I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 189: This Move Is Simply Divine!

The white stone landed on the fifth line, pressing against the black star-point stone.

A lone piece plunged deep into enemy territory, violently invading Black’s formation, disrupting the framework. It was like a lone warrior charging into battle, fearless against overwhelming odds, slashing straight into Black’s moyo!

It wasn’t surprising that Black had built a massive framework. It also wasn’t surprising that White had invaded—after all, against a Three-Star Formation, invasion was inevitable.

But—

The way White invaded, attaching on the fifth line against Black’s star-point stone, was absolutely earth-shattering!

"I thought… it would be a sixth-line press, a seventh-line press, or maybe a Small Knight’s Approach—something that forces Black to enclose the fourth line’s territory. Those would all be great ways to disrupt Black’s framework!"

Wu Qian’s eyes were locked onto the board, his fists clenching unconsciously.

"White should be playing like that. White must be playing like that!"

He swallowed hard. "But… he played the fifth-line attach?!"

This move completely defied conventional Go wisdom. Playing close to the opponent like this usually only helped them strengthen their shape. And indeed, this fifth-line attach had thickened Black’s position.

But…

"The problem is, that ‘but’ exists!"

"At first glance, it looks like a move a beginner would make—like someone who doesn’t know how to play and just placed a stone at random..."

Standing nearby, Sheng Ziyan craned his neck forward, staring in shock at the white stone that had boldly invaded Black’s territory. The sheer visual impact of the move sent a chill down his spine.

"But when you really think about it… Black has no good way to respond!"

This move wasn’t difficult to understand. It only seemed baffling at first. But the moment one grasped its meaning, a wave of dread followed.

That’s exactly why it was so unbelievable.

"This isn’t a move a normal person would think of. It doesn’t make sense! How could anyone even consider playing there?!"

The sixth-line press, the seventh-line press, or the Small Knight’s Approach—these moves were all just a single line away from this attach. Everyone could see those moves.

But no one—absolutely no one—would ever think to attach!

"What kind of mindset is this?!"

"Go can be played like this?!"

Sheng Ziyan suddenly felt that the outcome of the match didn’t even matter anymore. Just the fact that Yu Shao had played this move meant his name could no longer be ignored.

This kind of invasion was absurd, excessive—it made one question everything they knew about the game.

For those who hadn’t seen it, it was nothing short of a personal blow.

"White is thin here, but by attaching, White strengthens itself while simultaneously pressing against Black. Instead of being a weakness, it’s turned into a brilliant maneuver!"

Hong Shengchen stared at the board, his right hand clenched into a fist, his thumb and index finger pressing tightly against his lower lip. His grip was so firm that it should have hurt, but he didn’t even notice. This one move had left him completely shaken.

"What kind of intuition does it take to come up with this? What kind of judgment does it take to actually play it?"

"This move… it’s as if it was gifted by the heavens!"

The entire room was overwhelmed with shock.

Up until now, no one had dared to test the limits of a double 3-3 invasion. Even when playing against Yu Shao, no one had ever dared to respond with another 3-3 themselves.

Before this game, they had thought his double 3-3 was absurd, unreasonable. After all, by finishing the joseki, White ended up with a relatively small moyo in the center, while Black seemed to gain all the influence. It looked like White was digging its own grave.

But after this single attach—

It was like witnessing a miracle.

Like watching a dead tree bloom again.

Black’s supposedly grand formation… was suddenly nothing but a mirage!

More importantly, the 3-3 invasions were forcing moves.

Since Black’s Three-Star strategy revolved around maximizing the efficiency of the corner star-points to build a large framework, every time White invaded 3-3, Black had no choice but to block, hane, and extend—there was no alternative.

And everyone in the room knew what that meant.

White had used two 3-3 invasions to forcefully claim solid territory, surrendering the outside influence to Black. The only remaining question was: how would White erase Black’s influence?

How would White neutralize Black’s outward potential?

With this one move.

A move that seemed to contain the essence of the universe itself.

This meant that regardless of whether the double 3-3 invasion was a good strategy in general, against the Three-Star Formation, it was undoubtedly an effective approach!

No matter how strong the opponent was, if they chose the Three-Star Formation, they would inevitably find themselves in this exact position after White’s double 3-3.

Even though the board state still appeared balanced—neither side had a significant lead—it was clear that White had seized the initiative.

From today onward, countless players would undoubtedly try this double 3-3 approach against the Three-Star Formation. Compared to the overwhelmingly complex Small Knight’s Approach, this strategy was far more direct and easy to understand.

Across the board, Tong Lecheng sat frozen.

His mind had been completely blown.

He stared at the board for a long time before his face suddenly turned red, his ears burning.

His head snapped up, and he locked eyes with Yu Shao.

It was as if someone had struck a nerve.

A vein bulged faintly on his forehead as he finally reached into his bowl and picked up his next stone—

The stone landed with a crisp pak!

Column 15, Row 9—Hane!

This hane was filled with killing intent!

"He hane’d! Black has outside influence, and now that White has invaded, there’s no avoiding a fight!"

Sheng Ziyan wasn’t surprised, but his expression grew extremely serious as he took a deep breath, locking his gaze onto the board.

Since the upper-right and lower-right corners had identical formations, whether Black hane’d from above or below made no real difference.

At this point, Black had alternative moves, like playing solidly or reinforcing territory, but this hane was the most aggressive option—forcing both players into a direct, life-or-death struggle!

"Even though White has taken the initiative, the board is still balanced. Black's moyo still holds potential, and the deciding factor remains the midgame battle. Attack is the essence of the Three-Star Formation!"

"Even if White is ahead, if he lacks strength, he’ll be crushed by the sheer force of Black’s grand framework. This fight will be the deciding moment!"

Sheng Ziyan turned to glance at Yu Shao, his eyes flickering.

"This is a battle of strength, judgment, calculation, strategy, endurance, and even willpower!"

Under Sheng Ziyan’s intense scrutiny, Yu Shao lowered his gaze to the board, reached into his bowl, and calmly placed his next stone.

Tak!

Column 16, Row 11—Hane!

"As expected… he’s using Black’s attack to reinforce himself. This is brilliant maneuvering!"

Hong Shengchen exhaled deeply, still shaken by that incredible attach move earlier. Even now, just thinking about it left him in awe.

"But no matter what, both players are in danger. Even though White holds the initiative, he’s still deep in enemy territory. Black’s moyo is under siege, but White risks getting surrounded and annihilated!"

The entire room instinctively held their breath.

The battle had begun!

Tong Lecheng quickly placed another stone.

Yu Shao immediately followed.

Tak! Tak! Tak!

The crisp clatter of stones striking the board echoed through the room as Black and White tangled together on the right side.

Each side latched onto the other, relentless in their attempts to destroy one another completely.

Time passed as the conflict raged on, the battle shifting toward the center.

Now, it was Yu Shao’s turn to move.

After a brief pause, he reached into his bowl, pulled out a stone, and lightly placed it down.

Tak!

Column 12, Row 11—Jump!

"Very solid play."

Watching this move, Sheng Ziyan formed an overall impression of Yu Shao’s gameplay thus far and couldn't help but exhale slightly.

"Up until now, White’s moves have all been well-structured, showing clear fundamentals. But thankfully… it’s just well-structured."

"In Go, you need both standard play and creative play. If all your moves are predictable, you won’t achieve true victory. White's attacks against Black have been steady but not particularly sharp or overwhelming. He’s missing that killer edge."

"Looks like he’s still just a 1-dan after all. His offensive strength seems lacking. He plays by the book, never venturing into risky territory. Because of that… he won’t pose a real threat to Tong Lecheng."

Go was a battlefield, and nearly every principle of military strategy applied directly—

"A battle is fought with structure, but won with surprise. A true master of warfare wields the unexpected like an endless river, flowing eternally like the heavens and the tides."

So far, this game had been well-played, but apart from that stunning attach, the rest of White’s moves had been somewhat conservative. They were correct, but not overwhelming.

Even as he thought this, Sheng Ziyan found himself frowning.

"But why… why does this game feel so strange?"

He stared at the board, his brows deeply furrowed, unable to pinpoint the source of the discomfort nagging at him.

It was as if there was something hidden within this game—something even he had yet to grasp.

Meanwhile, the other spectators seemed to be letting out slight sighs of relief.

"As expected, he’s still just a 1-dan. His judgment and observations aren’t sharp enough, and his moves aren’t ruthless enough."

Even so, none of them could relax completely.

Yes, his midgame fighting might be lacking, but that breathtaking attach—the sheer audacity of that invasion—was proof of his immense potential.

The outcome of this game was no longer the most important thing.

Everyone understood that even if Tong Lecheng won this match today, it wouldn’t be long before Yu Shao caught up.

At that moment, Yu Shao reached into his bowl once more and gently placed his next stone.

Tak!

Column 9, Row 12—Clamp!

It was a perfectly normal move.

Everyone could tell that there was nothing particularly wrong with it.

But there was also nothing particularly outstanding about it either. It was just a reasonable move, an understandable move.

Yet, amidst the crowd, Sheng Ziyan’s frown deepened.

That feeling of unease was growing stronger.

He just couldn’t figure out why.

It was starting to frustrate him.