On July 28, the sunlight blazed bright and hot. Chenlin Village's eastern gate slowly awakened in the morning light, ready to welcome an extraordinary arrival.
A procession surged forward like ocean waves, approaching the gate with steady strides. Every step seemed to resonate with the earth.
Xixi, the young woman who would lead the delegation, stood prominently at its head.
Her right hand gripped a gleaming gilded scepter. Two meters long, it was engraved all over with ancient, mysterious runes, as though it could commune with the power of heaven and earth.
At its head, a sharp diamond-shaped projection rose like a spear that could cleave the sea. Five inches beneath its tip sat a dazzling golden gemstone.
This was the Holy Water Scepter, a symbol of Sea God Island's supreme glory and power. Only two existed in the world; the other was in the hands of the previous Holy Maiden.
They ranked second only to the even more majestic Sea God Scepter, which rested in the noble hands of Sea God Island's High Priest, Bo Xian'er.
Xixi's steps were light, her expression taut. Her sumptuous sea-blue gown swayed gently in the wind, its hem resembling rolling azure waves. It melded with her figure, which seemed to hold the boundless power of the deep ocean, revealing both her lingering youthful innocence and the grace and nobility of an ocean spirit.
Close behind her was a beautiful middle-aged woman in priestly robes: Chief Priest Coi Russell. Her face was intelligent and imposing, and every movement revealed the extraordinary bearing of a Level 96 Super Douluo.
Behind them, Sea Dragon Douluo Long Ma walked beside a middle-aged man with pale golden hair and blue eyes as deep as icy pools.
Though the latter had weathered much in life, traces of his former