Divine Level Witch Doctor

This sudden interjection left everyone, both at the scene and in the online livestreams, completely stunned.

Everyone turned their heads in unison toward the source of the voice. The two livestream hosts immediately adjusted their phone cameras as well.

All eyes landed on Zhao Yuan. He was the one who had just made that astonishing claim.

Kobayashi Haruo sized Zhao Yuan up and down. The astonishment in his eyes turned to disdain as he sneered, ”And who are you? What gives you the right to say I’m not using the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique? Hmph, even Dr. He hasn’t questioned me, yet you decide to pipe up. Do you claim to understand the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique better than Dr. He? Or are you all just sore losers, trying to weasel your way out of this?”

As soon as he voiced his challenge, many people chimed in with their support.

”Resorting to cheap tricks after you’ve lost... How utterly humiliating!”

”As much as I hate to see this man from East Japan win, I have to be fair. The acupuncture technique he just used was identical to Dr. He’s. How could it *not* be the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique? If you’re going to play dirty, at least come up with a believable excuse, not some lie that’s obviously false! This isn’t just shameful, it’s idiotic!”

”If you ask me, this kid is just trying to show off and make a name for himself. Too bad for him, not just anyone can pull that off. You need real skill to back up the talk. When you have no skill and still try to act tough, you’re not a badass—you’re just a dumbass!”

Over in the East Japan livestream, the chat was a torrent of condemnation.

”Shameless Chinese!”

”They refuse to admit defeat and now they’re slandering Mr. Kobayashi! The character of these Chinese people is truly rotten to the core!”

”Mr. Kobayashi, we support you! You have to teach these despicable Chinese a lesson!”

Chairman Cui’s expression grew even more grim. He didn’t recognize Zhao Yuan, but he knew He Chengwei had brought him. He quickly tugged on He Chengwei’s sleeve and whispered, ”Old He, what’s going on with this apprentice of yours? Does he have any right to speak here? And what he’s saying is such a clumsy lie, it only invites ridicule. Did he use his brain at all before opening his mouth?”

Clearly, Chairman Cui had mistaken the young Zhao Yuan for He Chengwei’s apprentice.

”Chairman Cui, Zhao is not my apprentice,” He Chengwei explained with a wry smile, his gaze toward Zhao Yuan filled with confusion.

Although he hadn’t known Zhao Yuan long and had only met him a few times, his impression was that Zhao Yuan possessed extraordinary skills and wasn’t the type to spout nonsense recklessly. ’Since Zhao has chosen to step forward at this moment, he must have his reasons!’

Therefore, He Chengwei didn’t try to stop Zhao Yuan. Instead, he found himself looking forward to what he would say next.

Despite becoming the target of everyone’s condemnation, Zhao Yuan wasn’t the least bit flustered. He stared at Kobayashi Haruo and declared, his voice firm and resolute, ”The one being shameless isn’t us. It’s you!”

”Me, shameless? What a joke!” Kobayashi Haruo laughed in fury. ”Since you insist that I didn’t just perform the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique, then why don’t you tell us all what acupuncture technique I *did* use? And why does it look identical to the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique? Don’t tell me it’s its long-lost twin?”

This attempt at humor drew waves of laughter from the crowd and the online viewers.

In that moment, everyone felt that Kobayashi Haruo not only possessed exquisite medical skill but was also magnanimous and noble. He didn’t even get angry when baselessly slandered; instead, he could make a self-deprecating joke. His composure was simply incredible!

As for Zhao Yuan, the consensus was that he was nothing more than a buffoon. The people at the scene were still hesitant to insult him to his face, but the viewers in the two livestreams had no such qualms. The on-screen comments instantly flooded with insults, all aimed at Zhao Yuan.

”Long-lost twin? Heh, you really think too highly of that technique you’re using!”

Zhao Yuan sneered. ”You performed the ’Little Nine Probing Needle Method.’ The founder of this technique was a man from East Japan named Saito Tatsunori. He traveled to China under the alias Meng Gui and became an apprentice at the medical hall of Dr. He’s ancestors, hoping to learn the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique. But he failed because the He Family has an ancestral rule: the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique is never taught to outsiders. However, this Saito Tatsunori was quite resourceful. Through his own observations and by secretly stealing what he could, he managed to create a counterfeit version. Of course, there is a huge difference in efficacy between the counterfeit and the genuine article. It’s at least thirty percent weaker, which is why Saito Tatsunori named his technique the ’Little Nine Probes!’”

The moment Zhao Yuan said the names ’Little Nine Probes’ and ’Saito Tatsunori,’ the smile on Kobayashi Haruo’s face froze. He was quick to hide it, but his expression remained stiff.

’How could this kid know about the Little Nine Probing Needle Method? Did he actually see through my technique? No, impossible. He must be bluffing! Yes, that’s it, he’s just trying to bluff me! As long as I deny everything, there’s nothing he can do.’

Several thoughts raced through Kobayashi Haruo’s mind.

After taking a deep breath, he said, ”What Little Nine Probing Needle Method? Who is Saito Tatsunori? I’ve never heard of any of it! You’re really something else, aren’t you? To think you could cook up such a story in so little time just to slander me...”

”A cooked-up story?” Zhao Yuan scoffed. ”Fine. I won’t tell stories. I’ll just point out the differences between the Little Nine Probing Needle Method you just performed and the genuine Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique!”

Hearing this, Kobayashi Haruo tried his best to appear calm, but inwardly, his heart was in utter chaos.

Zhao Yuan didn’t give him a chance to think, speaking rapidly, ”Let’s take Spiritual Snake Probing the Moon. The key to this move is the control over the lifting and thrusting of the needle, to make every insertion feel like it’s probing the moon! With the true Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique, performing this probe involves adding a slight twirling motion. This causes the needle to rotate as it enters the acupoint, making it easier to ’obtain Qi.’ But the Little Nine Probing Needle Method you performed lacks this twirling motion...”

In just a few sentences, Zhao Yuan had pointed out all the flaws in the technique Kobayashi Haruo had just demonstrated, and even explained how the genuine Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique differed on those very points.

While Zhao Yuan was speaking, He Chengwei, who was standing beside him, had a strange expression. He looked like he wanted to interrupt several times, but Zhao Yuan stopped him each time with a look.

Kobayashi Haruo noticed this exchange, but he didn’t give it much thought. He simply assumed Dr. He didn’t want the secrets of the Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique to be revealed to outsiders.

After pointing out the flaws, Zhao Yuan added, ”Mr. Kobayashi, do you dare perform the technique you just used one more time? Let everyone see for themselves what the differences are between your acupuncture technique and the true Spiritual Snake Nine Probing Needle Technique!”