I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 169: Column 10, Row 10

At 6 PM, after finishing dinner, Yu Shao finally returned home.

Thinking back to today’s match, he paused for a moment, then walked into his bedroom, pulled out his Go board, and began placing the stones one by one, quickly reconstructing the game.

"Kong Zi’s attack strategy was also quite impressive."

Yu Shao moved the stones, analyzing the variations in the game.

His approach to attacking and killing was actually quite different from Kong Zi’s. But after understanding Kong Zi’s thought process, he saw no issue with it and simply followed along.

Kong Zi preferred to build thick, solid positions before launching powerful attacks. His strikes were forceful but somewhat slow. On the other hand, Yu Shao would have played for speed, though his approach had more cutting points and thinner formations.

Each method had its strengths and weaknesses—neither was inherently superior.

Although Kong Zi didn’t make any moves beyond Yu Shao’s expectations, that wasn’t because he was weak. The board position was heavily in their favor, and as long as Kong Zi played solidly, he could steadily maintain the advantage.

It was similar to how an amateur 3-dan playing against a professional 9-dan might not seem much different from playing against a professional 1-dan—simply because the game’s flow masked the skill gap.

"As for that throw-in move... I really didn’t see it coming."

Yu Shao’s gaze shifted to the lower part of the board, landing on the throw-in that Zhuang Weisheng had played.

Even now, reviewing the game, he could almost hear the echo of that stone hitting the board.

That single move had brought a seemingly dead group back to life.

"Zhuang Weisheng..."

Yu Shao murmured the name softly, his eyes deep in thought.

"The Go players in this world… I really shouldn’t underestimate them."

"In a world where Go is this deeply ingrained, anyone who rises to the top must have something exceptional."

"But… that’s good."

Yu Shao focused on the board.

After a long while, he picked up a stone from the bowl and placed it down gently—

Column 14, Row 10—Extend!

At first glance, this move seemed like a mistake. The black stones on the left were now blocking their own eye space, leaving them in danger.

But a closer look revealed something astonishing—

With this move, the black stones in the center and the lower board suddenly formed an overwhelming attack formation!

"If it weren’t for that throw-in, I wouldn’t have discovered this extension either."

Yu Shao’s eyes gleamed as he studied the board.

—

The Next Day, Noon

Just as Yu Shao was about to head out for lunch, his phone rang.

Jiang Xiahua was calling.

"My place?"

Yu Shao was slightly surprised by the invitation.

"Yeah, today’s Su Yiming’s turn in the Flame Inheritance Match—come watch with us. I ordered some fried chicken and burgers. Let’s eat together."

On the other end, Jiang Xiahua continued, "Also, Monkey’s been staying at my place the past few days. He kept insisting I invite you over. The moment I got home yesterday, he wouldn’t shut up about it."

Monkey?

Yu Shao paused, then quickly remembered—that was Jiang Xiahua’s junior, an 11-year-old who had been eliminated during the main stage of the Promotion Tournament.

His real name was Yuan Wenyi.

"Alright."

Since he had nothing else planned, Yu Shao agreed without hesitation.

Jiang Xiahua’s rented apartment was in the same district as Yu Shao’s home, not too far away.

After leaving his place, Yu Shao grabbed a taxi and arrived at Jiang Xiahua’s complex in under thirty minutes.

Following the address Jiang Xiahua had sent via WeChat, Yu Shao quickly found his apartment.

Standing at the door, he knocked.

"Coming, coming!"

A moment later, Jiang Xiahua’s voice came from inside, followed by hurried footsteps.

Soon, the door swung open.

Behind Jiang Xiahua, a much shorter Yuan Wenyi peered curiously at Yu Shao, as if seeing him for the first time.

"You’re here?"

Jiang Xiahua’s expression was somewhat complicated. He looked at Yu Shao for a long moment, then sighed.

"Forget about changing shoes. Just come in."

"Why the sigh?"

Yu Shao asked, puzzled.

"He’s sighing for himself."

Yuan Wenyi grinned, unable to hold back a laugh.

"After all, his Flame Inheritance Match and your Flame Inheritance Match were complete opposites. He came back yesterday asking me if joining a dojo had been a mistake."

"Monkey, don’t be so ruthless!"

Jiang Xiahua shot Yuan Wenyi a glare but didn’t argue. Instead, he walked toward the fridge and asked, "What do you want to drink? Coke or Sprite?"

"Coke."

Yu Shao stepped into the living room, noticing a bucket of fried chicken and a stack of burgers on the table. Beside the food, a Go board and a set of stones were already laid out. The board was full of pieces, so he asked, "Were you guys just playing?"

"Yeah."

Jiang Xiahua pulled a can of Coke from the fridge, handed it to Yu Shao, and said, "The Flame Inheritance Match doesn’t start until 1 PM. We had some time to kill, so I played a game with Monkey. It’s already over."

With over half an hour left until the match, the three of them casually chatted while munching on fried chicken.

"So, have you decided which tournaments you're going to enter?"

Jiang Xiahua turned to Yu Shao, biting into his chicken as he asked, "Which ones are you going for?"

After today’s Flame Inheritance Match, the newly promoted 1-dan players would officially step into the world of professional Go. Most of them were already planning their next tournaments.

Yu Shao had looked into the upcoming competitions.

There were three title tournaments open for registration:

National Master Tournament

Grand Master Tournament

Meijin Tournament

Title tournaments determined the holders of Go titles and had no restrictions on age or rank. Players had to survive multiple rounds of preliminaries to advance to the main event.

The winner of the main tournament would challenge the current titleholder in a best-of-three or best-of-five match. If the challenger won, they claimed the title. If they lost, the reigning champion retained their title.

There were seven major Go titles in this world:

Tenth Dan (10-dan title)

Go Sage

Chess Sage

National Master

Grand Master

Tengen

Meijin

Since most title tournaments were already in their main event phase, only the National Master, Grand Master, and Meijin tournaments were still accepting registrations.

Apart from title tournaments, there were also cup tournaments and rookie battles open for entry:

• Hero Cup: Open to all players under 18, regardless of gender. Prize money was substantial.
• New 1-Dan Championship: A tournament specifically for newly promoted professionals, with a generous cash prize.

Since the Go tournament schedule was packed, many competitions ran simultaneously, making it impossible to participate in everything. Most players registered for one title tournament and one additional event.

Because each tournament followed different formats—some single elimination, others round-robin—matches often overlapped. A player could win a championship in one tournament while still stuck in the preliminaries of another.

It was a complex and chaotic system.

"I’ll probably go for the National Master Tournament and the Hero Cup."

Yu Shao thought for a moment before replying. "What about you?"

"Me?"

Jiang Xiahua laughed. "I’m entering everything."

Yu Shao blinked, a bit surprised. "Everything?"

"Yeah, right now I’m in the Meijin Tournament and the New 1-Dan Championship. We’ll see how far I get."

Jiang Xiahua grinned. "If I get eliminated early in the New 1-Dan Championship, and the Hero Cup registration is still open, I’ll enter that too. Then I’ll keep an eye on other tournaments."

"Same for title tournaments. If I don’t make it in the Meijin, I’ll enter the National Master. If I fail there, I’ll try the Grand Master. If that doesn’t work, the Tengen Tournament should be starting. And if that doesn’t work, the Chess Sage Tournament will come up next."

Yu Shao was momentarily stunned.

He wasn’t wrong—most players kept entering tournaments until they got eliminated, since events were frequent and abundant. There was always another chance.

"The Flame Inheritance Match is starting!"

At that moment, Yuan Wenyi suddenly pointed to the laptop screen, where a Go board appeared.

Hearing this, Jiang Xiahua immediately turned his attention to the screen, and Yu Shao followed suit.

On the screen, Su Yiming and Zhu Yi each picked up a handful of stones to determine turn order.

A moment later, the results were in.

"Su Yiming and Han Ying (9-dan) will play Black. Zhu Yi and Fu Shunan (Grand Master) will play White."

Jiang Xiahua turned to Yu Shao and asked, "Who do you think will win—Black or White?"

Yu Shao stared at the screen and said, "Black."

"You’re really not giving Teacher Fu Shunan any respect, huh?"

Jiang Xiahua widened his eyes. "Zhu Yi and Fu Shunan are mentor and student—they know each other’s styles inside and out. Plus, Fu Shunan has won the Grand Master title three times in a row! He’s not just any 9-dan player!"

Yu Shao didn’t argue. He simply kept watching the screen, waiting for Su Yiming to make his first move.

Seconds ticked by.

Two minutes passed.

Su Yiming still hadn’t placed his first stone.

"...Is he thinking?"

Jiang Xiahua looked dumbfounded. "Why is he taking so long to play the first move?"

"Yeah, seriously."

Yuan Wenyi was also puzzled. "What’s he thinking about?"

Yu Shao frowned slightly. He was just as confused.

And it wasn’t just them.

Since Su Yiming was considered one of the biggest rising stars, his match had drawn huge attention online—especially since he, like Yu Shao, had been an amateur player before turning pro.

But when spectators saw him hesitate for so long on the very first move, everyone watching was dumbfounded.

—

Ten minutes passed.

Su Yiming still hadn’t played a move.

"...No way."

Jiang Xiahua suddenly felt a deep sense of unease, his voice growing anxious.

"What the hell… is he trying to do?"

Yu Shao remained silent, his eyes locked on the screen, his brows furrowed slightly.

Finally.

On the television screen, Su Yiming’s right hand appeared, holding a single black stone.

At that moment, Jiang Xiahua and Yuan Wenyi instinctively straightened their backs, staring intensely at the board.

The stone descended onto the board.

Column 10, Row 10.

Tengen.

The entire room fell silent.