Go: Is the portable old man the nine-time champion?

Chapter 154 The Glory of Malaysia
"I'm exhausted. I never expected the selection process for the ring tournament to be this tiring. Damn it, they changed the format again this year. Why are so many people participating in the selection process when there's clearly no hope of advancing?"

After leaving the arena, Miao Jun couldn't help but complain as he looked at Yi Zheng, who was sitting next to a vending machine drinking a beverage.

Previously, Miao Jun was directly selected into the Chinese team for the Asia-America-Europe Challenge without being selected. The three musketeers had three spots without being selected, and then they would compete against other countries to determine the Asian team spots.

But who knew that after the proposal from Europe this year, the system was changed so that the teams from each continent would no longer be composed of a single country, but would instead select team members directly from all countries to form intercontinental teams to compete in the tournament.

The main reason Europe proposed this is that they have been at the bottom for several consecutive years, and the current tournament format is too disadvantageous for them; they are almost unable to continue playing.

Compared to China, which directly accounts for nearly 70-80% of the active Go players in Asia, America can even be said to account for 90% or more of the active Go players in North and South America. In Europe, the situation is more scattered, and the strength is distributed very evenly.

Countries like the UK, France, and Germany have some good players, but not many. If a country sends out five players, the overall level drops drastically. If a single country sends out players, they can be easily crushed by the US and China, whose representatives from the other two continents consistently qualify.

After being beaten for several years, Europe couldn't take it anymore. After all, my ancestors had a glorious past hundreds of years ago. You can't bully people like this now, can you?

Furthermore, it was supposed to be a three-continental competition, but the other two continents always send out representatives from China and the US. Is that appropriate? It's not free or democratic at all! Therefore, the system must be reformed.

So this year, instead of the national team selecting players to compete in the Asian qualifying tournament, Asia was divided into five groups for registration and selection.

However, judging from the current situation, there is a 90% chance that China will secure all five seats.

All five groups had Chinese players in their finals, and three groups even secured all the final spots, advancing to the next round early.

Yi Zheng also entered the fourth group, where his opponent was Lee Chong Rui, a 7-dan player from Malaysia.

Yi Zheng had seen his opponent on the field before. He was a little shorter, only about 1.75 meters tall, and quite thin, but surprisingly, he seemed to have a lot of explosive power.

During the game, this guy's eyes were incredibly focused and sharp, reportedly described by local Malaysian media as having a hawk-like gaze.

"Ah Zheng, don't be careless just because your opponent comes from a country you've never even heard of. Li Zongrui is a Go League-level player. I even knew him when he came to China for training before."

This guy's style is typical of an aggressive, all-out player; his playing style is very forceful.

Seemingly afraid that Yi Zheng might let his guard down, Miao Jun couldn't help but remind him.

Lee Chong Rui is hailed as the hope of Malaysian Go, a Go prodigy reportedly nurtured with national resources.

Lee Jun-hyuk's achievements are too dazzling. Before him, Korean Go was only at an average level in Asia. But after he emerged, he directly raised the level of Korean Go to the top tier in Asia.

Other countries with average Go levels naturally want to replicate Lee Zongrui's achievements, using a genius to drive the development of the entire country's Go industry. In a sense, Lee Zongrui is such a person.

He showed exceptional talent from a young age and was discovered and nurtured by a coach. He was sent abroad by the state at public expense to study and research in major Asian Go countries. He also made it directly into the top league at a young age.

However, under the original competition rules, Li Zongrui would never be able to enter the ring even if he dragged four opponents to their deaths, but this year is undoubtedly the best opportunity for him.

"This name and nationality always remind me of a badminton player from our region."

Upon hearing this name and nationality, Coach Ke felt a connection to another familiar name. No one could win the semi-final.

Nobody remembers second place unless second place is called...

Genius is merely the threshold to my understanding, and I am the threshold to his understanding.

"I know, but I didn't see him at the last Asian Cup. I think he was seeded by his country."

Yi Zheng has a habit of studying his opponents before a match, even if they are unknown players. He will take a look at their game records.

Not to mention the so-called rising star of Asian Go, the pride of Malaysia.

"His strength seems to be no less than yours; there are truly countless heroes in the world."

Yi Zheng had already patrolled the field many times during the game and watched Li Zongrui's games several times, so it can be said that the opponent's strength is very strong.

Even Ke Lao couldn't help but sigh, "To be able to reach this level in a country with virtually no strong Go players, even with world leagues and national resources, is an extremely difficult thing."

Or rather, if this were in the original world, it would be impossible for such a possibility to exist. Even in the age of artificial intelligence, where collective training has been greatly weakened, no one could achieve it.

It's important to understand that in the world of Go master Ko, no player from China, Japan, or South Korea has achieved good results in world tournaments, let alone championships; they haven't even achieved a single good result.

Most of them just get foreign cards from small countries to make their international reputations more prestigious, and then they just get eliminated in the first round.

And indeed, all sorts of countries in this world have produced powerful Go players. Then, through global competitions, everyone practices against each other, pushing everyone to reach higher levels.

"If he meets you, it's still hard to say. I really have no idea what your strength is."

Miao Jun felt something was off about Yi Zheng. Yi Zheng's strength seemed both strong and weak, and while he was on par with Miao Jun, he didn't quite reach the same level.

If this were a fantasy novel, the only description Miao Jun could think of would be that Yi Zheng was a realm below him, but because of his genius, he could defeat enemies beyond his realm.

But the problem is, isn't everyone here a genius? If I'm a genius and I still get killed by someone of a higher level, then what am I, a genius?

Meanwhile, in the Malaysian dressing room, Lee Zongrui laid out the chess scores and couldn't help but exclaim as he looked at the game content: "Another Chinese genius."

Li Zongrui once spent a year with the Chinese national team and thought he had seen all the Chinese talents. However, he did not expect that in just a few years, new talents would emerge one after another.

It can only be said that China truly deserves to be called the motherland and a great power of Go, with a continuous stream of geniuses emerging in each generation.

But compared to his own country, he was all alone.

Thinking of this, Li Zongrui couldn't help but take a deep breath. No matter what, this year was his biggest chance to participate in the tournament and win glory for the country. He absolutely could not lose.

(End of this chapter)