LOL: Can’t I play other games professionally?

Chapter 456 The Final Battle
[A new world number one? Lin Ruo, a first-dan player, holds match point and is aiming for the Dream Lily Cup world championship!]

[The post-2000 generation has arrived; the world's first Go world champion born in the 2000s is about to be born.]

[2-0, another crushing defeat. Is the difference in strength really that great?]

The term "post-00s" alone is not enough to overshadow the overwhelming buzz after the second round of the competition. Since the end of the competition, the most discussed topics on Sina Weibo that day were almost entirely dominated by news about the Mengbaihe Cup finals.

This isn't because Lin Ruo has a huge following, but rather because the word "genius" alone is enough to attract most people's attention.

So when this genius is Lin Ruo, who is already well-known, the attention he naturally attracts is unparalleled.

For many Go professionals, the 2-0 result is less important than the exciting process.

This game, which ended in a crushing defeat in the middle game, shouldn't have been very interesting. However, Park Jung-hwan's brilliant move that almost wiped out all of Black's stones became a point of interest.

Lin Ruo's subsequent three-step strategy to turn the tide and recover all the disadvantages became the biggest topic of discussion among most Go viewers after the match.

How exactly did she manage to get out of there? They all thought there was no hope when they saw her, but Lin Ruo only needed to think for less than five minutes before she walked out without making a mistake, shattering Park Jung-hwan's hopes of turning the tide.

It is precisely because of these four moves that the post-match research value of this game is far greater than that of many closely contested matches.

Everyone wanted to know how Lin Ruo had gotten through it.

Therefore, that evening, in addition to the exciting result, many Go bloggers posted analysis and explanation videos on Bilibili and Weibo, focusing on the four-move entanglement between Lin Ruo and Park Jung-hwan.

How White managed to turn the tide and then be completely crushed by Black is a question worth exploring.

Park Jung-hwan, who had already lost two games in a row, couldn't help but seek out Lin Ruo for a post-match review because of these three steps, even though it was difficult for him to talk about the pre-match mockery.

However, losing face is nothing compared to resolving the doubts about the game. If the cause isn't found, Park Jung-hwan probably won't have the time or energy to prepare for the third match when he gets back.

Losing a game is acceptable, but you can't not even know how you lost.

When faced with Park Jung-hwan's reluctant question, Lin Ruo directly gave him the answer.

In the half-hour debriefing, it all boiled down to just a few sentences.

Do this and that, and then do this again and it will be fine.

After listening, Park Jung-hwan suddenly understood and couldn't help but feel a little emotional. After making that brilliant move, he considered all the possibilities.

However, he still couldn't stop Lin Ruo from making three brilliant moves, and he didn't even realize the significance of those moves at first.

If he could do it all over again, even if he couldn't see the effect, Park Jung-hwan would still risk everything to gamble. But the outcome is already beyond his control.

After saying so much, Lin Ruo thought for a moment and then explained the previous post-match interview: "Senior Park Jung-hwan, I hope you don't misunderstand. My previous post-match interview was definitely not to say that you are bad. On the contrary, you are still a top three level Go player today."

Everyone says my win rate is only 50% out of 100, and I'm embarrassed to believe it if I'm not bad.

However, Lin Ruo quickly gave an answer: "Of course, you are indeed relatively weak compared to me."

Park Jung-hwan: ...

Goodness, so you're second only to one person and above ten thousand others, huh?

Although Park Jung-hwan wanted to argue, the temporary score of 2-0 left him powerless. All he could do before leaving was to say fiercely, "I will definitely win tomorrow."

The score absolutely cannot be 3-0; this is his absolute bottom line.

If they are truly shut out 3-0, regardless of what Park Jung-hwan thinks, in the hearts of Korean netizens, holding a retirement ceremony on the spot is not out of the question.

As it turns out, his thinking was too simplistic; opinions on Korean websites go far beyond that.

Who said we're going to make you retire? We're going to make you leave the world!

[Damn it, does anyone have Park Jung-hwan's address? He's been beating people terribly. I'm going to send him poisoned takeout, with two packets of rat poison in it.]

[I just want to drive my truck to his house and block him for ten days or half a month. Look how this finals went! He started 0-2 against a kid.]

This is really terrible.

[He underperformed several times against Chinese players, and today he didn't even bother to act anymore. I don't know how someone like this became the number one player in South Korea. He should just renounce his citizenship and join China.]

[We in South Korea don't need players who excel in internal battles but consistently underperform in international competitions.]

[I thought winning the last world championship meant they'd finally woken up, but it seems they're about to hand the title to the Chinese again this time.]

[Anyway, no opponent is invincible. If he can't win a single game, then it's Park Jung-hwan 9-dan's personal problem, without a doubt. Even the worst player shouldn't be unable to win a single game in a best-of-five series.]

[I've always felt that Lin Ruo is an exceptionally skilled player, but the fact that Park Jung-hwan 9-dan made such a basic mistake in the first round clearly shows that he's not just an ordinary exceptional player either.]

If you don't win the first time, swim back. Even if you can't compete, at least you'll get some exercise. We'll be waiting for you at the mouth of the Han River.

Do you think Park Jung-hwan 9-dan can swim back? You're not considering his physical condition at all. I don't ask for much; walking back is fine, that way he definitely won't be too tired.

...

"Ignore what others think, go back and continue preparing for the battle. Our journey is not over yet."

The Korean coach, who had already witnessed the content of the Korean online broadcast during the match, did not forget to remind Park Jung-hwan. This time, he finally succeeded in telling Park Jung-hwan not to look at the Korean online comments like he did after the first round, but to focus on continuing to prepare for the match.

At this moment, Park Jung-hwan, whose mind was in turmoil, had no time to pay attention to the fans' opinions.

He just kept wondering if it was really possible to come back from a 0-2 deficit to win 3-2. Park Jung-hwan couldn't even recall ever coming back from a 0-2 deficit to win 3-2 in a world championship.

To come back from a 0-2 deficit to win 3-2 in the finals is just too outrageous; he doesn't recall ever hearing of it happen before.

Japan has a history of coming back from a 3-0 deficit to win 4-3, but given the rule that you can reschedule a game halfway through, such comebacks are not uncommon.

indeed.

If current Go tournaments were like this, then Park Jung-hwan, who hadn't quite figured out Lin Ruo's initial move that turned the game around, would definitely have stopped the match immediately, spent a whole night understanding the intention behind that move, and thus avoided it the next day.

It's hard to say who will win the second game, but Park Jung-hwan definitely has a much higher chance of winning.

However, there are no "what ifs." Park Jung-hwan could only accept the reality with frustration and go back to adjust his condition to prepare for the third day of the competition, which might also be his last day.

The second round of the best-of-five final of the Mengbaihe Cup has finally come to an end, and the heated online discussions have almost drowned out the League of Legends LPL Summer Split, which started on the same day.

Fortunately, it didn't start in the morning, otherwise there really wouldn't be many viewers, because they would all be going to some other FoxTV livestream.

With his team's first match scheduled for that afternoon, Lin Ruo, feeling refreshed after the game, naturally called to offer his congratulations. "Awesome! You actually won 2-0! Are you really going to bring home a trophy? That would be fantastic!"

When Mingkai received the call, it was as if his meridians had been opened, and he talked on and on without stopping.

"I see. This trophy will definitely look impressive when it's placed at our EDG club's booth. There will be a slogan below it: 'A Go world champion from a League of Legends player.' Who wouldn't be confused by that?"

That's true. What does League of Legends have to do with Go? Anyone who doesn't know would be confused.

However, given the incredibly advanced internet communication capabilities of today, Lin Ruo felt that if she really won the championship, probably no one would not know.

"Is the game going to be stable?" Lin Ruo finally remembered to ask after listening to the nagging for so long.

Mingkai, patting his chest confidently, said, "No, I was exhausted after my debut against RW. Just watch how I deal with that traitor Chen Yuhao tonight. I'm sure I can win the championship more easily than you."

Before he could finish speaking, the phone was snatched away by the impatient Abu.

"Lin Ruo, let me tell you something. It's okay that you didn't participate in the first two rounds of the regular season, but... in tomorrow's third round, if you win the championship..."

At the crucial point, Abu coughed slightly to emphasize the importance of the matter, then smiled and said, "Remember to thank the club if you win the championship, just say a few words."

What kind of brand promotion could have a greater promotional effect than winning the championship? If that's the case, then what's the point of not participating in the two regular season games?

It's nothing, okay? In Abu's opinion, it wouldn't matter if he didn't come to the third game.

“No problem, I, Lin Ruo, will definitely do as Mr. Bu says. Just remember about the bonus.”

As everyone knows, anything that can be accomplished with just a few words is no problem for Lin Ruo.

"What bonus?" Abu's side reacted quickly, someone was making something out of nothing.

However, Lin Ruo's explanation seemed quite reasonable to him. After all, if EDG Club were to give Lin Ruo a large bonus in recognition of his performance after winning the championship, they could just buy some trending topics.

What do the audience think?
Of course, EDG is so great! Not only did they allow Lin Ruo to participate in the competition during the event, but they also gave him a prize to encourage him if he won, as a reward for promoting the traditional culture of Go.

Tsk tsk.

Who wouldn't love EDG, a club with such a broad mind and care for its players?

That publicity effect is something that a couple of words in a championship interview can't compare to.
Anyway, Abu found Lin Ruo's explanation very helpful. Although he knew what shady business Lin Ruo was up to, it seemed like he wouldn't lose out at all by doing it once.

So how much should the bonus be?

Upon hearing Lin Ruo blurt out "one million," Abu quickly pretended his internet connection was bad and hung up the phone.

A million? Why not just rob someone?

So you're treating him like the organizer of this Dream Lily Cup competition?

It doesn't make sense. Giving 50 is the most I can give. Any more would be too much of a burden to Lin Ruo. It's not that I feel bad about giving him more, but I absolutely cannot encourage his money-grubbing personality.

Yes, that's right. This is helping Lin Ruo return to the excellent quality of being indifferent to fame and fortune, not being stingy, even though Lin Ruo's suggestions were very helpful.

...

At 19 PM, EDG's first match of the Summer Split against the super team RW officially kicked off.

Lin Ruo watched for a few minutes, and after confirming that Haro had completed his evolution during MSI and was not afraid of the opposing excavator master Cuzz at all, he turned off the live stream.

As long as the jungler position is not a problem, EDG will most likely win, so there is no need to continue watching the game.

After opening the FoxPlay platform, Lin Ruo played more than three training matches in a row that evening to warm up her skills before going to bed early.

...

After a short night's rest, the third round of the best-of-five final of the Mengbaihe Cup officially began at dawn.

This could be the day to end the competition, and given Lin Ruo's momentum over the past two days, he will most likely win the championship today.

Therefore, reporters from all media outlets are putting in their best efforts, ready to pull off a big heist today.

Unlike the previous two days when the sessions went overtime, Lin Ruo unexpectedly arrived at the Go academy early this time, even earlier than Park Jung-hwan, and sat down on the leather sofa in the game room to prepare.

Many reporters were already somewhat surprised even before the competition started.

Lin Ruo's arrival so early for the first time shows his strong determination to win the match.

Yes.

Lin Ruo was indeed very determined to win the game, but as for getting up early and arriving at the venue early, he could only say that it was not intentional. It was mainly because he slept so soundly last night that he was already awake by eight o'clock today.

As for why she slept so soundly, it was because Lin Ruo had a wonderful dream inadvertently, in which she won the championship.

And that's not the point. The point is that, to recognize his undefeated championship win without losing a single match, the organizers of the Mengbaihe Cup unprecedentedly increased the prize money to three million.

Ok.

Lin Ruo woke up laughing like that, and finding herself not sleepy at all, she naturally came to report for duty early.

In contrast, Park Jung-hwan, who arrived late to take his seat, did not seem to be in good spirits. Although he was wearing glasses, he could not hide the haggard look on his face.

Lin Ruo guessed that it was probably because he was too eager to win and the pressure caused him to have nightmares at night.

So Lin Ruo offered some words of comfort, indicating that Park Jung-hwan, a 9-dan player, shouldn't put too much pressure on himself, since he was going to lose anyway, so he might as well relax.

It's fortunate that it was spoken in Chinese, otherwise Park Jung-hwan probably wouldn't have been able to keep going.

According to the rotation rules, Lin Ruo will once again be on the white side, just like in the first round.

With a match point already in hand, Park Jung-hwan's situation became precarious even before the third game began.

Playing black is not a good sign. He is not like Lin Ruo, who can easily crush opponents even with a disadvantageous start. Like Ke Jie, he is much more likely to lose than win in this situation.

What's more, he was facing Lin Ruo, someone he still couldn't handle.

Park Jung-hwan is under a lot of pressure right now, especially when the referee announced the start of the match. He was so nervous that he didn't make a move for the first minute, instead focusing entirely on adjusting his mindset.

Only then did they actually place their pieces.

(End of this chapter)