I really don’t want to play Go!

Chapter 478 A Complete Denial of Four Thousand Years of Go

After the four games in the winners' bracket were decided, the players in the losers' bracket went up on stage to draw lots.

Compared to the winners, the losers looked more somber and tired, as they had no way out.

Shortly after the draw, the match schedule for the losers' bracket was finalized.

Immediately, many people's eyes turned to Ander in the crowd, and Ander's expression became somewhat unpleasant.

The reason is simple: yesterday his opponent was Yu Shao, and today, in the first game after falling into the loser's bracket, his opponent, after being drawn, happens to be Su Yiming again!
It's worth noting that the saying "Yu-Su" has been around in the chess world for a long time.

"Alright, all contestants, get ready. The competition will start promptly at nine o'clock."

After speaking, Zhao Zhengyang stepped down from the stage, and the chess players all walked to their respective chess tables.

Ander looked at Su Yiming, his gaze darkening slightly, and his fists clenched unconsciously.

A moment later, the fist quietly loosened.

Then Ander strode toward Su Yiming, quickly arrived opposite Su Yiming, pulled out a chair and sat down.

Meanwhile, Honinbo Shinhe also arrived opposite Yu Shao.

"Good morning, Honinbo Shingo-sensei."

Yu Shao was the first to greet Honinbo Credit Union.

Honinbo Shingo remained silent, glanced at Yu Shao without a hint of disdain in his eyes, and after a moment finally pulled out a chair and slowly sat down opposite Yu Shao: "Master Yu Shao, good morning."

This scene instantly attracted the attention of many people.

Honinbo Shinhe was simply sitting in his seat, yet he seemed to exude a sense of oppression.

The group exchanged glances and quickly walked towards table number four where the two were. Soon, they surrounded table number four, and Higashiyama Kaoru was among them.

Leaving aside the losers' bracket, the most watched game in the winners' bracket today is undoubtedly the one between Yu Shao and Honinbo Shinho!
If you were to ask who the strongest Go player is right now, everyone would answer without hesitation: Ahn Hong-seok. But if you were to ask who the second strongest Go player is, opinions would vary.

But among these many conflicting answers, there must be one name—

Honinbo Shinai!
A little over a year ago, Yu Shao was still unknown, but a little over a year later, in this competition that represents the highest level of Go, Yu Shao is already going to compete against Honinbo Shingo in a tiebreaker!

Looking back on the past year, Yu Shao's journey has been nothing short of legendary. From the beginning of the "Spark Battle" at point 3, to the destruction of the three major unsolvable opening patterns, and then to the overturning of the "thick and thin" style, it can be said that he single-handedly turned the chess world upside down.

Many people believe that Yu Shao's strongest period was precisely when he had just become a professional Go player. At that time, even An Hongshi would suffer heavy losses and be completely overwhelmed when facing Yu Shao.

At that time, Yu Shao's understanding and knowledge of Go were far ahead of his time. However, today, other Go players have gradually accepted these understandings and knowledge through reviewing games and learning.

Under these circumstances, can Yu Shao continue his meteoric rise and maintain his former dominance?
Some people are optimistic, while others are not.

None of this matters, because the game of chess will provide the answer for everyone.

Even if others gradually accept the new understanding and knowledge of Go, they will not be able to stop Yu Shao, but Honinbo Shingo is definitely one of the people who can stop Yu Shao!

Time passed by minute by minute.

The huge competition venue gradually quieted down.

Jiang Han'en, yes, Martin!

Araki, yes, Cho Chanyeol!
Honyinfang Xinhe, yes, Yu Shao!

Ander, yes, Su Yiming.

Zhang Dongchen, yes, Zheng Cui.

……

Inside the silent competition venue, more than thirty chess players sat facing each other in silence, locked in a fierce confrontation, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense and intense.

Standing nearby, Higashiyama Kaoru looked at Yu Shao and Honinbo Shingo, who were sitting opposite each other, and her expression also became more serious.

In a review room at the Korean Go Association, Lee Joon-hyuk and others sat in front of the television, taking a deep breath as they watched.

In the studio, the two chess players who were providing commentary also turned their gazes to the large screen behind them, where the chessboard was still empty.

finally--

"Time is up!"

Zhao Zhengyang's voice rang out again: "Contestants, please begin guessing!"

No sooner had the referee finished speaking than Honinbo Shingo reached into the Go box, grabbed a white Go stone, and clenched it tightly in his palm.

Yu Shao immediately took out two black pieces from the chess box and placed them on the chessboard.

"Nine white pieces, I take black."

Soon, after counting the chess pieces, Honinbo Shingo raised his head, looked at Yu Shao, and spoke in fluent Chinese.

Yu Shao nodded, put away the chess pieces, exchanged the chess box with Honinbo Shingo, and said with his head bowed, "Please give me your guidance."

"Please give me more advice."

Honinbo Shinai immediately returned the gift.

After the two finished guessing and exchanging greetings, the surrounding crowd, the viewers in front of the television, the chess fans in the live broadcast room, and everyone who was paying attention to this game all paused to collect their attention.

They looked at the chessboard, and even though there wasn't a single piece on it, their expressions were incredibly focused and serious.

The game of chess—

it has started!

"Click!"

The crisp sound of the Go stones colliding rang out, and the next moment, Honinbo Shingo took a black stone from the Go box and made his first move.

Hey!
Seventeen columns, four rows, small eyes!

Two or three seconds after the black piece was placed, Yu Shao also reached into the chess box, picked out a white piece, and slowly placed it down.

Hey!
Sixteen columns and sixteen rows, stars!

Seeing the white stone placed at the star point, Honinbo Shingo quickly reached into the go box again, picked up a stone, and slowly placed it down.

Hey!
Four columns and four rows, stars!

On the other side, seeing the black piece fall, Yu Shao quickly placed his white piece as well.

Hey!
Three columns and sixteen rows, small eyes!

"Starry Eyes facing Starry Eyes..."

Seeing the white stone placed at the small eye, Honinbo Shingo looked at the board and habitually pinched the tip of his nose.

In the first four moves, both sides placed their stones on the star point and the small eye point respectively, forming a star-small eye point versus star-small eye point opening. This is also the most classic opening in the last thirty years. It can both gain influence to form a shape and take advantage of the ground to play small stones, winning with great flexibility!
"To achieve such accomplishments at such a young age is truly unprecedented and unparalleled..." Honinbo Shingo quickly reached into the Go box with his right hand and, with a click, picked out a Go piece.

The next moment, the chess piece fell swiftly!

Hey!
Fourteen columns, four rows, a big jump to defend the corner!

"However, we are not going to stand still and just watch those who come after us catch up!"

Honinbo Shinko withdrew his hand, then slowly raised his head and looked at Yu Shao opposite him. His face was calm, but he was imposing without being angry. His eyes were sharp as swords!

"Even An Hongshi suffered repeated defeats in the World Championships, and other geniuses are no exception!"

"bring it on!"

……

……

Meanwhile, in the debriefing room.

"Master Honinbo Shingo, is he making a big jump to defend the corner here?"

Seeing Kuroko make this move on the computer screen, everyone's expressions were somewhat moved, and they were even more astonished!
There are many ways to guard the corner of a small target, the most common of which is to create the Worry-Free Corner. Although Yu Shao's appearance has brought many structural changes and subversions to the Worry-Free Corner, even Yu Shao cannot deny its value!
"In the current practice of guarding the corner with small eyes, the corner without worry is still the mainstream."

Someone stared intently at the television screen and said in a deep voice, "Of the other corner defense methods, only the single-entry corner defense remains, but it is quite rare. Most players only regard it as a cold move. The large jump corner defense is even rarer, and the first time it was played was by Yu Shao..."

"Many of Yu Shao's moves have been recognized today, but some of them are still questioned by many players, and the big jump to defend the corner is one of them."

"The reason is simple: placing a small stone at the corner is to solidify the corner. If you want to pursue speed and gain 'momentum,' then you won't place a small stone at the corner, but will place a star stone at the very beginning!"

"If you want a solid position, then forming a corner without worries after a small knight's move is the most solid shape. A large jump to defend the corner is neither fish nor fowl, or rather, it's greedy because it's too fast."

"A small eye combined with a big jump seems powerful and quite solid, but it's actually just being clever. You can't have your cake and eat it too. There's no such thing as a free lunch."

"If you want both, you often end up with neither."

Upon hearing this, Lee Jun-hyuk, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up: "However, Honinbo Shin-ho-sensei still chose to make a high jump to defend the corner..."

"why?"

Some people wondered, "The way of defending the corner by jumping over the big jump is completely different from the original intention of the small target, which is equivalent to violating the original strategic intention."

Lee Jun-hyuk did not answer the question immediately. After a moment of silence, he said, "Actually, it's not just Honinbo Shin-ho. I've noticed that in the past month or two, other top players have also been increasingly using the big jump to defend the corner."

"So why is this?"

Hearing this, everyone was even more puzzled. Someone couldn't help but ask, "Is it possible that a large jump to defend the corner is better than a safe corner? That's impossible, isn't it? Maintaining a coherent train of thought is a basic common sense principle in Go."

"I don't know either. If I knew the reason, the tactic of jumping to defend the corner would have been recognized by the world long ago."

Lee Jun-hyuk shook his head and said bluntly, "I'm afraid even if you asked Honinbo Shin-ho, who is currently playing this move of the Big Jump Corner Guard, he himself wouldn't be able to give a reason why the Big Jump Corner Guard is better than the Worry-Free Corner."

"That--"

Someone was about to say something, but before they could open their mouth, Lee Jun-hyuk waved his hand, interrupting them.

"The most terrifying thing is having no reason at all, isn't it?"

Lee Jun-hyuk countered with a question.

The man's words caught in his throat. His expression was initially puzzled, but then he seemed to realize something, and his expression suddenly changed drastically. The chess players were the same.

"Even if you can't convince yourself that a large jump to defend the corner is better than a safe corner, top players like Honinbo Shingo and Yasuhiro are still playing it."

Lee Jun-hyuk took a deep breath and said, "If you say that a safe corner is better than a large jump corner, then you are right, because you have a point, and they don't."

"But when we let them go down, they went down a big jump to defend the corner. You ask why? I don't know, they just feel that a big jump to defend the corner is better."

"If it were just one or two players like this, it would be fine, but more and more players, including top players like Honinbo Shingo, Yasuhiro Abe, and Yu Shao, are starting to play big jumps to defend the corners without giving any reason."

"This... is perhaps the most terrifying thing."

Gudong.

Some people couldn't help but swallow, their scalps tingling and their hair standing on end.

It's just a different way of defending the corner. It seems like just this one move, nothing special. Although the big jump to defend the corner isn't a good move, it's still a type of corner defense, and it's not that bad. If you insist on playing it, no one can argue with you.

But what's frightening is that, without any apparent reason, more and more top players are adopting certain moves, which is terrifying. It's not just a question of whether a large jump to defend the corner or a safe corner is better.

Because this is more likely to indicate—

The principles that previously guided all chess players to play chess are, in fact, wrong, even though they cannot be refuted.

This is truly terrifying to think about.

The emergence of moves such as the inversion of thickness and thinness, the overturning of terrain, the destruction of the three major difficult-to-solve joseki, and the sharp top shoulder collision, was an unprecedented shock to Go.

Now all these methods of divination have been affirmed, and people can accept that the previous methods were wrong because they were based on sound reasoning. These reasons can convince people that this is the correct way to divination.

However, if a move appears that cannot be found to convince anyone else, yet it is still considered correct, it would be equivalent to completely negating four thousand years of Go!
This is the true essence of Go!
Human chess players play chess guided by experience and logic. If experience and logic are not enough to be trusted, then what should be used to judge right and wrong?
Then nobody will know.

From this point on, modern Go will be completely different from the Go of the past!
"I have a feeling."

Lee Jun-hyuk spoke again: "Before long, the big jump corner defense will become the mainstream way to defend corners in small-point games. The worry-free corner will not disappear; it will still exist, but it will be adopted by fewer and fewer players."

"When the Angle of Sanshoku was correct, it gradually became incorrect..."

The entire room was completely silent; you could hear a pin drop.

……

……

At this moment, inside the competition venue.

"A high jump to defend the corner, huh..."

Seeing this move, everyone present was also unsettled. Not only Lee Jun-hyuk, but many others also vaguely realized the problem.

Yu Shao lowered his eyes and quietly looked at the chessboard. After a moment, he reached into the chess box and picked out a chess piece again.

The chess piece gently falls!

Hey!
The sound of the piece being placed is crisp and pleasant to the ear.

The next second, everyone's expressions changed uncontrollably!
On the chessboard!

Bottom left corner!
Next to the two white stones located at the small eye position, there is suddenly an extra white stone!
Six columns and sixteen rows, a big jump to defend the corner!

Faced with Black's small-eye-large-jump defense of the corner, White's response is also a small-eye-large-jump defense of the corner, as if the worry-free corner has become a thing of the past!
　Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)