Chapter 114: Envious of the Lucky Ones

Facing her junior grand-uncle’s question, Ji Jiuxuan looked earnestly at the pattern and finally shook her head. "It is very similar, but the pattern on the previous jade pendant was much more complex."

Knowing that her grand-uncle and senior sister were worried about her, Ji Jiuxuan comforted them, "Grand-uncle, Senior Sister, please don't worry. I am fine; I am perfectly fine."

She then looked at the totem manifested in Nie Xingyuan’s hand and couldn't help but ask, "Junior Grand-uncle, what is this pattern?"

Meng Jiao also looked at Nie Xingyuan with equal curiosity.

Nie Xingyuan dissipated the pattern in his hand, his expression calm. "It is a pairing jade pendant from ancient texts, an item used to connect soulmates."

Nowadays, those who wish to form a bond of companionship use matching rings, so it was no wonder they did not recognize it.

"A pairing jade pendant!" Meng Jiao subconsciously glanced at her junior sister, feeling it was utterly inconceivable. "The item Junior Sister bid on couldn't possibly be a pairing jade pendant, could it? It’s impossible for one person to form a contract with that thing alone!"

Ji Jiuxuan was also a bit bewildered at this moment. She thought to herself that it shouldn't be possible—Long Xuan wouldn't set her up, would he? Moreover, that was a pairing jade pendant; it was absolutely impossible for her to contract it by herself.

Thus, she looked at Nie Xingyuan and smiled, "Don't worry, Grand-uncle, it’s fine. The patterns are different."

The phantom, having overheard their conversation, fell silent. "It is indeed a pairing jade pendant, but its current purpose is not for pairing."

Ji Jiuxuan felt her entire being crumble after hearing the first half of the phantom's sentence. Stunned as if struck by lightning, she took a moment to compose herself before asking very seriously, "What is its purpose now?"

She felt a sense of panic in her heart; why did she have such a bad premonition? She warned herself that this was completely impossible and that the phantom would never harm her.

"To store a soul. It contains one of my soul fragments." The phantom did not wish to lie to her. "I do not remember why my soul was separated, nor do I remember where the scattered fragments are."

"So, that piece of jade holds one of your soul fragments, and because you contracted with me, I am the only one who can contract that jade for you to retrieve that fragment?" Ji Jiuxuan guessed to herself. She didn't want to overthink why Long Xuan was the one who asked for the jade; she assumed the phantom was just too embarrassed to ask, so he let Long Xuan do it.

Little did she know, Long Xuan was also a fragment of the phantom's soul.

"For now, that is the case. My memories have not fully recovered, and I do not know if the jade has other uses. If I remember anything else, I will tell you."

Deep down, she felt this matter was not simple.

Fine, Ji Jiuxuan didn't intend to probe further. She was a carefree person, thinking optimistically that perhaps it was just meant to be.

At this moment, several rounds of bidding had already passed on the auction stage.

Nie Xingyuan watched the items on stage. A set of ores appeared, looking very complete and of excellent quality.

"At the request of the seller, this set of ores must be sold as a whole. The starting price is three million spirit stones."

This starting price was quite reasonable. A single piece of ore wouldn't be much, but since it was a complete set, it immediately ignited the crowd's enthusiasm.

Bids flew wildly, and within moments, the price hit five million spirit stones. The speed of the surge was truly daunting.

"Master, shall we bid?" Seeing the price was about right, Meng Jiao looked at Nie Xingyuan and asked.

Ji Jiuxuan watched them curiously. After her junior grand-uncle nodded, Senior Sister Meng Jiao began pressing the auction button.

Magically, shortly after her senior sister began bidding, the others slowly backed out, and the price stopped climbing so rapidly. In the end, they won the bid for six million spirit stones.

Ji Jiuxuan understood well that with the previous trend, it was unlikely to have stopped without doubling in price. But as soon as her senior sister entered the fray, the situation changed entirely.

She couldn't help but recall how her senior sister had helped her bid earlier and looked at her with suspicion. Could it be that her senior sister had "lucky hands"? Unlike her own bad luck, her senior sister seemed to hit the mark on whatever she aimed for, even having good fortune at auctions?

Although she thought this, Ji Jiuxuan didn't say it out loud. No matter how good the security here was, they were still on someone else’s territory.

A server soon arrived, holding a tray with a storage bag. Junior Grand-uncle Nie Xingyuan took a storage bag from his spatial ring. Both sides checked the items, and after confirming everything was correct, they exchanged payment for the goods.

After the server left, Nie Xingyuan turned around and saw the little girl watching curiously. He smiled and handed her the storage bag. "Pick whatever you like."

The rumors must have been fake; not every sword cultivator was poor. In fact, every sword cultivator she had met seemed incredibly wealthy. However, the materials her junior grand-uncle bought this time were truly excellent.

Ji Jiuxuan finished looking and returned the bag to him, shaking her head. "No need, Grand-uncle. I don't know how to refine weapons."

Meng Jiao looked at the storage bag, her eyes almost fixed on it. "Master, if Junior Sister doesn't want it, I do! I know how to refine weapons!"

"We'll see after you finish your task." Nie Xingyuan calmly tucked the storage bag away—a clear case of blatant favoritism.

Meng Jiao didn't mind. She arched an eyebrow at Ji Jiuxuan and said lightly, "Junior Sister, is there anything else you want? Senior Sister will help you."

The hint was very obvious. Ji Jiuxuan looked at Meng Jiao's hands, her eyes lighting up.

She walked over and grabbed Meng Jiao's hand. She was quite envious of these "lucky hands"—what should she do?

"Senior Sister, I'm counting on you later." After touching her senior sister's hand, she didn't even want to wash her own.

By the way, the system hadn't appeared for a long time. When would there be another lucky draw? She must hold her senior sister's lucky hand before the next draw to see if good fortune was contagious.

"Small matter."

Ji Jiuxuan sat obediently beside Meng Jiao, watching the items on the auction stage.

There were many items in the auction, all of them rare, high-level goods. Her junior grand-uncle bid a few more times, with her senior sister always helping to secure the items, but Ji Jiuxuan wasn't interested in most of them.

The items in her own spatial storage were actually not inferior to those at the auction. Many things here required a very high cultivation level to use, or she simply felt they were impractical. Therefore, as the treasures on stage were swapped one after another, she didn't set her heart on a single one.

When they returned, they used the random passage again. This time, they weren't together but were teleported back to the foot of the tree individually.

Ji Jiuxuan waited under the tree. Her grand-uncle and senior sister hadn't arrived yet, but her eldest cousin, Ji Xiuqi, had come first.

"Little sister, come back to the villa with me later! The spirit horses have arrived."

As he spoke, Ji Xiuqi added, "Grandfather also sent many good things. He wanted to come himself, but he had something to attend to and it wasn't convenient."

"I should be the one visiting Grandfather; how could I let him come personally?" The feeling of being missed by family was wonderful. "Let me wait for my junior grand-uncle and the others to arrive so I can tell them before I go."

Although she could leave a message via the jade token, Ji Jiuxuan felt it was better to say it in person.

"That's fine, I'll wait with you."

Ji Xiuqi was a young talent among his peers, ranked in the top tier. Standing there with a little girl who had never been seen before, he drew glances from everyone around.