Li Jiahao curled his lips. Finally yielding to his mother’s threats, he stammered, “It was that Luo Xiaoxiao. After she watched Ma Xiaoli fall into the trap and get surrounded by the zombie horde, she said something about a Jade Buddha…”
Under the warning of Mai Zixuan’s raised fist, Li Jiahao restlessly shifted his weight and recalled carefully, “I think she said something like, ‘You’d never guess, would you? It was your Jade Buddha that gave me everything—the spatial dimension, men, status, and power. And now, I’ll gladly accept your life too’… or something like that?”
Even though Li Jiahao was already fifteen at the time, those bizarre words were still quite a mouthful!
After finishing, he added angrily, “Anyway, it’s all Luo Xiaoxiao’s fault! She stole Ma Xiaoli’s Jade Buddha and said all those things. Ma Xiaoli got so furious that she suddenly snapped, using vines to drag us all into the zombie horde!!”
At these words, Mai Zixuan was stunned for a long while. “So… she was talking about the family heirloom, that Jade Buddha Xiaoli has worn since she was a child?”
The old woman snorted, “That’s just a worthless trinket! We don’t even know if it’s real jade. My cousin saved someone back in the day, and since the guy had no money for medical bills, he just tossed that over to settle the debt!”
Mai Zixuan was immensely annoyed by the old woman’s unreasonableness, but right now, she could only patiently guide her to think it through: “But, if it was truly so worthless, why did that Luo Xiaoxiao refuse to return it to Xiaoli? Furthermore, didn’t you both just say that during the apocalypse, people couldn’t even get enough to eat, yet merely using the Jade Buddha to threaten Luo Xiaoxiao was enough to make her give us supplies… Something doesn’t add up!”
Pausing for a moment, Mai Zixuan speculated, “I’ve read quite a few web novels. According to those common tropes, perhaps Luo Xiaoxiao’s so-called spatial dimension wasn’t an awakened ability at all, but something that actually came with the Jade Buddha?”
The old woman froze, though she still muttered stubbornly, “How could it be such a coincidence…”
However, she was already half-convinced; she just couldn’t stomach her daughter-in-law acting so high and mighty, taking charge of the situation like this.
But it wasn’t the old woman’s turn to control the situation anyway. Her son spoke up, “Mom! Zixuan makes sense. Just listen to her on this.”
The old woman—well, she had no choice but to give a dry grunt of agreement.
And so, under Mai Zixuan’s leadership, the family began discussing how to coax Ma Xiaoli into coming back. No matter what, they had to get their hands on that Jade Buddha first!
Furthermore, Mai Zixuan suggested that since the apocalyptic acid rain was arriving in just three days, they should use this remaining time to sell the property or mortgage it to the bank for a loan. They needed to get as much money as possible to stockpile supplies.
Since Luo Xiaoxiao only stole Ma Xiaoli’s Jade Buddha after the acid rain, all they had to do was lure Ma Xiaoli back before the rain fell.
At the time, the old woman had readily agreed. Who could have expected that right after the couple returned from a nearby pharmacy with some basic medicines, she would proudly announce that she had already coaxed Ma Xiaoli back!
The couple was rendered entirely speechless.
The property rights belonged to Ma Xiaoli. With her physically present, trying to mortgage or sell the house right under her nose would be incredibly difficult!
But on second thought, since she had already returned, they decided to secure the Jade Buddha first and figure out the rest later. After all, they had been manipulating Ma Xiaoli since she was a child. As long as they sweet-talked her, they didn’t have to worry about her causing a fuss.
They had explicitly instructed the old woman to appease Ma Xiaoli properly, ideally making her hand over the Jade Buddha voluntarily.
Who would have thought that the moment Ma Xiaoli wanted something to eat, this petty old woman would try to stop her? She truly was an uneducated, short-sighted country bumpkin!
Mai Zixuan had no choice but to step in personally.
She walked over and affectionately patted the back of Ma Xiaoli’s hand, suddenly asking, “By the way, Xiaoli, I remember you’ve worn a Jade Buddha since you were little, right? Auntie remembers the pendant being quite unique. I want to have a replica made as a gift for a colleague’s baby who is about to turn a month old. Could you lend it to Auntie so I can take it to the jewelry store?”
Mai Zixuan’s eyes quietly swept over Ma Xiaoli’s neck. Suddenly, her gaze trembled, and her voice rose by an octave. “Xiaoli, where is your Jade Buddha?!”
It was gone!
Ma Xiaoli wasn’t wearing anything around her neck!
Mai Zixuan’s sudden shriek instantly sent the other three people in the living room into a panic.
Great-aunt: “Oh my, Xiaoli, where did the Jade Buddha go? That was passed down to you from your grandfather! You absolutely cannot lose it!”
Li Jiarong didn’t say a word, but his expression mirrored the exact same frantic anxiety.
Li Jiahao was even worse at hiding his thoughts. He raised his arm, trying to tug at Ma Xiaoli’s collar to see if the Jade Buddha was truly missing.
Reacting quickly, Mai Zixuan immediately grabbed Li Jiahao’s hand, pulling him back to her side. “Xiaoli, where is your Jade Buddha?”
The reactions of these people could no longer just be described as “strange.”
However, a completely bewildered Ma Xiaoli also raised her hand to touch her chest.
Her fingertips brushed against the smooth, round jade—the Jade Buddha was clearly still there!
Just as she was wondering why they couldn’t see it, she heard the System taking credit: [Detected SSR-rank rare special item—Jade Buddha (Unbound). Due to the item’s unique nature, a sensory block has been placed for the host. Unless the host grants permission, others cannot perceive this item.]
Her Jade Buddha was actually a bindable SSR-level item?!
In her previous life, the sudden outbreak of zombies had thrown all of society into chaos.
At the time, she had fled the university dormitory with her roommates, including Luo Xiaoxiao. They had run into a senior upperclassman and his group, who had come looking for Luo Xiaoxiao. Not only did they lack supplies, but they were also a bunch of naive, helpless college students who could barely lift a finger. They had stared at the zombie-infested streets in despair. Ultimately, it was Ma Xiaoli who gritted her teeth, grabbed a broom, knocked down the zombies, and led them all the way to her home to regroup.
The residential complex had also been in turmoil. Her Great-aunt’s family initially refused to let them inside, and it was only after Ma Xiaoli promised that they would go out to scavenge for supplies that the family grudgingly agreed.
But that very night, Luo Xiaoxiao came down with a fever.
Afterwards, claiming she couldn’t sleep well, she had the audacity to put on a pathetic act and ask to borrow Ma Xiaoli’s Jade Buddha to soothe her nerves.
But Ma Xiaoli had worn the Jade Buddha since childhood, and her grandmother had repeatedly warned her never to let anyone else touch it. Initially, Ma Xiaoli refused to lend it out. Unfortunately, her other roommates all began lobbying on Luo Xiaoxiao’s behalf. Seeing how truly pitiful Luo Xiaoxiao looked, Ma Xiaoli finally relented and let her wear it.
The very next day, Luo Xiaoxiao claimed to have awakened a spatial ability.
Seeing that she was fine, Ma Xiaoli asked for the Jade Buddha back, but Luo Xiaoxiao said, “Xiaoli, this Jade Buddha makes me feel so at peace. It feels like it brings me luck, too. Look, you only lent it to me for one night and I’ve already awakened a superpower! Could you let me wear it for a few more days? Maybe with this on, I can lead everyone to find more supplies, and we won’t have to worry about food or water anymore.”
Pausing, Luo Xiaoxiao added tactfully, “Besides, in your hands, it’s just a piece of jade. So, Xiaoli, just let me borrow it. At least this way, it actually serves a useful purpose, right?”