"Rank 40."
Bai Mu smiled faintly as he answered.
"A true genius indeed, reaching Rank 40 at twelve… Huh?! What did you just say?"
Qian Renxue praised him instinctively, then froze. The teacup in her hand trembled as she stared at Bai Mu in disbelief.
"Reporting to Your Highness, I am currently at Rank 40," Bai Mu replied calmly, watching the stunned "Xue Qinghe" with interest.
The shock in her eyes didn't look fake.
In fact, Qian Renxue was genuinely shaken.
"Rank 40… twelve years old… Rank 40…"
She muttered to herself, repeating the words again and again.
She, Qian Renxue—the greatest genius on the continent—had possessed innate spirit power at Rank 20. Even so, when she was twelve, she had only been around Rank 40 or 50.
That earth-shattering talent had always been her greatest pride.
In her eyes, only her "sister," the Supreme Pontiff of Spirit Hall, Bibi Dong, who possessed twin spirits, could rival her.
But now?
An ordinary boy with no background had almost caught up to her twelve-year-old self?
She had background, opportunities, and talent—she lacked nothing.
And yet…
"I remember reviewing Brother Bai's information back then. If I recall correctly, your innate spirit power was only Rank 1, and three years ago, at nine years old, you were merely Rank 11…"
"An increase of twenty-nine ranks in three years. If you absorbed a spirit ring now, you could rise at least one more rank. This is simply unheard of…"
A bitter smile appeared on Qian Renxue's face.
She had been disguised as Xue Qinghe for many years, forced to let her cultivation lag behind. Even now, in her twenties, she still needed more time to break through to Spirit Saint.
She firmly believed that by the time Bai Mu reached her age, he would definitely have become a Spirit Saint.
In other words… Bai Mu's current talent surpassed hers.
Crack.
Something she had always been most proud of felt as though it were beginning to shatter.
"Innate spirit power at Rank 1, yet now Rank 40? Are you kidding me?"
Gu Rong, who knew nothing about Bai Mu's background, was completely dumbfounded.
If it were merely Rank 40 at age twelve, one could argue that there had been—or would be—even greater geniuses.
But reaching this level with innate spirit power of Rank 1 was nothing short of fantasy.
"Uncle Bone… Xiao Mu really is that kind of genius."
Given the circumstances, Ning Fengzhi could only admit Bai Mu's rank openly.
He thought to himself that it was fortunate Qinghe didn't know Bai Mu's true combat strength.
"No wonder…"
Gu Rong finally understood.
No wonder you, Ning Fengzhi, dared to practically sell out your daughter—this was the reason.
Rank 40 at twelve, with innate spirit power of Rank 1.
Anyone with a brain could tell that his future potential would definitely surpass both his and Chen Xin's.
If they could recruit him, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would be secure for the next hundred years.
"Ahem! Looking at it this way, you really are a genius."
Combining this with his earlier observations, Gu Rong made up his mind.
"If you're willing to join the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Chen Xin and I will definitely take you as our disciple and teach you personally."
"Thank you, Senior. I… I'll consider it."
Bai Mu's eyes lit up as he put on an expression of barely restrained joy.
"No rush. Take your time," Ning Fengzhi said with a faint smile. As long as Bai Mu remained in Heaven Dou, there was no need to hurry.
"With Brother Bai's talent, it would be a pity not to serve the Empire."
Qian Renxue chose the right moment to speak. "If you're willing, I can recommend you to my royal father and grant you a noble title and official position. Being enfeoffed as a marquis or appointed as a minister in the future would be no problem."
Bai Mu froze slightly, interest flashing in his eyes. "A noble title?"
"Yes, a noble title."
Qian Renxue smiled. "For a genius like you, I can grant you the title of Viscount right now, though the matter of a fief will have to wait."
"To be honest… I've also harbored the ambition of becoming a king or a minister."
Bai Mu spoke with undisguised yearning. "I really want to make progress!"
He never said who he would be loyal to. Having transmigrated into this world, he would only ever be loyal to himself.
It didn't matter which faction he joined. What mattered was what he could gain and how it would help him achieve his future goals.
As long as he won over Qian Renxue, he would effectively enter the inner circle of Spirit Hall and even take part in that nation-usurping plan—the pinnacle of political intrigue.
Qian Renxue would usurp the nation, and he would usurp Qian Renxue.
Perfect.
However, thinking of that absurd plan from the original story—where she spent more than a decade in disguise only to fail—Bai Mu nearly burst out laughing.
Qian Renxue frowned slightly. "Why are you laughing, Brother Bai?"
"I… I thought of something funny…"
Bai Mu tried to hold it in, but with the person herself sitting across from him, the corners of his mouth were harder to suppress than a fully loaded rifle.
"What was it?" Qian Renxue asked curiously.
"My wife—ah, no!"
Bai Mu hurriedly corrected himself. "Meeting Sect Master Ning and Your Highness makes me feel that I'm not far from making a name for myself and reaching the peak of life. I was just happy."
Although Qian Renxue found his reaction a little strange, she didn't dwell on it and instead promised more benefits and conditions.
"Qinghe, there's no need to rush. Let Bai Mu think it over a bit more," Ning Fengzhi said.
Based on Bai Mu's performance, he was convinced that only three factions truly suited him: Spirit Hall, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and the Heaven Dou Empire.
Spirit Hall could be ruled out—if Bai Mu truly wanted to join, he would have done so back when he was receiving subsidies.
That left only the latter two, which were closely tied together.
There was no need to hurry.
Qian Renxue nodded respectfully. "Teacher, I understand."
The group continued chatting happily and soon moved to a private room at the Heaven Dou Grand Hotel to enjoy dinner together.
Host and guests alike had a wonderful time.
At some point, the conversation turned to what each of them valued most.
Gu Rong joked that he wanted to advance two more ranks so he could give Chen Xin a proper beating and then watch Rongrong grow up.
Ning Fengzhi said he hoped to lead the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect into becoming the Eight—or even Nine—Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Qian Renxue smiled and said she only wished to make the Heaven Dou Empire strong again, allowing its people to live and work in peace.
Then they all looked at Bai Mu.
"I'm a rather vulgar person," Bai Mu said frankly. "Aside from greed for money and beauty, and a desire to advance… what I value most is strength."
He clenched his fist, his eyes filled with excitement and longing.
"Strength is the foundation of everything. I want to possess the greatest power to protect what I want to protect."
"I especially admire the strong—especially young geniuses who are stronger than me."
Bai Mu paused, his expression becoming more solemn than ever before.
"On the day I reached Rank 40, I told myself this: I am, and must be, the most talented Spirit Master on the entire continent."
"Within fifteen years above or below my age, if any Spirit Master no more than fifteen years older than me can defeat me head-on, I am willing to follow them without hesitation—for life."
The words sounded bold on the surface, but in truth, Bai Mu was laying a trap for Qian Renxue.
If he could crush her in both talent and strength, he didn't believe the lifelong pride anchoring her Dao Heart would remain unshaken.
Sure enough, the moment he finished speaking, everyone was stunned.
"Brother Bai, you're that confident?" Qian Renxue asked, startled. Her beautiful eyes carefully studied his expression, trying to determine whether he truly meant it.
Even she hadn't possessed the confidence, at twelve years old, to defeat everyone under twenty-seven.
At the same time, she was certain of one thing—Bai Mu could never defeat everyone under twenty-seven.
Because among them… was her.
"Kid, confidence is a good thing, but blind confidence is just arrogance," Gu Rong said, shaking his head with a clearly incredulous expression.
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