The work of the Go master

So Ke Zhiguang got into the car and left.

Chapter Forty-Two: Past Events in Japan

As the new sun rises, the city's breathing begins to intensify.

The sky remained overcast, and a magnificent white landscape stretched out outside the balcony windows, with every building adorned in white.

This is the spectacular sight of snow falling all night yesterday, turning Tokyo into Moscow.

The cool winter sunlight streamed into the room, and the only sound in the living room was the beeping of a NES console—the sound of moving pieces on the chessboard with the controller, which was quite mesmerizing.

At home, Ke Zhiguang got up on time, turned on the game console, and continued to work hard.

He switched to the game record of yesterday's match against Yagami Kunikyo, and the win rate graph immediately started fluctuating on the screen.

As expected, with the support of the new tactics, their win rate quickly reached over 70%, even peaking at 92%. However, starting from the endgame, Yagami Kunikyo's black stones seemed to come back to life, their vitality gradually recovering, as if injected with adrenaline, and their win rate even managed to rebound to 60%!

A terrifying comeback, an unparalleled composure, and the pinnacle of human endgame skills!

However, in the final few ko fights, they managed to seize the opportunity and turn their winning percentage into an unshakeable 100%, ultimately winning by only half a point.

After the debriefing session, Ke Zhiguang lowered the handle and pondered for a while.

Although he successfully defeated Yagami Kunikyo in yesterday's battle, he did not feel relaxed; on the contrary, his nerves were even more tense.

That's how it is in Go; once a new tactic is used publicly, your peers will basically have a pretty good grasp of it by the next day.

Although Ke Zhiguang has developed far more tactics than this during this period, given Yagami Kunikyo's research efficiency, it is expected that he will catch up soon, and before long, he will be able to face Yagami Kunikyo in a fair competition on the same level.

Time was extremely tight, so tight that he felt like he was racing against death, and if he wasn't careful, he would be caught by the scythe.

Ke Zhiguang was certainly not afraid of a direct confrontation with Ye Shen Guojing, but there were always some discordant notes mixed in, which made him somewhat hesitant.

We must... we must eliminate the opponent as soon as possible, and we must also finish this game as soon as possible, otherwise, that discordant note will turn into a world-ending symphony... at least Ke Zhiguang has this feeling.

Just as I was about to start matching again, Zero's voice came from behind the kitchen cabinet: "Breakfast is ready, take a rest first."

Over the past few days, Zero's cooking skills seem to have improved somewhat, and she has been able to make some decent breakfast dishes, although she is still far from being as naturally gifted as Harushima Kashima.

It seems the cooking channel is still useful.

Putting down the handle, Ke Zhiguang went to the dining table. Today's breakfast was fried eggs and bacon, along with black bread. It was indeed a simple and plain English meal, which could be easily made even by someone with no experience.

"Aren't you going to ask me what I thought of my first encounter with Yagami Kunikyo yesterday?" Ke Zhiguang asked, holding a cup of coffee.

“Your feelings are written in your every move, do I need to ask?” Zero said, bringing two ophthalmologist’s lights.

“That makes sense.” Ke Zhiguang suddenly realized.

Zero continued, "Your latest tactics were partially exposed yesterday, so the situation in Yagami Kingdom will probably be different tomorrow... What's that saying again? You can't step into the same river twice?"

"A Saint Seiya will not be defeated twice by the same move," Ke Zhiguang said in a more concise and clear way.

“That’s right, that’s exactly what I wanted to say.” Zero raised an eyebrow wisely. “By the way, as a reward for successfully defeating him in the first round, this is for you.”

As he spoke, Zero handed over a videotape.

"It contains records of his past games?" Ke Zhiguang asked.

What he really wanted to know was whether it contained some of the dark secrets of the Night God Kingdom, such as dirty deals or harassing respectable women, and whether he could send it directly to the Ministry of Justice to threaten him into conceding the next two rounds.

"It's just a regular winning reward, consider it an item that drops... In the past, the items you dropped would refresh on the chessboard, but now I'll just pass them on to you."

Zero smiled mysteriously: "It contains some biographical notes about Ye Shen Guojing. Just read it as a diary; it will help you better understand this opponent."

Upon receiving the videotape, Ke Zhiguang felt an inexplicable heaviness.

I have a feeling that I'm about to uncover a box that holds a secret that's been sealed away for a long time.

Pushing the videotape into the projector, what appeared was not high-definition 24k, but rather the snow and grayish-white characteristic of the old days. Amidst the hissing noise, the rough title of "Once Upon a Time in Japan" appeared, resembling an early work by Akira Kurosawa.

The story begins in a poor family courtyard in a seaside town, where a clean-looking boy stares blankly at the sky after the rain... He must be Yagami Kunikyo.

Ke Zhiguang had talked with Han Yexuan before and knew that the other party had a very low starting point in life, but when these scenes were presented to him in the form of filming, Ke Zhiguang still wavered a little.

Located on the east coast of Japan, this town is a magical place where you can see steel cruise ships billowing black smoke like giants sailing on the sea, as well as small wooden boats dragging nets as they go out to sea to fish. There are advanced cars driving by on the streets, as well as the most primitive horse-drawn carriages. It is a place where the new era and the old civilization intersect.

"This is a family of five living in poverty. The father is a fisherman, the mother is a weaver, and the two older brothers help out with odd jobs in the village, while he is unable to work due to health problems..." Zero narrated as if acting as a voice-over.

The scene shifts, the plot progresses, and the relationships within this family are revealed.

Sure enough, it was a family with a strained relationship. The father and two older brothers didn't like the sickly third son. The only source of warmth for him was his mother, who would occasionally pull out books she had salvaged from the junkyard and give them to him.

One book was a science book, and the other was about Go. The path represented by these two books would influence his entire life.

"Why...why is science involved? Could he be some kind of evil scientist hiding somewhere?" Ke Zhiguang asked.

"Not at all. You just need to know that for a poor kid in a small town like this, a science fiction magazine can ignite his endless longing for the outside world... Just consider this as one of his motivations."

One day, a poster appeared in the downtown area of ​​the town. The poster contained a Go problem. Whoever could solve it would have the opportunity to go to Tokyo and become a disciple of the Hanno Dojo. There was also an age limit.

It was a rather difficult problem, requiring an amateur 3-dan level to solve. For the Go level of this small town at the time, it was undoubtedly an insurmountable challenge.

But Yagami Kunikyo did it with ease, leaving all the onlookers speechless. Before this, his only contact with Go was a few Go books that his mother would occasionally bring back.

This was the first turning point in his life. In Tokyo, he was greeted by teachers, classmates, and the big city he had always dreamed of... along with a magical effect of good fortune.

At this point in the story, it's as if a golden filter has suddenly been applied, the sun is shining brightly, the background music is light, and the whole story enters a brisk rhythm. The boy who always had a stern face and didn't like to talk gradually began to smile.

As the camera switched, Koji saw young Hanno-sensei, Saito, and Kiko Seinoka. Seeing these familiar old people appear on the screen in their youthful or even childlike forms, Koji suddenly felt a sense of exhilaration, like watching a spin-off.

The so-called thrill of a side story comes from knowing the ending in advance, knowing who will survive; in other words, it's a sense of security.

Training, chess matches, classes, and group matches against other dojos, Yagami Kunikyo's chess skills are improving day by day. His physical ailments are also gradually recovering, and his appearance is becoming more and more like his current self. Occasionally, he will return to the town where he first started to visit his family. It seems that everything is developing in a good direction.

However, Ke Zhiguang could also see clearly that the year was getting closer and closer to World War II, and all the beauty was shrouded in the huge shadow of war.

Finally, the third act of the play begins, with the subtitle "The Nuclear Explosion".

On August 6, 1945, the final game of the first Oshiro Go title match took place. Prior to this, Yagami Kunikyo and his opponent were tied 2-2.

The entire scene is a somber gray-white, extremely oppressive, and every shot hints at something big that is about to happen.

Yagami Kunikyo slowly moved his chess piece, and his opponent also placed his piece without moving. The two players in the game were completely absorbed in the game.

This was a truly spectacular battle. In the old-fashioned Japanese Go world at the time, which emphasized conservatism and a balanced position, such a deadly situation was unprecedented. It was as if two samurai had abandoned all their armor and defense and were engaged in a deadly duel under a blooming cherry blossom tree.

And as the last piece of the game was placed... a flash of nuclear explosion also streaked across the sky, the intense light burning through everything.

However, thanks to the protection of fate, he miraculously survived. He woke up on the ruins, looking around blankly. His opponents and referees had been turned into dust in the nuclear explosion, and all the surrounding buildings had been razed to the ground. He sat there alone on the ruins, like someone who did not belong to this world.

"Is this fate... Is this death... Is this war?" He kept repeating these words, as if he had fallen into a nightmare from which he could never wake up.

Zero added, "His family also perished in the nuclear explosion. They had come specifically to accompany him during the match, and his personality changed from then on. He became taciturn, as if he had returned to that small town and become a sad boy who spent his days gazing at the courtyard."

"Was his desire for immortality also generated because of his experience with this nuclear explosion?"

"Pretty much. He experienced the ultimate death up close, which is why he is so terrified of death and wants to escape from its clutches by any means necessary. Immortality has become his only way out."

The film is basically coming to an end here. The final scene shows post-war Japan after reconstruction, with the chess tournament restarting. Yagami Kunikyo sits coldly on the opposite side of the chessboard and places a black piece on it.

With the placement of this black piece, the movie officially ends.

It's as if it's hinting at the birth of a black dragon, or perhaps it's saying that the story is far from over.

After the film ended, Ke Zhiguang remained lost in thought, staring at the blank screen.

It is indeed a diary well worth reading, allowing you to more clearly and intuitively perceive the strength of your opponent and the oppressive force that transcends life and death.

Suddenly, the landline phone rang on the table.

"It's from Shireshima Kashiwa, sending a congratulatory telegram on behalf of the Go Association to congratulate you on your first victory," Zero added.

"That scared me to death! I thought it would be like The Ring, where Aunt Sadako calls right after I finish watching the videotape." Ke Zhiguang breathed a sigh of relief.

He answered the phone: "Hey, what's up?"

"Nonsense, of course I'm here to criticize you! You started the game by aiming for a 3v3 and constantly trying to collide with the star positions. Who can stand that!"

Ke Zhiguang turned his head to look at Ling Yixiang in surprise... Wasn't he supposed to be here to send congratulatory messages? Why did he start criticizing right away?

"Ahem, but congratulations anyway, you won the first round..."

Before she could finish speaking, the voices of the others immediately cut in:

"Well done! Dragon Throne, I knew you could win!"

"Mr. Hikaru, keep this momentum going! After you finish this battle, our marriage will be..."

"Pah! Who do you think you are?" Harushima Kaoru stripped Hoshino off.

"No, no, no, actually when I said 'we,' I meant the marriage between you and Long'er."

"Pah! Get lost!"

"Sister, Senior Harushima, if you're done talking, hurry up and come down so it's our turn."

A cacophony of voices came through the phone, giving you an idea of ​​the lively scene on the other end.

However, this is also the consistent style of their chess academy faction, which emphasizes the mobilization of the whole family.

"How are your preparations going?" Ke Zhiguang suddenly asked.

After a moment of silence, a confident reply came from the other end: "Of course, no problem!"

Although brief, it was indeed a refreshing answer.

"So, stop worrying about us. Your side is our weak point. What if everyone else wins but you're the one who gets the breakthrough... Do you understand?"

"understood."

"See you in victory, bye!"

With a thud, the phone was hung up.

Before hanging up, Ke Zhiguang vaguely heard shouts coming from the other end of the line, "Don't hang up, we haven't spoken yet."

After readjusting his mood and mindset, Ke Zhiguang set up the controller and started the next match.

Zero smiled with concern and kindness.

Outside, it started snowing again.

Chapter 43 When did you... start to have the illusion that you wouldn't drop any items?