The work of the Go master

"Oh, it's Shinseong-kun. Okay, then."

"Takami, are you next? Is that okay?"

Yingmei nodded: "No problem."

"Hey! Your methods for approaching girls and arranging dates are way too sophisticated!" Yamaoka said with a resentful look, like a defeated dog.

But soon, Masae Soma put her hand on his shoulder: "It's okay, I'll train with you in the next game."

Yamaoka's heart skipped a beat, and his cheeks flushed.

this......

That's some serious masculinity!

......

......

On January 8th, the pace continued.

Today is the first day of school.

After washing up, Xingcai looked at her clean reflection in the mirror and whispered, "I'll do my best today too."

After filling the Border Collie's bowl with dog food, she pushed open the door and went out to begin a new day.

Chapter Thirty-Four: The Competition Is Getting Closer

January 8th was the first day of school for most schools. Students braved the cold wind, wearing their school uniforms, and took to the streets, crowding into buses and subway stations.

Xingcai walked out of the school and quickly arrived. Along the way, many familiar classmates greeted her.

After the start of the semester, there was basically no work related to chess. At most, I would be called in on weekends to commentate on matches, which would count as extracurricular credits.

Although she was completely disconnected and distracted during the last New Star Battle, her "cold" commentary style actually won her a lot of praise.

As someone who can appear on television, she attracts a lot of attention when she walks around the school, and has become a complete campus star.

This is the life of a double agent: in the workplace, they bask in the glory of being a current student, making their peers envious with their youthful years; while at school, they emphasize their professional side, reaping the admiring glances of their classmates—these are Xingcai's exact words during a brief conversation with Ke Zhiguang about work.

Although it's immoral, it's really exhilarating, and even Xingcai herself can't help but want to learn how to get that kind of thrill.

She stopped walking when she reached the school gate.

The school gate was so crowded that the noise was deafening.

"Phew...looks like my campus star status isn't high enough." Xingcai grinned self-deprecatingly, then walked into the crowd.

Ke Zhiguang was surrounded by layers of people.

"Come on, come on, don't rush to sign, everyone gets one, everyone gets one." Ke Zhiguang skillfully signed the small book handed to him, his hand speed comparable to an international movie star's book signing event for "Journey to the West".

"Hey, Professor! How long do you plan to stay at school this time?" The students from the journalism department handed over the microphone, their equipment exceptionally luxurious.

"I might only stay for half a day, but don't worry, I promised I would definitely pass the revised exam," Ke Zhiguang replied decisively.

"God of Science, I was fooled by the school's promotional ad. It said that if I got in, I'd have a chance to be your classmate, but I haven't seen you in ages..."

"Don't be afraid, join the Go club quickly. My game records and spirit are with you."

The fan meeting at the school gate continued until class started, when the head of student affairs rushed in to disperse it.

However, after dispersing the students, the dean of students quickly put on a friendly face again, took a group photo with Ke Zhiguang in front of the camera, and then the principal happily joined in, snapping away.

Xingcai revealed a squinting expression from afar.

After class, in the gymnasium of the Go club.

"You're having a blast, senior. Just as I expected, you took time out of your busy schedule to come to the school just to show off, right? Have you managed to do it yet?" Xingcai asked while playing chess.

"Well... actually, I was planning to sneak in through the back door, but it closed, so I had to go through the front. It's really not my fault." Ke Zhiguang seemed quite innocent. Seeing that the other person didn't react, he sincerely and cautiously asked, "Do you believe me?"

"Heh." Xingcai gave a cool and aloof reply, then continued to focus on the game.

She was still in a two-piece handicap game against Ke Zhiguang.

She's now the leader of the Go club, so of course she has to take the lead in organizing Go activities.

As for accepting the two-piece handicap, let's just consider it as accepting the difference in skill level.

"Oh no, the dragon is dead." Just as Xingcai was about to make her move, she realized that her game seemed to have suddenly ended in disaster.

"That's settled then, thanks for the guidance," Xingcai said, seemingly unconcerned about the loss in this entertainment game.

"These are my lines."

"Although you made it popular, it's mine now."

Ke Zhiguang could only shrug and spread his hands.

After the game ended, he stepped away from the chessboard, glanced at the entire stadium, and felt a unique sense of nostalgia.

Time has passed, but this place still makes people feel at ease, listening to the sounds of pieces being placed and the playground. Although he has been in the workplace for so long, he has to admit that this is the best place.

If that's the case, we should also take some time to visit Manager Lin Ying and Uncle Qiu's home, and look back at where the dream began.

While looking down at the stadium, Ke Zhiguang was also keeping an eye on everyone's points.

It's even lower than the chess academy.

At least in the chess academy, the score is 3-9 points, but here it's all 1 point.

Just then, Shuicheng arrived and waved to them from the entrance of the stadium.

Now that the senior high school students have become test takers, the junior high school students have naturally become the new senior high school students, facing greater academic pressure. She will probably come to participate in club activities this late in the future.

However, her score was 83, which was actually higher than Xingcai's.

This... clearly, this score is no longer related to chess skill.

Ke Zhiguang even began to wonder if these scores represented some kind of favorability rating.

But given his current popularity, the average rating of the audience should be off the charts.

Perhaps it's about familiarity or how well you get along?

That's not right either. Yamaoka is 20, and Bamboo Sword Forger is 30. It's impossible that Bamboo Sword Forger is more familiar with him than Yamaoka, right?

But one thing has to be admitted... these people with high scores are all people he knows and is close to.

These scores depend less on them and more on Ke Zhiguang himself.

Shuicheng walked up to the podium: "Sorry I'm a little late. Were you two playing chess just now?"

"Yes, senior has been really amazing lately. He even won after giving me a two-piece handicap. I really hope he can maintain such a strong momentum in official competitions." Xingcai smiled slightly.

It seems he's a bit annoyed after losing a series of games and wants to vent through sarcastic remarks.

"Don't worry, I firmly believe that with your strength, Inoue, as long as you put your full effort into a formal competition, it's absolutely impossible for you to lose even with a two-stone handicap like you did today."

"You..." Xingcai felt like she was choking, and her cheeks twitched.

Sure enough, it's really fun to bully girls.

Ke Zhiguang immediately changed the subject, asking Shui Cheng, "Are Bai Meng and Shao Gong still preparing for the exam?"

"Yes, I'll be taking the exam on January 19th. You must come and cheer me on then!"

"They will definitely come."

Let's take a look at their specific scores.

"Um... Shuicheng, would you like to play a game with me? I'll let you win with nine points." Ke Zhiguang began to coax Shuicheng.

As night fell, Ke Zhiguang returned home with a full load of 163 points.

......

......

On January 13th, time continued to move towards the Grandmasters Tournament, and the weather continued to snow. The landscape pond in the courtyard of the Go Academy was covered in white again, but unfortunately the snow was too thick to use a snowball.

An Yongxin, holding a coffee and whistling, swayed as she walked down the corridor.

There's nothing more comfortable or charming than sitting in a rest area all day with a cup of coffee on a snowy day.

He has a very clear plan for his life. He doesn't ask for any titles or championships, he just wants to reach the eighth dan level by the time he is around thirty-five years old.

When I return to China, I can easily rebuild the Korean Baduk Association with my 8-dan ranking, and I will be the undisputed leader.

Just make sure you're number one in Korea, why bother competing for number one in any industry? Just because I can't beat you Japanese doesn't mean I can't beat my own people.

He was playing a little tune as he walked up the stairs, but just as he was about to reach the second floor, he suddenly stopped.

A thick aura of murderous intent rolled down from the top of the stairs.

The bamboo swordsmith stood at the end of the stairs, casting a menacing shadow downwards.

Like a bloodthirsty demon under a storm of thunder and lightning.

"Big brother, again? Haven't you had enough of hitting me yet?" An Yongxin was dumbfounded.

"We can't find any opponents for the time being, so we can only use you to make up the numbers. Like I said before, please make sure you perform at the level you did in the Rising Stars Finals." Bamboo Blade Forging took a step forward.

He walked down from the top of the stairs, descending step by step.

An Yongxin retreated step by step on the steps, creating a scene reminiscent of a horror movie.

When Zhu Dao had just returned, An Yongxin was his number one target, and he was constantly harassing her with his hammer.

Bamboo Blade had studied the game record of the final match of the Rising Stars title many times. Every time he studied the game record, he could learn something new from it and admired the two players who contributed the game record.

Before defeating Kejimitsu, we must defeat An'ei Shin—this is the plan devised by the bamboo sword forging team.

Since Ke Zhiguang defeated An Yongxin, An Yongxin is also an obstacle that Ke Zhiguang must overcome as a prerequisite for challenging Ke Zhiguang.

No matter how many times he hammered it, he was never satisfied with the bamboo knife forging.

too weak.

They are far too weak.

He's so different from how he was during the Nova Games; it's like the difference between a lion and a kitten!

"You bastard, you must be faking it! How long are you going to keep this from me? Hurry up and show me your true strength!" Bamboo Blade's loud voice echoed through the corridor.