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

"I wasn't thinking of..."

Lin Ran was about to speak when the innkeeper said to himself, "I understand, brother. Wait a minute... I have some 'secret tips' here. If you need them, I can give them to you. I guarantee you'll make the girls at Chunshui Tower scream with delight!"

Lin Ran's words abruptly stopped. He watched as the shop owner squatted down, seemingly searching for something on the counter. After a while, he found a few small bottles and mysteriously stuffed them into Lin Ran's hand.

The shopkeeper glanced around and said in a low voice, "Since I see you're destined to meet me, I'll give these to you as a gift. There's a little note inside the instructions. Brother, sometimes you shouldn't be reckless. These clever tricks are useful when needed; you can't let those women ride roughshod over you!"

Lin Ran: "..."

Boss, sometimes automatic transmissions have their own unique charm!

In short, as soon as Lin Ran returned to the hotel, she grabbed a few bottles of "secret tips" without really understanding what was going on, and went upstairs.

Watching Lin Ran's figure, the innkeeper picked up the tea that had been brewed earlier, smelled the faint medicinal aroma, took a few sips, and felt warm all over. He sighed, "This brother really has it tough. His body has been drained by those two not-so-great women. He can't even enjoy his trip to the fullest!"

Lin Ran almost missed a step and fell down the stairs when he reached the corner. He held onto the wall, glanced downstairs again, and decided to let the boss go after thinking about it. After all, the boss meant well, and there was no need to resort to violence.

Lin Ran walked slowly to his room. Just as he took out his key to open the door, the door on his left suddenly opened, and a faint yellow light spilled out, illuminating the dim corridor. Xin Zhiqing, dressed in a simple dress, walked out of the room.

This surprised Lin Ran, who couldn't help but ask, "I remember... isn't this Qianqian's room? Mr. Xin, what's this...?"

"No... I was just feeling a bit bored being alone in my room, so I went to chat with Qianqian for a while..." Xin Zhiqing closed the door, and the corridor suddenly became dark, with only a few moonlight falling through the blurry windowsill.

The innkeeper had many clever ideas, but he was rather stingy when it came to decorating the place, not even bothering to put some luminous pearls in the hallways for lighting.

Xin Zhiqing exchanged a few pleasantries, then walked past Lin Ran without saying anything more, heading back to her room. But as she passed by, a gust of wind carried a strong scent of rouge and powder into Xin Zhiqing's nostrils. She couldn't help but glance at Lin Ran again, noticing some small bottles in Lin Ran's hand.

These bottles were different from the usual medicine bottles, which made Xin Zhiqing feel a little familiar. It seemed that their Guangmingtang had also sold similar ones.

Seeing Xin Zhiqing looking at the things in his hands, Lin Ran quickly tucked the bottles into his sleeve, unlocked the door, glanced at Xin Zhiqing, and smiled, "Goodnight, Boss Xin!"

"OK, good night!"

Xin Zhiqing nodded, and then Lin Ran slammed the door shut. Xin Zhiqing stood in front of Lin Ran's door, staring at the wooden door for a while before returning to her own room.

After lighting the candles in the room, Xin Zhiqing became curious about the strangely shaped bottles and began rummaging through her spatial ring. She had already emptied her spatial ring when dealing with the Medicine King Sect, leaving only the Exploding Thunder and the Medicine King Sect map.

The rest were all put in that big box. When she left Dancheng, she asked Lin Ran to dig out the box and take it with her. On the way, Lin Ran also returned a lot of things to her so that she wouldn't end up penniless.

While rummaging through her spatial ring, Xin Zhiqin actually found something similar. She usually labels each batch of pills, and when she found these small medicine bottles, her face turned bright red after glancing at the labels and their effects.

"Why would Mr. Mengde need these things!"

Xin Zhiqing exclaimed inwardly. She had just smelled the strong scent of rouge and powder. She was no naive girl. Although her husband had left her after only a few times, she still had experience!

With her limited experience, she could easily guess where Lin Ran had gone.

"With Miss Qianqian around, Mr. Mengde still goes to places like that, really..."

Xin Zhiqing couldn't quite understand. Although Miss Qianqian wasn't exactly stunningly beautiful, she wasn't bad-looking either. Why would she go to those brothels and music parlors?

However, this is their business, and it's not appropriate for her to say much. But she can give Qianqian a gentle reminder to take the initiative in winning over Mr. Mengde. She also has a manual for Qianqian to study.

Back in her room, Lin Ran placed the small medicine bottles somewhere in the room, leaving them for the next person who would stay there.

Lying on the simple wooden bed, Lin Ran suddenly remembered that Fan Hua had mentioned to him some time ago, asking him to come to the Liusu Palace when he had time. Now that he had this opportunity, Lin Ran summoned a miniature version of the Liusu Palace and transformed into a golden light to enter the Liusu Palace.

After walking through the long corridor and arriving at the main hall of the Liusu Palace, Fan Hua, who was sitting lazily on the throne, couldn't help but stand up and say to Lin Ran, "You've returned from listening to music at the brothel?"

"Don't make baseless accusations! I was just there on official business, you saw it yourself!"

Lin Ran has lived a life of integrity and honesty; how could he be slandered like this!

Fan Hua rolled her eyes at Lin Ran and said, "Come with me!"

Fan Hua led the way, taking Lin Ran to the foot of the Liusu Palace, to the place where the Mirror Moon Saint Emperor's sword was once kept.

Just as Lin Ran was curious, she saw an egg quietly placed on the stone platform in the center of the ancient hall. The egg was emerald green like a precious jade, with mysterious patterns on its surface. It exuded a strong vitality, and being next to it made people feel very comfortable and refreshed.

Lin Ran suddenly remembered that this egg was the one he had obtained by exchanging a Heaven-level cultivation technique when he and Li Yuhan went to see the auction items at the large-scale auction held by the Jinling Chamber of Commerce after the academy selection competition.

"Fan Hua, do you recognize this?" Lin Ran asked Fan Hua in a deep voice.

Fan Hua shook her head, walked to the egg, and frowned as she explained, "I'm not quite sure what this is. Did you make any noise when you picked it up?"

"I felt a sudden pain in my palm, but when I removed it, there was no problem. I could also vaguely hear the egg beating like a heart," Lin Ran recalled.

"You can hear a heartbeat?!"

Fan Hua couldn't help but feel surprised, and murmured, "Is it a demon beast egg? It shouldn't be. Even with special methods, a demon beast egg couldn't have been sealed for so long and still have such vibrant life force... So what could it be?"

Lin Ran didn't disturb Fan Hua's contemplation; he walked over to the egg and observed it.

After bringing it back, he studied it for a while, but found nothing. It seemed that apart from its terrifying vitality, the egg only served to freshen the air.

"If this egg could be used to make air freshener and sold, it would be incredibly profitable. It would refresh your mind and help your son achieve top marks in his exams!"

Lin Ran couldn't help but have this thought pop into her mind, and she felt like laughing. But the egg seemed to be able to hear Lin Ran's thoughts, and it actually shook twice under Lin Ran's gaze, as if venting its dissatisfaction.

Lin Ran: "?"

What did he just see? Why is this egg moving on its own?

Lin Ran felt a little creeped out. She pulled Fan Hua, who was almost possessed by something, over and pointed at the egg, saying, "Fan Hua, did you see it moving just now?"

"Did this egg just move?" Fan Hua was taken aback. She even picked up the egg, weighed it in her hand, and tossed it into the air. "I didn't feel that strange sensation you described. Could it be your imagination?"

"Hallucination? Impossible, let me try!"

Lin Ran didn't believe it was an illusion. When he took the egg from Fan Hua's hand, he felt pain in both hands at the same time. He felt as if a cut had been made in his palm, and the egg was constantly sucking his blood and spiritual energy from that cut.

This time, he couldn't let go even if he wanted to; the egg was stuck to him like a stubborn skin condition.

"Holy crap, that thing called 'Blooming Flowers' is sucking my blood and spiritual energy, and it's doing it way too fast!" Lin Ran exclaimed in a panic.

"let me help you!"

When Fan Hua stepped forward to take the egg, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't separate it from Lin Ran's palm.

As Lin Ran absorbed more and more blood and spiritual energy, her figure became increasingly withered. Her once close-fitting clothes became loose and baggy, almost falling off. Her exposed skin showed that Lin Ran was visibly thin and aged, and her once black hair rapidly turned snow-white.

When Fan Hua saw Lin Ran so weak, she was terrified. She even used the power of the Flowing Tassel Palace to try to separate the thing from Lin Ran, but she still couldn't do it.

She could only watch helplessly as Lin Ran grew thin and bony, while the patterns on the egg's surface became increasingly dazzling and mysterious. Profound runes emerged from the patterns and surrounded Lin Ran, with emerald green light illuminating the surroundings and an extremely rich life force gradually permeating the entire hall.

As Fan Hua squinted, trying to figure out what the strange egg was trying to do, she saw, within the emerald light, that the egg, which should have been the size of a baby, was actually making a cracking sound, and she could vaguely see something coming out of the egg.

Meanwhile, Lin Ran was practically being drained of energy and turned into a skeleton, her eyelids so heavy she looked like she was about to collapse at any moment.

Just when Fan Hua thought Lin Ran was about to die, the egg shattered completely. Quick, she saw a figure rushing towards Lin Ran with a green light.

The abundant life force and the vibrant green runes were quickly absorbed and then flowed into Lin Ran's body, rapidly repairing her physique.

In just a few moments, the emaciated Lin Ran returned to her previous appearance, and even seemed younger than before.

This scene left Fan Hua, who was slumped on the ground, a little bewildered.

"What exactly is going on?"

……

32. Mysterious Girl

For Lin Ran, those few short minutes were like a brush with death. If it weren't for his relatively strong will, he probably would have fainted halfway through and never woken up again.

Fortunately, the changes that occurred in his body made him extremely grateful for his perseverance. His broken body was soaked in the extremely rich life force, and the dried blood in his body was quickly replenished. Moreover, this new blood seemed to be more active than before, and his body became more resilient and unbreakable after this ordeal.

What was even more surprising to Lin Ran was that when he looked inward at his heart, a vital location, there seemed to be a surge of emerald green light at the center of his heart, with runes flashing across it. Each heartbeat became more powerful, and the blood that flowed out nourished his body with abundant vitality.

It can be said that he underwent a tremendous change at this moment, and the threshold of the Dragon Transformation Realm, which was once unattainable for him, seemed to be within reach.

Lin Ran opened his eyes. Although he had a premonition, when he saw his fair and flawless hands, he seemed to see himself when he was fifteen or sixteen years old. As the genius who suddenly appeared in the Lin family, he was full of vigor and youthful spirit.

His attention shifted from his hands to his chest, because Lin Ran saw a pair of slender, lotus-root-like arms crossed over his chest. He couldn't help but turn his head to his left, where a stunningly beautiful face came into view.

It was a girl's face, flawlessly beautiful. Her beauty rivaled that of Lin Hongjia, a young woman in her prime, and was no less striking than that of the aloof Shangguan Mengqing. If one had to describe her in a single word, she would be like an elf, an elf who ruled over life. Of course, she didn't have those pointed ears…

Her face glowed with a jade-like emerald green light, and her long, flowing emerald green hair flowed like a waterfall. Her eyes gazed at Lin Ran with an unwavering stillness, like an ancient well. Just as Lin Ran was about to speak, she transformed into countless emerald green specks of light and merged into Lin Ran's heart.

If it weren't for the powerful beating of his heart and the surging, vibrant life force in his blood telling him that this wasn't an illusion, Lin Ran might have thought he was under some kind of spell, and that everything he had just seen was a mirage.

Lin Ran stood up and stretched. He turned his head and saw Fan Hua slumped on the ground. He quickly asked, "Did you see that girl who was leaning against me? What was that?"

"If... I'm not mistaken, then it might be... um..."

Fan Hua thought for a long time, then finally shrugged and said helplessly, "Okay, I have to admit I'm getting old. I can't quite put my finger on what this is, but it gives me a sense of déjà vu. Judging from your condition, it shouldn't be a bad thing for you. Let's leave it at that!"

"So casual?"

Seeing that the flowers had already started blooming, Lin Ran quickly asked, "Couldn't you at least tell me something about your background?"

"How about... asking your girlfriend Meng Qing? She definitely knows; she has the inheritance of the Mirror Moon Holy Emperor!" Fan Hua suggested.

But this turned out to be Lin Ran's problem. He scratched his head and said, "I don't know if Meng Qing finds me too annoying. Lately, when I send her messages, they all go unanswered."

"Well, do you think they're as free as you? They have things to do too. You're just like a simp, saying good morning and good night all day long. Isn't that annoying?" Fan Hua couldn't help but complain.

Lin Ran: "..."

Why does Fan Hua talk so "Lin Li Lin" these days? She's even learned to use the word "simp." It's true what they say, you become like those you associate with!

People are always afraid of the unknown, and Lin Ran was also quite afraid. Although she felt that it was a bit painful at the beginning, it was like a rebirth now, but she still felt uneasy if she didn't get to the bottom of it and understand it clearly.

"Never mind, let's leave it for later. Maybe Mengqing will have time someday!"

Lin Ran didn't dwell on the issue any longer. After leaving the Liusu Palace, he found his body to be very dirty. The immense life force he had just experienced had cleansed out the few remaining impurities in his body.

After washing up, looking at myself in the mirror, my skin, after being splashed with cold water, had a healthy pinkish glow. It didn't make me look thin and bony, nor did it make me look rough and clumsy. The muscles and bones of my body were perfectly distributed, as if God had sculpted it with the most precise instruments.

However, in fantasy worlds, there is usually no God.

"The more I look at myself, the more I resemble a pretty boy. I'm the man who's going to be the father of the Great Emperor!" Lin Ran fiddled with himself in front of the mirror, uttering nonsensical words.

After showing off for a while, he put on his underwear, collapsed onto the bed, and fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. As for cultivation... he'd rest today!

……

After resting in Daofu City for a few days, Lin Ran and her two companions continued their journey towards Linghua City. They bought a carriage, with Lin Ran acting as the driver, and smoothly entered the territory of Linghua Academy.

During their journey, Xin Zhiqing and Wen Qianyi became good friends. Both were alchemists and both were women, and the latter was obviously more important.

After all, sometimes the formation of female friendships is like finishing a winter vacation assignment in one night – it happens so fast you can't even imagine how you did it.