Sun Moâs current reputation was on the rise, and he didnât need to put his reputation on the line against Saint Zhou. However, he still agreed to it.
Only by defeating Saint Zhou and having him apologize would the little sunny egg be able to truly untie the knot in her heart. Moreover, this person was considered his archenemy now. Defeating him openly and fairly on the âbattlefieldâ would allow Sun Mo to be able to stand above heaven and the earth, no longer having any other rivals.
âThen the two of you can go back to rest first. Weâll meet at the public square to pick the students in three days!â
Seeing Sun Mo agreeing, Xu Chunbo immediately announced.
âSecondary Saint Sun, see you then!â
Saint Zhou cupped his hands together and turned to leave. His group of close supporters quickly followed after him.
âSun, you were too impulsive!â
Gu Xiuxun complained.
âYou canât say that. Up till now, not only has Teacher helped secondary saints advance to become saints, but he has also defeated secondary saints before. However, he had yet to get any battle experience at the âsaintâ
level.â
Qin Yaoguang smiled. âAfter Teacher finishes Saint Zhou off, then heâll really be the number one great teacher in the Nine Provinces, including the saints.â
âThen let Saint Zhou be the stepping stone!â
Lu Zhiruo put her fists together. (Teacher might lose? That wonât happen.)
When the news of Sun Mo and Saint Zhouâs showdown spread, those well-informed wealthy and influential people went crazy. They rushed to Saint Zhouâs residence with their children immediately, not caring if their expensive steeds were slogged to their deaths.
Even a 7-stars great teacher would pick through thousands or tens of thousands just to select a single personal disciple, let alone the saints.
Therefore, now that Sun Mo and Saint Zhou each had to pick three students, this was an extremely rare opportunity. All parents who lived in cities near the Saint Gate rushed over without even having the time to bring dried food along as rations.
On the third day, before the sky lit up, the public square was already overcrowded with people. Even the few streets nearby were packed with people, making it hard for people to walk.
The staff members from the Saint Gate immediately helped to group up the people and only managed to make the situation more orderly after a morning of hard work.
At noon, Sun Mo and Saint Zhou arrived at the public square in succession.
A three-meter-tall arena was set up here.
âAre both of you ready?â
Xu Chunbo was still the one being the judge. Seeing both parties nodding, he instructed in a loud voice, â12-year-old children, please head up the arena in succession!â
âMommy, Iâm scared!â
A young boy saw the packed scene and felt anxious and helpless.
âDonât be scared. If youâre picked, our family will flourish!â
His fatherâs face was filled with anticipation.
The parents of the other children were either encouraging or threatening them, saying that if they werenât selected, they wouldnât want them anymore. These parentsâ minds were really filled with nothing but their own benefits.
Very soon, the children queued up into a long row and started heading up the arena.
Sun Mo and Saint Zhou stood at the side and assessed the children seriously. If they didnât say anything, the queue would keep on moving. If someone said something, then theyâd stop.
Many parents started crying when they saw their children passing by with neither great teachers saying a word.
This meant that their childrenâs aptitude wasnât good enough and they didnât have any chance.
Sun Mo listened to all the crying and even saw some parents starting to whack their children. He couldnât take it anymore.
âParents!â
After applying Lingering Sound onto himself, Sun Moâs voice rang through the entire public square. âThis is a competition between Saint Zhou and myself. To win, of course weâll need to pick the most outstanding child. However, it doesnât mean that the children who werenât picked donât have any aptitude.â
âDonât you think youâre going against your conscience by saying this?â
Saint Zhou sneered, âMediocre people still form the majority in this world.â
âSo what? Are mediocre people not worthy to have dreams?â
Sun Mo retorted.
âGreat teachers have limited energy. Are you saying that you can teach every single person in this world? What we need to do is to teach the most talented children and let them become the leaders to lead this worldâs progress!â
This was Saint Zhouâs teaching ideology.
âThatâs such a coincidence. I donât care how the world is. I just want every student to become more outstanding. When theyâre old and look back at their respective lives, they might feel that they arenât successful enough, but they definitely wonât feel regretful. They can proudly say âI have tried my best.ââ
This was Sun Moâs choice
âThatâs why your mentality isnât mature. If youâre just an ordinary great teacher, you can do whatever you want. But youâre a secondary saint and you might even become a saint. Sun Mo, you are carrying the world on your shoulders. Its weight is a lot heavier than these childrenâs future.â
Saint Zhou said.
All the great teachers present quietly listened to their argument, not saying anything. However, in their hearts, they were on Saint Zhouâs side.
You might not be able to let an ordinary student gain independence and achieve success even if you were to devote 200% of your effort to them. However, youâd only need to put in 100% of energy into teaching a genius for them to be able to obtain tremendous success.
To put it simply, the great teachers in the Nine Provinces went with elite education. The worldâs development had nothing to do with ordinary people and was led by the elites.
âThereâs no point in talking so much! Letâs see who has the true capabilities!â
Sun Mo couldnât be bothered to argue anymore.
It was impossible for ordinary people to change their values just because of a few words from others, let alone a saint.
The selection continued, but after Sun Moâs comforting words, the atmosphere became a lot better. At least, although the parents were disappointed, they no longer beat and scolded their children.
âHold on!â
Saint Zhou was the first to speak. He pointed at a tall child and asked, âWhatâs your name?â
âOld Master, my name is Black Pig!â
The child grinned widely.
âDonât call me Old Master, call me Teacher!â Saint Zhou frowned slightly. âI didnât ask for your nickname.â
âI donât have a name. This is how my father calls me!â
Black Pig scratched his head. He felt that this old man was very scary.
âShow me a few punches.â
Saint Zhou instructed.
Black Pig swung his hands around messily, and he threw a series of punches. However, everyoneâs eyes lit up when they saw this. This bratâs physique was very good.
Judging from his muscles and bone structure, he was clearly a genius for martial arts.
âItâs over! Momo is going to lose!â
Gu Xiuxun felt anxious. She had also learned her lesson. As she couldnât call out Sun Moâs full name, she changed to calling him by his nickname.
âThatâs right. How far can a student go with just three months of guidance? Itâs still primarily about their potential and willpower!â
Li Ziqi was very angry. âAlthough this Black Pig has taken a bath and changed into clean clothes, thereâs still a faint smell of blood coming from him. Heâs clearly a butcher. A child like him is definitely fiercer!â
The expressions of An Xinhui, Mei Ziyu, and the others looked increasingly bad. This child clearly had the looks of a ferocious general who could hold up against ten thousand people single-handedly.
âSecondary Saint Sun, Iâm your elder, so I should let you choose first. If you like him, feel free to take him!â
Saint Zhou waved one hand, putting on a magnanimous appearance.
However, Xu Chunbo threw a glance at Saint Zhou and shook his head so slightly that it was unnoticeable.
This old man was really such a schemer.
Sun Mo cared about face and would definitely not take such advantages. Moreover, even if he wished to, he wouldnât dare because in the event that Saint Zhou lost, everyone would say that he was the one who had picked this Black Pig.
âNo need!ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
As expected, Sun Mo rejected.
There were still 12-year-old children on the stage. They were allowed to pick one who was younger but not older.
âMy son has been picked! My son has been picked!â
Black Pigâs father was elated and shouted loudly, attracting many envious, jealous, and hateful gazes.
Time passed by slowly and seeing the queue getting increasingly shorter, Xianyu Wei became a little anxious. âWhat if there isnât anyone he likes?â
Helian Beifang and her had rushed over in the last two days.
âAccording to the usual practice, Teacher can only choose one or forfeit. He doesnât have the right to search from another group of children.â
Qin Yaoguang explained.
âSecondary Saint Sun, if you donât have any children youâd like to pick, Iâll allow you to change to another batch of students!â
The more Saint Zhou looked at Black Pig, the more satisfied he felt. If his performance wasnât bad, he could take Black Pig in as his personal disciple.
Sun Mo paid him no heed and continued to look at the children. This time around, he tried using Divine Sight. It could be used, but he didnât use it. If he was going to win, he was going to clinch a flawless win.
Finally, a thin and weak little girl appeared in front of Sun Mo. Her face was dirty and her clothes were also full of patches. However, her eyes were especially bright. She was looking around.
When she noticed Sun Mo sizing her up, she even stuck out her tongue secretly, putting a face.
This was a cheerful little girl.
âWhatâs your name?â
As Sun Mo asked this question, everyoneâs gazes stared over, wanting to see the child Sun Mo had picked. After all, a personâs reputation was like a treeâs shadow. Sun Mo was a great teacher who could even let a âtrashâ like Li Ziqi become renowned.
âIâm called Coal Briquette!â
The little girlâs voice didnât sound very pleasant and was a little hoarse. âUncle, pick me please. Iâll be able to do whatever you want me to do well!â
âWhat makes you think that youâll be able to do it well?â
Sun Mo smiled and asked.
âItâs because I can work hard!â
Coal Briquette rolled up her sleeves to show her arms. âEven though Iâm thin, I can pull a lot of coal every day. Even my mother said that Iâm more amazing than boys.â
Sun Mo had long since seen through this little girlâs background through the coal ashes between her fingers as well as her teeth, skin color, and the shape of her bones. She was a child laborer who worked at the coal mines.
Even in modern days, coal mining was a very dangerous job, let alone in the Nine Provinces where productivity wasnât developed. Each time they entered a mine was a life or death experience.
However, these people had no other means of making a living other than mining coals.
What was even more dangerous than adult coal miners were child laborers working on this job. Those bosses of the coal mines often dug out passageways that were only half a meter width in order to cut costs. Theyâd then let children climb into mine for coals.
Their work equipment was just a shovel, a big basket that they dragged on their back with a rope, and a coal dish that they could hold with their mouths.
A coal dish refered to a plate with some oil and a wick in it. When the children went into the mine, theyâd have to bite it the entire time, not letting go. If the dish were to topple over, theyâd have to work in the dark.
This was also the reason why Sun Mo could tell that this little girl was a child coal miner. It was because her teeth had grown weirdly from having to bite onto the coal dish over the years.
âUncle, please pick me!â
Coal Briquette sniffed and her large eyes flickered, looking very bright.
âHow many years have you been working in the mines?â
Sun Mo felt curious.
âThree years!â
Coal Briquette was very proud. âIâm the most experienced coal miner in town!â
Many great teachers frowned, and Xu Chunbo even cursed. âItâs shameless to let such a young child mine coal!â
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