The Sea God lowered his head in surprise.
He saw the deep wounds on both his hands, so deep the bone showed. Under the nourishment of the green light, they healed, scabbed over, and peeled away at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Not even a trace of a scar remained.
What was more, the green light seeped into his body along his meridians, soothing the surging blood and qi stirred by the backlash until it was completely calm.
"You..."
The Sea God parted his lips, his hand trembling slightly around the trident.
In all his years, he had never encountered anyone who, after being attacked on his own doorstep, not only refrained from getting angry but even treated his enemy's injuries.
Heavenly Fortune Master withdrew his right hand and fished a small jade gourd, glowing with a faint blue light, from his wide sleeve.
"In my early years, I traveled through the starry sky. On an abandoned water-type cultivation planet, I happened upon a single drop of 'True Water of Heavenly River.'"
Heavenly Fortune Master gazed at the gourd in his hand, his tone tinged with nostalgia.
"This drop of true water contains a faint trace of the Water Origin Law. Since I don't cultivate this path, keeping it would be like hiding a pearl in the dark."
"Today, I see that you cultivate the Water Attribute Incense Godly Way. This drop of true water seems almost tailor-made for you."
With that,
Heavenly Fortune Master casually tossed the jade gourd. It became a streak of blue light and came to a steady halt before the Sea God.
"Since this is our first meeting, take this drop of true water as a gift from me."
"Consider it a way to wash away the baleful aura you brought from crossing worlds and help steady your Dao heart."
Boom!
The Sea God wasn't the only one left dumbfounded.
The million cultivators of Heaven Luck Planet below erupted in a frenzy of cheers.
"The sect master is benevolent!"
"Senior Heavenly Fortune Master is broad-minded indeed, a model for all cultivators!"
"This Savage Wild God barged into Heaven Luck Planet for no reason, yet not only did the sect master refrain from punishing him, he even bestowed a treasure like True Water of Heavenly River. Such magnanimity—he truly has the bearing of an immortal, and inspires us to look up to him as if he were a lofty mountain!"
Countless cultivators gazed up at the seven-colored old man with fervent adoration and bowed deeply.
In their eyes,
their master, their sect leader, was the most perfect and compassionate immortal in the world.
Hearing the mountain-shaking praises from below,
the Sea God suspended in midair felt his cheeks burn, as if he had been slapped a dozen times by invisible hands.
He looked at the little gourd floating before him.
Even through its jade walls, his Sea God Core throbbed wildly within him, as if a man who had gone hungry for days had caught the scent of a peerless feast.
The Water Origin contained within had an irresistible pull on him.
At that moment, a tiny, almost imperceptible crack appeared in the Sea God's defenses.
He had thought he was facing a sinister and treacherous enemy.
But now, the other man's conduct, his bearing—
it was like a snow-capped mountain too lofty to climb. The Sea God felt that his own shouting and provocation had made him seem like a naughty child throwing a tantrum in front of an adult.
Crude, ignorant, laughable.
"Could it be... that I really did misunderstand?"
The Sea God's gaze wavered.
"Is this old man truly an immortal who has transcended worldly grudges and seeks only the Great Dao?"
Douluo Continent.
Everyone who saw this scene let out a long sigh of relief.
On Sea God Island, Bo Saixi clutched her chest and wept tears of joy.
"Thank goodness... Lord Sea God is all right."
Sea Dragon Douluo wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and exclaimed with lingering fear,
"The ruler of Heaven Luck Planet is a rare good person."
"Lord Sea God cursed him to his face, yet he didn't take offense. He even gave him a treasure that sounds incredibly powerful."
"So the Renegade Immortal World isn't full of cruel, cold-blooded lunatics like those in the Soul Refining Sect. There are still reasonable immortals there."
In the streets and alleys, the common folk cheered along with them.
In their eyes, Lord Sea God had turned disaster into fortune and met a benefactor.
If he could discuss the Great Dao with this benevolent old immortal, then when his year away was up and he returned, Lord Sea God might be several times stronger!
Pope Palace, Spirit City.
Qian Daoliu's taut nerves relaxed a little, too.
He looked at Heavenly Fortune Master's immortal-like bearing on the Sky Screen and nodded slightly.
"At his level of returning to simplicity, perhaps outward appearances and insults truly can no longer stir his emotions."
Qian Daoliu's voice held a trace of longing.
"Embracing all things and turning enemies into friends—that is what it means to be a true master of the Dao."
But while the whole continent basked in the relief of having survived a calamity,
Tang San's brows furrowed even deeper on the grounds of Shrek Academy.
He didn't cheer along with everyone else.
His violet-lit eyes were fixed on Heavenly Fortune Master's kind, amiable smile on the Sky Screen.
For some reason,
Tang San felt that the smile was a little too perfect.
So perfect it seemed like a carefully painted mask, fitted seamlessly to his face without a single flaw.
"An old monster who climbed to the position of planetary ruler in a cultivation world where the strong prey on the weak..."
Tang San silently weighed the situation. A chill crept up his spine.
"Would he really be so tolerant of an outsider who showed up armed and provoked him, all because of so-called magnanimity?"
"He didn't just heal him; he gave him a priceless treasure containing the Origin..."
Tang San gritted his teeth, recalling the insidious, smiling-while-hiding-a-knife tricks he had seen back at Tang Sect in his previous life.
"That isn't tolerance. It's bait."
Heaven Luck Planet, high in the air.
After a brief struggle, the Sea God finally lowered the Golden Trident in his hand.
His divine pride had been completely dismantled by overwhelming strength and that display of "generosity."
He reached out and took the jade gourd floating before him.
The moment it touched his hand, a warm energy flowed from his palm throughout his body, drawing a comfortable sigh from him.
"Thank you... for bestowing this treasure, senior."
The Sea God lowered his noble head, his voice tinged with awkwardness and embarrassment.
He had changed how he addressed the old man, from "old geezer" to "senior."
That one word meant he had completely set aside the pride of a god from Douluo Continent and acknowledged that, in this world, he could only be a junior.
Heavenly Fortune Master's smile grew even brighter.
He nodded in satisfaction, turned to the side, and made an inviting gesture.
"You're too kind, young friend."
"Every meeting is fate. The Ten Thousand Year Snow Tea is already prepared in the main hall of my Heavenly Fortune Sect."
"Why not come into the hall with me? We can sit down, enjoy some tea, and discuss the Dao."
The Sea God solemnly tucked the little gourd into his robe.
By now, he had no wariness left toward the kindly old man before him.
He even felt a trace of gratitude toward him.
"I'd be honored. I'll follow you into the hall, senior."
The Sea God clasped his hands and gave a somewhat awkward salute from the Cultivation World.
Heavenly Fortune Master walked ahead with a smile, and the Sea God followed close behind.
One after the other, they rode the seven-colored clouds down toward the tallest and grandest white jade palace below.
The Sky Screen's view followed them slowly from behind.
All around them, the cultivators of Heaven Luck Planet watched the Sea God depart with envious eyes.
"That savage god is unbelievably lucky. He actually gets to discuss the Dao with the sect master in person."
"Indeed. The sect master hasn't personally instructed an outsider in hundreds of years."
As the praises filled the sky, the Sea God crossed the white jade threshold carved with intricate formation patterns.
The moment they entered the hall,
Heavenly Fortune Master, walking ahead, had half his kindly face fall into the shadows inside the palace.
For a fleeting instant, seen in profile,
the corner of his mouth hidden in darkness curled upward in a strange way, almost too subtle to notice.
"Rumble!"
As the two went deeper inside, the doors of the white jade palace slowly closed,
completely shutting out the clamour and the seven-colored clouds outside.
The sound of the heavy doors closing echoed across the Sky Screen for a long time.
An indescribable sense of oppression seeped without warning from the tightly shut white jade doors, gripping the throats of everyone on Douluo Continent.
The two heavy doors of the white jade palace closed seamlessly before the envious eyes of all.
Their muffled closing echoed across the plaza of the Floating Continent.
Only then did the million cultivators of Heaven Luck Planet slowly disperse.
They flew away in groups of three or five, discussing what had just happened as they went.
"That savage god really hit the jackpot."
A gray-robed wandering cultivator rode his flying sword, his voice thick with envy.
"That was True Water of Heavenly River! A single drop could save you hundreds of years of cultivation, and the sect master just gave it away like that."
His companion shook his head again and again, sighing in agreement.
"Who could argue with that? We outer sect disciples can't even catch a glimpse of the sect master."
"He's an outsider who came here to pick a fight, and not only did he escape a beating, the sect master even invited him into the main hall to personally teach him the Dao."
"How could such a heaven-defying opportunity not fall to one of us?"
In the eyes of these native cultivators of Heaven Luck Planet, the Sea God was a nouveau riche who'd stumbled into a mountain of luck.
They held a blind, deeply rooted reverence for their sect leader, Heavenly Fortune Master.
To them, a single word of guidance from Heavenly Fortune Master was a blessing that made their ancestors' graves glow with auspicious smoke, let alone an invitation inside to drink tea and discuss the Dao.
Such envy and fervor weren't limited to Heaven Luck Planet.
Through the Sky Screen's broadcast, all of Douluo Continent had now fallen into unprecedented celebration.
On the beaches of Sea God Island, tens of thousands of residents knelt on the ground and repeatedly kowtowed toward the sky.
Bo Saixi wiped away her tears. Her breathtakingly beautiful face once again shone with brilliance.
"Lord Sea God truly is a god blessed by heaven and earth."
Bo Saixi gripped the scepter in her hand, her voice trembling with excitement.
"That immortal called Heavenly Fortune Master must have seen Lord Sea God's potential and divine nature."
"Once Lord Sea God finishes drinking tea and discussing the Dao in there, and absorbs that treasure called True Water of Heavenly River..."
Bo Saixi took a deep breath, her eyes blazing with fervor.
"When Lord Sea God returns to Douluo Continent a year from now, his strength will surely have reached a realm beyond our wildest imagination!"
In Heaven Dou City and Star Luo City,
every tavern was packed. The common folk raised wooden cups and cheered loudly.
The despair and gloom brought by the first four groups of explorers had been swept away in an instant.
In their simple understanding,
the old immortal had smiled and invited him in for tea, and even given him such a precious gift. This had to be the legendary stroke of good fortune.
Wasn't that how stories always went?
The hero fell off a cliff or met a master, received instruction, and eventually became invincible.
Lord Sea God had been handed the perfect protagonist's script!
It wasn't only the mortals and common folk who thought so.
Even the lofty Divine Realm was shaken by this scene.
Inside the grand hall of the God Realm Committee, built from five-colored divine stones,
the Five Great God Kings had gathered.
Asura God wore dark red divine armor, his white hair stirring despite there being no wind.
He braced both hands on the long table before him. His eyes, usually filled with murderous intent, now held solemnity and a trace of barely concealed panic.
"You all saw that, didn't you?"
Asura God's voice echoed through the hall, heavy with pressure.
God of Destruction wore a black cloak and gave a cold snort, destructive lightning radiating around him.
"The energy purity of that blue drop was far too high."
God of Destruction gritted his teeth, a note of sourness creeping into his voice.
"Even if the five of us joined forces and spent ten thousand years, we couldn't refine a single drop of that level of primordial power."
Goddess of Life sat beside him, a trace of worry on her peerlessly beautiful face.
She let out a soft sigh, her voice gentle yet cutting straight to the heart of the matter.
"Sea God was already one of the strongest among the First-level Gods, with deep reserves of power."
"That old man called Heavenly Fortune Master has unfathomable cultivation. He personally helped Sea God refine his divine power."
Goddess of Life lifted her head and looked around at the other four God Kings.
"Everyone, if Sea God really absorbs that drop of True Water and, under that old man's guidance, comprehends what they call the 'Great Dao'..."
God of Evil furrowed his brow and picked up the thread.
"You mean he'll break through the limits of a First-level God?"
Asura God slammed his hand down on the table. His dark-red divine power made the hall tremble slightly.
"Does that even need guessing?!"
Asura God's gaze turned razor-sharp.
"Once his transformation is complete, the Divine Realm will soon welcome its sixth God King!"
"By then, the rules of the Divine Realm set by us Five Great God Kings might just be overturned by him alone."
An unprecedented sense of crisis spread through the hearts of these five supreme rulers, who had controlled the Divine Realm for many years.
They weren't afraid of resistance from the lower realms.
But they feared the rise of their own kind, feared having the power in their hands divided.
For the first time in its history, the God Realm Committee fell into a long silence.
While the various powers of the outside world were envying Sea God, and even the God Kings were feeling their hearts pound with alarm...
Inside the White Jade Grand Hall of the Heavenly Fortune Sect,
the scene was entirely different.
The hall was spacious and furnished with elegant refinement.