The enraged roar subsided, and Emperor Yu swiftly regained his composure. An Emperor, after all, was a man of unwavering resolve.
Danzhu did not mock or jeer the Emperor, he simply observed him with a cold gaze.
Emperor Yu began to speak, but Danzhu raised his hand and silenced him.
“I am Emperor Danzhu.”
Emperor Yu’s eyes widened in fury. But this time, he didn't waste his energy on a roar.
The title “Emperor Danzhu” explained everything.
“My mistakes,” Emperor Yu finally spoke regrettably. “nearly brought ruin upon the Xia Dynasty. But I can still salvage the situation. You will not succeed, Emperor Danzhu.”
“You cannot win,” Danzhu shook his head.
Time flew by. Another decade passed.
Time, seemingly powerless, was, in fact, invincible.
The once a grand and majestic Yangcheng that had palaces of gold and jade; now, after twenty years of the Go game, was shrouded in a melancholic twilight.
Like an old man, he moved resolutely towards the setting sun. But an old man's steps were no match for a young man’s vigor.
During this decade, Emperor Yu lost another province: Yu Province.
Danzhu’s appearance had also changed. He now wore the five-clawed golden dragon robe and the crown adorned with strings of pearls.
His face had become youthful like a man in his forties. His previous frailty was gone.
Emperor Yu, in contrast, appeared even older than Danzhu. His hair and beard were white as snow. His luxurious dragon robe was now faded and tattered. The brilliant yellow, a symbol of imperial authority, had become dull and grimy.
Yet, Emperor Yu was smiling.
“You have grown strong,” Danzhu said coldly. “In just twenty years, you have grasped a portion of my Go Dao’s essence. Emperor Yu, you truly are worthy of inheriting Shun’s throne.”
Emperor Yu smiled, but his gaze remained sharp and focused.
The first decade: He had lost two provinces.
The second decade: He had only lost one.
His skill in Go was still inferior to Danzhu’s, but his progress was undeniable.
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“There's hope!” Fan Li thought to himself as he watched the scene unfold. He found himself eagerly anticipating Emperor Yu’s performance in the third decade.
The scene shifted again.
The Yangcheng Palace appeared even more dilapidated, a reflection of the dynasty’s decline.
Fan Li immediately learned the outcome of the third decade:
Emperor Yu hadn’t lost a single province!
Emperor Yu, in thirty years, had managed to achieve a stalemate against the founder of Go, Danzhu?
Fan Li felt excited. Perhaps it was the blood-red board’s eerie aura, or perhaps Danzhu’s schemes filled him with disgust, or perhaps… the Go stones, crafted from Shangjun’s blood and bones, silently cried out in protest.
Fan Li hoped that Emperor Yu would win.
“In the next decade, I will surpass you,” Emperor Yu said slowly. He had become a frail and elderly man, resembling a flickering candle flame.
His crown had fallen, leaving his hair disheveled. His robe was tattered, more pitiful than a beggar’s clothes. He leaned heavily on a walking stick with his back hunched over.
Danzhu, however, had transformed into a young man. His face was flawless, his features sharp, his eyes narrow and cunning, a sly smile perpetually playing on his lips.
“Emperor Yu, you are truly too intelligent,” he said. “Thirty years! Just thirty years! You have reached the same level as me!
The pinnacle of Go! To decipher the Heavenly Emperor’s Dao?
Hahaha! That’s a joke!
How can a mere game compare to the Dao of the Emperor?
How can nineteen crisscrossing lines possibly encompass the grand scheme of the world, the rise and fall of dynasties?”
Danzhu’s gaze hardened.
“Go… I did not create it. Shangjun, that wastrel who indulged in pleasures and sought nothing but enjoyment, he created this ‘toy.’”
A look of nostalgia appeared on Danzhu’s face.
“I witnessed him create Go. I learned everything he knew. I asked him, ‘Is Go truly profound? Can it be used to defeat Emperor Yu?’
Shangjun considered the matter for a long time. ‘No,’ he said.
I was unsatisfied. ‘Why?’ I pressed him.
He said, ‘Although I created Go, I never refined a Go treasure. Unless there were a treasure capable of trapping Emperor Yu, my Go would be useless against him. And I am not a skilled craftsman. How could I possibly refine such a treasure?’”
Danzhu burst into mockcing laughter.
Emperor Yu stared at him coldly. “You have an Emperor’s decisiveness, but lack an Emperor’s compassion. Compassion and decisiveness are not mutually exclusive.
You have strayed from the righteous path, pursuing only extremes. If you were to rule the world, my subjects would suffer a fate worse than death!”
“So what?!” Danzhu sneered.
“Emperor Yu, haven’t you noticed? The Shangjun Go Board’s power is not limited to seizing your empire and its destiny! I can even steal your lifespan, your very essence as the Human Emperor!
You think you can surpass me in the next decade? Perhaps! I am not Go’s true creator. My wisdom pales in comparison to yours. Sooner or later, you will catch up to me. But you won’t live to see the next decade, Emperor Yu!”
As Danzhu laughed, Emperor Yu slowly raised his head and looked upon the blood-red sky.
“I, Emperor Yu, the Human Emperor, for the sake of my subjects, for the sake of the Xia Dynasty, beg for your mercy.”
Danzhu’s face paled upon hearing his words.
“How dare you, Emperor Yu?! Humans are independent! The Human Emperor stands alongside Heaven and Earth! We do not beg! We do not kneel! You, the Human Emperor, begging Heaven for mercy! Are you trying to extinguish the lineage of the Human Emperor?!”
But Emperor Yu ignored him. He continued his plea to Heaven.
“The Xia Dynasty has already lost Yong Province, Liang Province, and Yu Province. I am powerless to stop this. My subjects in those provinces will suffer a terrible fate. I beg of Heaven, sever the destiny connecting the Xia Dynasty to those three provinces. Allow them to become independent nations, to escape the clutches of this traitor!”
Danzhu shouted, “Impossible! Emperor Yu, you will not succeed! Heaven is indifferent. Unless you offer a suitable sacrifice, it will not intervene in mortal affairs!”
Emperor Yu looked at him intently.
“Oh, Heaven, I, Emperor Yu, offer myself as a sacrifice, to sever the destiny of those three provinces.”