Chapter 428 Before the Phoenix Cries
“Is two years slow?”
After hearing what Yu Shao said, Zheng Qin suddenly fell into doubt about his life.
It seems that it was really fast to go from the title match to the world championship in two years.
Why do I suddenly have the illusion that it's really slow to reach the World Championship after two years?
"Two years has flown by fast, okay? Don't escalate individual behavior into a collective situation."
After a long while, Zheng Qin finally figured it out. He grinned and said, "The requirement for participating in the World Championship is to have reached a main tournament title match in the past three years. How many people have gone from being a professional player to reaching a main tournament title match in just two years?"
"Um……"
Yu Shao thought about it carefully and found that he was still too influenced by his past life.
In the past, if you wanted to sign up for the World Championship, your results didn’t matter at all, as long as you passed the World Championship selection. However, in this world, because there are too many chess players, the rules are different.
When he heard that it took two years to reach the World Championship, he subconsciously felt that it was very slow. In fact, in this world, reaching the World Championship in two years can indeed be described as rare.
"That's right."
Yu Shao suddenly thought of something and asked, "Don't they say that you have to have made it to the main tournament of the title match in the past three years to be eligible to participate in the World Championship? Then hasn't Araki Ye competed in ten years?"
"Arakino-sensei?"
Zheng Qin thought for a moment and explained, "Mr. Arakino is a wildcard participant, which is a special case. Every year in the World Championship, there are a few wildcard indicators. Given Mr. Arakino's past achievements, it shouldn't be easy for him to get a wildcard, right?"
When Yu Shao heard the word "wild card", he immediately understood.
In previous lives, there were wildcard players in all kinds of competitions, not just Go, but also e-sports, tennis, billiards, etc.
Wild cards are sometimes issued to underdeveloped regions, and sometimes to players who fail to pass the selection for various reasons. In a sense, the latter is an invitation for the player to participate in the competition.
Of course, invitations cannot be made casually. The person invited must have enough weight, otherwise it will be difficult to convince the public, and Araki obviously has enough weight.
But then again, the vast majority of players who are worthy of receiving this wild card "invited by the tournament organizers" are more than strong enough to participate in the competition through normal channels.
Players who do not have this level of status cannot get wild cards, so such wild card players are actually very rare.
Not long after, another young man in his twenties pushed open the door of the game room, looked around, focused his gaze on Yu Shao for a few more seconds, and then walked into the game room.
"Cui Junzhe, 9th Dan, you're here. We were just talking about you." Seeing the young man, someone said with a smile.
"You guys came a little too early."
Cui Junzhe smiled and replied.
Yu Shao also looked at Cui Junzhe with some curiosity.
Although he had heard of the name Cui Junzhe, as a fellow chess player from the Southern Chess Academy, he had never met Cui Junzhe before and had never played against him.
He only knew that Choi Jun-cheol had always had a mediocre record among the nine-dan players, but recently he had performed extremely well in the Gosei title match, winning consecutive games and advancing to the title match, thus qualifying for this world championship.
At this time, Cui Junzhe also looked towards Yu Shao. Seeing that Yu Shao was looking at him, he extended his hand and said with a smile: "Yu Shao, a national player, hearing about him is worse than seeing him in person. I finally met you today. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you."
Yu Shao collected his thoughts, extended his hand and shook hands with Cui Junzhe.
"Generally speaking, title holders should have played against all high-level players before, so naturally, there would be no one they don't know."
Seeing this, Ma Zhengyu jokingly said, "It turns out that Yu Shao, not only do you not know all of them, you haven't even played chess with Zhu Huaian, Kong Zi, Zhang Dongchen, and the others. This is the first time you've met them all."
"Not only is this the first time I've seen them, but I've seen two of them at once. Isn't it the same for Su Yiming? He's never played with Teacher Zhuang Weisheng before."
Cui Junzhe withdrew his hand and said with a smile, "This is really eye-opening for me. I was a 9th dan last year and I'm still a 9th dan this year, but two young players who were promoted to dan last year have surpassed me in the blink of an eye. I feel really complicated."
“Hahahahahahaha.”
Ma Zhengyu laughed twice and asked, "Why are you feeling so complicated? What are you thinking? Are you feeling the pressure?"
"Somewhat."
Cui Junzhe shook his head and looked at Yu Shao, sighing, "But, actually, I feel more lucky."
Hearing this, Yu Shao was slightly stunned, and the others couldn't help but look at Cui Junzhe.
"To be honest, I've been following you since the Yingjiao Cup."
Cui Junzhe smiled and said to Yu Shao, "Although the Xinhuo War caused quite a stir before, I didn't take it seriously at all. It wasn't until the Yingjiao Cup that the game between you and Su Yiming left a deep shock on me."
"It's a bit funny to say that a 9th-dan Go player is so fascinated by the moves of two lower-dan players, but that's the truth."
Cui Junzhe's tone was complicated as he continued, "When I saw that chess game, my first thought was, 'I definitely can't play a chess game like that. Whether playing black or white, I'm far inferior.'"
"I became a dan at the age of thirteen, and after working my way up, I finally reached the ninth dan at the age of twenty-five. To others, this is already an amazing achievement, but I know that this is probably the limit for me."
"I've always been on the edge of a title match. Sometimes I make it, sometimes I don't. The title match is even more out of reach. I find that no matter how hard I try, it's difficult for me to make any further progress."
"But since the Yingjiao Cup, everything has been different."
Cui Junzhe smiled and continued, "After the Yingjiao Cup ended, I often wondered what the game would be like if I played chess with you. Where would you attack? Where would you make up for it? Where would you sacrifice a piece?"
"At that time, I was thinking about how I could beat you. I watched every chess game you played, and I reviewed every one of them over and over again, hoping to find a way to defeat you when we met again."
“But then, my mind changed.”
Cui Junzhe paused, then continued: "Perhaps, I want to lose to you."
Want to lose?
Hearing this, everyone looked at each other in surprise, and even Yu Shao had a look of surprise on his face.
"I really don't want to lose, but I also want to see every move that's beyond my reach."
Cui Junzhe said with some emotion, "Seeing something completely out of reach, seeing twenty years of Go views overturned, seeing every move that can't be described in words..."
"Although we have never met or played a game of chess before today, in my heart we have already fought against each other countless times."
"As I continued to study your chess records and analyze each of your moves, I suddenly realized that my chess skills were also growing day by day. The opponent who I once thought was extremely difficult, now seemed so simple when we played against him again."
"I found that your dismounting method suits me very well, and I understood it much faster than others. When others still don't understand dismounting methods like point three three, top, shoulder charge, etc., I can figure it out quickly and then apply it in actual combat."
"That's how it is. I've been on a winning streak and finally made it to the main tournament again. I'm even thinking about the Go Saint title now. All of this... is thanks to you."
Cui Junzhe smiled and said, "I've always wanted to say thank you to you, and today, I finally found this opportunity."
"Although I am nearly ten years older than you, I can say that you are my second teacher in my Go career."
After hearing Cui Junzhe's words, the game room suddenly became quiet.
Ma Zhengyu stared at Cui Junzhe blankly, his heart shaken.
You have to know that some people are 9th dan. That's because there are only 9th dan in Go, and the gap between some 9th dans may be bigger than you can imagine.
Cui Junzhe's performance in the past few years was indeed mediocre. Although he was a ninth dan, he was just an ordinary ninth dan.
However, in the second half of last year, Cui Junzhe emerged as a dark horse, as if he had an epiphany. He defeated countless strong players as a dark horse. Even Kong Zi was defeated by Cui Junzhe. It was extremely exaggerated. In the end, he made it into the title match and became a presence that no one could ignore.
He was also extremely surprised by Cui Junzhe's performance this year, but he never thought that Cui Junzhe's good performance this year was actually related to Yu Shao.
If you think about it carefully, it seems to be true.
He had seen some of Cui Junzhe's recent chess records, and almost all of them contained Yu Shao's signature moves. However, since many chess players were now learning these moves, he didn't pay any attention to them at the time.
"Of course, that's what I said."
Cui Junzhe smiled and continued to say to Yu Shao, "If we really meet in the World Championship, I will also go all out and fight hard."
Hearing this, Yu Shao finally came back to his senses, looked at Cui Junzhe, remembered Cui Junzhe's name, nodded slightly, and said seriously: "Me too."
In previous lives, chess players like Cui Junzhe actually appeared.
The emergence of Go AI is a devastating blow to many Go players, but there are also players who may not have been very strong originally, but when AI appears, they show great adaptability.
They can quickly learn and understand AI chess strategies. Some chess players are even very old, but they can still have a second spring in life.
However, Yu Shao did not expect that in this world where there is no Go AI, he would unknowingly play the role of a Go AI.
Cui Junzhe stopped talking and waited silently for everyone to arrive and set off. The other people in the game room also suddenly fell silent for some reason, and their emotions were in turmoil for a while.
Not long after, with a "creak", the door of the game room was pushed open again, and then Su Yiming walked into the game room, attracting everyone's attention again.
Su Yiming looked around and soon noticed Yu Shao. He then walked straight towards Yu Shao and stopped beside him.
Everyone couldn't help but look at Su Yiming, then at Yu Shao, their eyes becoming more complicated.
"Yu Shao, Su Yiming..."
Ma Zhengyu's eyes kept wandering between the two of them, and his heart was filled with waves.
"This is their first time participating in the World Championship, their first time entering this cruel world that so many people yearn for, yet so many others feel sad about."
"China, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, the United States, Europe... the world's strongest chess players, no matter how far away, have come here to gather in Phoenix to compete for the championship."
"Although the World Championship is known for its cruelty, it has shattered the dreams of countless chess players, buried the bones of countless strong players, and is covered with the blood and tears of countless geniuses!"
"But perhaps, this is exactly the right place for them."
Ma Zhengyu's eyes were fixed on Yu Shao and Su Yiming, as if he wanted to see their future clearly!
"Because it's a battle of talent without pretense, and only the strong will survive!"
"The cruelest place is the stage!"
Time passed by minute by minute, and soon two or three more people pushed open the door and came into the game room.
They didn't quite understand the depressing silence in the game room, but influenced by the atmosphere, they tacitly remained quiet in the end.
Finally, around ten o'clock, Ma Zhengyu collected his thoughts, glanced at his watch, and said, "Everyone is here, it's almost time, it's time to set off."
Ma Zhengyu took a deep breath and looked around the game room. His eyes stayed on Yu Shao, Su Yiming, and Zheng Qin for a moment before he spoke:
"Everyone should be familiar with the Phoenix Cup's format. It starts with a single-elimination tournament. After the sixty-four players are eliminated, a double-elimination tournament will begin, ultimately determining the champion."
"Being able to stand here shows that everyone is a seasoned chess player. It's not for an outsider like me to say these things, but I still have to say what needs to be said."
Ma Zhengyu said in a deep voice, "Don't overthink it just because it's a World Championship, and don't compete with the idea that you must achieve good results. In a World Championship, no matter how strong you are, there's a chance you'll be eliminated in the first round!"
"Don't think you can perform exceptionally well. If you encounter an opponent who is stronger than you, losing is normal. Just play every move well and at your expected level, and that's all that's left."
"As for whether you can win or not, that's your opponent's business, it has nothing to do with you."
Ma Zhengyu paused, then continued, "In a world championship, it's often difficult to turn the tide when you're at a disadvantage. Because it's a world championship, everyone is under some pressure, so when they see the situation is unfavorable, they lose their composure."
"So, treat the World Championship like a normal game. The worse the situation, the calmer you need to be. Go is as infinitely variable as the universe. There's always hope until the very end."
"Players who participate in the World Championship for the first time often feel that they are representing their country and therefore feel a lot of pressure, but this is unnecessary."
"The World Championship is not a team competition. At the World Championship, you don't represent your country. You only represent yourself and your own Go!"
"The World Championship is about playing your own Go game for the whole world to see!"
"This World Championship is called the Phoenix Cup. The start of the World Championship is the cry of the phoenix!"
Having said this, Ma Zhengyu paused, then spoke again, his words resonating: "Okay, let's go!"
ps: The previous draft was not deleted completely... Because I had the habit of constantly changing lines when typing, the previous draft was moved too far back, and I didn’t see it at all. It was a joke, and I laughed and cried.
(End of this chapter)
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