Xiao Qingge mutely nodded her head as she watched Li Ran diligently roast the bear paw.
"Since the Holy Son is so outstanding, there must be many people who admire him, right?" She asked the girl.
Lu Xinran nodded, "More than you can imagine. In our Hidden Gauze Sect, with its eight peaks and twelve seats, which female disciple doesn't admire the Holy Son?"
Although this statement was a bit exaggerated, it was not far from the truth.
Handsome looks, high talent, and esteemed status—Li Ran was the perfect male idol.
"Well... does he have someone special in his life?" Xiao Qingge couldn't help but ask.
"Are you kidding? Of course not!" Lu Xinran replied seriously. "The Hidden Gauze Sect forbids romantic relationships, and we only admire him from a distance, without daring to have any other indecent thoughts."
"Besides, think about it, the Holy Son reached the Golden Core stage at the age of eighteen. He must be deeply devoted to cultivation, so where would he have time for romance!"
"That makes sense!" Xiao Qingge nodded, and a heavy burden seemed to lift from her heart.
"But even though we can't have romantic relationships, we can occasionally get close," Lu Xinran added.
"Get close?" Xiao Qingge inquired.
Lu Xinran leaned in close to her ear, blushing slightly, and said with some shyness, "I took the opportunity to hug the Holy Son earlier. His touch, his muscles... they're truly amazing!"
"You're such a pervert!" Xiao Qingge blushed and scolded.
She suddenly felt as if someone had touched her husband...
"Oh, by the way, I don't know your name yet?" Lu Xinran asked.
Xiao Qingge hesitated for a moment, and then gave out a fake name. "My name is Sun Qingqing."
She didn't want to deceive this kind girl, but the name "Xiao Qingge" carried too much complicated meaning behind it, and it could easily invite trouble.
Moreover, she didn't want to reveal her true identity and face Li Ran in this appearance.
Lu Xinran didn't think much of it and nodded. "I'm Lu Xinran. Don't worry, I'll look out for you!"
She spoke with the air of an older sister.
"Thank you," Xiao Qingge replied with a warm smile.
As Xiao Qingge watched the warm campfire, the disciples playing around her, and Li Ran enjoying the bear paw, she felt a sense of warmth she hadn't experienced at home.
"So, this is a top-tier demonic sect?" Xiao Qingge's lips curled up slightly. "It doesn't have a bit of the typical villainous atmosphere!"
Since Xiao Qingge had learned of Li Ran's identity, she had let go of all her guards. Not only did she hand over the map directly to him, but she also shared all the information she knew.
This led Li Ran to briefly suspect that there might be something wrong with her head.
"Senior Li, we only have three days left until the secret realm opens. Shouldn't we pick up the pace?" Xiao Qingge asked during a moment of organization.
In these past few days, Li Ran had been leading the group in hunting and killing monsters, resulting in a river of blood outside the Ten Thousand Mountains.
It seemed like he had no intention of heading to the secret realm.
"No rush, let's wait until the sect's training is over," Li Ran replied.
The secret realm was deep within the Ten Thousand Mountains, and he couldn't just leave these disciples behind.
"Alright," Xiao Qingge had no objections.
Two more days passed.
The disciples gathered enough monster bones, successfully completing their training mission.
Li Ran sent them back to the sect's teleportation array.
Seeing the returning disciples, he caretakers guarding the array were shocked.
Normally, the sect's training missions lasted about a month and often came with casualties.
However, the group led by Li Ran completed the task in just a third of the time.
And not a single disciple had been lost.
The once-innocent disciples were now carrying monster bones, their eyes fierce and determined!
Everyone had undergone a qualitative transformation!
...
In front of the teleportation array, Li Ran looked at them and calmly said, "To be honest, I didn't have high expectations for you at first, but in these ten days of trials, you have proven yourselves."
The expressions of the trial disciples were filled with excitement, and their chests heaved as if they had received the highest praise.
"The path to immortality is difficult, and the Dao is hard to attain!"
"We must press forward and advance with high spirits, only then can we achieve immortality!"
"While talent is crucial in cultivation, even more important than talent is an unwavering belief that never retreats!"
Li Ran's gaze swept across each person's face, and he spoke slowly but firmly, "I wish you all a prosperous martial journey!"
The disciples trembled all over, feeling like their blood was about to boil.
Whoosh!
Everyone knelt down simultaneously, shouting fervently:
"Yes!"
"Yes!!"
Xiao Qingge stood on the side, watching this awe-inspiring scene, unable to speak for a long time.
...
Reluctantly, the disciples entered the teleportation array and returned to their sect thousands of miles away.
Lu Xinran clung to Li Ran's thigh, insisting on continuing the adventure with him.
She ended up being kicked into the array by him...
Li Ran watched as the array's light faded and couldn't help but sigh with a lonely expression.
'I wonder if Master has returned to the sect? I really want to hold her little hand and hear her call me husband...'
Xiao Qingge didn't understand the depths of his emotions and thought he was just sad about the disciples leaving.
So, she come up to his side and softly patted his shoulder, and with a smile, she gently comforted him, "Don't be sad; they will have to learn to grow up on their own, they can't keep depending on you all the time."
Li Ra, hearing the girl word, tilted his head to the side in confusion,
'How is their growth related to me?'
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