Qian Renxue's Cold Treatment

Facing Xue Qinghe's request, Lin Mu's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise as he silently weighed the pros and cons.

As an aristocratic institution, Heaven Dou Royal Academy was inaccessible to ordinary people. Holding the position of a senior instructor would indeed save him quite a bit of trouble.

Since he had nothing else to do anyway, he might as well take on a nominal post.

Of course, it was not without drawbacks. Once he accepted Xue Qinghe's request, he would inevitably be branded as part of the Crown Prince's faction.

That was equivalent to taking the Heaven Dou Empire's side.

However, Lin Mu knew perfectly well that this "Xue Qinghe" was not the real Xue Qinghe, but Qian Renxue in disguise.

Because of that, even if he stood with the Heaven Dou Empire, he would not need to worry about Spirit Hall undermining him from the shadows.

After making up his mind, Lin Mu immediately clasped his fists toward Xue Qinghe. "I am honored by Your Highness's esteem, so I shall gladly accept. However, I have always been unrestrained and dislike the many rules of an academy."

"That is a minor matter. For someone as exceptionally gifted as you to be willing to serve as an instructor at Heaven Dou Royal Academy is already an immense honor. Qinghe will naturally make proper arrangements for such trivial matters."

Xue Qinghe smiled faintly, a trace of barely perceptible delight passing through her eyes.

She had not expected it to go so smoothly, but this was far from enough. A man even more outstanding than herself had to be firmly kept in her grasp.

"It is truly Heaven Dou's fortune that you have agreed to this. To be honest, from the moment Qinghe first met you today, I felt an unusual sense of familiarity. We are of similar age, so why not address each other as brothers?"

Xue Qinghe looked eagerly at Lin Mu, her tone carrying a sense of heartfelt sincerity.

Seeing this, Lin Mu frowned slightly. Even if this woman wanted to win him over, there was no need to rush it this much, was there?

"Thank you for Your Highness's favor, but I am merely a commoner. I truly do not dare address Your Highness as a brother."

Lin Mu clasped his fists and politely declined.

Hearing this answer, Xue Qinghe did not mind in the slightest. Smiling, she said, "With Brother Lin's talent, I believe Father Emperor would be willing to grant you a noble title. Then it would no longer be a problem."

Lin Mu's gaze sharpened. This woman appeared amiable on the surface, but in truth she was exceedingly domineering, leaving no room for refusal.

"Thank you once again for Your Highness's kindness, but I am a timid man who fears trouble most of all. It would be best to forget about such troublesome matters."

Lin Mu waved his hand and refused again.

Lin Mu had no interest whatsoever in becoming a noble. A title no bigger than a sesame seed would be useless, and he would only end up being needlessly oppressed by others.

After being rejected again and again, a chill flickered deep within Xue Qinghe's eyes, though her smile remained unchanged as she said gently,

"It is fine. Everyone has their own aspirations. When Brother Lin has made up his mind, it will not be too late to receive a noble title."

Even though Lin Mu had not agreed, Xue Qinghe still did not retract her words.

Lin Mu no longer cared about it. There was no real problem with calling a woman his brother anyway. He was not the one at a disadvantage.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, it is getting late. I shall take my leave first."

Lin Mu rose and made his farewell. Rather than exchange empty pleasantries with Xue Qinghe here, he would rather return and cultivate.

"Brother Lin, let me see you out."

"No need. I know the way."

Lin Mu rejected her in a simple and blunt manner.

Rejected once again, Xue Qinghe's smile stiffened. A rare flicker of irritation appeared in her eyes. Did this fellow not understand courtesy or politeness at all?

Watching Lin Mu's departing back, the smile on Xue Qinghe's face gradually faded, her eyes gleaming with both curiosity and coldness.

At first, she had not believed what Tang Yuehua said. How could there possibly be a Soul Sage barely over twenty years old in this world?

Now the facts lay before her. This fellow's talent truly surpassed her own.

The only thing troubling her was that he seemed to have little interest in power or status. Though he appeared respectful toward her, he actually gave her the feeling of cold treatment.

Other than agreeing to serve as a senior instructor, he had not agreed to a single one of her other requests.

Yet the more he acted this way, the more it stirred her competitive spirit.

As long as someone was human, they were bound to need something. Since a noble title was useless, she would try giving him a beauty next time.

Under Xue Qinghe's arrangements, Tang San and Xiao Wu's enrollment had basically been settled. They only needed to undergo the final Soul Power test.

Early that morning, Lin Mu brought Tang San and Xiao Wu to Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

As soon as the three reached the academy gates, a middle-aged instructor came forward to greet them. He had clearly been specially arranged by Xue Qinghe.

The middle-aged instructor led the three into a classroom, then took out a testing crystal and said,

"This is a level-forty testing crystal. Test your levels one by one, and then you can register for enrollment."

"I'll go first!"

Xiao Wu stepped forward first and placed her hand on the testing crystal sphere. She then poured Soul Power into it, and the crystal sphere immediately lit up with a dazzling radiance.

"Level thirty-one!"

Sun Buyu's eyes were filled with astonishment. A twelve-year-old Soul Elder—there was not even one person capable of that at Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

No wonder His Highness the Crown Prince valued them so highly. They truly were extraordinarily rare geniuses.

Taking a deep breath, Sun Buyu barely suppressed the shock in his heart. He took out paper and pen and recorded, "Xiao Wu, twelve years old, Martial Soul: Soft Bone Rabbit, level thirty-one Assault System Battle Soul Elder."

After completing the test, Xiao Wu skipped back to Tang San's side, her face carrying a hint of pride.

Lin Mu's eyes flashed with a trace of amusement at the sight.

If Xiao Wu had not been so playful, her cultivation would definitely have been far beyond level thirty-one.

As for her third Soul Ring, she had secretly condensed it before leaving the Star Dou Great Forest. Her excuse was that she had encountered a heavily injured thousand-year Soft Bone Rabbit.

Lin Mu simply turned a blind eye to it.

Next came Tang San. He took a step forward and calmly placed his hand on the crystal sphere.

The next instant, the testing crystal sphere erupted with a dazzling light, several degrees brighter than when Xiao Wu had tested.

"Level thirty-four?"

Sun Buyu's pupils contracted, and his mind went completely blank. Cultivating to level thirty-one at age twelve was still within the realm of acceptance, but level thirty-four was completely beyond comprehension.

From Martial Soul awakening until now, he had cultivated for only six years in total. That was equivalent to increasing his Soul Power by four levels every year. It utterly overturned everything he knew.

"No, his Martial Soul seems to be Blue Silver Grass."

Sun Buyu glanced at the registration information. After repeatedly confirming that it was indeed a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, his entire mind fell into complete chaos.

Was Blue Silver Grass not universally acknowledged as a useless Martial Soul?

Yet this Tang San was clearly a monster. Even those geniuses with top-tier Martial Souls were nowhere near comparable to him.

In truth, most Soul Masters had fallen into a misconception, believing that the strength of a Martial Soul represented the level of one's talent.

In reality, Innate Soul Power determined the level of one's talent, while a Martial Soul could only represent the strength of one's abilities.

However, because Martial Souls influenced Innate Soul Power to a certain extent, people came to believe that the stronger the Martial Soul, the greater the talent, and the weaker the Martial Soul, the poorer the talent.