Chapter 20: The Little Genius

  As the last bandit fell to the ground, Su Minghe stood alone like a peerless war hero, wiping the bloodstains from his silver blade with practiced efficiency. The weapon gleamed in the afternoon light before disappearing with a flick of his wrist, as if it had never existed at all. The silver ring resting on one of his fingers emitted a faint glow after this action.

  "A spatial ring!" one of the guards shouted in shock, his voice carrying across the now-quiet battlefield.

  "No wonder his sword materialized out of nowhere," another guard murmured in awe. "The Third Elder actually possesses a spatial ring!"

  Spatial rings were rare treasures in the cultivation world, capable of storing non-living objects within their own dimensional space. Each ring contained a cubic room's worth of storage that could be accessed instantly by its owner. The higher the grade of the spatial ring, the larger its internal capacity. Even the lowest-grade spatial ring cost more than a peak-grade Mortal rank weapon—an almost unimaginable expense for ordinary cultivators.

  The guards' amazement was entirely justified.

  Su Minghe ignored their stares as he approached Mo Han's corpse. Bending slightly, he retrieved a bronze-colored ring from the dead bandit's finger, examining it with professional interest.

  "As expected of former members of the Great Mo Clan," he muttered approvingly. "Even as disgraced outcasts, they managed to retain their spatial rings and weapons."

  Faint spiritual energy appeared at his fingertips, as he began the process of overriding Mo Han’s spiritual signature to claim ownership of the ring. As long as a person possesses stronger spiritual energy than the original owner, or that owner is dead, they could forcibly transfer a spatial ring’s ownership to themselves.

  Su Minghe swept his consciousness into the newly acquired ring, and his eyes widened in pleasant surprise. "This is..."

  "What did you find, Third Elder?" the guards asked with obvious curiosity.

  "The goods stolen from our caravans!" Su Minghe announced with satisfaction. "This cunning bastard wasn't hiding them in some secret base—he kept everything with him!"

  "Our stolen merchandise?" The guards' expressions of shock quickly transformed into broad smiles as the implications became clear.

  But the stolen Su family goods weren't the only treasures within the ring. Su Minghe could sense numerous other valuable items and wealth that the bandits had accumulated from their various victims over the years.

  His eyes flashed with cold light as he glanced down at Mo Han's corpse. "This bastard really was cunning. He planned to trick me into letting him escape by claiming the goods were hidden elsewhere."

  With a grim smile, he severed Mo Han's head with a precise application of spiritual energy and stored it within his own spatial ring for the bounty collection. After that, he moved to Mo Tianming's body and repeated the process.

  "Another spatial ring!" the guards exclaimed as he removed another bronze ring from Mo Tianming's finger.

  Su Minghe quickly claimed ownership and examined its contents. This ring contained millions of silver coins piled high like gleaming mountains, along with thousands of precious gold coins that represented extraordinary wealth.

  A single gold coin was worth one hundred silver coins!

  "These criminals were incredibly rich!" Su Minghe laughed heartily, his mood brightening considerably. "Our family has truly struck a fortune!"

  Additionally, he collected both Mo Tianming's twin daggers and Mo Han's massive battle-axe—both peak-grade Mortal rank weapons of considerable value.

  The guards watched this efficient looting with speechless amazement.

  "If these bandits' souls could see from the netherworld that their years of plundering ended up enriching our Su family, I wonder what expressions they'd make?" one guard mused with dark humor.

  The total haul was staggering:

  Recovered stolen goods from multiple victims!

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  Rare treasures and valuable artifacts!

  Millions of silver coins!

  Thousands of gold coins!

  Two spatial rings!

  Two peak-grade Mortal rank weapons!

  This represented the Mo brothers' accumulated wealth from years of banditry, and when combined with the substantial bounty rewards from the imperial authorities, the Su family would emerge from this crisis significantly wealthier than before.

  The guards' faces beamed with satisfaction, their earlier terror completely forgotten in the face of such unexpected prosperity.

  Su Minghe's own mood soared as he surveyed their gains. "Our Su family has truly struck it rich this time—and it's all thanks to young Su Tianhao's brilliant strategy!"

  ---

  Three days passed swiftly after the bandit threat was finally eliminated. Captain Liu had been judged and imprisoned as both punishment and warning to others who might consider betrayal. The family successfully collected the bounty rewards from the imperial capital and restocked their warehouses with both the recovered goods and the bandits' accumulated wealth. Their business operations had stabilized completely, and prosperity seemed assured for the foreseeable future.

  All of this success could be traced back to a single strategic mind, and the Su family was not one to leave such contributions unrecognized.

  In Su Tianhao's elegantly appointed chamber on the second floor of the main residence, preparations were underway for an unprecedented honor.

  "Young Master, you must prepare quickly!" Xie Ling's sweet voice carried excitement and pride. "It's a tremendous honor to have the entire family celebrating victory in your name!"

  "I'm almost ready," came Su Tianhao's youthful reply from behind a decorative screen.

  Xie Ling stepped forward to see the young boy standing before his bronze mirror, carefully adjusting his ceremonial robes. He looked magnificent—dressed in fine azure-colored silk with intricate golden embroidery that spoke of luxury and high status. His long black hair had been tied with perfect precision, while his distinctive golden eyes gleamed with unmistakable intelligence. The diamond-shaped pendant at his throat caught the light with refined brilliance, completing his transformation from street orphan to young nobility.

  "Ling Ling, I'm ready," Su Tianhao said with a confident smile.

  Xie Ling nodded approvingly, a proud smile playing across her features as she admired his noble bearing. She too had been dressed for the occasion—instead of her usual servant attire, she wore fine green robes that carried their own touch of elegance, marking her elevated status as the personal attendant to the family's newest hero.

  The two made their way purposefully through the residence corridors until they reached the grand celebration hall. The massive chamber buzzed with activity—dozens of tables laden with exquisite food and fine wines, while the air carried the mingled scents of roasted meats and expensive incense.

  As they entered the hall, conversation gradually ceased as all attention focused on them. Su Tianhao felt the weight of countless eyes upon him, his steps faltering slightly as the magnitude of the gathering became clear. This was his first appearance at such a formal family event, and being the center of attention felt overwhelming.

  "It's the Second Young Master!"

  "So that's the boy who solved our bandit crisis!"

  "Truly, heroes emerge from the young!"

  "I predict he'll become a formidable cultivator when he reaches maturity!"

  The crowd's discussions carried warmth and genuine admiration. These weren't ordinary family members—the gathering included elders, direct descendants, business managers, captains, vice captains, squad leaders, and disciples of considerable standing within the family hierarchy.

  Being scrutinized by such distinguished figures created immense pressure for Su Tianhao, and even Xie Ling felt uncomfortable under their collective gaze. Her presence at this elite gathering was possible only because of her young master's extraordinary achievement.

  Just as the pressure threatened to become unbearable, a familiar voice intervened. "Let's not overwhelm little Tian with too much attention," Su Yuan said kindly as he stepped forward. His white flowing robes enhanced his scholarly aura, giving him a majestic appearance.

  Beside him stood Su Mei, looking radiant in a purple outfit that perfectly complemented her natural beauty and grace.

  "Uncle Yuan! Senior Sister!" Su Tianhao exclaimed with visible relief, his genuine smile returning as friendly faces appeared among the sea of strangers.

  "Come, let me introduce you to everyone properly," Su Mei said cheerfully, taking his hand and leading him into the crowd with sisterly protectiveness.

  Their first encounter was with Su Chang, who had positioned himself near the entrance as if waiting for them.

  "Little brother, meet Senior Brother Chang!" Su Mei announced with enthusiasm.

  "Senior Brother Chang!" Su Tianhao greeted politely, recognizing him from their previous brief meetings.

  "Junior Brother Tianhao, your contribution this time was truly exceptional," Su Chang replied with what appeared to be genuine warmth, though his eyes held a complexity that Su Tianhao couldn't quite read.

  Su Tianhao then noticed Su Liang seated nearby, enjoying wine with several other family members.

  "Uncle Liang!" Su Tianhao called out respectfully, offering an appropriate bow.

  "Little Tian, I must admit I completely misjudged you!" Su Liang replied with hearty laughter. "You've given us all quite a surprise!"

  Su Mei then guided Su Tianhao through the hall, introducing him to the family's most important figures with obvious pride.

  "This is Wei Kang, one of our most trusted Vice Captains and the leader of one of your successful caravans..."

  "Here is Third Elder Su Minghe, a distant cousin of your father and the one who personally eliminated the Mo brothers!"

  "That distinguished woman is Fourth Elder Su Yuntian. She may seem cold and aloof, but she's fundamentally a good person with the family's best interests at heart."

  "And this venerable gentleman is First Elder Su Qingfeng, our prestigious alchemist and one of the strongest cultivators in our family. It's rumored that he's already approaching the threshold of Martial Grandmaster Realm!"

  "Martial Grandmaster Realm!" Su Tianhao exclaimed in shock, his voice carrying across the nearby conversations.

  In another section of the hall, a figure roughly Su Tianhao's age sat beside the familiar middle-aged woman known throughout the family as Madam Niu.

  "Aunt Niu, why is he receiving all this attention?" Su Jian asked with barely concealed envy, his brown eyes fixed on the celebration surrounding his adopted brother.

  "Don't speak like that, Jian'er," Madam Niu chided gently but firmly. "You should try to get along with your brother. He genuinely deserves this recognition after what he's accomplished."

  Just then, a commanding voice resonated throughout the hall, instantly commanding everyone's attention. Su Huiqing had taken position at the front of the gathering, his crimson robes creating a magnificent presence as he prepared to address the assembly.

  "Today we celebrate our complete victory over the Mo brothers and their bandit organization!" his voice carried clearly to every corner of the hall. "We celebrate our success and the substantial gains we've achieved! Most importantly, we celebrate a remarkable new addition to our family—Su Tianhao, the young genius whose brilliant strategy saved us when the odds seemed impossible!"

  He raised his cup high above his head. "To Su Tianhao!"

  "TO SU TIANHAO!" the entire gathering responded in unison, their voices creating a thunderous chorus of appreciation as dozens of cups rose in salute.

  From this day forward, the name Su Tianhao would resonate throughout Oakwood City as a prodigy, a genius adopted by the Su family, and a tremendous stroke of fortune. The little rogue of Willow Creek Town had been transformed into the little genius of Oakwood City, his reputation elevated beyond anything he could have imagined during his days surviving on the streets.

  The celebration continued deep into the night, with toasts, stories, and promises of continued support for the family's newest star. Su Tianhao had reached the pinnacle of respect and admiration within his adopted family.

  But the question remained: How long could he stay there?