Chapter 24

Very quickly, Sun Ran explained his experiences in the Dragon World.

"Are you saying that you have already advanced to become a formal Order Maintainer and even received a legendary rating?" Lan Xin's eyes widened in surprise, and she forgot to drink her wine, which she had been holding in her hand.

"Yes, I can now go on missions with you." He smiled, feeling very happy.

Lan Xin's surprise lasted only a moment before it turned into genuine joy. She took a sip of red wine and smiled, "I knew you had the ability. At this rate, my investment will pay off soon."

"Of course." Sun Ran picked up a piece of food, his mouth full of oil, and his speech was muffled, "Since you have nothing to do now and we have money, why don't we go out and have some fun?"

Seeing his messy appearance, Lan Xin rolled her eyes and handed him a tissue as usual, "Can't you wait until after you finish eating? Take this and clean your mouth."

The scene was very familiar. Sun Ran was stunned. On Earth, the other party had the same expression and demeanor. Now, seeing it in the real world made him feel particularly warm.

"Oh, I understand." Sun Ran obediently followed her instructions and then began to listen to Lan Xin's opinion.

"Going out for fun is fine, but it's best not to spend money. Money shouldn't be spent recklessly; it should be saved for emergencies. Hmm..." At this point, Lan Xin looked at Sun Ran's sensory chair, "Your equipment needs to be replaced with a nutrient tank like mine. That chair is bad for your health if used for a long time. This is important."

As she spoke, she began to operate on the holographic screen and soon selected a nutrient tank-style sensory access device worth 9,000 credit points.

Before placing the order, Lan Xin looked up to seek Sun Ran's opinion, "I'm going to order it, okay?"

Sun Ran nodded, "Sure. We need it anyway."

He had no objections to what Lan Xin said. On Earth, Lan Xin managed the money, and he was already used to it.

So Lan Xin confirmed the order and then looked up, "Alright, we now have a bit over 200 credit points left. We need to be careful with our spending."

"Oh, I understand. Hurry up and eat, or the food will get cold." Sun Ran said indifferently, but in his heart, he secretly resolved to work harder on the next mission to earn a large sum of money.

He now felt that money was not easy to spend. Thousands or tens of thousands of credit points were not reliable. This thing needed to be in the millions for him to feel secure. Just like on Earth, he needed to be a large landowner with at least a thousand acres of land to feel solid.

Seeing Sun Ran's carefree appearance, she seemed to recall their past married life, smiled, and her expression softened. She habitually refilled Sun Ran's glass and then began to eat.

After eating for a while, Sun Ran suddenly looked up and asked, "Xin'er, did your mission fail this time?"

Lan Xin nodded, "The saboteur this time was very powerful. Ten teams went in, and all were kicked out."

Her face did not show much disappointment. As an Order Maintainer, failure was common. This was just a game; if you failed, you could try again with little loss.

Sun Ran carefully observed Lan Xin's expression and cautiously asked, "What about Ke'er and Xuanxuan?"

Lan Xin immediately became unhappy and glared at Sun Ran, "Calling them so affectionately?"

"Hehe, it's a habit, hard to change," Sun Ran laughed shamelessly.

Lan Xin was speechless, realizing she had overreacted, and smiled awkwardly, adjusting her tone, "They were also kicked out. We can go to the Order Maintainer headquarters to find them later."

The subtle changes in her expression did not escape Sun Ran's notice. After a moment's thought, he understood her feelings and felt both amused and warm inside.

He decided that today he would turn the raw rice into cooked rice!

So, Sun Ran put down his chopsticks, carefully wiped his mouth, rinsed his mouth with water, and put on a serious face.

"Why aren't you eating?" Lan Xin was a bit puzzled. Then she saw Sun Ran get up and walk over, her confusion deepening.

Then her hand was grabbed by Sun Ran. Before she could figure out what was happening, her body was also embraced. Instinctively, she tried to struggle and asked in a low voice, "What are you doing?!"

Before she could finish speaking, she felt her lips warm, and a familiar male scent filled her nose, making her heart tremble, almost forgetting to resist.

When dealing with a woman who already has a good impression of you, you must take the initiative, show your masculine charm, and never be a polite gentleman. This was the first rule of dating that Sun Ran had summarized over thousands of years, and he had never failed.

When you are well-fed and warm, you think about romance. According to Sun Ran's plan, a kiss would lead to more intimacy. But this time, there was an unexpected turn. Just a little more, just a little more, and Lan Xin finally resisted.

The next moment, Sun Ran felt a pain in his shoulder, then a strong force pushed him, and he felt himself flying through the air, landing heavily on the ground, almost disintegrating.

Looking up, he saw Lan Xin casually patting her hands, her face red, "I've been practicing martial arts since I was a child. If you want to take advantage of me, you deserve to be thrown to your death!"

Martial arts? Sun Ran swallowed hard, "In the game... you are a martial arts type Order Maintainer?"

Eight out of ten martial arts type Order Maintainers in the game also practiced martial arts in real life. Sun Ran, although powerful in the game, was just an ordinary person in reality who had recently had a heart transplant. He had never dared to practice before and had no interest in it now.

"You guessed right. I once participated in the virtual world's King of Land Combat training and graduated with excellent results. I also entered a martial arts world, coming from a martial arts family, and trained for twenty years, mastering the essence of martial arts. So, in the game world, I am an elite special forces soldier, proficient in both hand-to-hand combat and both cold and modern weapons." Lan Xin nodded proudly.

Sun Ran sighed in defeat, finding it hard to accept this fact. He had thought Lan Xin was a mature and alluring woman, a ripe peach waiting to be picked. He never expected her to be a fierce dragon!

In modern society, everyone has almost equal learning opportunities. As long as you are willing to work hard, you can achieve success. Therefore, modern society is not short of talented people.

Of course, talented people are not as numerous as one might imagine. To reach the peak in any skill requires immense effort. Modern society is too comfortable, and few people are willing to endure hardship. Many give up after a taste, and few are dedicated. Someone like Lan Xin, who could confidently say she had mastered martial arts, was even rarer. Sun Ran estimated that in terms of martial arts, he would never surpass his first wife in this life.

Lan Xin walked over, leaned down, and looked at Sun Ran, her face red, threatening, "Apologize to me, or you can lie there forever."

At this moment, many thoughts flashed through Sun Ran's mind.

First, he confirmed the disparity in physical strength. Sun Ran was completely defeated.

But for a man to give in so easily was too embarrassing, and the psychological gap was too large. So Sun Ran began to look for excuses to admit defeat.

The Tao Te Ching says, "The soft overcomes the hard" (a phrase plagiarized by one of his disciples); the saying goes, "A wise man does not suffer a loss"; modern values teach that violence does not solve problems, and problems should be solved with wisdom. These reasons gave him great psychological comfort.

So, Sun Ran gave in.

"Xin'er... oh, no, Sister Xin, I was wrong." As soon as the words were out, Sun Ran sighed, feeling his life was a tragedy.

"Sister Xin is a good name. I'm two years older than you. Call me that from now on." Lan Xin gently helped him up from the ground and considerately placed him back in his seat.

"I forgive you. Sit down." Lan Xin reached out to smooth the wrinkles in his clothes.

Sun Ran was still unwilling and cautiously asked, "Does this mean we can't be intimate anymore? We were married for over a decade."

"Talk about that again, and I'll really hit you!" Lan Xin felt her face burning, and she raised her fist threateningly.

She did have a good impression of Sun Ran, but she felt unprepared, especially since Sun Ran always had a carefree attitude, which made her feel insecure.

"Alright, I won't say it anymore."

Sun Ran quickly stopped, not expecting Lan Xin to be so sensitive in the real world. Her face was flushed, almost like a red apple, and he really wanted to take another bite. Unfortunately, her physical strength was too high, and he could only think about it.

"Stop thinking about nonsense. I'm not a loose woman." Lan Xin's tone softened, her temper quick to come and quick to go.

"As you wish." Sun Ran was now very compliant.

He could see that Lan Xin had some feelings for him but might have some reservations and was not ready to develop a relationship in the real world.

It seems I need to keep working on it. Sun Ran thought to himself. Giving up? That was never an option.

"Alright, let's eat."

Seeing Sun Ran's good attitude, Lan Xin's tone also softened. Except for her still flushed face, there was no sign of abnormality.

After both had finished eating, the new sensory equipment arrived. Sun Ran installed it himself, made some minor modifications, and then began to undress.

"Xin'er, I'm going into the nutrient tank. Don't peek, okay?" He said with a smile.

"Go to hell, peeking at you?" Lan Xin laughed and scolded, but still went into the bedroom.

Sun Ran lay in the nutrient tank, activated the device, closed his eyes, and his consciousness flashed through the vast and empty virtual network, arriving at the Order Alliance headquarters, the Order Cube.

After waiting on the grass for a few minutes, a flash of light appeared, and Lan Xin, dressed in a fiery red leather outfit, appeared beside him.

In this state, Lan Xin had no trace of her homey demeanor and was extremely fiery, like a blazing flame that could stimulate any male's hormones. Sun Ran was no exception; his heart raced, and his lower abdomen felt warm, and his body experienced a physiological change.

This change was too sudden, and Sun Ran's ability to control his emotions did not have time to kick in, and it showed in his expression.

Lan Xin saw the admiration in Sun Ran's eyes, felt happy, and cheerfully reminded him, "Let's go."

"Oh, okay." Sun Ran quickly responded, while examining his own changes. He had never been so impulsive before.

This was definitely not his intention; it must be a side effect of the powerful heart, it must be! Sun Ran comforted himself.