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

Chapter 285 Flying Knife! Goodbye Flying Knife!

"Point three three."

Li Junhe fell into deep thought upon seeing this move.

His body unconsciously leaned back slightly, resting on the soft cushions of the high-backed chair, his hands clasped in front of his abdomen, like an old monk in meditation.

Only deep within his eyes, it seemed as if indicator lights from a supercomputer were flashing rapidly, silently analyzing the countless changes triggered by this intrusion point representing the new generation.

As the most classic joseki variation in the last two years, Li Junhe, who is still active in the professional Go world, naturally cannot be unaware of the 3-3 point and would certainly include it in his database.

After all, if you don't even understand the common moves, what are you doing playing professional Go? It's like a chef who doesn't know salt, oil, soy sauce, or vinegar—you're just cutting off your own livelihood.

To put it bluntly, even professional riders are capable of some level 3v3 maneuvers; at most, they might get stabbed.

For point 33, blocking is inevitable; the key is which side to block from.

However, regarding the origin of the 3-3 point opening, China has provided a considerable amount of material to show that it was first played and theoretically proposed by Chinese chess player Yi Zheng, so the right to name the opening should belong to China.

The right to use a fixed name is like a signature on a historical monument! How can we be careless about it?

However, how could the "originating country of the universe" be absent from such matters?
However, Silla, the classic troublemaker, still jumped out and, adhering to the best strategy of "trying to make a move even if there's no chance of success," forcefully joined the battlefield.

Silla stated that Korean players had already developed this opening move, but it was learned by China. Therefore, this opening move was invented by Korea and should be named by Silla.

The Asian Go Federation's final ruling was based on a variety of evidence and facts. China's evidence was sufficient, and the Silla Go record was suspected of being forged, with obvious signs of Photoshop manipulation. It's baffling why they didn't hire a better programmer for this kind of matter.

Therefore, the Asian Go Federation has unequivocally ruled that China has won.

Additional penalty package: The Silla Go Academy's alleged fraudulent activities require further investigation. If true, will it lose its qualification as the rotating chair of the next Asian Go Federation? Sorry, it's cancelled!

This caused the Koreans to collectively break down, with some even calling it a cover-up.

Some time ago, the Chinese Chess Academy also sought the opinion of Yi Zheng, the "father of the 3-3 point move," to discuss giving this move a catchy yet elegant "stage name."

After all, the Go community in this world still retains a certain chuunibyou-esque "sense of ritual," always feeling that a straightforward name like "point 3-3" that sounds like coordinate code is not "high-class" enough and does not match the sophistication of the standard opening.

They yearn for names like "Heavenly Demon," "Demon Blade," and "Xuanji Collapse Clouds," which are full of poetry and a sense of terror.

Upon hearing this, Old Ke became excited. He always approached such matters with great enthusiasm and had been thinking about it for a long time.

As for Yi Zheng himself? Although he was the world's first pioneer of the 3.3 point three, his desire to "make a name for himself" was as faint as a glass of plain water.

He even jokingly suggested to Mr. Ke that we should call it Mr. Ke's fixed style.

His motivation was simple: he wanted to leave a mark on the noisy chess world for his mentor, who existed before non-existence but possessed profound wisdom and guided him into the realm of AI chess theory.

Even if no one else knows him.

However, Professor Ke said that this was too much, as he already had a fixed practice of naming things after himself and didn't need it.

Not to mention, AlphaGo is the biggest mark it has left on the world. Even hundreds of years from now, people will probably not forget this urban legend of Go.

Countless thoughts flashed through Yi Zheng's mind. Li Junhe finally emerged from his long period of contemplation. With a heavy determination, he slammed the white jade chess piece between his index and middle fingers onto the chessboard.

It's blocked from below.

Seeing this, Yi Zheng followed suit without hesitation and stuck it on.

This time, Li Junhe didn't take long to think and made his move immediately without any delay.

However, it wasn't the most ordinary lever; instead, a fly-press lever was chosen.

The snow-white chess piece descended from above with the overwhelming force of Mount Tai, pressing down fiercely on Yi Zheng.

This move is truly aggressive and fiery!
"The other party has extended an invitation to you."

The voice suddenly rang in Yi Zheng's head.

"coming!"

Yi Zheng's heart clenched suddenly, then began to pound even harder, the blood coursing through his body carrying a hint of scalding excitement.

After countless dreams of meeting and fierce battles with Mr. Ke, we have finally reached this point in reality.

According to the current playing style in the professional Go world, Yi Zheng could directly push forward, and after Li Junhe blocks, Yi Zheng would follow up with a counter-attack, forming a variation that AlphaGo once played online.

Everything seemed standard and perfectly stable. But Yi Zheng knew that a hidden weapon was lurking within.

An unparalleled, yet deadly sword capable of destroying anyone.

A peerless murder weapon.

Ferocious! Brutal!
It is magnificent and possesses the power to slay dragons and bind tigers, but it is also so sharp that it can backfire and drag the user into an abyss of darkness from which there is no return!

Yi Zheng had longed to wield this sword for a long time! Just like a knight-errant longing to draw his famous sword that had been sealed away for many years.

Unfortunately, though the blade was sharp, there was no "testing stone" to demonstrate its sharpness.

But it seems today is the day the throwing knife is drawn?!

It seems that this is the will of heaven, using the world's number one as a whetstone, so that this flying knife, which is famous in another world, will not be wasted.

Thinking of this, Yi Zheng straightened his back, took out a black piece, and placed it under the white piece that Li Junhefei had pressed down.

The black and white pieces on the chessboard instantly evolved into a tension that was poised to be unleashed. At this moment, they were like a Tang sword that had been drawn three inches from its sheath, its sharpness concealed, waiting for the opponent's response.

Yi Zheng knew that from this moment on, the pretense of "ordinariness" had been completely torn away. On the chessboard, a silent war concerning the changing of the times and the shifting of fortunes had finally come to a head.

"To?"

Li Junhe was slightly surprised by this move. It was in his calculations, but the weight of the choice was much higher later. However, someone had made a similar move in a match against AlphaGo.

AlphaGo's choice was to block, while most professional Go players now choose to extend, a simpler variation.

"The changes are too complex, but they are the most severe."

After all, when Alexander of the United States defeated AlphaGo, he chose to back down, and that one wrong move led to a complete collapse from the start to the end.

"Pull it! Put the maximum pressure on him!"

The world-class player's judgment and absolute confidence in his own strength instantly gave him the upper hand.

Fourteenth move, White, Ban!
Seeing this, Yi Zheng knew.

it has started!

Finally started!

Yi Zheng felt incredibly relaxed at that moment, and he couldn't even feel any pressure anymore.

The tension that had been lingering in his chest for so long suddenly dissipated like smoke, replaced by an extremely strange clarity and relaxation.

Even throwing knives have fixed patterns of how they are thrown. Since patterns can be formed, there must be one or more ways to throw them that neither side loses out.

The key question is, does Li Junhe understand?
Li Junhe has not studied this subject, and may not even have researched it; he is currently learning it on the job.

Or even if we did study it, would it be possible to exhaust all the billions of possible variations of "Mi Dao" with the limited computing power and time available to humankind? That would probably require generations of chess players to work tirelessly and relentlessly to even barely sketch out a small part of the labyrinth!

But Yi Zheng was different. He had already grasped most of the changes from Master Ke, so he had no worries at all.

After throwing this knife, Yi Zheng was certain that he might not necessarily make a profit, but Li Junhe would most likely lose money!
Lee Jun-hyuk, you're playing with fire! But you've successfully piqued my interest!

Who in their right mind would dare to lay a hand on Mi?
Could the person who stabbed Mi be a decent person?

Oh, I'm not a respectable person either, never mind.

A fleeting thought of self-deprecation crossed Yi Zheng's mind, but it didn't affect the decisiveness of his actions in the slightest. There was no need to think; there was no other choice!

There is only one way at this moment; there is no other choice.

With his index and middle fingers firmly holding the jet-black, smooth, and understated cloud-shaped chess piece, Yi Zheng's wrist hovered above the chessboard for a moment, his posture even carrying a touch of ritual, and then—

top!
The instant the black stone struck the chessboard, it seemed as if the soft light from the main lamp on the ceiling of the playing room was distorted by an invisible force.

The "Mi Dao," a weapon from another world symbolizing extreme complexity and dangerous allure, was finally unleashed by a young Chinese chess player in this world during a duel that would be etched into the annals of chess history!

The sword has been drawn, its cold gleam just beginning to appear!

(End of this chapter)