When did I craft that avatar?
Li Fan felt as though he had forgotten something of immense importance. His brow furrowed, and thoughts spun wildly in his mind. Yet, no matter how hard he strained, he could not summon any memory related to it. Even scanning the stored records within the Dao Transformation Stone crystal in his consciousness proved futile.
And this technique of mine... Li Fan suddenly realized something, his expression darkening. Immortal Venerable Jicheng posted a bounty mission for life-prolonging treasures, with the chance to use the Derivation Jade as the prize. The Arcana True Spirit Transformation technique must have been derived by the Derivation Jade.
I am always cautious and would never risk my true self for such a matter. Therefore, I must have created an avatar at that time to handle it.
But to have no impression of it at all?
Is this another ploy by that Heavenly Venerable who makes one forget calamities?
Li Fan closed his eyes, sinking into contemplation, and attempted to recall once more. It was still no use.
No. That's not it.
A long while later, Li Fan opened his eyes, a pensive look on his face. Rather than saying I forgot, it's more accurate to say the avatar's past experiences were utterly erased. An event that never truly happened naturally leaves no trace behind.
What in the world is it?
The fear of the unknown nearly drove Li Fan to activate Return to Truth immediately, to shake off this influence and investigate. But he forced himself to endure it.
Regardless, I must record this first. Perhaps after this lifetime ends, I can remember what vanished when I reach the peak of Jieli Mountain.
Still, this method of making memories vanish into thin air without notice is truly impossible to guard against. To avoid forgetting even this matter later, I need to record it in advance.
Thinking this, Li Fan prepared to retrieve a blank jade slip from his storage ring to document what he had forgotten.
Huh? What's this? Suddenly, he noticed three jade slips placed separately in a corner of his storage ring.
When were these placed there? Why don't I remember at all? Li Fan was momentarily stunned, then took out the jade slips and examined them one by one.
The strange thing was that one of the jade slips was completely blank, recording nothing.
Of the other two, one bore only the character "Dao."
The other jade slip bore only the character "Yuan."
Yuan Dao? Dao Yuan? What does it mean? Li Fan felt the term was intensely familiar, yet he couldn't recall where he had seen it.
A shadow seemed to settle over him, and his mood grew heavy.
Dwelling on it now is useless. After most of the day had passed, Li Fan finally shook off the powerful grip of these negative emotions.
He meticulously recorded the situation—the undeniable existence of his avatar that he could not perceive, and the forgetting of certain events—onto that blank jade slip.
Then, carefully, he placed the three jade slips back in their original location.
Although I can't remember what happened for now, judging from these three jade slips I prepared earlier as hints, I was aware of this matter.
I likely just misjudged the true impact when the event actually occurred, rendering all these preparations ineffective.
If we use It to refer to that unknown event, then perhaps we can infer this:
After the event occurs, not only are memories involving It erased, but even all related records become impossible to retain.
After calming down, Li Fan pondered carefully, faintly discerning some clues.
Since I made preparations, it means Its influence didn’t exist from the start of Anchor Year 1. Then, at the very least, after I Return to Truth, I should be able to understand what truly happened.
Thinking this, Li Fan felt slightly more at ease.
Although discovering this for the first time feels rather unbelievable, this world has always been treacherous. Strangely enough, I find it somewhat... expected. Li Fan shook his head, mocking himself.
Despite the strange discovery, Li Fan hadn’t forgotten the purpose of leaving the city: to test the effects of the Arcana True Spirit Transformation technique.
He settled his mind, slowly expelling distracting thoughts, and began operating the True Spirit Transformation technique.
A power utterly distinct from spiritual power, yet seemingly rooted in it, surged forth from every limb and bone in an instant, spreading throughout his entire body.
Under the influence of this unfathomable power, Li Fan felt as if countless ants were burrowing and crawling all over his skin. It was an unbearable mix of pain and itching.
Gritting his teeth against the discomfort, Li Fan continued to operate the technique, aiming to achieve his first random transformation since mastering it.
The pain and itch accumulated relentlessly, and the heat within every part of his body intensified.
Just as Li Fan thought every bone in his body was about to melt, a sudden sensation of release washed over him.
All discomfort vanished in an instant, as if he had been given an entirely new body... No, he truly had been given a new body.
He conjured a water mirror before him and observed his reflection.
It was a face he had never seen before. His height, his bearing, even the intangible feeling one got from the first glance—all were vastly different from Li Fan’s true self.
If not for the fact that every movement of the figure in the mirror corresponded perfectly to his own, Li Fan would have found it impossible to believe that it was himself.
With a thought, he operated the technique once more. Soon, another face appeared within the secret chamber.
Like a child who’d just gotten a new toy, Li Fan kept transforming. With each successive change, the time taken grew shorter and shorter. Eventually, he could complete a transformation in almost a single breath.
A hundred transformations of the true spirit. How truly wondrous and unfathomable. In my view, it already borders on a divine ability! Li Fan couldn’t help but exclaim inwardly after finishing his tests.
He had only just begun cultivating this miraculous technique. Thus, the transformed incarnation only possessed cultivation at the Qi Refinement realm.
However, he had already grasped all its essential principles. From here, it was just a matter of gradual, meticulous accumulation.
With the Unity of Dao Transformation and Mind, which allowed him to split his focus multiple ways, he believed he could soon elevate the incarnation’s cultivation to match his own Golden Core realm cultivation.
Glancing at the chaotic state of the secret chamber around him, Li Fan employed the Great Five Elements Annihilation Sword to erase all traces. Then, he quietly returned to Tianyu City.
Hoping to test a theory, Li Fan searched the Tianxuan Mirror for any information related to the terms “Dao Yuan” and “Yuan Dao.”
As expected, after browsing for a long time, he found no suspicious targets, only ordinary, fragmented mentions.
It seems I can only set this matter aside for now.
Li Fan sighed inwardly, setting the matter aside for now. It's already the halfway point of the Anchor Year 29. The one-year preparation period for the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array universal implementation plan is up. I'll likely receive a summons from Ji Hongdao soon enough.
Following him to deploy the Soul-Locking Arrays across the grotto-heavens... I'm afraid I won't have much freedom for a long time to come.
But I have a hidden chesspiece—the daughter of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Chief Array Master. She might prove unexpectedly useful at a critical moment.