The Way of the Blind Girl Chess Saint

With her light green twin ponytails swaying gently, Ji Yingting spoke from the bottom of her heart, and An Ruotong smiled slightly.

"Thank you, Sakuraba-nee, but... I do have a question I'd like to ask you."

The Young Tiger Tournament has already begun. An Ruotong gently lifted the black chess box and asked softly.

"If you encountered a player of similar skill level to yourself, would you be very nervous? Would your hands tremble? Probably not."

An Ruotong tilted her long black hair slightly and said seriously.

"Oh?"

With a slight twitch of her light green eyebrows, Ji Yingting narrowed her pale purple eyes.

Is that so...? Oh, I see.

Ji Yingting understood. So that's what An Ruotong was thinking. She felt that she already had the strength to fight against her.

An Ruotong, I know you're serious. I've seen it in your eyes.

Great, now that makes it a little more interesting.

Her slender hands, like snow-white jade, slowly picked up a white chess piece.

With her wide, dark blue sleeves gently covering her pink lips, Ji Yingting gradually widened her pale purple eyes as she spoke.

"You'd better keep this attitude, because... I'm going to make you remember this... remember the difference between us."

"Alright, let's begin, Sakuraba-nee. If you're really that strong, then let me remember it well during our match."

An Ruotong didn't say anything more; she just nodded.

pat...

Her slender hand gently landed on the chessboard; An Ruotong's first move was at the star point.

Since the Young Tiger Tournament is an exhibition match, the game time is not very long, with each person only having one hour.

After An Ruotong made her move, Ji Yingting also gently placed her own piece, looking away.

White's first move was decisively placed outside the goal area.

Although An Ruotong was only a beginner professional, Ji Yingting did not underestimate her at all.

A professional first dan is a terrifying creature. They possess the confidence and sharp aura of someone who has just become a professional Go player, and with this drive, they have a chance to defeat a professional ninth dan.

Outside the eyes...

Looking at the white chess piece, An Ruotong blinked her blood-red eyes slightly. She remembered when she first met Ji Yingting, when Ji Yingting made the move "Muwai". At that time, she had no idea how to deal with "Muwai".

but……

In order to surpass Ji Yingting, she has now studied a great deal about the variations of the eye-out pattern and researched its future development.

The Great Slant is ever-changing... Ji Yingting's ultimate move.

I will go and look at the outer corner, but not now.

An Ruotong was not in a hurry. She picked up a black chess piece with her right hand and gently placed it in the upper left corner of the chessboard.

Twin Stars... Her strategy, without hesitation, deployed the Twin Stars formation.

She gently clenched her left hand, then let it fall, and the ends of An Ruotong's long black hair gradually turned a shade of red.

She is twelve years old this year. She was born in a hotel in Mingyue City, Crescent Moon Province. Her father owns the hotel.

She had a rather sinister aura since childhood, and hotel guests often mistook her for a female ghost...

An Ruotong vaguely remembered...

When she was a child, she loved going to the hotel's recreation room to watch the old men play Go. Later, she entered a well-known Go academy.

She has a strong talent for Go. After awakening her strategic thinking, she soared to great heights and became one of the core disciples of the veteran master An Chen.

"pat..."

An Ruotong tossed aside the strands of black hair that had fallen across her forehead and slammed a black chess piece down heavily with her right hand.

When I landed on the small eye position outside Sakuraba's eye, she indeed chose the Great Diagonal Thousand Changes... Great Flying Cover.

Judging from watching her game records over this period, not only in terms of the variations of the large diagonal, but also in handling many strange shapes, she always prefers to use the large knight's move instead of the small knight's move or the small jump. Why use the large knight's move? This is the absolute confidence that only high-ranking professional players possess.

As for the Great Divergence, does she still think she can defeat me with this move...? Sorry, I'm not the same person I was two months ago.

An Ruotong's blood-red eyes were slightly deep. Her right hand gently landed in a somewhat strange position, right next to the white chess piece she had just played, and...!

That's right. No matter how complicated the pattern is, even if it's a complex pattern that could fill a book, there's still a very simple way to play it, as long as you don't fight.

Ji Hongying's careful teachings kept echoing in An Ruotong's ears... She remembered the discussions when the two of them studied Ji Yingting's chess scores together, and how they came up with the absolutely correct moves for all of Ji Yingting's chess scores.

"Xiaotong, if Ji Yingting moves beyond your sight, then use this move."

How strange, do I have such a good memory? I forget the things we discussed at the chess academy the moment I turn my back, but when it comes to the crucial moment, those voices keep lingering in my ears, reminding me how to play the game.

An Ruotong sighed softly.

You shouldn't think that way. After all, professional Go players should all have very strong memories, right?

…………

And so.

Ji Yingting wasn't surprised when she saw An Ruotong make her move. After all, An Ruotong was already a professional Go player, and it wasn't surprising that she had studied the moves outside the goal area during her professional exam period.

Pat, pat, pat, pat.

The game continued, her pale purple starry eyes blinking, her slender hands holding the white chess pieces as if they had never changed since time immemorial, gently placing them down.

The only change was her increasingly solemn expression, and Ji Yingting's right hand finally stopped moving.

Just before the plan was about to be completed, Ji Yingting's right hand suddenly froze in mid-air, unable to fall down.

This was also... the first time she had briefly paused to think during the game.

There's no gap... The layout doesn't matter, but is this how An Ruotong used to play?

With a soft gulp, Ji Yingting gently picked up the warm tea that had been prepared beforehand and took a small sip to moisten her lips.

An Ruotong tossed her long black hair and glanced at Ji Yingting, who was deep in thought, before nodding in satisfaction.

"Sister Hongying, this level of opening is probably what you expected. As long as we don't fall behind, that's fine. My skills have definitely improved, and keeping up with Sister Sakuraba's pace is no problem at all."

But I can hardly hold back anymore, I can't hold back any longer, I'm about to unleash my full power... It's roaring wildly in my soul.

A pair of blood-red eyes widened slightly, and An Ruotong's slender hands trembled slightly for a moment.

No... not yet, we can't use it so early.

"Whoo, whoo, whoo"

An Ruotong took a few deep breaths to suppress the turmoil in her heart.

Although it has never used it in an official competition, it is already eager to use it.

Sakuraba-nee, I've endured for so long, and finally this day has come to play against you. This game was born just for you.

It was born because of you, because Sister Hongying wanted me to defeat you.

It was born because of you, because it can help me defeat you.

It'll be fine in a little while. Once the middle game begins, Sakuraba-nee, I'll let this game end in the middle game.

With a whoosh, her small hand unfurled a snow-white feather fan, and An Ruotong waited patiently.

Of course, Ji Hongying's signature was facing her eyes.

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

"Ji Yingting, how's it going over there? They should win, right?"

Shang Gongying glanced at Ji Yingting's back and thought to herself, from this angle, she could only see Ji Yingting's long, light green hair.

As if telepathically connected, the girl with long, ice-blue hair opposite Shang Gongying also looked in the same direction. A girl with long, light green hair was drinking tea and deep in thought.

For them, it was just a very ordinary friendly match; of course, losing might be a little awkward.

None of the chess players present knew what kind of opponent Ji Yingting was facing in this exhibition match.

An Ruotong's specific chess strength is unknown, and her new chess moves are also unknown.

There was no prelude, no one to warn us.

Ji Yingting encountered An Ruotong as her opponent. She met her opponent without warning, who had been struggling in the professional exam just a month ago, but whose chess skills had now become quite ominous.

Apart from one person, no one knew An Ruotong's current chess strength. In fact, even An Ruotong herself didn't know how strong she was. All she knew was that she had to win this game, and that was enough.

Winning or losing is the purest pursuit; she was only thinking about winning this game of chess, and she believed in herself and that she could win.

pat...

When Ji Yingting placed the chess piece again, her blood-red eyes widened slightly.

The sky over the open-air area suddenly darkened, with dark clouds gently covering the sky. The rain shelter was quickly erected by the staff.

The wind was getting stronger, and an extremely ominous atmosphere permeated the hearts of the chess players.

My life has been like a dark night, my bloodshot eyes reflecting the evening glow.

Even though it was daytime, the entire open-air venue felt as dark and somber as if it were night.

"Sister Hongying...can we begin?"

"Um……"

A soft voice answered, its husky and gentle tone flowing into her heart like a warm spring breeze.

"Fight freely, this duel belongs to the two of us..."

A girl with long, fiery red hair spoke softly. She was sitting in the spectator section of the second-floor hall, watching the game between Ji Yingting and An Ruotong being broadcast live.

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

"The true form of chess strategy, the Ice Cat's shield."

Ji Yingting said calmly, a bad feeling suddenly rising in her heart.

Boom!!

Instantly, a beam of ice-blue light crashed down on Ji Yingting's head. Ice-green hair, ice-blue cat ears and tail, and a giant ice-blue shield appeared in front of her. The incredibly gorgeous appearance made An Ruotong glance at her slightly.