Top-tier Unruly Master

If Su Qinger had bought this painting just for fun, Ding Fan wouldn't have wanted to meddle. However, upon hearing that Su Qinger intended to gift it to a respected elder, Ding Fan kindly reminded her.

Giving gifts, especially to elders held in high esteem, certainly requires presenting the real deal. Ding Fan and Su Qinger, being acquaintances, did not want to see her deceived by others. That's why Ding Fan spoke up.

"This painting is a fake," Ding Fan said.

As soon as Ding Fan made this statement, the shop assistant holding the painting became somewhat unhappy.

Working in this curio shop, they earned a meager base salary of just one to two thousand yuan a month, relying solely on commissions from sales.

Having sold the painting for fifty thousand yuan, the assistant could earn a commission of over one thousand yuan. Seeing the commission that was about to be in hand fly away, how could he be content?

"Friend, don't pretend to know if you don't. You haven't even looked at the content of the painting, so how can you say it's fake?" the assistant said.

Those who come here are mostly the rich and privileged, so the shop assistant didn't dare to be too presumptuous in his words, but his expression made no secret of his dissatisfaction.

Su Qinger was also stunned. The assistant was right—Ding Fan might be impressive, but without even looking at what was painted, how could he assert that the painting was fake?

"Brother Ding, this painting shouldn't have any problems. I looked at it very carefully just now and didn't see any issues," Qi Sirong chimed in from the side.

Ding Fan just smiled faintly and looked over at Su Qinger. "The painting is indeed fake, whether you believe it or not is up to you."

Although Su Qinger hadn't said anything at the moment, she could tell from her expression that Su Qinger did not believe his words.

Ding Fan did not have the patience or time to explain to Su Qinger why the painting was a fake. He had already given his warning, and what Su Qinger chose to do was now up to her.

After pondering for a moment, Su Qinger turned back and gave the shop assistant a smile. "My friend doesn't fancy this painting, so let's forget about it."

Qi Sirong, seeing this scenario, slightly furrowed his brows.

Su Qinger might have a cheerful personality, but she also had a stubborn and willful side; otherwise, she would not have followed her companions to the Immortal Peak Primeval Forest in the first place.

Qi Sirong knew Su Qinger well. Once she was determined to do something, no one could sway her. Yet today, without even having seen the painting, Ding Fan declared it to be a forgery, and she changed her mind so readily...

Qi Sirong's expression subtly changed. He sensed Ding Fan's position in Su Qinger's heart. Compared to Ding Fan, his own standing in Su Qinger's eyes fell far short.

Su Qinger put away her bank card, and the shop assistant shot Ding Fan a very displeased look, resenting that he had ruined his chance at the commission of over a thousand yuan.

...

Not far from where Ding Fan and the others were, a man was secretly observing everything.

He was a middle-aged man in plain clothes, the kind that would be hard to find again once lost in a crowd. At that moment, his eyes were fixed on the entrance of the Dongming Pavilion, as sharp as a hawk's.

The middle-aged man took out his cell phone and quietly dialed a number.

"I've located Ding Fan; he's still alive... I'm sure I saw him clearly... I won't let Young Master Luohao die in vain!"

After hanging up the phone, the man glanced around to make sure no one had noticed him, then he merged into the flow of people on the street.

...

After leaving the Dongming Pavilion, Ding Fan, Su Qinger, and Qi Sirong were planning to find a place to eat and catch up. However, Ding Fan suddenly changed his mind after stepping out of the curio shop.

"I've got some urgent matters to attend to, so let's talk about the meal some other time," Ding Fan said.

Su Qinger was a little disappointed, but she understood the urgency and didn't insist on holding him back.

"Brother Fan, can you leave me your phone number, so I can call you when I have time?"

Back in the Immortal Peak Primeval Forest, if it hadn't been for Ding Fan, she might have died there. And Ding Fan had even kissed her thigh.

Remembering that overly intimate moment caused Su Qinger to blush, yet for some reason, she did not feel extremely embarrassed; on the contrary, she felt a sweet sensation in her heart.

After leaving the forest, as Su Qinger had mentioned before, she had been looking for Ding Fan all along. Whether it was to repay the life-saving grace, she wasn't clear. However, she often found herself thinking of Ding Fan, even recalling the light pleasant scent that came from him.

One of her best friends had defined Su Qinger's feelings as having an unrequited love for Ding Fan.

But Su Qinger didn't think it was a big deal. Loving from one side was just that, and besides, a person like Ding Fan was worth having such feelings for.

At that moment, Ding Fan gave a wry smile. "I really don't have a phone."

Su Qinger was taken aback, finding it hard to believe that nowadays someone would not have a phone.

After a moment's thought, it seemed as if Su Qinger had an idea. She pulled out her Apple phone and then took out a SIM card from her bag.

Next, Su Qinger installed the SIM card into the phone.

"This card was just issued by a friend of mine; now this phone and the card are all yours," Su Qinger said, with a happy smile on her face.

At this moment, Qi Sirong on the side was somewhat astonished; while others might not be aware of the significance of that phone card, he was.

Su Qinger had taken a liking to a particular phone number, one that ended with eight eights.

Such numbers were extremely difficult to acquire. Without tens or hundreds of millions, you simply couldn't get your hands on one. Moreover, even if you had the money, they were still hard to come by. To obtain this number, Su Qinger had called in many favors, even going so far as to ask Qin Manshu for help. Only then had she finally obtained this phone number ending with eight eights.

Su Qinger had just received the phone card today, and hadn't even used it herself yet. She had gone to great lengths to get this number, and now she had just given it away to Ding Fan.

Although Qi Sirong managed to keep a neutral expression, his face was starting to show signs of displeasure.

Qi Sirong could tell that in Su Qinger's eyes, Ding Fan was much more than just a friend. No one would simply give such a generous gift to a mere friend.

As for Ding Fan, he hadn't thought too much about it. He merely considered it a regular phone and a SIM card.

Without hesitation, Ding Fan accepted the gift courteously.

Seeing Ding Fan's lack of reserve, Su Qinger took a long breath out of relief. "Later, I'll send you my number, make sure to save it..."

Ding Fan nodded. "Alright, I will."

Having said that, Ding Fan no longer stayed there any longer. As if he had urgent business to attend to, he quickly blended into the crowd and vanished from sight in no time.

Watching Ding Fan's receding figure, Su Qinger's lips curled into a smile. At that moment, she remembered a saying.

Some opportunities, once missed, will never return…

Su Qinger decided that from now on, she wouldn't miss any more of life's wonders…

Noticing Su Qinger's daze, Qi Sirong coughed to get her attention. "Qinger, do you really not want to buy that painting? We are going to visit Elder Qian tonight; we can't go empty-handed."

Su Qinger glanced back at Dongming Pavilion. "Of course we can't show up empty-handed. Let's take the painting we saw earlier."

Having said that, Su Qinger turned and re-entered Dongming Pavilion.

Qi Sirong's face darkened. It seemed Su Qinger's earlier decision not to buy the painting wasn't out of a belief in Ding Fan's claim of its falseness, but because Su Qinger did not want to embarrass him. And now that Ding Fan had left, Qi Sirong turned back toward the pavilion to purchase the painting.

Ding Fan…

A cold glint flashed in Qi Sirong's eyes.

…

The reason Ding Fan hurriedly parted ways with Su Qinger and Qi Sirong wasn't due to other matters; he had realized he was being followed.

Although Ding Fan appeared to be calm, the reality was far from it.

Ding Fan had first slain He Chen, a descendant of ancient martial arts, then the wealthy heir Wang Luohao, and most recently killed the White Lotus Sect's Iron Dragon, taking control of Tie Hu using the Divine Summoning Technique…

It could be said that Ding Fan's situation was fraught with peril.

Being tailed, Ding Fan acted as if he hadn't noticed, intentionally leading the follower to a more secluded area.

Ding Fan planned to confront the person in a quiet place to ascertain exactly who was keeping tabs on him.

However, it seemed the pursuer was quite skilled in counter-surveillance. When Ding Fan tried to lead him to a remote area, the follower gave up the pursuit on his own.

This made Ding Fan aware of the extraordinary origins of his pursuer, causing an uneasy feeling to grow in his heart.

Now, Ding Fan felt like he could sense a formidable opponent lurking in the shadows, ready to pounce and tear him apart at any moment.

Ding Fan felt that Dongcheng was no longer safe for him, and he contemplated leaving. After all, his current strength was not yet enough to contend with such powerful beings.

However, leaving at once was not an option, as he still had unresolved matters to attend to.

Ding Fan figured he would deliver the Youth Preserving Pill to Zhou Ruoran once it was ready, and afterward, he would plan to leave Dongcheng. However, during the next couple of days, Ding Fan felt he could no longer return to stay at the Ning Family Pharmacy. It was a critical time, and going there again would only bring unnecessary trouble to Ning Luoxi and her family.

Still, he needed somewhere to stay. Ding Fan thought it over and decided to check into a hotel for the time being…

Walking along the road for a while, Ding Fan soon spotted a place called "7 Days Hotel." He headed towards the establishment, but before he could reach the hotel's entrance, Ding Fan caught sight of a familiar figure emerging from the hotel.

He recognized the person instantly; it wasn't anyone else but Li Guanglin, the very man he had encountered at Sichuan Cuisine with Su Maner pretending to be a couple the previous day.

Li Guanglin also saw Ding Fan and was taken aback, clearly not expecting to encounter him here. But then, his eyes narrowed into slits and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Isn't this Manager Ding? What a coincidence."

Ding Fan lives in Dongcheng, so he certainly didn't come here to stay the night. Most likely, he's here for a rendezvous…