The work of the Go master

She kept her eyes closed, trying to sense the depths within with her heart.

With a thud, the phone was answered.

"This is the Inoue family shrine. May I ask your name, guest?" Hoshino sat on a futon in the center of the main hall, as if they were having a conversation across time and space.

"I am Ke Zhiguang. Do you know me?"

"It's you! What a surprise! I heard from Xingcai that you've been having a great time in Hokkaido with your friends. Are you here to have your love fortune told?" Xingjia asked with a smile, clearly indicating that this was a paid service.

this......

Fortune telling about love and romance is indeed a traditional shrine maiden service.

"Actually, I mainly wanted to ask about the Snow Woman."

"Snow Woman?"

Ke Zhiguang briefly described his recent experiences, and Xingjia listened with slight fascination.

"That one isn't called Yuki-onna (Snow Woman). If I had to describe it, I'd say it's simply a matter of luck itself."

Chapter Twelve: Before the Blizzard Arrives

Xingjia's words came from the other end of the phone, surrounding Ke Zhiguang's ears like stereo sound, a feeling that usually only occurs when wearing headphones.

It was an incredible feeling, as if I were communicating with her through my soul.

"The concept of fortune, besides depending on human beings, also depends on the forces of nature, such as snow itself."

"Has there been any precedents for this?" Ke Zhiguang asked.

"Of course! Throughout history, all the chess players whose names are worthy of being recorded in history have encountered these things to varying degrees. Mr. Guang, it might be a blessing for you to encounter something like this." Xingjia's voice flowed gently in my ear like a stream. It was hard to tell whether she was on the other side of the phone, right in front of me, or even from all around.

"Master Hanno once had the experience of slaying demons in his dreams. It was during the Meiji era. A mansion was possessed by an evil spirit. Master Hanno was sleeping alone in the living room of the mansion. There were a total of eighteen chessboards in the mansion. The next morning after that night, when people entered the mansion, they found that each chessboard had been fully played. Master Hanno himself was still in the sleeping position, as if he had finished playing all eighteen chessboards in his dreams and won them all. As for slaying wind and lightning, that was commonplace for him. I don't know about Mr. Yagami Kunikyo, but it is said that his deeds were also very glorious."

"What about Tatsumi Koshikawa's 'Sea-Slaying'?" Koshimitsu asked.

“So you knew about this. It seems Mr. Dragon Throne isn’t so tight-lipped,” Hoshigaki said with her eyes closed. “It was a ship trip he had when he was only fifteen. He was on a cruise ship from Tokyo to America, but the ship had an accident just before reaching its destination. Many passengers lost their lives at sea, and Mr. Dragon Throne also went missing for a while in the accident. He was thought to be dead... But not long after, he was found unconscious on a beach in Japan, becoming a rare survivor.”

"An accident occurred just before reaching the United States, but the person was found on a beach in Japan?" Ke Zhiguang repeated this condition.

Japan and the United States are separated by the Pacific Ocean. An accident occurred on the eastern shore of the Pacific, but the person was found on the western shore of the Pacific and was still alive.

this......

It's probably because it was saved by a whale.

"Mr. Dragon claims that he survived by defeating the sea. From the perspective of conquering nature alone, his feat can be described as unprecedented and unparalleled."

After hearing this description, Koshikawa Tatsumi's danger level in Koshikawa's mind began to rise, and the intimidating power of the evil dragon began to emerge.

"So, do you now understand what I mean by fortune depending on the forces of nature?" Xingjia asked.

Ke Zhiguang nodded, vaguely understanding what the other person was referring to.

To put it simply, it only has a symbolic spirit, but no chess player, right?

The situation was the opposite of the one with Ghost-kun; that time, there was only the chess player and no symbolic spirit.

This is what is known as fortune itself.

"But whether it depends on humans or nature, it will eventually be revealed on the chessboard. As long as you win against them, everything will be resolved."

“I know that, but I already beat it yesterday, and it still left a distress signal at my door and called me to its shrine, but I didn’t see it yesterday. What should I do next?”

"That's assuming you encounter it on your first day, then go to its shrine and play a game against it, and win."

"So... braving a blizzard to reach that shrine and win a round under such terrible conditions?" Ke Zhiguang was stunned.

He had been repeatedly telling himself that the freezing weather had nothing to do with Go, but now he was about to face this perilous situation? Could this be foreshadowing?

Given my current cold resistance level, it would need to be increased several times over to complete a full game of chess in this kind of weather, and there's no guarantee my mind won't go blank.

Ultimately, this isn't even playing chess anymore! Kora!

"Then it depends on your own judgment, Mr. Guang. In addition, the way the game is played, the timing, and your state of mind are all key factors in solving the whole problem. None of them can be missing. Many things that seem simple are actually very complicated. Please be sure to think carefully about every detail."

"The game format, time, location, weather, mindset... Okay, I think I understand. I'll think about it carefully." Ke Zhiguang nodded.

"I also have a question for you, Mr. Guang. From your description, although the fortune that has transformed into snow has sent you a distress signal, it wouldn't really matter if you just ignored it, would it?"

That's true. Ke Zhiguang didn't sense any malicious intent from the snow. Even if he ignored the mission, he shouldn't be punished.

Furthermore, it didn't mention anything about rewards.

"Although there's no harm in refusing it, and no benefit in agreeing to it, it's a matter that can be resolved with chess, so I feel I still have a responsibility to resolve it," Ke Zhiguang said.

Upon hearing this answer, Xingjia remained silent for a long while before bursting into laughter: "Is that so? Anything that can be solved with chess is within your reach, in your eyes. Is that the kind of arrogance and confidence you have?"

"Pretty much. There's nothing simpler than solving everything with chess, and I think that in the current situation, I'm probably the only one who can solve this problem. If I ignore it, there might be irreversible consequences."

"Is that so? That's truly an extraordinary spirit. I hope you can carry that spirit all the way to the end of the Go path. The future of the Go path is in your hands." Xingjia nodded slightly, her hair falling down on both sides.

"Finally, remember to visit our shrine when you have time. I will make time to receive you."

"Yes, I definitely will if I have the chance."

The way this concubine refers to herself always sounds so childish and cringeworthy.

After a few final pleasantries, the brief call came to an end.

Ke Zhiguang was also relieved from this stereo surround sound, and his ears felt sore, as if he had taken off the headphones that had been stuck in his ears.

Inoue Seiya, this character is indeed not simple.

Although she was defeated by Harushima Kaka in the previous Women's Cup, Ke Zhiguang had also seen the game records of those games. She and Harushima Kaka should be players of the same level. If they played ten games, their record should be just a draw. As for odd-numbered games like three games, it would be a matter of luck.

This further fueled Ke Zhiguang's curiosity—what would happen if he knocked her out?

Koji's main task right now isn't actually defeating the Snow Woman or winning the Dragon Throne, but rather the strange collection quest, "The Path to the Ultimate."

After hearing this, he was now certain that Xingjia definitely carried a piece of that fragment.

"Alright, so now, it's time to enter the final sprint of the mission..." Ke Zhiguang got up from the bedside next to the landline, went to the window, opened it, and looked into the distance.

In his eyes, a swirling dark cloud was forming.

A blizzard is coming.

Chapter Thirteen: Enough talk, let's duel!

The pace is accelerating explosively.

The cold winds began a new onslaught, a terrifying sound hung over Otaru, and dark clouds and icy rain pressed down together.

Shops along the street closed one by one, travelers retreated back to their hotels, and the tuna in the restaurant tanks shifted their pupils anxiously.

Under such inclement weather, the girls hurriedly filed back into the hotel.

Otaru has rarely experienced such extreme weather. In the past, the people here enjoyed a slow-paced lifestyle and the tranquility of this fairytale-like city. But in an instant, the city became like a minor city in an epic movie, appearing in the first few minutes and about to be overrun by the demon army, symbolizing the disruption of peaceful life.

Inside the restaurant of a suburban hot spring hotel, the television channel kept playing the same news: a blizzard is expected to sweep through the surrounding area tonight, and residents are advised not to go out.

Ke Zhiguang sat upright in front of the chessboard, rapidly studying the game on his own.

The opening moves of the Yangchun style are 4 to 6 and 6 to 4, followed by common openings such as the two-star formation and the star-small eye formation.

Ever since that phone call ended in the morning, he had been sitting in front of the chessboard, repeatedly practicing this variation. Due to time constraints, he didn't do much calculation, relying solely on the momentum of blitz chess to move back and forth on the board.

The force with which each move of the chess piece is like forging a sword, the pieces on the board rising like overheated branding irons, scorching hot.

It is noon now.

Snapped!

Snapped!

Slap again!

The pieces are dropped from the air like paratroopers, landing precisely at designated locations, and then revealing their role at those locations.

After the game is finished, start another one.

Ke Zhiguang's method of starting the game was very crude. Instead of putting the pieces back into the box, he directly cleared the table with a Liang Feifan-style move, pulling the pieces off the board and then picking up the black and white pieces from the pile.

I'm in great shape now, and I'm not far from where I want to be.

A plate...

One more round...

Let's continue with another game...

The last piece landed on the board, its sound trailing off with a long, drawn-out echo—

Ke Zhiguang also caught his breath.

That's all for now.

He thought this to himself, then got up, left his seat, and exited the room.

There are still a few hours before the blizzard arrives.

In the afternoon, the Harushima group was nestled in the radiant room, each wearing a casual yukata, watching TV and admiring the snow outside the window, completely bored.

Experts on television are discussing the climate for the coming year.

The coming year will be a year of abnormal weather, and this blizzard is just the beginning.

"In this weather, we'll just have to stay indoors and play mahjong again." Harushima Kashima's upper body was slumped over the dining table, her chubby cheeks pressed against the surface.

"Anyway, mahjong is quite fun. Yesterday, Xinxingjun had such good luck and won so much money from us. Today, his bad luck should start to turn around. Let's play now." Xiong Ying rolled up her sleeves and made a "strong" gesture.

"Speaking of which, where is he? Is he still asleep?" Harushima Shika looked around, wondering if he might suddenly appear.

“I knocked on his door before, and he seemed to be setting up a chessboard by himself,” Xiong Ying said.

"Is he... really that diligent?"

"You really can't tell. I thought he was the kind of player who only works sporadically."

Ke Zhiguang's voice suddenly interrupted: "To be fair, I'm just working according to the strict five-day work week and two-day rest system."

"Oh, so it's a five-day work week with two days off, not a three-day work week with two days off—hey, when did you get here!" Xiong Ying was startled by his ghostly appearance.