Over twenty minutes later, the SUV stopped in front of a large building. After getting out, the three of them followed He Chengwei into an elevator and up to the eighth floor. They turned left upon exiting, and after just a few steps, they saw a large door with a sign hanging beside it: Jing City Acupuncture Association.
Pushing the door open, they found the room was already crowded with people.
"Old He, you're here." A slightly heavyset man of about fifty hurried over, pulling He Chengwei further inside.
He Chengwei gestured for Zhao Yuan and Yu Ke to follow him further in, asking at the same time, "Chairman Cui, what's the situation?"
"What else could it be? We're going to lose face this time no matter what, win or lose. It's just a question of how much."
Chairman Cui wore a pained expression, shaking his head and sighing nonstop.
"When it comes to fundamentals, Kobayashi Haruo is good, but not necessarily better than us. The strange part is, he knows every single one of our signature techniques, and he knows them in incredible depth! Take the Five Organ Fire Needle Technique—I've been trying to restore it for years without success, yet he performed it with ease. Then there's Old Xu's Eight Methods of Fire Extinguishing. Only five of the methods survive today, but that Kobayashi Haruo somehow managed to perform the three lost ones! In a situation like this, how can we not admit defeat?!"
He Chengwei frowned and asked, "How can you be sure that what this Japanese man performed were truly the lost parts of those techniques?"
Zhao Yuan and Yu Ke were wondering the same thing, but since they didn't know Chairman Cui well, they didn't feel it was their place to ask.
Chairman Cui let out a faint sigh and replied, "The lost techniques he performed match the descriptions in the ancient texts perfectly. They must be authentic."
As they spoke, the four of them made their way to the center of the crowd.
Several cameras were set up, filming the scene of Kobayashi Haruo's challenge.
In addition to professional reporters, two people nearby were filming with their phones, presumably livestreaming the event. This setup alone made it clear that Kobayashi Haruo had come fully prepared. He was brimming with confidence, certain he could take the plaque of the Jing City Acupuncture Association, just as he had done before with the Yangcheng Acupuncture Association and the Hu Hai Acupuncture Association.
After sweeping his gaze over the reporters and livestreamers, Zhao Yuan's eyes landed on two middle-aged men facing off against each other.
One of the men wore a designer suit, his hair slicked back. He even had on a bit of makeup, likely to look better on camera. The other wore a white lab coat, looking as if he'd rushed straight from the hospital without time to change.
"Huh? Old Huang is here too?" He Chengwei raised an eyebrow and asked Chairman Cui, "What technique is he competing in against that Japanese man?"
"We don't know yet," Chairman Cui whispered. "Old Huang just told Kobayashi Haruo to name the challenge."
Just as they were speaking, Kobayashi Haruo, who was dressed like a movie star, spoke up in fluent, standard Mandarin. "Before I even arrived in Jing City, I had heard of Dr. Huang's reputation. I know you are most famous for your Finger Power when applying the needles. Today, let's not compete in anything else. How about we test that very Finger Power?"
"Alright!" Dr. Huang replied in a deep voice.
'This guy is so arrogant!' A sharp glint flashed in He Chengwei's eyes.
Kobayashi Haruo knew Dr. Huang was famous for his Finger Power, yet he challenged him in that very skill—a clear sign of his immense confidence. From this, it wasn't hard to deduce that Kobayashi Haruo's challenge against the Jing City Acupuncture Association was the result of meticulous research and preparation. He might even have a huge team backing him.
'They're in the shadows while we're in the open. They're fully prepared, and we're scrambling to respond… This is going to be a very difficult fight.'
He Chengwei's heart sank.
Kobayashi Haruo clapped his hands, and someone immediately hurried forward, handing him a wooden plank that was a good eight or nine centimeters thick.
Tapping the plank with his finger, producing a crisp TOK TOK sound, Kobayashi Haruo said with a smile, "We'll use this plank for our contest. Whoever's needle goes in deeper is the winner. How does that sound?"
"Agreed!" Dr. Huang replied. He was also quite confident in his own Finger Power.
"Then please, Dr. Huang, inspect the plank and see if there's anything wrong with it." Kobayashi Haruo handed the plank to Dr. Huang.
After a careful inspection, Dr. Huang said, "The plank is fine. I wonder, Mr. Kobayashi, what kind of needles are we to use?"
Since one party provided the plank, the other was expected to provide the needles. It was an unwritten rule of sorts.
"Golden Needles!" Kobayashi Haruo said. "Using Silver Needles wouldn't properly demonstrate our abilities!"
Most modern clinical Acupuncture uses Silver Needles, as Golden Needles are very soft, making them difficult to control and hard to apply force with. Of course, for master acupuncturists who had been immersed in the art for decades, these issues were trivial.
"No problem," Dr. Huang agreed without hesitation. He turned his head and asked, "Chairman Cui, do you have any Golden Needles here? We need to borrow two."
"I only have Hairy Gold Needles. Will those do?" Chairman Cui asked.
Hairy Gold Needles were extremely thin, as fine as a downy hair. They were even softer than ordinary Golden Needles and would actually be bent when at rest, requiring a special technique just to straighten them.
"I have no problem with that," Dr. Huang said.
"Nor do I," Kobayashi Haruo said with a smile.
Chairman Cui nodded and quickly brought over a case of Golden Needles.
Kobayashi Haruo and Dr. Huang each took a Golden Needle of the same length, pinching it between their fingers.
"Who goes first?" Dr. Huang asked.
"You first," Kobayashi Haruo said, making an inviting gesture.
Dr. Huang didn't stand on ceremony. He applied the slightest pressure with his fingers, and with a soft TING, the bent Golden Needle instantly snapped ramrod straight, radiating a sharp aura.
The room of the Jing City Acupuncture Association fell silent. Everyone held their breath, afraid they might disturb Dr. Huang.
After taking a deep breath, Dr. Huang let out a sharp cry. His right hand, holding the needle, shot out like a bolt of lightning. There was a dull THUD, and the slender, soft Golden Needle had plunged deep into the hard plank, burying more than half of its length!
Seeing this, the members of the Jing City Acupuncture Association burst into applause and cheers.
"Bravo!"
"Beautifully done!"
"Driving a Golden Needle halfway into a wooden plank... That Finger Power is simply peerless!"
"I refuse to believe that Japanese man's Finger Power could be any greater than Dr. Huang's!"
Everyone thought Dr. Huang had victory in the bag, but there wasn't the slightest trace of tension on Kobayashi Haruo's face. On the contrary, he was still smiling.
It was a smile of complete confidence.
That smile made the hearts of everyone, which had only just begun to relax, tighten once more.
"My turn."
As Kobayashi Haruo spoke, the bent Golden Needle in his hand snapped straight. Without any further adjustment, he flicked his hand toward the plank, his motion too fast for the eye to follow.
Only after another dull THUD did people react, their eyes flying to the plank.
What they saw made them gasp in shock.
"How is that possible!?"
"Am I seeing things?"
There on the thick plank, the Golden Needle Kobayashi Haruo had just thrown had buried itself completely into the hard wood, leaving only the very end of its hilt exposed, quivering slightly…