I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 70: "Making It This Far Is Already Amazing!"

At Guangnan Affiliated High.

The boy sitting opposite Su Yiming stared blankly at the Go board. A moment later, he slowly bowed his head.

"I... lost..."

His voice was weak, barely audible, as if all the strength had been drained from his body. He placed his stone on the board, conceding the game.

"Thank you for the game," Su Yiming said with a slight nod.

The boy didn’t respond immediately. He kept his head low, his body trembling slightly. Moments later, tears began to fall onto the board.

Seeing this, Su Yiming froze for a moment before quickly offering comfort. "Making it this far is already amazing!"

Hearing Su Yiming’s words, the onlookers around the board were stunned.

Behind Su Yiming, Coach Jin's expression shifted. He quickly pulled Su Yiming out of his chair and led him away.

Coach Jin looked dumbfounded. "You’re asking me what’s going on? Were you comforting him or mocking him?"

"Comforting him, of course!" Su Yiming replied, confused. "Why would I mock him?"

Coach Jin’s face twisted in disbelief. "You won in just a few moves and then said he did amazing to make it this far. How does that not sound like mockery?"

Blinking in realization, Su Yiming suddenly understood. He was no longer Shen Yi, the legendary Go Sage from over a century ago. Back then, such words were fitting. But as an ordinary high school student in the present day, they could easily come off as condescending.

He had been so immersed in the game that he forgot he was now living over a hundred years in the future. When the game ended, he hadn’t yet snapped out of his focus.

Feeling a twinge of guilt, Su Yiming asked, "Should I go apologize?"

"Please, don’t make things worse," Coach Jin said, exasperated. After a moment of thought, he added, "Yu Yong and Guo Jingxing are both doing well. We should make it to the finals. Let’s go check on how South China Third High is doing."

"Alright," Su Yiming agreed without hesitation.

Coach Jin had repeatedly emphasized the strength of South China Third High, especially noting that two of their players were former dojo trainees. Su Yiming was curious to see how strong they were.

The two of them quickly headed to Jiangling First High's area and first glanced at the board where Zhong Yufei was playing.

Zhong Yufei’s opponent was a senior girl. Despite her gentle appearance, her moves were aggressive and sharp. The match was fiercely contested, with both players locked in an intense battle that showed no clear winner.

After observing a few moves, Su Yiming quickly formed an assessment of both players.

"Both have room to grow..."

To Su Yiming, both players' formations had flaws with many exploitable points. Yet, they were overly fixated on the top right corner. While it seemed important, abandoning it for control of the center might have been a better strategic choice.

"But for a girl to play this well is truly impressive. A hundred years ago, female Go players were exceedingly rare," Su Yiming mused as he turned his gaze toward Xu Zijin's board, feeling curious.

"So, how is that girl playing?"

With that thought, Su Yiming made his way to Xu Zijin's game at the third board.

"This kid..." Coach Jin muttered with a smile as he followed. Seeing Xu Zijin, he thought he understood Su Yiming’s interest but didn’t comment further.

In this game, Xu Zijin was playing black, and her opponent white. Her opponent looked visibly troubled, while Xu Zijin remained calm.

"Huh?"

Su Yiming was slightly surprised at the current board position. Black held a significant advantage, with impressive outer influence. However, white was mounting a counterattack in the top left corner, leaving the outcome uncertain.

As Su Yiming studied a few more moves, his eyes lit up.

"Black’s play is fascinating!"

"Despite holding the advantage, Black hasn’t opted for a slow, steady expansion but has instead chosen to attack."

"But this attack isn’t reckless or aggressive. It’s measured and subtle, using offense as a means of defense to strengthen Black’s overall position."

"For a girl to play like this—impressive!"

"White isn’t giving in either, countering with attachments and digs to separate Black’s groups and create opportunities in the chaos. It’s a very resilient approach."

In contrast to Su Yiming’s excitement, Coach Jin was utterly shocked.

He knew Xu Zijin’s opponent was one of South China Third High’s dojo trainees—a near-professional player. Yet here he was, struggling against an ordinary high school girl?

"Jiangling First High has talent like this?" Coach Jin muttered in disbelief, casting a deep look at Xu Zijin before heading with Su Yiming to the last board—Yu Shao’s game.

As they approached, they stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of the board.

White’s stones surged across the board like a flood, crashing into Black’s territory with unstoppable force. Black was on the defensive, desperately trying to keep its two large dragons alive while white threatened to slaughter them both.

Yu Shao’s opponent was drenched in sweat, his face pale.

"Impossible..."

He stared at the board, biting his thumbnail with his teeth.

In the opening, Black had fallen behind but still had opportunities. Even in the midgame, he was confident in his ability to turn things around.

However, White’s relentless aggression crushed his defenses and widened the gap. Now, Black was barely hanging on, with no chance to counterattack.

"If this continues, I’ll lose before the endgame even starts..."

Despair crept in, but the boy refused to give up.

"No! Defense won’t save me. If I just hold on, I’ll still lose. I must find a way to turn the tables!"

With this resolve, he reached into his bowl and placed a stone on the board.

Snap!

Row 10, Column 17: Hane!