Having gathered materials from various parts of the Earthly Capital and arranged them around himself in a specific order, Li Xingkong began refining a magical artifact.
Whenever a piece of material flew in front of him, Li Xingkong would flick his finger, and the material would immediately decompose into elemental substances, and then melt into several clumps of liquid of different colors.
Regardless of their material, under the control of Magic Power, they seemed to lose their temperature limitations and were reconstructed in front of Li Xingkong as a mass of liquid floating in the air.
Soon, the materials spun around Li Xingkong several times, and all of them melted into dozens of clumps of liquid.
Liquid clusters with the same constituent elements attracted each other like by gravity, combining and eventually forming more than a dozen large liquid spheres.
He stretched out his hand and made a sweeping motion in the air.
Two of the liquid spheres, as if half-spread out, intermingled and blended, creating a gold and silver pattern that formed a banner with a gold main body and silver patterns.
A banner, one of the ritual implements, consists of a pole and a banner surface.
The banner is about one meter long and even glitters in the sunlight.
As a ritual implement, its core lies in the banner itself.
The main material of the entire banner is gold, while the silvery-white liquid mixed in is silver.
When the banner was being constructed, liquid silver was drawn into sufficiently fine silver threads, forming the first layer of array within the gold-constructed banner surface.
This layer of the formation is mainly for building a space for souls to reside in. In other words, this layer of the formation is building a house, except that the house is for souls to live in.
After the gold and silver banner was completed, Li Xingkong summoned a ball of pitch-black liquid.
The composition of this material is similar to that of human flesh and bones, mainly composed of carbon, mixed with some other rare elements.
Li Xingkong condensed this clump of liquid into thin lines, clearly using them as ink.
With a casual splash, the jet-black liquid painted a peculiar pattern on the golden banner.
The remaining liquid spread along the silver edge, adding a black border to the edge of the banner.
The structure of this material is similar to that of the human body, and the reason is simple: the human body itself is the most suitable vessel for the soul. If you want the soul to stay comfortably in the Soul-Guiding Banner, the material naturally has to be close to that.
As for using these miscellaneous materials to concoct a liquid resembling the structure of the human body, it was naturally a piece of cake for Li Xingkong.
This layer of material is like a high-end renovation for the soul's dwelling place, after which the soul can stay quite comfortably inside this banner.
After using up this layer of black liquid, Li Xingkong tapped his hands repeatedly, and the remaining liquid began to inscribe ink on the banner surface.
In an instant, a kaleidoscope of colors surged across the banner, like a turbulent river.
With the dwelling place for the soul completed, the remaining materials are naturally used for other detailed work.
The accompanying nourishing array can keep the soul clear and active, gradually restoring its memories.
The related interactive array is used to absorb wandering souls...
There are also a series of protective formations that make this magical artifact even more robust and durable.
To prevent souls from being thrown out during transport due to unauthorized entry and exit, Li Xingkong added a safety mechanism to the Soul-Guiding Banner, similar to a car door lock.
Souls can only enter and exit the Soul-Guiding Banner if the person holding the banner manually unlocks the array lock; otherwise, they cannot move on their own.
Finally, the remaining materials were used to forge a pole. At each section of the pole, a solidification magic array was added to ensure that the flagpole would not break easily.
With these enhancements, even if this banner were used as a melee weapon, its strength would be outstanding.
Moreover, Li Xingkong, who made the move at this moment, had already reached the Golden Core stage, and the strength of the magical artifacts he crafted was naturally incomparable to what it was before.
In the hands of a Qi Refining cultivator, this thing would be a true divine artifact.
By combining the banner and the pole, a very beautiful-looking Soul-Guiding Banner was completed.
The banner is half a meter long, with gold and silver intertwined on it. In the very center of the banner, a white crane is depicted with lifelike detail. Upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that the crane is not painted lifeless; it appears to be moving and flying leisurely on the banner, just like a real crane.
The flagpole is about 1.6 meters long, dark green all over, and looks like it is made of bamboo. At the junction of the top of the flag and the flagpole, there is a sharp crane beak protruding. The shiny metallic color of the beak indicates that this thing is a sharp weapon.
The banner is held in the beak of the crane at the top of the pole. It looks like they are almost touching, but in fact, they are combined by the power of the formation, and cannot be pulled apart by brute force.
The magical artifact was completed, and Li Xingkong waved it a few times.
It's very easy to use, especially when you touch the surface of the banner, it feels like you're touching someone's back, the texture is very soft.
But when it is waved, the screech of the banner cutting through the air reveals its power.
"Wait, why am I starting to wonder if this thing can be used to hit people? It's clearly meant to save lives..."
After waving his arms twice, Li Xingkong patted his head.
No, no, this is a ritual implement for saving lives, not for attacking.
Now that the magical artifact is complete, the next step is to conduct a trial run, as is customary.
As for where to find a soul to test it on, Li Xingkong, picked up the banner, left the office, and then vanished from the Earthly Capital.
Although most cultivators nowadays live in Divine Land and illness is a thing of the past, Divine Land People, including a considerable number of ordinary people.
Of course, besides ordinary people, there are also many ordinary pets.
The pet market today is not what it used to be; nowadays, there's a truly diverse range of pets available.
Not only are there all sorts of rare and ferocious animals, but pet dealers have also put a lot of effort into researching different species in order to sell their products better.
Using magical powers, they conjured up all sorts of strange creatures that only existed in the Myth and legends.
Of course, these creatures are merely superficially impressive; at their core, they are still ordinary creatures, only their appearance has been altered by the magic of the merchants.
A dog that looks like a Qilin, various groups of the Four Gods, a convincing-looking Azure Dragon, a fox with nine tails...
These days, everyone racks their brains to make a little money.
With more pets, there will naturally be more deaths and injuries.
Li Xingkong brought the banner to the largest flower and bird market in the Imperial Capital, intending to try his luck by finding some animal souls first.
Not all living beings leave behind a soul upon death. Only those with strong soul power can leave some trace, while those that are too weak vanish into thin air the moment they die, leaving no trace for Li Xingkong.
Fortunately, there are enough pets here. As quality changes lead to quantity, there are always one or two special ones.
Li Xingkong carried the Soul-Guiding Banner, activated its ability to attract souls, and after strolling around the flower and bird market, he found something within the Soul-Guiding Banner.
Two small animals appeared next to the crane in the pattern on the banner.
Upon Divine Sense inspection, I discovered a bird resembling a Vermilion Bird and a dog resembling a Qilin.