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

Chapter 422 Give First
Looking at the player on the other side of the screen, whose attitude was so firm and who insisted on playing against him evenly, Yi Zheng could immediately conclude without any extra thought that this was definitely a carefully disguised alternate account.

In reality, it's almost impossible for ordinary Go enthusiasts to even consider playing a formal, even-odd game against a top-tier professional 9-dan player, because such a mismatch in skill level wouldn't provide any substantial gaming experience.

This gap is so large that it is not limited to ordinary chess fans—even ordinary players in the professional circle find it difficult to cross such a chasm.

Just like that famous meme.

A 1-dan player beating a 9-dan? Really?

Of course, it's not unprecedented for a first-dan to beat a ninth-dan, it's just that this precedent is sitting right across from you.

Moreover, the other party's work is indeed not very good. This account is also a brand new account with no game records. If you are not a smurf account, then who is?
This is quite normal, because most professional players use their smurf accounts frequently for matches, and many people in the industry know who is whose smurf account. If they use their old accounts, it's easy for others to spot them.

"One last confirmation, are you sure you don't need to give up your child?" Yi Zheng's fingers hovered above the keyboard, the cursor in the dialog box blinking slightly.

"Absolutely not!" The reply popped up almost instantly, conveying a resolute and unwavering determination.

Seeing the other side's confident words, Yi Zheng nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips: "OK, if you lose this round, I can let you go first."

"He really thinks he's AlphaGo."

Yun Linglei lit a cigarette in his spacious apartment, and couldn't help but snort as he looked at the messages on his computer.

The woman on the bed behind him had already fallen asleep. Yun Linglei himself seemed to have just gotten out of bed, his hair was still messy, as if he had just gone through a big battle.

It's normal for Yi Zheng to make a suggestion without the other party's knowledge, but Yun Linglei would never accept it no matter what.

First of all, Yun Linglei felt that he couldn't possibly lose no matter what, even with a handicap, so playing against him was completely pointless.

Moreover, whether it was because he couldn't let go of his professional 9-dan dignity, or because he was worried that if he were to win by overwhelmingly defeating Yi Zheng after giving him a handicap, it would make Yi Zheng more alert and greatly reduce his chances of winning with a handicap, Yun Linglei could not accept this proposal.

After all, opportunities to launch a sneak attack are rare!

"The game begins."

Hearing the sounds from the computer, Yun Linglei looked at the group chat messages popping up on his phone and typed in voice message: "I don't know who this is either! Whose alt account is this! You dare to do it but not admit it, come out now! Damn it, mine wasn't selected either!"

He had already made up his mind: if he won, it would be a glorious achievement for Yun Linglei; if he lost, the account would just be an unclaimed ghost.

"Yi Zheng, you should at least let me win one game!"

Looking back on his professional career against Yi Zheng, Yun Linglei could only describe it as a complete loss, even losing his position as the team's main player.

After losing the title, the other person received an even higher title and refused to return it to him.

"Go! Yun Linglei!"

Twenty minutes later, when the massive dragon that spanned half the chessboard in the center was completely surrounded, Yun Linglei silently stubbed out his cigarette in the crystal ashtray. The embers struggled for two seconds on the charred filter before going out completely.

I was careless! I didn't flash!

"Let's play another round! I miscalculated just now!"

Seeing that his opponent hadn't even clicked "concede" yet, but was already sending messages to him in the chat box, Yi Zheng didn't rush to end the match. Instead, he calmly began to offer his comments.

"This player is quite strong, but unfortunately his fundamentals are too weak, which is a big problem! I advise you to understand the basic concepts of Go before playing." Listening to Yi Zheng's comments in the live broadcast, Yun Linglei took a deep breath of the warm air from the air conditioner and wished he could punch the computer.

What does it mean to have very poor basic skills?

First, let's understand the basic concepts of Go.
Who doesn't know that I, Yun Linglei, am the most classic and authentic fighter, with the most solid foundation in basic skills!

You actually said my basic skills are poor?!
Yi Zheng's second message completely shattered his last shred of reason: "The difference in strength is too great. You can't beat me in a point game. Otherwise, let's try letting you go first."

Yi Zheng's words were like the last straw that broke Yun Linglei's back: "You'll regret this!"

I'll let him go first; no matter what, I can't possibly lose to Yi Zheng!

Seeing his opponent agree, Yi Zheng couldn't help but curl up the corners of his mouth slightly. He knew that his opponent would definitely fall for the trap.

Yi Zheng had long wanted to play a game with a handicap against top players, but most of the world's top players would not be willing to play this game with him, not even in private training sessions.

No matter how capable Yi Zheng is, or how good his relationship with them is, it won't work.

One reason is that no one can give up this sense of dignity. We are all ninth-dan players, top-tier athletes. If I give way first, wouldn't that blatantly mean that I am inferior to you?

Moreover, once this kind of move is played in a public competition, everyone's commercial value plummets, which is tantamount to using themselves to elevate Yi Zheng to a pedestal.

Such a self-sacrificing act for the benefit of others is something only a saint could do.

AlphaGo's ability to play against so many opponents with a handicap can be attributed to perfect timing, location, and circumstances, especially since these were online matches, as it was impossible to find him in real life.

Yi Zheng always felt that he had reached the required level, but he never had the opportunity to prove it.

This time, finally someone was hiding behind the trumpet, giving me the opportunity to conduct experiments.

Yi Zheng could sense the strength of the opponent's top players in the previous game, and based on their style, he had probably narrowed down the possibilities to just a few people.

However, this kind of thing shouldn't be exposed, because if it is, everyone will lose face. It's only truly good if everyone is happy.

As the match officially began, Yi Zheng also took a deep breath, ready to be fully focused.

Although it's only a seven-and-a-half-point difference compared to an official match, the difference is actually enormous.

However, being the first in the world to achieve this is only a small goal at present.

After all, the dog, with two sons, remained undefeated for dozens of games.

Both sides opted for a 3-3 opening and a small objective, but their approaches to the small objective differed.

When the opponent used a small flying attack to hit his small eye, Yi Zheng did not rush to retaliate but instead returned the attack with a small flying attack to his small eye as well.

Yun Linglei quickly used the double-clamp technique, and Yi Zheng immediately flew out as well, naturally breaking through without hesitation.

When this battle begins, both of them have reasons why they must win.

(End of this chapter)