Chapter 1453: At Your Service, Master Kong

"Third Elder... you'll know if you go see for yourself!"

Elder Wuzhen seemed unsure how to explain, or perhaps unwilling, so he turned to lead the way. Zhang Wuchen followed closely, and they soon arrived at the guest quarters.

As the continent's foremost family, the Zhang Clan annually received countless powerful individuals who came to visit or challenge them. What they called guest rooms was actually an expansive area dedicated to accommodating visitors.Upon reaching the square outside the guest quarters, Zhang Wuchen's brows furrowed in surprise at what he saw. He stopped and pointed forward."These... where are the statues?"

The square had once been lined with statues of their ancestors. Each ancestor, during their lifetime, had performed exceptionally glorious deeds and made immense contributions to humanity. For this reason, monuments were erected, holy images were carved, and offerings were made for future generations to venerate.Placing the statues here also served to better display the Zhang Clan's merits, letting others know the efforts the family had made for the continent's peace.Becoming the foremost family was not just about strength; more importantly, it was about shedding blood and sacrificing countless lives for humanity.Precisely because of this, countless guests who visited the Zhang Clan held them in immense admiration.Yet now, the statues in this essential passage were all gone, leaving large pits in the ground. What on earth had happened?

"The statues... that's exactly what I wanted to tell you about..."Elder Wuzhen's face contorted like a bitter gourd. He tried to explain but seemed unable to find the words, holding it in for a long time as if constipated. "Third Elder, you should just see for yourself!"Seeing his inability to speak, Zhang Wuchen grew even more puzzled. He hurried forward, and just as he rounded the square, he heard a stiff, hoarse voice.The voice didn't sound human; it was more like a mechanism or something else, sounding very unnatural.

"Storytelling and opera persuade people, the three great roads lead to the center. Good and evil will eventually be repaid, the righteous path of humanity is one of great change!"The dry voice continued, "I am Zhang Lingran, the 157th-generation great-grandson of the Zhang Clan, who lived over twenty thousand years ago. My most glorious deed was venturing alone into the catacombs, slaying three foreign spirit race emperors, and thwarting their invasion. I once tore apart four Saint Domain Ninth Level Holy Beasts that plagued the human world with a single sword, and battled the Evil Fiend Venerable for seven days and seven nights, ultimately killing him... Since everyone wants to hear, I will tell you in detail about what happened at that time!"

"Zhang Lingran? Ancestor Lingran?"Hearing the voice, Zhang Wuchen's mouth twitched. He quickly rounded the wall to look and immediately saw a group of guests who had come to the Zhang Clan, gathered around a statue.The statue, as if alive, had its mouth open, constantly narrating its life story with vivid detail, captivating the listeners. From time to time, cheers could be heard from the crowd."This..."His eyebrows twitched wildly.Zhang Wuchen nearly stumbled to the ground.These ancestral statues were supposed to display their glorious achievements for people to observe, but now... they were alive, telling stories?

Barely suppressing the urge to go mad, he looked at the stone statue of Ancestor Lingran before him.He saw the statue gesticulating wildly, entirely devoid of its previous dignified aura. Instead, it was like a storyteller, recounting its glorious deeds one by one, as if telling a tale."I am Zhang Xiaosuo, the 212th-generation great-grandson of the Zhang Clan, once acting clan head. The martial arts techniques I created spread across the continent, practiced by countless people...""I am Zhang Mofeng, the 225th-generation great-grandson of the Zhang Clan. I once set a record in the Saint Son Hall... Hey, don't run away! Listen to my story. If you don't listen, do you believe I'll beat you?"Walking further, he soon saw two more stone statues. One, like Ancestor Lingran before it, was explaining things to people, while the other was chasing a guest, practically tearing at their ear to make them listen."What on earth is going on?"

Continuing forward, he saw yet another ancestral statue, sitting on a guest and recounting its story with a fierce expression... Zhang Wuchen could no longer hold back. He turned to ask.These ancestral statues represented the Zhang Clan's merits and prestige. How had they all come alive... grabbing guests and demanding to tell them stories?And the most crucial part was... if they didn't listen, they'd get beaten...

"Just now, I brought Zhang Xuan here... and was introducing him to the glorious deeds of these ancestors..."Elder Wuzhen's face was a little pale, and he stammered, "And then, and then... this happened!""How could introducing the glorious deeds of ancestors turn out like this?"Seeing his troubled expression, Zhang Wuchen reprimanded him, "Tell me exactly what happened before, from beginning to end. I need the detailed process..."

"Yes... after introducing for a while, I remembered something and remarked that... people nowadays have long lost their ancient virtues. No one is willing to carefully learn about the deeds left by our ancestors, nor do they show any reverence or admiration..."Elder Wuzhen's mouth twitched as he slowly recounted.People nowadays were much more impetuous than before. He had guided many guests past this spot, but very few would stand before the stone statues and carefully observe the Zhang Clan ancestors' achievements... most felt that these people had died long ago and that their merits were insignificant.It was precisely for this reason that he felt annoyed and blurted it out while introducing Zhang Xuan.

"After I said that... Master Zhang Xuan said he could change the situation, and then... he carefully touched each statue and awakened their spirits..."Elder Wuzhen's face turned red.Truthfully, the biggest cause of this incident was him; if he hadn't lamented, the other party wouldn't have acted.Now, look at this. After these stone statues were awakened, they started lecturing guests, and if you didn't listen, it wasn't allowed. The entire guest quarters were now in chaos."You..."Zhang Wuchen almost spat blood.The ancestral stone statues were meant to simply introduce the Zhang Clan's achievements, but now, grabbing people's ears to tell stories—how was that any different from blatant self-promotion?

"Wait... there are so many ancestral stone statues in the square... do you mean he awakened all of them in one go?"After his initial frustration, he felt a sense of disbelief.There were easily over a hundred ancestors who had left their names and legends throughout history. Even a nine-star Spirit Awakener couldn't awaken all these statues, could they? How could all of them have been successfully awakened, and moreover, each one seemed... so opinionated?

"Yes, and not only that..."Elder Wuzhen remembered something and his lips twitched again."Not only what?"Zhang Wuchen felt his scalp prickle as if it might explode, and he quickly looked over."This... it's just ahead. I really can't say..."Seemingly at a loss for how to answer, Elder Wuzhen pointed forward again.His eyes filled with doubt, Zhang Wuchen continued onward, rounding another wall. Before he could even turn, he heard another voice, deep and steady."I am Master Kong..."Thump!Zhang Wuchen fell to the ground.