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

Chapter 428 Accepting the First

"Li Junhe!"

The shout came from behind, and the Silla professional players in the research room turned around in unison. When they saw Lee Jun-hyuk stride into the research room, none of them had ever felt that the figure was so imposing.

An unprecedented surge of emotion welled up in my heart—as if I could see the sails of a ship returning to port in a storm.

The other players from Silla couldn't help but silently vow in their hearts that they would never again secretly curse you, you bastard, for affecting their chances of winning the championship.

"Li Junhe, 9th Dan, it's been a long time."

Yi Zheng smiled and nodded as he watched Li Junhe enter the research room, grab a chair, and sit down. He had thought Li Junhe would be resting at home today since he had a day off, but he didn't expect him to suddenly appear in the research room.

Whether he comes or not, it's the same. If Yi Zheng manages to suppress everyone in Silla today, Lee Jun-hyuk, as the number one Go player in Silla, will have to come back to settle the score.

Otherwise, Silla Go might have lost all face, or even been completely destroyed.

However, if we think about it directly, Lee Jun-hyuk himself seems to be the only face of Silla Go.

"Da Li, there's no need to use this kind of stuff."

Park Ji-bin, who was standing next to Lee Joon-hyuk, couldn't help but tug at Lee's sleeve. After all, this could easily lead to a huge embarrassment, or even become a huge scandal and a stain on his career.

If the former world number one loses the handicap, that's big news, and the headlines the next day will be everywhere.

Nobody cares that this kind of competition is just private training and rapid chess has no real value. All people know is that Lee Jun-hyuk lost to Yi Zheng again after being given a handicap, just like he lost to AlphaGo.

Lee Jun-hyuk, once the world's number one, has long been eliminated by the times; the new era no longer has a vessel to carry him.

This could be a very heavy blow to Silla Go, perhaps even a devastating one.

Li Junhe waved his hand when he heard this. He knew that his chances of winning against Yi Zheng in an official match were not particularly high. However, in this kind of super-fast chess where each move takes fifteen seconds, experience, talent, and a sense of victory are crucial.

Li Junhe firmly believes that, with his competitive form not yet completely declining, he is certainly capable of competing with Yi Zheng, let alone falling to the point of being defeated after receiving a handicap.

Yi Zheng is not AlphaGo, nor is he Yun Linglei, who would have been easily defeated by him on New Year's Eve.

Moreover, under the increasingly imposing shadow of Yi Jung's rule, Silla Go desperately needed a victory to boost morale and prove to the world that Yi Jung was not an insurmountable obstacle.

Just like when Gu Jianhun, a ninth-dan swordsman from China, defeated himself at the Olympics.

No one is invincible, and no mountain is unconquerable.

Confidence is the most important thing for the future.

Only by igniting the flame of faith can we illuminate the path to the future.

Let's guess first.

"it is good."

The two didn't even need to exchange glances to reach a tacit understanding, and the chess pieces were already crisply placed on the chessboard.

However, one of the spectators suddenly realized the significance of this match and hurriedly rushed out of the research room to inform the higher-ups at the chess academy. After all, if this matter ended without the higher-ups knowing, who knows how it would escalate?

In any case, it is essential to make preparations in advance.

"What? You're saying Li Junhe and Yi Zheng are playing a game? What are they betting on? Wasn't Li Junhe supposed to have a bye today? What's he doing at home sleeping?"

The newly appointed president of the Silla Go Academy, Hong Young-min, was stunned upon hearing this, and he slammed his pen onto the documents with a loud thud.

He had directly used the rules to ban Yi Zheng, so why did the two sides continue playing? His painstaking efforts to secretly block Yi Zheng using the rules were completely shattered by this sudden turn of events.

Then all my hard work has been for nothing?! All my painstaking planning has been for naught?!

"It seems that Yi Zheng invited several other players from the research lab to play against each other, and even said that he would give them a million if they accepted the offer, but still no one has accepted the challenge."

Then Li Junhe 9-dan came over and initiated a game against Yi Zheng 9-dan, and the two of them started playing immediately.

Upon hearing the report, Hong Young-min couldn't help but slam her hand on the table: "Idiot! Has Lee Joon-hyuk lost his mind?! Did he get his head caught in the door when he walked in yesterday?!"

We organized this competition specifically to help you win the championship, so why are you talking to Yi Zheng behind his back?

This tournament was meant to pave the way for your championship victory, yet you've been secretly battling your strongest rival. If you lose this match, wouldn't the huge sum of money the chess academy invested go to waste? And maybe no one would even care about this match anymore!

"And then... it seems like they were playing a game of Liberation Go."

Upon hearing this, Hong Young-min was struck dumb. He slammed his chair aside and rushed out the door, even losing his shoes in the process. He simply couldn't imagine how jarring the headline "Lee Jun-hyuk loses to Yi Jung after receiving a handicap" would be.

But when he arrived at the scene, he found that the research room had already been surrounded by layers of people.

Hong Young-min was no longer rational. She grabbed a professional player who was watching the commotion and spat in his face: "What's going on?! What's the situation?! How far has the game progressed?!"

Seeing the president grab his collar, the professional 3-dan from Silla couldn't help but swallow hard: "I just arrived too, but I heard from inside that Lee Jun-hyuk, 9-dan, has already lost the handicap game and is now playing a handicap game."

Upon hearing this, Hong Young-min shoved the other person aside and frantically pushed her way into the research room: "Stop! Stop the clock! Stop this informal game immediately. We don't allow this game to continue!"

Unfortunately, the already small research room had long been occupied by a bunch of reporters who had heard the news and crowded in. Hong Young-min couldn't squeeze in at all, surrounded by a wall of cameras and microphones.

Looking at the research room, which was surrounded by layers of people, Hong Young-min dialed Lee Joon-hyuk's number, but no one answered.

Finally getting through to Park Ji-bin, Hong Young-min couldn't help but burst into a tirade: "Are you in there?! Stop this farce right now! Do you know what you're doing?!"

Hearing the president of the Go academy cursing on the other end of the phone, Park Ji-bin glanced at Lee Joon-hyuk, whose eyes were already red: "President Hong, I definitely can't stop him now... Lee Joon-hyuk has lost his temper!"

How could he not be furious? Li Junhe, standing in front of the chessboard, felt only the coldness in his fingertips.

He never expected that, despite having the advantage of giving Yi Zheng the first move, he would be completely suppressed by Yi Zheng. The black pieces were like moths caught in a spider's web, struggling only to become more entangled.

Lee Jun-hyuk smelled a hint of fear once again... the same fear he had sensed from AlphaGo years ago.

(End of this chapter)