The work of the Go master

After a few moves, it was like a series of punches to the stomach, causing him to relinquish all his advantages.

"It seems like this local 8th Dan of Da Mu is beyond repair. It seems like Brother Ke really turned the tables on the spot?" An Yongxin was stunned. He had just said that our fighting style emphasizes turning the tables on the spot, but it turned out that Ke Zhiguang had actually made it a reality.

As the countdown began, Atsuki Oki's expression grew increasingly grim.

In the end, he conceded defeat in extreme anger.

As the clock struck, small fireworks burst out from the side, and the surrounding staff joined in the applause.

"Congratulations to 6-dan Koji Koji for winning the Tokyo TV Year-End Cup."

"See? I told you, this championship was a piece of cake for Kobe. Well done! He truly deserves to be the man who snatched the Rising Star title from me!"

"Recently, there are more and more Kobe fans..." the female commentator muttered to herself.

Ke Zhiguang calmly stood up, left a thank you for your guidance, and then picked up a small, transparent crystal trophy. The camera panned past him at an upward angle; Hollywood uses this filming technique every day to highlight the protagonist's heroic moment.

Before he knew it, nearly three months had passed since the New Star Tournament. After that battle, his chess skills once again experienced a breakthrough, and he gradually figured out the most suitable way to win.

Riding the momentum of his recent victory in the Rising Stars Tournament, he quickly set his sights on the next championship, the Autumn Cup in Kyoto, where he won his second title, making it a two-time champion. Under the spotlight of the Autumn Cup victory, he was invited to participate in the Tokyo TV Year-End Cup, starting directly from the semi-finals, and now he has won his third championship.

It's said that whoever wins the Rising Star Cup will be incredibly strong in the following year, and it seems that the rumor is true.

The only drawback is that the champion's prize money is only two million yen, which seems small compared to the prize money of many other high-profile competitions. As a result, the people who came to participate in this competition were not very strong. The only obstacle that Koji Hikaru encountered was this last hurdle, which is what he just faced.

Although the Eye of the Demon Dragon has been defeated, Ke Zhiguang can still estimate the approximate difficulty of the opponent, which should be orange-red level.

Holding their newly won championship, they walked out of Tokyo TV. It was already late, and the streets were filled with the festive atmosphere of Christmas... Although there were still more than twenty days until Christmas, it didn't stop these Japanese people from enthusiastically embracing Western holidays.

Based on past life experience, competitions usually take place in the morning and end around four o'clock. However, most competitions in this world are held at one o'clock in the afternoon, and more important competitions are delayed even later, in an effort to ensure that it is already dark outside when the competition ends, so that the winning side can carry the trophy to the banquet that night.

The game had a distinctly American pace, and the night was imbued with a solemn significance.

"It's been half a year already..." Ke Zhiguang exhaled a sigh of relief as he looked at the streetlights.

More than half a year has passed since I started playing Go. It feels like a lot has happened, but I can't quite explain what exactly happened in a short time. I can only sigh a little.

His life also underwent a dramatic change, his clothes changed from school uniforms to business suits, and the road under his feet changed from the school's tiled floor to the marble steps at the entrance of the TV station.

This feeling is like performing exceptionally well in the college entrance examination, going from someone who could only get into a small third-tier university in their county to a top-tier university in Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou. Even after sitting in the university's lecture hall for almost half a year and becoming familiar with everything here, you will still occasionally wonder if it's really real.

"Congratulations on winning another championship, senior. Since your debut in the professional ranking tournament in early July, you have won three championships in a row. Perhaps we should change your title to 'Science Rising Star, Initially Ranked 3-Dan, Now 6-Dan, Three-Crown King, Master of Light'?" Inoue stood at the bottom of the TV station steps, wearing a school uniform and a thick scarf.

“If this title keeps piling up, I won’t be far from becoming the Tsar.” Ke Zhiguang walked down the steps.

“Is there a banquet? If so, take me with you. I just happened to be passing by and suddenly remembered that you have the finals today. I think you have a high chance of winning, so I came early to wait for you and plan to mooch a dinner,” Inoue said.

"It's an izakaya not far away, nothing special."

"So you've already booked your seats? It seems you were already confident of winning this competition?"

"No, I just felt that even if we got second place, we should still celebrate properly. It's just that we ordered different set meals," Ke Zhiguang said.

"Let me think about it. For most people, the champion would have a big meal, and the runner-up would have a small meal. But for you, senior, it should be the other way around, right?"

"Of course, you should think of it this way: if I win the championship, I will definitely be very happy, and there will be no need to eat so much. But if I only get the runner-up, I will have to eat even better to make up for my wounded heart." Ke Zhiguang stood in the cold wind and talked to the other party, the wind making the corners of his clothes rustle.

Incidentally, this business attire also has an additional warmth function.

However, Inoue was wearing a school uniform, so she didn't have this kind of mystical effect.

"Did you just get out of school?" Ke Zhiguang asked.

Inoue nodded: "I just came from the club activities. Since Bai Meng and Shao Gong are actively preparing for the exam, and Shui Cheng has no intention of taking the position, the position of club president has now fallen to me. It's quite interesting to do."

"You? You've already been promoted to club president?" Ke Zhiguang wondered why a first-year student like you could sit in this position.

"Is there a problem? After all, I'm someone who passed the women's professional ranking exam."

This... it sounds like she's seizing power and usurping the throne.

Inoue's focus is now mainly on the school, and he hasn't really shown his face at the Go academy much.

With the added luck from the rank certificate, she will also gain certain advantages in her studies. For example, she will be in a better learning state and will not have to sit at her desk and stare blankly for two minutes before she can get into the zone.

The accuracy rate of predicted questions before important exams can also be increased.

In short, my rank certificate died far too early!

"So what are your plans for the next month, senior? I mean, will you continue to maintain this model worker attitude and participate in competitions?" Inoue asked.

"As for competitions, let's aim for three this year. If we participate in more competitions, my brain won't be able to keep up," Ke Zhiguang said.

Go competitions are actually very tiring. Before a match, you need to do a lot of research and practice on your opponent, and he is no exception.

As a rising star, his game records are naturally studied and analyzed repeatedly by other players in their rooms, and his opponents will naturally prepare something different to deal with him the night before.

Ultimately, preparation is also part of the competition. Just like that time when he prepared hard for many days and successfully defeated Saito, this experience can be called a masterpiece of his life.

Based on past experience, it's best to selectively participate in competitions throughout the year. If you can get a direct invitation, that's ideal. If you can't get a direct invitation, you have to fight your way up from the lowest level of the qualifiers, which is too tiring and will ruin your form.

At the rank certificate awarding ceremony, Yagami Kunikyo also said that it's important to balance work and rest and make the right choices.

For Kezhiguang, the more important thing is that he has accumulated so much money in his pocket over the past six months, it's time to spend it.

In the context of the bubble era, the main problem was that housing prices were ridiculously high. As long as you didn't touch real estate, other consumption was fine.

"So, will you take a good rest for the next month, senior?" Inoue asked.

"Yes, let's move on from this month. I have school final exams at the end of December, so I need to cram for those too. Then I'll prepare for the title match in early February," Ke Zhiguang said.

Next year is a very special year. There is the Dragon Throne Battle in May and the Imperial Chess Battle in December. But if you look closely at the calendar, you will find that there is also a Famous General Battle in early February. It can be called a year of multiple challenges.

The Grandmasters Tournament is one of the seven major titles, ranking one level above the Rising Stars Tournament. The tournament format is primarily rapid chess, with the time limit decreasing as the tournament progresses closer to the final. The final is also a best-of-three series.

Rapid chess is undoubtedly Ke Zhiguang's trump card and strength. It has to be admitted that his crazy rapid chess behavior is no different from carrying a handful of lime in his pocket during a martial arts brawl and constantly throwing it into his opponent's eyes.

But rapid chess is inherently prone to upsets, and no one can remain in that position for two terms.

"So, do you have any other plans for this month? Like going on a trip or something?"

"Tourism is a good idea, let me look into it..." Ke Zhiguang suddenly thought of something when tourism was mentioned.

Speaking of which... I think I had a plan several months ago to gather a group of people and go on a trip to Hokkaido?

For Chapter Two, the location is decided!

That was back when we beat up Zezi-ge; we found five Hokkaido travel vouchers on him.

At the time, I thought the five Hokkaido travel passes were priceless, and I kept them in my pocket like they were a precious gem. But now, upon closer reflection... they have lost a lot of their value in my mind.

Even though its value has depreciated so much, Ke Zhiguang still has the desire to rub them.

Skiing, hot springs, and hot pot in Hokkaido have always been on his life plan.

"I'm planning to go to Hokkaido, are you planning to come?" Ke Zhiguang replied quickly, as if he had made a spur-of-the-moment decision.

"I was just asking if you had any travel plans. I didn't say I was coming. Besides, you decided on the location so directly, it must have just been a momentary impulse."

"No way, I spent six months meticulously planning this trip, and I also have a free travel voucher... which I won in a lottery."

"Did you win it in a lottery?" Inoue asked, somewhat puzzled.

Perhaps this is what it means to have protagonist-level good luck.

Inoue thought for a moment and said, "We'll see when the time comes. I'm not as free as you, senior. I've been crowned the president of a club and I'm also a student with final exams approaching. The Go Association or TV station might need me to appear on screen... But if I can go, I'll let you know."

But then, her tone suddenly became subtle: "However, senior, you seem to be a little too skilled, aren't you?"

"What are you very skilled at?" Upon hearing this question, Ke Zhiguang suddenly realized that it was the season for white albums, and thus became a little alert.

"Your attitude in inviting girls on a trip is so natural, it's like you've rehearsed it many times. I can already guess that the group you're traveling with this time is another bunch of lovely girls, right?" Inoue narrowed his eyes into slits.

this.....

I went through the list of travel companions in my mind and found that it was still only Bai Meng and Qingdao Lu.

For a moment, I couldn't refute it!

Ke Zhiguang began playing the accordion with a serious expression: "No, no, no, I promise that I, an upright person, have absolutely no fancy or improper thoughts. I promise that among the people on this trip, there will definitely be other men besides me, in order to balance the gender ratio of the team... at least one."

If all else fails, just use smoked food.

So, his words should balance the gender ratio of the team, right? They shouldn't exacerbate the imbalance, should they?

"Oh, really? I'm really looking forward to it." Inoue continued to squint, his eyes filled with a fox-like suspicion.

She relaxed her suspicious expression: "Then let's eat first. Senior Triple Crown King, if you said izakaya, then let's have an izakaya."

The two of them had dinner at a rare, hidden gem izakaya that wasn't frequented by many people. Although this place is usually frequented by a group of middle-aged men who order a drink and then sit at the counter chatting with the owner, pouring out their stress as corporate slaves, it has become a unique Japanese izakaya culture.

However, as a regular restaurant, it's also a very good choice, where you can eat some very greasy grilled meat.

Around 7:30, the lighthearted celebration ended, and no one could tell that the two of them were celebrating a two million-dollar championship.

"That's all for today, see you another day," Ke Zhiguang said as they parted.

"See you another day." Inoue nodded.

The two parted ways at the crossroads, one heading towards the women's dormitory and the other towards Peach Blossom Abode.

As winter nights arrive, Tokyo becomes even more enchanting and alluring. The stylish and fashionable woolen dresses worn by girls are more attractive and dazzling than summer skirts. The music drifting from the shops carries a touch of winter romance, bittersweet yet heartwarming.

It's a pity I can't write songs, otherwise I would definitely copy a song called "Unreachable" and put it in my playlist.

While the cold winter brings clarity, the chill seems even more intoxicating when one looks at this magnificent scene.

Looking at this scene, Ke Zhiguang sometimes thinks about a question.

Will this bubble really burst?

People living in this era certainly wouldn't think this is a false illusion, that a mere prick could extinguish the bubble. No one thinks such a scene will ever end, just as the ballroom dancing of British nobles during the British Empire era will never cease.

The eve of destruction is often marked by prosperity, but those living amidst such prosperity cannot possibly believe that such prosperity will be destroyed in an instant.

But Ke Zhiguang, as someone who traveled from the future, naturally knew that such prosperity was destined to perish, and that it was not far off.

However, this conclusion was drawn only on the premise that this worldview is roughly equivalent to the original world framework.

Go, the prosperity of Go, and the fortune tied to Go are things that transcend the framework of my previous worldview.

Is it possible that, with the support of good fortune, this bubble will never burst?

This question flashed through Ke Zhiguang's mind.

Although he didn't know how fortune should support this bubble, he always felt that the two were connected.