The disciples of the Jinshi Sect accompanied Guo Xingyue to the entrance of the Grand Elder's Hall before taking their leave. Guo Xingyue entered the hall alone, finding it empty except for Li Yanfeng, who was seated on a cushion facing the entrance. Guo Xingyue quickly approached and saluted, "Junior pays respects to Immortal Li."
Li Yanfeng smiled and replied, "No need for such formalities. I don't like pleasantries. Sit down and let's talk."
Guo Xingyue settled onto the cushion and bowed again, "Senior summoned me; I wonder what instructions you have?"
Li Yanfeng chuckled, "It's nothing major. I just heard from my disciple that you possess considerable skills and wanted to chat casually."
Guo Xingyue hurriedly responded, "I have no remarkable abilities; senior is over-praising me."
"Ha ha, modesty is good, but excessive modesty is insincerity," Li Yanfeng said with a grin, interrupting Guo Xingyue's protest. "Let's skip the formalities. Young man, your mastery of formations is quite impressive. You managed to achieve formation layering, and you even understand the three great kill formations. That's not trivial! I have some knowledge of formations myself—not extraordinary, but not bad either. I wanted to discuss and learn from each other. What do you think?"
Having the opportunity to discuss formations with an immortal, especially a Great Luo Golden Immortal, was a rare chance for Guo Xingyue. Naturally, he would not refuse and gladly accepted. The two engaged in discussions that ranged from formation arrangements to artifact crafting, and even delved into alchemy and insights about the Dao of Heaven. Their rapport grew, and they ended up calling each other brothers. No matter how Guo Xingyue tried to decline, Li Yanfeng insisted on being referred to as "older brother," thus Guo Xingyue gained another elder brother. He couldn't help but chuckle inwardly—his sworn brother was the nephew of Dongxu, who was his own elder brother, and now this man, Li Yanfeng, was Dongxu's master. It was quite a confusing family tree.
Through his discussions with Li Yanfeng, Guo Xingyue gained significant insights, particularly in weapon crafting and understanding the Dao of Heaven. This would greatly aid his future cultivation. Curiously, he inquired about the celestial realm, but Li Yanfeng, adhering to celestial protocols, did not divulge much. He only mentioned that immortals had levels—Earth Immortals, Common Immortals, Golden Immortals, Great Luo Golden Immortals, Heavenly Lords, Celestial Emperors, and Heavenly Immortals, totaling seven tiers. Newly ascended immortals were typically Common Immortals, while Heavenly Immortals were the closest to gods. Once they passed the divine tribulation, they could ascend to the divine realm and become deities. The celestial realm was not peaceful; conflicts existed there too. As for other details, Li Yanfeng said Guo Xingyue would understand them once he ascended.
Eventually, Guo Xingyue brought up the matter of the lightning ball within him and consulted Li Yanfeng to clarify its nature. Li Yanfeng found the situation intriguing. After cultivating for tens of thousands of years, he had only heard of beings from the demon realm being able to emit electricity; he had never encountered a cultivator who could do the same. Guo Xingyue demonstrated the unusual properties of the lightning ball, which left Li Yanfeng amazed, though he could not provide an explanation.
Guo Xingyue then recounted his adventure in the underwater labyrinth, revealing the mirror artifact he had obtained for Li Yanfeng to examine.
As a master artifact craftsman, Li Yanfeng was well-known even in the talent-rich celestial realm, possessing extensive knowledge of the various ranks and functions of artifacts. Upon seeing the peculiar mirror, he was visibly shocked. "The Rebirth Mirror! This is actually the Rebirth Mirror, one of the top ten celestial artifacts! It's astonishing that it has ended up in the realm of cultivators!"
Guo Xingyue, puzzled, asked, "This Rebirth Mirror looks plain; is it really that powerful? What functions does it have?"
Li Yanfeng scrutinized the mirror in his hand and answered without looking up, "Powerful? No! It's terrifying! The Rebirth Mirror can refine an immortal, allowing them to reincarnate. Every immortal endures countless hardships to cultivate, and ascending through the tribulations is no small feat. This Rebirth Mirror can revert an immortal back to their original state, forcing them to start over. You tell me, is that not terrifying?"
Since obtaining the mirror, Guo Xingyue had examined it many times in his spare moments but had never considered it a treasure. He had only hoped to gain insights into the crafting of celestial artifacts. Now, hearing Li Yanfeng's description, he realized he had struck it rich. Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he asked, "Older brother, can this Rebirth Mirror help scattered immortals reincarnate and start anew? I have several scattered immortal friends who are troubled by their inability to overcome the nine great heavenly tribulations."
Li Yanfeng looked at Guo Xingyue with a strange expression. "Little brother, you seem to have quite the network; you even know scattered immortals, and not just one."
Guo Xingyue scratched his head awkwardly and said, "I once received great kindness from a scattered immortal elder, vowing to unravel the mystery of why scattered immortals cannot overcome the nine great heavenly tribulations. Later, I met several scattered immortal friends who have helped me a lot, and I wish to repay their kindness."
Li Yanfeng shook his head and replied, "No scattered immortal has ever ascended to the celestial realm. Many wise individuals have studied this issue, but no one has ever found an answer. Little brother, the difficulty in fulfilling that wish is immense." After pausing, he added, "Helping your scattered immortal friends reincarnate is certainly feasible, but I will need some time to research the Rebirth Mirror's usage. If you can send a message to them, they should come to the Jinshi Sect and wait for a while."
Upon hearing this, Guo Xingyue was overjoyed. He immediately took out a messaging jade and sent a series of hand seals to inform Bai Fan and the other three scattered immortals about the situation. In a short time, he received replies from the four scattered immortals, each containing the same message: "We will arrive shortly!"
Although these four scattered immortals were highly skilled and could teleport swiftly, the distance from Blue Water Star to Gathering Star was simply too great, and they could not arrive without taking ten days to half a month. Li Yanfeng planned to use this time to study the secrets of the Rebirth Mirror, while Guo Xingyue bid farewell and returned to Ye Mingcheng's home.
The meeting with Li Yanfeng proved to be immensely fruitful for Guo Xingyue. Not only did he gain substantial insights into artifact crafting and the Dao of Heaven, but he also found a potential solution for Bai Fan and the other three scattered immortals. His spirits soared as he entered Ye Mingcheng's home, where he saw Ye Kai diligently practicing his swordsmanship. Every move he made exhibited the style of a master. Guo Xingyue nodded, acknowledging the boy's commendable comprehension of martial arts.
To his surprise, the usually willful Ye Yue was now learning alchemy alongside Huang Ying. Guo Xingyue couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. After experiencing hardships, she was finally settling down to train seriously—perhaps this was a blessing born from misfortune. Observing the mother and daughter engrossed in their discussions about alchemy, Guo Xingyue suddenly remembered: he had used up all his recovery pills in the recent battle. If anything unexpected occurred, it would be troublesome. Thus, he decided to brew a batch of recovery pills to keep for emergencies.