He once again traced a complete circle in the air before him with the tip of his sword.
Where the tip passed, water vapor condensed along its path into a ring-shaped curtain of water. Once he finished drawing the circle, its edges closed on their own, forming a sealed circular barrier.
Standing inside the water curtain, he watched the patterns flowing continuously across its surface, then gently swung the blade. The curtain turned inside out, becoming a wave that spread outward and dispersed upon reaching the island's edge.
Finally, he raised the sword upright, its tip pointing toward the sky.
Immortal power spread outward through the blade, and the water on the sea's surface began gathering upward in the direction of the sword tip, first as a thin thread, then a column, before taking shape.
First came a dragon. Its scales, claws, horns, and whiskers formed in succession. The water dragon circled once in the air before dispersing and returning to the sea.
Next came a phoenix, its wings formed from thin membranes of water and its tail feathers woven from fine, densely packed threads of water. It lingered in the air for a moment before dispersing.
Then came a qilin, slightly smaller than the dragon and phoenix. Its four hooves trod across the water, leaving a trail of faint ripples on the sea before it vanished.
Next came an elephant, a bear, a lion, a tiger, a wolf, and a leopard. None of the animals remained formed for long, but each had a complete structure and moved naturally.
Last came an eagle, a falcon, a great eagle, a sparrow, a crane, and a stork. Each bird circled once above the island after taking shape, then dispersed on its own, leaving only a patch of tiny ripples as it fell