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

Lin Ran used this half-day off to invite Mulan and Mu Shishuang to wander around the area, hunt some wild game, and enjoy a good meal.

In the evening, they would set up a stove in front of their house, eat and grill food, and occasionally glance at the paintings above the secret realm, discussing the recent events that had occurred in the secret realm.

"But you know what... the number of people being eliminated from the secret realm recently has indeed been increasing. I heard from those who came out that factions have started to form, and they are fighting fiercely against each other, mostly over those inheritances... I wonder who will win in the end?" Mulan took a bite of a meat skewer and said, recalling the information she had recently obtained.

"Is there any news about those inheritances?" Lin Ran asked curiously.

Mulan shook her head, glanced around, and then said in a low voice, "We don't know yet, but it's said their level won't be too low; they were at least at the Saint Realm..."

Hearing Mulan's words, Lin Ran felt a chill run down her spine. At least it was a Saint Realm inheritance, so it was definitely not bad. If she could get her hands on it, her strength would likely increase by a level.

"Judging from the original work, Xiao Chong also obtained an inheritance here. I wonder what level it was. It was obtained by the protagonist, so it shouldn't be too difficult to trace..." Lin Ran thought to herself.

"By the way, aren't some of the people who participate in the secret realm able to join a super sect in the end? In this special case, how will people be selected to enter the super sect?" Lin Ran asked curiously.

He hadn't paid much attention to these issues before, but now that he'd thought of them, he couldn't help but ask. It turns out this was related to his child.

It's impossible to let Xiao Chong join the Sword Sect through back channels. Putting aside whether Xiao Chong would accept it or not, with so many eyes watching, even if he has a good relationship with Meng Qing, they still have to follow the rules!

"this…"

Mulan said somewhat embarrassedly, "I don't know about these things either. Perhaps the one from the Sword Sect knows more about them. Isn't it them who came to select people this time?"

"I didn't think of that right away, I'll go in a bit..."

As soon as Lin Ran finished speaking, he saw a graceful figure in white walking towards them from afar. Lin Ran's expression softened slightly. He moved aside and placed another chair there. "I really didn't expect that the protagonist would arrive just after I mentioned you!"

"I hope they're not saying anything bad about me!" Shangguan Mengqing said.

"How could that be!"

Lin Ran skillfully transferred the grilled meat from the skewer into a bowl, then placed a pair of chopsticks on it and handed it to Shangguan Mengqing. He knew that when there were many people, Shangguan Mengqing would pay attention to her table manners, but when it was just the two of them, she could relax a bit.

Mu Shi, standing to the side, stared at Shangguan Mengqing with a brooding look, a hint of resentment rising in her heart. She vented this resentment on the meat skewers in her hands, taking large bites of the meat, thinking to herself, "This fake aloof woman, even eating barbecue is so fussy..."

Mu Shishuang, who had initially been somewhat cautious, soon ate until she looked like a little kitten.

Upon seeing this, Lin Ran took out a damp towel she had prepared beforehand and wiped the oil off Mu Shishuang's face, saying helplessly, "Eat slowly, no one's going to take it from you..."

"Oh!"

Mu Shishuang nodded, her resentment dissipating considerably, and even the roasted meat seemed to taste sweeter.

Shangguan Mengqing naturally noticed this scene, but she didn't say anything. However, the shoe was somehow placed on Lin Ran's instep.

"hiss!"

Lin Ran gasped, pointing at the grilled meat and saying, "It's a bit hot, be careful when you eat it..."

"Mr. Lin... is it burning or does it hurt?"

Mulan thought to herself.

She did see the young sect leader of the Sword Sect's foot land on Lin Ran's instep, but she was an old hand at this and knew what to do. She pretended not to see it, otherwise she would get herself into trouble.

"But... how did these two get involved? They're so much older than each other, it's really intriguing!"

Mulan was filled with doubt.

Shangguan Mengqing only gave Lin Ran a small reprimand before withdrawing her foot. Lin Ran, being quick-witted, soon changed the subject to the question of how super sects should select their members.

Shangguan Mengqing removed her veil and took a sip of wine. Her beautiful, fair face was bathed in the golden light of the campfire, as if it were dyed with a layer of golden light, with a hint of redness. Lin Ran was somewhat mesmerized by her beauty.

As if she had thought of her words carefully, Shangguan Mengqing calmly explained: "In the past, the All-Continent Academy Competition always ended with a ranking competition."

"This secret realm is no exception. The final ranking will determine the overall ranking. Those who rank higher will naturally have the opportunity to choose which super sect to join. Those who rank lower, even if they volunteer, will have to see if they have special talents to have a chance to join us."

"How many people would the Sword Sect have recruited in the past?" Lin Ran asked curiously.

Shangguan Mengqing glanced at Lin Ran, calmly made a hand gesture, and said, "I only accept five, sometimes even fewer..."

"Five? That really means they've picked the best!" Lin Ran couldn't help but click her tongue in amazement.

According to the original novel, the Sword Sect was a super sect that purely focused on quality. Although it had few members, many of them were extremely powerful. It was also the super sect that fought the Void Evil Clan the most hard. In the end, the Sword Sect even faced the brink of annihilation because of its fight against the Void Evil Clan.

"I wonder if I'll end up going down this same old path again..." Lin Ran couldn't help but think to herself.

In fact, the Nine Provinces Continent is getting closer and closer to the crisis of being counterattacked by the Void Evil Clan. Originally, it had nothing to do with him. If things had developed honestly according to the original story, it could be said that he, the protagonist's father, would have had less and less screen time later on, with Xiao Chong and his friends and family dealing with the Void Evil Clan.

But because of the big commotion caused by his little butterfly, the situation is now different, and he bears a heavy responsibility!

After all, the inheritance of the Azure Emperor was not obtained for nothing. He would have to take on the responsibility of dealing with the Void Evil Clan in the future. Even if he did not want to take on this responsibility, he would have to work harder to cultivate in order to protect his woman and child.

"Thinking about it this way, it seems I've figured out the meaning of my cultivation!" Lin Ran hadn't expected that her random thoughts would lead her to find the meaning of her hard work in cultivation.

"Let's practice a bit more tonight after we've eaten enough!" Lin Ran said telepathically.

Shangguan Mengqing, who was eating barbecue, looked at Lin Ran with some surprise. Normally, the old man would not hate cultivation, but he would definitely not like it either. Why did he suddenly change his mind?

"What triggered you?" Shangguan Mengqing asked in return.

"I want to relive my old dreams with the fairy. To put it bluntly, I'm lusting after the fairy's body!" Lin Ran teased.

He wouldn't say that he was worried about the future invasion of the Void Evil Clan, or that he was afraid he wouldn't be able to save Shangguan Mengqing and the others he loved. Those were all vague and uncertain things, just guesses he made from the original story. Saying them now would make him seem a bit crazy.

"Okay, then you'd better keep it up. I still mean what I say!"

A blush rose on Shangguan Mengqing's neck, but it wasn't very noticeable in the light of the campfire. She slightly tugged at her collar.

She wasn't as calm as she had imagined when Lin Ran spoke such direct words of love, but she didn't want Lin Ran to find out. If the older man knew she was shy, he would probably use it against her for a long time.

After dinner, Lin Ran asked Mu Lan to take Mu Shishuang to wash up, while Lin Ran followed Shangguan Mengqing into the secret realm to continue their targeted cultivation.

At first, Shangguan Mengqing thought that Lin Ran's enthusiasm would only last a few days. She knew Lin Ran well; he was the kind of person who only worked hard for three days and then relaxed for two, and he couldn't stick to it for long. He always needed to be urged to get started.

But this time Shangguan Mengqing misjudged him. The old man didn't seem to be joking. He was working very hard to complete the tasks she assigned him every day, and even asked for extra practice.

This actually made Shangguan Mengqing a little nervous. If Lin Ran really succeeded and surpassed her, and then asked to "relive the old dream", should she refuse or agree?

Although it wasn't the first time for the two of them, Shangguan Mengqing was genuinely quite scared when she was sober, afraid of being ridiculed by the older man.

"No, I must also work harder in my cultivation to delay this day!" Shangguan Mengqing secretly made up her mind to postpone this day until she was fully prepared mentally.

Although their initial intentions were different, they both wanted to cultivate diligently and achieve their desired goals.

From this perspective, the two are quite in sync.

……

159. The increasingly chaotic secret realm

Why are so many people gathered there to watch today?

In Shangguan Mengqing's room, Lin Ran stood by the window and, through the crack in the window, saw a large crowd gathered in the square, intently watching the scene in the scroll.

Shangguan Mengqing stretched lazily as she walked over to Lin Ran and said with a sweet breath, "Perhaps the competition in the secret realm is coming to an end!"

"So fast?"

Lin Ran looked at Shangguan Mengqing in surprise and said with some confusion, "Hasn't the secret realm only been open for a short time?"

Shangguan Mengqing couldn't help but reach out and touch Lin Ran's head, saying with some doubt, "I don't think I hurt your head during cultivation, did I? Why do you seem a little dim-witted?"

Lin Ran: "..."

Is he brainless to be so blatantly sarcastic now? I'm so angry and cold. When did the fairy become like this?

"There's nothing wrong with my head, it's just that being with you is so fulfilling, and time seems to fly by!" Lin Ran decided to retaliate against Fairy Yishou and speak her mind.

"Oh, so it was me who stole your time!"

"Yes, so please return my time!" Lin Ran said with a smile.

"How am I supposed to return it? I don't have the means..."

"It's okay, I support a completely new way to repay debts..."

Lin Ran lowered her head and slowly kissed Shangguan Mengqing's luscious lips.

A few seconds later, Lin Ran raised her head and gazed into Shangguan Mengqing's deep and captivating eyes.

Shangguan Mengqing parted her red lips slightly and said, "Old man, are you sure this is to pay off a debt?"

"You stole my time and said you couldn't repay it, so this is the only way you can pay me back!" Lin Ran said shamelessly.

"I think what you're doing is more like lewd behavior. To be so insolent towards an unmarried woman like this would get you beheaded in my country," Shangguan Mengqing said with interest.

"How will you be beheaded?" Lin Ran couldn't help but ask.

"Let's cut off the head and tail first!"

"Where do I have a tail?"

“This tail is not that tail!” Shangguan Mengqing said with a smile in her eyes.

Upon hearing this, Lin Ran felt a sudden drop in temperature. He realized he hadn't been harsh enough in demanding the debt; hadn't he noticed the girl was already threatening him?

Lin Ran lowered his head again, and when he found those lips, he savored their sweetness. He also put his hand behind Shangguan Mengqing's head, not letting the beauty escape.

The beauty closed her eyes and responded earnestly to her man, but this time she was careless and the old man sneakily attacked her waist. Her body stiffened, and her clenched teeth were forced open by the old man, who shamelessly entangled her.

After a long while, their lips parted, and Shangguan Mengqing looked at Lin Ran with eyes as clear as water. Her voice was no longer as cold as before, but carried a hint of charm as she said, "Old man, you're getting bolder and bolder. Aren't you afraid that I'll go to my master and tell him all the good things you've done?"

"I'm not afraid, dying under a peony is still a romantic death!" Lin Ran licked her lips and smiled.

“I didn’t expect the old man to be so bold now. In that case, come back to the Sword Sect with me and see my master!” Shangguan Mengqing said softly.

This time, it was Lin Ran's turn to freeze. He scratched his head awkwardly and said, "Isn't it a bit inappropriate to see your master so early?"

"What's wrong with that? We're in this situation now, are you trying to renege on your debt?"

"I won't renege on my debt. It's just that our situation is special, and we need to give your master some time to prepare mentally. I'm afraid she won't be able to accept it all at once and might faint!" Lin Ran said earnestly.

It's definitely not that he's afraid to see Mengqing's master; it's just that if the old man knew about his situation, he might faint from anger.

Hearing Lin Ran's words, Shangguan Mengqing's smile deepened. She said softly, "You really care about my master. But she's at the peak of the Saint Realm, so her physical condition should be fine. She shouldn't faint."

Lin Ran: "..."

Don't even mention the peak of the Saint Realm. Just mentioning that level of strength makes his legs tremble. If he were to actually see him in person, he would be so frightened that his legs would go weak and he would immediately bow deeply to his master.