Chapter 498 - 498: Celebration and Angry Roars

The cameraman was being mischievous, too. He actually detached the microphone, handed it to the Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine expert, and said with a gloating grin, "When you bite, use a little more force, or you won't get through it."

The Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine expert held the microphone and burst out crying with a WAH.

'Damn it, this thing is actually made of iron! Even if I use all my strength, I can't possibly bite through it!'

But no matter how impossible it was, in front of so many people, he had no choice but to fulfill his vow. He squeezed his eyes shut, shoved the microphone into his mouth, and chewed down with all his might. A series of grinding, scraping sounds emerged, enough to make anyone's skin crawl.

Zhao Yuan smiled, paid him no more mind, and turned to leave the consultation room.

The Chinese doctors swarmed around him, treating him like a conquering hero returned from battle.

And in fact, that's exactly what he was!

He had single-handedly defeated over a hundred Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine experts, winning a battle for national pride and the fight for their medical heritage!

If that wasn't a great hero, then what was?!

And that was indeed how everyone saw him.

As Zhao Yuan walked out of the consultation room and left the outpatient building, everyone he passed along the way—whether doctor or patient—would stop, make way for him, and then break into heartfelt applause.

They were applauding Zhao Yuan's victory, and also applauding the triumph of Traditional Chinese Medicine over Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine!

All along the way, the applause was ceaseless. And when Zhao Yuan stepped out of the outpatient building, he saw a sight he would never forget!

In the plaza outside the outpatient building, hundreds, even thousands, of people had gathered.

Among them were doctors who had rushed here from all over the country, ordinary people, and of course, no shortage of reporters from the media.

Upon seeing Zhao Yuan emerge, everyone, unable to contain their excitement, began to clap and cheer wildly. The roar was so immense that it seemed to make the very ground tremble and the entire outpatient building shake.

"Zhao Yuan! Zhao Yuan! Zhao Yuan!"

"Victory! Victory! Victory!"

People chanted Zhao Yuan's name and shouted for victory. Some were so overcome with excitement that they didn't know how to express their feelings, and after a long moment, could only blurt out things like "Fucking awesome!" or "Totally badass!"

This scene also startled Zhao Yuan.

He had never imagined that so many people would come to celebrate his victory. He certainly hadn't expected them to cause such a massive scene.

For the past few days, his communication devices had been confiscated, and he hadn't watched TV or used a computer. He had no idea that his duel with Kawashima Haruhiro, thanks to live streaming and media coverage, had become the hottest trending topic of the moment.

In fact, now that the scene of Zhao Yuan's victory was out, even more people were rushing over. If Zhao Yuan had left the outpatient building just a little later, the crowd waiting for him would have been even larger, and the scene even grander!

The medical experts who had come out with Zhao Yuan all took a step back in unspoken agreement. Ma Guotao, standing behind him, gave Zhao Yuan a gentle push and said, "Go on. This is your moment of glory!"

Zhao Yuan took a deep breath and walked out of the outpatient building.

He was met with a tsunami of cheers and applause! Along the way, people voluntarily cleared a path for him. At the same time, many reached out their hands, hoping to touch him and absorb some of his awesome energy.

Walking through the crowd, Zhao Yuan clearly felt wave after wave of admiring Wish Power, each stronger than the last, surging toward him like a tide. Although the intensity and purity of the Wish Power weren't high, the sheer quantity was overwhelming.

As this admiring Wish Power flowed into him, Zhao Yuan was thrilled to discover that his Cultivation was showing faint signs of a breakthrough!

He was currently at the Peak of Marrow Cleansing. Another breakthrough would take him to the Qi Listening Realm!

This was the final realm of Body Refining, the state that truly marked the threshold to the path of cultivation!

At this moment, Zhao Yuan was incredibly excited.

But, as luck would have it, someone just had to ruin his moment.

Just as Zhao Yuan reached the center of the hospital plaza, a middle-aged man fought his way out of the crowd and blocked his path.

At first, everyone thought the man was just overly excited and wanted to offer an enthusiastic celebration. But when he opened his mouth to speak, they realized they were mistaken.

This guy was clearly here to start trouble!

The middle-aged man spoke in heavily accented Chinese as he issued his challenge to Zhao Yuan. "Lord Zhao, I am a disciple of the Xiaodao Tian School. On behalf of my school, I hereby issue a formal challenge! In the future, the Xiaodao Tian School will dispatch its masters to seek your instruction. We trust you will not refuse to enlighten us when that day comes!"

The entire crowd burst into an uproar.

The Chinese doctors furiously glared at this member of the Xiaodao Tian School, looking like they wanted to swarm him and tear him to pieces.

'Don't you bastards ever give up? Are you trying to wear him down with a war of attrition or what?'

As for the Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine experts who had not yet left, their eyes lit up.

They realized this was an opportunity to salvage their reputation!

Having won this national contest, Zhao Yuan had already become something of a final boss or Demon king in the eyes of the Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine Community. If they could defeat him, not only could they regain all the face they had lost, but they might even become heroes who had saved the day. And even if they lost the challenge in the end, it didn't matter. With the right spin, they could portray themselves as tragic heroes who, for the glory of Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine, would sacrifice themselves to challenge a powerful enemy!

'No matter how you looked at it, it was a no-lose situation!'

The Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine experts who had figured this out all pushed their way to Zhao Yuan's side, issuing challenges one after another. They didn't care whether Zhao Yuan agreed or not; they just made the challenge first and would worry about the rest later. As long as they had issued the challenge, they would have plenty of ways to rebuild their image and reputation once they returned home.

The Chinese doctors were infuriated. Before Zhao Yuan could even speak, they stepped forward to intercept the challenges on his behalf.

"Want to try a war of attrition? You'll have to ask if we agree first! The Xiaodao Tian School, is it? We, the Han Kou College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, accept your challenge! You want to challenge Zhao Yuan? You'll have to get through us first!"

"Matsui School, if you want to challenge Zhao Yuan, try defeating us at the Capital City Medical College first!"

"And us at West Hua Medical University! You want to challenge Zhao Yuan, right? You want a war of attrition, is that it? Fine, we'll play along! Once you've defeated all of us, you'll naturally get your chance to challenge Zhao Yuan!"

One roar of fury after another shook the Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine experts, who trembled in fear before finally slinking away in disgrace.

Watching their retreating backs, Zhao Yuan narrowed his eyes and said, his voice brimming with Killing Qi, "You don't need to come challenge me. In a little while, I will go to Japan and challenge every single one of you at your own doorsteps!"

Hearing this, the Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine experts stopped in stunned surprise. They turned back to look at him, their faces filled with utter disbelief, unable to trust their own ears.

The Japanese Traditional Chinese Medicine experts could be certain that Zhao Yuan was serious and not joking in the slightest.

Because the Killing Qi in his words was so thick it was suffocating!