n

n

nTranslator: Legge Editor: Legge

nOne move.

nThree moves.

nFive moves.

nClick, click, click. It was the sound of the mouse being tapped.

nIn the villa, Zhang Ye was leisurely playing his match on the computer.

n…

nIn the Online Go Server.

nThe viewers suddenly exclaimed.

n“The formation has changed!”

n“Peter has made its move!”

n“What a great move that is!”

n“This move is amazing!”

n“It’s over, HEOR has been forced into passive play!”

n“He was too lackadaisical during the opening. Since he didn’t attack first, PETER will definitely take the chance to do so!”

n“Let’s see how he’s going to deal with this.”

n…

nOn TV.

nXiang Rong zeroed in. “There it is.”

nThe host said nervously, “How will HEOR respond to this?”

nXiang Rong said, “This move by Peter is marvelous. With it, the situation on the board has become much more complex. It played a push through over here to leave HEOR in a very awkward position. If he is a highly ranked professional Go player, he will likely go for a basic 2-5 approach strategy so that he can take Peter head on. By being a little more careful, he would at least not be pushed back by too much. Let’s see how HEOR will handle—”

nVery quickly, HEOR placed a stone onto the board as well.

nThere was almost no unnecessary hesitation from him.

nBut Xiang Rong frowned at this move.

nWhat kind of move is this?

nThe host asked, “Has HEOR countered that move?”

n“No.”

nWith the next stone, Peter forced another move.

n…

nAt China Qiyuan.

nHu Liang marveled, “What a strong killing intent.”

nLi Yi said, “Great move. This is the part PeterGo is really good at.”

nWu Changhe got angrier the more he watched. “What is this HEOR doing!”

nHu Liang also said, “Why didn’t he counter that move?”

nWu Changhe couldn’t wish more for himself to play in HEOR’s stead. “How would I know!”

nAt this moment, HEOR played another stone.

nWhen everyone saw it, they couldn’t be more disappointed!

nA professional 7-dan player said, “What an amateurish way of playing. Doesn’t he know that danger is right at his doorstep? He should’ve played the Little Qi Flow over here and taken Peter head on!”

n…

nSanya.

nChen Qiqi said anxiously, “If it goes on like this, he will definitely lose.”

nChen Niannian said, “He’s totally not a match for Peter!”

nChen Ying said, “The difference in strength is too great. HEOR’s playstyle is just at the level of the average amateur. There’s no creativity and no strategy to his moves. Instead, Peter is playing so well with so many magnificent moves made. Little Tian, what’s your opinion of this game?”

nBut Tian Weiwei frowned and kept quiet.

nChen Ying said, “What’s the matter?”

nTian Weiwei wondered, “HEOR’s first-move advantage seems to still be intact.”

n“Eh?” When everyone heard that, they took a look and froze.

nChen Qiqi said, “It’s true!”

nChen Niannian was stunned. “What’s going on?”

nTian Weiwei said, “Something isn’t right.”

n…

nKorea.

nA few professional Go players were huddled together and watching the game.

n“Why?”

n“I don’t understand what’s going on.”

n“Is this a newcomer or an expert?”

n…

nAt Central TV.

nThe host asked, “This?”

nXiang Rong said, “I don’t understand either.”

n“Ah?”

nXiang Rong wondered, “If we look at it from the angle of a high-ranking game, HEOR’s responses do seem a little mediocre. He didn’t make any counterattacks and simply ignored Peter’s provocations. Instead, he modestly continued playing his moves down here. The following few moves in response to his opponent also seemed to have been made very hastily.”

n“So those were bad moves?”

nBut Xiang Rong said, “No, it’s not like that.”

nThe host was taken aback. “It’s not?”

nXiang Rong looked at the screen. “This is where it gets weird. These few moves are all very ordinary with nothing special about them. There’s nothing new, yet look—HEOR did not lose his advantage.”

n…

nTen minutes later.

nThe game was getting intense.

nBlood had already been “spilled” on the board.

nPeterGo was pressing hard with every step, and every move that it made was out to kill. Every few steps, it would play an outstanding move that made the viewers marvel. But on HEOR’s side, there was not even a single magnificent play by him since the very beginning of the game. The difference was too great, and it seemed like his board would collapse at any moment.

nOn Weibo.

n“It’s over.”

n“He’s definitely going to lose.”

n“Hai, I don’t want to watch anymore.”

n“I knew it. Other than that person, there’s no one else who can beat PeterGo.”

n“Peter is playing too beautifully.”

n“Yeah, look at this cut, it’s such a divine move!”

n…

n20 minutes later.

nJapan.

nIn the Go world.

n“HEOR won’t be able to last much longer.”

n“I’m afraid he’s going to have to admit defeat once it gets to the middlegame.”

n“His play is too simple.”

n“He’s probably not a newcomer, but he’s not an expert either.”

n“Yeah, he’s just an average player, that’s all.”

n“Hai.”

n…

nHalf an hour later.

nAmerica.

nThe team behind PeterGo.

n“We’re about to win, right?”

n“Why haven’t we won yet?”

n“This HEOR is pretty stubborn.”

n“How did the board develop to such a state?”

n…

nAnd then, at some point in time, a lot of people fell silent!

nOn the Online Go Server.

n“Holy **!”

n“What’s with this?”

n“This—”

n“How can the game still be playable?”

n…

nAt China Qiyuan.

nWu Changhe was dumbfounded. “W-Who is this person?”

nLi Yi was also shocked. “How can this be?”

nHu Liang stared with wide eyes like he had seen a ghost. “How did HEOR manage to keep his first-move advantage for so long? This is impossible! How can it be?”

n…

nSanya.

nChen Niannian yelled, “My God!”

nChen Qiqi also said in disbelief, “What’s with this?”

nThe 9-dan players like Tian Weiwei, Chen Ying, and several others also looked at one another in shock.

nChen Ying gasped. “We were wrong in our judgment!”

n“He’s already made it past the middlegame.”

n“How?”

n“What did he do?”

n…

nThere was no change in the situation at all.

nFrom the opening, to the middlegame, and even beyond that.

nPeterGo kept coming up with all sorts of magnificent moves, while HEOR continued his ordinary style of play.

nThere were no magnificent moves!

nThere were no complex josekis!

nThere were no specific styles of play!

nBut a lot of people shockingly discovered at this moment that HEOR had not ceded his first-move advantage since the beginning. There was no point that he was shaken or surpassed by Peter. To say how much HEOR was winning by? That wasn’t exactly it. He only had an advantage of about a point or half a point, yet no matter what, he still kept his lead!

nAt this point, even a fool would realize that something was not right!

n…

nOn TV.

nXiang Rong, who had been quiet for some time, finally opened his mouth.

nWhen he spoke, his words couldn’t be more shocking!

nXiang Rong drew in a deep breath. “This is a master-level player. Furthermore, he is so skilled at Go that it would be unimaginable for everyone.”

nThe host said in surprise, “What? A master? But there’s nothing special about his playstyle at all, isn’t that so?”

nBut Xiang Rong questioned back, “What do you think is worthy of being called a good game?”

nThe host said, “I only remember that during the war between humans and machines those years ago, I got such a shock when the Zombie Flow was played out of nowhere. It was only then that I knew that Go could even be played in such a way.”

nXiang Rong asked again, “And why was there a need to use the Zombie Flow at that time?”

nThe host was stunned by that question. “There isn’t really a reason for it, no? Maybe because it’s strong?”

nBut Xiang Rong shook his head and said with a laugh, “If it was really such a strong move, the stones wouldn’t have ended up getting surrounded by the opponent and dying. Then, there wouldn’t have been a need to use the Zombie Flow to bring the stones back to life either, right? What is the Zombie Flow, really? It’s just a strategy to bring dead stones back to life due to a player lacking the necessary skills in the first place and falling behind in a game.”

nThe host froze.

nXiang Rong said, “Similarly, that holds true for the Cosmic Flow. If one isn’t inferior to their opponent in territorial fights, then why not take the opponent head on, and at the same time, expand their influence in the surrounding area where the formation lies? Wouldn’t planting more seeds around the board allow the flowers a better chance at blooming? Why would someone throw away an attacking opportunity and focus on the overall situation instead? It is only because they are not able to take on the opponent directly that a lot of people turned to playing the Cosmic Flow. This playstyle makes up for one’s weakness in territorial fights by working on their influence on the overall formation. As such, that is how the different strategies and playstyles were created. They are all methods that a player has researched to increase their chances of winning based on their own weaknesses and the opponent’s strength in a game. In a way, these are all pretty crafty tactics.”

nThe host asked, “Then what style does HEOR employ?”

nXiang Rong said, “He doesn’t have any.”

n“None?”

nXiang Rong said, “It’s because he doesn’t need any strategy or playstyle to cover any weaknesses. He doesn’t need to resort to those bells and whistles or springing a surprise on the opponent.” He pointed at the screen that was showing HEOR and PeterGo’s match. “Don’t you see? This is an absolute strength, a power so strong that it needs no hiding. Ever since the game started, HEOR has been suppressing Peter with every move he made. Regardless of whether it is the overall situation, the attacking or defending, or plugging any holes, HEOR did not play any special moves. But at the same time, you don’t see any mistakes from HEOR either. Every move of his was played right where it should be. This is a truly terrifying technique and strength that he has. Of all the professional Go players in the world, no one is capable of something like this!”

nThe host exclaimed, “Not even you?”

nXiang Rong shook his head.

nThe host was extremely shocked to hear that.

nHEOR is an expert?

nAn unprecedented Go master?

nWho the heck could he be?

nWhere did this fellow pop out from?

nThen Xiang Rong made two comments, two comments that would leave anyone who heard it in shock!

nXiang Rong thought for a moment before making the first comment in a soft voice. “Peter is about to lose.”

nThe host was dumbfounded.

nPeter was going to lose?

nHow do you know that?

nWhy are you so sure of it?

nFor the second comment, Xiang Rong laughed and said, “I think I might just know who he is.”

n