The Way of the Blind Girl Chess Saint

"Weak! Weak! Ants! Easily defeated! Hahaha!"

Boom! Accompanied by a beam of jade-green light, the white chess piece in Shang Sisi's hand fell heavily onto the chessboard.

Damn it! Give San San back to me!

Ma Gongling's red eyebrows furrowed in anger as she slowly placed a black chess piece between her fingers.

But... White, who was clearly in a dead end, suddenly has a glimmer of hope to escape death! Although White still needs to fight multiple kos to survive.

Multiple ko: One side needs to win many kos in a row to live, while the other side only needs to win one ko to kill the opponent.

[A Go term. Abbreviated as "ko," it also refers to "ko fight" or "ko contention." The entire process of a game, from initiating a ko, capturing a ko, finding a ko, responding to a ko, capturing another ko, and finally resolving the ko, can be summarized as a "ko fight."]

[Ko threat, a Go term. As the name suggests, "ko threat" refers to the material used in a "ko fight." A ko fight, also called a "ko battle," occurs when both black and white stones are surrounded by the opponent's stones. If it's white's turn, white can capture a black stone; if it's black's turn, black can capture a white stone.]

Because this repetition creates an unsolvable cycle, the rules of Go prohibit "repeated captures of the same shape." According to the rules, after capturing a stone, the opponent cannot immediately recapture it if they can; they must first make a move elsewhere, waiting for the opponent to respond before recapturing. This "elsewhere" on the board, where the opponent must respond, is called a "ko threat."

Multiple ko threats would be overwhelmingly disadvantageous for White at position 4, but for some reason... White has an unexpectedly large number of ko threats on the board!

More importantly... the difference in their chess skills is simply too great!

The next moment, Shang Sisi's jade-colored mask revealed a strange smile.

"Insects, give up the fight! Foolish mortals! Hahahaha!"

Three jade-green fox tails swayed gently as Shang Sisi tossed her long orange hair and laughed wildly.

"Is she reminding me to be careful of her...? I'm sorry, San San, I'm almost at my limit." The eyelids above the gray pupils were slightly heavy.

Ma Gongling's time and energy were almost completely depleted! Her long brown hair fell behind her like withered maple leaves, looking somewhat disheveled.

"Damn it, I poured everything into the Twelve Sei-Saintswords, and my calculation ability has dropped to rock bottom. I'm so tired... my head is splitting."

San San...where are you?

"I give up."

A slender arm touched her forehead. Ma Gongling lowered her head and said, and as soon as she finished speaking, tears welled up in her gray eyes and fell uncontrollably.

Tick, tick, tick.

For the first time in years, she burst into tears, her gilded sleeves gradually becoming stained with sorrowful tears.

"Waaaaaaahh ...

In an instant, all the chess players' attention was drawn to her, causing a huge sensation!

Sadness, endless sadness filled Ma Gongling's heart, a mixture of reluctance to part with San San and hatred for her own incompetence.

His fists clenched tightly. Was this the result of so many years of Go training?

The match she had been looking forward to for so long was disrupted by an outsider. She didn't have the strength to take away the 3-3 that belonged to her!

I clearly said it... I clearly promised to take her away.

Damn it... Damn you, San San, why didn't you finish the game with me?! Come out here right now!!!

"Aa ...

.............

"Wow, no way, really? Ma Gongling is crying like this... so pitiful."

Her gilded robes trailed to the ground, and endless tears streamed uncontrollably from Ma Gongling's eyes.

Even the two referees sitting outside the door were completely stunned. It was the first time they had ever seen someone burst into tears right inside the competition venue.

Even those who had long since given up hope of becoming professional Go players didn't cry...

Why are you crying so bitterly when you've only just suffered your second defeat? Are you mentally ill?

"Waaaaaahh ...

At the same time, almost all the chess players who were still playing put down their pieces and stared blankly at the scene.

"Hahahaha, cowardly ants, truly hopeless and pathetic!" With his long orange hair swinging wildly, Shang Sisi laughed maniacally as he gathered up the white chess pieces.

Huh? Just then, a girl with long black hair passed by Shang Gongying, her black kimono inadvertently brushing against the orange-haired girl's arm as she walked towards the brown-haired girl.

"Waaaaah, please! Anyone will do, anyone can beat her! Anyone at all! Please, just defeat her!"

Ma Gongling cried out in despair, tears streaming down her gray eyes.

In her heart, her San San was gone forever.

Unless... she defeats Shang Sisi, and defeats the three-tailed Shang Sisi that is [perhaps] Shang Gongying's last transformation, only then can San San appear before her again... whoever it is.

Clinging to this unrealistic hope, Ma Gongling cried out.

"Ugh... Damn it, Third Sister, you're so annoying! I finally managed to get out once in a while!"

Just then, Shang Gongying suddenly covered her forehead, her petite body swaying slightly as she steadied herself against the chessboard.

"San San?" Ma Gongling asked, her voice trembling with a hint of tears.

"Hmph, I'm Fourth Sister! I don't care about your ridiculous ties, and Third Sister can go back to whoever she is! Let me, Fourth Sister, defeat you all! I am the strongest!!"

Shang Sisi lowered her slender arm from her forehead and said angrily, having finally managed to calm herself down.

Hmm? Just then, a slender, jade-like hand gently stroked the top of Ma Gongling's head.

“You…” Ma Gongling suddenly stopped crying and asked in confusion. She saw a beautiful girl in a black kimono appear beside her at some point.

Her black hair cascaded down to the ground like a waterfall, and the girl had a pair of dull, black eyes. Her beautiful face looked slightly dazed.

But... she is beautiful.

................

"No matter who it is... it's unforgivable to sever someone's precious memories!" the black-haired girl said blankly, her words sounding like a cold, mechanical voice.

Whoosh! With a flick of her black kimono, a slender finger quickly pointed into the orange-haired girl's eyes.

"Tomorrow, I will defeat you! My name is Quan Shihui."

The black-haired girl said blankly, it was really difficult for her to say such passionate and awkward words in such a dull voice.

Her long black hair danced wildly in the air, and her finger successfully ignited Shang Sisi's anger, causing him to glare at her with orange pupils.

However… something was hidden deep within her blank, black pupils.

Since his match against Ji Yingting, Quan Shihui's dark eyes have become increasingly profound.

"Thank you... thank you," Ma Gongling said, wiping away her tears.

Although she wasn't very familiar with Quan Shihui and they hadn't had a proper conversation.

However, Ma Gongling knew that she was a very strong chess player, even terrifyingly strong.

After all, apart from losing by half a point to Ji Yingting, the undisputed champion of Group A, Quan Shihui had won against all other players with overwhelming force. She was both gorgeous and stunning, and incredibly beautiful, except that she looked a bit dull.

Of course, if Ma Gongling and Ji Yingting had played against each other earlier, she might have gone directly to Ji Yingting to complain.

After all, in her own heart, Ma Gongling still found it hard to believe that there was a player in Group A who could defeat Shang Sisi... Quan Shihui was perhaps one of her most hoped-for players.

"Please... help me get my San San back."

Ma Gongling lowered her head and murmured to herself, while Quan Shihui gently stroked her long brown hair a few times.

"Um……"

Mom, can you see? I'm helping a desperate person right now... using the Go game you taught me.

But... when will you wake up?

The black-haired girl stared silently at the orange-haired girl standing not far in front of her with a fierce expression.

However, this was still during the match. When the two referees arrived, they immediately stopped the three people's unusual behavior.

Not only that, Ma Gongling, who was crying in front of many people, was also given a serious warning by the pink-haired referee Ye Sulin. If there is a next time, she will be banned from the Go Association for a year.

After crying, Ma Gongling walked out of the competition venue with a dejected expression, a terrifying guess still lingering in her mind...

What if Shang Sisi wasn't Shang Gongying's final form? No, that shouldn't be possible. She then tossed her long brown hair, rejecting her own assumption.

She had specifically studied the merchant's Jade-Faced Green Fox Transformation; quadruplets were already very rare, and the chances of quintuplets were extremely small.

So... as long as someone can defeat Shang Sisi... they can take back San San, right?

San San...you must come back!!

...........................

"Hey, Qinghe, what do you think? Will that kid be able to beat Shang Gongying tomorrow?" After everyone's games were over, the girl with long pink hair asked casually.

As for punishing Ma Gongling, Ye Sulin only gave her a symbolic warning, since her crying like that was really affecting the other players.

To be honest... when the three-three turned into a four-four today, the enormous aura that emanated from Shang Gongying made even someone like her, who had been a professional Go player for many years, feel a little uneasy.

“Difficult…” After a long silence, Ji Qinghe slowly shook her long, light green hair.

"1 is the beginning of numbers, 9 is the extreme of numbers, 10 is perfection, and 4... is the evil of numbers. That incarnation called Shang Sisi is probably the embodiment of all the evil thoughts of the ten of them, and is also a very special one among the deceps."

Ye Sulin shook her long pink hair, puzzled, and continued to ask, "Then, Sister Qinghe, you said the fourth transformation is already this strong? How strong will the last of the ten triplets be?"

"How would I know about this? I've only heard that they're ten... Who knows the truth?" Ji Qinghe shook her head with a light laugh, but the next moment, her expression became slightly serious.

His voice was slightly low, "However, if Shang Gongying's chess skills can truly reach the Nine Transformations of the Jade Face... then that would be terrifying."

"Yeah, she must have been qualified to compete for titles with the big shots when she first became a professional Go player. She's a complete monster...!! Poor me, a beautiful girl who has been fighting in the professional Go world for so long and has never even made it to the third round of a title match!!"

Zha Nu, what kind of person did you give birth to at the cost of your life?

With his long, cyan hair fluttering in the air, Ji Qinghe listened to Ye Sulin's shocked mutterings to himself, his gaze gradually drifting towards the distant window.

..............................

"How's the game between Wangzuo and Ji Shihu, 8th dan?" Luo Zhuyu rushed back as soon as she finished her game, but unfortunately she finished a little earlier than Ma Gongling and missed a rare good show.

Perhaps it was because she was eager to see the Throne Battle...

Hey? How come you two are so fast!

As soon as Luo Zhuyu opened the door, she saw two figures, one in pink and one in a hat, sitting on the sofa setting up a chessboard.

Oh, sorry, I misspoke. It's one pink and one green.

Hua Shenxi gently shook her long, pink, pear-shaped hair to make room for Luo Zhuyu, and slowly said, "Well, the opening moves aren't over yet. They're playing too slowly, kind of like your style, Xiaoyu."