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

Chapter 174 Progress of the Times

Time flew by, and Yi Zheng didn't even realize it before the day of rest was over, and it was time for the second game to begin.

After all, sometimes the five-day May Day holiday seems to disappear inexplicably, let alone just one day.

Sigh, it's all the fault of capital for speeding up the May Day holiday and setting up a scheme.

The Rookie King competition was scheduled for 11:00 AM. Yi Zheng and Shen Guhong arrived very early, half an hour before the competition started.

Sitting at the table, Yi Zheng looked at Shen Guhong, who had a serious expression, and felt like talking to him to ease his mood, but he didn't know what to say.

Silence speaks louder than words in this moment.

Well, both Yi Zheng and Shen Guhong are under a lot of psychological pressure right now.

Shen Guhong is facing match point. If he loses this game, the final will end 2-0.

Yi Zheng is also under a lot of pressure, because if he loses this game, it looks like the score is tied at 1-1, and there will be a third game tomorrow.

However, once the score is tied and the match point is reached, the momentum of both sides will shift, and Yi Zheng will not have a single day to process the defeat.

The second game of a best-of-three series is often the most crucial game, arguably the one with the greatest impact on the outcome of the match.

So, the two of them tacitly kept quiet, managing their own emotions and making sure they were in the best possible condition.

But the heavy atmosphere between the two was even felt by the staff who were preparing things nearby.

"These two people are putting a lot of pressure on people."

"Of course! You wouldn't believe it, but everyone online is saying that this round will determine who is the number one young person in China and who will be the number one person in China in the future."

"Is that exaggerated? It's just one final, surely it shouldn't be that serious? They're just teenagers, they still have a long way to go."

"You don't understand. Back then, Jiang Mobai defeated Yun Linglei 2-1 in the Rookie King Tournament. At that time, their scores were about the same."

After that match, Jiang Mobai suddenly took off, while Yun Linglei fell to the second tier, where his strength was not outstanding among the title holders.

Do you understand the turning point battle? Sometimes, the most important battles in life are just these few.

Is it really that mysterious?

That's how Go is!

The staff nearby thought they were whispering, but in reality, both Yi Zheng and Shen Guhong could hear everything clearly.

Yi Zheng was also a little speechless. Uncles and grandmas, if you can't speak properly, then don't speak at all. The way you say things makes everyone even more nervous.

Old Ke patted Yi Zheng on the shoulder and said, "Don't think too much. Just one sentence: don't worry about anything else in this round. Just go for it!"
In short, don't be a coward, just do it!

"kindness."

Yi Zheng nodded slightly in agreement, which was also Ke Lao's tactical guidance for this game.

The atmosphere at the scene did not ease; on the contrary, it became more and more tense as the match time approached.

The referee glanced at his watch, confirmed that the match was about to start, and stood up: "This competition uses the number-piece Go rule. I hereby announce that the Longmen Cup Newcomer King Tournament, best-of-three final, game two, begins."

Upon hearing this, Yi Zheng immediately placed his piece and struck the clock after the timer started. The two players switched colors in this game, with Yi Zheng playing black and moving first, employing a two-star formation.

Shen Guhong used the Star Small Eye technique, while Yi Zheng decisively and directly placed the third point on the fifth move.

"It seems to be getting more and more common..."

The referee sitting next to the two couldn't help but sigh as he watched Yi Zheng immediately place his bet on the 3-3 formation at the start of the game.

As a professional referee, he has witnessed the emergence of the 3-3 point move in the professional Go world over the past year, from its initial appearance to its current increasing prevalence.

Well, young people are more receptive to new things, not to mention that we are no longer in the era of powerful Go clans a hundred years ago.

After all, if an advanced technology emerges and you don't learn it while others do, you will inevitably fall behind.

“I’m getting more and more confused.”

The referee shook his head at this thought. He used to be a professional Go player, but things were developing faster and faster, and he felt that more and more of what he had learned before was becoming obsolete.

He can't continue studying now, since it won't be of much use anyway.

However, it's good that things change quickly; the faster the changes, the faster everyone is progressing.

Shen Guhong used the "Block One Flying" technique, and Yi Zheng directly lifted him up. However, Shen Guhong did not use the Mi Dao transformation, but instead extended it outwards, choosing a simple transformation.

Nineteenth move, Black plays a low pincer attack.

Seeing this, the referee immediately shook his head, saying he couldn't understand it at all.

According to the theories he had learned before, when White has influence on the left side, such a pincer attack should be approached with caution, and it is best not to play it that way, or rather, it should not be played that way.

But Yi Zheng was removed from the list just like that, and the most promising young man had his own new ideas.

Sigh, I'm getting old! All I can do now is sit here drinking tea and acting as a referee.

While they are called referees, they are more of a standard staff member, as there is virtually no chance of any unexpected events. Invigilators also need to be vigilant against students cheating, but there are really not many ways to cheat in Go these days.

The music notator next to them had a huge workload, as he had to record the game between the two players on the computer in real time and upload it to the internet.

This is a new technique developed in the last two years based on the internet age. However, because many notators are not skilled enough, especially in rapid chess and byo-yomi games, they cannot keep up with the pace of the players, which often leads to problems with the placement of pieces and incorrect order.

For example, in the game between Yi Zheng and Li Zongrui, many Go fans noticed that Yi Zheng made a basic mistake in the endgame, but Li Zongrui didn't even realize it, and the game ended just like that.

It was eventually discovered that the notarizer had made a mistake in the order; he subconsciously assumed that the koan should be played first, resulting in a basic error.

This made the Go Association realize that it was necessary to strengthen this aspect of development, so some people suggested that some young, low-ranking Go players could serve as game recorders.

After all, most of the scores that can be transcribed and released online are important matches from major competitions, and they are of very high quality.

Young, lower-ranked players can learn from these masters' strategies while taking notes, and they can also earn some income—a win-win situation.

The child sitting next to the referee is a newly appointed first dan who just passed the professional ranking tournament this year.

The referee couldn't help but sigh, "Times have really changed. Things have changed on the chessboard, and the way they're disseminated has changed. Hopefully, things will only get better."

(End of this chapter)