The filial daughter Dan Chen, and the awkward Tang Huo'er

Early the next morning.

Shen Wen was in the front hall doing a final check of the items needed for the journey when a slender figure, carrying a faint medicinal fragrance and appearing somewhat rushed, walked in quickly. It was Dan Chen.

Today, she wore a goose-yellow dress that made her skin look even fairer, but her face carried a hint of urgency, and fine beads of sweat were on her forehead, as if she had rushed there.

"Brother Shen Wen!" Dan Chen's eyes lit up when she saw Shen Wen, and she quickly walked up to him. "I heard you're going to the Northwest? I... I can go with you!"

Shen Wen looked at her slightly breathless but serious expression and couldn't help but laugh.

He reached out and gently pinched her soft cheek. "Aren't you in seclusion, preparing to break through to a Seventh-Rank Alchemist? This is important business; you can't give up halfway."

He explained in a gentle tone, "I'm just going back to construct the other end of the spatial channel and handle some minor matters. I'll be back soon.

It's nothing dangerous or major, so there's no need to worry."

Dan Chen's cheeks flushed slightly at Shen Wen's intimate gesture, but she didn't pull away. She just pouted her lips, looking a bit dejected. "Alright... then Brother Shen Wen, you must come back early and stay safe."

Suddenly.

As if she had remembered something, she looked around, leaned closer to Shen Wen, and whispered in a low voice, with a bit of mystery and pride, "Brother Shen Wen, I... I found something about the Void Ancient Dragon clan's 'Void Space' in the Family's Secret Library of Ancient Records.

That is, the records of where their clan is located!"

Hearing this, Shen Wen's eyebrows shot up, showing surprise.

The Void Ancient Dragon clan had sealed off the independent space where their clan resided due to internal strife. Almost no one in the outside world knew how to enter, and even the records of the Pill Tower were vague.

The Dan Family truly lived up to being the number one Family in the Pill Tower; their heritage was so deep that they even had records of such secrets.

Seeing Shen Wen's interest, Dan Chen's voice became even softer, almost a whisper. "It mentions a method to briefly locate and open a weak node in the Void Space by using specific spatial vibration frequencies and the guidance of the Dragon Clan's Bloodline aura... Although it's just a theoretical record and might not be completely accurate, and it requires the Bloodline of a Void Ancient Dragon as a catalyst, I think... perhaps it could help with Little Sister Zi Yan's situation."

As she spoke, she carefully observed Shen Wen's reaction and quickly added another sentence.

Like a child who had done something good and was waiting for praise but also felt a bit guilty: "Um... I also made a copy of some of the more advanced alchemy techniques and secret methods collected by the Family."

She took out a simple, dark-colored storage ring from her sleeve, pressed it into Shen Wen's hand, stuck out her tongue, and said softly, "Anyway, many of the Elders don't even look at them while they're sitting in the storehouse... Brother Shen Wen, your talent is so great, maybe you can gain even more insight from them!"

Shen Wen held the storage ring, which still carried the girl's body heat, and looked into Dan Chen's clear eyes, which were filled with unconcealed concern and admiration.

His heart couldn't help but warm, yet he also felt a bit amused.

This girl... for his sake, she was really hauling out the "Family treasures."

If those old fogies of the Dan Family knew that their carefully nurtured Genius Young Miss...

...had turned around and "gifted" the items from the Family's secret vault to an outsider, they would probably be beating their chests and stamping their feet in despair.

"Chen'er," Shen Wen put away the storage ring and gently brushed his fingers through her hair, his tone full of gratitude and sincerity. "This information and these materials are very important to me, especially the ones about the Void Ancient Dragons. Thank you."

Hearing Shen Wen's solemn thanks, Dan Chen felt a bit embarrassed instead. Her cheeks turned even redder as she whispered, "As long as it can help Brother Shen Wen."

"Alright, go back and prepare well for your Seventh-Rank assessment." Shen Wen patted her shoulder. "I hope to hear good news from you when I return from the Northwest."

"Mm!" Dan Chen nodded vigorously, her eyes shining with encouragement... Shen Wen then left Holy Pill City with Qing Lin to head to the Northwest to construct the spatial channel.

Two days after they left, someone in Holy Pill City was feeling a bit restless.

Tang Huo'er sat alone in the courtyard of the Burning Flame Valley's base in Holy Pill City, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the Red Jade Token her father had given her for emergency contact.

She had been in Pill City for several days. Using the excuse of familiarizing herself with the environment and making business contacts, she had actually been secretly inquiring about Shen Wen.

The results of her inquiries made her already chaotic thoughts even more conflicted and melancholy.

Shen Wen already had wives, and more than one.

His legal wife, Cao Ying, was from the Pill Tower's Cao Family. Once the demoness of the Pill Tower, she was now an Elder of the Pill Tower, possessing both beauty and capability.

His equal wife, Cai Lin, was the Queen of the Snake-People Tribe, cold and exceptionally beautiful, and was said to be pregnant.

There was also the gentle-mannered woman named Xiao Yi Xian, and the Dan Family's Genius, Dan Chen, who was clearly close to him... He was truly "surrounded by a cluster of beauties."

Moreover, every woman's appearance, talent, and background were not inferior in the slightest; they even made her feel a faint sense of pressure.

Tang Huo'er was not a dull person; on the contrary, she was quite perceptive.

She knew she had fallen for Shen Wen.

The feelings had come swiftly and truly.

In her most desperate moment, when she thought her nightmare was about to repeat, he had appeared like a Heavenly God descending, smoothing over the storm with a wave of his hand.

He had not only healed her injuries but also helped her successfully master the Heavenly Flame she had long dreamed of.

That strength, composure, and the occasional gentleness had long since been deeply etched into her heart.

However, liking him was one thing, but Tang Huo'er also had her own pride. She was the Young Lord of Burning Flame Valley, with exceptional talent and a top-tier appearance and figure; she had her own arrogance.

To be like those women and share a husband with others?

Just the thought of it made her feel awkward, even somewhat... unwilling.

Yet, the more she suppressed it, the stronger the longing and the urge to see him became.

Finally, she found an excuse that even she felt was a bit lame.

To discuss the specific details of the cooperation between Burning Flame Valley and Shen Wen's industries, she decided to visit the Shen Residence in person.

She held a sliver of hope that she was unwilling to admit—perhaps she might "happen" to run into him?

Unfortunately, her expectations were dashed.

The one who received her in the front hall of the Shen Residence was Cao Ying.

Besides Cao Ying, she also saw Xiao Yi Xian quietly reading a book in the hall, as well as Cai Lin, who had walked over from the backyard with a lazy expression that could not hide her peerless beauty.

Not long after, Dan Chen also arrived excitedly with a scroll of Pill Formulas to discuss some questions with Cao Ying. Seeing a guest, she sat obediently to the side.

Tang Huo'er sat in the guest seat, her gaze quietly sweeping over these women in the hall, each with a different style but equally outstanding. A nameless sense of defeat began to grow like a vine in her heart.

Cao Ying's charming competence and her air of being in control;

Cai Lin's cold nobility and her queenly aura, which did not diminish in the slightest even though she was pregnant;

Xiao Yi Xian's gentle tranquility, like a lonely orchid in a valley; Dan Chen's cute and lively nature, full of vitality... Each of them was enough to make any man fall for them, and now they were all gathered around Shen Wen.

What was even worse...

...was their talent and strength. Cao Ying was already a Seventh-Rank Alchemist and a Pill Tower Elder.

Cai Lin had once been a Dou Zong Queen who ruled a tribe.

Xiao Yi Xian had a special aura about her that even made Tang Huo'er feel a sense of unease.

Dan Chen was a well-known alchemy Genius of the Pill Tower... It seemed that truly, none of them were inferior to her.

This made Tang Huo'er, who had always been quite proud of her own talent, feel a bit sour in her heart.