A journey through immortal realms begins with a phantom tale.

After leaving the jade shop, Luo Cheng, Lao Li, and Lao Zhang remained silent for a long time.

It wasn't until they got back to the building of the rented apartment that Old Zhang managed to call out "Luo" with difficulty, but the word "boy" stuck in his throat and he couldn't say it no matter what.

It was the effect of money that subtly widened the gap in status between the two.

Luo Cheng noticed his awkwardness and took the initiative to speak: "I still prefer to hear you call me Luo boy."

"No, no." Old Zhang really didn't dare call him "Young Master Luo" anymore. He said earnestly, "Mr. Luo, I will definitely pay you back once my wife recovers."

"Okay." Luo Cheng only replied with one word and then said no more.

In his view, whether or not the money was returned was irrelevant. Besides, he wouldn't be staying on Earth for very long.

Meanwhile, the spirit stone that Luo Cheng sold had been delivered to Lin Chen. She had now cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage, and her appearance had hardly changed; she still looked like a girl who had just turned twenty.

Lin Chen took the spirit stone and asked, "Where did this come from?"

"It's sold by a young man," the subordinate replied.

"Young man?" Lin Chen's heart tightened suddenly, and he asked urgently, "What does he look like?"

"Tall and handsome."

Lin Chen hurriedly pulled out a photo, his fingertips trembling slightly: "Is it him?"

His subordinate leaned closer for a look and said with certainty, "Yes, that's him."

"Where is he?" Lin Chen's heart trembled, and he wished he could go find him immediately.

"He didn't leave any contact information."

Lin Chen was anxious, but she forced herself to calm down. She silently prayed: He's finally back.

"Take me to the store, I want to see the security footage."

Lin Chen arrived at the jade shop quickly. Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar figure on the security camera, her eyes welled up with tears—she had waited sixty years.

Relying on the Lin family's power on Blue Star (after all, they were a cultivation family), she quickly found Luo Cheng's residence. When she arrived at that old residential area, she was stunned. It was dirty and chaotic; she really hadn't expected Luo Cheng to live in such a place.

Lin Chen stood downstairs for a moment, took a deep breath, and quickly ran up to the roof.

She raised her hand, intending to knock, but her fingertips paused at the door. She could clearly sense that the person was inside.

Just then, the door opened.

One stood outside the door, the other inside; their eyes met, and for a moment no one spoke.

Luo Cheng remained calm, but Lin Chen's eyes gleamed with barely concealed excitement.

"If you don't mind, please come in and sit down," Luo Cheng said first.

The room was very small, barely big enough for a bed.

Lin Chen didn't hesitate and stepped inside. The room was very clean and filled with a faint fragrance.

"You're finally back," she said softly, her voice trembling slightly.

"I'm back." Luo Cheng's voice remained calm, but with a hint of warmth that was hard to detect.

"What's your situation right now?" Lin Chen asked while carefully observing him, but he couldn't sense any spiritual energy fluctuations.

Luo Cheng teased her deliberately, "If I said I've lost all my cultivation, would you believe me?"

"I believe you!" Lin Chen answered without hesitation. "If you really have no cultivation left, I will protect you and find a way to help you recover."

Luo Cheng chuckled: "You're still so easy to fool."

Lin Chen smiled, his eyes softening: "I know you won't lose your cultivation. If you really didn't have any cultivation, you wouldn't have been able to come back from such a far away place."

The two chatted back and forth, like long-lost friends, naturally and warmly.

Night fell, but Lin Chen was unwilling to leave. She secretly made up her mind that this time, no matter where he went, she would follow. Sixty years ago, she didn't have the courage to go with him; now, she would never let go again.

Luo Cheng asked, "Are there other cultivators on Blue Star?"

"Currently, only two cultivation families remain on Blue Star." Lin Chen said, then smiled mysteriously. "Speaking of which, the head of the other family is your ex-girlfriend."

"She's reached the Nascent Soul stage too?"

"Um."

"Let's not talk about her anymore." Luo Cheng didn't want to discuss Li Mengtian's matter.

Seeing this, Lin Chen quickly changed the subject: "Then let me arrange a place for you to stay?"

"OK."

When Luo Cheng and Lin Chen came downstairs, they made a point of saying goodbye to Lao Li and Lao Zhang. When the two men saw Lin Chen, they were both so surprised that they couldn't speak—they had never seen such a beautiful woman before.

"Is this a fairy?" Old Li murmured.

In fact, given Lin Chen's cultivation level at the Nascent Soul stage, it's not unreasonable to call her a fairy on Blue Star.

Old Zhang thought to himself, "As expected, Brother Luo is no ordinary person." He felt fortunate to have met Luo Cheng.

Luo Cheng said to Lao Zhang, "You don't need to repay that money. I'll be leaving Blue Star soon. If you truly cherish this favor, please help the Lin family descendants if they encounter any trouble in the future."

"Okay!" Old Zhang solemnly agreed.

Lin Chen led Luo Cheng to a secluded manor, where she usually cultivated.

When the younger generation along the way saw Lin Chen, they would respectfully call him "Ancestor".

Luo Cheng joked, "I didn't expect you to have become an ancestor."

Lin Chen said somewhat frustratedly, "I've told them so many times not to yell like that, but they just won't listen."

"Judging by the time, you should be over eighty years old, right?" Luo Cheng teased her deliberately.

"Don't say it! Don't say it!" Lin Chen said angrily. In her heart, she would always be that eighteen-year-old girl.

Luo Cheng changed the subject: "I really didn't expect you to have reached the Nascent Soul stage."

"I didn't expect this either." Lin Chen's eyes softened. "At that time, I only had one thought in my mind: to cultivate to the Nascent Soul stage. Because I knew that only by cultivating to the Nascent Soul stage would I have a chance to see you again."

Luo Cheng found a stone bench and sat down.

Lin Chen sat down beside him and asked softly, "When are you planning to leave?"

"It's not confirmed yet," Luo Cheng replied.

He knew the Ancient God's Treasury was about to open, but he wasn't in a rush; he just needed to arrive before it opened. Besides, he needed to improve his cultivation before then—to explore the Ancient God's Treasury, one needed at least the strength of a Heavenly Monarch.

While Luo Cheng rested, Lin Chen pondered for a long time. Finally, she decided to go see Li Mengtian. After she left, Li Mengtian would be the only Nascent Soul cultivator left on Blue Star. Given Li Mengtian's personality, no one could predict what trouble she might cause.

Li Mengtian wasn't surprised by Lin Chen's call. On Blue Star, only the two of them were of similar cultivation levels, and they would occasionally get together to chat when they were bored.

Upon meeting, Li Mengtian cut to the chase: "What brings you here to see me today?"

"He's back." Lin Chen dropped a bombshell.

Li Mengtian was stunned for a moment before she reacted, her voice trembling, "The 'he' you're talking about, is it... is it him?"

"It's the person you're thinking of."

"Where is he? Take me to see him!" Li Mengtian suddenly stood up.

He doesn't want to see you.

"Is it that you don't want me to see him?" Li Mengtian's eyes sharpened.

"Do you think I could stop him if he wanted to see you, given his cultivation level?" Lin Chen said calmly.

Li Mengtian was so angry she couldn't speak, yet she was helpless. Over the years, the two of them had often sparred, their cultivation levels were evenly matched, and neither could defeat the other.

"He's back, but he won't stay long. I'll leave with him then," Lin Chen said calmly.

"Are you here to show off?" Li Mengtian sneered.

"Think what you want."

Li Mengtian suddenly laughed: "Are you afraid that after you leave, I'll cause trouble for your Lin family descendants?"

"Descendants will have their own blessings; after I'm gone, I can't worry about anything else." Lin Chen stood up, preparing to leave.

"Take me to see him!" Li Mengtian followed behind her, her tone pleading.

"You're married with children and grandchildren, does it really matter whether you see them or not?" Lin Chen stopped in his tracks.

Li Mengtian became even more anxious: "Lin Chen, you know I've never been married! Those children are all adopted!"

"You don't need to explain to me, and you don't need to explain to him either."

"I've been waiting for him!" Li Mengtian's voice was cold.

Lin Chen stopped talking and turned to leave. Li Mengtian followed closely behind, never leaving his side.

Soon, the two returned to the manor. Li Mengtian used her divine sense to sense Luo Cheng's presence, but found nothing.

It wasn't until they reached the backyard that they saw Luo Cheng resting in a rocking chair, looking relaxed.

Seeing that he was just like an ordinary mortal, with no spiritual energy fluctuations, Li Mengtian felt a strange sense of joy.

"What's wrong with you? Why do you have no cultivation at all?" She quickly stepped forward.

Luo Cheng opened his eyes and looked at her calmly: "You seem quite happy to see that I've lost my cultivation?"

"No," Li Mengtian quickly denied, but her eyes darted away.

Luo Cheng stood up: "Leaving you on Earth is ultimately not a good idea."

Clearly, he understood Li Mengtian's personality. Leaving a Nascent Soul cultivator here, if she went berserk, who knew what kind of chaos she would wreak on Blue Star.

Li Mengtian immediately smiled: "You understand me best."

Luo Cheng said, "I will take you all with me."

Receiving an affirmative answer, Li Mengtian was overjoyed and then asked, "Have you been with any other women all these years?"

"Do I need to report to you?" Luo Cheng asked calmly.

Li Mengtian glanced back at Lin Chen, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

Luo Cheng suddenly remembered something: "Oh right, I sold a spirit stone before, it should be in your possession, right?"

Li Mengtian was startled and took out the spirit stone from her storage bag: "So, it was you who sold it."

"You're really something, even trying to steal such a small thing." Luo Cheng said helplessly.

"I didn't steal it..." Li Mengtian wanted to argue, but then she changed her mind and didn't bother to explain anymore, so she just snorted.

Luo Cheng said, "Over the next two days, you can make your own arrangements for your affairs. Given the situation on Blue Star, it's almost impossible for your descendants to reach the Nascent Soul stage."

Both women understood this principle. Reaching the Nascent Soul stage was already an immense stroke of luck for them. Their descendants would likely never have such an opportunity again. Furthermore, their parents had already passed away, and despite their best efforts, they couldn't bring their loved ones back.

For some reason, ever since meeting the two women, Luo Cheng could no longer experience that sense of ordinary joy. In the following days, wherever he went, the two women followed him closely.

Especially when they go to the mall, if Luo Cheng glances at something, the two women will immediately buy it. Intentionally or unintentionally, the two are secretly competing to see who can buy something faster and that suits Luo Cheng's taste better.

This left Luo Cheng speechless.

It was clear that Lanxing was no longer a safe place to stay. So, Luo Cheng said, "Let's leave."

"Okay," the two women replied in unison. They had already arranged everything that needed to be arranged these past few days.

Luo Cheng enveloped the two women with his divine power and used the Starry Sky Great Teleportation to instantly arrive on Mars. The two women were deeply shocked.

Before this, they had tried to leave Earth, but only after leaving the atmosphere did they realize how vast the universe was. With their cultivation levels, they couldn't even reach the moon. Now, Luo Cheng could easily take them to Mars.

The two women looked back and could clearly see the blue star—the home where they had lived their whole lives.

Lin Chen sighed softly, "Once I leave, I don't know when I'll be able to come back."

Luo Cheng activated the teleportation array and took the two women to Apocalypse Star.

Compared to Earth, Apokolips' technology is considerably less advanced. It has clearly been the site of a major war, with most cities reduced to ruins.

"Where is this?" Lin Chen asked curiously.

"Apokolips," Luo Cheng replied. "I'm here to see a friend."

Li Mengtian said sourly, "Is she a female friend?"

Luo Cheng ignored her teasing.

Luo Cheng led them to land in a ruin, using his divine sense to search for information about the Luo family, but found nothing; there was no trace of the Luo family at all.

"I plan to stay here for a while," Luo Cheng said.

"Okay." Lin Chen nodded immediately.

Li Mengtian said, "I'll just wander around."

Luo Cheng arrived alone in the city where Luo Xian had once lived. It had long since become a ruin, with only a few ordinary people living in makeshift houses built amidst the ruins, struggling to survive.

He used his divine sense to detect that some residual radiation energy remained in the city—clearly, it had been contaminated by nuclear energy.

As Luo Cheng walked along the dilapidated streets, he wondered to himself: Had Luo Xian left? Or had he died of old age before reaching the Nascent Soul stage? Or perhaps he had perished in the war?

For a moment, he couldn't figure it out either.

"Give me something to eat..."

Several emaciated children surrounded him, begging for money. These children all carried a faint radiant energy.

Luo Cheng took out some banknotes from his storage space and handed them over. These were the same currencies he had used before he left.

The children were stunned when they saw the banknotes; they clearly didn't recognize them.

"Big brother, this stuff is unusable. Could you give me something to eat?" a slightly older boy whispered.

Luo Cheng had no choice but to take out some fruit and distribute it to the children.

The children took the fruit and immediately began to eat it heartily. Only one little girl didn't eat any; she looked around warily with timid eyes, as if afraid someone would snatch her fruit away.

Luo Cheng squatted down and asked softly, "Why aren't you eating?"