You've only been cultivating for a few years, and you're already talking about cultivating

Heavenly Venerable.

What kind of being can be called a Celestial Venerable?

In this gathering of the Three Seas, this pink and white suckling pig is none other than the Heavenly Venerable.

The entire Sanhai Guild, with its thousands of employees, managers, ship owners, and sailors, spans dozens of branches throughout the South China Sea, handling goods worth a fortune every year.

All of this exists because of it.

Its appearance is elusive, but the high-ranking members of the Three Seas Society recognize it at first glance. This is because it is the Heavenly Venerable whom they worship daily, offer sacrifices to yearly, and never dare to neglect in the slightest.

The little pig continued, "I was originally going to the corner of the sea and sky. But I didn't expect the news to leak out and Old Mudfish found out."

It paused, then snorted, a snort filled with barely suppressed anger.

"Old Mudfish sent the Seven Seas Guards to ambush me on the way. All my guards are dead, not one is left."

"I retreated and ran, fighting as I went, for several days. Finally, when I had no other choice, I changed my appearance and managed to escape the pursuit of the Chao Ba Guards. Later, I encountered those three cultivators."

The shopkeeper knelt on the ground, glanced cautiously at the little pig, and then quickly lowered his head again.

"Heavenly Venerable," he said, "should we send someone to deal with those three cultivators to prevent word from leaking out?"

"Forget it," the little pig shook its head, "All three of them are true cultivators. One is a lightning cultivator, and the other is a sword cultivator. Going there would be a waste of your time; you'd just be throwing your lives away."

The shopkeeper was startled.

True Dharma cultivators have been a rare sight in Nantianfang for a long time. Lightning cultivators and sword cultivators are even rarer. Ordinary pseudo-Dharma cultivators can't even stand firmly in their presence.

"Three true cultivators?" he murmured, repeating himself. "Nantianfang hasn't seen any lightning cultivators or sword cultivators for a long time."

The little pig ignored his shock and continued talking to itself.

"They most likely came from the Yue Kingdom. That person from Yue..."

It didn't finish its sentence, but the shopkeeper already understood.

Nantianfang is close to the Yue Kingdom, and the news coming from the Yue Kingdom these days has made everyone tremble with fear.

The entire nation chanted together, "Following the great vow, we will deliver all those suffering in the sea of ​​misery." That strange, irresistible, all-encompassing power could be felt even across the sea, hundreds of miles away.

The people of Nantianfang were afraid that one day the Yue people would cross the sea and make them recite the same words as them.

Fortunately, that didn't happen, but it still gave them a fright.

They speculated that there was a mysterious cultivator behind the Yue Kingdom, most likely a Golden Core expert.

Only a Golden Core cultivator can be so unrestrained and influence the people of an entire nation with their own power.

"That one is far more terrifying than the old mudfish," the little pig said, his tone tinged with a sigh. "Without achieving the Golden Core, we are all just ants."

"Now, take me to the temple."

"Yes, ma'am!" The shopkeeper quickly got up, bent over, and led the way to the secret room underground of the Three Seas Society.

It is said to be a secret chamber, but it is actually an underground temple.

The temple was very tall, its dome so high that it was hidden in the dark blue light, its edges invisible.

The walls inside the hall are covered with bas-reliefs.

The waves surged up from the base of the wall, one layer upon another, one wave pushing another, the texture of the waves so fine and detailed that they seemed to be really flowing.

Between the waves are countless fish and shrimp.

The giants range in size from as big as a person to as small as a finger, huddled together in dense clusters. Some leap on the crests of the waves, while others swim in the troughs. Some open their mouths wide, while others flick their long tails, all so lifelike that they seem ready to swim out of the wall at any moment.

The pearls reflected the green flames on the wall, and combined with the chill in the temple and the salty smell in the air, it made one feel as if they were in the middle of the sea.

In the center of the temple is a shrine.

The shrine is not large, but it stands in the center of the empty temple, like the heart of the entire temple.

The frame is made of sandalwood, and the decoration is made of gold thread. Fine gold thread coils into intricate patterns on the sandalwood, such as waves, auspicious clouds, and lotus flowers, layer upon layer, circle upon circle, intricate yet not chaotic, dense yet not cluttered.

Inside the shrine, there is a statue of a deity.

The material of the statue was indescribable, whether it was stone or jade, and its entire body was a deep bluish-white color, like a reef that had been soaked in seawater for thousands of years.

It stood on surging waves, surrounded by all kinds of fish, and held something in its hand that, upon closer inspection, turned out to be a dragon.

The dragon was coiled in its palm, its head held between its fingertips, its tail hanging off the edge of its palm, like a tamed, docile animal that dared not struggle anymore.

But it has no face.

The blank face appeared both eerie and solemn in the eerie green light.

This is the Heavenly Venerable worshipped by the Three Seas Society.

The future masters of the sea.

The little pig walked to the front of the shrine, transformed into a beam of light, flew out of its small body, and disappeared straight into the shrine.

Something suddenly flashed across the blank space on the face of the statue.

The shopkeeper knelt down, his forehead touching the ground, his hands outstretched, palms facing upwards, and began reciting scriptures praising the Heavenly Venerable according to the previous ritual procedures.

"The tide rises for you, the tide falls for you. The waves rise at your command, the waves fall in submission."

"Supreme among all seas, ruler of all waves. Whale shark wields halberd, dragon reins in its reins."

"Respectfully bidding farewell to the Heavenly Venerable, respectfully welcoming the Heavenly Venerable."

In the eyes of the people of the Three Seas Society, the Heavenly Venerable is the future master of the ocean and the future ruler of everything.

It is only natural for them to worship the Heavenly Venerable now.

The Celestial Venerable is never stingy with rewards.

The shopkeeper knelt on the ground, his forehead still pressed against the cold blue stone; he knew what was about to happen.

Inside the shrine, the faceless statue suddenly lit up. A beam of light flew out from the statue and shone on the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper's body jolted violently.

He could feel himself getting stronger, not just a little bit, but a huge leap! If his original magical power was a small pond, it had now become a small lake!

If I were to cultivate it myself, it would take countless years. But for the Celestial Venerable, it was merely the time it takes to burn a ray of light.

This is the Heavenly Venerable's reward!

Why do these people worship the Heavenly Venerable? Isn't it all for the magical power bestowed upon them by the Heavenly Venerable?

The shopkeeper prostrated himself on the ground and said respectfully, "Thank you for the Heavenly Venerable's gift."

As the shopkeeper knelt down, Qi Fei and the other two had already bid each other farewell by the sea at Dafang Beach; all good things must come to an end.

The three of them took different paths.

Before parting, Qi Fei said to Chan Kong, "All phenomena are empty. 'Emptiness' may be a means, but it is not the end."

Zen Kong nodded, then resumed his playful grin and said, "Big Guy, what is the purpose of 'all phenomena are empty'?"

"That's up to you," Qi Fei said.

The road is yours, not someone else's.

"Amitabha Buddha, this humble monk is leaving!" Chan Kong clasped his hands together and chanted a Buddhist prayer to Qi Fei and Lei Lei before gracefully departing.

"Treading through a thousand clouds in an empty mountain, I neither chant Buddha's name nor think of myself. I laugh away the upside-down universe, for all dharmas are empty, and so is my mind."

Qi Fei looked at Chan Kong, who was reciting poetry as he walked, and said, "Show-off!"