Journey of the Fate Destroying Emperor

Chapter 1746: Talent & Passion

All those scholars looked at Zhang Ji with a strange look. With these simple words, they could understand this man’s philosophy: teaching by talent. While this idea sounds beautiful, they immediately rejected it. Many of them believed in the teacher’s supremacy; it was the same for their teachers, and they, in turn, passed this legacy down.

After the Academy Era, students now had more power since they could choose their teachers. But many scholars still hold the old school value of honoring teachers and putting them above everything. Zhang Ji’s ideology, which is not entirely new, placed too much emphasis and power on students, since their choice of teachers would be based on their talents.

The second argument against this ideology was, once again, the issue of resources. The process of determining a student’s talent, at best, would require a high-level cultivator to assess what their soul or body is most adept at. At the lowest level, the student will have to try countless new subjects and see what fits them. Such a process will require too much time, energy, and resources. Not to mention Zhang Ji mentioned teaching based on aptitude and interest: a student should not have so much power, nor should anyone have to invest so many resources in them.

"I remember you, Zhang Ji, that you were also a member of my school," Great Sage Qi asked.

"Yes, Sage, I believe in education for all and teaching without discrimination."

"Then, do you know the greatest argument against our schools?"

"Resources," Emperor Kong replied.

"Tell me: how can we educate everybody and tailor education to the individual’s needs?"

The Sage’s words reminded people of which school of thought Zhang Ji followed, and many people started to look at this man as if he were the biggest heretic ever. He was already considered extreme for his views on education for all, but he even incorporated tailored education. Is this man mad? Doesn’t he know such an ideology would infringe on his own benefit? How can he convince people to follow him?

"The answer is simple: Control Resources, Control Population, and Use Career Order to Create Value," Zhang Ji replied. He never accepted the argument of limited resources. Even if they only had access to the resources of the Nine Realm World, there would still be plenty. But as a civilization with access to millions of worlds, the issue was only an issue because of human greed.

But even so, with the proper control and management of resources and the population, Emperor Kong argued that a perfect balance can be achieved. Moreover, one of the greatest flaws of the resource argument is that it never mentions, or purposefully ignores, the benefit of teaching with aptitude: creating more capable individuals and talents.

That’s when [Career Order to Create Value] comes into play. Capable individuals who are passionate about their work will create value for society, forming a cycle in which society educates and molds them, and they, in turn, work and reward society with their efforts. In simple terms, these capable individuals created from this system will create even more resources that were invested in them.

The brilliance of this system is that no one is useless; no one will escape the crack. As long as someone is passionate about something, they can receive proper training and eventually become a functioning and valuable member of society. The world painted by Zhang Ji, or Emperor Kong, was indeed beautiful, luring many people. But many also found fault with it and debated against him.

The first counterargument was the possible contradiction between talent and interest. If someone is talented at something but not passionate or interested in it, which should be the priority? Kong answered that passion should be prioritized above talent. The ultimate purpose of education is to benefit society, humanity, and the cultivation of civilization. Without interest and devotion, few people would be willing to contribute.

These scholars debated that this was an even further waste of resources. After all, if someone is not talented, how could they become the "capable individuals" that Kong spoke of, and how could they eventually contribute? Even people who agreed with his ideology argued that people should be forced to focus only on their talent and that passion — while encouraged — should not be the priority.

"There is no perfect system," Kong argued. "Will there be people who choose their interest over their talent and are unable to contribute? Yes, but only a few outliers do not mean the entire system is wrong. As long as we achieve the perfect balance in resource management, the system can raise a few idlers.

"Not to mention how your perception of contribution seems rather elitist. Does a member of society require a Sage-level achievement to be considered to have contributed? No. Any form of contribution, even if it’s just effort, is a contribution."

The argument was intense, with many people, including Great Sage Qi, revealing their thoughts. The righteous energy in the lecture hall surged, becoming tangible as illusory scrolls, pens, and characters manifested throughout. However, despite how invested everybody was, Great Sage Qi stopped everything at the one-and-a-half-month mark.

The students asked for more time, but as a principled individual, he still stopped everybody, including the second-rank Empyrean. However, to everybody’s surprise, the man continued their previous topics. What’s more, the situation continued until the sixth-ranked scholar, who was an arrogant man and hated when the spotlight was not on him. So, despite everybody’s expectation, the man asked a question about his own path.

The expectation, as could be seen on his face, was that everybody would follow him, which sparked an even more intense debate than Zhang Ji’s. The reality is, he was the only one debating against Great Sage Qi, with no one caring about whatever he was saying. After the previous experience, the subsequent Empyreans did not dare change the topic and wisely allocated their time to the last debate.

After seeing this trend, Great Sage Qi tried to control the situation and told the Great Emperor scholars that they could ask about their paths or debate his path, but everybody chose to continue; maybe out of fear of humiliation, or the topic was indeed interesting — especially since Zhang Ji was so articulate and a great debater.

"That’s it for the lecture," Great Sage Qi sighed deeply. It’s been a while since he had such a productive lecture. The young man, Zhang Ji, challenged many of his ideologies, and he believed he did the same for him. For a scholar, there are few things more beneficial than meeting an ideology that shares many similarities.

"Sir, is there any way we can continue?" someone asked.

For a moment, Great Sage Qi considered breaking, no, bending the rules, but he shook his head. "There is no eternal banquet. As much as I would love to continue, but with the [Lord Selection], I am on a strict schedule."

Great Sage Qi exhaled to calm down. "Paragon Chen Yi, Empyrean Zhang Ji, Great Emperor Black Ink: according to the rules I’ve established, as the first in your realm, you will be allowed a private meeting with me. Are you ready?"

"Yes, sir," the three replied in unison.

"Good," the Sage nodded. "For everybody else, may the four virtues guide and bless you in your future endeavors." With a wave of his hand, the Sage and the three Champions disappeared from the lecture hall. The hall was briefly quiet before the murmurs started. While Zhang Ji — the creator of this new thought — and the Sage were not here, everybody else could still debate. For a moment, nobody wanted to leave and only wanted to spend a few thousand years discussing this topic. Sadly, the academy would not allow them to use their property privately.

The good news is these scholars can continue the debate outside of the academy. For the next few years, this topic will be everywhere: pubs, inns, restaurants, academies, and even many brothels. And it’s only a matter of time before it spreads to other domains and envelops the entire Righteous Realm.

Order Virtue Pavilion:

Emperor Kong and the other two appeared in this beautiful pavilion, adorned with all the poetry, paintings, and works of art of the Great Sage Qi. However, the latter was nowhere to be found. While everybody was wondering what was happening, a servant approached them:

"My master will be bathing and applying incense before seeing you."

"We understand," Chen Yi nodded. The servant quickly bowed before slowly retreating. Without any choice, the others could only wait. Luckily, they had tea and snacks around them.

"You’re Zhang Ji, huh?" Chen Yi asked.

"The one and only."

"You must have been born poor."

Zhang Ji frowned. Why was this man so rude?

"Am I wrong? Your ideology screamed of someone born poor and forced to climb from the bottom."

"You’re wrong," Zhang Ji said. "I’m from a Great Emperor Lineage of scholars. I was the hope of my family, and I’ve never met and surpassed their expectations."