Chapter 114: The Taiji Five-Element Needles

According to his calculations, Xu Wenming should have long since succumbed to the poison and perished. Yet, to his surprise, he stood before him, vibrant and full of life.

"Thanks to your restraint, Junior Brother, the poison you administered was not potent enough. I have already purged seven or eight parts of it from my system; I am essentially fine now," Xu Wenming said with a cryptic smile.

"What? You managed to detoxify yourself as well?"

The smugness on Xue Lang’s face vanished instantly. He stared at Xu Wenming in astonishment, noting that his complexion had indeed returned to a healthy glow, showing no signs of poisoning.

"What is it? Are you surprised, Junior Brother?" Xu Wenming sneered.

"Haha, what are you saying, Senior Brother? I am merely surprised that in the few short years since you left our master’s sect, your detoxification skills have improved so drastically. My congratulations, truly," Xue Lang said, his words sharp with hidden malice.

"Since we have both neutralized each other's poisons, let us call this wager a draw. We come from the same sect; there is no need for us to fight like this in the future," Xu Wenming said sternly.

If not for his junior brother’s constant provocations, he would never have become such bitter enemies with him. As a physician, one ought to possess a benevolent heart.

Yet!

While he was willing to make peace, Xue Lang refused to yield. His expression turned cold as he snapped, "Senior Brother, are you afraid of my medical skills? Are you worried that my status in the medical world will soon eclipse yours?"

"If you want to make peace, you must first defeat me in medical skill. Otherwise, you must cede the title of Jiangcheng’s Greatest Physician to me."

"Junior Brother, why must you be so obsessed? This title was bestowed upon me by my patients and colleagues in the medical field; it is not something to be seized through conflict. Even if I were willing to yield it to you, I doubt my colleagues would agree."

Xu Wenming frowned, continuing to urge Xue Lang to return to the right path.

"Enough nonsense! You hold the title of Jiangcheng’s Greatest Physician, so how could you possibly understand my perspective? If you won't yield today, I will use my dark arts to force you to."

No sooner had the words left Xue Lang’s lips than he whipped several poisoned needles from his sleeves, sending them flying toward Xu Wenming’s face.

Xu Wenming’s eyes narrowed as he dodged, but the moment he evaded the needles, Xue Lang charged forward, his fingers striking at Xu Wenming’s vital points. His finger strength was formidable, and Xu Wenming, already weakened by his recent ordeal, could only struggle to dodge.

*Puff!*

Within a few exchanges, Xue Lang struck him in the chest. Xu Wenming vomited a mouthful of blood.

"Haha, victory is mine today. You can go to hell now, Senior Brother."

Xue Lang laughed, a trace of toxin gathering in his palm as he thrust it toward Xu Wenming’s chest. Xu Wenming’s face turned pale with terror, but just as the blow was about to land, a hand suddenly appeared, effortlessly catching Xue Lang’s palm.

Lin Feng looked at Xue Lang with a grim expression. "Mercy is a virtue. As fellow physicians, why must you push things to such extremes?"

"Who are you, kid? How dare you meddle in my business?" Xue Lang was already incensed, and seeing Lin Feng intervene, he immediately turned his fury upon him.

"He is my master. Xue Lang, I will tell you the truth: the poison in my system was neutralized by my master. It took him only ten minutes to cure the toxin you planted in me." Before Lin Feng could reply, Xu Wenming, clutching his chest, spoke to Xue Lang.

"What? He cleared your poison in ten minutes? Ha! What a load of nonsense. Even if I gave him a hundred ten-minute intervals, he wouldn't be able to undo that poison." Xue Lang laughed, unable to hide his disdain for Lin Feng.

Lin Feng dismissed him with a cold smirk. "How do you know I can't? If you are unconvinced, why don't we have a match? If you lose, you must announce your withdrawal from the medical profession forever."

"And if you lose?" Xue Lang asked, his eyes gleaming with malice.

"If I lose, you can have everything you want, including Old Xu’s title as the Greatest Physician in Jiangcheng," Lin Feng stated bluntly.

"Oh? Very well, it's a deal. You are doomed to lose, kid."

Xue Lang composed himself, withdrew his stance, adjusted his clothes, and asked, "Tell me, how do you want to compete?"

"It’s simple. We follow the previous rules: we poison each other, and whoever neutralizes it faster wins," Lin Feng said calmly.

"You possess the art of poison as well? Heh. You’re young, but you talk big. I’m afraid my poison will kill you in an instant," Xue Lang mocked.

"Then feel free to try. I’ll let you strike first."

Lin Feng said this flatly, opening his arms and allowing him to act.

Frowning, and seeing that Lin Feng was not joking, Xue Lang’s expression turned serious. He scoffed, "Fine, you asked for this. Watch closely!"

As he finished speaking, his hands moved with lightning speed, striking at Lin Feng’s chest. Black energy radiated from his palms, pouring into Lin Feng’s body, along with all the toxins he had intended for Xu Wenming.

When he withdrew his hands, a faint, dark, ominous flame appeared on Lin Feng’s chest.

Seeing this, Xu Wenming was enraged. He glared at Xue Lang and shouted, "Xue Lang, you despicable villain! You used so many types of poison on my master—how is he supposed to cure that?"

"Ha! He didn't restrict how many toxins I could use. Even if I used a hundred, it wouldn't be a violation. If he can't cure it, he loses," Xue Lang said, wearing his villainy like a badge of honor.

"You..." Xu Wenming was so angry he wanted to fight, but he was too weak to resist, forced to swallow his rage.

Lin Feng remained calm. Although he felt a strange sensation in his chest, the idea that these poisons could take his life was nothing more than a fantasy.

He closed his eyes, sensing the different properties of the toxins within him. After about half a minute, his brow relaxed. "Very well. Your poisons are somewhat clever; they all counteract one another."

"Without the proper detoxification technique, these poisons combined would indeed be fatal."

"You understand my craft, kid. I did intend to take your life. You have less than half an hour before the poison takes hold, so you have thirty minutes to cure it, or you’re a dead man," Xue Lang said triumphantly.

"That’s far too much time. With a poison like this, I need at most three minutes to clear it."

Lin Feng retorted with disdain, then quickly began tapping acupuncture points on his own body. His fingers moved like falling stars; wherever his fingertips passed, it resembled a complex Bagua map, leaving Xue Lang in shock.

"What kind of finger technique is this? Why have I never seen it?" Xue Lang frowned, bewildered.

"Haha, Xue Lang, you are still too green. You don't even recognize the Taiji Five-Elements Needle technique of the ancestor Fuxi?" Xu Wenming couldn't help but laugh, watching Lin Feng perform the technique with immense excitement.