The work of the Go master

Beneath the vibrant cherry blossoms, the chessboard was partially obscured by the pink curtain of branches, through which two hazy shadows could be vaguely seen swaying. Meanwhile, in the open space not far away, the event organizers were already seriously considering wedding arrangements.

Ke Zhiguang sat calmly and collectedly in front of the chessboard, carefully placing his pieces.

Cornering, large knight's move, and side extension—the ancient and elegant way of playing Go flows across the board, along with cherry blossom petals. Under the tournament system of medieval Go, both players chose the playing methods from medieval textbooks.

The twenty-seventh move! A flying clash, gleaming with fire, struck his piece with a fierce blow, like a swift blade.

Harushima Shika slowly withdrew her hand, the white lace seemingly wrapping around her arm and extending to the white chess piece.

Hmm... how should I put it?

Now it dawned on him... Was wearing a wedding dress to compete a bit of a dirty trick?

Even if he manages to remain calm and undisturbed, keeping his gaze firmly fixed on the chessboard, the moment he places a piece, his opponent's fingertips will always come into his field of vision.

That's definitely a killer weapon—a wedding dress!

In the entire history of chess, there has never been such a high level of off-board tactic, nor such a high level of chess tournament discipline. This is a bug, a bug!

But even if it's a bug, it can only be fixed after this match...

After a few breaths to catch his breath, Ke Zhiguang continued to place his pieces steadily, retreating them firmly to the third rank, giving his opponent no leverage whatsoever.

"On the thirty-ninth move, Shizuka Seishi captured the small knight's move here. This is the point where the balance of power diminishes and increases, also known as the King's Mountain. Koji Hikaru, on the other hand, chose to jump up in a single move to build up his territory... He seems quite unhurried." Hikaze Tani explained as he set up the board.

When no one was watching, Nikko quietly slipped away from the commentary booth occupied by the bridesmaids and went to a newly opened commentary booth on the other side. It seemed that he was the only one in the room who was seriously focusing on the game itself, while the others were more concerned with things outside the game.

The bridesmaids' group—

"Yes, yes, yes! Push one here, push it forward, that's the right way, Long'er can't take it!" Xingjia aggressively placed the chess pieces on the large chessboard.

"Clip one here! Listen to me, the white pieces should clip one here. Just make sure this stick is firmly clamped!"

"I suggest that you play the most common move, like an old man pushing a cart, pushing the white pieces all the way out... Although it doesn't have any advantages, and I'm sure you won't play it that way, I don't know why I just want to see that scene."

A group of female chess players danced wildly on a large chessboard, creating all sorts of strange and unusual chess patterns.

Judging from their narration alone, those who know the game would think they are playing Go, while those who don't would think it's some strange TV program.

Of course, Shizuka Harushima couldn't hear the explanations from the group outside; otherwise, she would have been the first to stand up and yell at them.

The game has now progressed to the sixty-second move. Under the rule of returning pieces, the entire game is heading towards a chaotic free-for-all.

One piece... two pieces... three pieces... a total of four pieces, tearing apart on the edge of the board, vying for space to break through, and we can already see the scene of four dragons dancing together.

Backup time for both sides —

Harushima Deer: 45 minutes.

Ke Zhiguang: One hour and thirteen minutes.

The pressure of time gradually came to Harujima Kaoru, causing her to unconsciously sway her upper body, her nerves tightening layer by layer.

As expected, Ke Zhiguang has been training at a rather relaxed pace lately, spending most of his day enjoying the quiet beauty of life. In contrast, Qingdao Lu is at the level of ten days before the college entrance exam.

Even so, she still felt as if there was a surging river separating her from the other person, and the pressure was overwhelming.

Bright sunlight streamed through the gaps in the branches, illuminating her white wedding dress like honey mixed into milk. The shadows of the branches swayed in the spring breeze, and the bride's thoughtful and composed expression remained unchanged in the interplay of light and shadow.

The game of chess progresses slowly amidst the spring breeze and the passage of time; each frame, when captured, reveals an almost eternal tranquility and beauty.

After a series of driving-style explanations, the bridesmaids finally calmed down and began to seriously consider the issue of winning or losing.

"So far, the game is in a state that both sides can accept, and it's not clear which side is better or worse... However, considering that the first player doesn't need to give komi, we should be able to consider Ryuji to have the advantage now, right?"

"Next, the senior needs to consider exerting his strength."

Move 74! The situation on the board suddenly changed!

The sound of rushing water gushed from Ke Zhiguang's chess box, surging like a water dragon towards a certain point on the chessboard—

Ke Zhiguang pinpointed a breakpoint on the three-line route!

With a snap, it was definitely the sound of something being cut off.

Looking at the move, Harushima Shika fell into deep thought, a displeased sound escaping her lips as if she had been electrocuted, and she stomped her high-heeled foot on the ground.

“It seems that Ke Zhiguang has been eyeing this place for a long time, and now is the perfect time to make his move,” said Rifeng Valley.

The sound of the turbulent water grew louder and louder, and Ke Zhiguang's ears were filled with the sound of waves crashing against the shore.

"I'm sorry, it seems I'll have to go myself." Ke Zhiguang strode towards the surging tide, his aura cutting into the water like a blade.

We said we wouldn't hold back, and we won't. We'll go all out in this game!

"Ke Zhiguang has chosen to exert his full strength! It seems he has seized the perfect opportunity to engage in battle!"

Eighty-four moves! Xiao Fei slashes down from the side, aiming at the opponent's lone piece below!

Eighty-eight moves! The two-way counterattack pushes the corner variations to their most complex level!

Ninety-six moves! Targeting White's weak connection point, a bishop leaps out into the air!

The amount of calculation on the chessboard increased exponentially, like a massive cauldron crashing down on both sides!

"Guang Guang Guang, is Guang-kun really ruthless?" Bai Meng stared blankly at the chaotic and complicated battle scene. Although she wasn't a professional fighter, she still managed to get onto the commentary stage by virtue of her status as a bridesmaid.

Xingcai yawned listlessly: "This is really... I was thinking, if it weren't for the fact that Senior Qingdao and he were so destined for each other, he might have lived a lonely life if he continued like this..."

“Maybe this is their way of expressing their love for each other?” Xingjia said with a smile, as if she had figured it out.

As afternoon approached, the sunlight shifted from platinum to gold, warmly bathing the chessboard. Birdsong occasionally drifted overhead, perching among the branches to watch the two bipedal creatures playing their game below.

Ke Zhiguang has begun to adapt to Qingdaolu's persona today and is now able to calmly and fully immerse himself in the game.

Because the surrounding environment was too beautiful and the girl in front of him was too dazzling, he almost forgot that this was a game of chess without komi. He was already several points behind his opponent from the very beginning. The pressure from those few points was no less than that of Kakarot's 100 times gravity training room.

But as he gradually adapted to the environment, gravity began to show a downward trend.

Soon, this gap in coverage will be reversed!

Everyone held their breath as they watched the game unfold, awaiting the final outcome.

Harushima Kashima took small breaths, feeling pressure, tension, and anticipation.

Honestly, this was her first time playing this kind of game, so she wasn't afraid of losing at all. Even if she lost, she could enjoy the joy of being confessed to, which would be a consolation for her loss. She didn't even have to worry about the prize money, because of Gian's first law: what's yours is mine... Conversely, if she won, this law might end up on her opponent's side.

So, whether we win or lose isn't that important anymore.

Because winning or losing doesn't matter, she can be brave.

But... but on the other side of the river, Ke Zhiguang's figure had already appeared before her eyes. What reason did she have not to speed up and sprint across at full speed?

As if the seal on her mind had been broken, Harushima Shika quickly took action—the third sentence of the secret plan: "When you find that the game suddenly becomes difficult in the middle of the game... then use that off-the-board move!"

Harushima Kashima gently bent down, reaching her arms towards her toes, and peeled off the high heels that covered her feet. Then she bent her arms upwards and slipped them into her cake-like tulle skirt, like a squirrel burrowing into its own tail.

Before Ke Zhiguang could even react to what she was doing, Qingdaolu leaped to her feet and placed something on the table next to the chessboard.

Those were her socks that she had just taken off?

That's right, it really is... white stockings, two short thigh-highs, maybe still warm to the touch.

Harujima Shika, seemingly consciously or unconsciously, pushed her socks towards Koji Hikaru, then quickly pulled her hand back and continued to stare intently at the chessboard.

Ke Zhiguang's body trembled, he almost dropped the chess piece, and his mind went blank for a moment.

What... what kind of approach is this?

Is this even considered a dirty trick?

But upon closer reflection... it does seem to be true, after all, someone did the same thing in my past life.

That person was the Korean Go Emperor, a veteran figure. Once, when he was playing against someone and saw that the situation was unfavorable, he took off his shoes and put his socks on the side of the Go board. This immediately stunned his opponent. The Korean Go Emperor successfully seized the opportunity of his opponent's unstable mentality and turned the tide of the game.

So... is Harushima Deer following the same pattern as this Korean Go emperor?

Ke Zhiguang's vision was as if drawn by a magnet, his gaze fixed on the white stockings that Qingdao Lu had just taken off and pushed towards him, still warm from being pulled away, for a few seconds.

The cherry blossom petals seemed to be attracted to it, and lightly adhered to it...maybe it was the effect of static electricity.

In short... Referee! Someone committed a foul here! Referee!

Unfortunately, the cherry blossom-colored curtains blocked the view, and the referees and commentators were outside the drooping branches.

"Speaking of which... just now, did Long'er put something on the table?" Xingjia glanced towards the chessboard, but it was difficult to see clearly due to the obstruction of the branches.

"I don't know, but I have a feeling that Senior Harushima might have just done something shocking..." Hoshizawa thought to herself.

Xingcai lowered her gaze slightly, looking at the feet exposed beneath Qingdaolu's long, flowing skirt.

At this moment, her feet had come out of her high heels, and she was walking barefoot on the green grass infused with cherry blossoms, looking quite natural and idyllic.

The problem is... it's too all-natural! Where did her stockings go? Did nature filter them out too?

Could it be...

The more Xingcai thought about it, the uglier her face became.

On the opposite side of the chessboard, Harujima Deer slammed down a piece, using overwhelming momentum to mask the... roar within.

Wait a minute! What stupid thing did I just do?!

Actually, everyone knows a little bit about off-the-books tactics, and there's no shame in using them.

But... but suddenly slapping a pair of socks on top of it is just too ridiculous! And so embarrassing!

But now we can't care about shame anymore. Or rather, since we've gone this far, we have to win this game no matter what!

"Wake up!"

As if dancing, Shireshima Deer swung her chess piece, carving out a straight path to the other side. She began her sprint along this path, lifting her skirt and running forward.

This movement looks strangely like a duck's...

The game is nearing its end!

The difference in the number of points between the two sides is extremely close!

Without a doubt, this was a thrilling match, full of brilliant opportunities to seize control and launch counterattacks. Even with a handicap, Ke Zhiguang calmly and methodically steered the game in his favor, and no one knew how he managed to score so many points.

"Not enough, we're still two points short." Nikko shook his head, having already roughly counted the number of points.

Two points away from Harushima Kashima, these two points are a real hurdle, especially given how difficult it is to gain points in such a situation.

“Wait, have you forgotten the rule about returning the pieces? As long as the pieces are connected…” Xingcai reminded her.

"That will allow us to turn those two eyes back!" Nikko realized with a start.