Chapter 723 151: Opening

Zhang Deming listened to the discourse for a moment, then shook his head, rather speechless.

Gan Zili, sitting beside him, showed a slight change in expression. He raised his hand to activate the one-way Sound Insulation Array on their table, enveloping the few people around them. Tilting his head toward Zhang Deming, he asked, "Junior Brother Zhang, why do you shake your head? Is there something about this discourse that dissatisfies you?"

Zhang Deming paused for a moment before replying, "Well, it's not quite what I'd hoped for. If I were to rate my expectations for this event on a scale of one hundred, I would've given the opening ceremony a ninety-nine, leaving one point just to be modest. But this initial discourse... it's been a huge disappointment."

Gan Zili's brow furrowed slightly. "Why? I think it sounds great. Look at all the Disciples around us—many of them are already lost in contemplation."

Zhang Deming shook his head. "Senior Brother, is the point of this event to have a discourse or to give a lecture?"

Gan Zili replied, "A discourse, of course. Haven't more than ten of our peers already taken the stage?"

"'A discourse?' Zhang Deming said, exasperated. 'Then take a look at the sky full of Low-Tier Tai Chi and Apprentice Disciples. Have any of them gone down to participate? Is it because they don't have enough points?'"

'The numbers on the projection of the Spirit Nurturing Celestial Bead in the sky are already jumping. I just glanced at it; thousands, even tens of thousands of points have already been awarded.'

'For this first round, just to warm things up, we set the cost to participate at only five points. With so many points awarded, have you seen a single Low-Tier Disciple take the stage?'

Gan Zili paused at his words. As a native Hongmeng Cultivator, even when he paid attention to the Disciples, he mostly just glanced at the Duality Disciples in his vicinity and rarely noticed the low-level ones.

Zhang Deming's words were what finally drew his attention to the Low-Level Disciples.

One look was all it took for him to freeze. The vast majority of the Disciples in the sky were sitting upright, all looking as if they were diligently listening to a lecture. Only a few of the bolder ones had activated their one-way sound insulation to chat with each other.

This scene was all too familiar to him!

Wasn't the Dharma Transmission Hall just like this? The sky was filled with Low-Tier Disciples, none of whom were participating, all just listening obediently. Forget the Apprentices; not even a single Duality Disciple had taken the stage yet.

Seeing Gan Zili's brow tighten, Zhang Deming continued, "Do you see? When the senior masters take the stage, it's less of a discourse and more of a lecture."

'One after another, they're all lecturing on how to cultivate and how to develop one's abilities. They may seem to be analyzing the Communication Dao, but it's just the same old lecture under a different name.'

'If this continues, we won't see a single spark from the clash of ideas, not even in ten thousand years!'

'The Low-Tier Disciples don't understand, so even if they had an idea, they wouldn't dare take the stage. It's hard for any unconventional thoughts to even emerge when they're all just obediently taking notes!'

'An exchange like this is a disaster for the entire conference. By the time this discourse is over, a few Disciples might make a breakthrough relying on their Talent, but there will be absolutely no other gains to be had.'

'As for any clash of ideas from the exchange between our two worlds? That's even more unlikely. After all, the cultivators from the Celestial Universe are clearly holding back as well.'

'A discourse is a discourse. If you don't bring the topic down to a level where it can actually be debated, it's just a glorified lecture. If you want a real discussion, the opening speakers need to be from the grassroots, people who understand the absolute basics.'

Gan Zili fell silent. Most discourses were like this, after all. Who ever cared whether Low-Level Disciples participated? Suddenly, Yue Mengsheng turned his head to look at Zhang Deming and said, "Then why don't you go down there, kick things off, and set an example?"

Gan Zili, taken aback for a moment, chimed in, "That's right! Junior Brother Zhang, since you identified the problem so sharply, you must have a good idea, don't you? Why not go down and give it a try?"

Zhang Deming paused. "I have no problem going down there, but don't blame me if I steer this whole thing off course."

"If anything goes wrong, I'll take the heat!" Dang Xiangjun, seated at the center, also turned his head and interjected.

Hearing this, Zhang Deming nodded. "Alright then. I'll go give it a try."

With that said, Zhang Deming glanced down at the stage. The previous speaker had just finished, so without further hesitation, he tapped to claim his turn.

His figure appeared on Baiyu Plaza. He was only at the Duality realm of Cultivation, yet he wore the magnificent, Three-Star Magical Artifact Level Peak Master Daoist Robe. This striking contrast instantly captured everyone's attention.

Upon recognizing his face, everyone paused. For the past few days, Zhang Deming had been the most talked-about Cultivator in the entire Celestial Spirit Sect.

Spirit Nurturing Peak had given Zhang Deming more than enough backing and prestige throughout the recent events, so even though he was the first Duality Disciple to take the stage, no one questioned his qualifications. In fact, many were filled with anticipation.

They wanted to see if he was truly as... miraculous as the legends claimed.

A single bead had instantly raised an Apprentice to the Duality realm! Even if many suspected the story was an exaggeration, it was still a heaven-defying opportunity.

But still, they couldn't help but harbor a sliver of wishful thinking. If not for the fact that the Flying Spring Waterfall Tower was restricted to most, his residence would have been swarmed with people over the last few days.

···

"Ahem... It's my first time being stared at by so many people. I'm a little nervous! And I'm talking especially to you, Senior Masters—could you please dial down the Spiritual Light in your eyes?"

'The Six-Star Grand Array is up and running. What do you expect to see by staring at me with those sparkly eyes? You're just going to scare me!'

'If you actually manage to scare me off, someone's going to come looking for you. After all, I'm rumored to have a 'profound' background, right?' Zhang Deming said as he stepped onto the stage, glancing around and rubbing his ear.

"Haha..."

"Hehe..."

Many of the Disciples who understood his references broke into smiles. The atmosphere took a sharp turn, shifting from a grandmaster's lecture to idle gossip among the students.