Chapter 1412: Emperor Jiu Xian

"No, it's not Xi Yan." After a moment, Ye Chen sat back down with a furrowed brow, but his eyes remained fixed straight ahead on the little girl without glancing away. She looked exactly like the Xi Yan from years ago—every frown, smile, gesture, and movement were identical, as if carved from the same mold.

"The little girl is really adorable," the purple-haired young man beside him chuckled, hugging his wine flask.

"What little girl? She's Di Jiu Xian," the bald old man said, popping a spirit fruit into his mouth. "In terms of age, she's not much younger than us. Have some shame calling her that."

"So it's Di Jiu Xian! She matches the rumors perfectly," the purple-haired young man sighed. "Still looking like a girl at two hundred years old—her husband must be worried sick."

"Daring to use 'Di' in her name means her background is no simple matter." Ye Chen shifted his gaze from Di Jiu Xian and looked at the bald old man beside him. "What's the story with that little girl?"

"You've heard of Jiu Xiao Zhen Ren, right? The youngest Quasi-Emperor in Xuan Huang." The bald old man replied, "She's his granddaughter. Everyone in their family has monstrous talent."

"Does she have a twin sister or brother?" Ye Chen asked the bald old man hopefully.

"Twin siblings?" The bald old man scratched his head. "I haven't heard anything about that."

"Asking you was pointless anyway." Ye Chen turned his attention back to the girl called Di Jiu Xian. If she really had twin siblings, maybe one of them was Xi Yan reincarnated—it wasn't impossible, as such cases had happened before, like with Luo Xi's reincarnation having a twin sister.

"I've decided to sit here, hee-hee." On the other side, the little girl Di Jiu Xian giggled and sat down next to a fat old man. She even batted her big eyes at him. "Old-timer, why is your beard and mustache so long?"

"Too lazy to trim it." The fat old man coughed awkwardly. He'd been about to lose his temper, but remembering the girl's grandfather, he quickly backed down. That was a Quasi-Emperor, after all.

"Di Jiu Xian is here, so Jiu Xiao Zhen Ren is probably nearby." Many of the old folks stroked their beards and glanced around subconsciously. He might be right here.

"This little girl's talent is terrifying—she might even surpass Jiu Xiao Zhen Ren." Quite a few people remarked meaningfully, "Their lineage is renowned for its talents."

"At two hundred years old and already a Quasi-Saint, she's about on my level!" A young cultivator muttered dismissively.

"You don't know anything," the old man next to the young cultivator scolded. "She's already survived one Heavenly Tribulation of Five Decays. If not for an accident during the tribulation, she'd be a Saint by now."

"This talent is just crushing—comparing people like this is depressing!" The young cultivator hung his head.

"The auction continues—highest bid wins." After the brief interruption, the white-haired elder hosting the auction suspended the Seven Seas Jiao Dragon Armor in midair. "Starting bid is five million. Let the bidding begin."

"I'll bid six million." Someone jumped in immediately—it was the black-clothed Great Saint from earlier.

"Seven million." No sooner had the black-clothed elder spoken than someone else raised the bid—the dwarf elder, who glanced provocatively at the black-clothed Great Saint.

"I'll go to eight million." The black-clothed Great Saint snorted coldly, his voice laced with killing intent.

"Nine million."

"Ten million."

"Fifteen million."

The auction hall grew incredibly lively due to the bidding war between these two. Those with lower cultivations could hear their hearts pounding—twenty million source stones was a fortune to them.

And that wasn't the end—the price of the Seven Seas Jiao Dragon Armor kept climbing. The black-clothed Great Saint and the dwarf Great Saint battled up to thirty million without a winner, and then more people joined in.

Once others got involved, it created a chain reaction. Bids flew back and forth, shouts echoing wildly, as if no one cared about their source stones anymore—they just kept raising the price frantically.

In just a dozen or so moments, the Seven Seas Jiao Dragon Armor had soared to fifty million.

It didn't stop there—more participants piled in, all Great Saints without exception. Even the Saint Kings stayed silent—who would dare compete with these beasts? They couldn't win anyway.

While the bidding raged on up front, Ye Chen had no interest and slipped over to where Di Jiu Xian was. The little girl was bored, propping her chin in her hands as she watched the Seven Seas Jiao Dragon Armor.

Ye Chen's arrival made her turn her head instinctively. "Wow, your bloodline is so strong!"

"Surrounded by peers, oh wait, I mean predecessors showing respect." Ye Chen grinned and sat down without hesitation. "Mind if I ask you something?"

"What is it?" The little girl sniffed around Ye Chen curiously as she replied casually.

"Do you have a twin sister or brother?" Ye Chen probed.

"Nope." She shook her little head firmly, her tone certain.

"Hold on, think it over carefully. No rush to answer."

"Really, I don't." Di Jiu Xian shook her head again. "My mom only had me."

"Is that so?" Ye Chen's tense body relaxed instantly, and the depth in his eyes dimmed slightly. He stared at Di Jiu Xian in a daze—she was so much like Xi Yan, both like little sprites, identical in appearance and temperament.

"Excuse me." A few seconds later, he stood up dejectedly, feeling empty inside.

"Don't go!" Di Jiu Xian grabbed Ye Chen's arm, blinking her bright eyes and giggling as she sent a mental message. "Be honest with me—are you the Ancient Holy Body?"

"What Ancient Holy Body? You must be mistaken." Ye Chen waved his hand dismissively.

"You're not admitting it? I can smell it."

"Your nose must be off."

"Not admitting it, huh? I'll get someone to check!" With that, the little girl stood up and took a deep breath. "Come quick and see! There's a Sain—mmph!"

Before Di Jiu Xian could finish saying "Body," Ye Chen covered her mouth. If she shouted that out, the auction would turn into total chaos.

"You sure know a lot for a little girl!" Ye Chen's forehead was covered in twitching veins. Good thing she was a girl—if it were a boy, he'd drag him out for a beating.

"See, I told you!" Di Jiu Xian giggled. "Admitting it now?"

"Fine, I admit it." Ye Chen rubbed his brow hard. "But don't blab about it."

"Don't worry, I get it." Di Jiu Xian winked. "There are a lot of familiar faces here."

"Hey, little Di Jiu Xian, what were you saying about a Sain—Saint what?" It was an innocent comment, but it caught everyone's attention. Di Jiu Xian's outburst had been so sudden that the auction paused midway, and now all eyes were on the two of them.

Di Jiu Xian's big eyes darted around. "Leftover rice."

"Leftover rice?" The whole room twitched at the corners of their mouths, expressions full of disbelief.

Are you here to joke around? If not for your grandfather, we'd have thrown a stool at you already. You just derailed a perfectly good auction with one sentence.

Watching the darkened faces around them, Ye Chen nearly burst out laughing. Di Jiu Xian's antics were even more bizarre than Xiong Er's had been back in the day—you two are quite the pair of eccentrics!

After another interruption, the old folks grumbled and resumed bidding.

Ye Chen coughed and turned to leave, but once again, the little girl grabbed him, looking serious. "You can't go—I need to draw some blood from you."

"Do you realize chatting like this could get you beaten up outside?" Ye Chen's face darkened again. He'd never seen someone so straightforward about drawing blood.

"I'm trading treasure for it, not stealing." Di Jiu Xian giggled and pulled out a stone the size of a baby's fist from her pocket. "This is Jade Tear Immortal Gold. I'll trade it for a strand of your Saint blood."

"I don't want that—I want this." Ye Chen pointed to the jade pendant around her neck. Though its grade wasn't as high as the Jade Tear Immortal Gold, it was inscribed with an ancient character from the Dun Jia Heavenly Script. He'd noticed it the moment she walked in.

"You can have this, but you'll need to give me more blood." Di Jiu Xian blinked her eyes again.

"Deal." Ye Chen waved his hand and produced a jade bottle containing a strand of his Ancient Holy Body blood.

"This amount should be enough." Di Jiu Xian took the jade bottle and handed over the pendant. "With this bottle of Saint blood, crossing the Heavenly Tribulation of Five Decays will be much safer."

"Crossing again?" Ye Chen, who had been examining the pendant, looked up in surprise at the little girl. "You've already been through the Heavenly Tribulation of Five Decays?"

"I went through it, but it didn't succeed." Di Jiu Xian shrugged her small shoulders. "I almost died."

"Your family really is full of monsters!" Even Ye Chen couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement. Her grandfather was the youngest Quasi-Emperor in Xuan Huang, and she might become the youngest Saint.

"Compared to you, I'm still a bit behind." Di Jiu Xian puffed out her cheeks. "I regret not going to the Yao Chi grand event—I wanted to fight you. If I beat you, I'd probably beat Yao Chi too."

"Even if you beat me, you might not defeat her." Ye Chen shook his head with a smile.

"Who knows? I only lost to Nan Di by one move." Di Jiu Xian giggled. "Nan Di and Dong Shen are equals, so it's anyone's guess who would win!"

"Are all the women in Xuan Huang Continent this fierce?" Ye Chen rubbed his brow. "You're so much like Xi Yan—she was the most talented in Da Chu, and you're the most talented in Xuan Huang. If you were her, it would be perfect, and my master wouldn't have wasted two hundred years."

"Bid, bid, bid! That's a great item." As Ye Chen murmured, Di Jiu Xian shook his arm. "That treasure is rare—miss it, and it'll be hard to find again."

At her words, Ye Chen looked up instinctively toward the central platform. The white-haired elder hosting the auction had brought out an item and held it in his palm, drawing everyone's gaze.

It was a snow lotus, bright red-gold in color, radiating golden light and enveloped in red-gold aura. It brimmed with vibrant life force, and upon closer inspection, faint and splendid visions seemed to flicker around it.