Top-tier Unruly Master

When Zhen Xiang was in pain, rolling back and forth on the ground, Ding Fan walked over to her.

No matter what, although there had been misunderstandings between the two, if Zhen Xiang hadn't previously credited him with the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass, Ding Fan wouldn't have been able to cultivate. Therefore, considering this, Ding Fan felt obliged to help.

Furthermore, Ding Fan had clearly sensed with his Divine Sense that the short middle-aged man had used a Killing Gu, a type that gradually robs a person of their ability to breathe, eventually causing everyone to watch the flower girl die oblivious of the cause.

For a practitioner of martial arts to act so ruthlessly, especially against an ordinary girl— even if the flower girl hadn't wanted to sell him the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass, he had no reason to kill her outright.

Ding Fan held Zhen Xiang in his embrace, pressed his right thumb at her philtrum, and then infused bursts of True Qi into her body, subsequently controlling the Gu Insect inside her with his True Qi.

Having previously dealt with Zhou Ruoran's situation, Ding Fan didn't dare immediately kill the Gu Insect with his True Qi. After pacifying the Gu Insect for a while, he then attempted to kill it with his True Qi.

What Ding Fan found somewhat lucky was that the Gu Insect inside the flower girl wasn't as stubborn as the one inside Zhou Ruoran. Ding Fan didn't have to exert much effort to directly kill the Gu Insect inside Zhen Xiang.

"Ding Fan... is it really you?" Zhen Xiang said as she saw Ding Fan, her eyes brimming with unrestrained joy.

Ding Fan hadn't expected such an expression from the flower girl, especially since during their last encounter, she had repeatedly called him a scoundrel.

"How are you feeling now?" Ding Fan asked Zhen Xiang.

Zhen Xiang touched the part of her chest that had felt uncomfortable before, then slowly shook her head. "I'm fine now."

Zhen Xiang paused, as though she had suddenly remembered something, and quickly said to Ding Fan, "Ding Fan, the Tri-White Flower, no... the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass... was taken by that short middle-aged man. It was meant for you."

Zhen Xiang had known she had misunderstood Ding Fan, and had thought of many ways to find him, but to no avail in the end.

One day, Zhen Xiang had an idea. Previously, Ding Fan had asked for credit to buy the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass, so it must have been very important to him.

Zhen Xiang had people search the nearby flower booths, initially struggling a lot to find the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass, checking many places with no one having the Tri-White Flower.

Later, Zhen Xiang finally managed to buy a pot of Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass for five hundred yuan during an unexpected opportunity.

Zhen Xiang's thought was simple: having the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass by her side, Ding Fan would eventually come searching for it...

When Ding Fan heard Zhen Xiang say that the Fragrant Mind-Consolidating Grass was meant for him, he was slightly taken aback. He thought about how the short middle-aged man had offered tens of thousands, yet Zhen Xiang refused to sell it, only wanting to keep it for him.

However, this also made Ding Fan somewhat puzzled; how could Zhen Xiang be so sure he would appear given his elusive tracks, unless he was Zhou Ruoran, who would not sell the flower for tens of thousands?

Although Ding Fan was curious, now was not the time for questions. He had marked the short middle-aged man with his Divine Sense. His plan was to save the flower girl and then pursue the short middle-aged man.

"Gather your things and head back first; I'm going after that short middle-aged man."

After speaking, Ding Fan stood up and directly chased after the disappearing figure of the short middle-aged man.

Zhen Xiang just sat there, blankly staring at the place where Ding Fan had disappeared…

...

Ding Fan followed the Divine Sense mark and pursued it.

The extremely abnormal Gu Insect inside Zhou Ruoran wasn't administered by this man, yet it was greatly associated with him. Therefore, Ding Fan now needed to find the short middle-aged man and force him to reveal the method to eliminate the Gu Insect so that Zhou Ruoran wouldn't suffer the bone-eating pain of the Gu Insect anymore.

Ding Fan hadn't chased long when he felt the Divine Sense mark disappearing at an alarmingly fast rate; he quickly realized that the short middle-aged man must have boarded a vehicle.

Without wasting time, Ding Fan also hailed a taxi then followed the Divine Sense mark at breakneck speed.

The taxi raced all the way from the city to the outskirts. Midway, because he was worried about Zhou Ruoran, Ding Fan immediately called Mei Li to take care of her.

Eventually, the taxi that Ding Fan was in stopped outside a villa in the suburbs.

After paying the taxi fare, Ding Fan didn't act recklessly; he directly pulled out the Invisibility Pearl from his storage ring.

This Invisibility Pearl, obtained from the Ancient Martial Ruins at Changan Ridge, was being used by Ding Fan for the first time.

The Invisibility Pearl was a treasure that obscured physical traces. Although it could hide one's tracks if their cultivation was formidable, it was useless if one encountered someone with a higher cultivation than themselves.

Although the Invisibility Pearl could conceal his tracks, his aura was completely impossible to hide. If he encountered someone with higher cultivation, they could easily locate him based on his aura alone.

Ding Fan had used the Invisibility Pearl and then slowly walked into the villa. Along the way, he held his breath and focused his mind, believing that, under Human Level, no one could find him.

After entering the villa, Ding Fan swept the area with his Divine Sense and quickly found a short middle-aged man in a room on the second floor.

Inside that room, apart from the short middle-aged man, there was also a woman around twenty years old. It was obvious that the woman was with the middle-aged man. As soon as the man entered the room, the two of them started hugging and cuddling each other.

In that room, besides the short man and the woman, there was also a man tied up on the floor.

The man on the floor was not old, probably just over twenty years of age.

At this moment, Ding Fan was not in a hurry to go in; he wanted to understand the situation first.

"Kid, you better stop being stubborn. Since you've stolen the Martial Arts Tome from the Lu family, just hand it over to me nicely, or else don't blame me for being rude!" the short middle-aged man said with a displeased expression, kicking the young man on the floor.

"Hmph, even if I die, I won't tell you the martial arts our ancestors passed down. You might as well kill me." The young man named Lu Fan gritted his teeth, looking resolute.

"Lu Fan, didn't you say you'd do anything for me before? Why are you unwilling now?" the young woman beside the short man said with a flirty smile to Lu Fan.

Lu Fan huffed coldly, and a deep hatred flashed through his eyes.

"I was blind before to fall for your tricks, fairy. I tell you, even if I die, I will never hand over the Martial Arts Tome to you."

Hearing the words "Martial Arts Tome," Ding Fan frowned deeply.

That day at Changan Ridge Martial Artist Hermit of the Horizon's ancient ruins, Ding Fan had not only obtained the Invisibility Pearl but also a longsword, a cultivation technique, and a letter to Ren Susu.

The Ancient Martial Arts Technique he obtained that day was the Martial Arts Tome. The Hermit of the Horizon had asked him to entrust the letter to Ren Susu. After many years, Ding Fan had thought he would never find the inheritor of the Martial Arts Tome, but unexpectedly, he encountered it here.

Ding Fan focused on listening to the dialogue inside; he wanted to understand the whole story.

At that moment, the young woman swayed to the short middle-aged man's side and gently kissed him. The short middle-aged man let out a lecherous laugh, and the two of them started kissing in front of Lu Fan.

"You disgusting couple, I was blind. Ancestors, I have let you down, it was my fault!" Lu Fan said through clenched teeth, his eyes tightly shut.

"Little fairy, I'll deal with you later, but first, we have serious matters to attend to." The short middle-aged man walked over to Lu Fan.

"Now, hand over the Martial Arts Tome, or I'll let you experience the agony of neither living nor dying..."

Lu Fan scoffed disdainfully. "I committed an unforgivable sin against my clan by stealing the Martial Arts Tome... If I give the Martial Arts Tome to you now, how could I face my ancestors of the Lu family..."

"Very well!"

As the short middle-aged man spoke, he slightly raised his hand.

At that moment, a tiny white Gu Insect appeared in the palm of the short middle-aged man.

When the short middle-aged man revealed the Gu Insect, the young woman beside him feigned a frightened expression.

"This Gu Insect is called the Flesh-Eating Gu. It's said to have an exceptional ability to reproduce, multiplying every minute, each time producing five new Gu... Moreover, this Gu consumes human flesh very quickly. Lu Fan... with your current body size, you would probably be eaten clean within an hour..."

After hearing the young woman's words, Lu Fan's face indeed turned ugly.

"You two dog man and woman, just kill me if you dare, but don't torture me! Give me a quick death!" Lu Fan almost roared.

"Killing you quickly would be too boring. It's interesting to think about a bug eating away at your body bit by bit..." The short middle-aged man smirked wickedly.

"Lu Fan, hand over the Martial Arts Tome, and I assure you, nothing will happen to you," the young woman said.

"I won't. Give up on that idea!"

The short middle-aged man's expression turned grave. "Then die..."