Han Chong had heard a little of the various trouble Zhang Xuan had stirred up in Myriad Kingdom City and Huanyu Empire. Like a tornado, he left nothing but destruction in his wake…
It was hard to tell whether it would be a fortune or misfortune for the Master Teacher Academy to have a student like him!
Han Chong couldn’t help but solemnly pray for the long-established institution in his mind…
…
High above the clouds, Great Violetwing Beast glided across the sky.
It was dragging something that resembled a seven to eight meters ship behind it. The ship consisted of three rooms, and Zhang Xuan, Luo Qiqi, and Yu Fei-er took one each.
A flying ship!
The Beast Hall had crafted this for Zhang Xuan in gratitude to him for freeing them from the tyranny of Great Violetwing Beast. This magnificent flying ship had an elegant design, and all kinds of amenities were present on it.
It was said that this flying ship had cost the Beast Hall several thousand middle-tier spirit stones, and only after hearing this piece of news did Zhang Xuan feel a little more balanced inside.
After all, in order to save Draconic Granite Beast, he even had to use his own middle-tier spirit stones. At the very least, he should obtain something in return…
If those from the Beast Hall were to learn of his thoughts, they would surely spurt blood. Zhang Xuan had tamed the strongest spirit beast in their region and was gifted such a valuable flying ship, and yet he only felt that it was a fair exchange at this point…
Wasn’t he being a little too greedy!
Would he only be happy after he robbed the Beast Hall of its entire wealth?
While Zhang Xuan didn’t have any intention of cleaning out the Beast Hall, he did secretly wish to receive one or two high-tier spirit stones in exchange for his effort. However, it was a pity that all of Elder Qian’s wealth had gone to the Great Violetwing Beast throughout the years, so even producing a hundred middle-tier spirit stones was impossible for him.
On the deck of the flying ship, Luo Qiqi walked up to Zhang Xuan.
“Teacher!”
Zhang Xuan turned to her and asked, “You came at a good time. I recall you saying that there is the Apothecary School and Blacksmith School in the Master Teacher Academy. Can you tell me more about it?”
Since he was about to enroll in the Master Teacher Academy, he should at least gather some basic knowledge regarding it.
“It is a fundamental prerequisite for a master teacher to have sufficient supporting occupations before they can be promoted to a higher rank. As such, on top of imparting the various ways of a master teacher, the Master Teacher Academy also provides supporting occupation classes for its students to take on,” Luo Qiqi explained.
“After many years of development, the Master Teacher Academy has grown to consist of ten schools! They are namely the Apothecary School, Blacksmith School, Celestial Designer School, Formation Master School, Painter School, Martial Arts School, Beast Tamer School, Physician School, Demonic Tunist School, and Terpsichore School.
“The Apothecary School is a place where one studies the art of pill forging, and it is from there that I learned my pill forging skills. On the other hand, the Blacksmith School is a place where one learns how to smith weapons. Given my previous mastery of smithing, I wasn’t able to rank amidst the top hundred there. However, after receiving teacher’s guidance, I’ll surely be able to make a name for myself there!
“The same applies for the Celestial Designer School, Formation Master School, Painter School, and Physician School as well, so I won’t explain them. I’ll talk about the Martial Arts School, Demonic Tunist School, and Terpsichore School instead!”
Zhang Xuan nodded.
The Celestial Designer School was definitely a place where celestial designers learned about the complex engineering designs and mechanisms, he could tell so much from Wu Zhen. It was probably the same for the Formation Master School, Physician School, and Painter School as well.
Zhang Xuan had once studied these occupations, so he had a considerable understanding of them.
It was only the remaining three which he had an incomplete knowledge of.
“The Martial Arts School isn’t a support occupation school. Rather, it is a place to temper the fighting prowess of the master teachers. It conducts tournaments every now and then, and those who perform well will be allowed to study the top-notch battle techniques of the academy, thus further enhancing their fighting prowess. As for the Demonic Tunist School, it is a place where demonic tunists are groomed. Has teacher heard of demonic tunists before?” Luo Qiqi asked.
“Un. I have heard bits and pieces of it before. It is a Lower Nine Paths occupation, but its members are able to beguile hearts and crush souls through the utilization of melody. Even true experts find it hard to guard against such attacks!” Zhang Xuan nodded.
Not only had Zhang Xuan heard of demonic tunists, he had even met two of them before. However, neither one of them seemed to have fared well from the encounter with him. One was nearly driven mad by him while the other party plummeted straight from the sky.
“Yes, you’re right. As for the Terpsichore School, it is a place where terpsichores are groomed!” Luo Qiqi smiled.
“Terpsichores? You mean dancers?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
“That’s right, dancers!” Luo Qiqi nodded. “Dancers are actually similar to demonic tunists in many ways. Through aligning their dance with nature, they can enthrall their target with their elegant movements, drawing in spellbound birds and bewitching even experts.”
Zhang Xuan nodded.
Since there were dancers in the world, it was only natural that there would be an occupation regarding it. The founder of the occupation went by the surname of Gongsun, and legend has it that her dances could even rivet Saints.
It was said that when Gongsun was younger, her entire clan was purged by the hands of its enemies. Having survived the calamity, this huge grudge was heaped onto her shoulders. One day, while she was in the midst of studying the freely flying birds in the air, enlightenment suddenly struck her, and she created the terpsichore occupation. After training for thirty years, she emerged from her seclusion and awed the world with her enthralling dances. Before long, she caught the attention of a certain Conferred Empire, and she was invited over to perform for the royal family.
The emperor of this Conferred Empire happened to be Gongsun’s enemy, and he was a Saint expert at that time.
However, as soon as Gongsun began dancing, it was as if the entire world was revolving around her. No eyes could tear away from her, and no mind could remain rational before her. In his riveted state, even the Saint realm emperor was killed easily.
Just as she was escaping from the capital, she was surrounded by a million guards. However, through her dance, she persuaded all of them to put down their weapons and allow her to leave, and eventually, the entire matter became a legend that spread far and wide across the entire Master Teacher Continent.
After learning of this matter, Kong shi once visited Gongsun to witness her dance. After the performance, he was filled with compliments for the latter and left behind the following words: ‘Sighing at the fleeting moment, pursuing the terpsichore for one more gaze’. It was then that the occupation was put amidst the ranks of the Nine Paths, and the name ‘Terpsichore’ became known throughout the world.
This occupation was also among the Lower Nine Paths, and it was mainly pursued by women. As those who studied this art were even rarer than demonic tunists, not many knew of this occupation.
By some stroke of luck, Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy managed to receive the heritage for this occupation and established the Terpsichore School. However, due to its limited members, it was considered as the weakest of the ten schools.
Luo Qiqi chuckled.
“Yu Fei-er has been studying the art ever since she was young, and just recently, she passed the 5-star terpsichore examination.”
Zhang Xuan nodded.
The Master Teacher Academy was very similar to the universities in his previous life, where the academy was divided into many faculties as well.
The master teachers studying in the Master Teacher Academy could choose to undertake any supporting occupation that interested them and advance in that path.
Honestly speaking, it was indeed an excellent place to groom master teachers. It was no wonder why it was an esteemed organization even within a Tier-1 Empire.
“Even though many master teachers view the Master Teacher Academy as their goal, it is no paradise inside there. The Master Teacher Academy is extremely competitive, and regardless of what one intends to do, be it to study or to listen in a lecture, one must have sufficient academic credits. Otherwise, it’ll be hard for one to make any progress in there! And to earn academic credits, one will have to accomplish all kinds of missions or clear the difficult tests set by the academy… There are some master teachers who choose to withdraw from the academy due to their inability to withstand the stressful environment, and there are also a few who are expelled due to their poor results!”
At which, Luo Qiqi’s face turned grim.
“Withdraw? Expelled?”
All along, Zhang Xuan had thought that entering the academy in itself was a gateway to success. However, that didn’t seem to be the case.
“That’s right. Back then, when Kong shi first established the Master Teacher Academy, he once said that the master teachers are the crux to the advancement of mankind. Only with strong teachers can humanity be strong! As such, the Master Teacher Academy didn’t need any unmotivated students. The only choices before them are to push forward or to leave, it’s that simple.”
Saying those words, Luo Qiqi smiled bitterly.
“Only with strong teachers can humanity be strong?” Zhang Xuan’s body trembled at those words.
Luo Qiqi was right. If mankind wished to advance further, the role of teachers was of utmost importance.
If students didn’t have the right values in life, their accomplishments would be severely limited.
If even the teachers had stagnated in their studies, how could they possibly groom motivated, driven students and bring humanity to greater heights?
Zhang Xuan found himself relating deeply to these words.
The strong emerges victorious whereas the weak are eliminated.
Such was the way of the world. Not even the number one occupation of the world could be spared from this competition.
“Actually teacher, you need not worry too much. Given your abilities, it will be extremely difficult for you to be expelled from the academy…”
Recalling the monstrous proficiency her teacher had shown in numerous occupations, Luo Qiqi smiled bitterly. Then, she suddenly recalled something and added, “However, there is an esteemed Master Teacher Elite Board that teacher can strive for. It’ll be difficult, but I think teacher should be able to get a place on it with a few years of effort!”
“Master Teacher Elite Board?”
“Un. It is a ranking board in the Master Teacher Academy that automatically reflects the top hundred most outstanding students in the academy. Those who are listed in the ranks of the board are all formidable geniuses who are highly respected in the academy!” Luo Qiqi said.
Zhang Xuan asked, “The top hundred students of the academy? How many people are there in the academy?”
“The Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy doesn’t only accept students within Hongyuan Empire. It also recruits students from other Tier-1 Empire, so there are at least several hundred thousand people throughout the entire academy, and all of them are top-notch geniuses!” explained Luo Qiqi.
Those who were able to enroll in the academy were all top geniuses in their own region. To be able to rank amidst the top of such a group was as difficult as ascending the heavens.
Zhang shi might be formidable, but Luo Qiqi still thought that it would be difficult for him to get on the board without several years of hard work.
“You aren’t on the board?” Zhang Xuan asked.
Over the time Zhang Xuan had spent with Luo Qiqi, he could tell that the latter was an extraordinary genius. Just by her cultivation, pill forging, and smithing skills, there would be very few of her peers who could match up to her. But even so… she still wasn’t on the board?
“Me? How could I possibly be on the board? That board is tied to one’s academic credits, cultivation, and eye of discernment. As such, it is mainly dominated by the upper grade students, so how could a Grade 2 student like me possibly get on it…” Luo Qiqi shook her head.
Naturally, the upper grade students had a higher chance of getting on the Master Teacher Elite Board as compared to the lower grade students.
They had been in the academy for many years now, and they had accomplished innumerable missions, thus granting them a huge wealth of academic credits. On top of that, the grades in the academy were determined by the student’s master teacher ranking, which was inadvertently related to one’s cultivation. Naturally, a Grade 2 student who had just joined the academy not too long ago wouldn’t be able to surpass them so easily.
“I see.”
Hearing the other party’s explanation, Zhang Xuan gained a substantial understanding of the Master Teacher Academy.
He’d thought that it was just a place for one to learn and study, but things were far more complex than he had expected.
It was no wonder even a princess like Yu Fei-er would have to participate in missions and face dangers for academic credits. It seemed like the academy doesn’t compromise its policies for nobility.
Such a competitive landscape was just to Zhang Xuan’s liking.
At the very least, he wouldn’t be so bored.
In an instant, endless fighting spirit suddenly sprouted within Zhang Xuan, and he began looking forward to entering the renowned Master Teacher Academy.
In the next few days, whenever the both of them were free, Luo Qiqi would explain the various rules of the Master Teacher Academy to Zhang Xuan, and in exchange, Zhang Xuan would guide her on her pill forging and smithing. Thus, in just ten days, Luo Qiqi’s pill forging and smithing proficiency had risen significantly.
“Teacher, we have arrived at Hongyuan City!”
On a certain day, just as Zhang Xuan was explaining the essence of pill forging to Luo Qiqi, he suddenly heard the latter’s exclamation and lowered his gaze to take a look. He saw a massive city that was far larger than Huanyu Empire below him.
