I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 131: Sacrificial Stones

Hearing this, Yu Shao reached into the bowl, grabbed a handful of white stones, and let them rest in his palm. Seeing this, Zhuang Fei also extended his hand, picked out two black stones, and placed them on the board.

Yu Shao unclenched his hand, quickly counted the stones on the board, and said, “Six stones. I’ll play White.”

Zhuang Fei nodded absentmindedly, retrieved the black stones from the board, and placed them back into the bowl before bowing slightly. “Please guide me.”

“Please guide me as well.”

Yu Shao returned the gesture, placing the white stones back into the bowl.

Zhuang Fei didn’t immediately make his first move. Instead, he cast a deep glance in Su Yiming’s direction before shifting his focus back to the board.

“If that guy Su Yiming is as strong as they say, his opponents won’t last long against him. The endgame of his match yesterday didn’t reveal much.”

Recalling what Ma Zhengyu had told him, and remembering the way Ma Zhengyu had looked at him, Zhuang Fei clenched his teeth. A suppressed frustration flared up within him.

“Hah…”

Taking a couple of deep breaths, Zhuang Fei steadied himself and reached into the stone bowl. The cool sensation of the stones under his fingers helped ground him.

“Fine then. For this match, I’ll go all out—relentless attacks, never giving this Yu Shao guy a moment to breathe. I’ll force the fight to the extreme and end it as quickly as possible!”

“The faster I finish this game, the better chance I have of gauging Su Yiming’s real strength from the midgame!”

With that thought in mind, a sharp gleam flashed in Zhuang Fei’s eyes. At the crisp sound of stones clashing, he swiftly picked up a black stone and placed it on the board.

Tap!

The black stone landed on 16-4, a Star Point.

Yu Shao’s gaze dropped to the board. Without hesitation, he picked up a stone and played in the lower-right corner.

Tap.

16-16, Star Point.

Meanwhile, Jiang Xiahua—who had drawn a bye this round and advanced to the next stage—watched Yu Shao and Zhuang Fei with a serious expression.

Instead of leaving the playing room, he walked straight over to their table and stood behind Yu Shao, observing the game.

“Hmm?”

On the other side, Bai Jingchuan, who had also gotten a bye in the losers' bracket, was slightly surprised to see Jiang Xiahua heading toward Zhuang Fei’s game.

He and Jiang Xiahua had been rivals for years, frequently meeting in the finals. Their skill levels were evenly matched, making it difficult to determine a clear superior.

Bai Jingchuan had expected Jiang Xiahua to be more interested in Su Yiming’s game. Instead, he was focusing on Zhuang Fei’s match.

Zhuang Fei was a strong player, no doubt, but Su Yiming was the real wildcard—the unexpected dark horse who had taken everyone by surprise after defeating Fang Haoxin.

After all, they both already had some understanding of Zhuang Fei and Fang Haoxin. But Su Yiming? They knew almost nothing about him.

“It’s not because of Zhuang Fei… is it because of Yu Shao?”

Bai Jingchuan frowned slightly as he glanced at Yu Shao.

True, Yu Shao wasn’t a dojo-trained prodigy. He was just an amateur player entering the promotion tournament for the first time, yet he had made it all the way to the finals.

In any other year, this would have been a sensational achievement.

But this year was different.

Before the tournament even started, all attention had been on Zhuang Fei and Fang Haoxin. Then, halfway through, Su Yiming had emerged from nowhere, shaking up the competition.

Even though Yu Shao had fought his way into the finals on his first try, he was still overshadowed by these three dominant players.

After a moment’s hesitation, Bai Jingchuan also walked over to Table Two, standing beside Jiang Xiahua and turning his attention to the board.

At this point, five moves had been played.

Black had taken the upper-right Star Point and upper-left Small Point, while White had claimed both lower-left Star Points. Black had then approached the lower-right Star Point.

It was now White’s turn to play.

There were countless possible responses—Large Knight’s Approach, Small Knight’s Approach, Corner Attachment, Jump, Peep… The direction of the game would depend on White’s next move.

Yu Shao studied the board for a moment, then picked up a stone and placed it down lightly.

Tap.

5-3, Small Knight’s Approach!

“Ignoring Black’s approach and instead choosing to counter-approach the upper-left Small Point?”

Bai Jingchuan and Jiang Xiahua were both slightly surprised.

Ignoring the approach and counter-attacking with a Small Knight’s Approach was a valid strategy—a legitimate, aggressive move for securing key areas.

However, if White ignored the lower-right approach, Black’s Double Flying Swallow response would be incredibly severe—arguably the strongest punishment against an ignored Star Point approach!

Choosing to counter-approach the upper-left at this point meant the game was about to become extremely chaotic. A player seeking stability would never choose this move.

“But… his opponent is Zhuang Fei. He’s not playing it safe?”

Bai Jingchuan found this choice puzzling.

Disrupting the board to create a chaotic fight was a common tactic for weaker players trying to beat stronger ones.

But if anyone had studied Zhuang Fei’s previous games, they would know—Zhuang Fei thrived in chaos!

Zhuang Fei’s expression remained unchanged as he quickly reached into the bowl and placed his move.

Tap!

6-17, Small Knight’s Approach!

With this move, the black stones on row 14 and row 17 formed a Double Flying Swallow shape, directly attacking the white stone at the lower-left Star Point!

Yu Shao responded immediately.

Tap.

4-5, Flying Press!

Instead of defending his lower-left stone, White ignored the attack once again and launched a direct assault on Black’s upper-right Small Point!

Zhuang Fei shot Yu Shao a glance before reaching into the bowl again, his gaze sharpening.

The next moment, he slammed his stone onto the board.

Tap!

4-4, Cut!

“A cut!”

Bai Jingchuan instinctively sucked in a breath.

He could already tell—this game was destined to erupt into an all-out battle, with both sides attacking opposite flanks.

Because Zhuang Fei had drawn his sword.

This cut was the most aggressive, brutal, and uncompromising move available in this position—bar none.

Once this move was played, neither side could back down.

Zhuang Fei’s strategy was clear: secure sente in the upper-left, then return to the lower-left to seal in White’s Star Point stone for a lethal kill!

Yu Shao calmly picked up a stone and placed it on the board.

6-4, Block!

Without hesitation, Zhuang Fei followed up immediately.

6-7, Cut!

Tap! Tap! Tap!

The crisp sound of stones landing filled the room as the fight in the upper-left intensified.

The battle had begun.

“They’re playing… this fast?”

Bai Jingchuan watched the game, unable to suppress his shock.

Despite having ample time on the clock, both players were moving as if this were a blitz game—one stone barely landed before the other followed instantly.

Zhuang Fei playing at this speed was understandable.

But Yu Shao, knowing full well that his opponent was Zhuang Fei, still choosing to play at this breakneck pace? That, Bai Jingchuan couldn’t wrap his head around.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

In the blink of an eye, six or seven more moves had been played in the upper left.

Then, another black stone landed.

6-5, Extend!

Bai Jingchuan studied the position, his expression turning grim.

"White is playing fast, but his responses are incredibly precise—there's hardly a single flaw!"

"But Black’s moves are even sharper. After connecting, this extension move—through a brilliant sequence—has subtly created a mutual reinforcement (见合)!"

"This… this is Zhuang Fei!"

Bai Jingchuan wasn’t particularly fond of Zhuang Fei, but he had to admit—Zhuang Fei’s skill was extraordinary. He himself was no match.

White had been responding solidly, but after the fierce battle in the upper left, Black had cleverly maneuvered into a position where his corner group was alive, and his attack on White's side group was inevitable.

In other words—no matter what White played next, Black would seize sente.

And once Black secured sente, he could immediately turn to the lower-left and launch a brutal assault on the star-point White stone.

But just as Bai Jingchuan was expecting White to hesitate, Yu Shao instantly placed his next move down.

Tap.

8-3, Two-Space Extension!

"A two-space extension…?"

Bai Jingchuan stared at the move, momentarily speechless.

Seeing Yu Shao still playing at lightning speed, even after recognizing that Black had secured sente, Bai Jingchuan had expected some kind of brilliant counterplay.

But instead…

Yu Shao had just played a perfectly normal two-space extension.

A second later, seeing that he had successfully taken sente, Zhuang Fei wasted no time.

He immediately reached into the bowl, grabbed a black stone, and placed it at a diagonal from the lower-left star-point White stone.

Tap!

5-15, Small Knight’s Approach!

With this move, White’s lower-left star-point stone was now completely surrounded by three Black stones—effectively sealed in and hanging by a thread.

Yu Shao studied the board, then picked up a stone and gently placed it down.

Tap.

3-9, Small Knight’s Approach!

The moment this move was played, Bai Jingchuan and Jiang Xiahua both froze.

Then, their eyes widened.

Even Zhuang Fei was momentarily stunned.

"A Small Knight’s Approach?"

The White stone at the star-point was clearly surrounded, but it was still alive.

The simplest and most natural way to survive was to jump into the 3-3 point.

Although this would leave White in a tight spot—constantly under Black’s attack—it was still a clear path to survival.

Alternatively, there was a stronger way to live—flying out along the second line.

This would not only keep White alive but also claim some territory. Even though Black had sente and would gain slight advantages, White could still struggle on.

While this second-line move might be difficult for some to find, a player who made it to the finals of the promotion tournament should have no trouble spotting it.

Zhuang Fei didn’t believe for a second that Yu Shao was blind to the second-line escape.

If Yu Shao couldn’t even see that, there was no way he could have reached the finals.

But instead of choosing either of these two life-saving moves…

Yu Shao had done something no one expected.

He had completely abandoned the group.

Despite having a clear way to live, he just… gave up the entire lower-left corner.

He had sacrificed the stones.