I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 286: The Key to Victory

Elsewhere, inside the Qiankun Dojo.

A man nearing forty sat in deep concentration, eyes locked on the intricate Go board in front of him. His brow was furrowed, fingers constantly shifting stones as he tried to simulate all the possible variations.

“Master, you’re reviewing this game again?”

A boy around twelve or thirteen leaned over, glancing at the board. His eyes widened. “Master, you’ve been analyzing this one for days now. No matter how you look at it, he’s just a 2-dan.”

At that, You Yuhao frowned slightly. “Dan rank doesn’t necessarily reflect a player’s true skill. It takes countless matches to climb the rankings, no matter who you are.”

“But still, even if strength and rank don’t match exactly, experience should correlate with rank, right?” the boy asked, puzzled.

You Yuhao stared at the board, silent for a long moment.

“Normally, yes,” he finally replied.

“But watching his play—it’s like watching a battle-hardened master at work. He has an incredible sense of insight and judgment.”

He pointed toward the upper-right corner of the board. “This sequence after the Flying Press—no one’s ever done it before.”

“That block—does it even work?”

The boy looked at the board and asked, confused, “White’s liberties are too tight here. Isn’t this clearly favorable for Black?”

“No. I’ve been digging into this local position for days now.”

You Yuhao’s face turned more serious. “It goes against intuition, I know. But after running through all the variations—no matter how I look at it—Yu Shao completely neutralizes White here. There’s no contest.”

“Then...”

The boy stared in disbelief. “Are you saying... this could be a completely new branch of the Flying Press joseki?!”

Looking down at the board again, You Yuhao nodded slowly. The boy’s suspicion was confirmed.

Gulp!

The boy swallowed hard, a chill running down his spine.

With a setup like this, it’s not hard to evaluate who gained and who lost—there are plenty of acceptable outcomes for both sides. But this kind of move is so counterintuitive that no one would’ve even thought of playing it like that.

But Yu Shao did.

And if he actually discovered a brand-new branch before playing it out on the board... that’s just terrifying.

The boy hesitated, then stole a glance at his master. “Master... are we sure his opponent in the last National Master Tournament match was Feng Hui, 7-dan?”

“Yeah.”

You Yuhao nodded slightly as he stared at the board.

The boy didn’t say anything else, but for the first time, he found himself genuinely worried about whether his master could beat a 7-dan pro.

“I’m a self-taught player, so sometimes I come up with strange ideas,” You Yuhao suddenly said.

“But through this review, I’ve finally found my weak point.”

“Weak point? What weak point?” the boy couldn’t help but ask.

“Because I’m self-taught, my study of opening theory isn’t that deep. In that bottom-right corner, when I was playing White, I used the Demon Blade joseki and managed to profit, forming strong inner influence.”

You Yuhao paused a moment. “So afterward, he had no choice but to go all in, breaking through Black’s formation with a desperate invasion.”

“Even though he capitalized on a slack move from Black to win the game, the fact remains—his opening failed. He doesn’t handle the Weisheng-style layout well.”

He picked up a Black stone from the Go bowl and placed it gently on the board.

“This... will be the key to deciding the outcome of the next game.”

---

Three days flew by in a flash.

Because the next National Master match was coming up, Yu Shao took a day off from school to rest. The next morning, he took a cab straight to the Southern Go Association.

The registration period for the National Master Tournament had officially closed a few days ago. That meant no more new players would join—only eliminations from here on out.

Only those who survived the brutal gauntlet of the preliminaries could earn a ticket to the main tournament. Just getting to the title match bracket was already a lifelong dream for many players.

But even then, only one would emerge to earn the right to challenge for a title. And even that didn’t guarantee they’d actually win the title.

Go Sage, Tengen, 10-Dan, Meijin, Go Master, Base Saint, National Master—these seven titles were built upon the fallen bones and spilled blood of countless Go players. Truly, a general’s glory is built on ten thousand corpses.

Yu Shao entered the playing room and looked over to Table Three. Sitting there already was a rugged man in his thirties—clearly 9-dan pro You Yuhao.

Seeing Yu Shao arrive, the man lifted his head and looked at him, eyes sharp and focused.

Yu Shao walked over, pulled out the chair opposite him, and sat down calmly.

At the sight, a hush fell over the room. One by one, players approached Table Three and quickly surrounded it, silently waiting for the match to begin.

The others in the room weren’t surprised anymore—they were used to this. If allowed, they’d probably be watching this match themselves.

Yin Yan’ang lost.

So now what about You Yuhao?

Surely, he couldn’t keep winning at this rate, right?

Everyone had different thoughts swirling in their minds.

Just then, a young man in his early twenties, wearing a black jacket, appeared at the doorway of the playing room.

When people saw the figure in the doorway, they all froze.

And in the next moment, eyes widened in disbelief.

“Li You, 8-dan?!”

Li You scanned the room, locked onto Table Three, and walked over, settling quietly into the crowd.

“Wait, Li You, 8-dan... why is he here?”

A young player was completely baffled. “Isn’t he scheduled to play tomorrow in the Western Region?”

“I heard he’s been vacationing in Jiangling,” someone explained. “Wang Sheng, 3-dan, ran into him at a tourist spot last week and mentioned it.”

“But the regional team match starts tomorrow! I thought he’d already gone back to the west!”

“He wouldn’t... come just to watch Yu Shao’s game, then fly back overnight?” someone muttered.

Everyone looked at each other, stunned.

Li You had only recently been promoted to 8-dan, but his strength already rivaled many 9-dan players. He was a regular contender in the title match main brackets.

But every time, he’d fall just shy of the challenge spot—so often, in fact, that netizens had nicknamed him “Half-a-Title.”

They understood his interest in Yu Shao—nowadays, everyone was watching Yu Shao.

Still, Li You had a match tomorrow!

Wasn’t this going a bit too far?

Soon, two referees entered the room. When they spotted Li You in the crowd, they exchanged a stunned glance.

Time ticked by.

One of the referees glanced at his watch and spoke solemnly:

“Time’s up. Each player has two hours, with one-minute countdown per move. Let’s determine turn order.”

As soon as he finished, You Yuhao reached into the Go bowl and pulled out a handful of stones. Clack. White stones.

Yu Shao took a single black stone from his bowl and placed it on the board.

Tap. Clack.

Counting done: 8 white stones, 1 black. That meant You Yuhao would play Black, and Yu Shao White.

The two quickly sorted their stones, exchanged bowls, and bowed.

Li You watched from the crowd, thinking to himself:

“I’ve studied a number of his game records... but it’s not enough.”

“Compared to other National Master opponents, his records are shockingly scarce. After all... he just became a pro.”

“If he might be my opponent in the main bracket, then I have to fully understand his strategy. Know yourself and know your enemy—only then can you win every battle.”

He crossed his arms and glanced at Yu Shao again, frowning slightly.

“Zhu Huaian already took a title. This year, I have to win National Master... and here comes a wildcard.”

Soon, under Li You’s gaze, You Yuhao placed his first move.

16-4, Star Point!

Yu Shao quickly followed up:

4-4, Star Point!

“Star point opening...” You Yuhao noted as he placed the next move:

16-17, Small Point.

Clack! Yu Shao followed immediately:

4-16, Star Point!

The crisp sounds of stones falling echoed continuously through the busy room.

One young player was focusing hard, until his peripheral vision caught someone by the door—and he froze.

“Ch...Chen Shan, 9-dan?!”

At some point, Chen Shan had appeared at the doorway. After scanning the room, his gaze locked onto Table Three.

When he saw Li You among the crowd, a look of surprise flickered across his face.

He stared a few seconds longer, then finally walked in and stood quietly beside Li You.

Li You noticed Chen Shan’s arrival, but didn’t look particularly surprised.

“Teacher Chen Shan’s here too...”

After a glance, he turned back to the board.

“Star-Small vs Double Star. Just starting?”

Chen Shan relaxed slightly after scanning the four black stones on the board.

In his mind, he recalled the previous prelim match between Yu Shao and Yin Yan’ang...

Chen Shan recalled the previous match between Yu Shao and Yin Yan’ang from the National Master prelims.

“I know You Yuhao’s level well. That mistake from the last game—he should be able to spot it.”

Chen Shan glanced at Li You, seeing him focused on the board. He silently thought, “Li You made this trip probably for the same reason I did—to see if You Yuhao can spot that flaw.”

Tap!

A move landed.

“As expected, the small knight’s approach on that side!”

Chen Shan turned his eyes back to the board, his expression unchanging as he saw Black’s move.

Black: 6-17, Small Knight’s Approach.

Yu Shao immediately followed with a move:

Tap!

White: 3-14, Small Knight’s Move.

Seeing that, You Yuhao’s eyes flickered. He too recalled that previous match against Yin Yan’ang.

“In that match, his win came from an invasion followed by relentless attacking—a suffocating offense that forced Black into a mistake.”

“Back then, Black overplayed—desperate to prevent any reversal, even sacrificing huge groups for outer influence. In the end, it completely spiraled out of control.”

“That gave White the chance to win in the chaos.”

“In short—if you have the advantage, don’t leave any gaps. Control the game calmly and finish strong.”

Thinking this, You Yuhao pulled another stone and played quickly.

Tap!

Black: 10-16, High Extension!

“It’s down!”

As the black stone landed, both Li You and Chen Shan’s expressions grew serious.

The formation—Black’s Small Point, Knight’s Approach, and High Extension—instantly resembled the Weisheng-style again, just like last game.

From here on, it would all depend on White’s next move!

“But last game, he was forced into an invasion to break the formation. He paid a price for that. If he reviewed it afterward, he might avoid the one-space high approach this time,” Li You muttered. “He might go with a two-space approach, large knight’s approach... or even an ultra-large one?”

Clack!

Just as the thought arose, the sound of stones clinking echoed from the Go bowl.

The next moment, under everyone’s gaze, a white stone dropped onto the board.

Tap!

White: 16-15, One-Space High Approach!

“He... he still played the one-space high approach?!”

That move stunned everyone—faces around the board filled with surprise.

Yet despite it all, You Yuhao remained composed, expression as serious as ever.

“Even with the one-space high approach, if he follows his pattern from last game, his next move should be the high jump. Then locally, White can form a live group—it’ll all come down to the midgame fight!”

You Yuhao focused on the board and reached into his Go bowl again.

“Alright, let’s test it.”

Tap!

Black: 16-12, Two-Space High Pincer!

Yu Shao silently studied the board. After a moment, he picked up a stone and played.

Tap!

White: 14-15, Jump!

As the stone landed, the whole room was momentarily stunned—even Li You and Chen Shan were caught off guard. No one had expected this move.

“Not a large knight’s move... but just a jump?”

Everyone’s mind went back to that legendary match between Zhuang Weisheng and An Hongshi. When Zhuang used the two-space high pincer, An responded with this same jump.

“In that game, Black also jumped, forcing White to jump again. But then Black had the deadly diagonal tesuji!” Li You murmured, brows furrowed. “Even An Hongshi lost in the end.”

“If that’s the plan, he’d be better off using a large knight to unleash pressure and take the fight to the center.”

Chen Shan frowned even more deeply. He looked at the board and could already see the consequences: “Black’s two flanks will gain a lot of territory. White might have outer influence, but it’s going to be hard to use.”

Seeing this jump from Yu Shao, even You Yuhao froze for a second. But he quickly gathered himself and played his next move.

Tap!

Black: 14-17, Jump!

“Next, White jumps again, and then Black plays the diagonal...”

Li You’s frown deepened. “White does gain some outer influence—but can he really use it effectively? Is he confident he can make it work?”

Right then, Yu Shao picked up another stone and calmly placed it.

Tap!

White: 17-17, Attach!

As the stone landed, the entire room quieted.

The next moment—

“He... he didn’t jump again—he attached directly?!”

Everyone was stunned, staring at the board with expressions of disbelief. Some even leaned forward, thinking they were seeing it wrong.

“He attached directly to the 3-3 point?!”

Dead silence.

Everyone stared at the board, completely confused.

What was he doing?

White attaching here meant a direct fight—Black would certainly hane, White would pull back, then Black would stand, initiating a life-and-death battle.

Just two moves flipped the entire balance between attack and defense!

If White didn’t die, he’d still be dragged into a brutal struggle.

“Wait... does White have something up his sleeve?”

People started running variations in their minds—but the more they calculated, the more confused they looked.

There were many variations for this local fight, but not overly complex—and in almost every one, White seemed to come out worse.

You Yuhao frowned deeply, falling into a long contemplation.

“If I hane, White pulls back, I stand...”

Only after calculating every single variation did You Yuhao finally reach into the bowl and decisively played:

Black: 17-18, Hane!

Yu Shao responded instantly.

White: 17-16, Pull Back!

Without pause, You Yuhao followed up.

Tap!

Black: 18-18, Stand!

This move stunned everyone—it radiated with sharpness and killing intent!

It wiped out White’s eyes, cutting off any hope of living. White’s group in the lower-right was already too heavy to abandon—its life and death now hung in the balance!

Click!

People had expected Yu Shao to fall into a long think—but then came the sound of him grabbing a stone.

As the sound stopped, Yu Shao calmly placed his move:

Tap!

White: 18-12, Peep!

The room fell silent again.

“He... peeped on the second line?”

Everyone stared blankly at the white stone, momentarily speechless.

That single move instantly stabilized White’s entire group—no longer in danger of dying, no matter what tricks Black tried.

He lived.

But—this wasn’t some genius tesuji. It was the most basic way to live—a method any beginner could’ve thought of.

During the opening, stones usually play around the third and fourth lines. The second line gives little territory and is usually avoided unless desperate.

This move had no value—no territory, no threat to Black. It was purely for survival.

Which meant—White gave up. Forced by Black’s pressure, White played a humiliating move just to live.

“Was this... submitting to Black’s power and settling for life?”

Everyone exchanged glances.

It wasn’t wrong per se, but if White was going to do this, he might as well have jumped again. Even if Black pierced and the outer influence was hard to use, at least he’d gain something.

But like this—he got nothing.

You Yuhao stared at the second-line White stone in a daze, not playing for a long time. He had just calculated all the intense variations in this area...

Sure, White was in a tough spot—but there were still many ways to fight.

And yet... White simply gave up and lived?

Yu Shao stared at the board, his expression unreadable.

This peep... was beyond human expectation. Before AI came along, this move was dismissed as weak.

But Go AI later gave it a completely new interpretation—vindicating the move and redefining human understanding of territory and efficiency.

AI argued that this second-line peep not only secured life for White, but also reduced the effectiveness of Black’s two-space high pincer. The surrounding Black stones were now too low, while White still had fighting potential.

This move was all about efficiency and territory judgment.

In the AI era, it would’ve been seen as a normal move.

But before that? It would’ve been hailed as divine.

Moments later, You Yuhao finally snapped out of it. After giving Yu Shao a deep look, he stared at the board again, still pondering whether White might have hidden plans.

Eventually, after careful re-evaluation, he confirmed that White’s move had no deeper intention beyond staying alive.

Only then did You Yuhao finally pull another stone and play it down.