Chapter 191: Yu Shao, Worthy of Attention? |
The game was over.
With this final battle, the massive influence Black had carefully built on the upper side had been completely shattered.
White had successfully lived within Black’s territory, a thorn in the flesh that could not be removed.
Meanwhile, Black’s lower group had already been sacrificed, and even though the central area still held some potential, it was nowhere near enough to fight against White’s position.
There was no way to catch up in the endgame.
The outcome was decided.
In the silence that followed—
"I..."
Tong Lecheng struggled to force out a sound.
His lips trembled slightly, and his breath was unsteady.
"I..."
"I..."
Finally, he lowered his head toward the board and pushed the words out all at once.
"I lost!"
Black resigned midgame.
"Thank you for the game."
Yu Shao bowed slightly as he spoke.
Tong Lecheng did not respond.
—
White had lived.
From the very beginning, White's invasion into Black's territory had seemed excessive—even absurd.
Yet, despite being surrounded on all sides, under the siege of Black’s entire army, White had fought seven times in and out, leaving carnage in its wake.
With a final, masterful sequence, White cut its way out and survived, showing the entire room undeniable strength.
A pure battle of power versus power.
Unfortunately for him—
He was the loser.
—
Yu Shao slowly stood up and looked toward the referee in the crowd.
For some reason, the referee felt pressure from Yu Shao’s gaze.
He swallowed and quickly nodded, indicating that he acknowledged the result.
Yu Shao turned to leave.
The crowd instinctively stepped aside, parting to make way.
Everyone watched as he walked toward the exit.
And only when his figure completely disappeared beyond the doorway did they finally react.
Inside the playing room, the other competing players turned toward Tong Lecheng's board, their eyes widening in shock.
"Tong Lecheng... lost?"
They had been too focused on their own games to watch the match.
But the answer was written all over Tong Lecheng's face.
"Yu Shao won again?!"
"Impossible! Even Tong Lecheng lost?!"
"This can’t be real—how could someone of Tong Lecheng’s level lose? Did they count the score? By how many points?"
Some players couldn't sit still.
They stood up, momentarily abandoning their own games, and rushed toward Sheng Ziyan.
They needed to confirm it with their own eyes.
—
Evening.
Inside a luxury apartment, a group of young professionals gathered.
Every Sunday at 7 PM, they would meet here to review games, analyze positions, and occasionally play blitz matches against each other.
The living room was filled with sharp, analytical voices as they dissected a match.
"Zhang Dongchen’s wedge was completely unexpected."
A clean-cut young man frowned slightly as he adjusted the stones on the board.
"I thought cutting from the right was the better move, but the Go Sage saw things differently—I misread the position completely."
"Jiang Changdong’s response was just as impressive. Instead of playing the solid peep, he extended, keeping the pressure on."
An eighteen-year-old murmured as he picked up a stone and placed it on the board.
"It’s so tempting to attack here, but the Go Sage chose to wait."
"He sensed the danger," another twenty-year-old interjected, quickly placing stones on the board.
"If Black had haned, White would have cut, Black would jump, and White would turn..."
In no time, he had laid out an extremely complex sequence.
As the others studied it, their eyes gradually widened.
"Now that I see it this way... if Black rushes in too aggressively, White has a brutal counterattack!"
The clean-cut young man looked astonished.
"Jiang Changdong’s ability to bait his opponent is on another level. This entire sequence—White looks fragile, but in reality, it's a deep trap!"
"Luring the enemy was Jiang Changdong’s strategy. Not taking the bait was Zhang Dongchen’s discipline."
Another player sighed in admiration.
"They fought all the way to the endgame without a single dull moment."
"The Go Sage took this game. Now the series is tied 2-2."
Someone shook his head.
"I wonder if Zhang Dongchen can hold out under the pressure."
Click.
At that moment, the sound of a door unlocking echoed through the apartment.
The group paused and instinctively turned toward the entrance.
Under their watchful gaze, a chubby young man, about twenty years old, walked inside wearing a loud floral shirt.
He closed the door behind him and made his way into the living room.
One of the players grinned.
"I was wondering who it was..."
Seeing who had arrived, someone couldn’t help but laugh.
"Old Sheng, you’re late today. I thought you went off gambling again and weren’t planning on showing up."
"No mahjong today." Sheng Ziyan shook his head. "I went to the Go Association to watch a match."
"The Go Association?"
Someone raised an eyebrow. "Who were you watching?"
Sheng Ziyan walked into the living room and glanced at the board where the others were analyzing a game.
"Yu Shao."
The room fell silent for a moment before surprise flashed across everyone's faces.
"Yu Shao? The 1-dan who plays the 3-3 invasion?"
A young player chuckled in disbelief.
"Sure, he’s interesting, but you're a 7-dan. Did you really go there just to watch his game?"
"His opponent today was Tong Lecheng." Sheng Ziyan replied calmly. "So I went to watch."
The moment he said that, the expressions in the room shifted.
Tong Lecheng might only be a 3-dan, but everyone here knew his real strength was far beyond that.
"Well?" someone asked curiously. "Now that you’ve seen him play, what do you think? Is he worth paying attention to?"
Sheng Ziyan remained silent for a moment.
Then, he took a deep breath.
"If you don't start taking him seriously now..."
His eyes swept across the room, filled with professionals who were all at least 5-dan or higher.
"The day he sits across from you..."
Sheng Ziyan’s tone became firm, each word spoken with absolute certainty.
"You might not be able to win."
The room fell into absolute silence.
The young professionals exchanged glances, their expressions flickering between shock and skepticism.
Was Sheng Ziyan crazy?
He was saying that a newly promoted 1-dan could soon be on their level?
Among the group, only He Yu stood still, saying nothing.
"Let’s go through the game."
Sheng Ziyan didn’t bother arguing.
He simply stepped forward, squeezed into the circle, and cleared the board.
Click.
The crisp sound of stones clashing in the bowl echoed through the quiet room.
Taking a deep breath, Sheng Ziyan focused on the board.
Then, he reached into the bowl of black stones and placed the first move.
Snap!
Column 16, Row 4—Star Point!
Immediately, he took a white stone and placed the response.
Snap!
Column 4, Row 16—Star Point!
The other players watched in confusion.
Snap, snap, snap…
Black and White alternated, quickly forming a Double Star vs. Double Star opening.
Then, Sheng Ziyan picked up another black stone and placed it on the right-side star point.
Three-Star Formation.
The players in the room frowned.
They still didn't know who was playing Black, but this Three-Star opening made one thing clear—
Black was playing aggressively.
"Three Stars… That’s already an unusual choice."
Then, Sheng Ziyan placed the next white move.
Snap!
Column 17, Row 17—3-3 Point Invasion!
The room froze.
"A 3-3 invasion?!"
For a second, no one spoke.
And then, as realization dawned on them, their eyes widened.
Sheng Ziyan remained silent, continuing to place the moves.
Snap, snap, snap…
The sound of stones falling onto the board filled the dead-quiet room.
He mirrored the position on the opposite corner.
A double 3-3 invasion on both the top-right and bottom-right corners.
It was an exactly symmetrical formation.
Then, White’s turn again.
At this moment, Sheng Ziyan closed his eyes for a brief second.
When he opened them, he reached into the bowl and placed White’s next move with precision.
Snap!
Column 15, Row 10—Attach!
The moment the stone landed, the expressions in the room changed dramatically.
In the next second, their eyes snapped wide open.
"Who… Who was playing White?"
Someone stared intensely at the board, then suddenly turned to Sheng Ziyan.
"Who played Black? Who played White?!"
The moment they saw the 3-3 invasion, they had already guessed the answer.
But now, after seeing this attach move, they couldn’t believe it.
They needed confirmation—a definitive answer from Sheng Ziyan.
But Sheng Ziyan didn’t respond immediately.
Instead, he kept playing the moves.
Snap, snap, snap…
As the stones continued to fall, the tension in the room escalated.
At first, White’s moves seemed flowing, effortless, and natural.
But then—
Snap!
Column 13, Row 8—Peep!
"Peep?"
This move was completely different from White’s earlier style.
The players stiffened, and then—as if hit by a sudden realization—
Their eyes widened in shock.
At this moment, White’s true nature was revealed.
"Wait... White’s entire early strategy..."
"It wasn’t just building influence. White was subtly forcing Black into mistakes. No, not just forcing—it was pressuring!"
A player swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry.
"And now, the moment has come."
A silence hung in the air, so thick it was suffocating.
Then, someone finally whispered—
"Whoever played White..."
"Was terrifyingly strong."
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