I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 292: Drawing the Blade in the Rain

“That move... was it a Small Knight’s Move?”

Seeing where the black stone landed, Yu Shao froze. A moment later, his expression subtly shifted, and he couldn't help but snap his head up to stare across the board at Su Yiming!

In the dimly lit Go Room, their eyes met mid-air.

Off to the side, Zhuang Weisheng stared at the board, instantly seeing the follow-up variations unfold.

“If it’s a Small Knight’s Move, then if White pushes and bends, it’ll revert to the 3-3 Point sequence where Black blocks, extends, then bends.”

“Once it reverts, White will claim the corner, Black gains thick outer influence, and Black can then Tenuki.”

“But... since Black didn’t directly extend, maybe White won’t allow it to revert. If White plays aggressively, they could just lock things down and deny Black the initiative, which means…”

Zhuang Weisheng ran the follow-ups in his head, his brows furrowing slightly.

He wasn’t the only one—everyone else was also watching the board, mentally calculating the variations.

“If White attaches, then they get tied up by Black, unable to escape. But if Black Tenukis, White won’t just push—they’ll bend straight away and start a mutual kill!”

“In that case, Black’s two groups will be split apart, and both will be extremely short on liberties—very dangerous!”

“If Black can’t Tenuki, then they’ll have to bend. If White pulls back, Black will Tiger’s Mouth, and White will be forced to Hane-Connect or risk being squeezed relentlessly by Black.”

“But even if White bends and connects, Black will still build a massive outer framework.”

“So does that mean Yu Shao will definitely bend to hold it down, forcing White to push and strike back?”

“If White pushes, then the variations ahead will be—”

The crowd quickly calculated the upcoming moves and all paused in shock, their faces full of disbelief.

“Feels like a Large Knight’s Move would’ve been better for White, no?”

“Does White have no clever move?”

They stared intently at the board, but for the moment, they really couldn’t see any better options for White.

At that moment, Lu Bo finally pulled his gaze back and turned toward the board, locking his eyes on the white stone at Point-88.

Before Go AIs emerged, patterns like the Mini Avalanche collapsed, the Demon Blade was sealed, and the Small Diagonal was severed—but... from the remnants of those eight famously complex josekis, a new, even stranger blade was forged!

Its branches were mind-bogglingly intricate, its moves so bizarre that they far surpassed even the later Eight Complex Josekis. Even Go AIs couldn’t fully calculate all its variations, leaving players awestruck!

The depth of its sequences was beyond imagination, more advanced than any small joseki that came afterward.

For the mainstream branches of that line, AI opinions were largely consistent, but for certain mutual-kill sequences, even the AIs couldn’t agree!

And to unleash that sequence—all began with the Flying Move before Point-88!

Later, when Peng Wei saw the Weisheng-style Opening, he recalled a small joseki. One of its far-end branches didn’t involve sacrificing a massive 70-point corner, but instead built a vast, majestic inner influence.

That very joseki was the one Zhuang Weisheng had just played!

Lu Bo stared at the board for a moment, then finally picked up a stone and slowly placed it.

Click!

Column 17, Row 7 — Attach!

“He didn’t go for the long variation.”

Zheng Qin locked his eyes on the board, subconsciously holding his breath, sweat beading on his forehead: “He chose to Attach—just like in that game against me!”

White’s Second-Line Attach came head-on, awaiting Black’s response.

Black’s next move would almost certainly be a Bend!

And from that, a bone-chillingly complex sequence would unfold!

Most of the onlookers couldn’t yet grasp just how intricate, sinister, and chaotic this line was—but Zheng Qin, who had faced this move before, knew all too well.

Even now, when he thought back to that game, the endless variations made him feel powerless and small. To fully read those lines... it was like trying to rival the gods with a mortal mind!

“When Black jumps, there’s still some room to maneuver. But once White drops this stone, both sides are dragged into an abyss—where only judgment and calculation will decide the victor, and neither side has full confidence!”

Zheng Qin forced himself to calm his racing heart, but it was still pounding.

“Both sides have taken the hardest stance. Now, there’s no backing down. This game won’t end until one side lives or dies!”

Clack!

As stones collided once again, Su Yiming swiftly placed another piece on the board.

Tap!

Column 13, Row 2 — Bend!

Almost instantly, Yu Shao drew a white stone from the Go Bowl and placed it.

Tap!

Column 15, Row 3 — Push!

“He pushed, as expected!”

The spectators weren’t surprised by Yu Shao’s move.

Lu Bo frowned as he looked at the board: “Black can’t block here, or he’ll get clamped and lose a stone. So he’ll retreat, right?”

Just as that thought occurred, Su Yiming picked up a stone and placed it.

Tap!

Column 14, Row 4 — Pull Back!

“That was fast!”

Lu Bo’s heart skipped. He had already calculated the follow-up: “Next, White will definitely push at the second line. Black will have to block, but… doesn’t that leave tons of cutting points?”

Right then, Yu Shao placed another stone.

Tap!

Column 16, Row 15 — Push!

As soon as the white stone hit the board, Su Yiming, without hesitation, dropped his next move right in front of it!

Tap!

Column 15, Row 5 — Block!

Wu Zhixuan looked at the board, eyes slightly confused.

This local sequence wasn’t complicated. From the moment Su Yiming played that Small Knight’s Move, she had already anticipated this line.

This sequence was almost inevitable. Any deviation by either side would immediately lead to disadvantage.

But the problem was, from what she saw, Black’s Small Knight’s Move didn’t lead to anything impressive, and now that they’d reached this point, Black was surrounded by cutting points and seemed to be in danger.

What surprised Wu Zhixuan was that Yu Shao hadn’t moved yet—he just stared at the board, deep in thought.

“Why the hesitation? Just cut and kill Black already, right?”

Wu Zhixuan tilted her brow slightly, focusing on the board as she calculated the next moves.

But the more she calculated, the more her expression changed. Disbelief slowly spread across her face.

And it wasn’t just her. Around the room, people were starting to look stunned too, as if struck by a hammer to the head.

“This is...”

They stared at the crisscrossed board, finally spotting the hidden danger. Beads of sweat broke out on their foreheads.

Lu Bo didn’t want to believe it and continued calculating—but the deeper he went, the more his shock grew.

“From the looks of it, Black does have tons of cutting points—doesn’t look good.”

Lu Bo stared at the board in shock, sweat breaking out even on his own forehead. His scalp tingled.

“But think about it—yes, Black has weak points, but if White actually tries to kill Black, Black’s counterattack is terrifying. The complexity here... it’s far beyond what I imagined!”

And he wasn’t alone—Hong Leju, Chen Shan, and others were staring in disbelief, as if the board had become some surreal nightmare. Their hearts trembled.

Even Zhuang Weisheng had a look of unprecedented focus as he watched the board.

In the dim Go Room, the board radiated a twisted light.

Too many variations. No matter which path was taken, they were all incredibly complex—and each seemed viable in its own way. But none could be fully read through!

The Tesuji Theory (Fa Yang Lun) was said to be the hardest life-and-death pattern. Anyone able to play it out in a real match would be praised as a genius of the ages.

It was even nicknamed the "Unbroken Sakura," as its dazzling, brilliant sequences bloomed endlessly.

But even that—under this board position—seemed laughably simple in comparison!

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Outside the window, thick raindrops slammed into the ground. The frigid wind battered the glass, making the window moan and wail!

But inside the match room—it was dead silent.

Still.

Utter silence!

Boom!

A sudden clap of thunder lit up the room. For a brief moment, the whole board was bathed in lightning.

Everyone stared at the suddenly brightened board, dazed.

In that instant, time itself seemed to freeze.

This game—no matter which side—one small misstep meant instant death. Even Su Yiming, who had unleashed this storm, was no exception.

And in all their minds, a single name surfaced—

Demon Blade!

A brand-new Demon Blade, drawn by Su Yiming amidst this downpour, under the roar of thunder.

The crackling sound echoed in everyone's ears, sending chills down their spines. That blinding light—it terrified them.

Now, White’s shape was riddled with cutting points, and Black’s liberties were tight. Black had to kill White—there was no ignoring it. But how to kill? That was the question.

Even now, two massive branches were visible. One was to cut at the sixth line, the other at the fourth. Each would take the game in completely different directions.

And within those two paths lay countless variations—each variation containing more branches—this vast universe of possibilities was enough to make anyone tremble.

Clack!

Not long after, the sound of a stone being placed broke the silence.

Yu Shao, eyes fixed on the board, picked up a stone and slowly placed it.

Tap!

Column 16, Row 5 — Cut!

“He went for the fourth-line cut…”

The people gathered around the table were all holding their breath, completely locked in.

With this one move, the killing intent across the board was fully revealed. What followed would surely be a death match.