Had he not spoken those words, Qi Wanjié, though wary, would still have harbored suspicions along those lines. But Jun Moxie's straightforward appearance only intensified the meager doubt Qi Wanjié possessed by ninety percent, and his apprehension soared by ninety percent as well!
An ordinary chess player would never dare casually mention the absolute grandmaster of the Dao of Chess, just as a supreme master of profound techniques would never profane the name of the First Young Master of the Nine Hells. Yet, Jun Moxie spoke of Hua Wucuo with such an air of casual indifference, which suggested only one thing: Jun Moxie did not particularly care about Hua Wucuo, or at least, he did not view Hua Wucuo as an insurmountable existence!
If that were truly the case, what would it imply? Could Mo Junye’s chess skill truly have reached such a terrifying level?
“Qi believes Brother Mo is not the sort to be so frivolous!”
Qi Wanjié’s tone instantly weakened by at least thirty percent!
“Brother Qi need not take it to heart. It is a source of shame, really! Back then, I contended with Hua Wucuo in three matches… hehe, alas, I lost by the difference of a single piece. Hua Wucuo’s chess skill truly lives up to its name as the greatest in history! Truly unmatched! I devoted myself to the Dao of Chess and rarely suffered defeat, often considering myself invincible. But when encountering a true master, one ultimately cannot escape defeat! Today, having the honor of meeting the contemporary Chess King of the Phantom Mansion, I hope Brother Qi can grant me a defeat, just as Brother Wucuo did!”
Jun Moxie spoke slowly, his tone filled with profound reminiscence.
Qi Wanjié remained silent, but the guard in his eyes grew ever more intense!
He had actually played three full matches against Hua Wucuo, only being decided by a single piece! That meant that across those three games, he must have won at least one against Hua Wucuo! Though I have never met Hua Wucuo, nor played against him, I have studied every game record he ever played—even if not all of them, certainly eight or nine out of ten. “Hua Wucuo’s strength is indeed unfathomable, and his style of play is like a dignified general, an upright cavalry charge; he never risks recklessness for a stroke of luck. Within his far-reaching foresight and magnificent scope, there is still a delicate nuance. How else could he have forged the myth of having no defeats in his entire life? Though I am also self-assured, I recognize I am far inferior to that man!”
And now, Mo Junye before me had managed three games against Hua Wucuo, fighting fiercely only to lose by one piece… “This means his chess skill is roughly on par with Hua Wucuo’s. Even if there is a gap, it shouldn't be vast… Does this imply that facing such a master today, I might emerge undefeated?”
“On that day, Brother Wucuo, upon concluding the match, remarked with deep emotion…” Jun Moxie smiled with practiced restraint, his designation for the never-met Chess Sage abruptly shifting from ‘Old Hua’ to ‘Brother Wucuo’: “‘For ages unending, the world is but a single game of chess!’”
“‘For ages unending, the world is but a single game of chess!’”
Qi Wanjié murmured the phrase, and suddenly broke out in a cold sweat, his previously steady gaze becoming slightly unsettled. For from just these few lines, he could discern the broadness of heart and magnanimity of the Chess Sage, Hua Wucuo!
The Dao of Chess is intrinsically linked to one’s breadth of spirit. If one’s heart is not expansive enough, focusing only on the gains and losses of a single moment or place, one will never achieve great things in the Way of Go. But if one focuses entirely on the overall situation while neglecting immediate, localized losses and gains, one will never achieve victory…
Only the perfect combination of these two aspects constitutes a truly peak chess player!
Qi Wanjié asked himself if he was anywhere near that level!
The world, for all time, is one game of chess! What sheer grandeur!
“Brother Qi admits his spirit is not comparable to Senior Hua’s,”
Qi Wanjié sighed, feeling as if the impenetrable fortress of his confidence had inadvertently sprung a crack…
Within the flow of the opponent’s narration, like a trickling stream, it was slowly crumbling…
“After sighing, Brother Wucuo suddenly burst into laughter, saying: ‘Little Mo, the Old Man has suddenly thought of an upper couplet. Seeing you today, let me test you, how about it?’”
Jun Moxie, seeing Qi Wanjié’s state of mind waver, was secretly delighted, yet maintained an impassive expression, pressing the advantage: “Bringing the relentless pursuit to the exhausted foe…”
“What is the upper couplet?”
Qi Wanjié asked involuntarily. It wasn’t just him; everyone present pricked up their ears. Jun Moxie knew exceedingly well how to tell a story; this tale, which had never actually occurred, came alive under his narration, captivating every listener until they were utterly engrossed.
Anyone listening felt as if this event had genuinely taken place! In everyone’s mind, just like Qi Wanjié’s, they moved from utter disbelief, to slight doubt, to half-belief, and finally, to absolute certainty. “En, I asked Brother Wucuo the same thing then: ‘What is the upper couplet?’”
Jun Moxie displayed an expression of admiration: “Brother Hua said: ‘Heaven serves as the board, the stars as the pieces; who can make the next move?’”
“That is the upper couplet!”
Jun Moxie finished speaking, looking at the absolute silence in the room. Everyone was furrowing their brows in deep thought.
“‘Heaven serves as the board, the stars as the pieces; who can make the next move?’ What magnificent scope this upper couplet holds…” Qi Wanjié let out a long sigh, concentrating intently. He had always thought highly of himself, and his lifelong goal was to surpass the predecessor, the Chess Sage Hua Wucuo. Now that Hua Wucuo had presented an upper couplet, he naturally had to strive to craft the corresponding lower couplet. If he could not, wouldn't that mean he had no hope of ever catching up to Hua Wucuo in this life?
By now, although he sat before the Go board, his heart held no thought of victory or defeat. In fact, the current match was completely absent from his mind; all he could think of was that couplet!
Qi Wanjié was different from Lin Qingyin. As the Chess King of the Phantom Mansion, he possessed his own standing; even the powerful Zhan Family could not coerce him through force. But he too had his weaknesses. Zhan Yushu had given him much, and promised even more. If he helped the Zhan Family win against Mo Junye, the possessor of the Ethereal Constitution, today, he would gain countless benefits—things he had dreamt of his entire life.
Power, status, beauty, wealth—if he won today, Zhan Yushu would definitely grant them to him!
These were things ordinary people strove their entire lives to attain! Naturally, Qi Wanjié desired them!
But what he desired most stemmed from the highest honor in the Dao of Chess—to challenge and defeat Hua Wucuo. That was the ultimate goal and highest ideal he had pursued since childhood!
Between these two pursuits, there was absolutely no room for comparison!
Among those present were many talented individuals, including several youths who prided themselves on their literary skill, and even the dozen judges. All were frowning, mumbling to themselves. This was an upper couplet from a generation’s Chess Sage, and its foundation possessed a spirit that swallowed rivers and mountains, magnificent and overwhelming. Just hearing it filled one’s chest with soaring heroism and deep emotion!
‘Heaven serves as the board, the stars as the pieces; who can make the next move?’
Such an absolute upper couplet—who could casually respond with a fitting lower couplet?
Qi Wanjié’s spirit roamed far afield, concentrating so intently that a fine sheen of sweat formed on his brow, and his complexion grew somewhat pale. Among all these people, he was undoubtedly the one who cared the most!
Because this couplet came from Hua Wucuo!
Just then, they heard Mo Junye sigh with apparent shame from across the board: “The shame is that… this upper couplet Brother Hua posed for me, to this day, I still haven’t figured out a lower one… alas…”
This sigh sounded filled with profound loss…
Qi Wanjié’s spirits lifted, and a faint smile involuntarily touched his lips; he thought, if you could answer it, how could I stand out? Only if you cannot answer it, and I succeed, will it prove I am a cut above you! It will prove that my level is on the same plane as Hua Wucuo’s, perhaps even surpassing you…
Hua Wucuo, the world calls you the Chess Sage, but I refuse to accept it! That absolute challenge you posed, I must respond to it, just as your title of Chess Sage will, sooner or later, belong to me, to me, Qi Wanjié!
Qi Wanjié racked his brains over the couplet, exhausting every thought to devise a lower line, and just as his mind was on the verge of tying itself in knots, he suddenly heard a sharp snap from the front. Mo Junye’s voice broke in: “Brother Qi, how long are you going to make me wait? When does this match begin?”
Qi Wanjié blinked his eyes open vaguely, realizing he was seated before the Go board, and across from him, that genius with the Ethereal Constitution sat upright, his sharp gaze fixed upon him.
He was still clutching a handful of stones, clearly waiting for Qi Wanjié to make the deciding guess…
“What is it?”
Qi Wanjié asked in a daze, still not fully shaken from his contemplation of the couplet.
“Guessing the first move! Don’t tell me you don’t even know that?”
Several black lines appeared on Jun Moxie’s face, though he was nearly laughing out loud internally: It seems this fellow’s mind was completely adrift… “Guessing the first move? Oh, right, right, guessing the first move.”
Qi Wanjié almost subconsciously picked up a piece from the stone box and placed it on the board.
Jun Moxie slowly released his hand. The stones scattered with a rustle across the board as he murmured: “One pair, two pairs, three pairs… exactly six stones. It seems I have the first move. Brother Qi, my apologies…”
“Oh…”
Qi Wanjié was still thinking: Heaven serves as the board, the stars as the pieces, who can make the next move? How can one craft a lower line for such an absolute statement? What objects can compare to Heaven and the Stars? The stars scattered across the heavens, using the sky as a board—how does one counter that?
Suddenly hearing a crisp snap by his ear, he focused his gaze. A black stone had just landed precisely on the star point in the upper right corner!
The opponent had already made his move!
A clear flash of understanding pierced through Qi Wanjié’s mind. Almost without thinking, he responded with a stone in the lower left corner.
Snap—another black stone landed on the star point in the upper left corner!
“What kind of opening is this?”
Qi Wanjié had been renowned for his chess skill for half his life, but he had never witnessed such a strange opening. This position—it was too far to be considered defending a corner, yet it wasn't quite staking the center… To attempt to claim the side—it made even less sense. “In the Way of Go, there has always been the saying: ‘Gold for the corners, silver for the sides, straw for the belly.’ But the opponent’s current placement completely overturned Qi Wanjié’s established understanding.”
Little did he know that his lack of experience was irrelevant; placing stones on star points was the optimal strategy—considering the corner defense, side influence, and central prospects simultaneously—a method only researched and developed on Earth in the last few centuries!