"My name is Mita Yuki, and Sato Kisung is my senior brother."

At this moment, the girl beside Sato Ken looked intently at Yu Shao, extended her hand, and said, "Please advise me."

Since the young man who played against her at the Go hall two days ago was Sato Ken, this girl's identity was self-evident.

Upon hearing this, Yu Shao also extended his hand, shook hands with Mita Yuki, and greeted, "Hello."

After exchanging greetings with Yu Shao, Sato Ken and Mita Yuki finally turned and walked toward the hotel.

The Japanese Go players took a few more glances at Yu Shao before finally resuming their steps and heading toward the hotel entrance.

After the entire Japanese team had entered the hotel, Zheng Qin couldn't help but ask, "Yu Shao, you played against Sato Ken Kisung two days ago?"

Everyone, including Su Yiming, turned to look at Yu Shao upon hearing this. Although they had guessed from the conversation between Yu Shao and Sato Ken that the two had played a game and Yu Shao had ultimately won, it was still just speculation.

"Yes, we played."

Yu Shao didn't deny it and answered directly.

Zheng Qin asked again, "You won?"

"Mm."

Yu Shao nodded frankly and said, "We played at the Go hall, but I didn't know at the time that he was Japan's current Kisung, Sato Ken."

Upon receiving Yu Shao's confirmation, everyone's expressions changed subtly, and the atmosphere suddenly turned peculiar.

Although Yu Shao's Go strength had been proven in numerous domestic tournaments, he had never truly played against top international players.

Despite being a rising star, Sato Ken had held the Kisung title for two years and was by no means ordinary—he was absolutely an opponent that required everyone's serious attention!

Although they were all players from the Chinese team, in the World Championship, everyone fought for themselves, making them essentially enemies against each other.

"Alright, let's go in too. We need to meet up with players from other regions. They might have arrived already, so let's not keep them waiting."

Just then, Zhuang Weisheng suddenly spoke up, breaking everyone's scattered thoughts.

Their group consisted only of players from the southern region. Participants from each region traveled separately and gathered at the competition venue.

Everyone, lost in their own thoughts, finally began moving toward the hotel lobby.

......

Meanwhile, a similar conversation was happening on the Japanese team's side.

"Sato, you've played against Yu Shao?"

A man around thirty-five years old with messy bird's nest-like hair and glasses glanced at Sato Ken, his eyes flickering before he finally asked.

The man looked rather unkempt, but anyone even slightly familiar with the Go world would instantly recognize his name!

Kyo Nakaserī, currently holding both the Tengen and Meijin titles simultaneously, though most people called him Kyo Tengen. Since winning the Tengen title four years ago, he hadn't lost a single game in the Tengen matches, earning the title of the Undefeated Tengen!

In the last World Championship, Kyo Nakaserī had subdued several strong opponents and shown remarkable skill, though he ultimately lost to Honinbo Shinwa in the domestic finals, leaving many Japanese Go fans deeply disappointed.

Unlike China, Japan also had regional divisions—Tokyo region and Kanto region—but due to Japan's relatively small land area, even though their group consisted only of Tokyo region players, each one was considered a heavyweight player.

"Mm."

Sato Ken replied calmly, "That day, Yuki dragged me along, saying she wanted to visit the Go institute, so I went with her. That's when we encountered Yu Shao."

Hearing this, Isida Norio, who had remained silent until now, spoke up in a deep, powerful voice, "Did he recognize you and invite you to play a game?"

"No, not at all."

Sato Ken shook his head and explained, "We were both wearing masks. He probably didn't recognize me. Initially, it was a player accompanying him who invited Yuki to play, and Yuki accepted."

"Yuki played two games with that girl and won both times. Then another young man from Yu Shao's group stepped up. Although his skills were stronger, Yuki still won."

"Finally, Yuki probably thought their playing strength was nothing special and asked for the last person to come forward. Yuki played one game with him, lost, so then I stepped up."

Hearing this, Isida Norio slightly frowned. Although Sato Ken didn't specify who "him" referred to, given the context, it was undoubtedly Yu Shao.

Isida Norio asked, "You stepped in because you saw Yuki lose? But knowing you, even if Yuki lost, you normally wouldn't intervene, would you?"

Upon hearing this, Mita Yuki fell silent, and the young man did the same.

The implication in Isida Norio's words was very clear. Although Mita Yuki had indeed advanced to the main event of the title matches and earned her spot in the World Championship, she was different from Higashiyama Kaoru.

Mita Yuki might be able to defeat many 9-dan players, but she still had a significant gap compared to truly top-tier players.

While Higashiyama Kaoru might struggle against top-tier players, he absolutely had the potential to win. Thus, even top-tier players had to give their all against Higashiyama Kaoru without any carelessness, though victory wasn't guaranteed.

Therefore, he didn't believe Yu Shao would play particularly seriously against Mita Yuki—seriously enough for his characteristics to be clearly recognizable, allowing Sato Ken to identify him as the one playing against Mita Yuki.

In most cases, when playing outside of formal competitions against opponents significantly weaker than themselves, stronger players typically wouldn't play too meticulously or mercilessly.

Only upon learning the opponent's identity would Sato Ken, based on his understanding of him, take the initiative to challenge.

"Normally, that would be true. After that game ended, I didn't recognize him as Yu Shao."

Sato Ken understood the implication in Ishida Norio's words. After a moment of silence, he finally said, "Although Yuki lost, in most situations, I wouldn't feel the need to step in either. After all, while Yuki isn't weak, there are quite a few players who can beat her."

"Then why did you decide to intervene?"

At this point, Higashiyama Kaoru couldn't help but ask, "Even without him taking it seriously, did Yuki still lose very badly?"

"No."

Sato Ken fell silent for a moment before denying Higashiyama Kaoru's guess. "Actually, it wasn't that bad. Although Yuki lost, that game was far from a crushing defeat. There were moments when both sides exchanged blows evenly."

"Then why?"

At this point, even Honinbo Shinwa grew curious and asked.

"...Because."

Sato Ken remained silent for a moment before finally saying, "That game felt like a teaching game."

Upon hearing this, everyone who had been walking instantly stopped in their tracks. Even Honinbo Shinwa's face couldn't help but show a flash of profound astonishment.

It was as if everyone had been frozen in place, complete silence falling over the group.

Only Mita Yuki's expression remained unchanged, her head lowered, not saying a word.

"Teaching..."

Higashiyama Kaoru seemed utterly shocked, his eyes wide with astonishment, "A teaching game?"

One had to understand that although Mita Yuki's skills were far from top-tier, she was still a player who had advanced to the main event of title matches and earned her spot in the World Championship!

At this level, while facing top-tier players was difficult, it wasn't completely hopeless. To hear it described as a teaching game felt unprecedentedly absurd!

"Perhaps that phrasing isn't entirely accurate."

Sato Ken took a deep breath before continuing, his tone very firm, "That game might not have been intended to guide her to the correct moves, but from start to finish, it was assessing Yuki's playing strength!"

After Sato Ken's explanation, the group fell even quieter.

What had seemed completely impossible moments ago now appeared somewhat reasonable after this explanation—

Reasonable my ass!

While Mita Yuki was indeed far from top-tier players, and beating her wouldn't be difficult for most people present, accurately assessing her playing strength while winning was entirely different!

To assess an opponent's strength, one needed to observe while holding back, or watch how things unfold.

This observation isn't difficult when facing opponents much weaker than yourself because weaker players often reveal weaknesses naturally during play. Even if they don't, you can find ways to observe.

The most effective method is creating opportunities for the opponent to make choices—giving them multiple paths, like left or right options when other routes are blocked, with left being better, and seeing which path they choose.

As opponents grow stronger, these opportunities become harder to create because stronger opponents give you fewer choices. To avoid losing, the stronger player is often forced to make decisive moves.

This is why beginner players often don't get completely crushed against professionals, while 6-7 dan professional players might suffer total defeat against stronger opponents!

This isn't because 6-7 dan professionals are weaker than beginners—quite the opposite, it's because they're stronger, leaving the opponent no room to hold back or use the safest winning methods, forcing them to deliver finishing blows!

And Mita Yuki is a typical aggressive attacking player. To accurately assess her strength, one must continuously make probing moves while ensuring they have retreat options—meaning they absolutely cannot deliver finishing blows!

No matter what, Mita Yuki is a player who advanced to the main event of title matches, famous for her attacks. How could anyone remain perfectly composed under Mita Yuki's offensive while simultaneously probing her strength?

After a moment, Kimura Go finally spoke up, breaking the silence, "So, you played a game against him, and ultimately you lost?"

"Mm."

Sato Ken nodded.

"So, after facing him, what's your assessment of Yu Shao?" Kimura Go looked steadily at Sato Ken and asked.

"I think..."

Sato Ken took a deep breath and said, "Perhaps what he said is correct."

"Correct?"

Kimura Go slightly frowned, somewhat puzzled.

"We should all take a good look at how he and Su Yiming play their games!"

Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but be stunned.

Sato Ken's expression grew more solemn as he continued, "Before facing him, my understanding of him came entirely from game records. I didn't really take his words seriously."

"I'm not making excuses for losing to him. I'm just sharing my genuine feelings."

"Only after truly facing him across the board did I gain a different perspective when reviewing his game records with Su Yiming."

"If given the chance, I hope to face him again on the World Championship stage!"

Hearing this, everyone fell into silence.

They found it hard to believe these words came from Sato Ken's mouth.

Only Kudou Yano's expression remained relatively calm. He looked up at Yu Shao's group entering the hotel not far away, then turned around first and said, "Alright, let's go."

Hearing this, everyone finally snapped out of their thoughts and followed behind Kudou Yano, each lost in their own concerns.

After a moment, Higashiyama Kaoru looked at Kudou Yano walking ahead, hesitated slightly, then quietly asked his teacher beside him, "Sensei, speaking of which, why did Kudou Yano sensei suddenly come out of retirement to compete?"

Regarding Kudou Yano's transition to behind-the-scenes Go teaching, remaining quiet for ten years before suddenly returning to competition, it wasn't just players from other countries who were confused—even Japanese players were largely in the dark.

"I don't know either."

Kimura Go shook his head and said, "It's probably just as he said—restless and wanting to play again, right?"

"But hasn't Kudou Yano sensei been out of competition for ten years? Can he adapt?" Higashiyama Kaoru seemed somewhat puzzled.

"It's true he hasn't competed for ten years, but hasn't he been teaching Go all along? It's not like he hasn't played at all for ten years—on the contrary, he plays every day. Plus, I heard from Kato 9-dan that Kudou Yano sensei is still very strong."

Kimura Go pondered for a moment before saying, "Anyway, if you face Kudou Yano sensei in competition, absolutely don't underestimate him just because he hasn't competed for ten years."

"I understand."

Higashiyama Kaoru nodded, clenched his fist, and said, "No matter who I face, I'll give it my all."

"Even if you face me, it's the same."

Kimura Go noticed the restlessness in Higashiyama Kaoru's heart and said, "You're already very strong, but you might indeed encounter opponents stronger than yourself."

"But remember, no matter when, no matter who you face, at least before the game ends, you must maintain the belief that you can win! Whether your opponent is Yu Shao, me, or even An Hongshi, it's the same."

Higashiyama Kaoru nodded vigorously, his eyes growing more determined, his fist clenching tighter.

Although he was already a battle-hardened player, standing on the world championship stage—the highest platform representing all players' honor—even he couldn't help but feel somewhat shaken and nervous!

At this moment, heroes competed in the open field!