The statue seemed to be crafted from mutton-fat jade, translucent and pure white throughout. It stood only three meters tall, in a human posture, quietly standing there with one hand behind its back and the other holding a book. Judging by the tilt of its head, he indeed appeared to be reading.
It was just reading.
Yet this simple action gave them an illusion.
It was as if what he held in his hand was not a book, but the world itself.
He was merely a statue, merely standing there. Yet it felt as though... he stood towering between heaven and earth.
Such an easy posture, such a profound and mysterious charm, made one wonder—could the original subject of this statue have been a god?
He must have been, surely!
Everyone tried their best to see the statue's face clearly, but its features were blurry, as if the sculptor had never carved them at all—or perhaps they had been carved, but then wiped away...
Was it wiped away by the sculptor themselves, or by something else?
No one knew.
But that familiar feeling lingered in everyone's hearts.
It was a very close, very comfortable feeling.
Everyone instinctively looked toward Zhang Ye, only to find him staring blankly at the statue.
His eyes seemed to have lost their focus.
“Ye? Zhang Ye? Zhang Ye?!” Little Ella's voice echoed in his ears. Only after she called out three times did Zhang Ye snap out of it.
“What did you see?” Ella asked.
Zhang Ye shook his head subconsciously.
“I can't see... I can't see anything...”
His pupils slowly focused. “But it feels like... I saw something after all...”
“Such a familiar feeling... It's really so familiar...”
Ella shook her head, looked at the statue, and said, “This statue is not simple. Its sculptor was extremely powerful, and the subject she carved was even more powerful.”
“The charm attached to this statue still affects the surrounding life, even after being washed by the long river of time.”
“He is a god.”
“A god?” Zhang Ye was startled.
“Yes, a god, absolutely!” Ella said with certainty. “Because he also gives me a very familiar, very close feeling.”
“Only a god can make me feel this way.”
Hearing this, Zhang Ye understood a bit more.
Because Ella, too, had once been a god.
Only a god was qualified to feel close to another god.
“Do you know him?” Zhang Ye asked.
“I don't... No, I definitely know him, but my memories are sealed, so I can't remember.” Ella clutched her forehead and whispered, “I can't remember...”
“Why didn't the sculptor carve his face?” Zhang Ye asked again.
“Perhaps because she couldn't. Her subject was far too powerful compared to her, and her mind couldn't sustain carving his true appearance.”
“Or perhaps... she did carve it, but it was wiped away by an external force.”
“An external force?”
“What kind of external force could wipe away a god's statue?”
“The laws of the world, or perhaps another god!”
In the end, Ella shook her head. “This is too far away for the current you. Don't look too deeply into it, and you couldn't anyway.”
With that, she flew back inside Zhang Ye's body.
The conversation between Zhang Ye and Ella took only a brief moment, and no one noticed.
Lina walked over to Zhang Ye's side and asked, “Brother Ye, do you have that feeling?”
“You know... that familiar feeling?”
“I do,” Zhang Ye nodded.
Not only did he have it, but it was exceptionally clear and profound, as if the original subject of the statue had an incredibly close connection to him.
“I have it too.”
“Me too.”
Everyone spoke up one after another, looking at the statue with eyes full of confusion.
Zhang Ye shook his head. “Don't think about it anymore. We won't be able to figure it out. Let's keep exploring.”
“In any case, this ruin is highly unusual.”
Everyone nodded and, with the statue as the center, began to explore the surroundings alongside Zhang Ye.
As for the statue... everyone tacitly avoided mentioning it.
They certainly didn't harbor any designs on it.
Even though the statue was made of jade so outrageously precious that chipping off just a tiny sliver could fetch tens of millions of gold coins in the outside world, they all tacitly put such thoughts aside.
Moreover, as they explored, an unprecedented sense of peace washed over their hearts.
It was as if someone were protecting them at every moment, to the point that even the usually cautious Zhang Ye became relaxed, completely unconcerned that a magical beast might leap out from the shadows.
In fact, there weren't any magical beasts.
This ruin was extremely ancient, and logically speaking, it should have been an ideal shelter for magical beasts. Yet not only were there no magical beasts, there weren't even any traces of them ever living here—not even a single footprint.
Perhaps all of this was due to that mysterious statue.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Leona was inside a massive pyramid.
Her eyes stared blankly at the giant statue before her.
This statue was very similar to the one Zhang Ye and the others had found. Although its posture and clothing were different, if Zhang Ye and his group were to see it, they would definitely be absolutely certain—it was the same person.
This statue was a towering thirty meters tall, incredibly massive, yet still lifelike. The materials used were even more precious, and there was even the power of laws swirling around it.
As for his face... he still had no face.
Or rather, his face was replaced by a mask.
As Leona looked at the statue, tears streamed uncontrollably from her eyes.
In a voice that was trembling to the point of being slurred, she spoke, “Is... is it you?”
The figure from her distant memories.
The figure who had saved her from the raging flames.
The figure who had handed her a sweet candy named 【Broad-Minded】.
The figure whose gentle smile she could feel, even through a mask.
The figure who had given her a new life.
Was that you?
In the grand scheme of things, Leona seemed to hear an answer.
【Yes.】
“Where are you?” At this moment, Leona was like a little girl looking for her parents, looking all around, completely devoid of her usual valiant and cool demeanor.
She dreamed of seeing him just once more.
To this end, she had trained desperately to become stronger, because she knew that person was incredibly powerful—he could suppress with just a single hand the flames that had nearly burned down half the royal city, flames that even Saint-tier experts couldn't extinguish!
She believed that as long as she became strong enough, strong enough to stand at his height, she would sooner or later reach the domain he resided in, and sooner or later see him again.
It wasn't romance, but a conviction, a sense of gratitude.
She wanted to say thank you to him in person.
“Where are you? Are you still here?” Leona asked over and over.
Yet that voice in the dark did not reply, leading her to believe it was merely an illusion.
Leona gradually calmed down, staring at the statue in silence for a long time.
Finally, she stood up and slowly walked outside.
She felt that the more she looked at the statue, the more she wanted to see him. That thought almost wrapped around her, covering and drowning her, making her feel suffocated.
She felt she could not stay any longer.
It would affect her state of mind.
However, just as she was about to pass through the dark corridor and walk out of the pyramid,
a voice rang out in her mind.
This time, it was too clear.
She was certain, absolutely positive, and beyond a doubt—she had heard it.
【I am still here. Always.】
Leona's body trembled once more. She suddenly burst into laughter, yet tears slid down her perfect cheeks once again.
Flames ignited in her eyes, burning incredibly bright.
“I will find you!”
...
...
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