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess has always weighed on my mind—I yearned to see it with my own eyes. I told myself I did not understand chess; I would secretly take it, glance through it, then return it. Even if it contained methods for immortality, I would not learn them. Knowing it had been hidden away for years, and that besides myself, no one in the palace even knew of its existence, curiosity got the better of me. I finally mustered the courage, and after a long time, found the book concealed in a secret compartment. Alongside the book were over a hundred single-colored black chess pieces which gleamed with a strange glow, their texture unlike anything I’d ever felt. I have no idea what they were made from. As I leafed through the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess, I was horrified to discover it was an evil and unorthodox treatise on chess. The very first words were ‘Use chess to throw the world into chaos.’ According to the text, one could train in a demonic realm of chess, and actually kill through the chessboard itself. It described a ghostly game, played in the underworld by the King of Hell with the Black and White Guardians of the Dead—nothing of the orthodox chess tradition. The book was in two volumes, containing both theory and annotated games. It warned that this art must not be studied by women, nor practiced by men; only those like myself, crippled and broken, could master it, as if the changes of the heart matched the perversions of the chess. The more I read, the more sinister and unorthodox the chess methods appeared—I am not a lover of chess, and so I did not study it deeply. At the end, there was a description of the strange chess pieces, and when I finished reading, I was truly shocked. These black pieces were called ‘Skull Stones,’ crafted from the skulls of young women, mixed with medicinal compounds to extract their yin blood essence for use in these ghostly chess techniques.”

When Fang Guohuan, Liu Baixi, and Mu Yinquan heard this, chills ran down their spines, and they were utterly appalled.

Eunuch Lin continued, “Moreover, each woman’s skull could yield only six or seven Skull Stones. So, with more than a hundred pieces, who knows how many lives are contained therein? The more I read, the more frightened I became. I was astonished—who could have passed down such terrifying things? I returned the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess and the chess pieces to their original hiding place, never daring to look at them again.”

Fang Guohuan, Liu Baixi, and Mu Yinquan were left dumbstruck.

After a long while, Fang Guohuan finally asked, “How did the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess and those Skull Stones end up in the hands of the court chess master, Eunuch Li Wusan?”

Eunuch Lin sighed, “It is shameful to say! This disaster was brought about by my own pride in my knowledge. When Eunuch Li first entered the palace, he was a chess master, not yet a eunuch. His chess skills were the talk of the palace, and he was favored by the Emperor and Empress. All the court and officials regarded him with respect. He had some learning and would come to the Imperial Library to borrow chess books. I admired his talent and lent him many secret chess manuals from the palace collection. For this, the chess master Li often thanked me with generous gifts, and we developed a certain friendship. Later, one day, Chess Master Li told me that in his hands, the art of chess had reached its pinnacle—there were no higher realms for him to pursue. I offhandedly replied: There is still one technique, the ghost chess described in the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess—are you aware of it? When he heard this, Chess Master Li was greatly shocked; his face changed with excitement. Realizing I had spoken too freely, I said no more. But soon after, Eunuch Li pressed me, urgently wanting to see the book. I argued I had only spoken in jest, that there was no such book. He claimed he had once come across the name ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess in an ancient text, and now, hearing my words, believed there was indeed another demonic art of chess and begged me to show him the book. Unable to refuse, I told him: to master the chess described therein, one must destroy oneself, become less than human, like myself, hidden away from the light of day; only then could one practice such a perverse method. Otherwise, even if one obtained the book, it would be of little use. At that time, Chess Master Li was still a whole man, and no longer young. After hearing me out, his face turned dark and frightening, and he left without a word. I thought he would not mutilate himself for the sake of some mythic chess technique, and would let the matter drop. For a long time, he did not come to the Imperial Library, and I thought it was over. I dared not mention it to anyone again.

“But one day, someone suddenly informed me that Chess Master Li had castrated himself, making himself a eunuch—claiming that since he spent so much time teaching chess in the inner palace and came and went inconveniently, he would thus show his gratitude to the Emperor’s favor and devote himself to lifelong service. The Emperor was deeply moved, and everyone in the palace was astonished. Only I knew the real reason, and I was terrified. Sure enough, after a month, Eunuch Li recovered and came privately to see me in the Imperial Library, begging for the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess, determined to obtain it. I was confused and moved by his obsession and sincerity for chess, but I made him swear: after obtaining the book, he could only use it for his own amusement, never employing the ghost chess to harm others, but to play only orthodox games with others. Eunuch Li swore the oath, so I gave him the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess and the Skull Stones, warning him repeatedly that I had already violated the ancestral regulations and palace rules, and that he must not show the book to others. Otherwise, I could be executed. Eunuch Li readily agreed.”

At this, Eunuch Lin shook his head and sighed, “I never thought he would turn out to be such an untrustworthy villain. After gaining the ‘Manual of the Earthly Fiends’ Chess, building on his already profound skill, he advanced rapidly, secretly practicing the ghost chess while seeking out strong players to test his ability. This led to some masters losing all their interest, discouraged and in despair, their own chess realms disturbed, and the joy of chess lost. The only consolation is that, when the national chess champion was selected, Eunuch Li’s skill had not yet reached the point of using ghost chess to kill. Instead, the title was taken by another master, Qu Liangyi. But the two drew seven matches in a row, which was extremely dangerous. Qu Liangyi was able to match half the power of ghost chess—truly worthy of the title National Chess Champion! Later, alas! You all know what happened. Just a month ago, Eunuch Li finally mastered the ghost chess, and immediately sought out the champion to avenge his defeat. Qu Liangyi’s madness, as well as the death of the old friend mentioned by this young master, were all due to the murderous force of the ghost chess—how such power arises on the board, to injure or even kill unseen, I cannot explain. This ghost chess is a perversion of the art, not the true path. To practice it is to harm others and oneself—a calamity with no end, a demonic way born within chess. In the future, if you should ever encounter Eunuch Li, do not play against him, lest you be harmed by his ghost chess. Try to persuade him to turn back, to lessen the irreparable wrong I have caused through my moment’s folly. If he will not listen, then you must remove him by other means, to prevent further disasters on the chessboard.”

Having finished, Eunuch Lin closed his eyes and fell silent.

After hearing Eunuch Lin’s account, Fang Guohuan, Liu Baixi, and Mu Yinquan all felt grave and uneasy—the matter was far more serious and terrifying than they had imagined. The three stood, saluted quietly, and withdrew. They found Bu Yuan and, without a word, walked all the way back to the Baixi Chess House. Seeing their expressions, Bu Yuan also sensed something was wrong, and did not dare ask, simply following along.

They returned to the chess house late at night. None of the four felt any desire to sleep, and they sat together in the hall, silent. The disciples of the chess house, seeing their master’s grim face, became even more cautious and all withdrew.

After a long time, Liu Baixi finally spoke: “This calamity upon our chess world seems unavoidable. Who knows how many more fine players will be ruined by that eunuch’s chess in the days to come?”

Mu Yinquan said, “This Li Wusan is truly sinister and twisted. To forge his own unique way in chess, he was even willing to mutilate himself—that is no small thing. Now he roams the land seeking out masters to duel, killing for his own amusement—what is to be done?”

Bu Yuan, unconcerned, said, “You’re all overthinking it. That eunuch may be deadly in chess and terrifying to you chess people, but to us outsiders, he’s just a feeble old man, over fifty, who couldn’t even tie up a chicken. If there’s an opportunity, just kill him with a single stroke. Why would anyone play ghost chess with him and let him harm them?”

Mu Yinquan replied, “What you say is not unreasonable. Though Li Wusan has a strong protector in Yu Ruoxu, if we truly wished to end his life, it wouldn’t be that difficult. We could ask some friends from the martial world, explain the danger, and have them take his life to prevent him from harming others with chess. No matter how skilled Yu Ruoxu is, he can’t be flawless. The only problem is tracking down their whereabouts.”

Liu Baixi shook his head. “Though that makes sense, if we try to kill him outside of chess, we must have evidence. Without proof, the righteous martial world would not help us. Li Wusan’s ghost chess kills in ways invisible to outsiders—who would believe such a thing?”

Bu Yuan said, “But Qu Liangyi went mad, and that monk Zhishan was also killed by him—aren’t those proof enough?”

Liu Baixi replied, “Right now, only the few of us, and Eunuch Lin of the Imperial Library, believe in this ghost chess’s deadly power; we know that it is, but not how it is. Who would believe that such a refined art as chess could kill? Even chess players would not accept it, and outsiders would laugh at us for being obsessed with the game.”

Bu Yuan said, “That’s true. If the eunuch just denies it, saying others lost and couldn’t take the defeat and went mad or died, that it’s not his fault—without tangible evidence, there’s nothing to be done. Even if that monster were standing right in front of me, if he argued like that, I wouldn’t be able to strike.”

Liu Baixi said, “For now, we must warn everyone in the chess world to be on guard against Li Wusan. The fear is, they won’t believe it. When challenged by such a master, they’ll be eager to accept, and unwittingly fall victim to ghost chess.” At this, both Liu Baixi and Mu Yinquan looked deeply troubled.

Fang Guohuan, who had been sitting silently, now spoke slowly: “If we want Li Wusan to repent and atone for his crimes, we must repay him in his own coin. Matters of chess can only be resolved on the chessboard itself. Only by defeating his murderous ghost chess on the board can we bring an end to this disaster.”

Mu Yinquan shook his head. “If even the champion Qu Liangyi, the very best among chess masters, went mad under that eunuch’s ghost chess, who in the world could be his match? Do we have to find another manual—the ‘Manual of the Heavenly Fiends’ Chess—to counter his evil art?”

Liu Baixi added, “This isn’t martial arts, where one skill can overpower another, nor is it something that can be countered by some external means. This is chess—a refined art for cultivating the mind and spirit. Besides victory and defeat, there is no mutual destruction, no mutual restraint.”

Fang Guohuan shook his head. “Not so. Since chess has both good and evil paths, there is the principle that evil cannot overcome good. Whether ghost chess or demon chess, it all takes place on the same sixty-one intersections, with black and white stones. Unless the pieces themselves are the cause of harm, any abnormality in chess is still bound by the same rules. There must be a true way of chess that can overcome this murderous art—a way that harmonizes with any transformation on the board. This is the transcendent chess, the art that can neutralize and adapt to any change in the game.”