The Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art, Arcana True Spirit Transformation, the Heaven-Swapping Art...
Each one of these techniques Li Fan had cultivated was worthy of being called peerless and transcendent.
But compared to the Creation Forge Technique he had just received in his mind, they all paled into insignificance, not even worth mentioning.
Li Fan was intoxicated by the exquisite words and lines, feeling as though he could glimpse the true profundities of heaven and earth through this technique.
He even had a premonition that in this era, where the numerous cultivation restrictions had yet to descend into the world, this single technique alone could allow even a talentless cripple to temper, evolve, and sublimate themselves step by step, ultimately attaining the Dao to transcending the mundane and become an Immortal!
What Profound Art of the Great Dao? What Supreme Orthodox Method?
This was it!
It truly deserved the name "Creation."
Li Fan read and contemplated the Creation Forge Technique with insatiable hunger, his heart filled with irrepressible joy.
To hear the Dao in the morning, one could die content in the evening!
His spirit was completely immersed, so much so that he didn't even know when he had returned to Xu Ke's side, nor how much time had passed, when he finally snapped back to reality.
By now, Mister Bai had already vanished without a trace.
The Beast Taming Sect had become a scene of chaos, just as he had experienced in his previous life.
The sect disciples, having witnessed their seniors being wantonly slaughtered, were filled with despair.
Xu Ke was currently leading Li Fan to find Mister Bai, following the guidance of the jade token Lu Ya had given him while carefully avoiding their deranged senior brothers.
Peering into Xu Ke's thoughts, Li Fan was surprised to discover that there were no traces of him flying to Mister Bai's side and subsequently receiving instruction.
After a moment's thought, Li Fan immediately understood.
A common man's only crime is possessing a priceless jade. The Creation Forge Technique imparted by Mister Bai could be called a supreme teaching. Something like landing in the hands of a mere Foundation Establishment demonic beast like himself would inevitably attract the covetous eyes of others.
No matter how profound the technique, it would be useless if one couldn't cultivate it. Mister Bai must have considered this, and so he had casually erased all memory of the event from those present.
This way, Li Fan wouldn't be endangered because of this technique and would have ample time to cultivate it slowly.
Mister Bai's consideration is truly thorough! Li Fan couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
Having seen Mister Bai in person, Li Fan could now be certain he was definitely not the Heavenly Physician.
Other than there being not the slightest resemblance in appearance, their auras were worlds apart.
Mister Bai possessed the kind of beauty one could never forget after seeing it once. Most importantly, the kindness and gentleness Mister Bai inadvertently exuded were something utterly impossible to fake. It was vastly different from the Heavenly Physician's sinister and inscrutable nature.
Li Fan couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.
Dealing with swarms of demonic beasts as easily as slaughtering chickens and dogs... Discerning my cultivation method with a single glance and instantly providing the ultimate answer in the form of a technique... Effortlessly altering the consciousness of all living beings present... Such power could truly be called participating in the work of Creation.
Mister Bai's strength... Considering his actions, Li Fan couldn't help but associate them with the term, Eternal Heavenly Venerable.
In the perception of the orphans of Ningyuan City, Mister Bai was just a mortal. Mister Bai himself had also personally admitted this.
He transformed from a mortal to a Spirit Transformation powerhouse in an instant. Then, from Spirit Transformation to the Eternal Heavenly Venerable realm.
Looking at it this way, perhaps those things the orphans of Ningyuan City said—that Mister Bai was the kindest person in the world, the most skilled physician, the most handsome, the gentlest speaker, the smartest, and so on—weren’t necessarily exaggerations.
Li Fan couldn’t help the trembling of his heart and mind.
But a question immediately followed: where had Mister Bai gone in the thousands of years since?
Was he one of the other two Heavenly Venerables of the Five Elders Council, besides the three known as One Heart, Untroubled, and Truth?
Li Fan didn't think so. The modus operandi of the Five Elders Council seemed utterly incompatible with Mister Bai's character.
Within the Myriad Immortals Alliance?
Heavenly Venerable East Pole, who was said to have created the Body Purification Spirit Pool array to help mortals expel miasma from their bodies, bore some resemblance to Mister Bai.[1]
Yet, this Heavenly Venerable East Pole existed only in rumors. Li Fan himself had only come across a passing mention in some ancient texts. The vast majority of Myriad Immortals Alliance cultivators probably weren't even aware of his existence.
If Mister Bai were still alive, he would surely not be so obscure.
Or perhaps, like the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher from his previous life, Mister Bai had succeeded in breaking free from the constraints of the Xuanhuang World and transcended its boundaries?
Or maybe... Mister Bai had already perished?
Li Fan merely considered the thought before shaking his head and dismissing it. He found it very difficult to believe that someone as extraordinarily brilliant as Mister Bai could have fallen so easily.
Nestled within Xu Ke's hair, Li Fan's thoughts churned a hundred times over, while he smoothly operated the Creation Forge Technique.
Unlike the crude method Li Fan had devised himself, where he violently struck his body with his hidden reserves and seized the overflowing power for cultivation, the version Mister Bai had refined was different.
Through the art of Heaven-Man Resonance, it leveraged the great forge of heaven and earth to induce resonance within the human body's internal forge.
In the state of unity of heaven and man, one could freely mobilize the power of hidden reserves for transformation and cultivation. It even guided the human body's forge to evolve toward the form of the Heaven-Earth Forge. It was profound and wondrous beyond measure.
With each passing moment of cultivation, Li Fan could feel the Xuan Bird's body he inhabited undergoing subtle changes.
What jolted him from this marvelous state of cultivation was, naturally, that detestable Beast Taming Sect disciple, Song Yang.
He still hadn't given up on coveting Li Fan, this Heaven’s Will Xuan Bird.
Having failed in his last attempt, he had returned with a vengeance. This time, he had paid a steep price to borrow a Golden Core Ink Immortal Tiger to aid him, swearing to seize Li Fan.
The Ink Immortal Tiger roared, flaunting its might.
Li Fan, disturbed and deeply annoyed, felt the forge within his body rumble. The power of his hidden reserves erupted forth.
Li Fan soared into the air, his body swelling. In an instant, he transformed from a bird the size of a palm into a fierce, demonic beast with a wingspan of thirty zhang—two or three times larger than the Ink Immortal Tiger.
Like snatching a chick, Li Fan seized the Ink Immortal Tiger in one claw.
Before it could even struggle, a deep, mysterious light glowed in Li Fan’s beak, generating a powerful suction force. Then, Li Fan swallowed the Ink Immortal Tiger whole in one gulp.
Xu Ke was utterly dumbfounded.
Song Yang, meanwhile, seemed scared out of his wits, scrambling away in a frantic escape. The faint, sour stench of fear lingered in the air.
Li Fan snorted coldly, disdaining to give chase. He withdrew the power of his hidden reserves, shrinking back to his original size, and returned to Xu Ke's hair.
The transformation had taken a toll on his body. Yet his body was like a forge, refining the swallowed Ink Immortal Tiger into pure, concentrated energy.
Waves of warmth flowed through his entire being, and Li Fan suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion. Unable to resist, he fell into a deep, heavy sleep, leaving behind Xu Ke, whose face was etched with utter disbelief.
The boy reached up with both hands, feeling for Li Fan on his head, and stood there utterly stunned.
1. He was originally translated as Heavenly Venerable Dong Ji in chap 40 ☜