That lady carried a unique poise which emanated an inexplicable beauty when she smiled. Even Zhao Ya’s disposition and beauty seemed to pale before her.
Forcing himself to remain calm so as to not lose his bearings before the other party, Zhang Xuan asked, “Are you… a student of this academy?”
For some reason, he couldn’t help but feel anxious and even a little lost before this lady. This was a feeling he had never felt from anyone before.
He was in the Master Teacher Academy due to clearing the entrance examination and becoming a student here. Since the other party was here as well, could it mean that she was a student too?
It would be great if that was the case. The thought of being able to spend many of the future days with the other party left him with a tinge of anticipation inside.
However, the young lady shook her head.
“No?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback. “Then… are you the kin of one of the elders here?”
There were strict rules in the Master Teacher Academy, and other than the students and the staff, no one else was allowed to step onto its premises.
If she wasn’t a student of the academy, could it mean that she was the daughter or relative of one of the elders here? Otherwise, how could she possibly appear within the academy?
However, the young lady shook her head once more.
“Then…” Zhang Xuan scratched his head, and just as he was about to continue guessing, a faint but graceful voice sounded by his ears.
“Follow me.”
After which, the young lady before him began walking in a certain direction.
“You can speak…” Zhang Xuan was stunned.
He hadn’t heard a word from the other party back when they were on the Verdant Mountain, so he’d thought that she was incapable of speech. Who would have thought that not only could she speak, her voice would be so moving as well?
“Of course I can!” The young lady rolled her eyes with a smile.
This fellow was truly a fool.
Back on Verdant Mountain, she had killed a ferocious spirit beast who had tyrannized the region, thus winning her the gratitude of countless other spirit beasts who resided in the area.
Therefore, those spirit beasts paid her a visit to express their gratitude, but in fear of disturbing her rest, they ended up gathering and lingering in her surroundings instead. Yet, that fellow had thought that she was under attack and forcefully pulled her down into the lake.
They ended up swimming underwater for a long period of time in an attempt to escape from the pursuit of the other spirit beasts.
Even at the very end, he thought that he had saved her life. He was truly a funny person.
But despite the misunderstanding, she knew that he had done it out of the goodwill of his heart. Considering his bravery in charging into an army of spirit beasts to ‘save’ her, she eventually chose not to point out the misunderstanding.
He had saved her once, and she had returned the favor by resolving the issue regarding his soul. With that, she’d thought that their fate had come to an end, and they would never meet again. Who could have known that a day would come when they would meet once more?
“Are you a student here?” the young lady asked as they walked side by side.
“Yes, I am a freshman who arrived just a few days ago. The last time we met at Huanyu Empire, I was actually just about to head here,” Zhang Xuan replied.
“I see.” The young lady nodded in realization.
So, he was a student here, no wonder she would see him here.
After a moment of silence as they walked amidst the crowd, the young lady suddenly asked, “Have you chosen your teacher yet?”
“Not yet… Actually, I have no intention of finding one at all.” Zhang Xuan shook his head.
“You don’t intend to find a teacher?” The young lady was surprised. “Why?”
Master teachers who had enrolled here sought to further their capabilities and reach greater heights. The insights of a high-ranked master teacher were highly beneficial to one’s progress as a master teacher, so why wouldn’t one find a teacher?
“It’s nothing much… I just haven’t found a suitable teacher yet,” Zhang Xuan replied with an awkward smile.
It was not that he intended to lie to the other party, but he dared not speak the truth. How could he say that the standard of teachers here was too low, such that their lessons were completely useless to him… If he were to really utter those words, he would be pummeled to death by both teachers and students alike in the next instant.
“What kind of teacher are you looking for? I might be able to help you on this matter,” the young lady said.
Even though she didn’t have much of an understanding of the teachers in the academy, given her eye of discernment, she should be able to easily find a suitable teacher for him.
“This…” Zhang Xuan scratched his head in distress.
He had no intentions of acknowledging a teacher at all, so he wasn’t too sure how he should respond to the other party’s kind gesture.
After all, he had rejected even School Head Zhao and School Head Mo… How could any of the other teachers compare to them?
“I think that this teacher is not bad. His explanation of cultivation techniques is quite detailed, and he analyzes them in a systematic manner, starting from the basics before diving into the intricacies, making it easier for the students to comprehend the knowledge he is trying to impart.”
There was yet another moment of silence between the duo before the young lady suddenly stopped before one of the platforms and gestured to an old man who was in the midst of lecturing a crowd.
Zhang Xuan glanced at the plaque hanging beside the old man and noted that he was from the Celestial Designer School.
Having to deal with complicated mechanisms every day, celestial designers tended to have logical and systematic minds. Such a trait seemed to be particularly useful in the impartation of knowledge too, as such lecturers would slowly build up their reasoning based on sound logic, as if cogs slowly placed into position to form a whole system. This made their lectures far easier to understand and much more memorable.
There were many freshmen gathered around him with agitated looks on their faces, seemingly intent on acknowledging him as their teacher.
However, while students had the right to choose their teacher, teachers were allowed to choose their students as well.
The more capable a teacher was, the more popular they would be amongst the students.
Considering the old man’s outstanding ability in imparting knowledge, there should be a significant number of freshmen who would apply to his tutelage. However, it remained to be seen how many he would accept.
“He is indeed a good teacher, but he isn’t suitable for me…” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “Actually, you don’t have to find a teacher for me. I don’t intend to acknowledge a teacher for the time being. Let’s talk about you instead. What’s your name?”
“My name?”
The young lady was just about to reply when agitated exclamations suddenly sounded from the students around.
“I heard that a beautiful teacher has arrived in the academy, and she is going to hold her public lecture soon. Let’s go and take a look!”
“What is there to look at? We are searching for a teacher, not a partner!”
“I heard that she is a master teacher dispatched here from the Qingyuan Conferred Empire Master Teacher Pavilion to engage in experiential learning. Despite not even reaching twenty yet, she is already a 6-star master teacher, and even the Ten Great Master Teachers have to regard her with respect!”
“Is that true?”
“My uncle is a teacher here, and I heard this news straight from him! If we can acknowledge her as our teacher, we will surely be able to rise to great heights in the future!”
“If she truly is a teacher from the headquarters, her view must be much broader than ours. Right, what is her name? I don’t think there is anyone who fits her profile from the Teacher Information Documentation I purchased earlier…”
“She is a new teacher in the academy, and not even the Ashen Moon Faction or the True Helios Faction has seen her yet, so naturally, they don’t have any information on her. However, I did manage to get her name from my uncle. If I recall correctly, I think it is… Luo Ruoxin!”
“That is a beautiful name! Alright, I have decided! I shall go and listen to her public lecture…”
…
Amidst the bustle, many freshmen and seniors rushed forward excitedly, seemingly fearing that they wouldn’t get a good spot if they were to be late.
“Beautiful teacher?” Seeing the excited crowd, Zhang Xuan was rendered speechless.
Just because a person was pretty didn’t mean that they would be good at teaching.
“Let’s head over as well!” Hearing the mutters from his surroundings, the young lady shook her head and made her way over as well.
“You wish to see the beautiful teacher as well?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
She was a lady herself, why would she be interested in the beautiful teacher too?
The young lady simply flashed Zhang Xuan a mysterious smile before proceeding ahead.
Zhang Xuan was bewildered, but he could only continue following behind the other party’s back.
Soon, they arrived before a stage. By this point, a huge crowd had already gathered in the area.
An old man was currently standing on the stage, tidying it up.
This stage seemed to have been erected just a moment ago, and unlike the other stages, it was completely empty except for a plaque that read “Luo Ruoxin”.
“Where is the beautiful teacher? Why isn’t she here? Are you sure there is no mistake in your information?”
“Mistake in my information? You must be joking! Do you see that elder on the stage? He is Elder Zhou from the Apothecary School!”
“Elder Zhou? Which Elder Zhou?”
“Which other elder has the surname of Zhou in the Apothecary School? Of course, it is Vice School Head Zhou!”
“Vice School Zhou is actually tidying up the stage personally for the new teacher?”
“It seems like the academy has a really high opinion of that Luo shi…”
…
Such discussions could be heard amidst the students.
“Vice School Head Zhou?” Zhang Xuan was astonished.
Of the ten schools, the Apothecary School ranked at the top. Due to the standing of the Apothecary School, the various leaders of the school also held incredible prestige as well. For a vice school head of the Apothecary School to clean up the stage personally, it seemed that Luo shi was no ordinary master teacher.
Seeing Zhang Xuan’s expression, the young lady beside him asked, “How is it? Are you interested in taking Luo shi as your teacher?”
“Not really.” Zhang Xuan shook his head.
“Why? There are so many people here who seem to be interested in her, why aren’t you?” the young lady asked.
Even among two master teachers of the same rank, most would choose to acknowledge the one who had come from the headquarters instead of the branch.
This was due to the difference in terms of worldly view.
Master teachers from the headquarters were likely to have come into contact with higher ranked master teachers themselves, and their understanding of cultivation tended to be much deeper than master teachers from the branches.
Take Luo Qiqi for example, even though she was only a 5-star apothecary as well, she was able to conduct a lesson for the other 5-star apothecaries in Huanyu Empire.
“Even if she is a good teacher, she can’t possibly be better than me. Why should I acknowledge a person who can’t even match up to me as my teacher?” Zhang Xuan said confidently.
So what if the other party had come from the headquarters?
Could the cultivation techniques she had learned be more detailed and aligned with nature than the Heaven’s Path cultivation techniques?
That was impossible!
“Besides, even though the other students are calling her a beauty, I highly doubt that is the case. If she is truly as beautiful as the others claim her to be, why is she not here yet? Perhaps, she might even be hideous!” Zhang Xuan continued with a smile.
Even though he had never dated before, he knew better than to compliment another woman before the lady he fancied. Otherwise, he could very well incur her ire.
Besides, he thought that beauty was just a marketing means for that Luo shi.
To master teachers, one’s appearance was nothing more than a facade. What was truly important was their capability.
Most likely, the issue regarding Luo shi’s beauty might just be an attempt by the academy to draw more students to her public lecture so as to win her goodwill.
It wasn’t like such a matter hadn’t happened before.
“Hideous?” The eyes of the young lady narrowed into slits.
“That’s right. Don’t worry, you will see once she appears…” Zhang Xuan nodded confidently.
Just as he was about to continue, Elder Zhou on the stage suddenly caught sight of something and his eyes lit up. He hurriedly flew over and clasped his fist toward the young lady standing beside Zhang Xuan.
“Luo shi, you are here! We have already prepared the stage for you…”
“Alright.” The young lady nodded before turning to Zhang Xuan with an unreadable smile. “You said that I am hideous, right?”
“Y-you are… Luo Ruoxin, Luo shi?”
Zhang Xuan’s body stiffened as his eyes bulged from their sockets. “You aren’t a student… but a teacher?”
This is the final chapter of the arc 【You Are A Teacher?】~
This first half of the year really has been a difficult one for me. As some might know, I am working on another novel known as The Records of the Human Emperor on Gravitytales, and along with Library of Heaven’s Path, I had to post three chapters on a daily basis, which is quite tough for me while having to juggle my other work.
I ended up burning through every last one of my stockpile, and even after leaving the other novel on hiatus, I am still barely scraping through the days. Hopefully I will be able to build a sizeable stockpile for me to last the next semester.
Anyway, back to the story, I saw many saying that there isn’t much story progression recently. I have to admit that the earlier parts of the story are more of like the 【Daily Life of Zhang Xuan】, which I honestly believe is pretty interesting in itself too, but there will be more progression later on, especially as he gradually approaches the top of the Master Teacher Continent.
It kind of feels like the crux of this arc is 【Zhang Xuan found his first love】, which is kind of sad (he did live two lives) and happy at the same time. He is pretty much invincible in everything else, so I wonder if he will be invincible in love too hmmm. Anyway, I think this is the first time Zhang Xuan has been face-slapped
Anyway, the next arc will be 【Zhang laoshi’s Students】, or Teacher Zhang’s Students.
