Chapter 34: What, Fan Jin Passed the Imperial Exam?

At this moment, Yan Xiao didn’t care about any of that—he pleaded with Zhou Qing: “Fourth Brother, you’ve got to pick carefully. All the money we’ve made these days, plus everything I’ve saved up over the years, is on the line. If we lose again, I’ll really be drinking northwest wind.”

After hearing this, Zhou Qing dared not gamble anymore.

“Third Brother, don’t get trapped. Come on, let’s not gamble. As long as we keep the green hills, we’ll never run out of firewood. Save this money—it’ll come in handy later.” Zhou Qing urged.

But Yan Xiao shook his head vigorously: “No. I’ve already thrown three thousand spirit stones into this and heard not a single sound. I have to win it back. Just help me this one time. If I lose, I accept it—I swear I’ll never come back again.”

Facing Yan Xiao’s relentless pleading, Zhou Qing reluctantly decided to gamble one more time.

“Come on, come on—fifteen hundred lower-grade spirit stones, right? Pick any five of these!” Second Uncle looked thrilled.

But Zhou Qing smiled and said, “Elder, give me a hint. You’ve seen it yourself—this is all we brothers have. Can’t this be a one-shot deal.”

After a brief pause, Second Uncle agreed to Zhou Qing’s request.

Especially since more people had gathered around, eager for a show.

To catch a fish, you’ve got to offer some bait, right?

“Fine. Since you’re a returning customer, I’ll remove one worthless one for you!” Second Uncle said, setting aside the middle package.

Then he looked at Zhou Qing: “I’ll slip you one extra tip—among these four packages, one contains something worth five thousand lower-grade spirit stones. But you get only one chance to choose!”

So Second Uncle had just cut off all escape routes.

Otherwise, even if you picked wrong once, buying two more times would almost guarantee a win.

“If he picks wrong, can we buy then?” someone in the crowd couldn’t help asking.

Second Uncle immediately shook his head.

What are you thinking? Playing a wheel of bets on me?

Are you stupid, or am I stupid?

Zhou Qing fell silent, studying the four blind boxes closely—the odds of picking wrong were still too high.

“Young Brother, pick the right one. I think that one looks more solid, more reliable.”

“Size doesn’t mean value. I think the middle one’s better.”

“I say the left one’s best. Didn’t this young brother pick left yesterday?”

………

The crowd chattered endlessly. Beside them, Yan Xiao had somehow acquired a flower and was plucking its petals one by one, muttering under his breath.

“Left, middle, middle, right…”

After plucking the last petal, Yan Xiao stared at the rightmost box—but he dared not speak. He left the choice to Zhou Qing.

At this moment, Zhou Qing felt immense pressure. With four boxes, using [Daily One Inspection] could eliminate one—but the chance of picking correctly among the remaining three was only 33%. Too low.

Second Uncle didn’t rush him. He simply sat cross-legged on the bamboo chair, watching like he was at a show.

Now it was the critical moment of psychological warfare.

Just as Zhou Qing was drowning in indecision, the hen in his arms began struggling, as if wanting to peck at the two rightmost packages. But soon it calmed down, its chicken eyes darting back and forth.

Zhou Qing’s heart stirred slightly. This mutated egg-chicken ate anything—especially drawn to items with strong spiritual energy. Could it have sensed something?

Fortunately, no one noticed. Zhou Qing turned his gaze to those two packages.

Then he gritted his teeth and decided to gamble.

If it’s really in one of these two, I’ll feed you extra meals when we get back.

Immediately, Zhou Qing focused on the package slightly right of center and activated his inspection.

【Ink Soul Jade: A rare jade from the deepest yin realms. Can extract pure soul energy to nourish and strengthen one’s own soul force, and is a primary material for crafting certain soul artifacts. Market value starts at five thousand lower-grade spirit stones.】

Seeing the feedback, Zhou Qing smiled.

Without hesitation, he handed over fifteen hundred spirit stones.

“I’ll take this one!” Zhou Qing pointed at the box.

Second Uncle’s face froze. His eyes widened in disbelief.

Twice in a row? Is this kid just that lucky?

“Certain?”

“Absolutely certain!” Zhou Qing said firmly.

Second Uncle sighed, picked up the box, and tossed it over.

“Something must be wrong—I need to check this thoroughly!”

Second Uncle ignored Zhou Qing and scrutinized the other packages.

【Heart Inspection Points +6】

Almost simultaneously, the note above his head changed from [Sneaky Eye] to [Lucky Kid].

The crowd surged forward, curious and impatient.

Zhou Qing looked at his Third Brother, whose face was practically pressed against the box, and sighed: “Third Brother, calm down. Your heart’s thumping so loud I can hear it. Why don’t you open it?”

Zhou Qing handed the box over.

Yan Xiao looked embarrassed, but his body moved willingly—his hands trembling as he took it.

He placed it against his forehead and whispered: “Heaven, please let us win just once. I swear I’ll never peek at girls bathing again…”

Finally, amid the crowd’s impatient urging, Yan Xiao slowly peeled back the layers. As the box opened, a solid block of jet-black jade emerged, radiating ink-like luster.

After a moment of stunned silence, Yan Xiao shuddered, rolled his eyes back, and collapsed straight down.

Zhou Qing moved fast, snatching the box.

“Thank heaven—I almost dropped it!”

He hurried to check on his fallen Third Brother, who was convulsing, frothing at the mouth.

What the hell, Fan Jin passed the imperial exam?

Zhou Qing quickly pinched Yan Xiao’s philtrum.

But the crowd paid no attention to Yan Xiao—all eyes burned with desire for the jade in the box.

“Heaven! Is that Ink Soul Jade?”

“It’s Ink Soul Jade! And such a large piece? This is the ultimate for nourishing the soul!”

“Of course. I heard someone with only a shred of soul left once resided in a piece like this and fully recovered.”

“I should’ve bought it! Young Brother, mind selling it?”

………

As soon as Ink Soul Jade was mentioned, more people rushed over, bidding wildly. Some who learned it came from this stall immediately became eager and began choosing other boxes.

“Cough—cough—”

Suddenly, Yan Xiao opened his eyes, coughed violently, spat out a thick glob of phlegm, and gasped for air.

“Young Brother, how long has it been since you trimmed your nails? You nearly cut my philtrum open… Wait—Ink Soul Jade? Is that Ink Soul Jade?”

Realizing what had happened, Yan Xiao leapt up, snatched the box, stared at the black jade inside, and burst into wild laughter.

Zhou Qing looked at the blood on his right thumb’s nail and felt embarrassed. He quickly scooped up the hen, which had been pecking at his heels, and hugged it close.

At least we didn’t fail.

As for who owned the Ink Soul Jade—he left it to his Third Brother to handle.

Watching Yan Xiao surrounded by a crowd haggling over the jade, Zhou Qing smiled and slipped away quietly.

Time was running short—the arena contest was about to begin. He needed to grind Ignore Points.

But by afternoon, he’d only earned one Ignore Point. That felt odd.

(End of Chapter)