Although Gungun had once listened to Hongjun preach the Dao, its head had been drooping as it snored, so it had actually taken in nothing at all. On top of that, Hongjun had repeatedly stirred up trouble during the Witch-Demon Calamity afterward. Thus, Gungun had no affection for him, nor did it owe him any karmic debt.
Therefore, Gungun had never considered itself a disciple of the Mystic Gate. It would never call itself "this humble Daoist."
If anything, it would say "this humble bear."
But this time, it had come to see the Yang siblings disguised as an extraordinary Loose Immortal living beyond the mortal world, one who had decided to lend them a hand out of pity for their plight and admiration for their filial devotion. "This humble bear" would not suit that role either, so "this Heavenly Venerable" was the most appropriate form of address.
Although the titles of Heavenly Emperor, Heavenly Sovereign, and Heavenly Venerable stood on equal footing, well... there were simply too many Heavenly Venerables.
Never mind a Saint like Yuanshi-even his disciple Wenshu called himself Heavenly Venerable Wenshu Guangfa. In the future, Wen Zhong, a granddisciple of Tongtian, would be appointed Heavenly Venerable of Universal Thunder. So there was absolutely nothing wrong with calling itself Heavenly Venerable Xiong Ba.
Returning to the matter at hand, once Gungun had fully emerged from the dust, it swept its large hand through the air. Whoosh! A fierce wind blew past, scattering all the dust behind it. Paired with its current appearance as an old man with an immortal's bearing and a sage's grace, the display truly did overwhelm the Yang siblings in an instant.
Could this... Heavenly Venerable be the great master our teacher said would help us?
That was what all three of them thought.