Another three days passed.

When the clock struck twelve, even though it was still the middle of the night, the number of viewers in the official livestream of the National Go Tournament surged at a staggering pace!

Today marked the final round of the National Go Tournament preliminaries!

This game would determine who would earn the right to challenge the current titleholder. If Yu Shao won today, he could immediately launch a challenge for the title. If Li You won, a tiebreaker match would be necessary. Should Li You win that too, he would become the challenger!

In the first round of preliminaries, Li You had already faced Yu Shao—and lost.

In other words, this was a match of revenge!

“A few days ago, that game between 8-dan Li You and Teacher Zhuang Weisheng was insane. Li You played like a man possessed—his calculations were flawless. Totally jaw-dropping!”

“Li You is still really strong. He’s had title-level skills for years, but his luck’s just been awful. All these years and still no title... and now he’s up against a monster like Yu Shao. Who knows how this will go?”

“Right? He was once a prodigy on par with Zhu Huai’an. Zhu’s already got two major titles, and Li You still doesn’t have one. He’s gotta go all in this time.”

“Can Li You’s dream of finally winning a title come true this year? But Yu Shao’s only seventeen—that’s insane. The fact he’s made it this far is unreal.”

“If Yu Shao storms his way into the challenger match and wins the title at seventeen... that would make him a legend!”

The livestream chat flew by in a flurry of comments. Everyone was discussing the soon-to-start final round of the preliminaries—this match had the whole Go community holding its breath.

After all, the seven major title tournaments had always been the pinnacle of domestic Go in each country. Aside from a few major international events, nothing else even came close.

On this path, challengers had to defeat one renowned master after another to even step into the hall of titles!

And now, this game would determine who got to place a foot in that hall—so of course the attention it drew far surpassed the previous rounds.

Amid the buzz online, time continued ticking by.

By around 7 AM, the official livestream had surpassed ten million viewers—and the number was still climbing.

By 9 AM, the viewership had hit a jaw-dropping 40 million. Every major social media platform had “National Go Tournament” dominating the trending charts.

Would Yu Shao keep blazing his trail forward?

Could Li You realize the dream he’d chased for over a decade?

As the match neared, the once-busy livestream chat began to slow down.

Maybe it was because it was a gray, overcast day, but the whole city of Donghai felt heavy. A quiet tension loomed, like the stillness before a storm.

Inside a dingy Donghai apartment, Jiang Changdong and Chu Jingfeng sat silently in front of a blank livestream screen.

Elsewhere, in the media office of Jiangling Go Academy, reporter Ding Huan casually watched her screen, seemingly unaware that a storm was about to break.

In Seoul, Korea, a group of young professional players had gathered around a computer. A Go board was already set up beside them, the lid of the stone container open—ready to analyze the game as it unfolded.

In New York, USA, a group sat on a small sofa watching the broadcast on TV. The oldest among them was barely eighteen, the youngest looked about seven. Zeng Jun was among them.

At this moment—

All eyes around the world were focused here!

The National Go Tournament. Preliminaries. Final Round!

In the match room, two referees and the scorekeeper sat at attention.

Their emotions were complicated. They couldn’t stop glancing toward the center of the room—at the young man already seated at one side of the Go board.

Li You had arrived—earlier than them, in fact.

Since their arrival, he hadn’t said a single word. He just quietly stared at the board before him, face stern and unreadable. None of them dared break the silence.

Li You just sat there. Even though Yu Shao hadn’t arrived yet, the air already felt oppressively heavy—like it was hard to breathe.

They all understood just how much this match meant to Li You.

They couldn’t help but wonder: What was going through Li You’s mind as he prepared to face Yu Shao again?

After all, Li You had already lost to him once.

Maybe that was why—because 8-dan Li You had already suffered a defeat—this game now carried an air of tragic intensity.

Seconds ticked by.

The room remained completely silent.

Creak.

Finally, the door to the match room opened with a soft groan.

All four people inside immediately turned to the door.

But when they saw who it was, they were slightly surprised.

It wasn’t Yu Shao—it was... Teacher Zhuang Weisheng.

Usually, no outsiders were allowed into live match rooms. But players who’d competed in the tournament were exceptions—as long as they didn’t disturb the match.

Zhuang Weisheng scanned the room, then silently walked to the referee’s desk and sat down without saying a word.

Li You didn’t say anything either. He gave Zhuang a brief glance, then turned back to wait for his opponent.

“That game a while ago where 8-dan Li You beat Teacher Zhuang Weisheng... he played beautifully.”

One of the referees glanced at Zhuang, then at Li You, thinking this quietly to himself.

A short while later, the door creaked again. This time, a youthful, clean-cut teenager—about seventeen—stepped inside.

The room grew even quieter.

Everyone’s gaze focused on the newcomer. Even Zhuang Weisheng looked over.

Li You's eyes locked onto the boy and didn’t waver. He stood up, staring intently. Though the youth was young, there was nothing immature in his eyes.

“Yu Shao, 3-dan. You’re here.”

It was Xi Yilan who spoke, gazing at Yu Shao.

Yu Shao looked back, and saw a resolute fire in Li You’s eyes—no hesitation, no retreat. Just defiance, frustration, and an overwhelming fighting spirit. Maybe even killing intent. It was like flames were burning in his stare.

“I’ve been waiting a long time, Yu Shao.”

Li You’s voice was low and serious.

“Sorry I’m a bit late,” Yu Shao replied, then finally stepped toward the board and sat across from Li You.

Li You opened his mouth as if to speak, but said nothing. He sat back down and closed his eyes, breathing heavily as he tried to calm himself.

The female scorekeeper noticed—startled—that Li You’s right hand was trembling slightly.

She suddenly remembered something her Go teacher once told her:

“A true Go player is someone who chases with trembling hands, and challenges with reverence.”

To her, Li You was the kind of player one approached with reverence. And yet, here he was, trembling—because of a seventeen-year-old?

“Even though Yu Shao beat Li You recently, this is too much... 8-dan Li You’s skill is world-class!”

She could hardly believe it. “This is insane.”

The two referees beside her hadn’t noticed the trembling hand, but they too felt the atmosphere grow sharper, more dangerous, the moment Yu Shao entered.

Time ticked on.

The match was about to begin.

Li You finally steadied himself. His hand stopped trembling. His breathing calmed. He opened his eyes and looked directly at Yu Shao. His expression became serene.

The tension in the air grew more palpable.

At last—

One of the referees checked his watch, took a deep breath, forced himself to stay calm, and finally spoke:

“Time’s up!”

“Each player has three hours, with a 90-second countdown per move. Komi is seven and a half points.”

He looked at both players.

“You may begin nigiri to decide who plays black.”

Li You reached into the white bowl and scooped out a handful of stones. Yu Shao followed by placing a single black stone on the board.

Six white stones.

One black stone.

The referee nodded.

“Yu Shao, 3-dan, will play black and go first. Li You, 8-dan, will play white.”

Li You bowed slightly and said softly, “Please guide me.”

Xi Yi returned the bow and replied, “Please guide me.”

As soon as the formalities were complete, the referees and scorekeeper became visibly more solemn.

The match had begun!

Xi Yi looked down at the board, then finally reached into the bowl and played the first move.

Tap.

Sixteen columns, four rows. Star point.

The stone landed like a falling meteor, casting its light across the board.

Li You stared at the stone now occupying the upper right star point—but didn’t respond immediately.

He was thinking about their previous match.

Last time, even though he fought back with multiple ko threats, he still lost—badly.

Since then, he’d reviewed every one of Yu Shao’s games. Watched them all. Analyzed them obsessively.

But the more he studied, the more terrified he became. Yu Shao’s moves were so refined, so revolutionary—they shattered everything Li You thought he knew about Go.

His pride collapsed. Nothing was left.

He even started avoiding the idea of facing Yu Shao again.

That was why he’d called Zhu Huai’an.

Not just to call Zhu—but to remind himself:

No one can stop me from moving forward. No one.

“I... won’t run away anymore!”

Li You reached into the bowl again, his fingers brushing against the cool surface of the stones.

“Now I understand—if I back down because of this, if I keep avoiding you, my Go will never grow again!”

Finally, he picked up a stone and played it swiftly.

Tap.

Four columns, sixteen rows. Star point.

The two referees and the scorekeeper all blinked in surprise.

It was just a normal move, but somehow, it felt... different.

They couldn’t explain why.

“This... is Go.”

Zhuang Weisheng stared at the newly placed white stone in silence.

“A Go player pours their soul into every single move.”

Zhuang looked away from the board and stared at Yu Shao.

“So what kind of game are you going to play?”

“I can feel it, from this move—I can feel it clearly.”

“Li You is challenging you with everything he’s got, with a do-or-die spirit!”

“Yes, he lost to you before—but past results don’t determine the outcome of today!”

“A player who goes all in can create miracles!”

Yu Shao looked down at the board, listening for something in the click of the stones.

“All in, huh?”

A moment later, Yu Shao placed his next move.

Tap.

Three columns, four rows. Komoku.

“Let’s do this.”

He raised his head and locked eyes with Li You.

Seeing Yu Shao make his move, Li You immediately responded.

Tap.

Seventeen columns, sixteen rows. Komoku.

A star point–komoku versus star point–komoku opening—classic and flexible. Where the game would go from here was anyone’s guess.

“I have to win!”

Li You played another stone, his moves growing faster.

“This year’s title—it’s mine. No one can stop me!”

Tap.

Fifteen columns, sixteen rows. High approach.

Yu Shao wasn’t about to back down either. He answered right away.

Tap.

Fifteen columns, seventeen rows. Attachment.