I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 2: The Mountain-Sea Chess Hall

The last class of the day was physics. Although the bell had already rung, the physics teacher showed no signs of stopping, continuing to explain the test paper with enthusiasm.

Watching students from other classes in the hallway leave one after another, bags slung over their shoulders, the students of Class 1-7 silently cursed their teacher hundreds of times, each of them itching to get out.

Finally, after dragging the class on for a full ten extra minutes, the teacher reluctantly set down the paper, cleared his throat, and announced, “Class dismissed.”

“Woohoo!”

With that single word, the classroom erupted into chaos. The students sprang into action, packing their bags with incredible speed and efficiency.

This world wasn’t as competitive as Yu Shao’s original one. While high school studies were still demanding, they weren’t as grueling. For example, there were no late-night self-study sessions that stretched until 10 p.m. like in his previous life.

At Jiangling High School, students were primarily day students, and dismissal was at 5 p.m., after which they would head home.

“Hey, Yu, let’s hit the net café!”

A boy ran over to Yu Shao and enthusiastically invited him. “Let’s team up in the game today! I’m on fire—guaranteed win. I’ll carry!”

“Not today, I’ve got a lot of homework,” Yu Shao replied as he packed up his bag, politely declining the invitation.

“C’mon! I’ve been practicing this new move, and I’m ready to dominate!” The boy refused to give up, urging him again. “You can just copy the homework tomorrow morning!”

Yu Shao shook his head and waved him off. “Nah, I’ve got to focus on my studies. ‘Work hard in high school, or life’s wasted,’ as the saying goes.”

“Yeah, right. High school freshman year, and you’re already talking about working hard? You’d be lucky to manage morning wood!”

The boy rolled his eyes, clearly not buying it.

But seeing how firm Yu Shao was, he eventually gave up and ran off to recruit someone else for their net café session.

After finishing packing, Yu Shao left the school and began his walk home.

As he strolled along, he suddenly stopped at a familiar intersection, turning to look at a shop to his right.

It was a chess hall with a refined design. The entrance featured wide automatic glass doors, and above them hung a sign with bold, calligraphic characters: Mountain-Sea Chess Hall.

“There’s a chess hall here?”

Yu Shao was slightly surprised.

Though he’d been walking this route home for days, he hadn’t noticed there was a Go chess hall hidden along the way.

Through the glass doors, Yu Shao could see that the place was bustling with activity, seemingly doing quite well.

Seeing this, memories of his past life playing chess resurfaced, and his emotions became somewhat complicated.

“You here to play a game?”

A voice suddenly spoke behind him, startling Yu Shao.

He turned to find a young man, about twenty years old, dressed in sportswear, looking at him.

“No, I…”

Before Yu Shao could finish his sentence, the young man interrupted, “Come on in. You’re a student, right? Half-price for students here.”

Without waiting for a response, the man took a step forward, and the automatic doors slid open.

Seeing Yu Shao hesitating to follow, the young man turned back and asked, “What’s the matter? You’re not coming?”

For reasons he couldn’t explain, Yu Shao found himself inexplicably drawn in, following the young man into the chess hall.

“Welcome!”

The receptionist behind the front desk greeted them with a sweet smile. When she recognized the young man, her expression shifted to mild surprise. “Oh, it’s you, Zheng Qin. You’re here early today.”

“No classes at university for the next few days,” Zheng Qin replied casually. He glanced at the receptionist and asked, “Got any open spots, Sister Su?”

“Yes, we do.”

The receptionist nodded, then noticed Yu Shao standing next to him. “And this student is…?”

“Oh, I bumped into him outside the shop. I figured he was here to play, so I brought him in,” Zheng Qin said with a grin. “So, do I get a referral bonus for this?”

The receptionist rolled her eyes at him but quickly turned back to Yu Shao, her expression warm and welcoming. “First time here?”

Yu Shao nodded lightly. “Yeah.”

“Do you have your student ID? We offer a half-price discount for students—just twenty yuan,” she said sweetly.

Yu Shao hesitated for a moment but eventually took out his student ID and scanned the QR code to make the payment.

“Alright, give me a moment, and I’ll set up a match for you. By the way, what’s your playing level?” the receptionist asked.

Playing level?

That stumped Yu Shao for a second. He wasn’t sure how to answer.

Go playing levels are divided into amateur and professional tiers. Amateur levels range from 1-dan to 8-dan, while professional levels go from 1-dan to 9-dan, with higher numbers indicating stronger skills.

In his past life, of course, he had been a professional 9-dan player.

But should he really claim to be a professional 9-dan?

While Yu Shao didn’t mind showing off, wasn’t that a bit too much?

Forget whether anyone would believe him—what if they did? Was this chess hall even capable of finding a professional 9-dan player to compete against him?

Just as he was deliberating, Zheng Qin suddenly chimed in, “Forget about it, Sister Su. No need to set up a match. I’ll play with him.”

“Huh?”

Hearing this, the receptionist was a bit surprised and said, "You’re going to play against him? But…"

“Ah, it’s fine.”

Zheng Qin waved his hand dismissively, then turned to Yu Shao and asked with a smile, “So, how about it, little brother? Shall we play a game?”

“Sure.”

Yu Shao didn’t overthink it and nodded in agreement.

The receptionist hesitated, clearly wanting to say something, but eventually decided against it. Instead, she said, “Alright then. There should still be a spot available by the window on the first floor. You can play there.”

“Got it.”

Zheng Qin paid for his session and walked with Yu Shao into the chess hall.

Watching the two of them leave, the receptionist couldn’t help but shake her head and smile. “That Zheng, always up to something.”

It was obvious that Zheng Qin was a regular at the chess hall. As they entered, many people greeted him warmly, though they also cast curious glances at Yu Shao, who was trailing behind him.

Soon, Zheng Qin found an empty table by the window. Pulling out chairs for both of them, he and Yu Shao sat on opposite sides of the board.

“My name’s Zheng Qin, from Jiang University. And you?” Zheng Qin asked casually as he opened the lid of the Go set.

“Yu Shao, a high school freshman at Jiangling High.”

Yu Shao also opened the lid of the Go set in front of him as he replied.

“You’re pretty young,” Zheng Qin said with a smile, then asked, “What’s your skill level? Have you ranked yet? Should I give you a handicap?”

Handicap?

Yu Shao blinked in mild surprise before shaking his head. “No need. I haven’t officially ranked, but I’d say my skills are… pretty strong?”

In Go, a handicap refers to placing a set number of black stones on the board before the game starts to level the playing field between players of different skill levels.

In his past life, Yu Shao was always the one giving others a handicap. Now hearing someone offer him one, he couldn’t help but feel a little… strange.

The surrounding players couldn’t help but exchange glances when they heard Yu Shao’s confident reply.

Though no one said anything out loud, their expressions betrayed their thoughts:

"Is this kid for real? He doesn’t need Zheng to give him a handicap? Isn’t he just asking to get crushed and doubt his entire existence?"

Zheng Qin, too, was taken aback by Yu Shao’s response. But after a moment of surprise, he chuckled. “You’re that confident? Alright, no handicap then. You’ll play black and go first.”

Yu Shao looked down at the crisscrossing grid of the board in front of him, his expression growing complex.

It had been a few days since he transmigrated to this world, but this was his first time sitting in front of a Go board again. For a fleeting moment, he felt as if he had returned to his past life, hearing once again the resonant sound of stones striking the board.

Taking a deep breath, Yu Shao calmed himself, collected his emotions, and sat up straight. Looking directly at Zheng Qin, he said, “Please guide me.”

Zheng Qin was momentarily stunned. It was as though the boy sitting across from him had transformed in an instant. He exuded a faint but palpable sharpness, a presence that seemed to press against him.

It took Zheng Qin several seconds to snap out of it. For reasons he couldn’t quite explain, he instinctively straightened his posture, sitting up properly before replying, “Please guide me as well.”

Yu Shao reached into the Go box, the sound of the stones clicking together crisp and clear. Carefully, he pinched a black stone between his index and middle fingers.

His gaze lowered as he quietly studied the 19-by-19 grid before him.

This would be the first stone he placed in this new world.

Holding the stone firmly between his fingers, his wrist hovered above the board.

And then—

With a fluid motion, his hand came down!

Click!

The sound was crisp, like the ringing of metal and stone as the piece struck the board.

Column 16, Row 4.

The star point.