Chapter 920: Are Wild Flowers Really So Fragrant?
Translator: Lordbluefire
The competition content would refresh every few years. There might be some superficial changes, but their original content would remain the same. In any case, the Saint Gate would do their best to give the chance to the great teachers and students of various schools to display their capabilities.
The league tournament would increase in difficulty the higher the grade was. Hence, the criteria would be stricter along the road.
Because these famous schools were not omnipotent, for schools with flaws, they would at most be able to ascend to the ‘B’ grade and wouldn’t be able to advance any further.
Sun Mo understood the concept. Simply speaking, the schools had to reach a certain standard in the subjects they were not proficient in. After that, they had to do their best to gain more points in their forte.
The old headmaster was a genius capable in all aspects. Under his lead, the Central Province Academy had no proficiencies, but they also had no flaws.. They had managed to advance forward, but when he failed in his breakthrough to become a Saint, the vast majority of their high-ranking teachers chose to leave the school.
These great teachers had taught in the Central Province Academy because they wanted to consult the old headmaster for guidance. Now that the old headmaster was unconscious, everyone wouldn’t be able to get any guidance anymore. They would then choose to leave.
This was something reasonable and expected.
As long as one was a great teacher, they would want to become a Saint one day. Hence, it was impossible for them to waste their valuable time in the Central Province Academy.
“I hope that the competition this time around would involve more on the study of spirit runes and weaponsmithing.”
An Xinhui prayed.
She had heard of the feats Sun Mo performed in the Dragon Subduing Academy. Since her childhood sweetheart had near-ancestor level expertise in the study of spirit runes and Secondary Saint Shi was proficient in weaponsmithing, after a few years, the school would be able to produce a batch of outstanding weaponsmiths and spirit runists.
“Actually, I wouldn’t mind if there were more rounds that involved the study of puppetry.”
Sun Mo chortled.
“Mn? Did you blurt out the wrong subject?”
Gu Xiuxun was astonished. She knew that Sun Mo’s expertise in the art of spiritual control wasn’t bad, but he shouldn’t know anything about puppetry, right?
“There’s no mistake. Murong Mingyue has expertise at the near-ancestor level for the study of puppetry.”
Sun Mo was thinking on behalf of Murong Mingyue. He removed some unimportant information and described how she had enslaved the draconic humans.
“Who is Murong Mingyue?”
Gu Xiuxun blinked. (Why do I suddenly sense a smell of danger?) “Is she very beautiful?”
“Are you sure you are not paying attention to the wrong subject?”
Sun Mo was speechless.
“It’s for certain then. From your tone, I know that Murong must be very beautiful.”
Gu Xiuxun didn’t know why, but she suddenly felt somewhat unhappy.
(Can you stop kidnapping beautiful female great teachers over?)
Before this, it was Mei Ziyu. This time around, it was Murong Mingyue. (You have so many fresh flowers around you waiting for you to pluck, but you cannot see them!)
(Are wild flowers really so fragrant? Hmph! As expected, all men are pigs.)
“Near-ancestor? Are you certain?”
An Xinhui was surprised. She had wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with Murong Mingyue, but the other party was taciturn and didn’t like to speak. Hence, An Xinhui could only give up.
In the great teacher world, there were ‘grandmaster’ and ‘ancestor’ titles. These titles were official academic qualifications and could be obtained after passing through a Saint Gate’s examination.
The near-ancestor level was also called the half-step ancestor level. It meant that the expertise level was just a little bit away from reaching the ancestor-standard. It could be considered an ‘address of respect’ as well. After all, all great teachers want some face.
“I’m 100% certain.”
Sun Mo nodded. Murong Ye had bragged to Xiao Fulong, saying that his niece had near-ancestor capabilities in puppetry because of his own malicious intentions. As for Sun Mo, he had gotten the information straight from Divine Sight.
There were absolutely no mistakes.
“M…Murong Mingyue is only 20+ years old, right?”
An Xinhui was shocked.
“That is why I said she’s an absolute genius!”
Sun Mo shrugged. “A person like her will definitely carry the future of the study of puppetry on their shoulders.”
Why did the Saint Gate’s Sect Lord spare Murong Mingyue although she had committed such a huge mistake? It was precisely because he cherished her talent.
For such a great teacher, there would only be one every few hundred years.
It was simple to kill her, but if she died, the progress on the study of puppetry might stagnate for decades or even centuries.
Naturally, this also had to do with the fact that Murong Mingyue’s personality wasn’t villainous. If she was someone evil, the Sect Lord wouldn’t have spared her.
She would have long since been locked up in a prison in some desolate land.
“The ‘C’ graded league tournament would start in half a month or at most a month. You guys should be mentally prepared.”
An Xinhui’s target was still to maintain their grade.
…
After Sun Mo exited the headmaster office, he went to look for Murong Mingyue first.
“I’ve arranged two students to bring you around to tour the scenery of Jinling and to taste the delicacies here, including pastries from Daoji Bakery, pearflower candies from Osmanthus Street, and Zhouji’s steamed dumplings. You definitely have to try all of them.”
Sun Mo didn’t treat her as an outsider and prepared for everything.
Strictly speaking, this woman was already homeless.
He had to quickly make her fall in love with everything about Jinling and get used to living here. Only then would he be able to make her stay.
Gu Xiuxun monitored them silently from the shadows.
As expected, she was a beautiful woman, but she had a reticent personality. If she had nothing to do, she would simply sit there unmovingly, like a puppet doll. It was actually quite frightening.
After she departed, Gu Xiuxun couldn’t control it anymore and immediately used her elbow to prod Sun Mo.
“She’s a great teacher from the Dragon Subduing Academy, right? Why is she not on the Beauty Rankings?”
Gu Xiuxun was astonished.
Her appearance was within the aesthetic senses of people from the Central Plains. They would like her very much and she definitely could be in the top ten of the Beauty Rankings.
“Because Murong Ye wanted Mingyue to be his trump card as he plotted to become the Dragon Subduing Academy’s headmaster. Hence, he told her to conceal her strength.”
Sun Mo explained.
“So that was the case.”
Gu Xiuxun immediately understood.
If female great teachers wished to ascend to the Beauty Rankings, they needed outstanding talent other than being beautiful and had to have some achievements
For example, Gu Xiuxun was beautiful, but she had no achievements yet. Hence, she wasn’t on the Beauty Rankings.
…
The place Xianyu Wei stayed in wasn’t far from Murong Mingyue’s place.
Because this was the first time she came to the Central Plains, she was unfamiliar with the surroundings and felt estranged. Moreover, she had to meet her martial siblings the day after tomorrow, and she didn’t know if they were easy to interact with. Hence, she felt worried and suffered from insomnia.
When Sun Mo opened the door, he saw the fat girl who had slimmed down. She was clad in the most formal clothing of the Central Plains and was sitting on her bed, ready and waiting for him.
“Are you planning to celebrate the new year? Change your clothes and just wear what you would normally.”
Sun Mo laughed. “You don’t have to be nervous. Ziqi and the others are very easy to interact with. Oh right, you also have a senior martial brother who is also from the plains.”
“Ah?”
Xianyu Wei relaxed upon hearing this.
In the Central Province Academy, regardless of the buildings or the human costumes, they were filled with the style of Jiangnan. This allowed the barbarian girl Xianyu Wei to broaden her vision and horizons. After that, she began to feel a little self-inferior.
(The girls here all looked so graceful and stylish!)
Xianyu Wei looked at her thick thighs, which came about from riding horses, and her tiger-like back as well as bear-like waist. She was like a burly man. Hence, she subconsciously bent her back and wanted to appear smaller.
“Xianyu, a person is the most charming when they accomplish an achievement and are proud of themselves.”
Sun Mo looked at the girl from the plains and smiled as he praised, “From my point of view, at the instant you became the hunting king, you have become the most beautiful girl in this world.”
“Xianyu, I feel very honored that I could accept you as my disciple!”
Bzz~
Priceless Advice was activated.
Because these words were from the bottom of Sun Mo’s heart.
“Teacher, I…”
Xianyu Wei, who was illuminated by the golden light, felt warmth in her heart. After that, she subconsciously retracted her chest and sucked in her stomach, standing up straight.
Gu Xiuxun suspiciously surveyed Sun Mo. (Why did your eloquence improve after not seeing you for a few months? That Murong Mingyue must have been swindled here by your honeyed words, right?)
“Teacher Sun?”
Because of the golden light, several students discovered Sun Mo and immediately ran over to greet him respectfully.
Sun Mo smiled and nodded to them.
(Sigh! It can really be annoying to be so popular!)
“Teacher Sun?”
A voice interrupted Sun Mo. After that, an old man walked over.
“I heard that you’ve returned and I’m on my way right now to look for you. How’s the examination this time around?”
As Shi Sheng spoke, he walked nearer. After that, he bowed.
Sun Mo hurriedly dodged to the side and evaded the bow. He then smiled bitterly. “Secondary Saint Shi, I’ve long since said that you don’t have to be so courteous.”
“Ah?”
Xianyu Wei jumped in fright.
(Secondary Saint? Did I hear wrongly?)
Xianyu Wei stared at the old man who was similarly dressed in a teacher robe like Sun Mo. However, he had no stars sewn above the school insignia on his chest. Because of this, Xianyu Wei had suspected he might be a guest lecturer. But when she heard the words ‘secondary saint’, she was badly frightened.
(It can’t be… I definitely didn’t hear it wrongly, right?)
(If he is a secondary saint, why does he need to be so respectful toward Teacher?)
Honestly speaking, greetings between great teachers could be done with the clasped hands. This bow by Shi Sheng was truly overly grand.
Xianyu Wei was still in shock. After that, she saw the beautiful Great Teacher Gu bowing to the old man.
“Good morning, Secondary Saint Shi!”
Gu Xiuxun had a respectful attitude.
“He’s really a secondary saint!”
Xianyu Wei subconsciously knelt in her shock. After that, she grew agitated. Although there were also secondary saints in the Dragon Subduing Academy, she had never come in contact with any of them.
“Is this girl the personal student Teacher Sun accepted?”
Shi Sheng surveyed Xianyu Wei and helped her to her feet.
“Mn!”
Sun Mo nodded. After that, he instructed, “This is Secondary Saint Shi. In the future, if you have anything you don’t understand, you can consult him.”
“Mn!”
Xianyu Wei looked at Shi Sheng who was helping her up. She was so agitated that she started trembling.
“Teacher Sun must be joking, With you being present, how would I dare to show off my meager skill?”
Shi Sheng laughed.
After the two exchanged a round of pleasantries, Shi Sheng left. He was a secondary saint after all and was very busy. But because he had received kindness from Sun Mo, he immediately rushed over to greet him upon learning of his return. If not, he would usually not step out of his experimental lab.
“We have truly benefited because of you. If we don’t know something, we can just consult Secondary Saint Shi. This harvest is very great.”
Gu Xiuxun felt rueful.
Every month, a Secondary Saint would conduct a lecture, and the great teachers in the surrounding schools would all come to listen to it.
For some who stayed far away, they even chose to move near here for the sake of not missing out on the lecture.
One must know that the lecture was free, and the listeners could even ask questions. Just these two points alone were very attractive for many great teachers.
Hence, Central Province Academy’s influence was currently expanding unceasingly because of Shi Sheng.
Xianyu Wei blinked and stared at Sun Mo in worship. Her teacher was so awesome and could even convince a secondary saint.
Ding!
Favorable impression points from Xianyu Wei +1,000. Reverence (20,800/100,000).
When Sun Mo returned to the villa, his personal students had gathered and were waiting to pay respects to him.