The work of the Go master

The final match ended at 6:30 p.m.

As Ke Zhiguang stepped out of the stadium, the sky was a bright, almost blindingly vivid sunset, a dark red that looked like something out of another world.

His fellow members immediately surrounded him excitedly, as if they wanted to lift him up high.

"Three wins in three battles! Well done!"

Chapter Sixty: This is not what I expected!

"Actually, we only won by 4 points in the last game," Ke Zhiguang sighed.

"That's enough. As long as we don't lose this round, we've won... As for the main match the day after tomorrow, I'm sure you're already prepared to give the club president no room to perform, right?" the vice president said.

"That's it."

"Then I'll have to ask you for help again." The vice president nodded, bending down at a 45-degree angle.

I'm so afraid this group will start acting out the "paying homage to the elder brother" routine again, with everyone bowing together...

Our school's points have now jumped to 64. Since we defeated three top-ranked schools today, our ranking has taken a big leap forward and we are now in the upper-middle range.

The team currently in first place is still the one led by Inoue Hoshino, with 145 points. If they continue to catch up at today's pace, they should be able to turn the tide in the main match the day after tomorrow, where they are down to 6 points.

But to be honest, Ke Zhiguang felt he didn't play well in this last game. Although he gained a lead of more than 15 points in the middle game, he made several slow moves in the endgame and won by a small margin.

A slow move is an overly cautious and inefficient move. While a few slow moves in a winning situation can help secure the victory and keep the players on the edge of their seats, they are not so good when it comes to scoring points.

The Swamp Lord's psychological tactics might actually have worked.

Of course, Ke Zhiguang cannot directly perceive these subconscious changes; he can only judge them through the moves he makes.

The Lord of the Swamp is indeed a boss-level character.

Ke Zhiguang cautiously looked around to make sure he wasn't under any debuffs or anything like that.

"Shuicheng, did a girl wearing a hat, sunglasses and a mask come by just now?" Ke Zhiguang asked, looking around but not finding Qingdaolu.

"As for her, she saw you come out of the stadium and hurriedly left. She probably didn't want you to find out that she came specifically to watch your game," Mizuki Yuzuki said with a smile.

"This...sounds exhausting."

"So who exactly is she?"

"The beautiful girl who works at the Go room next to my house."

"I see."

Although Koji Mitsuaki has confirmed that Harushima Kazuya is an active professional Go player, upon further reflection, he realized that she was dressed so conservatively that she probably didn't want to be recognized, rather than because she had a cold, so it was best not to reveal her name.

As for why she would work in a small Go room, Ke Zhiguang didn't know. Perhaps she had the leisure to do so, or perhaps she wanted to experience the life of an ordinary person.

Today's activities ended quickly. For dinner, the whole company ate at a Japanese-style fast food restaurant, similar to Yoshinoya in China, but with authentic local flavors. The miso soup had a very strong aroma, with all sorts of seaweed and vegetables stuffed into the bowl.

This is called a small victory celebration banquet. If the main general wins a great victory, there will be a big victory celebration banquet. They will directly apply to the school for club funds and use public funds for eating and drinking.

Halfway through dinner, Ke Zhiguang began to think about the evening's itinerary.

Tonight's target is Black Market, which is that underground shopping street.

The treasure map indicates the location, and I just had a rather elegant pre-match verbal exchange with the Lord of the Swamp across a wall. Tonight, the die is cast, and I will definitely go and pay him a visit.

Although it claims to be legal there, the place is rife with shady dealings and involves gray-market industries, so it's likely quite dangerous. My pepper spray might not be enough to keep up.

We need to hire a bodyguard.

I definitely can't bring Mizuki Yuzuki.

Although the vice president's character card clearly states that she knows karate, she's just a girl, so she definitely can't bring her along.

"Senior Ping Shi, there's something I need to discuss with you." Ke Zhiguang whispered to Ping Shisheng. Although this person was a hidden cat lover, his physique was still impressive.

"Speak freely, Senior Brother, please feel free to ask what's on your mind," Ping Shisheng said, patting his chest and addressing him as "Brother" with great respect.

"I'm going to a place that doesn't open until midnight. I hope you can come with me. I might not be able to go home by then."

Ping Shisheng was stunned.

They only open at 12 o'clock?

Still not coming home at night?

After some serious thought, Ping Shisheng said blankly, "Is it really okay for us to go to a place like that?"

"The main battle is the day after tomorrow, and tomorrow is a rest day. Tonight is the only chance, so it's best to go tonight. Of course, it is indeed a bit dangerous, but I will make sure to make sure we retreat by then," Ke Zhiguang said cautiously.

"Retreat depending on the situation..." There was indeed such a line on his tactics panel. People should never easily give up the option of retreating, no matter how arrogant the pre-match taunts were. If you have to run, you have to run.

Besides, even if you really run away, there's no need to feel ashamed. Just think of it as standing up the Swamp Lord and making him wait there foolishly all night. That... seems pretty cool!

"Have you... been to places like that before?"

No, this is my first time.

Ping Shisheng thought about it and realized it made sense. Such a major life event should either be done the night before the competition or the night after the competition.

Doing it after a match is a celebration; doing it before a match is like giving yourself a buff and wishing yourself good luck in the competition.

Moreover, tomorrow is a day off, which will allow me to recover my strength.

Ok.

No problem.

“Then let’s go. As long as we take proper precautions, there’s no danger. As for retreating… forget it. The word ‘retreat’ doesn’t exist in a man’s dictionary!” Ping Shisheng said frankly. Actually, the store in Tokyo is quite safe, and there’s no need to worry about the risk of strange diseases.

Speaking of which, he himself is 18 years old this year, and it's time for him to experience the adult world.

Ke Zhiguang was willing to bring him along, most likely because he considered him a close friend.

Ke Zhiguang is a true friend!

"Okay, thank you very much."

Ke Zhiguang was also very pleased that, even though he had said there was danger, Ping Shisheng was still willing to go with him.

Ping Shisheng is a true friend!

......

......

We arrived at our destination at 9:30 p.m.

"What kind of place is this?! It's completely different from what I imagined!" Ping Shisheng cried out in his heart with a mournful face.

"This is it, that underground street..." Ke Zhiguang looked around, his expression becoming slightly serious.

The surrounding area is a fairly normal underground commercial district, with many pedestrians coming and going, making it quite lively.

In Tokyo, there are actually many of these underground streets. I don't remember when I went to Japan for tourism in my previous life, but the tour guide told me that one-third of Tokyo is underground, which sounded like the Third Tokyo War City.

What makes this commercial street special is its overall Taisho-era style, a blend of Western and Japanese styles. There are shops selling suits from that era, as well as kimonos from that era. In short, it's a very steampunk era, comparable to the Victorian era.

What you see before you is neither time travel nor a singularity; it's simply a tourist attraction with a historical atmosphere, much like some ancient city scenic areas in China.

A restless atmosphere permeated this underground street, making the air feel somewhat stiff.

This street is definitely not as simple as it looks.

"If you had told me it was this street earlier, I wouldn't have come," Ping Shisheng said listlessly, picking his nose. The man's enthusiasm that had been burning earlier had long been extinguished.

"Is this street famous?" Ke Zhiguang was taken aback.

"It's not that famous, it's more like a small tourist attraction, the kind that fools foreign tourists. It's called Dazheng Street. My dad used to take me here when I was a kid," Ping Shisheng said.

Ke Zhiguang reflected for a while and wondered if something had gone wrong.

He had always thought that the whole street was called Black Market, but now it seems... Black Market is just one shop on this street.

Misleading! This is a misleading claim made by a cheat code!

"Anyway, I don't remember much about this place anymore. If I remember correctly, that Ksitigarbha statue seems to have some historical value." Ping Shisheng pointed elsewhere.

Looking in the direction he pointed, there really was a small Ksitigarbha statue between the two shops, with a marble base and an additional railing. It was indeed something of historical value.

[Spiritual Object: The Cursed Ksitigarbha]

A once-wealthy businessman, bankrupted by gambling on chess, crashed and died on this very spot.

[Except for the Swamp Lord, all players' competitive performance has declined.]

this.....

This Ksitigarbha is way too dark!

Chapter Sixty-One Dazheng Street

Ke Zhiguang raised his chin and pondered for a moment as he looked at the Ksitigarbha statue before him.

My first reaction was to rush up and smash it, in the physical sense.

But upon closer reflection, I realized this thing seemed to be a protected cultural relic. If I really smashed it, I'd end up in jail.

Why a historical artifact can be a spiritual object, and why it only works on people other than the Lord of the Swamp, is something that Ke Zhiguang can only ponder on his own when he has time later.

In short, this should definitely be their stronghold.

Ke Zhiguang scanned his surroundings, his attention sweeping over anything that might be a spiritual object.

At first glance, it turns out there are quite a lot here.

First, there's an old chandelier hanging down from above, layered like a cake, casting a dim purple light down. It certainly has a certain artistic feel to it, but if you don't, it's just like the UV light used to swat flies in a hospital.

[Spiritual object: dim light]

A lamp that has absorbed too much darkness.

Those who are exposed to its light will experience negative emotions for two hours, while the Lord of the Swamp will experience the opposite.

There was also a vintage shop selling masks, with a red demon mask hanging at the entrance.

[Spiritual Object: The Wrathful Gaze]

[Look through the eyes of demons and into the heart of a person]