The Lifeform Manifestation Art was a method that gradually emerged only after the Near-Ancient Era had passed and the Dharma-Ending Age had begun.
It bore distinct characteristics of the Manifestation Dao, allowing Spirit Creatures to be granted new life and become independent individuals.
This method could break free of the Spirit Sea's limitations, allowing an unlimited increase in the number of Spirit Creatures under one's control. In theory, it also benefited the Spirit Creatures' own development.
After lifeform manifestation, they could even be equipped with weapons and armor and make use of external items such as Magic Treasures.
Yet this method had not replaced the traditional Manifestation Dao path as the mainstream approach. Aside from its relatively short history, it also possessed certain inherent flaws.
Spirit Creatures manifested through the Lifeform Manifestation Art had already become independent individuals. Naturally, they no longer had hosts and could not be stored within their masters' Spirit Seas or Spirit Apertures. Separate grotto-heaven treasures were needed to house them.
This made them less portable and less easily concealed than those of the traditional Manifestation Dao.
The means by which Spirit Tamers and Spirit Creatures borrowed power from one another and flexibly employed innate abilities would also disappear. Manifested Spirit Creatures would fight as independent individuals, wielding Divine Abilities and spells themselves, with no involvement from their hosts.
Moreover, once ordinary Spirit Creatures became independent individuals, their connections with their Spirit Tamers would gradually weaken, making them difficult to control. Unless a Spirit Creature had long been tamed and could be kept firmly in hand, this method must never be used, or it might spiral out of control.
Thus, this method and the orthodox spirit-commanding methods of the Manifestation Dao each had their own merits. It was difficult to say which was superior.
But after