Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

One was required to go through all kinds of examinations to become a master teacher. Only then could he earn the acknowledgment of the Master Teacher Pavilion, obtain the corresponding emblem, and gain the respect of the masses.

This was the standard procedure.

However, there were also exceptions of geniuses who were born with capabilities way beyond that of the typical master teacher.

Given their overwhelming ability, they couldn't be assessed through normal means and naturally, a standard rank couldn't be assigned to them.

Take Kong shi as an example. As the founder of the Master Teacher Pavilion, who had the qualifications to test him?

Such people possessed natural learning abilities so superb that they could gain the approval of heavens and assume the identity of a master teacher automatically.

They were known as [Celestial Master Teachers]!

As a title bestowed by the heavens, Heaven Master Teachers were recognized as master teachers even without undergoing trials and test. In fact... their standing was higher than that of ordinary master teachers.

After all, who dared to defy the will of heaven?

Nonetheless, such geniuses only existed in the legends whereby Kong shi was the only one back then who had reached such a level. Never could they had expected that someone from their guild would succeed!

To achieve the well sought-after standing of Celestial Master Teacher was already fearsome enough but for Kong shi's statue to be trembling along as well...

This made everyone even more frenzied!

According to the books, Kong shi had infused a sliver of his consciousness in his statues. As long as an existence whom he was willing to accept as disciple appeared, it would tremble.

This was a dictum that was followed strictly by all master teachers.

However, such a person had never appeared despite the passing of innumerable years. In other words, no one was able to win Kong shi's recognition to become his student.

Who could have thought that at the moment someone was bestowed the title of 'Celestial Master Teacher', the statue would begin to shake as well. In other words... Kong shi had acknowledged this very person and wanted to accept him as his disciple!

A disciple of Kong shi. And that is... the student of the Sage!

Empyrean Kong shi had accepted many disciples in his lifetime, and rumors had it that they amounted to more than three thousand.

However, the numbers had dwindled as more and more of them passed away as time went by. Even the most formidable 9-star master teacher in existence now could only be considered a descendant among their descendants.

By becoming the student of Sage meant that even 9-star master teachers had to call him elder or even old ancestor!

To think that such an incredible existence would appear in their guild...

If news of this matter were to spread, the entire world would be thrown into a frenzy.

Who was it?

Mo Hongyi? Zhang Xuan?

Or was it one of them here?

The Teacher Acknowledgement Hall of the Master Teacher Pavilion only reflected the news and did not pinpoint the identity of the person.

Thus, even though everyone was shocked, they were unable to confirm for sure who the lucky person who won Kong shi's favor was.

"Even so... The Sages acceptance of a disciple is a huge affair. I'm afraid that it's impossible to hide this matter..."

Pavilion Master Jiang muttered.

Once the matter had been confirmed, the entire world would be informed of it. All kingdoms and Master Teacher Pavilions would receive the news.

When that time comes, people from all kingdoms would come to offer their blessings.

If that really happened, it would be impossible for that person to hide even if he wanted to.

"Indeed. Our guild will become famous..."

"Incredible! After such a long interval, Kong shi is going to accept a disciple?"

...

The eyes of countless master teachers glowed with euphoria.

But...

Before they could even finish their sentence, Kong shi's statue suddenly stopped trembling and with a sudden jolt, 'kacha!', a crack running down the middle of the statue appeared.

Upon seeing this sight, everyone was once again stunned. Pavilion Master Jiang's eyes widened to their limits.

"This is..."

"Kong shi wishes to admit a disciple, but... he was rejected?"

Complete silence.

Everyone looked as though they had just seen a ghost.

Since a teacher could choose his student, a student could choose his teacher as well.

Therefore, even if Kong shi was considered as the teacher of all beings and was respectfully addressed as the Empyrean, he still had to ask for the other party's permission when intending to admit him as his disciple. If the other party was unwilling, he couldn't force himself on the other party either.

The shaking of the statue had meant that Kong shi was willing to accept the other party as his disciple, but its subsequent fracture meant that... the other party had rejected him!

Rejecting the opportunity to become Kong shi's student?

The heck!

Who in the world is this formidable person?

To refuse the offer to become the student of the greatest man in the world, could you be any more arrogant than that?

...

In the small classroom.

Zhang Xuan's mind was operating at high intensity as he tried his best to absorb the unique energy that descended from the skies.

These slivers of energy seemed to fuse perfectly with his soul, causing his eyes to become clearer.

"It is increasing my Soul Depth..."

Having read the books in the Master Teacher Pavilion, Zhang Xuan understood what was going on.

This was neither spiritual energy nor zhenqi, this was Insight Energy!

All that wished to become a master teacher had to possess the State of Insight Will of Mind.

And to raise one's Will of Mind Soul Depth, one had to absorb this kind of unique Insight Energy.

Back then, the Enlightenment Jade that Zhao Ya's father gave him possessed this kind of energy, and it was through absorbing it that he managed to recover his Soul Depth back to 0.1.

"Absorb!"

Even though Zhang Xuan was surprised by the sudden appearance of the Insight Energy, he showed no indication of wanting to stop at all.

Since he had attained his previous Soul Depth level with the help of the golden pages instead of cultivating his soul through the cultivation of a secret manual, he had never seen or absorbed Insight Energy before. Even so, he knew how precious it was.

To master teachers, it was definitely a priceless treasure!

Tzzzzz!

As Zhang Xuan absorbed the Insight Energy that descended from the skies, his Soul Depth slowly inched forward.

After an unknown period of time.

His body jolted, and he came to a stop.

"There's nothing left..."

Looking around, Zhang Xuan knew that he had absorbed the final sliver of the energy that had fallen and exhaled deeply. With a flick of his wrist, a Stone of Insight appeared in his hands.

He immediately got into the state of Heart of Tranquil Water.

Numbers appeared on the stone.

11.1!

"Despite absorbing for so long, my Soul Depth only increased by 1.0?"

Zhang Xuan pouted.

He had thought that his Soul Depth would increase significantly after absorbing so much Insight Energy. At the very least, it would increase by eight or ten. Yet, betraying his expectations, it only raised by 1.0!

This was way too little!

If anyone else were to know of his thoughts, they would definitely rush forward to strangle him.

To raise a mere 0.1 Soul Depth, others had to endure all kinds of hell, toiling in extreme cold and heat just to train their mind.

In contrast, he had gained this 1.0 Soul Depth in a single go, yet he wasn't satisfied...

Of course, if they knew that he could raise his Soul Depth by 5.0 using the golden page, they would definitely think otherwise.

Zhang Xuan shook the dismal in his head away and slowly opened his eyes.

String after string of Insight Energy flowed in his eyes, allowing him to peer through the fabric of the world to see its very essence.

Glancing at a saber on the weapon rack, he saw a faint apparition striking on a lump of metal, slowly shaping it.

With just a single look, he could see the forging process of the saber, its tier, as well as its flaws.

Not too far away, behind a table, there was an apparition of a towering tree. The tree was hacked down and worked on by craftsmen...

"This is..."

A name appeared in his mind, causing Zhang Xuan's eyes to widen and his fists to clench tightly together.

Eye of Insight!

It was said that formidable master teachers could expend their Soul Depth to activate their Eye of Insight to peer into the essence of matter, the strengths and weaknesses of battle techniques as well as cultivation techniques.

It was just like how even Zhizun experts were unable to notice his original face under the human mask of 'Liu Cheng', but those who possessed the Eye of Insight could see through it in an instant and peer at the original appearance of the person.

This was precisely the reason why high-tiered master teachers were fearsome existences.

With just a single look, they could see through the problems and ailments of a person, and guide them to resolve it.

Despite that...

"I thought that only 6-star master teachers are able to comprehend this technique? What's going on?"

After checking the details of the Eye of Insight in the books, Zhang Xuan felt bewildered.

According to the records, only 6-star master teachers possessed the strength to comprehend this powerful talent.

How could he possess it when he wasn't even a 2-star master teacher.

Boom!

Just as he was pondering over this matter, the sight before him blurred, and his consciousness seemed to have been pulled by an overwhelming strength reminiscent of a vast ocean into a chaotic dimension.

Then, an elder with a snow-white beard walked over and a compassionate voice sounded in Zhang Xuan's head.

"I wish to take you in as my disciple, do you accept?"

"You want to take me in as your disciple?" Zhang Xuan was taken aback. Then, he quickly shook his head and said, "I refuse!"

What a joke! Possessing the Library of Heaven's Path, he was able to see through the flaws of everything with a look. From his perspective, there was no need for him to acknowledge any teacher at all.

Could 4-star to 5-star master teachers conjure theories that surpassed that of the Library of Heaven's Path?

In terms of cultivation, was there any technique that could surpass the Heaven's Path Divine Art?

Besides, the other party had invaded his mind without any forewarning. Who knew whether he bore malicious intents?

It was better to be safe than sorry.

After all, it was just a moment ago that someone spiked his tea.

Hu!

As soon as he replied the other party, his body jolted once more, and he realized that he was still in the mini tutoring room. He hadn't gone anywhere, and the sight just now seemed nothing more than a dream.

"An Illusion Formation? No, there can't be any formation here. Otherwise, the Library of Heaven's Path would have detected it... Could it be something similar to the Trust Crystal?"

Zhang Xuan thought.

The Trust Level test was something similar to what he had experienced; one's mental state would be sent into an illusion, and they would undergo various events so as to test their compatibility with their teacher.

Could he had just met with something similar?

Otherwise, how could some old geezer just appear and ask to take him in as his student?

What in the hell is this? If you wish to take me as your disciple, you should at least name yourself! To put me into this kind of illusion without any warning, aren't you being inconsiderate?

Harrumphing coldly, he immediately labeled that elder as shameless.

Of course, if he were to know that the elder was Empyrean Kong shi, and if he had agreed to become the other party's student, his identity and standing would rise exponentially...

Would he spew blood and die straight from disappointment?

"Even if I don't take the examinations now, I am already a recognized master teacher. No one will be able to refute that..."

Ignoring that inconsiderate old geezer, Zhang Xuan hid his Eye of Insight and clenched his fists excitedly.

After reading through the books, he knew that he had unintentionally comprehended the true meaning of 'teacher and student' and from there, he was recognized by the heavens, becoming a Celestial Master Teacher!

In other words, even if he didn't take any examination, no one would be able to refute his standing as an official master teacher. There was already no need for him to continue his impersonation.

"However... the title of a Celestial Master Teacher is too conspicuous. I should take the examination as per normal. Anyway, I am just lacking the final step..."

Even though Zhang Xuan was excited, he knew that it was best to keep it to himself.

Celestial Master Teacher was a huge affair. If word were to spread, he might face quite a lot of trouble.

Keeping a low profile was the way to go.

No matter what others say, I, Zhang Xuan... have always been a low-profile person...