Shen Xingkong walked quickly, almost reaching the office door when he heard Engineer Chen call out behind him, "If you're willing to perform acupuncture on me, you can come work here after you graduate."

In that instant, Shen Xingkong froze in his tracks as if time itself had stopped. Every word Engineer Chen had just spoken was as clear as day to him, like a steaming, delicious cake placed right in front of him.

Engineer Chen’s workplace was the Bio-Research Institute, and only a fool wouldn’t know what kind of place that was. The salary here was undoubtedly higher than at banks or telecom companies, with two months of paid vacation per year, full benefits, and if one could climb the ranks, the institute even provided a car—this was the kind of place every college student in China dreamed of joining.

Shen Xingkong had no connections or backing; after graduation, he would only be a vocational school graduate, and securing an internship at a small hospital would be considered fortunate. Now, the prospect of working at the institute was too tempting to ignore. He wished he could immediately hug Engineer Chen's leg and call him grandpa, if that’s what it took.

While needling the temple had its risks, Shen Xingkong reasoned that Engineer Chen didn’t say it had to cure him, just that it was acupuncture.

Acupuncture simply meant inserting the needle into an acupoint—how deep it went wasn’t specified. Even if the needle barely pierced the skin, it would still count as acupuncture. Surely it wouldn’t be so serious as to cause a life-threatening incident!

“Cough!” Shen Xingkong slowly turned around, touching his nose. “Mr. Chen, it’s not that I don’t want to do it; I’m just worried that my skills are lacking and I might embarrass Professor Shi.”

“Hahaha!” Engineer Chen couldn’t help but laugh, waving Shen Xingkong over from a distance. “Don’t worry, don’t worry. If Old Shi has confidence in you, I believe you’re definitely talented.”

“Yes, Shen Xingkong, give it a try,” Professor Shi added with a smile and a nod.

“Well… I’ll give it a try…”

For the sake of a future job, a high salary at the institute, and full benefits, Shen Xingkong gritted his teeth and walked back, taking out the leather roll containing the fourteen needles.

Seeing that Shen Xingkong was about to begin, Professor Shi removed the plaster from Engineer Chen’s temples and cleaned the area with alcohol swabs.

Shen Xingkong stared at the fourteen needles in his leather roll, hesitated for a few seconds, and finally drew out the mysterious golden needle—the wasp’s tail needle.

Yesterday, he had successfully used this needle to perform acupuncture on the laborer's Hegu point during the practical class and had felt a surge of heat within himself. Although he had tried countless times afterward, the sensation didn’t reoccur. Now… he decided to try again.

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As for identifying the acupoint, it didn’t matter if he couldn’t identify other points, but the temples were well-known. Even elementary school students knew them because they learned to press their temples while doing eye exercises.

“Mr. Chen, which side is your headache on?” Shen Xingkong asked before proceeding.

“On the right side!”

“Alright, I’m about to begin… Please stay still…”

Shen Xingkong had already made up his mind: he would insert the needle just a little into Engineer Chen’s temple and then immediately withdraw it, considering his acupuncture session complete. He figured someone as prestigious as Engineer Chen wouldn’t go back on his word like Chang Le, who always made empty promises.

Within a fraction of a second, the tip of the golden needle, held between Shen Xingkong’s thumb and index finger, touched the surface of Engineer Chen’s right temple. Shen Xingkong’s heartbeat quickened as he steadied his hand and gently pushed the needle forward, relying on the sharpness of the tip to pierce the surface of Engineer Chen’s temple.

“Ah…” Engineer Chen suddenly let out a soft exclamation, followed by a sharp intake of breath. He felt an unusual sensation in his right temple, as if all the blood in his head was rushing there.

Shen Xingkong’s expression also changed. Just like during yesterday’s practical class, a surge of heat shot up his spine, quickly traveling down his right shoulder and arm to his hand holding the needle.

The area where the heat flowed felt as if it was being burned.

This was incredibly strange. After the practical class yesterday, Shen Xingkong had tried countless times with the wasp’s tail needle, but the heat never returned. Yet today, as soon as the needle pierced Engineer Chen’s temple, the heat surged on its own. Shen Xingkong’s sharp mind quickly deduced that it must be because the needle was inserted into a human acupoint.

Although he had tried many times yesterday, nearly exhausting his wrist, he hadn’t actually pierced anyone’s acupoint; he had only mimicked the needling action in the air.

Shen Xingkong’s heart raced even faster, not out of fear but excitement. It seemed that after being stung by the giant wasp two days ago, his body had undergone some change. So far, this change had shown no harmful effects, and it had even made him stand out during yesterday’s practical class.

If he could harness this unique transformation, perhaps his destiny would take a different path—a path to success and fortune.

As Shen Xingkong was lost in his thoughts, another strange sensation emerged. He realized that the golden needle in his hand was incredibly cold, almost like ice, and this coldness quickly spread to his hand. Within seconds, his fingers holding the needle felt numb from the cold.

He also noticed that this coldness seemed to be emanating from Engineer Chen’s temple and was being absorbed by the golden needle. Fortunately, the cold stopped spreading once it reached his hand, as the intense heat from his spine clashed with it. The cold and heat battled in his hand like two armies in a fierce conflict.

The cold continued to flow from Engineer Chen’s temple into Shen Xingkong’s right hand, but the heat from his body fought back, surging down his right side to support his hand.

The cold and heat neutralized each other, leaving Shen Xingkong’s hand partially blue and partially red, which made Professor Shi, watching from the side, stare in disbelief, unable to comprehend what was happening.

After about five minutes, the cold from Engineer Chen’s temple finally began to subside, while the heat from Shen Xingkong’s body surged through the golden needle into Engineer Chen’s temple.

“Ugh…” Engineer Chen let out a muffled groan, a thin line of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

At the same time, the golden needle suddenly pushed back with great force, making it impossible for Shen Xingkong to push it in any further. He could only follow the force and withdraw the needle, and a small stream of dark, blackish blood spurted from Engineer Chen’s temple as the needle came out.

“Golden Needle Detoxification?” Professor Shi, who had been in shock for some time, couldn’t help but exclaim.