After Bai Luan had met Ruan Mei and Screwllum, the final moment had finally arrived.
Excluding Stephen (who had voted in favor without a second thought), the other members were to vote on whether Bai Luan should join the Simulated Universe Project.
And as the main reason for this gathering, Bai Luan himself was currently unaware, preparing snacks to entertain guests.
He guessed that the geniuses had gathered to discuss matters related to the simulated universe, but he hadn't guessed that the meeting's decision was about whether he would join the project team.
Herta hadn't even told him about it.
The table where the three geniuses sat had four chairs prepared; before Bai Luan was told the true purpose of this meeting, he had assumed that the empty seat was for Stephen.
After he finished serving the snacks and was about to leave, Herta grabbed him.
"Where are you going? Didn't you see there's an empty seat? Go sit down."
"???"
Bai Luan looked at Herta with a puzzled expression, then turned his gaze to Screwllum and Ruan Mei.
They all seemed unfazed by this.
"Me? Sitting at the same table as you all?"
Screwllum looked at Bai Luan:
"Is there a problem?"
"..."
Bai Luan pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Alright, since everyone is here, we can begin the vote."
Bai Luan, with a slightly weak demeanor, asked:
"Vote... for what?"
"You don't know?"
Screwllum was a little surprised, then began to explain:
"Reason: When the Simulated Universe Project team was first established, Ms. Herta proposed that you join the project team and invited all members to review you. Today is the day to reveal the results."
The confusion and bewilderment in Bai Luan's eyes faded.
It was replaced by a hint of despair.
No, don't pull me into the project team and then pile on the workload...
I'm really just an ordinary person...
As Bai Luan's mindset underwent some slight changes, the meeting began.
Ruan Mei spoke first:
"You do not lack the courage when researching new technologies. Compared to me, your attitude towards life is more positive and caring, which I think is healthy."
A paper crane named Qing landed in front of her, its small head bobbing as if it were dozing off.
Ruan Mei's gaze turned to Qing:
"The life samples you provided have also greatly assisted my research, and as a fellow baker, you are quite good, so—I agree."
After Ruan Mei cast her vote, Screwllum followed suit.
Its tone remained as gentle as ever:
"Logic: The empathy and scientific courage you displayed on Beta Star perfectly align with the core parameters of an excellent collaborator.
This attitude of respect, transcending life forms, is a key variable in the evolution of cosmic civilizations towards higher forms."
Screwllum paused, then continued:
"Conclusion: After multi-dimensional ethical calculations, I fully endorse Ms. Herta's judgment.
Allow me to add in my personal capacity: I believe that working with you will be a pleasant experience, like a precise gear finding its perfectly meshing partner.
I vote in favor—may we jointly compose the symphony of science."
With two votes in favor already cast, Bai Luan looked at Herta, who was forking a piece of cake and taking a bite:
"Why are you looking at me? Does this genius still need to vote? I already invited you to join this project a long time ago."
Three votes in favor had already declared the outcome of the meeting.
Although he knew that the work ahead would become very troublesome, it didn't matter anymore.
Three geniuses had cast their votes in favor of him; was there any greater achievement in this world than that?
How come none of you geniuses saw through my true nature as a mortal?
Never mind.
A smile played on Bai Luan's lips.
Whether I am a genius or not, it no longer matters.
Since you are willing to cast your votes in favor of me, then I can only...
Prove to everyone, without reservation, that you did not misjudge me.
Bai Luan, feeling deeply honored, stood up and said:
"Although I still believe that comparing myself to you all is somewhat unqualified.
But even I will not back down at this moment. I will do everything in my power until I stand shoulder to shoulder with you."
Facing Bai Luan's speech, Herta nodded.
"It's about time."
As Bai Luan sat back down, the exchange among the geniuses began.
All sorts of wild and imaginative discussions started, and Bai Luan could only try his best to keep up.
At the same time, he secretly rejoiced in his heart.
Thankfully, he wasn't completely unable to understand.
For the next period of time, Bai Luan's workload indeed increased significantly.
Because he was involved in the Simulated Universe Project, Bai Luan and Herta spent more time together.
This part was actually fine; after all, he was used to spending every day with Herta in the Little Black Room.
The problem was that sometimes he wasn't alone with Herta; there was another genius present.
Facing two geniuses simultaneously put much greater pressure on him.
While he wasn't completely clueless, he still found it quite challenging.
His only advantage was that he had seen the mature simulated universe in the game and knew a general direction.
But that was all he knew; how to get there was entirely up to Bai Luan to explore himself.
He coded the basic framework of the simulated universe with Screwllum and discussed how to integrate Paths into the simulated universe with Ruan Mei.
Even his usually relaxed daily tasks turned into discussions about the simulated universe with Herta.
It felt like he had temporarily transformed from Herta's assistant into the shared assistant of three geniuses.
Fortunately, the other geniuses, besides Herta, didn't visit frequently, otherwise Bai Luan would definitely not be able to cope.
When will these hard days end...
Bai Luan experienced the feeling of dancing on a knife's edge after a long time.
Who understands the sense of salvation when you realize you need to learn a whole bunch of knowledge points just to understand one sentence they say?
Although Bai Luan was complaining bitterly about his current life, in the eyes of the other geniuses, it was a different story entirely.
Both Ruan Mei and Screwllum perceived Bai Luan's strengths during their first interactions with him.
An exceptionally keen insight.
Whenever something was proposed, even when the proposer themselves was still somewhat vague, Bai Luan not only understood but could articulate it in a clearer way.
An astonishing learning speed.
Frighteningly fast; every time they met, they could feel that he was smarter than the day before.
Progress is not uncommon, but progress every single moment is truly rare.
A qualified genius.
And an even more perfect assistant.
But most importantly—they had never seen anyone so adept at handling Herta.
Even Screwllum, with the best temper, had to use gentle persuasion to convince Herta.
Yet Bai Luan could cut straight to Herta's core, convincing her in an instant.
Herta also felt a hint of something unusual.
She was puzzled.
Why did she feel unexpectedly comfortable when interacting with Bai Luan?
Even if she said nothing, he could understand what she wanted to do and immediately provide the corresponding help.
Words between them seemed almost inefficient.
But Herta reflected on her past time with Bai Luan, and it couldn't be described as particularly long.
Although the time she spent with him had been slowly increasing since she pulled Bai Luan out of the time vortex, it shouldn't have led to this level of understanding.
Sometimes when Herta asked Bai Luan a question, his eyes would be clear as he listened, as if he were hearing something incomprehensible.
But after listening, the very next second, she would hear from him a concise answer, as if it were an extension of her own thoughts.
Given all this, Herta even suspected Bai Luan could read minds.
However, when Bai Luan conversed with Screwllum and Ruan Mei, he didn't exhibit that mind-reading-like behavior.
He had no special ability to read minds, his time with her wasn't long, yet they got along exceptionally well.
Only one last, most unscientific, most mystical explanation remained:
Could it be that someone truly is,
Born to be so compatible with her?
"Ms. Herta? What are you thinking?"
"Nothing."
Herta looked at Bai Luan for a moment, then showed a satisfied smile.
"This genius sometimes marvels at finding a perfect assistant."