The effect of the Form of Living Beings was even more wondrous than Li Fan had anticipated.
Looking at the little Daoist boy kneeling before him, Li Fan attempted to sense his specific form of life.
"Bestow life..." He mulled over those two words in his mind.
Li Fan's act of carving the Form of Living Beings onto the liquid longsword had created an existence akin to an "artifact spirit." Furthermore, a strong, innate connection naturally existed between him and his creation.
The title "Great Master" spoken by the Daoist boy effectively meant master and sovereign ruler.
Li Fan had a faint intuitive sense that with a single thought, he could wipe away the Daoist boy's consciousness at will and restore the liquid longsword to its original state.
No matter how formidable the Daoist boy's strength grew, as long as he failed to break the shackles of the Form of Living Beings, he could never escape this fate of being a creation.
"The Form of Living Beings is indeed infinitely profound. The only pity is that what it creates is a truly independent living being with an autonomous consciousness. I cannot fully sense every one of his thoughts.
"Even so, controlling him like a puppet is still entirely feasible."
Having grasped the situation in an instant, Li Fan said indifferently, "Rise."
With a casual point of his finger, he guided the Daoist boy to conjure a suit of clothes to cover his body.
"Thank you, Great Master, for bestowing clothing!" The Daoist boy kowtowed respectfully once more before rising as ordered.
"Attack me with all your strength."
"This..." The little Daoist boy hesitated for a moment, but ultimately obeyed the order.
The little Daoist boy's figure vanished in an instant.
In his place, a torrential downpour cascaded from the heavens.
Looked at closely, every single raindrop was a sword radiating chilling cold.
A storm of sword rain encircled Li Fan, threatening to tear him to shreds.
The newly born Daoist boy was completely a blank sheet of paper, knowing only to faithfully execute Li Fan's command.
As he launched his attack now, he held back nothing.
"Even an ignorant, fledgling sentience can burst forth with so many pure and distinct sword intents. For a cultivator, it would likely take hundreds or thousands of years of tempering to reach such a realm. Is this the innate advantage of an object taking form...
"Pity that this liquid longsword still falls under the scope of a realm vessel. The upper limit of the strength it can exert ends here."
Li Fan neither dodged nor evaded, letting the myriad rain of swords shower down upon him.
Though each strand of sword qi appeared remarkably imposing, every time one was about to touch Li Fan, it seemed to strike an invisible entity, erupting into a burst of dazzling golden light before dissipating into nothingness.
Despite the torrential downpour, not even a drop moistened Li Fan's robes.
"Gather!"
Li Fan's counter was merely a flick of his wide sleeve, gathering all the myriad raindrops together. He lightly flicked a finger, producing a crisp, clear chime.
The little Daoist boy immediately reverted to his true form, tumbling clumsily to the ground.
"Thank you, Great Master, for showing mercy!
"Great Master's divine might towers over the world, peerless across the universe!"
The little Daoist boy scrambled to his feet and instinctively dropped to his knees, heaping praise.
"You have taken form, yes. But your strength is still far from being able to take a blow for me.
"You still need further enhancement."
Li Fan narrowed his eyes and had the little Daoist boy transform back into his original form.
After the Form of Living Beings was branded upon it, the surface of the liquid longsword seemed like living water, appearing all the more fluid and vibrant.
Li Fan already had a preliminary plan in mind for how to strengthen the sword before him.
His greatest capabilities lay in immortal formations. The best approach, naturally, was formation refining.
Surging with Source Power Essence, strands of golden patterns turned into array units, merging entirely into the liquid longsword.
As the immortal formation entered its body, the liquid longsword instantly seemed to boil, its surface churning violently without pause.
With the baseline caliber of a realm vessel, under normal circumstances it should have been unable to withstand the vast, transcendent power of an immortal formation. However, what Li Fan was currently engraving was the Befuddlement, Xuanhuang Sentient Beings Great Array—an integration of all the immortal formations Li Fan had mastered to date.
As the formation evolved, the forces of creation and destruction circulated naturally within it, sufficient to protect and sustain the liquid longsword from destruction.
Naturally, during the process of formation refining, Li Fan also faintly sensed the function of the Form of Living Beings.
"The birth of sentience caused a qualitative transformation within the liquid longsword itself. Otherwise, it might not have been able to withstand even the initial impact before the immortal formation's engraving was completed."
Golden light flickered ceaselessly. After seven days of work, Li Fan finally finished engraving the Xuanhuang Sentient Beings Great Array in its entirety.
At this stage, what he had left inside the liquid longsword was merely an existence akin to a True Immortal seal character template—a foundational array structure resembling an assembled precision mechanism. To drive the formation's operation and evolution, energy still needed to be injected.
If it relied solely on the liquid longsword itself, it probably could not sustain it for even a short while before being drained and depleted by the immortal formation's demands.
As for Source Power Essence, Li Fan did not intend to let the liquid longsword consume it.
After all, Xuanhuang's ascension was imminent; every extra measure of Source Power Essence kept in reserve increased Li Fan's chances of success.
If this creation meant to take blows for him also had to compete with him for resources...
wouldn't that defeat the original purpose?
Yet Li Fan had no intention of letting the liquid longsword remain a hollow showpiece capable of driving the immortal formation for only a brief moment. In fact, he already had an ingenious idea in mind.
"Energy. Infinite."
Li Fan looked up toward the Star Sea, his eyes slightly narrowing.
After some preparations, twenty days later.
In the empty, desolate Star Sea, the blue-robed little Daoist boy chanted softly under his breath.
What he chanted was none other than the Celestial Vessel's enhanced version of the Taijia Divine Technique.
Li Fan hid far away in the distance, observing in secret.
Indeed, he wanted to replicate the Celestial Vessel's feat of equalizing the Star Sea. Only this time, the one equalizing the Star Sea's power was not Li Fan, but that liquid longsword!
To be sure, as known from past experience, given the infinity of the Star Sea, equalizing it would result in being assimilated by it instead, turning into an existence akin to a Star Spirit.
However...
within the liquid longsword was engraved the Form of Living Beings!
The Form of Living Beings had even brought about the emergence of this Pitch-Black Star Sea's independent consciousness. Its standing was unquestionably above that of the Star Sea.
As long as the Form of Living Beings remained intact, even if the sword turned into a Star Spirit, its life and death would remain within a single thought of Li Fan's.
"A Star Spirit cannot disobey the Star Sea's consciousness.
"A creation of the Form of Living Beings cannot disobey the will of its creator.
"When the two contradict each other...
"Let us see which one holds the upper hand!"
The little Daoist boy's chanting resonated ceaselessly, as though he had performed it ten million times without the slightest unfamiliarity. It was even more flawless than that of the vast majority of Celestial Vessel elders.
An artifact spirit's capacity to learn upon taking form truly far exceeded ordinary mortals.
Yet perhaps because it had already been forced to accept communication through the Taijia Divine Technique once before, the Star Sea's consciousness seemed to possess a degree of "resistance." This time, it took nearly twice as long as before to summon the Star Sea's consciousness.
A purple-gold vortex resembling a profound, abyssal eye appeared once again within the Star Sea.
Without the slightest hesitation, the little Daoist boy moved his hands like dragons and serpents tracing ink, and the "Equalize" incantation erupted with a thunderous roar.
The Star Sea's response remained indiscriminate, turning nothing away.
Yet compared to the Celestial Vessel elders who had weathered thousands of years of wind and rain, the little Daoist boy—born less than a month ago, his experiences virtually a blank slate—seemed unable to pique much of the Star Sea's interest.
Regardless, the "Equalize" seal had been formed.
An infinite expanse of Star Sea energy poured down relentlessly from the void.
With starlight tempering his body, the little Daoist boy gradually took on the form of a Star Spirit, glowing with blue starlight, his stars connected like bones.
Suddenly, as if struck by the Star Sea's infinite power, the pattern of the Form of Living Beings hidden within the little Daoist boy inexplicably flared and surfaced upon his body.
Provoked and struck by an external force barely worthy of being its rival, the Form of Living Beings finally shone with its true, primordial brilliance.
It was an all-encompassing, multicolored radiance blazing amidst a blackness that represented nothingness.
Around the outermost edge of the diagram lay a faint white light that likewise signified the void.
A colorful, iridescent black edged in luminescence.
Such an eye-catching, unforgettable hue utterly suppressed the blue of the Star Sea the moment it appeared.
From within the purple-gold vortex came a roaring cacophony tens of thousands of times louder than wind and thunder.
Even Li Fan, peeking from afar, could feel the Star Sea's fury radiating from the violently churning vortex.
Fury was fury.
Yet the Star Sea's consciousness did not act on impulse.
Much thunder, little rain—the purple-gold vortex vanished even faster than it had appeared.
With the threat of the Star Sea gone, the Form of Living Beings faded back beneath the skin. Only the Star Spirit Daoist boy remained, standing blankly in the Star Sea.
"A success?"
Not expecting the matter to be even easier than he had estimated, Li Fan calmed his mind and sensed his connection to the little Daoist boy.
The sovereign power of the Form of Living Beings indeed remained intact.
It had not dissipated under the influence of the Star Sea's Source True Intent.
With a thought from Li Fan, the little Daoist boy glided gracefully, several times faster than before, arriving before him.
"Thank you, Great Master, for bestowing this fortune!"
Li Fan quietly observed the Daoist boy's brand-new Star Spirit body.
With the aid of the sovereign power of the Form of Living Beings, Li Fan was able to peer through the endless, brilliant starlight to see the inner details.
Every point of light seemed to be a conduit.
Leading to an unknowable, mystical domain, it was the true source of infinite stellar power.
Perhaps because it was simply too vast and exceeded Li Fan's sensory capabilities, he failed to detect any abnormal existence within it.
The restrictions of the Star Sea's consciousness had not vanished; they were merely suppressed by the Form of Living Beings, temporarily unable to affect the little Daoist boy.
Li Fan also faintly sensed that as boundless stellar power continually surged from the conduits, tempered by the star power, countless laws of the Star Sea were slowly merging into and remodeling the Daoist boy's sword body.
"Though it has not reached the scope of an immortal artifact, it is nonetheless a sword at the Supreme level.
"With infinite stellar power as its wellspring, it is more than sufficient to drive the immortal formation at maximum load and keep it running perpetually."
Li Fan reached out and grasped the longsword, which had instantly reverted to its true form.
It was no longer in liquid form. Instead, dazzling starlight surged across it, resembling the boundless Star Sea itself.
Amid the shimmering light and shadow, countless worlds seemed to be born and destroyed within it.
Having forged such a formidable weapon with his own hands, Li Fan felt a rare surge of excitement.
"I wonder if I can use this sword to channel the boundless power of the Star Sea?"
With a shift in thought, a massive surge of star power poured from the blade.
Yet this primordial, pure power of the Star Sea was not of the same nature as the spiritual energy cultivated by cultivators.
After crashing into Li Fan's body, far from being absorbed or utilized, it rampaged like a deluge, tearing through him recklessly and causing havoc.
Li Fan frowned slightly, forced to expel it from his body.
"A pity. Still, there must be cultivation techniques that can convert the Star Sea's power for one's own use." Li Fan could not help but think of the cultivators of the Taijia Realm, who had once dominated by wielding the power of the Star Sea.
A moment later, however, Li Fan secretly shook his head. "I became a bit muddled. Even the infinity of the Star Sea must ultimately submit to the confines of the Form of Living Beings.
"Pursuing a quantity that cannot achieve qualitative change...
"is ultimately straying onto the wrong path.
"Still, being able to forge the Supreme Realm so easily is definitely a windfall for me right now."
If he had over a dozen Supreme-realm protectors, even if they were merely Supreme-realm artifact spirits, it would be enough for Li Fan to sweep across the Star Sea.
Thinking this, Li Fan was just about to repeat the trick.
However, something occurred that left Li Fan somewhat stunned.
The form of life-giving...
He could no longer brand it upon any other object!
Even though the shape of the diagram remained clear in his mind, when it came down to it, he could not bring himself to trace and engrave it.
"So there exists such a restriction."
After several more attempts, having confirmed that this restriction was genuine, Li Fan could not help but feel a touch of regret.
"I had originally intended to use the Form of Living Beings to forge an army of artifact spirits to unify the Star Sea and explore beyond the High Wall.
"After all, fully controlled creations are far more convenient to use than cultivators.
"A pity."
Li Fan shook his head with a sigh and cast the starlight longsword outward.
The little Daoist boy transformed into human form once more, keeping his head low and eyes downcast as he stood before Li Fan.
Li Fan mused, "'All things are boundless in measure, endless in time, and ever-shifting in condition.' Now that you have obtained the infinite divine power of the Star Sea, you are henceforth free from mortal shackles and detached from material bounds.
"From now on, you shall be named...
"'Qiushui'!"
Hearing this, the little Daoist boy was initially bewildered, not understanding what Li Fan's words about boundlessness, endlessness, and flux had to do with "Autumn Waters."
Yet the Great Master's words were law.
The little Daoist boy promptly dismissed further thought and knelt down in delight to kowtow. "Thank you, Great Master, for bestowing my name!"
Upon accepting the name "Qiushui," the aura around the little Daoist boy seemed to undergo an inexplicable shift.
He seemed even more like a naturally conceived living being.
As his creator, Li Fan felt a glimmer of enlightenment well up in his heart in that instant.
If one day, the little Daoist boy Qiushui could fully evolve into true life and shake off his fate as a creation, then Li Fan would be able to act once more and brand a new Form of Living Beings.
Li Fan savored this for a long while, an inscrutable look on his face.
"Hmph.
"Pure creations are better after all."
When he returned to the Xuanhuang Realm, Li Fan discovered that Tianyang had already awakened from his enlightenment.
Though clearly just a puppet pieced together from various materials, he unexpectedly possessed an ethereal, transcendent grace.
He was only half a step shy of the True Immortals Li Fan had seen in the past.
Li Fan suspected that if Tianyang were to appear in the Xuanhuang Realm right now, it would likely prompt countless cultivators to drop to their knees in worship on sight.
Next, Li Fan had Qiushui and Tianyang spar.
With infinite star power driving the Xuanhuang Sentient Beings Great Array, Qiushui should, in theory, hold the decisive upper hand over Tianyang.
Yet Li Fan found that an immortal-grade illusory array capable of trapping the Heavenly Physician for an extended period could hardly affect Tianyang at all.
Once entering combat, Tianyang consistently ignored everything spawned by the illusions.
Even the past events of his Path of Bodily Transformation failed to trouble him much.
The various tribulations within the illusory array served instead to hone Tianyang's heart to ever-greater sharpness and perfection.
Leaping out of the storm of the All Things Return to Void Great Array into which Qiushui hastily shifted, Tianyang landed a vicious punch squarely upon Qiushui's body.
Chapter 1378