The news of Nie Weiping's death brings more than just regret and remorse to people. His legend began with the Chinese Japanese Go tournament. Those who play chess will never forget that exhilarating game, and Nie Weiping's self proclaimed "unforgettable victory" embodies his chess style and core traits. In 1985, Nie Weiping, as the main player, faced off against Japanese top Go player Koizumi Kobayashi with a score of 2 and a half goals in the first Sino Japanese Go Championship. The targeted strategy of 'first clearing the ground, then forcing the opponent to fight in the middle abdomen' was a plan calmly implemented by Nie Weiping throughout the game. Even if the situation was on the brink of collapse due to oxygen cylinder failure causing brain hypoxia and malicious actions, he still relied on his extraordinary resilience and precise calculation to firmly grasp it, and eventually waited and seized the opportunity to achieve a reversal. Skilled in handling complex situations, with macro level thinking, strong mid game combat ability, flexible and versatile tactics, and strong endurance and patience... These traits have enabled him to create a legendary 11 win record in the Sino Japanese Go tournament and be awarded the title of "Chess Saint" by the National Sports Commission. In that era, a chessboard could touch the hearts of the whole nation, and a victory would be endowed with the meaning of "revitalization". Today, as China strides forward on the path to becoming a strong nation, we no longer need a chess player to carry grand national expectations. However, looking back at history, the position where Nie Weiping stood was so special and important - he used black and white chess pieces to raise the spiritual sail for the Chinese people in a specific historical context. From then on, the three characters Nie Weiping surpassed Go and became a cultural symbol, inspiring an entire generation. Countless parents have sent their children to Go classrooms, sparking a nationwide Go craze. As the head coach of the national Go team, he trained young talents such as Ma Xiaochun, Chang Hao, Gu Li, and Ke Jie, enabling Chinese Go to achieve a leap from catching up, competing to surpassing. People miss Nie Weiping not only because of his "Chess Saint" aura, but also because of the "liveliness" that came over him. Lao Nie once said: Having personality does not necessarily lead to success, but without personality, one will definitely not succeed. His life was filled with the exuberance of personality. In his childhood, he was invited by Marshal Chen Yi to play chess, and as soon as he stepped onto the board, he forgot about his nervousness; After becoming the 'Chess Saint', Comrade Deng Xiaoping's warning that 'it's not easy to be a saint' was remembered for a lifetime. On the Chinese Japanese arena, he created myths while inhaling oxygen; In life, he drank the precious Maotai liquor for the national football team, but regretted that "this liquor was not worth it"; Even after being reborn from cancer surgery, he still couldn't help but secretly eat boiled lamb, because life is like Go, but it's just a matter of the winner or loser... It's precisely these overflowing love, stubbornness, and even "imperfection" of the chessboard that have transformed him from a generation of "Go Saints" into a lovable person with flesh and blood that can be remembered by the times for a long time. Today when we talk about Go and Nie Weiping, we cannot avoid the topic of AI. At that time, the "Nie Weiping team" pursued the "technical gap" with Japanese Go on the chessboard with extraordinary will. Decades later, a more thorough and ruthless' technological divide 'will lie before all human chess players, including Nie Weiping and his successors. Chess players also cannot forget the impact brought by AlphaGo's victory over Lee Sedol in 2016, especially when its upgraded version defeated world number one Ke Jie the following year. This kind of impact is not only on the level of chess skills, but also on the level of philosophy. Nie Weiping, who has always been known for his broad vision, has a very open-minded attitude towards this. In 2023, Nie Weiping stated in an interview that AI now brings not only challenges to chess players, but also a kind of subversion. Nie Lao's words are not enough, after all, AI has already changed Go. The formulas, feelings, and aesthetics accumulated over thousands of years have been deconstructed by algorithms, and have even been revered in the world of Go. The indescribable "Dao" that can only be understood has also been transformed into a data stream for computation. Perhaps the vitality of Go will shift here, returning to its essence of gameplay, art, and intellectual practice from the heavy desire for victory and defeat. More children learning Go will no longer aspire to become the next Nie Weiping or Ke Jie, but will use it as a mental exercise and enjoy the joy of thinking games. This coincides with Nie Weiping's clear positioning of his role as a "promoter of Go" in his later years, using actions to give Go a profound cultural heritage that transcends victory and defeat. Perhaps this is another "big game" that the "Chess Saint" has yet to complete. (New Society)