After Ava sent the message in the group chat, she immediately called her high school friend. A bright, cheerful voice answered on the other end.
"Ava! Are you coming home for New Year's?"
"Not yet—I'll be back tomorrow," Ava replied. "Listen, I need a favor. I have a friend who wants to look at houses. He's my best friend, so please take good care of him. When I get back, dinner's on me."
Ava deliberately didn't mention Jason's wealth, especially with that fake bankruptcy rumor still floating around. She didn't want Ellie automatically dragging him to multi-million-dollar listings.
"Your best friend?" Ellie's interest immediately sparked. "Male or female?"
"Male. But it's not what you're thinking," Ava answered quickly, hearing the gossip wheels already turning.
Ellie burst into mischievous laughter. "There's no such thing as pure friendship between men and women. I get it now~ Don't worry, I'll treat him well. I'll even check him out for you—quality control and all that."
Ava nearly choked. "It's not like that! He did me a huge favor, that's all."
"Mmhm. Sure. Keep your secrets," Ellie teased. "Anyway, leave him to me."
A few minutes later, Jason received a friend request on WeChat. After he approved it, a message came through instantly.
Ellie: "Hi Jason! I'm Ellie, Ava's good friend. I also attended the same school, but not in your year. Ava said you're looking for a house—are you already in the city?"
Jason: "No, I'm still in my home. If you're free, I can head over now."
Ellie: "I'm free anytime! No clients today—I'm bored out of my mind. It's pretty far out though. Did you bring your car? Let me pick you up—just send me your location. I'll be there in ten minutes!"
Even through text, her personality came across as loud, bright, and overflowing with energy.
Jason couldn't help chuckling. Real estate agents were this enthusiastic now? Then again, this was likely Ava's influence.
He could have driven himself, but scanning for spiritual energy fluctuations while driving wasn't the safest idea. Letting Ellie handle the wheel was more convenient—and if he ended up buying something, she'd earn a solid commission anyway.
Jason sent his location, brewed himself a cup of tea, and waited.
Ten minutes later, a silver Honda pulled up outside the old courtyard house.
Ellie stepped out, and the moment she saw Jason walking toward her, her jaw dropped.
"Whoa—Ava did not prepare me for this. No wonder she's acting low-key!" She laughed. "If a guy this handsome went to my school, how did I never see you? You should have been legendary."
Ellie had stylish short hair, a fitted business suit, and a youthful boldness. Her neckline dipped just enough to be eye-catching without crossing into unprofessional territory—an intentional balance many saleswomen mastered.
Jason smiled. "Probably because I'm introverted. I only travel through sewer systems."
Ellie cracked up. "Yeah right. I don't see any introvert here. Come on, hop in. Let's go."
Jason settled into the passenger seat and quietly reactivated the Spirit Gathering Array. Subtle pulses rippled through his senses as Ellie pulled onto the road toward the City.
She chatted as she drove, half-conversational, half-professional. "So you want somewhere quiet, good air, comfortable atmosphere—not necessarily near a school. Got it. I'll show you a few communities with great value. Not too central, but convenient and pleasant."
From the rearview mirror, she glanced at Jason's family home behind them—a worn, aging house with patched walls and old bricks. In her mind, she quickly pieced together a narrative: Jason's family probably wasn't well-off.
All her recommendations were based on the assumption that he needed affordability and practicality. She rattled off neighborhoods with enthusiasm. "Maple Hollow is nice—older buildings, but great greenery. Lakeview East is newer, pretty quiet too. Oh! And Riverside Grove just dropped their prices…"
Jason listened while quietly scanning each area they passed. Meanwhile, the Spirit Gathering Array chimed in his mind one after another.
"Spiritual energy: 0.2 — not recommended."
"Spiritual energy: 0.3 — not recommended."
"Spiritual energy: 0.18 — too low."
Jason nodded politely as Ellie introduced each option—none of which met his needs. But he kept listening anyway, because sooner or later, the Array would react. And the moment it did, that would be the first place where spiritual energy truly existed—the future home of his parents' Spirit Gathering Sub-Array.
Jason gently interrupted her. "Senior, don't hold back. Show me the best places. Don't worry about price—I have plenty of money."
Ellie blinked, momentarily stunned, then smiled to herself. This junior was unbelievably handsome, but clearly a bit immature. Talking big was normal at his age.
Still, good-looking guys got a free pass on half their flaws. And since Ava Summers personally vouched for him, she wasn't going to call him out.
"Alright then," she said playfully. "If you want the best, I recommend Country Garden, and Lake Bay Park One Residence. Everyone who's lived there swears the environment is perfect. But of course…" She shot him a teasing look. "Those are the most expensive communities here."
"As long as the environment is good, the air is fresh, and the living is comfortable—that's enough," Jason said calmly. "Let's start with those three."
Ellie laughed in disbelief. "Alright, alright. Senior will take you."
She didn't think for a moment that he could actually afford any of them. But Ava was her friend, and Jason was absurdly attractive—taking him on a tour was hardly a burden.
They reached Country Garden first. Jason walked slowly, pretending to observe the architecture while the Spirit Gathering Array quietly pulsed in his senses.
Spiritual energy 0.16 — not recommended.
Spiritual energy 0.11 — not recommended.
Spiritual energy 0.21 — still too low.
He crossed the entire neighborhood once and immediately eliminated it in his mind.
Next. Here overall atmosphere was better, but the readings remained disappointingly low.
Spiritual energy 0.32 — still not enough.
They drove toward the final location: Lake Bay Park One Residence.
A county-level city with a main urban area barely the size of a university district in larger cities. By now they'd practically covered half of it.
And finally, the readings began to climb.
Spiritual energy 0.35… 0.38… 0.40… 0.42…
Jason's eyes lit up.
When they passed through the grand entrance and stepped fully inside Lake Bay Park One Residence, the Array reacted sharply.
Spiritual energy 0.50.
A significant jump.
But when they reached the villa district deeper in the community—near an especially lush corner plot—the reading spiked again.
Spiritual energy 0.70.
Jason's gaze locked onto the villa.
Still, the System's prompt chimed: "Spiritual energy concentration 0.70 — not sufficient to install a Sub-Array."
Unfortunately, this rule couldn't be bent. If the System said no, it was a hard limit.
Ellie noticed Jason staring silently at the villa and laughed lightly. "You have great taste. Lake Bay Park One Residence is considered the best in the entire city—and the villa district is the crown jewel. That one in particular? One of the best plots here. Word is, when they built it, they hired a professional, and the landscaping cost far more than the others."
Jason turned to her. "How much?"
Ellie grinned as if revealing a scandal. "Ten million. Sounds insane, right? Honestly, the price is inflated. It hasn't sold yet. A few wealthy families want it, but they're all trying to negotiate the price down."
Jason blinked. "Ten million? That's it?"
Ellie nearly tripped. This boy... She didn't know whether to laugh or sigh. Not steady at all.
Still, she maintained her professional smile. Ava Summers had asked her to take care of him, after all.
Jason took another slow look at the villa. No, he couldn't install a Sub-Array here—but 0.70 was extremely high for a modern city. Even just living here would subtly improve physical condition over time.
And compared to the $50 million, $180 million, and $120 million mansions he'd purchased back in Los Angeles, ten million was practically a chump change.
Jason said, "Do you have the key? Show me inside. If everything looks fine, I'll take it."
Ellie froze. "You'll… take… this one?"
She stared at him, then at the villa, then back at him. He looked completely serious. Her heartbeat skipped.
Ava, girl, what kind of monster-level best friend did you send me?
But she quickly snapped back into sales mode. "Yes! Yes, I have the key. Let's go inside."
She unlocked the gate with trembling hands, still unable to figure out whether Jason was joking or simply the kind of person who used ten million dollars as pocket change.
There are 150 chapters ahead in my Patreon. If you are interested can check it out.
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