Only at the Mahayana Stage Does the Reversal System Appear - Chapter 375

Chapter 375 Hard Statue

. “Ahem.” The Sword Lord suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Jiang Li hurried forward to offer his concern, but the Sword Lord waved his hand, “It’s nothing serious. I just sustained internal injuries while honing my sword in the void. Let’s continue studying this half of the statue.”

“How could a statue made of ordinary material not even be cut by my sword? What kind of force cut it apart?”

Jiang Li couldn’t bring himself to say that believing in Venerable Shenzang and killing people would earn merit.

Immortal Changcun had said that there was an unknown deity among the outer demons, and that believing in him would change the way faith was acquired.

Combining these two things, it’s easy to conclude that Venerable Shenzang was the faith of the outer demons, or even a deity.

Even celestial demons believed in a being that could grant merit. One could only imagine how terrifying Venerable Shenzang’s true form was.

“It has nothing to do with the material, but with the statue’s image.”

“The statue’s prototype is an extremely terrifying being. Its realm is hard to judge, but it’s definitely above the Celestial Immortal level.”

“I suspect that because the statue’s prototype was powerful enough, its image imprinted on the outer worlds of the universe, the statues inspired by it have also been affected, becoming extremely difficult to destroy.”

“But this is just my guess. I can’t guarantee whether it’s true or not.” Jiang Li’s speculation was bold, yet it had a certain plausibility.

Legend has it that some beings are so powerful they stand tall in the river of time. Anyone who crosses that river and attacks a weaker one will be slain.

Legend has it that some beings’ names cannot be spoken, or else they must be perceived.

Legend has it that some beings are immortal, with no afterlife…

Powerful beings often demonstrate their might in unnatural ways.

The Sword Lord was silent. He couldn’t imagine how powerful a being could be to earn the recognition of the universe, to hold their image undamaged.

Perhaps only the legendary Daozu and Buddhazu, giants of the immortal world, figures worthy of the title of “ancestor,” could achieve this.

It was a pity that the Sword Lord didn’t know the identities of these two giants, otherwise he would have truly wanted to chop down the statue with his sword to find out.

The Sword Lord suddenly recalled something and said, “I do have a way to confirm the Human Emperor’s suspicions, but it might be considered disrespectful to him.”

“No problem, you’re welcome to try.”

With Jiang Li’s permission, the Sword Lord produced his storage ring and pulled out a small statue of the Human Emperor Jiang.

Sword energy surged like autumn water, a river flowing into a vast expanse. The overwhelming, boundless sword energy converged into a narrow beam of light, illuminating the void.

This strike was arguably the Sword Lord’s most powerful strike since entering the Tribulation Crossing Stage!

The Sword Lord swung his sword, striking the statue of the Human Emperor.

The statue remained unscathed, floating quietly in the air.

The two exchanged glances. Jiang Li, noticing the horror in the Sword Lord’s eyes, reflected, and, to ensure the Sword Lord wasn’t alone, he too expressed his own horror.

The Sword Lord began to regret his stubbornness, insisting on staying in the Sword Tomb to resolve his inner demons and missing the opportunity to witness Jiang Li’s ascension to the Mahayana stage.

The Sword Lord had never imagined that the Mahayana stage truly existed, nor had he anticipated its terrifying potential.

He had only swung his sword with the intention of testing it, but he hadn’t expected the statue of Emperor Jiang to be

so indestructible. His full-strength attack didn’t even leave a white mark. Jiang Li hadn’t expected his own statue to be so resilient.

It was clearly just a statue made of ordinary clay.

Everyone in the Nine Provinces enshrined Jiang Li’s statue, and no one had ever considered intentionally destroying it. Even if it accidentally fell to the ground and remained undamaged, they would simply consider it good luck, not the statue’s indestructibility.

After all, that was too far-fetched.

“Emperor Jiang, your strength has also been recognized by the heavens and myriad worlds.”

“It seems so.”

“Isn’t your reaction too calm?” The Sword Lord had always pursued the strongest. He asked himself, if he were as powerful as Jiang Li, no, even if he were only one-tenth as powerful as him, he would never be so indifferent.

Jiang Li thought for a moment, deciding it was time for a reaction. Clearing his throat, he said, “To have reached this point today, I owe it first and foremost to my opponents on the path of cultivation. Without their hard work and the pressure they put on me, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Secondly, I want to thank the Old Emperor for his tireless cultivation…”

Sword Lord: “…”

“Since the statue is so difficult to destroy, what force severed it in two?” Sword Lord asked, stroking the half of the statue of Venerable Shenzang.

The statue consisted of only the lower half, its cross-section remarkably smooth, without a single undulation.

Jiang Li pondered for a moment, then with a single strike of his hand, split the statue in half, separating it into two thighs.

The cross-section Jiang Li had cut was also remarkably smooth.

“It would probably require celestial immortal-level power to achieve this.” Jiang Li could only make an approximate estimate. After all, he had never directly fought a celestial immortal, his only experience coming from his battle with the Red Dust Fairy.

“Could it be that an immortal and an extraterritorial demon battled in the void, and the aftermath severed the statue?”

“Very likely. Which direction did the statue come from?” Although he didn’t know how much time had passed, he had to give it a try.

Perhaps we can find an immortal or an extraterritorial demon.

“There,” the Sword Lord pointed in a direction, then spat out another mouthful of blood.

The moment the blood left his body, it was shattered by the void, creating a stark contrast to the intact statue of Jiang Renhuang.

“I’m ill and can’t join Renhuang in his search for immortal traces. Please forgive me.” Though severely wounded by the void, the Sword Lord’s eyes shone brightly.

He had gained a lot from honing his swordsmanship in the void.

“Please do as you please, Sword Lord, but please don’t tell anyone about the statue.”

Jiang Li hoped that as few people as possible would know about the Venerable Shenzang, and he never revealed the statue’s name to the Sword Lord.

The void was not suitable for those in the Tribulation Crossing stage to linger. The Sword Lord had been there for who knows how long before Jiang Li arrived. He was already exhausted, and any further stay would damage his foundation.

The Sword Lord hurried back to Jiuzhou. Upon leaving the void, his injuries healed rapidly.

He returned to the sect and began his retreat to contemplate.

After clashing with other Tribulation Crossing Stage cultivators, the Sword Lord felt immense pressure. Li Er, Bai Hongtu, and Yu Yin were all rising stars, yet their combat prowess rivaled or even surpassed his.

This was a source of discomfort.

Especially since Li Er and Bai Hongtu had both passed the Immortal Tribulation and were further along the Tribulation Crossing Stage than he was.

…

Following the Sword Lord’s instructions, Jiang Li put away the statue of Venerable Shenzang and wandered alone through the void. True to its name, the void was pitch black, devoid of anything.

Along the way, Jiang Li saw no signs of battle between immortals and extraterritorial demons.

“Is it because we haven’t reached the destination yet, or are we heading in the wrong direction?”

The turbulent currents of the void were unpredictable. Perhaps the statue of Venerable Shenzang had been blown back to Jiuzhou by several different currents.

If that were the case, Jiang Li would have a difficult time locating the battle site.

Bored in the void, Jiang Li pulled out a book, shielded it with his magical power, and read as he flew.

Jiang Li was immersed in books, reading dozens of bestsellers like “The Domineering Mahayana Fell in Love with Me” and “Reborn Five Hundred Years, the Mahayana Monk Fell in Love with Me,” but

he still found no traces of battle. However, he found a new world.

Jiang Li broke through the boundary wall and entered another world.

(End of this chapter)