6 PM.
After a grueling battle, the main tournant of the winner’s bracket in the Go Promotion Tournant had finally concluded.
Twenty-five players had secured their spots in the finals, while another twenty-five had fallen into the loser’s bracket.
While the winner’s bracket had ended, the players in the loser’s bracket still had two days of fierce competition ahead, fighting for the remaining twenty-five final spots.
So might climb back up from the loser’s bracket and reclaim their path to professional status.
But for most, this would be the end of the road.
Their dreams would crumble, and they would beco re stepping stones for others.
Yet despite the tournant’s progress, an oppressive atmosphere still lingered in the winner’s bracket playing room.
Even those who had secured their places in the finals seed burdened, their faces devoid of joy.
Because Fang Haoxin… had lost.
And with the tournant ending for the day, news of Fang Haoxin losing to an amateur player and dropping into the loser’s bracket spread like wildfire, instantly causing an uproar.
“Fang Haoxin lost?!”
Several reporters and caran in the tournant hall were stunned upon hearing the news. They exchanged looks of disbelief, their faces filled with shock.
“Who is Su Yiming?”
“Fang Haoxin lost to him?”
“That’s impossible! Other than Zhuang Fei, Fang Haoxin shouldn’t have had any real competition!”
After a long mont of silence, one of the reporters suddenly reacted, excitent flashing in his eyes.
“It doesn’t matter who this Su Yiming is—he’s clearly a dark horse this year. This… this is huge news!”
Similar scenes unfolded throughout the tournant venue.
Su Yiming’s na spread like wildfire across the entire Go Promotion Tournant—so much so that even the won’s division was affected.
For those in the loser’s bracket, the impact was even more devastating.
Even the winners of the winner’s bracket were under imnse pressure despite already securing their finals spots.
But the players who had already lost once?
If they were unlucky enough to face Fang Haoxin in the loser’s bracket, they would be dood.
There was no doubt—Fang Haoxin would crush his way through, stepping over fallen players to reclaim his place in the finals.
However, among the loser’s bracket players, a few weren’t surprised at all.
They had already lost to Su Yiming.
They had already experienced firsthand just how terrifyingly strong he was.
One of them, a young player, turned to Qiao Anli and He Zhi’an, swallowing nervously before asking, “So when you guys said this year was going to be harder than I expected… was it because you already knew about Su Yiming?”
But when he saw the expressions on their faces, he froze.
Qiao Anli and He Zhi’an were both staring blankly into space, just as dumbfounded as the others.
Clearly, even they couldn’t believe that Fang Haoxin had lost to Su Yiming and dropped into the loser’s bracket.
“No… no, that’s not it.”
He Zhi’an swallowed hard before answering.
“We had no idea who Su Yiming was...”
At first, the young player didn’t fully process what He Zhi’an had just said.
But within monts, realization dawned.
His eyes widened as his mind raced.
Not… Su Yiming?
“We’re not promoting this year.”
Qiao Anli’s voice was hoarse as he swallowed.
“Maybe… we should just wait until next year.”
While the winner’s bracket had wrapped up in just four days, the loser’s bracket still had two days of battles remaining.
Three days later, the finals would begin.
“Yeah, I won again today. I’ve secured my spot in the finals. The finals start in three days, and it’ll be a double-elimination format. There’ll be about six rounds, and in the end, the top six will be determined.”
At 8 PM, Yu Shao once again received a call from Yu Dongming.
Over the past few days, his father had called him every night, asking about his tournant results.
Yu Shao didn’t mind the frequent calls. He patiently updated his father each ti.
After all, he was still a minor, traveling alone to compete in a life-changing tournant. It was only natural for his parents, Yu Dongming and Cai Xiaoi, to be worried.
“Keep your mindset stable. Don’t overthink it. For the next few days, don’t even think about the finals—just relax. Even playing so gas is fine.”
On the other end of the phone, Yu Dongming’s voice was calm.
“When the finals co, treat those gas like any other casual match. The most important thing is to keep a level head.”
“That’s right, Xiao Shao,” Cai Xiaoi chid in. “Even if you lose, don’t dwell on it too much.”
“Winning every match is great, but I’ve heard that so players keep winning at first… then completely fall apart after their first loss, losing one ga after another.”
“You’re incredibly talented—that much has surprised both your father and . But compared to others, you still lack experience in major tournants like this.”
Cai Xiaoi had a valid point.
In high-stakes tournants, ntal fortitude was just as important as skill. Even a stronger player could suffer a catastrophic defeat if their mindset collapsed.
However, in his previous life, Yu Shao had endured countless international tournants—events far more intense than the Go Promotion Tournant.
His ntal resilience had long been tempered into steel.
After chatting with his parents a bit longer, Yu Shao finally hung up.
“Three days until the finals… and after that, the professional world.”
He walked to the window, gazing outside with a complicated expression.
Although it was already 7 PM, sumr ant the sky hadn’t fully darkened yet. The city was caught in that liminal space between dusk and nightfall.
Streetlights flickered on, casting a warm glow as a few pedestrians strolled along the streets.
Yu Shao wasn’t nervous about the Promotion Tournant itself.
But the thought of returning to the professional Go world—a world where he had once dedicated his entire past life—stirred sothing deep within him.
In his previous life, he had once climbed to the pinnacle of the Go world.
Even before his reincarnation, he had still been one of the top five players in the world.
His style of calmly securing territory, skillfully reducing influence, and controlling the ga with an iron grip had allowed him to dominate countless opponents and shake the Go world to its core.
Even when the AI era arrived—when countless professional players were completely eliminated by the rise of artificial intelligence—he endured that period of doubt and adaptation.
Through relentless study, he had managed to hold his ground, refusing to be toppled.
But this ti—this life—he would walk a completely different path.
A path of relentless aggression—a path of attacking and killing.
A path of sacrifices and trades, of isolations and ko fights.
A perilous path.
This was a path he had once dread of taking but had never dared to walk in his past life.
But in this life, he had taken that step.
“How far… can I go on this path?”
For the first ti, even though he was treading a familiar road, Yu Shao felt a sense of anticipation.
Rereading a book might bring new insights—but the ending remains the sa.
This ti, though… the ending would be different.
The Next Day.
By 5 PM, Yu Shao left his hotel room, took the elevator to the first floor, and prepared to head out for dinner.
Even though the winner’s bracket had ended, giving those players three days of rest, the loser’s bracket was still in full swing.
As he stepped out of the elevator, he saw several players sitting in the lobby—so with their heads hung low in silence, others staring blankly at the ceiling.
Yu Shao recognized this atmosphere all too well.
Shaking his head slightly, he walked out of the hotel.
The final battle was about to begin.
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