Elven cultivators

The Great Whirlpool Sea, the Temple of Tides.

Celine walked through a stone corridor that sloping towards the seabed, her face thoughtful.

Large pieces of moon shell are embedded on both sides of the corridor. The shell mouths are slightly open, and the fluorescent blue halo accumulated on the inner wall flows slowly along the spiral pattern, laying out a cool light path in the dim seawater.

Celine's hair swayed slightly in the flowing water, a few strands of pale gold hair brushing against her cheeks, almost transparent in the shimmering light, like silk threads repeatedly washed by seawater.

Below her waistline is a long, slender fish tail. The scales gradually narrow from her waist down, transitioning from silvery-white to light gray, and then to a nearly translucent pale blue at the tail fin, with a very thin halo around the edges that gently ripples with the movement of the water.

While pondering, Celine passed through the last archway and entered the central hall.

In the center of the spacious hall, a slightly hunched figure stood motionless, staring blankly at the stone wall opposite.

Celine approached and bowed slightly, her expression extremely respectful.

"Your Highness."

The figure turned around, revealing a face that was weathered yet dignified and elegant, with glimpses of the beauty of her features in her youth.

"How did the meeting go?"

The saint asked in a gentle voice, her tone carrying a sense of peace that resonated deep within.

Celine hesitated for a moment, then said, "Elder Monley and Elder Lowe still insist on establishing a base in the waters near the Holy Dragon Mountains to prepare for another expedition to the Holy Dragon Mountains."

The saintess remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking, her tone revealing little emotion.

"They still can't let go."

Celine lowered her eyes and did not reply.

The Temple is the absolute center and supreme authority of the Whirlpool Clan. It is the center of sea clan culture, knowledge, and arbitration, and its influence extends to all sea clan tribes. It is specifically responsible for mediating internal disputes among the sea clans and upholds an absolutely impartial stance.

However, despite its seemingly superior status, the temple was actually rife with internal struggles.

When a saintess reaches old age, the temple will begin selecting candidates to ensure that someone can immediately succeed her upon her death.

At this time of year, the selection of the candidate saintess becomes the most sensitive matter in the entire Whirlpool Sea.

The elders of the council would nominate several female priestesses, and after a series of tests and rulings, a successor would be chosen.

In this process, the elders inevitably engaged in open and covert struggles, exerting all their strength to support their respective chosen ones.

In this selection of candidates for sainthood, Celine and another female priestess have the best chance of winning.

The entire Tide Council has been embroiled in a decades-long struggle revolving around these two individuals.

Celine ultimately won and became the new candidate for sainthood.

Once the current Holy Maiden abdicates, she will become the new Temple Master, the spiritual leader of the sea race, and a supreme being.

Celine's victory also gave the elders who had originally supported her more say in the council.

The other camp, while not purged after losing the election, was gradually marginalized from the circle of real power.

The defeated party was naturally unwilling to accept reality, so it seized on the retreat to repeatedly launch attacks in the council, using the "face of the sea tribe" as a pretext to keep bringing up the military plan, trying to regain its interests through war.

To be honest, Celine didn't like these struggles.

But she also knew very well that any power transition process was inevitably fraught with undercurrents.

She could only do her best to limit the struggle to a limited scope and prevent it from escalating.

Unfortunately, the elders from the losing side were clearly not appreciative.

Celine has been exhausted, both physically and mentally, dealing with these people lately.

As if sensing Celine's thoughts, the saintess said gently, "Don't worry, Celine, things will be resolved."

Celine's heart stirred slightly, and she couldn't help but look up at Her Highness the Saintess.

The latter's meaningful gaze made her slightly startled.

Could it be that Her Highness "saw" something?

Celine was about to ask a question when the saint turned her head, her gaze passing through the dome of the hall, seemingly looking into the far distance.

After a moment, she looked away and instructed Celine, "We have a distinguished guest. Go and greet him."

Celine paused slightly, "Your Highness refers to...?"

"He's over there in the volcanic zone," the saintess said.

Volcanic zone sea area?

Celine was puzzled.

She knew that place all too well; it was a sea area perpetually shrouded in dense undercurrents and hydrothermal vents, where the nearby ocean currents were turbid and scorching, and ordinary sea creatures would never approach it.

More importantly, that is the territory of Thorius, the deep-sea ghost.

What kind of customers would go to a place like that?

Celine was increasingly confused, but seeing the saint wave her hand, she didn't ask any more questions, bowed her head, and left the hall.

After leaving the central hall, Celine walked quickly through the corridor, lost in thought.

But she quickly realized that something was off.

The priests along the way walked much faster than usual, looking like they were in a hurry.

Celine reached out to stop a priest, frowning as she asked, "What happened?"

Upon seeing Celine, the priest quickly bowed and said respectfully, "Lady Celine, Thorius has gone mad again. A large number of sea monsters have been forced to swim towards the archipelago, and the elders have ordered the mobilization of manpower to clear them out."

Celine's eyes flickered slightly.

The saintess sent her to the volcanic region to receive a distinguished guest, and at the same time, Thorius went mad.

Could it be that the mysterious guest has offended Solius?

With that in mind, Celine didn't delay any longer and instructed the priest to inform Elders Zane and Domick, asking them to hurry over the central sea area to meet up.

Celine was merely a peak legend; it was far too risky for her to venture alone into Thorius's territory.

Just in case, it would be safer to call the two elders.

By the time Celine arrived over the central sea area, Zane and Domick had already arrived.

"Celine, why did you call us over so urgently? What happened?" Domick spoke first.

He was a Selchi, and he was not using shapeshifting, maintaining his humanoid form as a seal.

The other elder, Zane, was of the merfolk race. He was lean and slender with dark blue-gray skin, and the whiskers on his face swayed slightly in the sea breeze.

He dangled his arms over the sea, his expression serene.

"I don't know either." Celine shook her head. "Her Highness said that a distinguished guest had arrived and asked me to go and greet him. I thought it wouldn't be safe for me to go to that volcanic area alone, so I asked the two of you to come along... As for what kind of distinguished guest it is, I don't know either."

Zane and Domick exchanged a glance, both somewhat surprised.

"Since it's Her Highness the Saintess's order, we'll obey," Domike said thoughtfully. "Where is that distinguished guest now?"

"Volcanic zone sea area".

Zane and Domick were both taken aback, and the same doubts they had felt for Celine before arose in their hearts.

Even so, the two didn't dwell on it much, changed direction, and headed towards the ocean current area where the volcanic zone was located.

All three were top-tier experts, and traveling at full speed, they entered the volcanic zone in no time.

As you look out, the hydrothermal vents spew up large swaths of warm water from the seabed, violently colliding with the cold surface seawater to form countless distorted refraction bands, shattering your view.

The aftershocks of the energy impact came from a great distance, like heavy drumbeats striking between layers of water, making people feel a tightness in their chests even from a great distance.

Celine could feel the fire and water elements in the air tearing and clashing against each other. The torrents created by the convergence of water and fire piled up into continuous eddies above the sea, making the horizon chaotic.

"This commotion... is more intense than any of Sorelius's previous outbursts." Zane's expression turned unusually grave. "What triggered that deep-sea monster?"

Domike frowned and said, "Could it be that our distinguished guest got into a fight with it?"

Upon hearing this, Zain's expression grew even more serious.

"If that's the case, then we're in trouble. Solius is not easy to deal with. Even if Domick and I join forces, it won't be easy to rescue people from him."

Domike said in a deep voice, "No matter what, we absolutely cannot let anything happen to the person Her Highness asked us to pick up."

The three of them suddenly accelerated, like three arrows slicing through the sea, rushing towards the direction from which the commotion came.

As they got closer, the surrounding sea conditions became increasingly chaotic.

The gushing hydrothermal fluids erupted from the depths of the seabed, creating a large, murky white cloud that severely reduced visibility as they met the icy seawater.

The churning ocean currents, carrying gray-black slag fragments, spread in all directions. Amidst the swirling steam and broken waves in the air, flashes of electricity pierced through layers of mist, making the entire sea surface appear to glow and dim.

Celine and her two companions involuntarily slowed down and looked around.

Affected by the chaotic energy field, their detection methods were rendered ineffective, leaving them to rely solely on visual observation to search.

Just as they were about to make a move, the sea not far away suddenly burst open with a roar.

A figure burst out from underwater, rose into the air, paused slightly, and its robes slowly fell in the strong wind.

He had long, pale gold hair, wore a moon-white robe, had a youthful face, and a calm expression.

But she was an elf.

Following closely behind were countless curling, surging, pale blue tentacles.

The enormous umbrella-shaped canopy rose from beneath the seawater, raising the water level for hundreds of meters in all directions before shattering with a deafening roar.

Celine and the other two stopped in their tracks.

They recognized Solius immediately and all showed expressions of alarm.

But the next moment, their expressions froze, and an expression of disbelief appeared on their faces.

The only reason was that Solius, who appeared before them at this moment, looked more disheveled than ever before.

The giant jellyfish had jagged burn marks along the edge of its bell, and its broken tentacles were curled up at its sides. Numerous broken pieces still held six-colored sparks that had not been completely extinguished, burning silently in the air and slowly fading away.

Its entire body was covered with wounds of varying depths, with neat and smooth edges, as if it had been cut open by some kind of sharp blade.

The three of them were shocked to see this.

When had they ever seen that deep-sea ghost beaten to this state?

The three of them then turned their heads in unison, their gazes falling on the elf.

Did he do it?

Is this the distinguished guest Her Highness mentioned?

Before they could figure it out, the man and the beast in the distance had already started fighting again.

In the center of the churning sea, sword light flashed and danced, severing the dense tentacles one by one.

The severed limbs fell onto the water's surface, were churned up by the surging seawater, and instantly turned to ashes and vanished.

Thorius roared repeatedly, his tentacles lashing wildly, tearing the void above the ocean into visible distortions, his aura raging with unparalleled ferocity.

However, it was clear to anyone with eyes that Thorius was at a disadvantage.

Celine, Zane, and Domick were increasingly shocked as they watched.

Even if a Saint of the highest level were to intervene, it would probably be impossible to suppress Thorius to this extent.

Although it was clear that the sword light was very effective against Thorius, the elf's strength was undeniable.

Zane's eyes flashed: "Those sword lights..."

Domick had already recognized the elf's identity and said in a deep voice, "It should be that Meteor Dragon Sword Saint."

Saints, elves, unique swordsmanship... there are very few people on the entire Dawn Continent who possess so many characteristics at the same time.

Aside from the rumored Meteor Dragon Sword Saint, there are clearly no other answers.

"So it was him..."

Celine murmured.

She had long been familiar with Anton.

After all, Grant and Igner, who were also five-star pillars, had mentioned Anton to her quite a few times.

However, she has hardly left the Whirlpool Islands in recent years, so she has never met Anton.

I never expected to meet you under these circumstances.

If it is him, he is indeed a distinguished guest.

After all, the Meteor Dragon Sword Saint is already one of the top experts on the continent.

Just as the three were in shock, the situation changed again.

Solius's tenacity in life exceeded Anton's expectations.

Even though he was restrained by the Six Ding Divine Fire and was constantly being suppressed, this guy still showed no signs of defeat.

Seeing this, Anton no longer held back.

He suddenly stopped, and a cloud of five-colored light appeared above his head.

As he raised his fingers and made a hand seal, the swirling clouds suddenly shrank dramatically and landed in his palm.

The next moment, Anton suddenly opened his mouth and exhaled a mouthful of crimson-gold aura, which quickly merged with the aura in his palm, instantly transforming into crimson-gold flames.

Flames rose from his palm, initially as thin as a thread, then silently expanded, condensing into a long, thin stream of flame.

In an instant, the surrounding temperature suddenly soared.

Even from this distance, Celine and the other two could feel a distinct burning sensation on their skin.

"What is that?"

The three of them looked surprised.

In fact, this is one of the functions of the overhead cloud: it can enhance supernatural powers and greatly increase their power.

The price to pay is that it will take a lot of time and effort to restore the top cloud.

Because he had only been cultivating for a short time, An Dong had not yet fully mastered the Hao Yi San Yang Qi, and could only use the Gang Yun above his head to fully unleash this supernatural power.

"go!"

With a flick of his wrist, Anton unleashed a streak of crimson-gold flames that shot out like a meteor, striking Thorius's massive body.

In an instant, the entire sea area seemed to be scalded.

In an instant, the water vapor surged into a large white wall of mist, which then spread rapidly in all directions.

Thorius let out a sharp screech unlike anything he had ever heard before. The canopy collapsed and curled inward at a visible speed at the edge touched by the flames, like a thin silk licked by the tongues of fire, rolled up and charred, even the roots of the tentacles were scorched with deep lines.

Thorius sank into the sea with a sudden crash, and huge plumes of steam rose up from around his body.

It thrashed about frantically underwater, trying to extinguish the stubborn, lingering embers of crimson gold that clung to its surface, but to no avail.

Hao Yi's three yang energies can burn anything; even magical treasures can be burned through and reduced to ashes once they are attached to them.

Unless it can be covered by a law power of a higher level than Haoyi Sanyang Qi, or a saint with a higher realm than Andong intervenes, it is almost impossible to extinguish.

While Solius's Shadow Abyss Law is a rare fantasy-type law, it is ultimately only a mid-level law, and its rank is inferior to Haoyi's Three Yang Qi.

In terms of cultivation level, even Solius, who is only at the Sainthood Realm, is no higher than Anton.

It was simply impossible to withstand the three yang energies of Haoyi.

But a moment later, Anton suddenly realized something was wrong.

The crimson flames on Thorius's body seemed to be gradually weakening.

Anton raised an eyebrow and immediately focused his divine sense to investigate. He then discovered that the grayish-white patches inside Solius's body seemed to be drawn towards the surface, silently annihilating each other with the crimson-gold flames.

During this process, Thorius's screams gradually changed tone, the original pain gradually decreased, and instead gradually increased with a bit of... pleasure?

When the last wisp of crimson flame went out, Thorius's body was covered with large patches of burn marks that had healed.

It floated on the surface of the sea, its umbrella slightly closed, its tentacles no longer waving around, but lying flat on its body, its posture exuding an indescribable... docility?

Then, it suddenly let out a low whimper, and a clear thought was transmitted to Anton.

"Are you willing to grant my request?"

A hint of doubt flashed in Anton's eyes.

After being beaten up, the guy seemed to have sobered up a lot and was no longer as manic as before.

Thorius rapidly swung its tentacles, emitting a series of short chirps, and the wrinkles along the edge of its canopy trembled, its posture displaying an urgency completely incongruous with its massive body.

The message being conveyed repeatedly conveyed the same idea—to repeat the attack from before.

Anton looked strange.

What's wrong with this guy?

Are you addicted to being beaten up?

Seeing that he did not respond, Solius repeated his request, even more earnestly than before.

"...Not now." Anton's lips twitched.

It will take at least half a month for the Gangyun above to recover, so he is currently unable to unleash the complete Haoyi Sanyang Qi.

Thorius was greatly disappointed upon hearing this, and even his whiskers drooped down, like a dog whose begging for food had been rejected.

The three people, Celine and Celine, looked somewhat ambiguous in the distance.

They had never seen that deep-sea ghost so humble.

The situation before them was completely beyond their expectations.

What exactly happened?

Just as they were in shock, Anton had finished communicating with Solius and turned to look at them.

Celine and the other two immediately snapped out of their daze, exchanged glances, and then rushed forward, stopping about four or five meters away from Anton.

"Excuse me for disturbing you, Lord Anton." Celine bowed slightly. "Her Highness the Holy Maiden knew you had come to the Great Whirlpool Sea and specially asked us to invite you to the temple for a talk."

Anton's expression shifted upon hearing this.

The holy maidens of the Tide Temple throughout the ages have all possessed the ability to foresee the future.

Although this precognitive ability is not future vision and can only obtain some vague information, it is still very powerful.

The current Holy Maiden clearly knew of his arrival through her precognitive abilities.

Anton's thoughts raced, but he didn't show it on his face; instead, he smiled faintly.

"It is my honor to be invited by the Holy Maiden. Please lead the way."

Celine nodded slightly and stepped aside to make way.

Please come with us.

She turned and walked ahead, with Zain and Domick following closely behind, while Anton lagged behind.

Behind them, Solius's tentacles emerged from beneath the water and swayed gently twice, as if watching Anton depart into the distance.

The wrinkles at the edge of the umbrella's canopy gathered slightly, then slowly sank below the surface of the sea and disappeared into the depths of the surging ocean currents.