Chapter 499 Taking a Different Approach
At this moment, a white piece slowly falls onto the chessboard.
clatter!
Seven columns and sixteen rows, Xiao Fei!
Seeing this move, Yu Shao knew that his worries had come true. An Hongshi neither extended nor attached, but ignored the shoulder-hitting stones and chose to control the black stones in the corner, using stillness to control movement!
Seeing this, the North and South Korean Go players in the debriefing room were delighted.
However, because he felt that Su Yiming didn't know how to respond to the previous move, and Su Yiming then played a shoulder strike, which was a bit of a slap in the face, he didn't say anything this time and patiently continued to watch.
Then, just a second later, they knew they had done the right thing.
Black, seven columns and fourteen rows, move!
"Dafei... no, Zhen?"
Upon seeing this move, a Japanese Go player's expression changed, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Su Yiming still hasn't moved the black stones that are trapped in the snare, but instead has directly placed them on the top!"
"This is no gentle move; he's starting to fight desperately!"
The others also became serious, staring intently at the television screen: "If Black can play a move that makes a komi next, it will be extremely serious for White!"
The next second, the white piece was placed.
clatter!
Six columns and sixteen rows, press down!
"Teacher An Hongshi's fighting spirit has also been ignited. He directly crushes the black stones and refuses to let them get ahead!"
Everyone's expressions turned serious, and they could feel the chilling atmosphere of fear and unease. Although they had expected this, it had come a little too quickly!
clatter!
Another black stone has been placed!
Nine columns and sixteen rows, wow!
Everyone couldn't help but take a deep breath!
This move is a probe to see what White's response will be. If White pushes, Black can simply block. If White pushes again to prevent Black from playing a pincer movement, then Black has a brilliant move to clamp down on the second line.
White moves down, Black blocks the initiative, White has no choice but to respond with a move, Black then jumps, thus turning the entire Black group from a feint to a solid position, sealing off all the White groups in the lower left corner, and the Black groups on the outside have great potential!
soon.
clatter!
Eight columns and sixteen rows, single top!
The sound of the piece being placed on the board seemed to travel through the television screen and reach everyone's ears. The sound was crisp and clear, seemingly carrying a hint of killing intent, making it exceptionally shocking!
Instead of immediately placing the white stones on the tenth column, the white stones placed them on the eighth column. If the black stones were to extend now, it would be a conventional move. If the white stones then place the white stones on the tenth column and the black stones extend further, the situation would be very different from before.
The white stones at the bottom have a very full shape, and the black stones at the top still need two more moves to cut off the black stones. The black stones on the outside become heavy, but the overall shape becomes thinner. This diagram is a losing situation!
Everyone has already realized—
"A fierce battle has begun!"
On the chessboard, black and white pieces are intertwined, and both are placed with lightning speed!
As time passed, in the debriefing room, everyone watched the live broadcast while setting up the chess pieces, and occasional bursts of discussion could be heard.
...
...
Inside the competition venue.
A chessboard was surrounded by a crowd, all eyes fixed on the game on it. The crowd was completely silent, and a tense and oppressive atmosphere permeated the air.
Tap, tap, tap...
Only the metallic sound of chess pieces hitting the board echoed continuously.
"Flew out from here?"
An Hongshi gazed silently at the chessboard before him. Although the situation was tense and complex, he maintained an astonishing calmness, his mind constantly calculating the myriad possible variations.
"Are you trying to join forces and then use that momentum to diminish my potential?"
Upon seeing the small knight's move that Black had just made on the board, An Hongshi's first reaction was that Black wanted to use this move to invade and reduce the territory, or even to lay the groundwork for a future invasion.
If that's the case, hanging seems to be the best option we can see.
However, An Hongshi did not make a move immediately. Instead, he crossed his arms and solemnly gazed at the chessboard.
No, that's not the case.
“I interrupted, and he made two consecutive moves here. I then tried to dig, but he had a clever move to leave the area untouched. If he had left the area untouched and placed the piece in the upper left corner, the levitation would have been advantageous for Black, and there would have been a chance to capture the piece in the upper right.”
"So that's how it is. He wanted to strengthen the periphery by attracting foreign troops. What an amazing idea."
An Hongshi stopped crossing his arms, finally reached his right hand into the chess box, picked out a white piece, and slowly placed it down.
clatter!
Fourteen columns and five rows, so long!
Upon seeing this move, everyone around was taken aback, then frowned slightly, seemingly puzzled. Su Yiming, however, darkened his eyes upon seeing it.
"It's grown..."
Two minutes later, Su Yiming, with a cold expression, picked up another chess piece and quickly placed it on the chessboard.
...
...
The debriefing session is in progress.
Everyone's attention was temporarily focused on the game between Jiang Han'en and Araki, even Yu Shao, because just now, Araki had made an extremely surprising move—
Eight columns and thirteen rows, charge!
The people in the debriefing room were completely dumbfounded.
"This move, placed right next to the white stones, isn't easy to capture. I didn't expect Araki-sensei to make this move."
Someone took a deep breath and said, "However, the outer area is mostly occupied by White's living stones. Even if Black manages to have some living stones here, it shouldn't have much of an impact."
That's what he said, but even he himself didn't quite believe it.
If Black has a few living stones here, it won't matter. Why would Araki-sensei play like this?
Not only did he think so, but everyone else thought so too; something was definitely amiss.
“If it’s just about keeping the pieces alive here, it really won’t have any impact.” Just then, Yu Shao’s voice rang out.
Upon hearing this, everyone in the debriefing room was stunned for a moment, and then they all looked at Yu Shao.
No impact?
Yu Shao gazed at the game between Araki and Jiang Han'en and pondered, "It seems that Black wants to live, but... that's probably not the case."
"White makes a small knight's move, Black attacks, White must extend... Finally, after Black pushes, White will inevitably counterattack, and Black will probably not escape, but will play another move."
Upon hearing Yu Shao's words, everyone looked at the chessboard and mentally deduced what Yu Shao had said. After a moment, everyone's faces showed surprise.
"On one hand, they call for the capture of the white piece at the bottom, and on the other hand, they attack the white piece at the bottom right."
Xu Zijin murmured, "Is it a double-handed calamity?"
The so-called two-hand ko is a special type of ko fight, belonging to the category of slow-liberty ko. It requires capturing two kos in succession before making the next move to completely capture the opponent's pieces. It is extremely complex, but the efficiency of the ko fight is greatly reduced.
If things continue as Yu Shao predicted, it's inevitable that the market will eventually form a double-handed robbery.
But this did not dispel their doubts; instead, it made them even more astonished.
"But if a ko really does form, it's Black who will suffer, which means it's Araki-sensei, right?"
A young Go player from North and South Korea stroked his chin and pondered, "You have to capture two kos in a row before making your next move to completely take out your opponent, because the pressure is immense, and the one with the most pressure is often the one who suffers the most."
Upon hearing this, Yu Shao looked at the television screen and did not refute it.
Because that is indeed the case. Although Araki initiated the two-handed tactic, it was Araki, as the one with the tighter aggression, who was in a lot of pain during the two-handed tactic.
As for how to deal with Araki, Yu Shao was too lazy to think about it too deeply, because the two-handed calamity was quite complicated and it would take a lot of energy to figure it out. These two days were for him to rest, not to use his brain cells.
So Yu Shao turned his attention away from the game between Araki and Jiang Han'en and looked back at the game between Su Yiming and An Hongshi.
"The situation is still quite tense right now, and it's hard to tell who's better or worse. Both sides are wary of each other, but the situation is getting more and more intense..." Yu Shao frowned slightly.
The more complex the situation in this game, the more disadvantageous it is for Su Yiming, who has been fighting hard for so long, especially since An Hongshi is a player who can calmly change his strategy in the middle game.
The current development of this game is roughly in line with his pre-game expectations.
Although the two sides still appear to be evenly matched, An Hongshi is well-rested and Su Yiming's black stones have not yet been able to establish a strong presence in the center, making the situation increasingly difficult.
The other Chinese players clearly thought the same thing. At this moment, they also turned their attention away from the game between Araki and Jiang Han'en and looked at Su Yiming's game with concern.
"However, Su Yiming has fought so many rounds in the most brutal environment of the loser's bracket, and today he is still able to maintain a roughly even position with Teacher An Hongshi. Even if he loses in the end, it is still very remarkable."
Looking at the chessboard, Wu Zhixuan sighed inwardly, "It's a pity. If only Su Yiming had just fallen into the loser's bracket."
She had previously said that the outcome was still uncertain, but in reality, not only her, but everyone knew how difficult it was to fall into the loser's bracket in the second round and fight her way up to this point.
Although the internet was full of voices cheering for Su Yiming, everyone knew that in this state, facing a formidable opponent like An Hongshi who was proficient in all aspects of the game, from opening to mid-game to endgame, the chances of winning were indeed slim.
It should be noted that Inoue Serizawa, as a Japanese Go player who is on par with Honinbo Shin'ai and has won two world championships, should be a step above Jiang Han'en in terms of Go skill.
However, he fell into the loser's bracket early in this World Championship. Although he made it to the last round, he ultimately lost to Jiang Han'en.
Just then, a black piece gently fell onto the television screen.
clatter!
Twelve columns, eight rows, Little Fly!
"Um?"
Everyone was stunned by this move, including Yu Shao.
"Is this Xiaofei?"
Wu Zhixuan covered her mouth in surprise, then finally realized what was happening. Her eyes lit up slightly, and she said excitedly, "So that's how it is!"
"White's position in the center is indeed very strong, making it quite difficult for Black to advance into the center."
"Therefore, Su Yiming took a different approach, wanting to build a large territory in the lower left corner, forcing White to launch a strong attack, and ultimately leading to a major exchange!"
"I originally thought that Su Yiming had given up on the idea of pursuing territory in the center and wanted to fight against White's influence on the outside with real territory. It turns out that Su Yiming did not. He actually thought of exchanging territory to exchange for territory!"
Wu Zhixuan's pretty face turned bright red, and she was so excited that she wanted to slap her thigh.
Other professional Go players who were watching the game between Araki and Jiang Han'en also turned to look, and soon their eyes also showed surprise.
"It's not that simple."
Just then, a neutral female voice came from beside Wu Zhixuan.
Wu Zhixuan turned her head and saw a South Korean female Go player who was speaking. She had long hair, a beautiful face, and looked to be a little older than her, around twenty-two or twenty-three.
Kim Sun-eun?
Wu Zhixuan recognized the woman; she was the most outstanding female Go player from North and South Korea in the past two years. She had recently been promoted to 6-dan, and although she was only 6-dan, she seemed to have won against many veteran 9-dan players.
He is also a typical player whose skill level and rank are not well-matched, or rather, he is in his rising phase.
Kim Sun-eun looked at the TV screen and said calmly, "The outside area is mostly occupied by White's influence. The potential for White to build territory is greater than that of Black. So as long as we reduce it appropriately, even if Black builds territory, it won't have a big impact and may not necessarily lead to a change in the outcome."
When she saw Su Yiming's "Little Flying" move, she was initially startled, completely unprepared for this move. However, she quickly recovered and came up with a solution.
Of course, this small knight's move did put White in a difficult position. Although there are ways to deal with it, this is certainly not the board position that White originally wanted to see.
Wu Zhixuan was somewhat taken aback. She turned to look at the chessboard. She originally wanted to refute Jin Shanen's words, but as she continued to play the game, she couldn't say a word.
really.
It seems that White must launch a strong attack on this area of Black stones, but she overlooked the potential for White to build up territory on the outside.
If White can reduce Black's points as much as possible through invasion and reduce Black's shape, Black may be able to make White suffer a loss, but Black's idea of forming a conversion is destined to be just a pipe dream!
Even if a conversion isn't possible, White can still gain some advantage through exchanges, right?
Just then, Xu Zijin spoke up.
Upon hearing this, Kim Sun-eun was speechless for a moment. Black could indeed gain some advantage in this variation.
However, after thinking for a moment, Kim Sun-eun said again, "That's not a big deal. Black has the advantage in the short term, but once Black's position is fixed, White might still have the advantage later. Who can say for sure?"
Yu Shao didn't interrupt. After taking a chess piece from the chess box and placing it down, he looked up and stared at the TV screen without saying a word.
clatter!
clatter!
clatter!
On the chessboard, black and white pieces continued to be placed one after another. Everyone was focused on the game, watching the subsequent changes after the black piece made a small knight's move.
As Kim Sun-eun said, White did not launch a strong attack on Black, but instead used an aggressive strategy to prevent Black from achieving the desired exchange. The two sides then engaged in a complex struggle of offense and defense.
"Black's jump is a strong move, but Coach An Hongshi responded with a sharp move, strengthening his position while threatening Black's key stones. Black's jump response is also beautiful, but Coach An Hongshi's extension on this side appears very harsh..."
Kim Sun-eun stared intently at the chessboard, her thoughts shifting with each move of the piece.
Just then, another black piece was placed!
Fourteen columns and twelve rows, a huge jump!
Suddenly, Kim Sun-eun's thoughts came to an abrupt halt, and the entire debriefing room fell silent instantly!
(End of this chapter)
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