Ten needles!!
All at once, Bernard Luker and the others widened their eyes in shock.
Just like when Holbrook had demonstrated before, everyone had assumed there were only nine needles in Tracy's version of the Nine Restoring Yang Needles. But here she was, inserting a tenth.
This unexpected move shattered everything they thought they knew.
It exposed how narrow and rigid their understanding had been.
What a revelation!
Blushing slightly but unable to resist, Bernard turned to Holbrook and asked again, "Holbrook, how did she end up with one more needle in the Nine Restoring Yang Needles? Did she figure out some kind of supplement on her own?"
"What a joke."
Holbrook sneered. "There's not just one more needle. The full version of this technique has twelve needles. My teacher taught me the complete set."
"Twelve needles..."
Everyone gasped, their jaws slack with disbelief.
Holbrook, clearly pleased by their stunned reactions, went on with a hint of smugness.
"The technique my teacher passed down isn't just limited to the Nine Restoring Yang Needles. He also taught me Seven Strikes at the Jaws of Death, Pluto's Life and Death Needle, and others."
"Why do you think I'm still running a clinic at my age?" he said with a grin. "Because my teacher was willing to share all of these ancient methods with me."
Hiss—!
Gasps echoed all around.
Seven Strikes at the Jaws of Death? Pluto's Life and Death Needle?
These were legendary acupuncture techniques—long believed to be nearly lost to time.
How could this young woman, Tracy Linch, possibly know them?
Who exactly was she?
Jasper Sheen stood frozen, as if he had been struck by lightning.
Of everyone present, only Jasper truly understood what the reappearance of these ancient techniques meant. The rest—like Francisco LeBron from the Earth-Filling Sect, Tamas Willows from the Mild-Disease Sect, and Vincent Zarack from the Fire-God Sect—were experts in herbal medicine. They didn't know much about acupuncture.
But Jasper did.
This was an earthquake in the acupuncture world.
An unprecedented one.
At that moment—
Following Tracy's tenth needle, the Australian man trembled violently. His face twisted in agony, almost unrecognizable from the pain.
He regretted everything.
He should never have volunteered to be the acupuncture model.
"Miss… I… I can't take it anymore. I admit—"
The man cried out, his voice full of pain and desperation.
He was ready to concede.
But before he could even say the word lose, Jeff shouted in panic, "Hold on! I'll win it with one shot!"
His voice trembled.
Clearly, he was scared too.
Jeff had inserted nine needles into John Lopez's body. The tenth was still in his hand.
But deep down, he knew:
If he followed the standard process, even with his tenth needle, there was no way he could defeat Tracy.
Was he really going to be humiliated today?
No. He refused.
So, he took a drastic step—he targeted the most pain-sensitive acupoint on the human body.
Worse yet—
He stabbed the needle two inches deep.
Before the match, Jeff had specifically said that needle depth should never exceed 0.5 inches, because going deeper risked serious injury or even death.
This was supposed to be a friendly competition.
But now?
Jeff had thrown those rules out the window.
He planned to stab two inches in, then pull the needle back out 1.5 inches quickly—just enough to make it look like it only went in half an inch.
And Jeff moved fast.
So fast, in fact, that no one could detect what he'd just done.
Any normal person would've collapsed from the pain, screaming and convulsing.
But instead—
John didn't even blink.
He stayed calm. Completely still. His face showed no sign of discomfort.
Jeff was stunned.
What was going on?
Did John have no pain receptors?
Was his nerve reaction delayed?
Whatever the reason—
Jeff had clearly lost control of the match.
Then Tracy stepped forward again, smiling kindly.
"My turn," she said softly. "This is the eleventh needle of the reverse Nine Restoring Yang Needles."
The Australian man clenched his teeth.
He had been told—everything would come down to the tenth needle.
If Jeff could knock out the opponent with his final stab, and he himself held on, they would win.
That was the plan.
But when Jeff's tenth needle hit... nothing happened.
There wasn't even a ripple.
Now the pressure was on him.
"I admit—"
He tried again to surrender.
But just like before, he was cut off.
Last time, Jeff interrupted him.
This time, Tracy inserted the eleventh needle before he could speak.
She smiled warmly as she spoke:
"The United States is a nation of friendship. We never go overboard. Every foreign guest returns home saying how kind we are. So I'll make sure your injection is very gentle!"
"Ahhhhh!!"
The man screamed in agony, his head splitting from the pain. He felt as if his very soul had been torn in half.
And then he fainted.
The moment he lost consciousness, the acupuncture battle was over.
Tracy had used eleven needles in total.
Jeff's expression darkened.
"Wait," he protested. "I haven't inserted my eleventh needle yet. It's too early to call the match."
He was clinging to any excuse.
If he could stab his eleventh needle and John fainted, he could claim the match ended in a draw.
Lose?
Not a chance.