Chapter 449: Chapter 167: Breaking Through the Encirclement, Blocking the Way with the Golden Dragon
The Dao Fruit was about to manifest but hadn’t yet, and even Jiang Li, with his speed, found it hard to capture the not-yet-fully-materialized Dao Fruit, while the seven-story pagoda was now within spitting distance.
This was a move of surrounding Wei to rescue Zhao; Tota Arhat attacked Jiang Li’s body to force him away from the Dao Fruit.
Although the pagoda appeared small and exquisite, at this moment it was as imposing as a mountain, charging towards Jiang Li’s location and creating a vivid crack, as if space itself had shattered.
The majestic strength crushed the air, formed substance, and then shattered it again, creating such a marvel.
The Five Vile Qi was ineffective against such pure force, and the pagoda was not an illusory Dharma Manifestation, but a real object. As soon as Jiang Li’s body touched the pagoda, it broke into pieces and vanished without a trace like dust in the wind.
A fake! An Illusion Body!
"Moluo Sword Manual!" Tota Arhat snorted coldly.
"Exactly."
The sound entered the ear, and a sword moved first, faster than the sound itself. The sudden appearance of Sword Light, with layers upon layers of heavy shadows, surged like a long river towards the true form of Tota Arhat.
From the very beginning, Jiang Li had not insisted on obtaining the Crossing River Arhat’s Dao Fruit.
If the Dao Fruit could be taken, it would surely be delightful, but it wouldn’t be regretful if it couldn’t.
Jiang Li’s true goal was to break through the encirclement of the three Arhats. He allowed the encirclement of the three Arhats to form in order to kill Crossing River Arhat, and now he needed to attempt a breakthrough, meaning he had to attack one and break their defense.
This, the opponent might have thought of too, but as Jiang Li made a move for the Dao Fruit of Crossing River Arhat, even if they anticipated it, they had to try everything to save it. Because even with the encirclement formed, the three Arhats were not confident they could trap Jiang Li.
Therefore, when Jiang Li made a move, pretending to snatch the Dao Fruit, Tota Arhat was the fastest to intercept, yet it also caused him and the other two Arhats to become disconnected.
The shadow of the sword was heavy, and in an instant, it engulfed the figure of Tota Arhat. The constant clanging sound indicated that the strength of Tota Arhat’s Golden Body was greater even than that of Crossing River Arhat, seeing that Jiang Li’s Sword Qi could not harm him at all.
But within those layers of sword shadows, a sword light burst forth with overwhelming sword might, the sword tip piercing the void, causing Tota Arhat to feel a huge sense of crisis.
"Divine Feet."
Golden light burst forth from his body, and his form moved across the sky in the blink of an eye, grazing by the Sword Light at the critical moment. A piercing sound of friction was heard as a deep sword mark appeared on Tota Arhat’s shoulder.
Divine Feet, also known as Somāti, is one of the Five Divine Powers, and literally, it seems to pertain to divine abilities relating to the legs and feet, but in fact, the "Divine" in Divine Feet points to Divine Essence, and feet denotes satisfaction, Perfection.
Divine Feet is about the full realization of mental intentions; when mastered, both mind and body are interconnected, the self is like an illusion, with no attachment to the self, enabling one to control the body with the mind, manifest changes, like how Tota Arhat’s Golden Body is enhanced with Divine Feet, perfectly integrating Dharma Manifestation with his body, making the Arhat Golden Body even superior to that of Crossing River Arhat.
However, that ability to reach wherever the mind goes is also part of Divine Feet, which requires the Realm to reach Bodhisattva Fruit Position to be achieved.
Among the Five Divine Powers, Heavenly Eye and Heavenly Ear allowed Tota Arhat to feel the crisis, the Killing Thieves power of Arhat prevented him from being confused by Jiang Li’s secret sword techniques, and Divine Feet allowed him to survive the attack from Jiang Li.
But even so, he was still left with a sword mark.
"Incredibly sharp! Incredibly peculiar!" Tota Arhat thought to himself.
The Buddha Country Golden Body is categorized into three levels: Arhat Golden Body, Bodhisattva Undying Dharma Body, and Tathagata Undestructible True Body.
Among all the Arhats, Tota Arhat’s Arhat Golden Body ranked among the top, and although it had yet to reach the higher stage of the Bodhisattva Undying Body, it wasn’t something that ordinary Five Grade Techniques could injure. Yet, to his surprise, it was breached under Jiang Li’s sword.
That sword strike seemed like one, yet the blade flowed like water, and one sword was like ten thousand, forcefully breaking through the Arhat Golden Body.
Even if Tota Arhat had been a split second slower, he would have lost half an arm.
One maneuver of surrounding Wei to rescue Zhao, another of making noise in the east and striking in the west, in a brief moment, each employed their cunning mind, exchanging a move that resulted in Tota Arhat being injured.
Immediately thereafter, a thunderous voice resounded.
"Amitabha."
The fat monk who blocked the way clasped his hands in the fearless lion gesture, giving rise to the Vajra Zen Lion’s Roar, as a golden lion materialized behind him, letting out an earth-shattering roar, while his chest, previously covered by his hands, was now radiating Buddha Light, with the faint appearance of a golden Buddha.
Happy Arhat, who had once opened his chest to display the Buddha within him, had the strongest Buddha Power among the Arhats.
Jiang Li’s body was intangible and traceless, nowhere to be seen. But at this moment, the lion’s roar vibrated in all directions, forcibly revealing the invisible form.
Arhat’s Dao Fruit possessed the Killing Thieves divine power, unaffected by the thief in the heart, and now Happy Arhat used the lion’s roar to shake the external world, causing the illusions of the Moluo Sword Manual to dissipate, effectively cutting off Jiang Li’s use of elusive tactics. The roar of the lion even shook the spirit, attacking his Divine Soul.
Amidst those sweeping sound waves, figures flickered into existence and then dissipated one after another. It was indeed Jiang Li’s illusion bodies, with only one blurry figure flickering in and out, unsteadily drifting.
"The Xiyi Sword Skill of the Daode Sect."
Riding Deer Arhat’s eyes slightly darkened as he shifted his seated position, forming different majestic Dharma manifestations, moving amongst the sound waves, approaching the blurry figure. He sent forth a palm, "Prajnaparamita."
Emptiness within emptiness, form within the formless, a palm seemingly both existent and nonexistent, as the strength was released, the palm force had already reached its target.
If Jiang Li had employed the Five Vile Qi, he couldn’t have hidden himself, which meant he wasn’t protected by the Evil Qi at that moment. With the palm connecting, it would be difficult to dissipate with Evil Qi.
Although Tota Arhat had been disconnected due to Jiang Li’s ploy, the remaining two monks still coordinated perfectly, demonstrating the mutual understanding of their cultivation. That palm strike hit the blurry figure, immediately revealing Jiang Li’s form. But—
Withdraw.
Jiang Li gathered the force back into his body, and Buddha Qi entered him.
Transformation.
Innate Qi infused with Buddha’s energy had formed into Sword Qi.
Movement.
Emission.
Absorption, movement, emission—a continuous chain. A strand of Sword Qi shot out from Jiang Li’s fingertip, filling the void with its presence, simultaneously seeming to exist and not exist, returning to the body of the Riding Deer Arhat.
Sword Qi of the same origin struck the Riding Deer Arhat, astonishingly he felt the Sword Qi penetrating the Arhat Golden Body, seeking entry into his flesh.
At this moment, Jiang Li’s silhouette drifted along the sound waves, slow yet swift—in fluid motion, becoming one of the escapees, his sword dancing with the agility of an antelope hanging by its horns, a marvel of Heavenly Craft, viciously stabbing at the place where the Riding Deer Arhat was struck by the Sword Qi.
In that instant, the Riding Deer Arhat perceived a dimming of the golden light where the Sword Qi had made its impact; a weak point emerged on his Arhat Golden Body. If this sword were to land, it would pierce through his torso, letting the Five Vile Qi consume him.
"Ah."
Driven to desperation by crisis, the Riding Deer Arhat let out a startled cry, forsaking all dignity as he rolled in mid-air, narrowly dodging the sword attack.
However, this maneuver ultimately led to the collapse of the encirclement.
Seeing this, Jiang Li let out a light chuckle, prepared to use the sound waves to make his escape.
"Ha."
Just as he was about to leave, Jiang Li suddenly uttered a light laugh, feeling an ominous sense in his heart.
The long-absent Jade Ruyi issued a warning.
Before the laughter subsided, an enigmatic array appeared amidst the rolling dark clouds overhead; a golden Dragon Claw reached down with the swiftness of lightning, aiming for the shadow withdrawing below.
"Dragon and Snake Body."
Jiang Li made a split-second decision, activating the Qimen within him to expedite his bodily functions tenfold, as vitality surged through the Great Circle Sword, swiftly shifting from life to ruthlessness, a spring breeze for miles, with peach blossoms engulfing the sky, ten thousand chrysanthemums blossoming in an awe-inspiring display.
"If in future years I become the Azure Emperor, let peach blossoms bloom with me."
Internally employing the intent of the Spring Autumn Sword, externally integrating the Famous Flower Sword, blossoms chaotically dancing to form the Life and Death Map, with Sword Light interweaving, fending off the Divine Dragon Claw.
"Clang—"
A great clashing boom echoed across the sky, as the long-awaiting Dragon Claw pressed down upon the Life and Death Map, instantly scattering a thousand flowers and showering the sky with yellow petals. The Sword Qi slashed at the Dragon Scales, leaving behind trails of sword marks. Yet, the overwhelming power of the Divine Dragon forced Jiang Li to plummet like a bird with broken wings toward the mountains below.
"Ao—"
Then, a majestic Dragon Head cleaved through the clouds, graceful and agile, the Divine Dragon visible only in part, converting into a beam of golden light, falling into the mountains below and transforming into a dashing figure.
Clothed in yellow, standing eight feet tall, with eyebrows sharp as swords and hand on a Copper Scabbard Long Sword, he was none other than the senior disciple of the Dinghu Sect—Yun Jiuye.
It turns out he had been watching from above for some time, all the while concealing his presence so adroitly that neither Jiang Li nor any of the Arhats had noticed.
It was only when Jiang Li was about to leave that Yun Jiuye took action, with a Divine Dragon Claw forcing Jiang Li to draw forth his true techniques in a hasty response.
But...
The man in yellow proceeded a few steps on the slick rocks, eyes landing on a set of footprints.
The footprints were embedded three parts deep into the stone, with fine, web-like cracks around the edges, evidently caused by the release of Strength during landing, transferring the impact into the rock.
"Escaped?"
Yun Jiuye murmured softly, "Or rather, left."
It was not a hasty flight, but a composed withdrawal, the distinction between the two signifying the strength of the opponent.
Considering the opponent was able to withstand his attack even at such a critical juncture and then quietly leave, Yun Jiuye estimated the latter.
"To contend against four Arhats and still withstand my attack is no small feat, yet..."
As his gaze fell upon the deep footprints, Yun Jiuye’s sword-like eyebrows lifted, "It shouldn’t be like this."
Lawless Freedom never touches the ground; even during assassinations, this was consistent, but these footprints were evidence that he did more than just touch the ground—he had also left comfortably afterwards, which simply should not be the case.
Following Yun Jiuye’s prior calculations, even if Lawless Freedom withstood his attack, he should’ve landed on the mountain, enabling Yun Jiuye to catch up and capture him.
Missing this detail allowed him to lose track of the man, and finding another opportunity would be difficult.
Yet at the moment, Yun Jiuye was not focused on regret, but was intently examining the footprints.
"According to the deductions of the Yin Law Department, Li Qinglian should have used the Ginsengfruit to shape his Physical Body; hence, he lacks the Precelestial Five Elements Qi, his body is extremely pure and unsoiled, unaffected by earthly filth. If he were to make contact with the ground, either he would be contaminated by the filth, resulting in damage to his Cultivation Body, or the pure and turbid would attract each other, impeding his ability to leave the ground. Yet this person is neither scenario..."
With eyes slightly closed, hiding the thoughts within, Yun Jiuye murmured to himself, "Either Lawless Freedom has solved this issue, or..."
"You are not Lawless Freedom Li Qinglian."