World’s Best Martial Artist

1235 Dark clouds cover the sky

Sky Island.

In the big conference room.

Fang ping lay on the sofa chair, using the old cat’s fat butt as a pillow. He sighed,”I almost lost my life this time, but fortunately, I gained quite a lot.”

“Is Wang Ruobing very important?” Zhang Tao asked softly.

“It’s quite important, but it’s useless to keep an eye on it. We can’t kill it, and maybe something big will happen if we kill it. So, let’s put it aside for now.”

“Tell me about the situation first,” Heavenly King Zhen said in a deep voice.

“I’ll have to ask about the situation first before I can share some of my judgment,”Fang ping said with a smile.

“You can ask.”

“When was the Sanjiao gate built?”

The divine Creator thought for a moment and said,”I didn’t participate in the creation of the Sanjiao gate. After all, this thing involves the foundation of the origin. I couldn’t go to the origin universe at that time. I wasn’t a martial artist who cultivated the origin …”

“But …”

The divine Creator recalled for a moment and said,””About ten thousand years ago! It should have been around the same time as when the celestial source was created. Old ghost li, try to recall, when did the Sanjiao gate appear?”

“Ten thousand years, a few years … How can I remember the details?”

Heaven suppression King was speechless. It had been ten thousand years. Who could remember the exact time?

“Godfather …”

The Heavenly King Zhen rolled his eyes.”Just say it!”

“Roughly when did you start walking the path of the essence?”

“More than ten thousand years ago.”

“Almost 20000 years!” Heavenly King Zhen explained.

“It’s been so long?”

Fang ping responded and slapped the big cat’s tail away. After some thought, he said,”After the appearance of the Sanjiao gate, you walked the great Dao. Have you realized any difference from before?”

“Of course, there is still a little.”

Heavenly King Zhen laughed.”Let’s put it this way. In the past, the origins Dao wasn’t clearly divided. Wang Jinyang should know that the previous Dao was actually a mix. You walked the Dao of spiritual power, the Dao of qi and blood, the Dao of physical body … You actually had to walk one Dao. You had to choose the Dao you wanted from the chaotic great Dao.

“After the Sanjiao gate appears, the path is actually a little clearer.”

Wang Jinyang looked at Fang ping.”The previous origin Dao was an intersection of planes. The later origin Dao is a parallel of space. Do you understand?”

Fang ping was speechless.”How can I not understand this? It used to be an underground 10-lane road, BA Fang road, and then a viaduct was built, right?”

“……”

“You can understand it that way,” old Wang laughed.

Fang ping did not mind.”That’s not what I’m asking. What I mean is, after the appearance of the Sanjiao gate ten thousand years ago, did you guys notice any changes in your strength?”

“Power …”

The Heavenly King fell into deep thought. He was the only one who had experienced all this.

The God forgers cultivated the origin Dao later on.

Heavenly King Zhen pondered for a while and said,””There are still some changes. In the past, power was heavy, but later on, it was more clear. “You also know that in the beginning, Gokudo path isn’t popular when you cultivate the origin force.

But why was there a debate between the North and the South later on?

It was only later on that there was an obvious difference in mentality and vitality power.

10,000 years ago, even if the martialists who walked the origin Dao focused more on it, it would not be as obvious later on. The reason why the extreme heavenly Emperor was famous and powerful was that they could strengthen their power to the extreme in the chaos.

However, that didn’t mean that they didn’t cultivate other powers. They did.

However, when it came to the war of the North and the South, there were differences. They were all extreme. One side wanted to cultivate the body and not cultivate the mind power at all, while the other side did the opposite. ”

“Has the power been reduced?”

“Weaken …”

The Heavenly King suppression started to ponder. At this moment, the divine Creator thought for a while and laughed,””There should be some. Of course, it’s not too obvious before I break eight! However, I think there’s still a gap to breaking eight. ”

The divine Creator also considered it for a moment and recalled it. He then said,””The current level 8 is actually different from the past! For example, Tian Chen!

Cang Mao knew this guy. This guy also broke 8 years ago. At that time, there was no such thing as sects.

However, when this guy broke through to level 8, he shattered the fire god continent and was so powerful that he killed the fire god.

The fire god was also very powerful, similar to the current underworld God.

At that time, Tian Chen should have just broken through the eighth gate. According to the current theory, Tian Chen might have only broken through one gate of void.

But he killed the fire god … Ask Hongkun and the others, who would dare to say that they could kill the underworld God?

Let’s not talk about them, you can ask old ghost li if he can kill the god of the underworld. ”

“Can you?” heaven suppression King laughed.

“I can ‘t!”

The divine Creator replied matter-of-factly and chuckled,””I can ‘t, but he can’t kill me either … It’s hard to say for you! In any case, the current level 8 should not be as powerful as before.

As for Tian Chen, he didn’t do much last time, so I can’t sense him clearly. But he shouldn’t be as strong as before. ”

“Maybe he hasn’t fully recovered,” Heavenly King Zhen said after some thought.

“I know, but even if he’s fully recovered, I doubt he’s a match for the god of the underworld.”

“……”

As soon as he said that, the Heavenly King fell into deep thought. He looked at Fang ping.”What did you find?”

Fang Ping’s question made him feel that there might be some problems.

Fang ping, on the other hand, heard their words and confirmed his own thoughts. He laughed and said,”The current broken eight is not as powerful as before. I think it might have something to do with the origin!

I’ve discovered many great DAOs that connect to other people’s doors from Wang Ruobing’s side, the great Dao of qi and blood.

Wang Ruobing was obviously a test subject.

What did this mean?

The Dao that represents everyone may be false after the door is broken!”

Fang ping added,”of course, it might not be fake!” However, it might have set some barriers for the origin. Breaking 8% in the past and breaking 8% in the future might not be the same.

Perhaps if you break one gate now, you’ll be one of the eight strongest, but I don’t think that’s the case. Perhaps you’ll only see the truth after breaking three gates. ”

The Heavenly King’s expression changed when he heard that. After a while, he said,””Now that you’ve put it this way, this old master has some ideas! Perhaps you’re right. The Emperor said before that breaking three gates would prove one’s Emperor!

But I’ve discovered that it might not work!

The three gates are the gates of void. Now that you’ve said that, this old man feels that perhaps after breaking three gates … We’ve only just reached the gate!

There might be some problems with the path of breaking 8. ”

Just then, Wang Jinyang interjected, “I’m afraid there are some problems. The end of the great Dao is not in front of the door! And behind the door! But now, even though the Heavenly King had broken through the two gates, he still couldn’t see the real gate.

This shouldn’t have happened!

Under normal circumstances, when senior breaks through the two gates, you’ve already arrived at the world behind the gate. At this time, if senior’s luck is good, perhaps you can vindicate your Dao and become an Emperor. ”

Wang Jinyang continued.”The three gates are actually a boundary of the Imperial path. However, from the looks of it now, someone has set up an obstacle at the limits of the Imperial path. Senior, you might need to break through the three gates to see the true gate!”

Fang ping laughed.”But it’s not quite right to say that. Breaking eight is still breaking eight. Breaking three gates should be breaking nine. Isn’t breaking nine the Emperor?”

“It can be an Emperor, but it can also be a Gokudo path …”

Wang Jinyang thought for a moment and said,”breaking nine should be considered an Imperial Dao powerhouse!” However … The current nine-breakthrough might be void power. ”

“What do you mean?”

Fang ping did not quite understand.

Heavenly King Zhen understood and said in a low voice,””It’s simple, the previous breaking nine was true force! In other words, emperors and Gokudo path cultivators had to rely on their own strength to break through nine levels. At that time, they might not have the enhancement of the origin!

“However, for us to break nine … We might not be able to combine all our strength into one. Instead, we might need to have some amplification from the origin source.

One’s true force had broken through nine, while the other’s void force had broken through nine. This might be the difference between them.

Breaking through nine levels of void power can be considered an Emperor … But when the fake meets the real, you’re definitely not a match!”

This time, Fang ping understood. He could not help but laugh.”In that case, the DAOs of the Three Realms might be fake right now! Even if you break three gates, you might still be walking on a fake Dao, different from the Dao you used to walk. ”

“If it’s as you say, it’s possible!”

Heavenly King Zhen sighed,”what a big move!” “It’s not that easy to do. Maybe one of them is fake. After all, it’s too difficult to fake all of them …”

The divine forging envoy became spirited and smiled.””That’s right! If you said that forgery was the only way, it could still be done. However, it was a battle of thousands of DAOs now, and the probability of all of them being fake was not high.

If they wanted to make a fake, they would definitely make a fake on the road to unification.

“It’s to forge from the convergence point of the myriad DAOs. All of us will eventually walk down the path of breaking the door. At this time, the difficulty of forging will be greatly reduced.

But it’s still a big deal!”

The divine Creator touched his chin and smiled.””Interesting. I’ll go back and check it out carefully. Maybe I’ll find something. I’ve also broken a door, the mind door. Although the door of life hasn’t been broken, it’s almost broken.

I’d like to see if the path behind my mind gate is real or fake!”

This guy was also a madman, and he was a little indignant.

Even he had not created such a fake Dao, so how could the nine emperors do it?

If it was fake, it would be too embarrassing if he didn’t realize it.

He had to check it properly!

The few of them took this matter seriously. Fang ping briefly explained Wang Ruobing’s situation and said,”I took one of the paths and just left. I saw some of old Zhang’s past …”

“You missed me so much that you’re hallucinating?” Zhang Tao looked at him and joked.

“Stop talking nonsense!”

Fang ping said bluntly,”I saw you struggling. Struggling to decide if you should marry Nan yunyue or the wife of the Minister later on … In the end, you went to look for Nan yunyue. Minister Nan directly said that she had a fiancé. You ran away with a dejected face.

This is quite a blow to you. How many years has it been, and you still haven’t forgotten about it …”

“……”

Old Zhang’s face turned purple!

“Slander!”

“Who’s slandering you?”

“Nan yunyue is a few years older than me, why would I take a fancy to her …” Zhang Tao said angrily.

“You want me to find Minister Nan for a confrontation?”

Zhang Tao was furious.”You’re already so old, and you’re looking for people to confront you about this? you may be shameless, but I still want my face!”

“Tsk!”

Fang ping looked at him with disdain.”It’s fine if you’re telling the truth or not. If it’s really like this, and you’ve never mentioned it before, then what I’m seeing is real. It’s not something I’m imagining.”

“Hmph!” Zhang Tao snorted and said,”maybe, but I don’t really remember!”

Fang ping could not help but laugh. The Heavenly King and the others did not know whether to laugh or cry.

The great Dao could reflect some things. In that case, the Dao that Fang ping saw might really be the Dao behind Zhang Tao’s sect.

The Heavenly King knocked on the table and thought for a while before saying,””Is the Dao you walked into the gate of void the Dao before the gate of void, the Dao after the gate of void, or the Dao before and after the gate of reality?”

Fang ping shook his head.”I’m not too sure, but the probability of it being a real door is not high. I didn’t feel that kind of substantial feeling! It should be the Dao before and after the gate of void. As for the Dao in front or behind, I guess it’s the Dao behind. ”

“You mean to say …”

Fang ping laughed and said,”it’s dangerous, but it’s also an opportunity!” I’m thinking that if I bring old Zhang along, will he be able to break through the gate of void and directly enter the realm of breaking eight?

“This is only the blood Qi gate. I suspect that there are other gates that have been taken.

As for who it is …”

Fang ping looked at old Wang and said after some thought, “It’s very possible for you guys! Of course, I’m not sure if it was you guys. Old Wang, have you walked out of your own origin Dao?”

“I’ve walked out!”

“I have the source world. It’s different from what you’re saying,” Wang Jinyang said in a deep voice.

“So, it’s not you guys?”

Fang ping frowned.”I thought it was you guys. If that’s the case, it’ll be much easier. Maybe I can create some powerhouses who have broken nine levels after breaking three gates. Whether they’re real or fake, a broken nine is still a broken nine. With more people, they can bite the Emperor to death.

But now … I’ve only locked onto the void gate of qi and blood, but I can’t lock onto the other gates. ”

“We can check!”

The divine forging envoy said excitedly,”kid, if you can sponsor some Origin Earth and other materials, I can help you! I’ve studied the origin for many years, and as long as I have enough materials, I can discuss it with the few lousy eight …

“I’ll deduce and evolve. Perhaps I can deduce the convergence point of the mental path. That way, I’ll be able to find that path and reverse-engineer it to find the bearer of the mental door. ”

The divine Smith was indeed impressive, but the things he wanted were not ordinary. Fang ping pursed his lips and said, “We’ll see. Your requirements are too high. I don’t have the funds to support your research.”

The divine Smith was helpless.”You can try to collect these resources. You have the physique to make money. Plus, isn’t this stupid cat here?” Let’s travel around the universe of origin together. It might be beneficial …”

“You’re the stupid one!”

The old cat was unhappy. Who was he scolding?

Do you have the nerve to scold a cat?

He didn’t give him any benefits, so how could he just scold him?

I’ll let you make a pot, make all sorts of excuses, and I won’t let you scold me anymore!

In the past, when you scolded me, I couldn’t be bothered with you because I got some benefits. Now I don’t have any, why would I let you scold me!

“……”

The divine Creator was tired. This cat was really realistic.

The few of them talked and laughed. They were not nervous. Some things had happened and had to be solved. Being nervous would not solve the problem.

The void sect and the true sect could only accept their fate.

If what Fang ping said was right, there might be some benefits. If he entered directly from the back and broke through the door, perhaps he could let someone break through to the eighth level. Even if it did not work, there should be quite a lot of benefits.

Just like in Wang Ruobing’s world, if Fang ping could walk all the paths and break through the gates of vitality in all the paths, then wouldn’t every human powerhouse have a huge improvement?

This was hard to say!

They often turned danger into opportunities.

“Other than this, the world behind the door has many magical things!”

Fang ping said in a deep voice,”it was probably Godfather who was breaking the three doors. At that time, the world behind the door changed and was falling! And at that time, I also saw something different … In this world, it seemed like someone was locked!

“It was huge. I didn’t know if what I saw was real, but I saw a person locked in the center of the universe.

As the world behind the door fell, the figure fell as well …”

“People?”

The Heavenly King Zhen was really stunned this time. He said in a low voice, “You’re saying that the universe behind the door might be a cage! If we break the three gates, we might be pulling the person in the cage down … Then, are we saving him or destroying him?”

“I don’t know,”

Fang ping shook his head.”I can’t even tell if it’s human. It’s huge, as if it’s one with this world. It’s very illusionary. I can’t tell if it’s human or not.”

The Heavenly King fell into deep thought.

The divine creator’s eyes moved slightly.”When you pulled that person, did you pay attention to his heart?”

“No, why?”

The divine Smith was a little uncertain and said hesitantly,””Back then, when I created the celestial source, it was made in the shape of a heart! There were also many blood vessels wrapped around it, and some of the blood vessels were severed … It seemed like they were trying to connect something.

After hearing what you said, I suddenly have an idea …

“Breaking down a door means that one’s strength has increased. If I’m not wrong, when one’s strength increases, one’s blood vessels might become thicker.

Perhaps it would extend …

With that, it was possible to continue.

Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Fang ping nodded and said solemnly,”I have some guesses. I guess the universe of origins is the tenth heaven, and the world behind the door is actually above the celestial source! “So, according to what you said, if there are blood vessels on the celestial source, they might extend into the tenth heaven …

In that case, it was really possible that the pulling force was produced when the blood vessels were connected.

This means … If there is really a trapped person behind the door … No, maybe it is a dead person, and someone wants to resurrect him!”

Everyone was shocked by his words!

Heavenly King Zhen’s expression changed. This time, he quickly scanned the surroundings and his spiritual power burst out to seal the void.

It was the same for the divine creators, who even sealed their origin.

The two of them looked as if they were facing a great enemy!

As the Heavenly King sealed the area, he said in a deep voice,””It’s possible! ‘Perhaps the nine emperors is trying to resurrect someone … Now that you’ve said this, I have some ideas.’

When the immortal source plan had first started, the four Emperors had not been so against it.

But later on, Zhan Ji opposed it. Perhaps he knew something and was unwilling to do so, which was why he fell out with the emperors. ”

Everyone turned to look at Wang Jinyang. Wang Jinyang smiled bitterly.”Don’t look at me. I don’t know much. I just have some chaotic memories. Some of my important memories have either disappeared or been obliterated by others. I’m not sure about these things. ”

Fang ping said,”I was expecting nothing. If you don’t know much, then don’t pretend to be profound. I thought you knew everything.”

Old Wang was helpless and too lazy to explain. Who was pretending to be profound?

He had always been so good!

At this moment, Zhang Tao’s mouth was dry.”In that case, the Three Realms activated the celestial source project in order to save people! This could be the nine emperors ‘plan. No, perhaps some people did not even know the inside story back then.

Later on, the four deities discovered this, so they fell out with the nine emperors …

Then, the person we’re saving might be very important to the nine emperors …”

“The one who created the essence!”

Fang ping directly mentioned this person.”I remember him too. Back then, he should have shattered his origin in the world behind the door … Could it be that he had shattered his origin and died there? Was there a problem with the broken origin? Or would it cause great damage to the Dao of origin?

So the nine emperors wanted to resurrect him?

Or could it be that the nine emperors had other motives and wanted to bring this fellow back to life? or could it be that they simply wanted to control him?

Immortal source, even the heart, was created later.

Now that you’ve put it that way, I feel that the Sanjiao gate is a little like the lid of a coffin!”

“The world behind the door is actually a coffin?” Fang ping chuckled.

“The nine emperors are either trying to resurrect him, control him, or simply trying to fix some of the flaws in their source?”

“That’s only if you’re not mistaken, there’s really someone here!”Heavenly King Zhen said.

“I’m not sure,”

Fang ping shrugged and said,”who can guarantee that? anyway, I look like a human!” It’s too big, taking up almost half of the universe. How would I know if it’s real or fake? perhaps it’s just formed by the void being pulled. ”

The Heavenly King suddenly looked at Cang Mao,”Cang Mao, do you look familiar?”

The old cat was at a loss. He wasn’t familiar.

Fang ping asked,”I asked you guys before, but you guys didn’t tell me.” Is the big cat that man’s cat?”

The gray cat was interested. It stuck its head out and slapped Fang ping with its tail, asking curiously,””Wasn’t I born and raised by the heavens? How is a cat raised by humans when it grew up eating the food of hundreds of families?”

Heavenly King Zhen laughed, and the divine Creator also laughed after thinking,””We’re not too sure about the matter with the cat, but tianchen should know. The day there were cats and dogs, there would also be Tian Chen. This Tian Chen … Speaking of which, he was indeed related to that person.

In the past, when that person was still in the initial stage of martial arts, Tian Chen seemed to have had some interactions with him. Old ghost Li, you know better than me, is Tian Chen his disciple?”

“It can be considered?”

The Heavenly King was not too sure and explained,””At the beginning of martial arts, he’s actually quite tolerant. He may be learning Dao here today, but he may go to another place tomorrow. Tianchen should be learning Dao with that person, but I’m not too familiar with that person. It’s hard to say how long tianchen has been here and how deep their relationship is.

Besides, Tian Chen has learned Dao in many places. He has come to my place before and learned Dao from my master.

However, if the old cat and the heavenly Hound were raised by someone, the possibility of that person being the owner is not small. ”

Then, he added,”let’s talk about the gray cat. It’s known as the source of all DAOs. It probably doesn’t know the situation itself. It could be controlled by people and deliberately caused this situation. And the only people who have this ability are those people.”

The grey cat replied innocently,”really?” I don’t know! Big dog seems to remember more than I do. Why don’t you ask big dog later?”

The heavenly dog seemed to remember more, but the heavenly dog rarely told Cang Mao about this, so Cang Mao did not know the situation.

The Heavenly King wasn’t surprised. This cat didn’t know much, but he remembered that he had eaten a lot.

Everyone talked for a while again and straightened out a lot of things.

The celestial source, the Sanjiao gate, and even the world behind the gate might all be for the sake of resurrecting an expert.

Perhaps this was the reason why the four Emperors and the nine emperors had fallen out back then.

The flaws of the source and the Emperor were probably in the world behind the door.

As for the nine emperors, they might have different thoughts.

Some people wanted to resurrect this person, while others might not.

The scheme of Wang Ruobing and the others might be someone who wanted to do something else and steal the fruits of the other emperors ‘victory.

Not all the sovereigns knew about Wang Ruobing’s situation.

After all, not every Emperor had been to the world hidden behind the door, nor could they go there.

This was probably the most secretive place in the Three Realms.

The person who had set Wang Ruobing up was definitely not weak. He was also a powerful existence among the emperors.

And this person might not be alone.

It was also possible that it was one person, one person who had placed several pieces at the same time. It was possible that the person controlling the other sects was also this person!

Among the nine emperors, the other few, including the ones guarding the gate and the celestial source, might have fallen into his trap.

With more and more clues, Fang ping and the others were able to deduce many things.

And at this moment, Heavenly King Zhen suddenly said,””This old man has some ideas! There might be a problem with Dou!”

Everyone looked at him.

Heavenly King Zhen said in a deep voice,”the Dao of energy is not the Dao of beginner martial arts!” That’s why we say that the human race is the origin and foundation of all DAOs. In the past, Dou Chen did not actually cultivate the Dao of energy.

The path of energy was actually his own creation, but there were benefits to cultivating it. At the very least, it was easier to cultivate in the early stages than the path of vitality.

Later on, people in the Three Realms followed suit, and as a result, the Dao of energy became popular.

The celestial source project had little to do with the catacombs because the path of the celestial source was still mainly the path of vitality. If it was really to resurrect that person, that person was also cultivating vitality.

Therefore, the target of the immortal source plan was the human race.

‘Perhaps Dou has his own motive for getting involved in this … This guy might be the one who’s secretly controlling everything.’

According to Fang ping, it was not easy to enter the world behind the door. Either that person was hiding in the world behind the door, or … He could enter.

I’m afraid only the person in charge of the gate can enter it.

The human emperors might not really control the gate. They could only be considered the gate guards. Maybe there was one more person who really controlled the gate!

The energy gate, fight!

He was the only one who could control this door. However, he could descend earlier, and he could only vaguely see three doors in the depths of the void. Where was the fourth door?

Maybe it’s there, and the others … Might not know about this door. ”

Fang ping frowned and said,”you don’t even know this?” “When I broke through the vitality gate previously, only the humans experienced some changes. The catacombs didn’t have it, did they? would the others not know that there’s a fourth gate?”

“It’s hard to say!”

Heavenly King Zhen shook his head and said,”we can’t be sure if there really is an energy gate!” This was because the person who created the origin source did not have the power of energy. Over the years, no one had managed to become a sovereign by walking the path of energy.

In that case, it made sense that there was no energy gate.

This was because Emperor Cheng’s Dao did not have the Dao of energy.

“As for the catacombs ‘three gates … One of them might be fake. That’s not surprising.”

“Fight …”

Everyone looked at each other and finally looked at old Wang. Old Wang said helplessly,””Don’t look at me, I’m not familiar with it! Among the chaotic memories, there was not much about the Emperor of heaven reverse.

There was no way to determine if he was controlling everything in the dark. The only thing he could do was to be more careful.

Just don’t trust him so easily.

The nine emperors and four Emperors were not to be trusted easily. They all had their own purposes. The heaven reverse Emperor might not have stopped the human Sovereign realm Warriors with good intentions. He might have just been showing his good intentions.

In short, we still have to rely on ourselves, including the few of us, who may have problems at the critical moment …”

Wang Jinyang said in a deep voice,”we said that they’re the reincarnations of extreme heavenly Emperor, but it’s really hard to say if those three are dead or not!” At the critical moment, he might be replaced. This was hard to say.

“That’s why it’s necessary to be more careful. Not only that … Fang ping, in the Three Realms, even the Minister, don’t trust him so easily. ”

“That’s right, our Dao. Since others have plans, they might be under their control!”Zhang Tao said calmly, not angry. “Fang ping, if you manage to get rid of all of this, it’s best for you to only believe in yourself at the critical moment.

Of course, this will probably come when we have to face the Emperor head-on. It doesn’t matter much now. ”

He didn’t deny that he might be controlled.

Even the Heavenly King couldn’t guarantee this.

Fang ping was mentally exhausted. He nodded and finally said,”And about that drop of blood …”

“Say no more!”

At this moment, Heavenly King Zhen stood up and said,”there’s no need to say more about this. It doesn’t affect our safety for the time being. It might be useful to keep some secrets for ourselves!” We’ll make the necessary arrangements and make some judgments on the things you’ve mentioned.

Also, you don’t have to tell us everything about your origin in the future.

Don’t reveal everything about your strength. It’s best to keep it a secret. ”

Fang ping nodded again, but he sighed in his heart. Heavenly King Zhen, old Zhang, and the others did not seem to be affected, but their sense of crisis was probably extremely strong.

The Three Realms were still shrouded in dark clouds.

The so-called breaking the chessboard … Was probably just wishful thinking.