Chapter 415: The Former Master Rejected, the Transformed Bell Mourns

In the Council Chamber of the Master Teacher Hall, within the Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms.

"Everyone is likely aware of the current situation. I hope you will all do your utmost to uphold our reputation!" An elder sat regally in the central seat, his brows stern, and he swept his hand. This was Kang Gan, the Head of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms' Master Teacher Hall and a peak Four-Star Master Teacher.

"Please rest assured, Hall Head," replied the elders in the hall. "We will spare no effort in finding suitable candidates and ensure the reputation of our Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms is maintained! Elder Su and Elder Ling, upon hearing of a genius emerging from Xuanyuan Kingdom, departed for there a few days ago! Elder Bai and Elder Lu also left eight days ago, having heard about a successful genius assessment in Chiyuan Kingdom!" These elders all wore the distinctive robes of Master Teachers, their chest badges indicating their rank. The lowest among them were Two-Star, while others were Three-Star and even Four-Star, their badges gleaming dazzlingly.

"That's good. Prepare thoroughly and respond well. In the past, our Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms has always been at the bottom. This time, we must show them that our geniuses are no less impressive!" The Hall Head hummed in affirmation and nodded.

"Mm-hmm..." The crowd acknowledged, but just as they were about to speak further, a bell suddenly rang. It carried a mournful sound, as if a great change had occurred. Dong! Dong! Dong! Dong! Immediately, countless more bells began to chime in succession.

"What's happening?" Hall Head Kang Gan suddenly stood up.

"That direction is... the Hall of Conferred Teachers!" A Master Teacher exclaimed, his expression changing as he looked towards the source of the sound.

"Let's see!" Unable to contain themselves any longer, Hall Head Kang Gan and the others rushed out. Arriving at the Hall of Conferred Teachers, they pushed open the door and saw countless ancestral tablets trembling incessantly, wailing as if struck by profound sorrow. Special auras swirled around them, reverberating like muffled thunder and howling wildly.

"This is... the rejection of an ancestor, causing the bells to mourn?" His face paled, and Hall Head Kang Gan swayed, nearly losing his balance.

"'Rejection of an ancestor'? What does that mean?" Seeing his uncharacteristic reaction, a Master Teacher couldn't help but ask.

"To successfully pass a Master Teacher assessment, one needs the recognition of ancestors. Many consider this a great honor!" Hall Head Kang Gan explained. Everyone nodded. This was common knowledge among Master Teachers: the lower the assessment rank, the more ancestral recognition one received, signifying greater future achievements and a source of immense pride.

"As Master Teachers, we all know that teachers can choose students, and students can likewise choose teachers!" Hall Head Kang Gan clenched his fist. As he spoke, he still seemed unable to believe it: "While ancestors can recognize their descendants, they can also... be rejected!"

"'Rejected? But ancestral recognition is not only an honor but also bestows a special aura that elevates one's state of mind. Who would reject that?'" Everyone was stunned, their eyes wide.

Ancestral recognition not only signified supreme honor but, more importantly, could help improve one's state of mind. Someone rejected it? What did that mean?

"Yes, some people do reject it! Merging with the bestowed aura means imprinting the ancestor's will and forming a semi-mentorship bond with them. As you all know, accepting such a bond means incurring karma, which must be repaid for the connection to be complete. Some top-tier geniuses, unwilling to accept this bond, directly reject it!" Hall Head Kang Gan explained.

"This..." Everyone was dumbfounded.

These people, who dreamed daily of receiving ancestral recognition, now heard someone had actually rejected it... How was that even possible?

"Although an ancestor's tablet is merely a remnant, it contains their spirit from life. To be rejected by a descendant naturally causes it to wail in sorrow! This is precisely the situation before us: an ancestor rejected, causing the bells to mourn! I had only ever read about this in books, never imagining... it was real!" Hall Head Kang Gan's face turned pale. "The most crucial point is... so many tablets mourning simultaneously indicates that... all these ancestors recognized one person at the same time, only to be... rejected!"

"'So many ancestors recognized at once?' 'This... how is this possible?'" Everyone was startled, almost fainting on the spot.

Over hundreds of years in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms, the most renowned genius, Jiang Zijie, only received recognition from seven ancestors. Who could this be? To receive recognition from all ancestors at once, and most critically... to reject it? Did I hear that correctly?

All the Master Teachers in the Hall of Master Teachers of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms had trembling lips and looked utterly distraught.

"Go and investigate thoroughly! This person must be within our Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms; otherwise, such a thing would be impossible! A genius whom all sages bow to and fully recognize, if we can invite them, it will surely cause a sensation..." Hall Head Kang Gan's eyes gleamed with excitement. Just as he was about to give further instructions, the ground suddenly shook. *Crash!* They saw the statue of Master Kong directly in front of them also trembling violently, continuously wailing.

"'Master Kong is wailing? Could it be... Master Kong was also rejected?'" Everyone stood rooted to the spot, dumbfounded like wooden chickens. Hall Head Kang Gan's mouth also hung open, unable to utter another word.

"This... are we really not going to do anything about it?" Seeing Hall Head Jiang and the others turn to leave, ignoring the ancestral tablets and the statue of Master Kong that lay overturned, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but feel curious.

This was the statue of the World's Teacher, and countless ancestral tablets, yet...

"Master Teachers see through the essence of things, valuing intent over form. Their reverence for Master Kong and the ancestors lies in their hearts, not merely in these tablets. Otherwise, if a tablet falling were truly sacrilegious, how could descendants willingly wait for it to be set right? Rest assured, the Master Teacher Hall has specialized artisans responsible for repairs. It shouldn't take long to restore the Hall of Conferred Teachers to its original state!" Hall Head Jiang explained.

"'Valuing intent over form?'" Zhang Xuan nodded.

That made sense. The Master Teachers he knew, like Liu Ling, Zhuang Xian, and Jiang Shu, didn't put on airs. Instead, they acted like ordinary people, readily acknowledging what was right and openly refuting what was wrong. They acted according to their convictions and principles. Knowing that the others understood his breaking of Master Kong's statue was unintentional, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

They continued on and soon arrived at the council hall.

"Let me introduce you," Hall Head Jiang said once everyone was seated. "These two are Four-Star Master Teachers from the Alliance of Ten Thousand Kingdoms: Master Su and Master Ling!"

"'Four-Star Master Teachers?'" Zhang Xuan and Mo Hongyi were both stunned and startled.

Previously, they had assumed these two were One-Star Master Teachers from other kingdoms; they never imagined they would be Four-Star... Zhang Xuan, in particular, felt his face turn green.

He had, after all, previously reprimanded them.

"Both of you possess extraordinary talent; becoming Four-Star Master Teachers is only a matter of time. There's no need to be reserved!" Master Su smiled and looked over. "Master Zhang, I have a small request, if it's convenient?"

"Master Su, please speak!" Knowing the other party was a Four-Star Master Teacher, Zhang Xuan dared not act presumptuous and respectfully clasped his fists.

Four-Star Master Teachers not only possessed vast knowledge but, more importantly, had profound cultivation! To become a Three-Star Master Teacher, one needed at least the strength of a Zongshi-level expert. For Four-Star... their cultivation was likely already beyond that.

"We heard Master Yang is in the royal city. Master Ling and I were wondering if it would be possible to pay him a visit?" Master Su asked.

"'Visit... Master Yang?'" Zhang Xuan's mouth twitched, and he nearly fainted.

There was no 'Master Yang'... The teacher he claimed to have was himself! Two Four-Star Master Teachers wanted to visit him, what should he do? Deceiving Jiang Shu had already taken immense effort; tricking a Four-Star Master Teacher would surely not be so simple! Even if he used his disguise abilities, the other party would likely still see through some of it.

"Oh? Is it inconvenient?" Master Su looked at him.

"It's not that, it's just that my teacher... has always been elusive; even I don't know his whereabouts..." Zhang Xuan quickly explained. "How about this: once my teacher appears, I'll inform you immediately!"

"Very well! We'll trouble Master Zhang then!" Master Su smiled.

Although they were Four-Star Master Teachers, neither of them displayed any arrogance; instead, they were amiable. Legend had it that the more formidable a Master Teacher, the more approachable they were; otherwise, it would be impossible for them to quickly gain students' recognition and impart knowledge effectively.

"Alright, now that your assessment is complete, I won't beat around the bush. Master Ling and I came here for two reasons: firstly, because Master Zhang's assessment results were truly astonishing, and we wanted to see it for ourselves. Secondly, there's another matter where we might need your assistance!" Seeing Zhang Xuan's agreement, Master Su stopped pressing the previous issue and stroked his beard as he spoke.

"Master Su, please feel free to give your instructions. If it is within the capabilities of our Tianwu Kingdom Master Teacher Hall, we will certainly spare no effort!" Hall Head Jiang quickly said. Even if the other party wasn't his superior, a Four-Star Master Teacher had the authority to command them.