The middle-aged man dressed in luxurious clothing, upon reaching this point in his thoughts, immediately pictured that deceitful-looking merchant and couldn't help but feel immense hatred. That merchant was the one who sold the daughter of the Immortal Sect Master and Gusu Qingwen to the auction. Earlier, this middle-aged man had already located the merchant, intending to directly purchase the two female slaves from him.

However, to the middle-aged man's frustration, the merchant did not sell the two female slaves directly to him. Instead, he sent them to the auction. Originally, the man thought just a few thousand Spirit Stones would let him enjoy those two girls whose looks alone were incredibly exciting. But in the end, he only managed to snatch one girl and spent tens of thousands of Spirit Stones. How could the middle-aged man not be angry!

In the room, the middle-aged man dressed in luxurious clothing shot a sinister glance at the adjacent bedroom. There, the trembling silhouette of a young girl caught his eye, which made the cruelty in his eyes intensify yet also appear exceedingly lecherous.

"Since it was so hard to get her, if I don't enjoy myself properly, it would be a huge disservice to myself, let alone the tens of thousands of Spirit Stones!"

The middle-aged man dressed in luxurious clothing muttered lecherously to himself.

The muscular man standing beside him noticed this scene and felt somewhat bewildered. Seeing that the master wasn't in a good mood, he cautiously asked:

"Who do you wish me to kill, my lord?"

"That merchant who thinks he's so clever, costing me those extra tens of thousands of Spirit Stones! He must be killed!" The middle-aged man dressed in luxurious clothing said bitterly. Just thinking about those extra Spirit Stones made his heart ache...

"Yes, my lord. I've seen that merchant before, but there's an elder beside him whose power might be extraordinary." The muscular man said with some worry.

"Is that going to be a problem?" The middle-aged man asked angrily.

"No problem, my lord. Those who offend you must die, no matter the cost. Although the elder is a Spirit Severing stage cultivator, he's just equal to my current cultivation. Recently, I'm on the verge of a breakthrough and will definitely be able to kill them!"

The muscular man already understood his master's intention by observing his displeased face. That merchant's head was desired by the master. The master's decision was firm, and no one could change that. Therefore, he could only hope to break through soon and suppress the elder beside the merchant in terms of cultivation.

"Should I bring back the head of the boy who embarrassed you first?" The muscular man suddenly remembered the boy who competed with the master for Qing Mei in the auction today. Disdain flashed in his eyes. Although the boy was wealthy and seemed like a scion of a prominent family, any young lord, regardless of the family, trying to take women in front of the master, was doomed! Plus, the boy's cultivation was mediocre, and he could easily be killed. The muscular man had his own calculations: if he could kill that boy first, he'd have more time for cultivation.

That way, the chance of killing that elder would increase!

"No need! The boy may be arrogant, but the real culprit is that wretched merchant. Until I see his head, my anger won't subside!"

The middle-aged man said through gritted teeth.

"Yes, my lord!" The muscular man agreed readily, though a hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes.

Following that, the muscular man left the room. What he needed to do now was find the merchant and others, kill them, and present their heads to the master as quickly as possible. The muscular man, being at the initial stage of Spirit Severing, was already a top-level expert around Panyang Town and among the highest in the entire Cultivation World. Few could match someone of the Ninth Level and above in the Cultivation World.

However, the muscular man held deep respect for the middle-aged man he respectfully called "my lord." Although the lord's cultivation was average, only at the Nascent Soul Mid Stage, his influence was vast. Years ago, when the muscular man faced a bottleneck in his cultivation, the lord generously gifted him a Supreme Quality Medicine Pill, helping him become a Spirit Severing cultivator.

Moreover, the lord had extensive connections. There were numerous cultivators like him at the Spirit Severing stage under the lord's influence. Among the lord's friends was even a Grade Nine Alchemist, making the lord's capabilities unrivaled. Thus, for the muscular man, obeying the lord wasn't just about repaying a favor but considering his own future cultivation path.

The muscular man walked out of the room, brushing past a young man. The muscular man thought about the elder beside the merchant and realized it wouldn't be easy to deal with him. His expression turned dark, and he paid little attention to the young man walking straight towards him.

The young man, naturally, was Ding Fan. Before coming out, Ding Fan took another Disguise Pill, so his appearance differed from when he was at the auction. With the muscular man preoccupied, he didn't notice the disguised Ding Fan. Ding Fan also refrained from taking action.

Ding Fan had heard everything the muscular man and the middle-aged man discussed in the room, and thus he knew that the muscular man was just another subordinate of the middle-aged man. Ding Fan came this time to rescue the daughter of the Immortal Sect Master, so he didn't want to meddle in other affairs.

Although Ding Fan clearly heard their talk earlier and knew they held a grudge against him, and would sooner or later act against him, what surprised Ding Fan was that in a small place like Panyang Town, there was a cultivator of the Spirit Severing stage.

Even though that muscular man possessed cultivation at the Spirit Severing Initial Stage, Ding Fan had no issue concluding the fight with him. However, Ding Fan didn't act immediately, because he realized the muscular man had received orders from the middle-aged man to deal with the merchant.

This obviously appeared to be a dog-eat-dog situation, and naturally, he planned to strike when both dogs were most engrossed in biting each other.

Ding Fan had long intended to settle accounts with the merchant who captured Gusu Qing Wen. Although Qing Wen hadn't said much about how the merchant treated her, Ding Fan could clearly see that Qing Wen obviously suffered greatly in the merchant's hands. If Qing Wen hadn't asked him to rescue the Immortal Sect Master's daughter, his first task would be to find that merchant!

At this moment, Ding Fan headed directly towards the middle-aged man's room. Earlier, he had used his Divine Sense to locate the Immortal Sect Master's daughter Bai Her, who was bound hand and foot with ropes in a bedroom inside the middle-aged man's room, crying like a pear blossom drenched in rain, struggling but to no avail.

Inside the room, the middle-aged man was vigorously rubbing two shiny walnuts in his hands, wearing a lecherous smile as he watched the struggling woman on the bed, his eyes gleaming blue, his heart was burning hot...

"I spent tens of thousands of Spirit Stones just to acquire her. Today, I'm going to enjoy the taste of a young girl!" said the middle-aged man with a lewd expression, simultaneously climbing onto the bed. Seeing the bound girl crying like a pear blossom soaked with rain, the middle-aged man felt even more pleased.

The bound girl felt utterly hopeless. Though she anticipated an ill fate, when the moment arrived, she was still extremely panicked and despairing. As she watched the man's hand reaching towards her like a demon's, she prepared herself to die...

As the girl was about to bite her tongue to end her life, suddenly, an unexpected youth appeared before her eyes, behind the middle-aged man.

"Hmm?"

The middle-aged man noticed the girl suddenly gazing behind him, stopping her cries, his heart paused in confusion. He was just about to turn around when someone behind spoke:

"Master, there's one thing I don't understand."

The middle-aged man heard the familiar voice, his heart relaxed, followed by anger. He wondered what was the issue, hadn't he clearly explained? How dare that kid disturb him at this moment, totally out of line! As he was about to turn and give a stern reprimand,

Suddenly, the middle-aged man felt a fierce force at his neck, not lethal but precisely enough to make him immediately faint. If the middle-aged man turned now, he'd undoubtedly be greatly shocked.

Clearly, behind him wasn't the muscular man he expected, but Ding Fan, with an altered appearance.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

At this point, the woman tied on the bed watched Ding Fan knock out the middle-aged man, finally breathing a sigh of relief, saved from death by his intervention. Yet when she saw him approaching her, her heart tightened again.

"Don't be afraid, you're Bai Her, right?" Ding Fan comfortingly stood still upon noticing her frightened look.

Seeing her slightly nod, still without words, Ding Fan confirmed she was indeed Bai Her and continued:

"I'm a friend of Qing Wen, I've come to rescue you."

"Qing Wen?" The woman did not know anyone named Qing Wen, unsure of whom he referred to.

"She's often called Qing Mei in the Cultivation World," Ding Fan realized she might not know Qing Wen by her real name and explained.

"Oh? You mean Xiao Cing? You're her friend, and she sent you to rescue me?" The girl finally understood, joy surfacing as she questioned him.

Ding Fan nodded, saying nothing more, and proceeded to untie her ropes, then produced a Medicine Pill, instructing her to swallow it. Her cultivation was sealed, body weakened below an ordinary person, naturally needing unsealing.

Reinstating some cultivation would aid in their escape. The seal on Bai Her was not difficult for Ding Fan to break, a pill boosting True Qi sufficed, and he had a few, promptly handing one to her.

She took the pill without hesitation, astonished shortly after as her cultivation completely restored!