In the afternoon, Zhong Yun had planned to dive into a round of "Space Warfare" before visiting someone.

Scarcely had Xiao Qing left when Tian Hai and Chen Wen arrived right behind her.

"Let's go, I'll take you somewhere great." The moment he stepped inside, Tian Hai grabbed Zhong Yun without explanation and pulled him out the door.

Zhong Yun was helplessly dragged into a taxi, watching his two mischievous friends with resignation. "Where are you two planning to take me?"

"You'll know when we get there," Tian Hai played mysterious. "It’s guaranteed to be fun and exciting."

Since he was already out, he might as well enjoy it. With that thought, Zhong Yun relaxed his mood.

"By the way, Chen Wen, are you familiar with flowers?" Zhong Yun suddenly recalled something and asked.

"Not particularly well. I don't have much interest in flora, but I still know a bit," Chen Wen replied, shrugging when he saw Tian Hai looking at him curiously. "My family hired a specialist in this field just to help me court Liu Yunqi successfully."

"Then do you know if there's any big news from the flower market lately?" Zhong Yun inquired.

"Big news?" Chen Wen looked at him in surprise. "There is, yes, but I assumed you'd already know."

His words implied something, but seeing Zhong Yun’s lack of reaction, he continued, "There's been explosive news recently: the peerless 'Seven Fairies,' lost for over a thousand years, has reappeared."

"It’s rumored to have been cultivated by a youth, and was later purchased by the owner of the Ferris Gardens," he added, giving Zhong Yun a meaningful glance.

Zhong Yun offered a bitter, internal smile. It seemed Chen Wen already knew that he was the one who sold the 'Seven Fairies.' News within the aristocratic families certainly traveled fast. Still, he wasn't about to admit it to his face. They could share a tacit understanding.

"Do you two know how much that pot of 'Seven Fairies' sold for?"

"It probably wasn't cheap," Tian Hai speculated. Based on his experience, the rarer the item, the more valuable it was. Just like his most prized collection: a limited-edition Phantom Series Type Seven mech model, only ten thousand sets released a decade ago, now hyped up to the price of 800,000.

"Five hundred million Davao coins," Chen Wen revealed the answer.

"What?" Tian Hai’s eyes widened to their absolute limit.

He had guessed it was valuable, but not this valuable. Five hundred million? That was more than enough to buy a real Phantom Series Type Seven mech.

"It’s just a potted plant, five hundred million? That's too outrageous."

What was even more outrageous was that someone was willing to spend five hundred million on a flower. Tian Hai sighed in amazement; there were truly such suckers in the world.

"Besides the 'Seven Fairies,' have any other treasures appeared recently?" Zhong Yun asked, frowning. The 'Nine Stars Accompanying the Moon' was even more precious than the 'Seven Fairies'; logically, the sensation it caused should have been far greater.

"Flowers of the 'Seven Fairies' caliber are rarely seen even once in a century. The appearance of even one is remarkable. Have you heard some rumor?" Chen Wen asked, perplexed.

Zhong Yun shook his head, saying nothing, though a strange thought niggled at him: perhaps his parents hadn't sold the flower after all? He tucked this doubt away.

Looking at Chen Wen, a flash of inspiration struck him. Wasn't he just trying to find a way to make money? He had a walking treasury right beside him, yet he was looking far afield. The Chen family was also an ancient, powerful clan, not much inferior to the Fei family.

With this thought, he asked Chen Wen, "Does your Chen family have a place like the Ferris Gardens?"

"We do..."

Chen Wen paused before responding casually. In the time they had known each other, Zhong Yun and his friends had never inquired about his family. Even when Chen Wen had revealed he was from the Chen family, they hadn't looked at him any differently. But then he immediately understood, a hint of pleasant surprise crossing his face. Why would Zhong Yun ask this? Could it be...

The Chen family was the first to know that the Fei family had acquired a rare treasure—the 'Seven Fairies.' The Chen and Fei families had been bitter rivals for hundreds of years, so they naturally paid extremely close attention to each other's intelligence.

The Chen family soon discovered that the person who sold the 'Seven Fairies' to the Fei family was an ordinary middle school student, who coincidentally was in the same class as their third young master, Chen Wen.

Thus, Chen Wen was assigned the task of investigating this student named Zhong Yun.

Who knew that the very next day, Zhong Yun would proactively ask him for directions? Smoothly, Chen Wen infiltrated Zhong Yun's circle of friends, never imagining that they would eventually forge such a deep friendship.

After becoming friends with Zhong Yun, he observed keenly, realizing Zhong Yun was far more complex than he appeared on the surface.

Setting aside the 'Seven Fairies,' Zhong Yun also possessed highly advanced Body Arts (Tǐshù). Unlike the common martial arts known to the masses, Body Arts were a supernatural secret technique cultivated through extraordinarily specific methods, granting immense power.

For example, reaching the intermediate stage of Body Arts allowed one to levitate without external aid, relying solely on internal power.

This mysterious energy had never been disclosed to the public, circulating only among the great families and major powers. The requirements for cultivating Body Arts were extremely stringent: one needed not only the proper talent but also extraordinary perseverance. Most importantly, one needed the cultivation method, and these methods were held tightly by the major families and powers.

To determine if someone had practiced Body Arts, one only needed to use a sensing technique (Gǎn Yìng Shù) to check for the existence of Yuan within their body. Of course, if one's own power level lagged too far behind the other party, and the other party was actively concealing it, detection would be impossible.

Though he couldn't gauge the level of Yuan within Zhong Yun, he was certain that Zhong Yun had practiced Body Arts, and moreover, his level was no lower than Chen Wen's. The question remained: who taught him?

From that moment, Chen Wen began to suspect Zhong Yun's background. Coupled with the 'Heart Cleansing Broth' (Dí Xīn Tāng), he was practically certain that Zhong Yun belonged to some Hidden Family.

Most modern great families evolved from ancient lineages. Having commanded vast resources in antiquity, the ones that adapted with the times remained at the apex of society. Meanwhile, families adhering rigidly to tradition were often swept aside by social change, losing their former glory. Some families declined; others did not.

The families that hadn't lost their wealth might have faded financially, but their multi-generational heritage could not be easily dismissed. In other specialized fields, they still stood above the rest. These low-profile families were known as Hidden Families.

Chen Wen suspected Zhong Yun originated from such a Hidden Family, specifically one that excelled in cultivation, which would explain the provenance of the 'Seven Fairies.'

Furthermore, the 'Heart Cleansing Broth' was formulated by the Hidden Liu Family. Except for those on friendly terms with the Liu Family, virtually no one could acquire such large quantities of it. And it was well-known that the Liu Family held no affection for families like the Chen clan, who controlled massive societal wealth. Aside from the Yang family, who were in-laws, the quota of 'Heart Cleansing Broth' other families received annually was pitifully small, no matter how much money they offered.

All the great families placed such importance on the 'Heart Cleansing Broth' because of an open secret: it could increase the Yuan within the human body. Given that Zhong Yun could drink the 'Heart Cleansing Broth' like a beverage, how intimate was his connection to the Liu Family? Considering Zhong Yun's ambiguous relationship with Liu Yunqi, the answer was practically self-evident.