Liu Mengran sniffed: "Alright, since you've said that, then you should take care of yourself."

"Okay, I understand. Have your brother take you back later. I still need to go to the base; there are some things I need to discuss with Elder Lin in person," Han Feng said as he pulled Liu Mengran back.

"Huh? You're going back to base?"

"Yes, but I'll be back soon."

---This is the dividing line---

Soon, Han Feng arrived at the Longyuan Base. The metal gate of the Longyuan Base closed behind him, and Han Feng strode through the deep corridor. The special agents along the way saluted, but he didn't even have time to nod in response, and went straight to the office at the far end.

"Report!" Han Feng stopped in front of the door.

"Come in." Lin Zhengguo's steady voice came through the door.

Pushing open the door, Lin Zhengguo was bent over his desk reviewing documents. Hearing the noise, he looked up and saw Han Feng with a serious expression. He gestured for him to sit down: "What happened? Why are you in such a hurry?"

"The Dongfang family came to see me today." Han Feng cut straight to the point without any pleasantries.

Lin Zhengguo's hand paused slightly on the table: "Is it that Dongfang family?"

"Yes." Han Feng pulled up a secretly taken photo on his phone and pushed it over. "His name is Dongfang Xun, and he brought four Innate Realm guards. Just today, the Nangong family caused trouble at the Liu family. I crippled Nangong Ao's hand, and when Nangong Wentian was about to make trouble, he appeared and saved me."

Lin Zhengguo's pupils contracted slightly. In the photo, the young man in brocade robes stood at the entrance of the coffee shop, with four black-clad guards behind him seemingly standing casually, but in reality, they blocked all angles of attack. Even more alarming was that the ground beneath the feet of one of the guards slightly sank—this was caused by the unconscious aura emanating from a Xiantian Realm expert.

"What a grand display." Lin Zhengguo tapped the photo lightly. "What does he want with you?"

"After helping me resolve the Nangong family's matter, he gave me this." Han Feng took out the jade slip Dongfang Xun had given him. "It invites me to a banquet in three days."

Lin Zhengguo took the jade slip and examined it carefully.

"Did they say what the invitation to the banquet was for?" Lin Zhengguo asked.

"He showed me something."

"What is that?"

“Something that resonates with the primal energy within me,” Han Feng said calmly.

Lin Zhengguo asked incredulously, "Then wouldn't they be...?"

“No, that’s not it.” Han Feng interrupted Lin Zhengguo. “Dongfang Xun said that each of the three ancient martial arts families has one of those things.”

After a moment of silence, Lin Zhengguo asked, "Do you think... this might be a trap?"

"It doesn't seem like it." Han Feng shook his head. "If they really wanted to harm me, they would have done it today. Those four Innate Realm experts working together, I wouldn't last ten moves."

A brief silence fell over the office. Lin Zhengguo rose and walked to the window, the setting sun casting a long shadow: "The Dongfang family's younger generation can mobilize four Innate Realm guards... this Dongfang Xun is probably more than just a 'prodigy'."

"At least a candidate for the position of young master," Han Feng added. "And he mentioned Mu Xiaoxiao..."

Lin Zhengguo turned around abruptly: "She also has connections with the Dongfang family?"

"Not only that." Han Feng's eyes darkened. "According to Dongfang Xun, Mu Xiaoxiao has recently also been in contact with the Nangong family and the Shangguan family."

"Damn it!" Lin Zhengguo rarely swore. "This woman is like a persistent ghost; she's everywhere."

Han Feng stroked the rim of his teacup: "As for the specifics of the discussion, Dongfang Xun said he would tell me in person in three days."

Outside the window, the last rays of the setting sun were gradually swallowed by the night. Lin Zhengguo opened a hidden compartment in his desk and took out an encrypted file: "Latest intelligence indicates that Mu Xiaoxiao has close ties with overseas genetic organizations. If she has indeed infiltrated ancient martial arts families in China..."

"The combination of gene technology and ancient martial arts traditions," Han Feng continued, a chill running down his spine. "What kind of monsters will that create?"

Lin Zhengguo slumped back into his chair: "For the banquet three days from now, should I send Chen Feng with a team to provide backup?"

"No need," Han Feng unexpectedly refused. "Since the Dongfang family has openly sent out invitations, they won't take action on their own territory. On the contrary, it's your side..." He lowered his voice, "I have a feeling things aren't that simple."

The two chatted for a long time inside the base until the sun began to set, at which point Han Feng bid farewell to Lin Zhengguo.

He urgently needed to verify something, so after leaving Longyuan, he rushed home without stopping.

As soon as he opened the door, Liu Mengran and Su Wanwan were cooking. Han Feng simply greeted them and ran back to his room, leaving the two women downstairs looking at each other with puzzled expressions.

The door slammed shut, and Han Feng sat cross-legged on the bed without even taking off his shoes. He took a deep breath, and his consciousness instantly sank into the cultivation space.

"Zero!" Han Feng's voice echoed through the vast starry sky, "Come out!"

"Why are you yelling so loudly?" Zero's silhouette slowly appeared, her voice filled with obvious displeasure. "It's not like I can't hear you."

The figure formed by the stars was more solid than before, with a vaguely discernible human outline. Han Feng, disregarding these details, cut straight to the point: "Have you sensed anything unusual today?"

Zero's light flickered a few times, as if he were frowning: "Nothing. What's wrong?"

Han Feng quickly recounted his experiences at the Liu family's house that day, especially the strange phenomena triggered by the Star Mirror. When he described how the power of the stars within his body was automatically circulating, Zero's light and shadow clearly fluctuated violently.

"Are you sure that thing is called 'Star Mirror'?" Zero's voice suddenly turned serious.

"Absolutely true." Han Feng sketched the shape of the jade tablet in the air. "The Dongfang family, the Zhang family, and the Shangguan family each possess one. But you said the power of the stars is unique; how do you explain that?"

The light and shadow of Zero began to distort irregularly, as if performing some kind of complex calculation. The stars in the space also alternated between light and dark, casting eerie shadows.

"My memories... are incomplete," Zero finally said, his voice unusually tinged with confusion. "Much information about the power of the stars has been encrypted or... erased."

Han Feng's eyes widened: "What do you mean? You can lose your memory too? Aren't you a divine thought?"

"It's not amnesia." Zero's light and shadow shrank to a small dot, then suddenly expanded again. "It's more like a part of it was deliberately erased. I can only be certain that those three star mirrors are indeed related to the power of the stars, but their specific function..."

Han Feng scratched his head in frustration. This answer not only failed to dispel his doubts but also created more problems. If the power of the stars was not unique, and if other forces possessed similar power, he dared not imagine the consequences.