**Chapter 107: Come, Sit Up!**
Seeing the chessboard in front of him, Su Yu quickly realized that this was the secret passage's defense mechanism.
Kitten Morningstar gave a small nod. "Yes, this is a mechanism set up for the passage. The main control switch should be in the manor."
She continued, "When Duke Cypher enters the secret passage from outside, he'll have his people deactivate the traps, so they can pass through unimpeded. But since we can't access the main switch, we'll have to break through."
Su Yu looked a bit uneasy. "The only issue is... I don't know how to play chess!"
The chessboard was clearly the key to getting through the passage, but unfortunately for Su Yu, it required playing international chess. If it had been Chinese chess, he could have managed a few moves, but international chess… he had no idea.
…
Morningstar hopped down from Su Yu's shoulder, and upon landing, transformed into a magnificent blue-and-white elk, her fur glowing like stars. "Come on, sit up!"
Su Yu blinked, slightly taken aback. "Weren't you the one against being ridden earlier? Now you're all for it?"
Morningstar huffed, avoiding his gaze. But since she didn't seem to mind, Su Yu didn't question further. He swung himself up, settling onto her back. With no saddle, he had to hold on by pressing his legs to her sides, wrapping his arms around her neck, and leaning his whole body against her to stay steady.
Morningstar shifted restlessly beneath him, her heartbeat racing so fast that Su Yu could feel it.
"Ding! [Astral Cat Morningstar]'s favorability toward you has increased by +2."
Su Yu was momentarily surprised. **Is favorability supposed to increase just from riding? What kind of strange attribute is that?**
…
But Morningstar didn't linger.
"Hold on tight!"
With a burst of speed, she leapt into the air, crossing the massive chessboard in one fluid jump.
Boom!
The chessboard whirred to life, emitting a loud rumble as black and white pieces began shifting back and forth, colliding like soldiers on a chaotic battlefield.
Morningstar took note of the sudden activity and carefully set Su Yu down on the other side before turning back toward the board.
"This racket might draw attention. I'll control things here; you go on ahead!"
She turned her back to him, seemingly too embarrassed to look his way.
Su Yu found himself replaying the sensation of riding Morningstar just now. It was his first time riding a deer, and it had been surprisingly comfortable. Unlike the steady, reliable feel of riding Tima, the mare, riding Morningstar was lively and filled with a kind of youthful energy. A whole new experience.
But when Morningstar's words registered, he snapped back to reality. Now wasn't the time for idle thoughts—he needed to focus on the mission.
"Alright, I'm going ahead!"
Waving a quick goodbye, Su Yu sped deeper into the secret passage.
…
After moving past the underground cavern, the passage narrowed again. Su Yu was faced with a 100-meter corridor lined with hidden weapons, narrowing down to where only one person could pass.
With no other path forward, it was clear he had no choice but to press on. Thankfully, his upgraded [Blink] skill was about to come in handy!
Summoning his mana, Su Yu prepared to teleport across the passage in one go.
With his upgraded [Blink], teleporting up to 15 meters was now instantaneous. Moving 15 to 30 meters required a casting time between 0 and 1 second, while teleporting between 30 to 60 meters increased the casting time to a maximum of 8 seconds.
Su Yu decided to maximize the range for this attempt.
After charging for 8 seconds, **swish!** he teleported 60 meters forward, bypassing much of the corridor.
The instant he landed, a mechanism clicked underfoot, binding his legs in place with a [Binding Trap].
From both sides of the walls, an array of crossbow arrows, poison darts, and needles came raining down, aiming to turn him into a pincushion.
But Su Yu was ready. He activated the [Senior Scholar Badge], freeing himself from the binding, and blinked forward by a meter, evading the onslaught entirely.
As he moved, he tripped another round of traps, triggering yet another volley of hidden weapons. Fortunately, the cooldown on his [Blink] was only 0.8 seconds at this range. He waited briefly for the cooldown to finish, then blinked back a meter, returning to his original position.
**Secret Skill: Repeated Dodge!**
With his enhanced [Blink] technique, Su Yu nimbly evaded two successive waves of traps and found a stable footing in the corridor.
Once secured, Su Yu quickly gathered his mana for another teleportation. After 3 seconds, he used [Blink] to teleport 41 meters ahead, reaching the end of the passage.
And just like that, the 100-meter trap-filled corridor was cleared with ease.
"Glad I upgraded [Blink]! Otherwise, there's no way I'd have made it through so smoothly," he thought with relief.
…
Ahead, the path darkened further. Not knowing what dangers lay beyond, Su Yu decided to take a brief rest, waiting half a minute for his [Blink] to recharge fully.
Once rested and with his mana restored, he raised his [Lightning Shield] and advanced with caution.
The path inclined gradually, leading him to a towering jade golem blocking the only exit at the end of the tunnel.
**[Sapphire Golem Lv21 (Excellent)]**
HP: 11,340
Attack Power: 178
Skills: [Sapphire Bloom], [Jade Lotus Mark], [Sapphire Lightning]
Introduction: Golems make the best gifts for the ladies.
This **Sapphire Golem** had around seven times the HP of regular monsters at its level, marking it as a challenging boss. But with Su Yu's current strength, it wasn't much of a threat.
A trick sprang to Su Yu's mind—he decided to give it a shot.
Staying out of the golem's range, Su Yu spent 750 mana points over 15 seconds to summon a formidable [Earth Shield] around himself. Then, using 10,000 psionic coins, he upgraded to an epic special ability: **[Tarzan Overhead]**.
([Tarzan Overhead]: Converts all shield values into a crushing damage attack, stunning the target for 3 seconds.)
He cautiously moved within range of the [Sapphire Golem].
As soon as the golem detected him, the sapphire mark on its forehead lit up, and it unleashed a **Sapphire Lightning** straight at him. The lightning struck his shield, rippling across its surface but barely making a dent.
Su Yu smirked.
"Tarzan Overhead!"
The [Earth Shield] flew off him, coalescing above the golem in the shape of a massive earthen mountain, then slammed down with incredible force.
**Boom!**
—13,266!
The colossal impact shattered the golem entirely, leaving nothing but rubble in its wake.
With that, Su Yu had effortlessly taken down a high-level boss in a single move!
*End of Chapter*