"Floating Starry Sky Formation?"
The Tianxuan Mirror clone froze, his body stiff for a long moment. Then he shook his head:"Although this formation has been damaged, it is still tied to the safety of Xuanhuang. Only the main body retains the memory."
Li Fan felt a twinge of regret upon hearing this. But he had not really expected much from the suggestion and had only mentioned it casually.
Just as he was about to make other requests, the Tianxuan Mirror clone spoke again:"However, if you merely want a formation of the same level as a reference to break the formation, I have other options to offer."
Li Fan's interest was piqued. "Oh? For example?"
The clone thought for a moment, then removed another finger and handed it over.
The effort seemed to drain him: his face turned pale, his body weakened, and he slowly lowered himself to the wall for support.
Li Fan paused his analysis of the transmission restrictions and instead focused on the contents of the new finger.
For a moment, his sea of consciousness seemed overwhelmed, rolled by invisible currents of data. Li Fan groaned as his body shook uncontrollably. Pressing at his temples, which were threatening to burst, he forced the information into forms his mind could process, trying to reduce the pressure on his consciousness.
Nearby, the Tianxuan Mirror clone looked on with a hint of glee. He had not warned Li Fan in advance, just to see him struggle.
But soon, that sneer faded into seriousness.
Li Fan's speed of adaptation far exceeded the clone's expectations.
The Tianxuan Mirror clone had carefully selected this immortal-level formation to challenge Li Fan without truly endangering him. Yet, Li Fan's capacity to process information had clearly grown tremendously in just a short period—and continued to accelerate visibly.
"What… exactly…" the clone muttered, confused and curious. If not for their agreement and the difference in strength, he might have tried to tear Li Fan apart just to see what made him tick.
What the clone could not detect, however, was the unimaginable changes happening within Li Fan's sea of consciousness. The Final Dissociation Disk was undergoing violent, unprecedented transformations.
"Xuanji, all spirits return." Li Fan repeated the formation's name silently, a growing excitement in his heart.
The formation was indeed extraordinary. Even though the Final Dissociation Disk had not yet fully deciphered it, the data alone caused profound changes within itself. In effect, the Disk had extended the formation formulas Li Fan had mastered to the very limits of the world of immortality.
Without this, the Disk could not create a new path or adapt beyond existing knowledge—it could only process and reorganize known structures. But [Xuanji, All Spirits Return] had opened an entirely new dimension for it.
Xuanji represented a portion of the formation; the "return of all spirits" was its main function. Within the formation, everything would be converted into a digital expression: realm, destructive power, spiritual strength, physical power—all represented as precise numbers.
At first glance, it seemed simple. Yet, immortal-level formations could transform decay into miraculous power. Once digitized, these values could be adjusted at will within the formation's parameters.
Even a mortal without the power to bind a chicken could, within this formation, become comparable in combat strength to an immortal.
Similarly, an immortal trapped inside could have their centuries of cultivation reduced to that of a mere mortal in an instant.
Li Fan stared in shock. He had never imagined a formation could wield such outrageous power.
"If I had this formation…" he muttered, but quickly restrained himself.
Despite fully absorbing the information, a sense of despair crept in. [Xuanji, All Souls Return] could not be fully arranged by mortal cultivators. The materials and fairy energy required were beyond his reach. The Final Dissociation Disk could deduce the theory, but could not realize it physically.
Fortunately, it had opened a new formation field, and the derivation process—once stalled—had begun to accelerate. The future was limitless.
Li Fan gradually calmed himself, turning to the weak, shocked Tianxuan Mirror clone. He feigned concern."Brother, what's wrong?"
Not that anything was truly wrong. Li Fan had gained immeasurable benefit and saw even more to reap in the future. To him, the clone was a treasure mountain to be mined—but he still maintained a façade of concern.
The clone shivered at Li Fan's use of "brother," then quickly steadied himself, standing and assuring: "Nothing serious."
Li Fan nodded, satisfied."With your calculation array as a reference, my confidence in helping you out of trouble has increased. I'll start arranging things immediately.
"You just stay here and don't move. Avoid any accidents."
The clone, accustomed to traversing the world and observing human nature, nodded without objection.
After discussing potential future adjustments, as Li Fan prepared to leave, he asked suddenly:"Brother, do you have any tokens?
"Cang, the mirror owner who helped create your human clone, should be trustworthy, right? I can contact him here and enlist additional help."
Hearing this, the Tianxuan Mirror clone paused thoughtfully, then stretched his right hand into his body. From within, he produced a flickering light orb, as if it were breathing, and handed it to Li Fan.
"If you carry this, it represents me," the clone said solemnly.
Li Fan reached for the orb, but his hand passed through it.
"What is this?" he asked.
"This is the origin of the mirror. It was born with my body. It neither grows nor diminishes, neither lives nor dies. Outsiders cannot contact or absorb it—only I can control it," the clone explained. Then, with a motion of his finger in the air, the origin of Tianxuan Mirror penetrated Li Fan's body.
"Brother, you can't use the origin to spy on me, right?" Li Fan raised an eyebrow immediately.
A flash of distrustful anger crossed the clone's face. "This is merely my origin mark. Without the blessing of other powers, how could I possibly monitor you? Besides, if you wish, you can seal it within your body. As long as it is there, it represents me."
Before he could finish, he noticed that Li Fan had already sealed the origin inside himself, leaving only a vague connection that hinted at its presence. The clone's face stiffened for a moment, but seeing Li Fan's usual calm expression, he drew a deep breath to steady himself.
After a pause, he warned again: "With this origin, you can fully trust the mirror owner, Cang. It's not that he is blindly loyal—over the long years of monitoring me, he had his own intentions. He sought to control me secretly, to surpass all others who handled the cameras."
"But he underestimated me. I feigned weakness and led him into a trap. At the critical moment, I turned him into my mirror servant. Otherwise, my human body would never have come so easily," the clone said, pride glinting in his words.
Li Fan's eyes lit up. "Oh? That's excellent! My plan's success rate just increased by fifty percent!"
Without another word, he cupped his hands and vanished from the Tianxuan Mirror clone's sight.
The once-stagnant mortal city erupted into noise and activity again.
"I hope he succeeds," the clone murmured to himself.
In truth, he did not fully trust Li Fan—but he had no reason not to give it a try. Cooperation, as Li Fan had said, would strengthen as they progressed. If Li Fan could make a noticeable impact, the clone would gladly accept additional help.
And if the plan failed… he had nothing to lose. The origin of the mirror could never be taken, and other items—the Great Formation of Return of All Souls, Mirror Master Cang—were trivial in comparison.
With that thought, the clone hummed a tune and resumed his role as a busy observer of mortal affairs.
Meanwhile, in Weidu, the three from Tianyang were puzzled as they watched Li Fan return. They only saw him meet the suspected target face-to-face, speak, and then leave without striking.
"Sir… this is…" Taoist Baihua asked cautiously.
"Things have changed. No action is needed anymore. You can return to the Spirit Wood World. I have other matters to attend to," Li Fan said briefly, offering no further explanation.
Although anticlimactic, Tianyang and the others dared not question him further.
After parting ways, Li Fan returned to the hidden cave in Tianchen State to contact Mo Rubin. He recounted finding the Tianxuan Mirror clone, his decision not to kill it, and the cooperation he secured. He also truthfully explained obtaining the Great Return of All Souls Formation and the Origin of the Mirror.
Mo Rubin's face hovered in the air, falling silent for a long moment. Then he praised, "Brother Xingwang is quick-witted. You handled the situation almost perfectly. No wonder King Xuantian always consulted you before major decisions…"
Li Fan tilted his head and muttered with a shrug, "Really? Maybe… I don't remember."
Mo Rubin smiled and dropped the subject, quickly shifting to the plan. "According to your strategy, cooperating with Tianxuan Mirror is indeed the best solution. From your description, it seems even more powerful than before."
"However, it should still be trustworthy," he concluded.
"For nearly ten thousand years, had I not been in a coma, who could guarantee that my personality wouldn't have changed drastically?" Li Fan laughed. "As for the Xuantian Mirror, it's not a question of trust. If we want to find King Xuantian, it is our only option for now."
Mo Rubin could only sigh at Li Fan's pragmatism.
"By the way, if you want to deduce and break the Heavenly Master's forbidden formation, the Inanimate Formation Crown alone is insufficient. Didn't you mention another treasure that can be divided into nine parts for this purpose? Bring it here as soon as possible; I'll see if I can speed up its integration," Li Fan added casually.
This small matter was immediately agreed upon. They then exchanged details about the plan's execution before Li Fan departed for Xuan Sushang's Zhuhai Cave.
He quietly arrived outside the bamboo building where the two girls were. Through the surrounding formation restrictions, he faintly heard groans from inside.
Without altering his expression, Li Fan slipped in. Xuan Sushang was holding a golden whip, punishing Lu Xichan severely. Lu Xichan's face was flushed, eyes blurred, a mix of pain and enjoyment evident.
Li Fan cleared his throat violently. Both girls froze instantly, eyes wide, faces turning pale. They quickly stood, bowing their heads in greeting.
Xuan Sushang stammered, "Lu Xichan was slacking again… I'm punishing her as per your instructions…"
Lu Xichan kept her head bowed, silent.
Li Fan snorted coldly, but did not scold. Instead, he said to Xuan Sushang, "Tell your father to meet me here as soon as possible."
Xuan Sushang froze, fear flickering across her face. Then she thought, Could it be…?
Li Fan explained lightly, "Things are complicated, but the crisis has been resolved. I am the only clone of Tianxuan Mirror in the world. Let Cang come here—he will understand."