Top-tier Unruly Master

Ding Fan was not worried that the muscular man was telling lies; just a moment ago, he had instantly dislocated the man's arm. In that instant, unless the muscular man was an exceptionally strong-willed cultivator, the words he uttered amidst such excruciating pain would undoubtedly be true.

Having obtained the whereabouts of the Azure Flame Beast, Ding Fan did not further trouble the muscular man. As he let go, he immediately reconnected the man's bones.

Seeing Ding Fan let him go, the muscular man appeared as if granted amnesty and rushed away as if fleeing.

Ding Fan returned the way he had come. While he had chased after the muscular man, Lin Yanxi had remained at Zongfang Hall.

Lin Yanxi had been waiting by the door of Zongfang Hall's large pharmacy for Ding Fan to emerge from the alley. From her expression, it was evident that she had been searching for him in the vicinity after he left.

"I had some matters to attend to just now, so I stepped out for a moment," Ding Fan said, feeling that it had been quite impolite of him to leave without notice, so he offered a simple explanation.

Lin Yanxi didn't mind and nodded in understanding.

Lin Yanxi and Ding Fan had originally come to Zongfang Hall to gather some medicinal herbs for Lin Zhanting, and now that Ding Fan's business was concluded, it was natural to continue gathering the medicines. So, the two of them entered Zongfang Hall together.

Because of the recent medical competition between Ding Fan and Song Guotao, he had become the center of attention, and people were continuously looking his way as he entered Zongfang Hall.

Ding Fan did not like this kind of attention and, after gathering some Chinese medicine, he left Zongfang Hall with Lin Yanxi...

...

In Honggang City, within a traditional Chinese courtyard house.

At that moment, an elder with a white beard was holding a purple sand pot, sitting in a rocking chair, listening to Peking opera, and gently nodding along as he hummed.

Standing beside the elder with utmost respect was a middle-aged man.

When the middle-aged man's face became clear, it turned out he was none other than the manager of Zongfang Hall, Rao Licheng.

"Elder Tian, I have already investigated the background of that young man. His name is Ding Fan, and he's an esteemed guest of the Lin Family in Honggang City. Lin Zhanting's illness was indeed cured by him," Rao Licheng said as he finally spoke after waiting for the elder to finish listening to a segment of the opera.

The man known as Elder Tian, although his hair was completely white, had a radiant complexion which indicated exemplary self-care.

"You said earlier that after Ding Fan won the medical duel against Song Guotao, he came back and gathered another prescription?" Elder Tian thought for a moment before asking.

"Yes. I have already copied down that prescription," Rao Licheng said as he respectfully handed the copied prescription to Elder Tian.

Elder Tian took the prescription and as he read through it, his eyes grew wider and wider, until at last, his hands trembling violently, still clutching the prescription.

"Elder Tian? What's the matter?" Rao Licheng asked with some concern upon seeing Elder Tian's reaction.

Elder Tian did not reply to Rao Licheng's question but instead pointed to the prescription and asked, "This prescription, are you certain it is Ding Fan's?"

Rao Licheng nodded slightly. "Indeed it is. Elder Tian, is there something wrong with it?"

Elder Tian, suppressing the excitement in his heart, rose from the rocking chair and took another careful look at the prescription before speaking with a hint of shock.

"If I'm not mistaken, this prescription could very well be the Four Symbols Divine Prescription."

The Four Symbols Divine Prescription? Rao Licheng heard the name for the first time and looked puzzledly at Elder Tian.

Elder Tian did not keep him in suspense and continued, "The origins of the Four Symbols Divine Prescription are already unknown, but it is said to be a prescription that can bring the dead back to life."

Bring the dead back to life? Rao Licheng was somewhat incredulous. How could an ordinary prescription be so miraculous?

Elder Tian was not bothered by Rao Licheng's reaction. "Years ago, I was fortunate to have seen a fragmented scroll of the Four Symbols Divine Prescription from the hands of an ancestor of ancient martial arts. At the time, I had memorized several medicinal herbs from memory. Sirius Herb... Earth Star... Desiccation..."

As Elder Tian spoke, he began to recall the prescription from memory.

"The herbs I've just recited are all present in Ding Fan's prescription, and in addition, there are eight other medicinal herbs... If I'm not mistaken, those eight herbs are the ones not recorded on the fragmented scroll.

It seems that Ding Fan must have had an extraordinary encounter to have luckily acquired the Four Symbols Divine Prescription..."

"Elder Tian, if this really is the Four Symbols Divine Prescription, then we..." Rao Licheng's eyes gleamed with anticipation. Though he did not finish his sentence, his intention was clear: the Four Symbols Divine Prescription, long lost, had suddenly appeared in Zongfang Hall. It meant that Zongfang Hall's days of prosperity were not far off.

Elder Tian shook his head slightly. "This prescription originally belongs to Ding Fan. If we were to claim it as our own, it would be stealing. Traditional Chinese medicine has lacked talent for some time; Ding Fan's fate is remarkable, and perhaps he could indeed bring glory to the field of Chinese medicine..."

"Then Elder Tian..."

Rao Licheng was about to say something else when Elder Tian started speaking. "Let's find an opportunity to pay a visit to this young doctor together..."

Rao Licheng was startled.

Elder Tian's status was extremely prominent; people had once referred to Elder Tian as the living fossil of the traditional Chinese medicine community, with high seniority and even higher prestige. The fact that Elder Tian was willing to condescend to visit a youngster in his early twenties was simply unimaginable.

At this moment, Elder Tian did not notice Rao Licheng's attitude, as he walked into his own room, holding the prescription in his hand and muttering to himself.

"So the use of the Sirius Herb is like this... How exquisite..."

...

Today was not Lin Yanxi's lucky day. She nearly got hit by an unidentified van on the way to Zongfang Hall, and now, on the way home, a tire on her car had broken down.

It really was like the saying, when you're down on your luck, even drinking water can lodge in your teeth.

What was worse was that it had started pouring rain out of nowhere. Lin Yanxi had planned to leave the car on the roadside and get a ride back with Ding Fan, but with the torrential downpour, she probably would have been soaked the moment she stepped out of the car.

With the car stopped halfway, Lin Yanxi tried, but couldn't get out. Inside the car were just her and Ding Fan, and now, unfortunately, they were in the middle of nowhere, which made the atmosphere within the car extremely awkward.

Although Ding Fan did not look at Lin Yanxi, he could sense her restlessness. Even though Lin Yanxi was trying very hard to control and suppress her irritation, if it wasn't vented, it would definitely affect her life and health.

Whether or not Lin Yanxi was doing well didn't really concern him, but for some reason, when he sensed that slight bitterness hidden within her seemingly cold exterior, Ding Fan thought of Zhou Ruoran.

Ever since their parting in Dancheng, Ruoran had not come out of her own shadow...

"Don't you like the rain?" Ding Fan asked indifferently.

Perhaps it was the similarity of that bitterness to Zhou Ruoran's that made Ding Fan think of waking Lin Yanxi up.

Lin Yanxi was slightly stunned; since she had gone to the airport to pick up Ding Fan, they had spoken very few times, probably not even ten sentences. And now, Ding Fan was actually initiating conversation with her.

"I don't like it..." Lin Yanxi answered coldly.

However, even though her tone was cold, she herself found it quite unbelievable. Normally, she detested talking to men, not to mention speaking to them. Unless absolutely necessary, she wouldn't say a word.

But, for some reason, when she heard Ding Fan speak, she didn't have that strong feeling of dislike, and she could even respond to him quite comfortably.

"Hiss..." Just then, a sudden, unexpected sharp pain shot through her heart, causing her to lean heavily on the steering wheel. In a matter of moments, her forehead was covered with sweat.

Ding Fan saw everything, and even without using his divine sense, he already knew what was wrong with Lin Yanxi.

Lin Yanxi's emotional block, bottled up inside her heart. Sustained over the years, her heart couldn't bear the load.

This illness wasn't exactly a serious one, but because Lin Yanxi's emotional block had been suppressed for too long without an outlet, and with her closing herself off, the stored-up frustration kept accumulating until it would become a terrifying bomb!

Earlier, when Lin Yanxi had nearly been hit by the white van, she was indifferent, which was also largely related to her unresolved frustrations. At that moment, death might have seemed a better option to Lin Yanxi than living.

Gently, Ding Fan lifted Lin Yanxi's right leg. Although Lin Yanxi was in great pain and didn't understand what Ding Fan was planning to do, she somehow guessed that he wanted to help her.

After lifting Lin Yanxi's right leg, he swiftly took off her shoes and socks.

There, before Ding Fan, her delicate foot appeared, carved like jade.

Small, exquisite, smooth, tender...

As Ding Fan gently held that delicate foot in his hand, he couldn't help but admire the beauty of creation; such a beautiful foot was simply comparable to a work of art.

However, now was not the time for Ding Fan to appreciate fine art. He held the back of Lin Yanxi's small foot with his right hand, and then, with the thumb of his left hand, he began to gently press against the sole of her foot.

As her foot was held in such a manner by Ding Fan, Lin Yanxi couldn't help blushing, despite the pain in her heart. After all, no one had ever had such an intimate contact with her before.

Lin Yanxi wanted to resist and retrieve her foot from Ding Fan's grasp, but her pain at the heart began to fade away as he continued to massage the sole of her foot.

This surprised Lin Yanxi; her heart pain had been a problem for more than a day or two, and it usually lasted for quite a while. Yet today, the pain had just started and was already gone with Ding Fan's massage...

After massaging Lin Yanxi's right foot, Ding Fan then lifted her left foot, following the same steps: taking off the shoe, removing the sock, and then starting to knead...

...