Chapter 622

"My god! Unbelievable! The situation has already presented a one-sided crushing trend!"

"And, I have noticed another even more astonishing fact!"

"Contestant Honda’s thinking time has accumulated to over twenty minutes! And contestant Xia’s time used... dear viewers, please look clearly at contestant Xia’s time used! Up to now, he has only used... less than one minute!"

"In less than a minute, he has already crushed a professional 4-dan shogi player on the board!"

"What kind of concept is this? This means contestant Xia is either playing with 'intuition' or 'absolute prediction'!"

"Or... his shogi sense and depth of calculation are far beyond any of our previous estimates!"

"No matter which one it is, it has already proven his talent!"

Nanjo Maiko covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes filled with immense shock, and continued:

"Now that you mention it... I suddenly realize with horror that since contestant Xia entered our field of vision, he seems to have maintained this 'second-play' rhythm, no matter who the opponent is."

"Before, it could perhaps be explained as the opponents not being strong, but today, facing a professional expert like Honda Honda Chongsi, he is still like this..."

"This is no longer a simple question of the level of shogi skill; this is a manifestation of absolute control and confidence in the game! Contestant Xia is using his unique 'speed' to forge an inescapable time cage for his opponent!"

"I fear... we have all severely underestimated him!"

The whole arena was in an uproar, the sound wave almost flipping the roof of the arena.

No one expected that this match, which was considered to have little suspense before the start, would evolve into such a one-sided crushing, and the crusher was actually that boy who was not favored.

The game continued, and Honda Honda Chongsi’s situation became increasingly desperate.

He futilely mobilized the few remaining pieces, only to find that every seemingly possible path had already been calculated and blocked by the opponent.

The defeat was set, it was only a matter of time.

At this point, intense regret bit into his heart like a poisonous snake.

If I had known... why did I have to provoke the private Tsukikage, why did I have to mock that female player, and why, after Morimoto’s defeat, did I have to covet that prize money and the embarrassment the other party might show, putting myself in such a situation?

Now, everything is too late.

My prize money... the prize money I worked so hard to win!

Just when he was in despair, clearly seeing that Xia Xia Xia Mujun could directly "checkmate" his King in the next move—

Xia Xia Xia Mujun played his move.

But the target was not his King.

Instead, he began to methodically capture the other pieces on his board that still had the ability to move.

When the two commentators saw this, they were both incredulous, and then extremely excited.

"Contestant Xia actually didn’t choose to end the game directly, but is performing a 'shaving the head' act?"

"It seems he is already annoyed by the mockery from the contestant on the private Private Private Tianhao side, and intends to crush the other party again in an extremely humiliating way!"

"This is truly hard to believe, this rare scene actually happened on the arena again, and it was even used by that contestant Xia on the contestant from private Private Private Tianhao? It seems contestant Xia really hates contestant Honda and the others!"

And when the audience saw it, there was no uproar.

"Hahaha, this private Private Private Tianhao’s mockery backfired!"

"Brilliant, it was worth the ticket price just for this!"

"Contestant Xia did well! Facing this kind of mockery, this is how it should be treated!"

Subsequently.

A "Pawn."

A "Lance."

The "Silver General" was captured after struggling.

The most valuable "Rook" and "Bishop," after several useless maneuvers, were also forced into a desperate situation, picked up one by one, and disappeared from the board.

"Shaving the head"...

This term, which he had once used to mock Morimoto Yusuke, now turned into the coldest nightmare, instantly piercing through all his psychological defenses.

He wants to "shave my head"!

Just like he did to Morimoto!

No, this is even crueler, because I am Honda Honda Chongsi!

Extreme fear and shame completely drowned him.

He could feel the burning sensation brought by the focus of the entire audience, and could imagine how public opinion after the match would nail him to the pillar of shame, becoming the eternal laughingstock of "a professional player shaved by someone without a rank."

His face was as pale as paper, without a trace of blood, his body trembling uncontrollably, his teeth chattering.

Sweat mixed with the flush of humiliation ran wild on his face, his appearance was extremely wretched.

No... absolutely not... I absolutely cannot let him succeed! Even if I surrender!

When Xia Xia Xia Mujun expressionlessly picked up the last threatening "Gold General" on his board, and only the lonely King and two or three useless "Pawns" remained on the board...

Honda Honda Chongsi’s psychological defense, along with his last shred of pride as a professional player, was completely crushed.

Collapse, in just a single thought.

Anger, despair, and a sense of powerlessness intertwined; he used his last bit of strength, that hand covered in sweat and trembling uncontrollably, not reaching for a piece, but with a venting decisiveness, swept fiercely toward the center of the board—

"Bang!"

The "King" that symbolized royal power was knocked over by his own hand, rolling on the smooth board, making a lonely, light sound.

Honda Honda Chongsi’s eyes were splitting, and he squeezed a hoarse low roar from his throat:

"Want to humiliate me? Don’t even think about it!!"

"I would rather surrender than let you win so easily!!"

Xia Xia Xia Mujun finally looked up, looking at him calmly, his voice not loud, but clearly audible:

"Is that so?"

"However, being able to see your expression right now... I am already very satisfied."

"You...!" Honda Honda Chongsi was struck by lightning, his face turned from white to green, his lips trembling, gnashing his teeth.

He wanted to retort, wanted to curse angrily, but found that all the words were pale and powerless in the face of the other party’s calm gaze and the miserable reality of his defeat.

In the end, he could only slump dejectedly, as if his spine had been pulled out, completely paralyzed in the high-backed chair, staring blankly at the dazzling lights above, his chest heaving violently, but unable to inhale a single breath of fresh air.

Referee Kishida Minesuke walked up with a grave expression.

He looked complexly at Honda Honda Chongsi, who was limp like mud and seemed to have aged a lot in an instant, and his gaze finally landed on Xia Xia Xia Mujun, who was still as calm as water, his breathing not even disordered.

The boy’s calmness, in this contrast, appeared so deep and unfathomable, even... awe-inspiring.

His gaze swept across the board.

Honda’s position was a desolation after the "Jade Shatter," with his main forces lost, leaving only a lonely King.

Xia’s position was orderly, the blade sharp, the murderous aura not yet dissipated.

On the chess clock, that set of extremely contrasting numbers was coldly displayed: Xia Xia Xia Mujun—2 minutes 07 seconds; Honda Honda Chongsi—58 minutes 12 seconds (almost exhausting the hour).

Kishida Minesuke closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and suppressed the surging waves in his heart.

When he opened his eyes, he had regained the dignity of a referee.

With a clear, solemn, and even unprecedentedly serious tone, he announced loudly:

"Sixth round, A-zone first match, game over."

"The winner—"

"Contestant Xia Xia Xia Mujun!"

The announcement fell.

A moment of silence.

Immediately after—

"BOOM!!!"

The mountain-shaking sound waves, applause, exclamations, and admiration, with the momentum of a landslide, completely swept and drowned the entire arena!

The winner and loser were decided, a legend was born.

Commentary desk.

Inoue Masazo and Nanjo Maiko were stunned for a full three seconds.

On the monitor in front of them, Xia Xia Xia Mujun’s "2 minutes 7 seconds" time used, compared with Honda Honda Chongsi’s almost exhausted hour, formed a contrast that was glaring to the point of absurdity.

On the board, one side was strong and well-equipped, with nearly half of the pieces remaining, while the other side was left with almost only a lonely King, which interpreted the word "crushing" to the fullest.

Inoue Masazo took a sharp breath, as if he had just surfaced from the bottom of the water, his voice trembling slightly due to extreme shock and excitement, even cracking:

"Won... he won?! Contestant Xia Xia Xia Mujun won! And he won in such a... a way that almost destroyed the opponent’s mind!"

He waved his arms excitedly, pointing to the data screen.