He Kao did not take the chessboard with him; he left the Array of Ten Thousand Woods Rejuvenation in place, using the Celestial Palace Curtain as the core of the array. The Celestial Palace Curtain already had a spirit, instinctively using the array to protect itself.
He Kao arrived at the center of the Grotto Heaven, in the stone niche at the end of the basin. First, he lit three sticks of Awakening Incense, paying homage to Immortal Tan in the painting without any distractions or questions, purely in worship.
Then he closed his eyes, and his mind resonated with the stone wall behind the painting, allowing him to "see" the entire Grotto Heaven.
It was as if he had returned to that strange state during the realm-breaking, though there was a difference, it was very close. His primordial spirit did not leave the body but was as if it did because the entire Grotto Heaven seemed to be his form and spirit.
