My father is the main character, but the female leads want to kill me.

"Is this a fragment of the heartwood of the Tree of Wisdom? It's quite amazing. I wonder if this little thing can help my son clear dungeons."

Lin Ran gazed at the fragments of the tree heart from afar, thinking to herself.

In a private box among the VIPs, Mr. Xin of Guangmingtang was so angry that he almost smashed the table in front of him to pieces. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the tree heart fragments on the auction stage in the distance. If it weren't for his maid Xiaoxi's quick intervention, Xin Zhiqin might have rushed over without a care in the world.

She composed herself, wiped her eyes with her sleeve, and smiled, "Xiaoxi, I'm fine. After the auction, you can pack your things and get ready to leave!"

"Sister Xin..."

"obedient!"

Xin Zhiqing whispered a warning, then said nothing more, her eyes fixed on the fragment of the tree heart on the stage, lost in thought...

Many people tried to use their soul power or other secret methods to probe the tree heart fragments, but most of them failed. Some even suffered backlash. The occasional cries of pain that rang out in the auction house made Meisu on the stage sneer.

Meisu approached the crystal cabinet and said coldly, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is the highlight of this auction, and the reason why you have traveled so far to come here... the fragment of the heart of the Tree of Wisdom!"

Meisu practically spat out the last sentence, each word distinct. Even he felt an irrepressible greed for the tree heart fragment, but unfortunately, he couldn't find a way to use it and could only use it as bait.

Even though I had already guessed that this mysterious item was valuable, I never expected it to be this valuable. It was a fragment of the heartwood of the Tree of Wisdom!

If gazes could be tangible, the auction stage would already be ablaze, for the scorching gazes seemed poised to pierce the crystal case and set the fire ablaze on the fragments of the tree heart. Some people even began to stir with anticipation.

Unfortunately, the powerful aura of the Dragon Transformation Realm expert hidden in the shadows of the Medicine King Sect immediately silenced the crowd.

Mei Su's voice followed: "Everyone, I think we should still respect the rules of my Medicine King Sect's auction!"

"This aura doesn't seem as strong as your sister's!" Lin Ran teased Wen Qianyi, leaning close to her ear.

Wen Qianyi rolled her eyes at Lin Ran and said irritably, "The reason we can maintain our status as one of the five great academies is because my sister is a fifth-level Dragon Transformation Realm cultivator. No one in the Danger Triangle can compare to that."

This might be the only thing Linghua Academy can be proud of, after all, they only have Wen Bixuan, a five-star Dragon Transformation Realm cultivator, and nothing else.

Next, Meisu explained the auction method: go to the trading room, state the "price" you want to bid, and bring the treasure to the appraiser for evaluation. Finally, among the many treasures, the Medicine King Sect will choose the one that best suits their needs for the transaction.

In fact, the Medicine King Sect's barter system was quite good. They even set up a separate trading room, and only the auction organizers knew the "price" offered by each party.

After all, anything that can be traded for a fragment of the Tree of Wisdom's heart must be extremely rare. Everyone understands the principle of not flaunting wealth, and no one wants to be targeted or cause unnecessary trouble because of any treasures they possess.

"Everyone, please proceed to the trading room!"

After smiling, Meisu covered the crystal cabinet with the black cloth again, and the elders returned it to it. He then went to the trading room to oversee the proceedings, while the auctioneer from before took over the auction to maintain order.

As Lin Ran watched people gradually stand up and head to the trading room, she seemed a little uninterested. Wen Qianyi, sitting next to her, saw Lin Ran's expression and couldn't help but laugh, "Senior, don't you want to participate in the bidding? Although I'm not rich, I don't think it would be beneath you to use my meager savings to bid for you."

"How dare you make fun of me!"

Lin Ran smiled and pinched Wen Qianyi's nose, then looked at the people entering the trading room one by one and said in a deep voice, "We have no advantage in the bidding. Almost all we can offer are pills. The Medicine King Sect is also a force of alchemists. Even if their quality is not as good as yours, they can still refine them. If we bid with pills, we will not be able to compete with those other guys."

This so-called barter ultimately depends on the Medicine King Sect. It's like the Medicine King Sect will trade with whoever can best please them and whose price best aligns with their wishes. Clearly, they have no advantage anymore.

Wen Qianyi nodded, clearly agreeing with Lin Ran's idea. She glanced casually at the scene and saw that the group of people from Tianli Academy that Lin Ran had previously confirmed had also sent people in to participate in the bidding. She was surprised and told Lin Ran about it.

Upon hearing this, Lin Ran found it somewhat amusing and chuckled, "Given the relationship between the Danger Triangle and our five major academies, I think that even if the items are of the highest quality, they'll likely be the first to be eliminated in the bidding."

“I don’t think so. Maybe they’ll target the academy first, and then after they leave Dan City, they’ll do what you called ‘traditional skills’.”

Wen Qianyi had a different opinion from Lin Ran. In her view, the things the academy brought out must be good. Moreover, the most important thing was that the various academies did not have a strong foothold in the danger triangle area and did not have many people with them. It would not be easy for them to take the things out of the danger triangle area. They might even end up losing more than they gained.

"Qianyi is much smarter than me. Let's go outside and wait for a while. After we get what we're auctioning, we'll find a place to stay and enjoy the show that's about to begin. It'll be even more exciting than the auction itself!"

Lin Ran decided not to watch the people bidding in the trading room anymore. Instead, she went outside to ask if she could pay in advance, get the items they were auctioning, and leave.

Of course, Lin Ran's idea was still unsuccessful. Even if she could give it away, she would still have to wait until the auction ended before she could pay for and receive the auctioned items. The two of them were also invited by the auction house staff to wait in the VIP room.

In the VIP room, Lin Ran was drinking tea and standing by the window, looking out the window with boredom. Suddenly, a sound that seemed to pierce the sky rang out from the auction house.

Lin Ran was curious, so she asked a maid in the auction house, "Has the result been announced for the last item in the auction?"

Faced with Lin Ran's question, the maid was quick-witted and replied, "Yes, sir, just recently the last item was won by the Holy Sky Academy."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ran was startled and waved her hand to dismiss the maid.

Wen Qianyi got up and came to Lin Ran's side. She had obviously overheard Lin Ran's conversation with the maid, and she whispered, "Was it auctioned off by Shengqiong Academy?"

"Hmm, the Medicine King Sect is also treacherous. It seems they knew the identities of those powerful forces all along. They probably announced in front of everyone that the Holy Sky Academy won the bid after the auction was successful. It seems you guessed Qianyi right!" Lin Ran said.

Wen Qianyi's expression also turned serious as she said, "Then the situation will become very complicated, and Holy Sky Academy will probably face a lot of pressure this time."

"But doesn't the Holy Sky Academy have an Undying Realm expert? They dare to provoke them?" Lin Ran asked with some doubt.

Wen Qianyi shook her head and explained, "Senior, experts at the Undying Realm cannot act casually. Moreover, the Undying Realm expert from the Holy Sky Academy will only act when the Holy Sky Academy is in a critical situation."

Actually, let alone those in the Undying Realm, even those in the Dragon Transformation Realm shouldn't fight each other carelessly. But this time, it concerns the struggle for the heart fragment of the Tree of Wisdom, and a great battle between Dragon Transformation Realm experts seems unavoidable. Senior, perhaps we shouldn't get involved!

Wen Qianyi had already foreseen this bloody battle. Even though they were both at the peak of the Nirvana Realm, they were still no match for those well-known Dragon Transformation Realm experts!

Let's take a look first!

Lin Ran sighed helplessly. The situation had become more complicated than he had imagined. His biggest fear was that his son would be involved, and he would have to keep an eye on him then.

And then there's Boss Xin, who's always thinking about taking down the entire Medicine King Sect. If she actually manages to do it, things will get really interesting.

……

21. Obtaining the auction item

"Sir, Elder Mei invites you two to meet."

A maid entered the VIP room and approached Lin Ran respectfully.

This surprised both Lin Ran and Wen Qianyi. Wen Qianyi quickly figured out the reason and said through soul transmission, "It's probably because when we were bidding for the Starry Flame Stone Tablet, we took out pills, and most of what we auctioned were medicinal herbs, so they thought we were sixth-level alchemists and wanted to find an opportunity to win us over."

"Hehe, these guys have sharp eyes. Let's go meet them, otherwise we won't be able to get the medicinal herbs we won at the auction," Lin Ran replied.

After the two made their decision, Lin Ran asked the maid to lead the way. The maid led them to a luxurious VIP room, where Mei Su and the appraiser that Lin Ran had seen in the trading room were standing.

Upon seeing Lin Ran, Mei Su's face broke into a bright smile, his wrinkles crinkling together with laughter. He stepped forward and said warmly, "Mr. Cao, I just came down from the auction stage. I heard from my subordinates that Mr. Cao was waiting, so I rushed over without stopping. Why are you in such a hurry to bid on the items? Why don't you stay and attend the banquet hosted by our Medicine King Sect?"

At our Medicine King Sect auction, all items purchased by our esteemed guests will be delivered to their residences the following day. There's no need for such trouble.

"Hehe, Elder Mei, I'm not very interested in the banquet. Besides, I'm really curious about that stone slab right now. It's making me itchy to study its mysteries. So I'd like to settle the bill as soon as possible so I can take it back and study it properly!" Lin Ran said with a smile.

Since Lin Ran said that, Mei Su didn't say anything more. She waved her hand and instructed the servants to bring all the items that Lin Ran had mentioned for auction at the auction to the VIP room, including the stone slab.

Lin Ran wasn't as professional as Wen Qianyi at inspecting these things, so she let Wen Qianyi inspect the medicinal herbs and stone slabs, while she chatted with this old fox.

Mei Su glanced at Wen Qianyi, a strange light flashing in his eyes. When he tried to use his soul power to probe, he was startled by the golden light that flashed in Lin Ran's eyes. Just now, his soul power saw a golden dragon on Lin Ran's crown, staring at him menacingly. A dragon's roar made his soul tremble.

He instinctively took a step back, but quickly regained his composure and retracted his step, saying as if chatting with an old friend, "Mr. Cao, this is...?"

"Oh, it's my not-so-good sister. She said she was too bored at home, so I took her out for a walk." Lin Ran made up a story on the spot.

“Mr. Cao, where are you from? I’ve been in this dangerous triangle for many years, and I’ve never seen such a young and unfamiliar face as you,” Mei Su said.

“My brother and I came from Xinzhou and traveled all the way to Jiezhou. We heard about the Danger Triangle and came to take a look, so it’s normal that Elder Mei hasn’t seen it before. We will be going to other places in a while,” Lin Ran said.

"Xinzhou...that's a wonderful place!"

Elder Mei's eyes flashed with a strange light, and then he said, "When I was young, I also traveled to Xinzhou. There are many powerful people there. It was after I went there that I had the idea of ​​returning to establish a sect with my friends."

"Elder Mei must have gone to Medicine Saint Valley, right? That's one of the eight super sects in Xinzhou, and it's incredibly powerful. I wonder if Elder Mei went to the outer city of Medicine Saint Valley to learn a bit?" Lin Ran asked with a smile.

This question stumped Elder Mei. He had only heard of Medicine Saint Valley, and had no idea that it had an outer city!

Elder Mei's expression was somewhat unnatural, and he was trying to think of something to say to smooth things over.

Just then, Wen Qianyi's voice rang out, coldly saying, "Brother, everything has been checked, there's no problem!"

"It's good that everything is alright, Elder Mei. You should have these things checked as well!" Lin Ran took out the gold coins, spirit stones, and pills she had prepared in advance from her spatial ring and placed them on the table.

Elder Mei glanced at it, then asked the appraiser beside him to examine it. He then pulled Lin Ran aside and continued, "Mr. Cao is an alchemist?"

"Hahaha, Elder Mei really thinks highly of me. If I were an alchemist, my family would have sent me to Medicine Saint Valley to study long ago. What a pity!" Lin Ran sighed. He then pulled Elder Mei aside and boasted for a while about his great achievements in his youth.

After the appraiser said there were no problems, Lin Ran had Wen Qianyi pack up her things, exchanged a few more pleasantries, and then left the auction house with Wen Qianyi.

After the two left, the appraiser approached Elder Mei and couldn't help but ask, "Elder Mei, what... does this mean?"

"You mean you don't agree? Show me that pill!"

Mei Su wasn't angry. Instead, he asked the appraiser to bring the pill over for him to see. After carefully examining it, he was surprised and studied it again, even holding it in his hand to observe it. Finally, he came to a conclusion: "This is a Nirvana Pill made with Heavenly Fire and with alchemy skills far surpassing all the alchemists in their Medicine King Sect. It can be said that no alchemist in the entire Medicine King Sect could refine such a good Nirvana Pill."

"I'm just daydreaming about having an alchemist like that," Mei Su thought to herself.

Especially from Mr. Cao's remarks just now, it can be seen that he knows Xinzhou very well, and many of his observations match his own. He must be from Xinzhou. Moreover, he seems to come from a prominent family. There's no way such an alchemist would come to their Medicine King Sect.

As for whether there are any alchemists like this in Jiezhou, he certainly knows all the sixth-level alchemists who are well-known.

Of course, there are exceptions. One is that blond girl from Linghua Academy, who was once touted as the youngest sixth-level alchemist in Jiezhou, but then disappeared from the scene. He thinks that her reputation is overrated and she doesn't need to be considered.

Judging from the situation of the brother and sister, they didn't seem to want to get involved in the competition. Now it's up to them to see if the Nebula Pavilion will take action against them. If the Nebula Pavilion tries to take back the stone tablet, the Medicine King Sect can help them at the crucial moment. Perhaps they can take the opportunity to win over a powerful force, which would be of great benefit to the Medicine King Sect.

With this in mind, Mei Su had a general idea of ​​how she felt about Lin Ran and the other person…

……

The two, who had already left the auction venue with their belongings, did not return to Luofeng Pavilion. After avoiding the gazes of some members of the Medicine King Sect, Lin Ran led Wen Qianyi directly to Guangming Hall. However, Wen Qianyi seemed rather sullen along the way. It was only when they arrived at an alley near Guangming Hall that Lin Ran realized something was wrong.

He led Wen Qianyi to a deserted courtyard. Seeing that Wen Qianyi looked somewhat sullen, Lin Ran couldn't help but laugh and ask, "Why is my darling Qianyi so sullen?"

Wen Qianyi looked up at Lin Ran, crossed her arms, and said in a muffled voice, "Brother, don't speak so intimately. There's a difference between siblings. You'll cause misunderstandings."

Lin Ran, being a shrewd old man, immediately realized what he had done wrong upon hearing Wen Qianyi's words. He couldn't help but laugh and say, "Why can't I call you 'brother' so affectionately? Am I not...?"

With a final whisper in Wen Qianyi's ear, Lin Ran asked, "Your sweetheart?"

Just by adding one word, the title "brother" became extremely inappropriate. Wen Qianyi's pretty face turned bright red from the words "brother lover." She fanned her slightly hot face with her small hand and said in embarrassment and annoyance, "Senior, you really have nothing but inappropriate thoughts in your head!"

"Don't you like it when I'm being so unconventional?"

Lin Ran gradually pressed her body against Wen Qianyi, forcing Wen Qianyi to press tightly against the wall. The weight of her body pressed down on Wen Qianyi, and the warm softness from her chest reminded Lin Ran of what had happened a few days ago. Looking at Wen Qianyi's eyes, which were closed due to nervousness, her eyelashes trembled incessantly.

He couldn't help but laugh. This newbie was still so nervous. He leaned down and kissed Wen Qianyi on the cheek, then got up and left, saying softly, "Let's go, we still have important things to do!"

"Ok!"

A faint pink blush rose to Wen Qianyi's pretty face, and she softly hummed in agreement.

……

There weren't many people in Guangming Hall at the moment. After all, there was an auction that could be said to have shocked the entire Danger Triangle District today, and everyone had gone there to watch the excitement. It was normal that there were no people here.

Lin Ran led Wen Qianyi straight up to the second floor, where they happened to run into Xiao Xi, the classically-looking maid who had greeted them that day. Xiao Xi was startled when she saw the two of them and quickly said respectfully, "Hello, Mr. Cao. Are you looking for Sister Xin?"

"Yes, please inform them!" Lin Ran nodded with a smile. At the same time, his eyes were also sizing up Xiao Xi. Xiao Xi was not wearing the clothes she wore when she greeted the guests that day, but a simple long dress. There was some sweat on her face and her hair was sticky. She seemed to be in a hurry and wanted to go somewhere.