The aftermath of Jing Yu's wild performance at the Go Exchange Tournament was still rippling across the nation, even after the event had ended.
The official Great Zhou evening news program actually ran a segment covering the match again.
Thanks to that, the new episode of 'Hikaru no Go' airing tonight was pulling in more and more viewers—many of whom were originally just casual Go fans. And among them, quite a few were actual professional players, still baffled from watching Jing Yu's games against Su Lin and Zhou Zhengguang.
Online, all the 'Hikaru no Go' fan groups and forums saw a surge in traffic.
Tonight's newly released episode marked a narrative shift—the story transitioned from the earlier school-themed episodes starring protagonist Hikaru into the online Go arc from the original manga.
After breaking his promise to let Fujiwara no Sai play and stubbornly taking the game himself—only to get crushed by Akira—Hikaru came up with a new plan:
Fujiwara no Sai was too strong. If he kept letting him play, people would start to think Hikaru was some kind of Go monster.
So, his solution? Let Sai play Go online, where no one would suspect the player was just a middle school student. No one could judge him based on appearance anymore.
That plotline marked a clean and effective narrative transition from the "school life" arc into the intense world of online Go battles.
But the audience's focus... quickly drifted elsewhere.
"Wait a sec—this move here... it doesn't look familiar. Is this another one of Jing Yu's hidden moves?"
"No joke, I went back to rewatch the in-show game between Sai and Qian Yu—found a weird internal turning variation and some deep 3-3 sequences. This show is an art piece, man. The writing slaps, and even the matches are legit. I'm speechless."
"My dad's a pro Go player. Never cared about TV dramas. Usually just studies patterns alone in his room. But today? He came to me and asked about 'Hikaru no Go'. He's sitting beside me right now, eyes glued to the screen, taking pictures of the game boards with his phone like crazy. I can't stop laughing."
"Not gonna lie, after watching Jing Yu's matches these past two days, this drama hits different now. He is Fujiwara no Sai—no question. Not just the character, but even the skill level. I'm a believer."
"Man… the screenwriting industry's too cutthroat now. Gotta write, direct, and also be a 9-dan Go player? LMAO."
"Wow, this episode is packed with matches! Once Sai starts playing online, it's just game after game after game!"
"There are suddenly a bunch of high-level players in the fan group breaking down the moves like pros. Are actual Go players lurking in here?"
"What are you talking about? Pro Go players watching a TV drama to improve? Psh, I'm just a casual park player. Old man with a board. Don't overthink it."
"Same here! Just your average uncle-level hobbyist, nothing more!"
Cheng Lie sat glued to YunTeng TV tonight, keeping an eye on the ratings for 'Hikaru no Go'.
Since its first episode, the show had consistently climbed in viewership with each airing—but tonight, the growth curve was sharper than ever before.
Opening ratings: Already broke 5%.
Mid-episode: Jumped to 5.78%.
And as the plot progressed—Fujiwara no Sai rising to fame in the online Go world—even those viewers who originally just tuned in to "study Go" were now hooked on the drama.
"This show is wild. I started on this episode, never saw the earlier ones—and I'm already hooked."
"Can someone explain that Akira guy? He starts doubting the identity of his opponent after just a few moves. Is that because he played Hikaru before?"
"He's sharp. The moves don't look like standard Great Zhou techniques, but they definitely have theoretical value."
As the episode neared its climax, 'Hikaru no Go's peak viewership finally broke 6%.
Even though that number reflected peak minute-by-minute ratings and not the average, it was still enough to get Cheng Lie pumped.
Even Meng Yu—who was at home relaxing—called him the moment he heard.
"Xiao Cheng! I knew it—you've got a hell of an eye. You pushed hard to bring Jing Yu on board when no one else saw it."
"Where? It's all thanks to you, Minister. You had the foresight to trust me. That's the real reason our station pulled off this season's miracle."
The two burst into a full round of mutual praise—classic workplace banter.
Tonight's final scene added another emotional twist:
In the episode, a mysterious online Go master plays a game against Akira. The sequence eerily mirrors a match Akira played against Hikaru years ago, when they were just kids.
He begins to suspect that this online master—known only as Sai—might actually be Hikaru.
When he confronts Hikaru directly, he receives a firm denial.
Akira is crushed.
He had so desperately hoped that Sai—the one he looked up to, the Go genius he chased—was Hikaru.
Not the amateur who lost miserably to him in a school tournament.
"I'll never appear before you again."
Akira's expression was full of disappointment.
The background music swelled—poignant and stirring—as the show delivered one of its classic emotional high points.
"If you're just chasing a shadow of me," Hikaru said, serious and determined,
"Then one day, the real me will catch up to you."
"Don't wait for 'one day'—"
"Why not play me right now?"
Under the sunset, Akira turned back to glance at Hikaru.
Standing behind Hikaru, unseen by Akira, was Fujiwara no Sai.
From the beginning, 'Hikaru no Go' had always been about the tangled bonds between three people.
And tonight—that bond pulled tight once again.
Final ratings average:
5.69%
In the days that followed, once all other TV stations had wrapped their weekly dramas, 'Hikaru no Go' ranked #4 in national viewership for the week.
Originally, Jing Yu had estimated it would take one or two more weeks to surpass the long-standing drama 'The Prey'.
But thanks to the Go Exchange Tournament's unexpected popularity, he overtook it in just one week.
Moreover, the latest episode—Episode 7—was only 0.04% away from overtaking the weekly #3:
The 'Endblade', which had 5.73%.
By this point, one of the top three national broadcasters—Huanshi TV—was finally starting to feel uneasy.
No—more than uneasy. They were beginning to panic.
For five years, the top ratings slots had been dominated exclusively by the three major networks' quarterly flagships.
The last time an outsider broke that pattern?
It was YunTeng again—back when they launched a breakout hit extreme sports drama, a total fluke.
Now, once again, YunTeng had shown up out of nowhere with a Go drama no one had taken seriously...
And in just seven weeks, they'd clawed their way into the top rankings—as a challenger.