The work of the Go master

It does seem possible that this might have drawn her, who happened to be passing by, into this remote little place.

"Can you also tell there's something wrong with this lucky cat?" Ke Zhiguang pressed his hand on the lucky cat's paw.

"Yes, it seems to have an extremely strong effect on attracting business, seven times more efficient than a regular lucky cat."

"Hmm? You know so much about this?" Ke Zhiguang raised an eyelid.

"Senior, if you say that, could it be that you also...?"

"No, I'm just curious why you can give such a precise multiple of '7'. Speaking of which, this thing really does attract customers, doesn't it?" Ke Zhiguang perfectly performed his acting skills.

If an 8th or 9th dan player could tell at a glance that this lucky cat isn't a cat, that would be reasonable. But for even a low-level player like Inoue to see through it is a bit too much of a power imbalance.

"It might be related to my bloodline as a shrine maiden. I've had a strong sensitivity to these things since I was a child."

Ke Zhiguang stretched out his hand and said, "Stop! You're talking about a witch? Aren't you from a family of Go players?"

Ke Zhiguang suddenly felt that he had been given some strange settings.

“Being a shrine maiden has always been a family business, and our family shrine is still in operation today,” Inoue said.

Ke Zhiguang suddenly remembered that when he read the newspaper about the Nagoya Women's Cup before, Inoue Hoshino attended in a shrine maiden outfit.

That feeling wasn't a personal hobby, but a genuine professional uniform.

"Then... what god do you worship in your family? Is it some kind of Go god that can perceive these things so clearly?"

Ke Zhiguang asked, although he had been listening to the charlatans ramble on about the God of Go, he had always thought it was just an uncertain metaphysical designation and didn't think it was really the kind of god worshipped in shrines.

If you really want to pay respects, why not just pay respects to Xiucai or Huang Longshi? And when Hanno-sensei is buried someday, you can put up his picture there and pay respects too, right?

"Our family worships the dog god."

Ok?

The art style has dropped so much!

Chapter 70, is it possible? Select a mission.

When you hear the word "Inugami," the first thing that comes to mind is Sadaharu from "Gintama," whose prototype is the Japanese silver fox dog, the kind with comma-shaped dots on its eyebrows.

But setting aside the various ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) elements, Japan does indeed have monsters like Inugami, which seem to be villainous deities.

However, there are many different sects of gods in Japan, and even Koji Mitsuko couldn't say for sure what the dog god enshrined at their shrine was.

But what does this have to do with Go?

"So, senior, it's your turn. What's the reason you're here?" Inoue asked.

"I was attracted by this lucky cat just like you," Ke Zhiguang said matter-of-factly.

"Really? I have a feeling that your purpose might be related to a mission like saving the world, senpai? For example..." Inoue turned his gaze to behind Noren and tilted his head in that direction.

She could also sense the ominous aura emanating from behind the warm curtain; a mere sniff revealed a sense of impending bloodshed.

"Interested in coming in and having a look?" Ke Zhiguang, seeing that his motives had been exposed, readily accepted the offer.

He gestured around the room with his thumb, acting as if it were his own home.

Inoue nodded and stepped into the noren, facing the entire wall of drawers.

I also inspected the only drawer that could be opened.

"I didn't find anything. If it were my older sister, she would have been able to see through all of this at a glance." She shook her head. She was finding it difficult to stay in this environment and was experiencing adverse reactions.

"It's alright, I'll treat you to dinner another day." Ke Zhiguang walked out with her.

It seems the older sister is an active shrine maiden, while the younger sister is just a half-baked one.

Before leaving, he also took a few videotapes with him to take back for research.

I also took that copy of "The Devil" and tucked it under my arm.

I symbolically placed a 100-yuan coin on it as payment for everything.

He then arrogantly left a signature, adding the bonus phrase "I was here."

Of course, these are probably all harmless provocations to the boss.

Although the boss never showed up, Ke Zhiguang had every reason to suspect that the boss had actually been monitoring every move in the house all along, watching his actions with a smile like a player behind the scenes.

An excessively dangerous person.

The snake in the empty drawer is certainly troublesome, but it's definitely not as troublesome as the boss.

"Could you tell me about the progress of saving the world, so I can feel a sense of participation?" Inoue asked in a flat tone as she walked home, giving off the feeling of a dazed character in a Japanese stand-up comedy routine, needing a sparring partner to chat her up.

"The progress is basically zero, but it's not a big deal. In the end, it's all a problem that can be solved with a unified strategy," Ke Zhiguang said.

"Is that so? Then it seems I don't need to ask any more questions. I can just wait for your good news," Inoue said.

"So what are your plans now? You've already finalized your grades and finished your exams. Will you stay in Tokyo for the summer vacation?" Ke Zhiguang asked.

"I will also be in Tokyo after the summer vacation. I have transferred to a school here and will start living an independent life away from my family."

"This... then which school do you want to transfer to?" Ke Zhiguang vaguely guessed what was going on.

"Yunkyo Middle School is very close to the girls' dormitory. Senior Harushima is a nice person, so I've decided to live with her."

"Hmm, you suddenly started calling me 'senior' recently, is that because of this?" Ke Zhiguang remembered that he used to call him classmate, even though they weren't in the same school or even the same grade.

"Pretty much. Another reason is that I've spent so much time with Harushima-senpai, and hearing her treat you like an equal opponent makes me subconsciously feel that you're also a senior."

"Then keep up the good work in your studies and chess," Ke Zhiguang encouraged him as a senior.

"Senior, keep up the good work in Go, and in your secret mission of saving the world."

They continued their simple conversation until they reached their parting point.

"Next time we eat, please be sure to bring my little brother and the cat along. I still miss them."

"Ah, this..." Ke Zhiguang almost forgot about this joke. "Next time for sure."

Only after watching Inoue enter the women's dormitory did Koji Mitsuaki feel relieved.

Walking out of that eerie music store at night, it's easy to feel scared. Only after confirming that Inoue had entered a women's dormitory blessed with a holy aura did Koji Hikaru feel at ease.

This place must be protected by holy power, right?

Yes, there are.

Only when I walked through the night and returned alone to Peach Blossom Village did I finally feel safe and at home.

Nighttime is indeed terrifying.

Back in the room, a tub of hot water was already prepared in the bathroom, steaming the room with a cloud of steam.

But before taking a bath, Ke Zhiguang first checked the chessboard—

Sure enough, the task card arrived.

[Optional: Select Mission: Win the Rising Star Title Battle]

[Quest Reward: Wishing Meteor Shower]

this.....

It's a little different from what I expected.

It doesn't matter what the Wishing Meteor Shower is, it should be a good thing anyway, maybe it really can summon a meteor shower.

As for the change from "Optional Task" to "Optional Task (?)," that's understandable and not shameful.

What's puzzling is the mission content: to win the New Star Wars title.

I originally thought that, given the nature of this mission, they would specifically ask me to defeat a certain opponent, and use a symbolic spirit as a substitute.

The inability to immediately learn the dragon's name is somewhat frustrating, thus creating suspense.

Ke Zhiguang still remembers the doubt he felt when he first saw the name "Lord of the Swamp." He thought it was some kind of low-class toad. With this preconceived notion, the shock of learning that the name actually referred to a dragon is still fresh in his memory.

In conclusion, guessing the real identity based on the name is a very interesting activity, but unfortunately, that fun is gone this time.

But it doesn't matter, this mission also hints to myself that my opponent in the final of the New Star Wars is that dragon.

That's right, Ke Zhiguang considers a spot in the finals a guaranteed minimum.

After figuring everything out, Ke Zhiguang was about to take a shower.

Suddenly, a sharp screech came from outside the window on the third floor, making Ke Zhiguang stop for a moment.

It was just the sound of bats.

It's mid-July now, the temperature is at its peak, and Tokyo, being close to the Pacific Ocean, happens to be a humid place that bats love.

Bats are traditionally thought to hang upside down in caves deep in the mountains and forests, but they can also be found in big cities, so it is not surprising that these creatures are active in Tokyo.

Ke Zhiguang closed the window and looked at the night view outside, when suddenly something new came to mind.

Bats...and dragons aren't entirely unrelated, are they?

Isn't the Western-style dragon just a dragon with bat wings?

After successfully linking bats and dragons, Ke Zhiguang began to waver in his view that Western symbolic spirits should not appear. There has never been a hard and fast rule that related things must not appear.

The picture of "The Demon King" next to it is the best proof.

The thought process continued to expand: if bats can do it, and snakes can do it too, then why can't we use both together?

The snake and the bat combine to form a real flying dragon.

After gazing at the night sky outside the window for a while, Ke Zhiguang finally got up, lay down in the steaming bathtub, and repaired the damage from the day, smoothing out the bite marks on his hands.

The next day was another day full of energy.

Chapter Seventy-One: Report, I'm Back at Work Again

Arriving at the square in front of the chess academy, Ke Zhiguang climbed several steps and confidently swiped his card to enter, yawning loudly as he said, "Reporting, I'm back to work again."

Hearing this, Yamaoka was stunned.

What does "You're back at work?" mean? Does this require a special report?

"Hisashi-san, you're only here at ten o'clock. According to the usual corporate rules, this is already considered extremely late, isn't it?" Sasahara Noriyuki couldn't help but complain.