I really don’t want to play Go!

Chapter 462 A Dragon-Slaying Game Planned

Soon, Su Yiming arrived in the crowd and cast his gaze toward the chessboard.

Just then, accompanied by the crisp sound of a piece being placed, Araki, holding a white piece, made that small knight's move.

Upon seeing this move, Su Yiming was slightly taken aback.

"Xiao Fei?"

The surrounding crowd fell silent for a brief two or three seconds, as if time had stood still.

Two or three seconds later, the crowd erupted in an uproar!
"Xiao Fei?"

Someone stared at the chessboard in disbelief: "So... subtle?"

"really."

The person beside him stared in awe at the chessboard before him and said, "In this situation, I've considered the possibility that White, with no way out, might resort to a desperate struggle and put up a last-ditch effort..."

"but--"

He couldn't help but swallow hard, a bead of cold sweat on his face, and said, "I never imagined... it would be Xiao Fei."

Even Kong Zi, standing in the crowd, couldn't help but be slightly lost in thought as he stared at the white piece on the chessboard.

White's position is visibly precarious, and it can even be said that the outcome is already decided. Under these circumstances, if White wants to continue playing, no matter how aggressively White plays, it is not excessive.

But this move was surprisingly calm; it was simply a small knight's move that perfectly followed the principles of Go and was intended to seize a major advantage.

Too reasonable.

But that's actually unreasonable!

This small knight's move is a good move no matter how you look at it, but it should be a move made in a situation where the strength is evenly matched, and it should never appear in this critical and urgent situation!

At this point, it's impossible for White to play normally. Since it can no longer win through conventional means, it must resort to unconventional tactics and brute force. What seems like a perfectly reasonable move is actually unreasonable in this particular board situation.

It's as if White is completely unaware that its chances of winning are already slim.

Or perhaps, White is oblivious to this, and even though the situation is dire, White continues to do its own thing, still looking at the big picture and taking a holistic view of the game!
It's as if the enemy is already at the city gates, but instead of devising a strategy to repel them, the person is thinking about how to capture the enemy's capital. This contrast creates an extremely bizarre atmosphere that is particularly unsettling.

"It's too peaceful."

Someone spoke with difficulty: "The calm under such a certain death situation seems like accepting death with equanimity, but it also seems more like there's some powerful backup plan..."

"It's absolutely terrifying to think about..."

They stared at the chessboard in bewilderment: "But how is that possible?"

No matter how they look at it, White has no chance of reviving, but this small knight's move is too meaningful. Could it really be just a normal move, quietly waiting for death?
Among the crowd, Su Yiming stared intently at the chessboard, and after a moment, his expression became more serious.

"It's actually Xiao Fei?"

Higashiyama Kaoru was also stunned for a moment, clearly not expecting Araki to do such a thing.

After gazing at the chessboard and pondering for a long time, Higashiyama Kaoru finally picked up a piece and placed it down again.

Hey!
Eight columns and five rows, stick!

"So cautious."

Upon seeing Higashiyama Kaoru's response, everyone held their breath.

Given that Black already held a winning position, and that White's small knight's move was truly significant, Higashiyama Kaoru did not act rashly, but instead chose to reinforce his position with extreme caution.

Clearly, Black doesn't want to give White any chance and wants to nip all risks in the bud.

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
The two sides then began to take turns placing their pieces.

Higashiyama Kaoru played with extreme caution and solidity. Although he could have launched a full-scale attack and won quickly, he was in no hurry to make a move. While constantly reinforcing his own pieces, he also adopted an attacking stance, seemingly ready to attack White at any moment, but he hesitated to make a move, maintaining high pressure on White.

Everyone can come out. Higashiyama Kaoru's real intention is not to fix the pieces, but to simplify the situation and make the originally complex situation more stable, even at the cost of losing points himself.

This is undoubtedly a good move. Even if Black's advantage will gradually diminish, when the game is completely closed, White will be powerless to turn the tide, and Black can even defeat the opponent without a fight.

As the pieces were placed one by one, many people couldn't help but recall the game between Yu Shao and Jiang Changdong in the National Masters Tournament.

"Is it my imagination?"

A young man couldn't help but whisper to his friend beside him, "I always feel that Dongshan Xun looks a bit like Yu Shao..."

"It's not a misperception; I feel the same way."

His friend shook his head, his eyes still fixed on the game, and said without turning his head, "From that sharp move in the opening, to the handling of life and death in the middle game, the utilization of the shape, and then to the control of the board here, you can see the shadow of Yu Shao in several games. Even the sacrifice of the dragon in the middle game has the feel of Su Yiming."

"However, Higashiyama Kaoru's moves, ideas, and techniques are clearly not the same as Yu Shao's style. He must have studied Yu Shao's game records extensively and gained a lot, developing his own understanding."

His friend stared at the chessboard, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper: "If this continues, it won't be long before Black really wins the game without a fight, and White won't have any points to catch up with even if they go into the endgame."

"Was White's flying move really meaningful, or just a bluff, or perhaps we were simply overthinking it?"

Soon, Araki placed another piece on the chessboard.

Hey!
Seventeen columns and seven rows, Tiger!
Upon seeing this move, everyone around them perked up. White's tiger-like move was a departure from its previous strategy. It suddenly turned around and bit into Black's pieces, clearly indicating a strong attack on Black!

If White truly has a counter-move, then it must reveal it now; this is the decisive battle!
"A tiger?"

Higashiyama Kaoru gazed at the chessboard, constantly calculating the subsequent changes in his mind.

"He wants to attack my key stones. If those key stones are cut off, White could indeed launch a counterattack, but..."

Higashiyama Kaoru's gaze swept across the entire scene, and she made a decision.

"The entire board is very active, and White is completely suppressed in low positions. It doesn't matter if White cuts off its key stones. As long as White fully strengthens its position, then White will have no way to fight back!"

Thinking of this, Higashiyama Kaoru picked up a chess piece and quickly placed it down again!
Soon, Araki also picked up a white stone and placed it on the board!

Da da da!

In the blink of an eye, the two sides made more than ten moves in succession. Everyone held their breath and watched the battle on the board with great concentration, as if they were witnessing an earth-shattering battle!

Black's stones were very solid, but White cleverly used a "prick" to find a weakness in Black's shape. In the end, White cut off Black's stones, and White seemed to have a chance to counterattack.

"The black stone's key piece has actually been captured, and it's a big, thick piece!"

"Are we supposed to break in from here? This space is too cramped, it's impossible."

"But perhaps there is hope?"

Seeing this, everyone's heart jumped into their throat. *Thud!*
Hey!
Da

Under the watchful eyes of the world, the chess pieces were continuously placed on the chessboard.

Soon, everyone's expressions dimmed again, and the flame of hope that had been burning in their hearts flickered and was about to be extinguished once more. Even Su Yiming frowned slightly among the crowd.

The capture of Black's key stones was indeed unexpected, but Black's outer stones had already formed towering mountains and a magnificent, imposing presence, so thick that it was completely unshakeable!
"Okay, that's it."

Seeing the situation develop as he had expected, Higashiyama Kaoru calmed down considerably, and began placing his pieces faster and faster.

"As long as I, Black, gradually encircle and surround White's territory, White's territory will be squeezed out!"

But among the crowd, Su Yiming stared intently at the chessboard. His previously furrowed brows had relaxed, replaced by a look of utter disbelief.

"Then Black plays a sharp point, White jumps, Black plays a close move, White plays a turn. If Black crawls, then White also crawls. If Black doesn't crawl but pushes, then White digs to find a cutting point for Black..."

In his mind, it was as if there was a chessboard, and countless moves had already been made on the basis of the game before him, and the final conclusion was—

"Finally, the life and death of the other large group of black stones on the right flank will become a problem!"

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
The pieces are still being placed!

"In this way, White will be able to attack without any further action..."

Seeing Arakino make his move, Higashiyama Kaoru immediately reached into the go board box again, ready to take out a piece. Suddenly, he saw the move Arakino made and his right hand in the go board box paused.

"……break."

But soon, Higashiyama Kaoru regained her composure and placed her piece again.

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
"..."

After a few more moves, seeing Arakino make another move, Higashiyama Kaoru broke out in a cold sweat, his face turning slightly pale. After gritting his teeth and thinking for a moment, he finally placed his piece on the board again!
All around, there was complete silence.

Everyone stared in disbelief at the chessboard, their hearts filled with a storm of emotions.

Even though Su Yiming had anticipated this scene, he couldn't help but be somewhat stunned.

At this moment, the internet exploded!
"After White's move to cut, Black's life and death became a problem!"

"Impossible, how is this possible!"

"Black's shape looks solid, but for some reason, it's difficult to achieve the desired effect. Instead, it appears clumsy, and its external influence is completely ineffective!"

"The few isolated white stones on the right side were originally in a life-or-death situation and needed to be protected. But at this moment, they have actually occupied all the eye space of the large black group on the right wing. There is a possibility that this large black group can be captured!"

Just then, under everyone's watchful eyes, another white piece was placed on the board!
"Big jump!"

Unable to contain their shock, someone stood up and screamed, "White! White is going after Black's large group of stones!"

"The tide has turned!"

"Why is this happening!"

Speechless!

Shocked!

Everyone was stunned!

Finally, after watching a few more moves, someone belatedly realized something and seemed to finally understand!
"After Black sacrificed its dragon, White's group was completely scattered, with its four corners becoming disorganized and undesirable. All it gained were a few isolated groups in the center! But those isolated groups are exactly what White wanted!!!"

"Now it seems that from the very beginning, White had designs on Black's large dragon on the right wing. All the pieces White played echoed the other White pieces around Black's large dragon on the right wing. Then, White took advantage of Black's sacrifice of the dragon to turn the tables on Black!"

"White piece—"

"They were planning to slay the dragon from the very beginning!"

"Now that we've spanned the entire board, we're finally about to capture the large black group!"

No one could remain calm anymore. Everyone involuntarily leaned forward, watching this shocking killing scene. Their scalps tingled, and an endless chill ran through their hearts.

Was the initial plan to slay the dragon?
Everyone felt an unprecedented sense of absurdity.

In Go, killing the dragon is indeed a way to win, but the so-called dragon-killing usually happens when the game is halfway through and an opportunity to kill the dragon is discovered. Most games are played until the endgame.

Aside from beginners, how could anyone possibly want to capture the opponent's Baron Nashor from the very beginning?!
Ultimately, because Go is so complex, with hundreds of billions of variations, and the dragon-slaying move is the most varied and complex of all, the situation can easily spiral out of control.

Therefore, throughout history, even among the most aggressive chess players, no player, in any game, has ever made "dragon slaying" the core of their tactics from the very beginning!
As the chess pieces continued to fall on the board, no one could remain calm.

The scene was completely different from the previous one, where Higashiyama Kaoru was making moves like lightning. Now, Higashiyama Kaoru was making each move extremely difficult, often needing to think for a long time. On the other hand, Araki No was making moves like lightning!

Higashiyama Kaoru's face was pale, with beads of sweat running down his face. He gritted his teeth and, after a long period of contemplation, finally made his move again.

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
The surroundings remained silent.

Finally, after an unknown amount of time, and after the large black group on the right flank had been completely captured by white, Higashiyama Kaoru remained silent for a moment, then lowered his head deeply and said, "I..."

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but the last two words seemed to weigh a ton, and he couldn't bring himself to say them.

"Lost."

Finally, Higashiyama Kaoru managed to utter the remaining two words through gritted teeth.

"Thanks for the advice."

Araki's face was expressionless as he bowed to Higashiyama Kaoru.

The people around were completely dumbfounded. Even after the game ended, they were still stunned and stood there, their hearts filled with shock.

Araki, the dragon slayer!
On the chessboard, the two large black dragons were slaughtered. The phrase "complete annihilation" is insufficient to describe the tragic state of the situation; it can only be described as utterly destroyed!

But this is not because Black played poorly; in fact, it can be said that Black played exceptionally well, so well that it was astonishing. In fact, until the last fifty moves, no one would have predicted that this would be the final outcome.

In this game, Higashiyama Kaoru's astonishing sacrifice of his dragon to gain the initiative impressed everyone. However, this brilliant move did not bring him victory; instead, it led to a brutal and tragic outcome in which both of his dragons were slaughtered!

Amidst the crowd, Su Yiming stared silently at the chessboard, his mind replaying every move made by both sides, constantly dissecting and reviewing the game.

…………

P.S.: The IV drip really worked! The fever has gone down, but I still feel a bit sore all over. Luckily, I should feel better in a couple of days. Everyone, please take care of yourselves.

　Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)