The Master’s Mask Unveiled Again
Chapter 922 - 921: Lu Mian Competes with a Robot, Who Will Win?

Chapter 922: Chapter 921: Lu Mian Competes with a Robot, Who Will Win?

The old man stood on the stage, continuously winking at Lu Mian, as if to say, "Hey, little one, quickly take out the snuff bottle to back me up; otherwise, they’ll think I made it all up."

Lu Mian merely lifted her eyelids without moving an inch, utterly uncooperative and showing no regard.

Jing Pei: ...

In the end, I carried the weight of everything all alone.

Jing Pei wasn’t the least bit upset; he gave a tolerant and gentle smile before speaking solemnly: "I have always said that I won’t allow anyone to use Go for gimmicks, not even myself. When Lu Mian was four years old, she solved an endgame passed down from my ancestors with extraordinary skill. She is the only person who has ever won with black pieces against white pieces. In all these years, no one else has ever achieved it."

Jing Pei seemed eager to shower every possible word of praise on Lu Mian.

But at the same time, he felt that those words were somehow unworthy of Lu Mian.

This girl is the quintessential high-IQ genius, possessing razor-sharp logical reasoning and meticulous observational abilities at just four years old, not to mention her photographic memory.

He once asked the little girl about how she managed to do it.

The four-year-old doll-like child, showing a cold yet adorable demeanor, casually uttered four words: "Just playing around."

Those four words inflicted a giant psychological wound on him back then; it took him quite a while to recover. Since then, he had gone around playing Go everywhere, seeking more possibilities.

But no one could ever reach the level of brilliance Lu Mian had shown.

What Jing Pei said sounded unbelievable and far-fetched, but as a respected authority in the Go world, he wouldn’t joke about such matters.

Zhuge Heng knew it even better. In the past, Master Jing indeed owned a particularly cherished snuff bottle, which had a micro chessboard carved on it. The old man used to carry it with him all the time many years ago, but later said he had given it away.

Everything was crystal clear by now.

Lu Mian and Master Jing had crossed paths 16 years ago.

When Master Jing said on the phone that he wanted to meet Lu Mian, it wasn’t to expose her but to confirm whether she was the same girl from 16 years ago.

And Lu Mian had genuinely used her own skill to achieve that victory.

No matter how unbelievable it seemed, everyone still had to admit one thing: simply outstanding!

This is what a true genius looks like!

How could Master Jing not favor Lu Mian?!

Standing on stage, Lu Yutian initially thought the situation might take a turn for the better, hoping she could make use of Lu Mian to alleviate her own awkwardness. Unexpectedly, events indeed took a turn but only served to make her appear more despicable and incompetent!

Her dignity was utterly shattered, and her situation grew even worse...

Sure enough, the students in the audience withdrew their gaze from Lu Mian and turned to Lu Yutian with an increasingly peculiar expression.

Sometimes, comparison really brings out startling differences.

The Lu lady onstage and the Lu lady offstage were worlds apart.

Everyone finally came to realize the truth. Turning around, they watched Su Luo leave the Go institute. But instead of heading toward rock bottom, she seemed to stride toward the peak of her life.

Regret?

Su Luo’s biggest regret must have been not seeking out Lu Mian sooner!

They were practically in tears themselves. They, too, wanted so badly to hold onto the boss’s leg!

——

After Mo Si had informed Xiao Jianli of the connection between Lu Mian and Master Jing, Xiao Jianli abruptly left a calligraphy lecture, bringing along his rare-busy-grandson from the office to the Go institute together.

At this moment, Mo Si had just greeted the two of them at the entrance.

Their family’s old man looked anxious and travel-worn—clearly in a rush to get there.

As for their family’s Mo Ye, his emotions remained relatively calm. However, trailing behind him was a shadow—Mo Nie—who was holding a stack of documents, chasing after him while pleading desperately.

"Grandpa, just take a look! Just one look!"

"Grandpa, wasn’t this your favorite work back in the day? Please, don’t be so ruthless as to abandon it!"

Neither grandfather nor grandson paid Mo Nie any attention.

Mo Si stopped Mo Nie with an exasperated expression. "Nie-ge, give it up. The two of them have their minds nowhere near work."

"But the Xiao Family needs to progress; the company needs to survive!"

Mo Si spread his hands and chuckled lightly, "Why worry so much? With the wealth the Xiao Family has accumulated over the years, it’s enough for Mo Ye and Miss Lu to squander through several lifetimes. It’s not a pressing issue!"

"In decadent decline... utterly decadent..." Everyone had become idle and irresponsible.

Holding his thick stack of documents, Mo Nie looked both aggrieved and disheartened.

Mo Si blinked playfully, "Relax. The moment Mo Ye realizes he might not be as rich as Miss Lu, he’ll surely work hard again."

Mo Nie seemed inspired by this, nodding thoughtfully.

"You’re absolutely right."

To reignite Mo Ye’s sense of ambition, they first need Miss Lu to become a career-driven powerhouse.

He made up his mind. From now on, his new strategy was to focus on Miss Lu!

——

When Xiao Jianli and Xiao Qimo arrived at the competition venue, they happened to hear Jing Pei explaining onstage the history he shared with Lu Mian.

The grandfather-and-grandson duo tacitly decided not to interrupt. Instead, they quietly found a spot in the farthest corner, sat down, and continued to watch the human-vs-machine match (or personal showcase) with self-satisfied, identical proud smiles on their faces.

The initial astonishment had passed, the shock had subsided, yet the match still had to go on.

With Zhuge Heng’s desperate efforts to steer things back, the audience’s focus finally shifted to the human-vs-machine competition.

Jing Pei, fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan, stepped down and took a seat.

Lu Yutian, too embarrassed to stay onstage, was inwardly tormented. Nonetheless, she forced herself to maintain the appearance of a refined young lady as she awkwardly returned to her seat.

"Then let’s move directly into the competition," Zhuge Heng pressed on with visible discomfort as he took up the role of host. He briefly explained: "To ensure the players can focus exclusively on their moves, we’ve set up actual physical chessboards. For the AI robots, staff members will make real-time moves on the board to reflect the decisions made by the computers. Miss Lu Yutian has already adjusted the equipment. We hope everyone performs steadily and showcases skill worthy of Master Jing and the esteemed seniors from the Go Association."

With that, everyone’s gazes collectively shifted to the three AI robots quietly sitting center-stage.

The robots, designed with sleek futuristic aesthetics, had adorable appearances. Though, everyone knew their cores were anything but cute—they were mercilessly powerful.

According to Lu Yutian, these were the second-generation robots her company had developed—enhanced and incredibly formidable.

Even Lu Mian, perpetually engrossed in her gaming, finally glanced up at the stage.

Her clear eyes swept over the three machines with a thoughtful gaze.

The previously discouraged Zhuge Lin, as if injected with adrenaline, suddenly grew excited again.

"Oh, by the way! Yutian was involved in designing this AI system as well!" she exclaimed.

The audience briefly gave Lu Yutian a second glance before returning their attention to the twenty competitors—and Lu Mian.

So, who’s stronger? The robots designed by Lu Yutian or Lu Mian herself?

"Who wants to go first?" Zhuge Heng asked.

All twenty competitors took a synchronized step back.

Nobody dared to go first.

Zhuge Lin seized the opportunity, maliciously suggesting, "Since Master Jing holds Lu Mian in such high regard, why not have her go first? We’d all love to see, wouldn’t we?"