A journey through immortal realms begins with a phantom tale.

In the outer space of Tianyuan Star, Qian Shanyong, Dai Nanfengyu, Mei'er, and Lin Chen floated in the void, gazing at Luo Cheng and Li Qiang, who were located to the east and west respectively.

At this moment, Luo Cheng and Li Qiang each controlled two divine artifacts, echoing each other from afar.

"Junior brother, are you ready?"

"alright!"

The planet has four poles, or four energy nodes. With Luo Cheng and Li Qiang's supernatural abilities, they can calculate the locations of these energy nodes. Their plan is to place the four divine artifacts at each of these four nodes.

This is an ancient divine array formation method from antiquity—legend has it that the primordial deities used the four legs of a divine tortoise to determine the four poles of heaven and earth. Now, Luo Cheng and Li Qiang are going to use a divine artifact to determine the four poles.

The two stood in the void, one to the east and one to the west, their hands forming hand seals. Divine incantations flew from their hands, disappearing into the void or sinking deep into the star's core after entering Tianyuan Star. As time passed, their positions continued to change.

In Lin Chen's eyes, they were surrounded by colorful light, and strange runes poured out of their hands like flowing water, disappearing after entering Tianyuan Star, while their figures kept moving in the starry sky.

At this time, there were not many cultivators on Tianyuan Star; only a few cultivators had arrived on this planet via teleportation arrays. These cultivators could see the flashing light in the void, but due to their low cultivation levels, they did not know what was happening.

One year, two years...

In the blink of an eye, more than a decade has quietly passed.

For the two immortals, Qian Shanyong and Dai Nanfeng, this was merely a fleeting moment. But for Lin Chen and Mei'er, the wait was rather tedious.

"call!"

As Luo Cheng unleashed his final divine incantation, he softly uttered two words:

"Formation complete!"

Upon hearing this, Li Qiang let out a soft breath. He hadn't expected that setting up a divine array would take more than a decade. This made him deeply realize that the later stages of cultivation required more time—whether it was quiet meditation to comprehend the Dao, learning immortal techniques and divine restrictions, or setting up arrays, all required a long period of time.

Luo Cheng and Li Qiang returned to Lin Chen and his group.

"Let's rest for a while before setting up the other two divine arrays," Luo Cheng said.

Three months later, once Shen Yi's power had fully recovered, the two went to the Holy Star to set up an array. The mortals and cultivators on the Holy Star all came from Fengyuan Star, and many of them were cultivators with high cultivation levels.

As Luo Cheng and Li Qiang began setting up the formation, the high-level cultivators of the Holy Star noticed it and took to the air to watch.

Qian Shanyong immediately declared, "Anyone who wants to see the original owner set up the formation, come behind me."

"It is the Holy Lord!"

"Let's go, to the Holy Lord's side!"

On Fengyuan Star, cultivators respectfully address Qian Shanyong as the Holy Lord, since he was the one who founded the Holy City.

Time flies, and more than a decade has passed. The second divine array has finally been completed.

Afterwards, Luo Cheng and Li Qiang traveled to the new planet. The inhabitants of this planet came from Earth, and after decades of development, it had become a planet where technology and cultivation coexisted.

The mortals on this planet all know of the existence of cultivators, and the cultivation sects on the new star regularly recruit disciples.

The Celestial Empire on the rising star is the orthodox sect, recruiting cultivators annually. In addition, there are ten major cultivation sects, hundreds of smaller sects, and numerous cultivation families. Because resources are largely controlled by these sects and families, ordinary people can only obtain cultivation resources by joining a cultivation sect or family.

By now, Xiao Feng had been cultivating on the new star for over thirty years. Seeing Lin Chen and Luo Cheng's figures in the void, he immediately flew into the sky. Luo Cheng used a teleportation technique to bring him to Lin Chen's side.

Xiao Feng bowed respectfully: "Greetings, Master."

"Not bad, you've reached the Nascent Soul stage in just thirty years," Lin Chen praised.

In the cultivation world, reaching the Nascent Soul stage in a hundred years is already considered genius. Those like Luo Cheng and Li Qiang, who reach the Nascent Soul stage in just one or two years, are considered monstrous talents, or rather, they are cheating.

Xiao Feng asked curiously, "Master, what is Immortal Luo doing?"

"He's setting up a divine array."

"A divine formation?"

Gods are a forbidden realm in the cultivation world. Millions of years ago, due to the self-destruction of numerous god cultivators, coupled with the rise of cultivation and immortality cultivation, that history of god cultivation has been sealed away. Therefore, Xiao Feng knows nothing about god cultivation, let alone what kind of existence a god is.

Even a celestial being like Qian Shanyong wouldn't dare dream of becoming a god. Only those who reach the level of the Azure Emperor or Yuan Gu, or the Heavenly Lord, would pursue godhood.

Lin Chen explained, "A god is someone who, after reaching the peak of cultivation, passes through the divine tribulation and ascends to the divine realm."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Feng was completely stunned. He never expected that his master's Daoist partner was actually a deity, a being even more powerful than an immortal. And at this moment, this deity was setting up a divine array on the new star.

"Master, if the divine array is set up, will it be impossible for even immortals to break it?"

"certainly!"

"That's incredible!"

While everyone was talking, Luo Cheng and Li Qiang had already begun setting up the formation. Once the divine formation was complete, it would affect the technological development of the new star—under its protection, spaceships would be unable to enter or leave the new star. However, the new star had a teleportation array, so anyone wishing to leave could use it.

Luo Cheng designated Xinxing as a cultivation planet, and if they wanted to develop technology, they would need to move to another planet.

More than a decade has passed in the blink of an eye, and the new Star God Array has finally been successfully set up.

Lin Chenfei went to Luo Cheng's side and gently hugged him: "Brother Cheng, you've worked hard."

"To be honest, it's a bit tiring."

Because his cultivation level was too low, Xiao Feng only stayed in the void for a short while before returning to the new star to cultivate.

Luo Cheng laughed and said, "Let's go see your disciple."

"OK!"

Afterwards, Luo Cheng spoke briefly with Qian Shanyong, Dai Nanfeng, Li Qiang, and Mei'er before heading to Xinxing. Li Qiang, having not seen his apprentice for a long time, decided to go to Shengxing. Qian Shanyong and Dai Nanfeng also returned together.

It has been over a century since the new stars immigrated to the country.

Lin Chen sighed, "Time flies so fast for cultivators."

"yes!"

Mortals live for only a few decades, while immortals can easily set up an array that takes decades to complete.

Luo Cheng suddenly asked, "By the way, where does Xiao Feng live?"

"He lives in Jiangcheng!"

"A new star also comes from Jiangcheng?"

"Many cities on Earth have retained their original names in remembrance of their homeland."

After a century of development, Xinxing now boasts dozens of large cities, tens of thousands of small towns, and numerous villages. Here, cultivators are no secret; looking out the window, one can see cultivators flying on swords and aircraft shuttling back and forth.

The laws of the new city stipulate that all beings are equal—cultivators are forbidden from killing mortals, and violators will pay with their lives. At least on the surface, that's the case. In reality, there are always those who enjoy privileges in any era.

Soon, the two arrived at Xiao Feng's residence. This was a villa that Lin Chen had purchased for Xiao Feng, surrounded by a spirit-gathering array.

As the two approached the villa, a woman blocked their way.

Who are you?

Lin Chen found it amusing and asked in return, "And who are you?"

"I am a disciple of the Qingyun Sect."

"Qingyun Sect?" Luo Cheng had been setting up arrays in the void for over a decade, yet he was still unfamiliar with the emerging cultivation sects, and of course, he wouldn't pay attention to such trivial matters.

Lin Chen explained, "Brother Cheng, Qingyun Sect is one of the top ten sects of the new generation."

"interesting!"

"Hey, you still haven't said who you are?"

"We're here to find Xiao Feng."

Luo Cheng sized up the woman and could tell that she was at the Spirit Void stage, not yet having formed her Nascent Soul, but her foundation was solid.

"I knew you guys were up to no good!"

"Huh?" Luo Cheng was stunned for a moment.

Lin Chen laughed and said, "Little girl, tell me, how did we have ill intentions?"

"Ever since Xiao Feng reached the Nascent Soul stage, various sects and cultivation families have come to recruit him. You must be from one of those major sects, right?"

Luo Cheng turned to look at Lin Chen, who looked puzzled.

The woman continued, "Xiao Feng was able to cultivate to the Nascent Soul stage on his own, relying on ancient cultivation methods and without depending on any sect's power. Such talent would have been top-tier even a hundred years ago."

"Oh?" Lin Chen transmitted his voice, "Brother Cheng, it seems that Xiao Feng did not reveal his background, which caused these people to misunderstand."

Luo Cheng then understood the reason. A hundred years ago, those cultivators who reached the Nascent Soul stage through talent and luck either founded sects or established cultivation families. After that, these sects and families began to monopolize cultivation resources, making it almost impossible for ordinary people without a sect or a faction to cultivate.

Of course, if someone can break through to a higher realm through their own strength, cultivation sects will compete to recruit them. After all, those who can reach a higher realm with limited resources can reach even greater heights once they receive resource support.

This is exactly the kind of talent that major cultivation sects want most; with a little training, they can become the backbone of their sects.

Clearly, Xiao Feng is such a talent. In the eyes of outsiders, he belongs to no sect or school, yet he cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage through his own abilities, making him a genius. However, people are also somewhat puzzled by his ability to live in Jiangcheng's top-tier villa district, suggesting that Xiao Feng's ancestors must have some wealth and influence.

After understanding the reason, Lin Chen said, "You can leave now. Xiao Feng is my disciple."

"You?" The woman scrutinized Lin Chen, noticing the complete absence of true energy fluctuations around him. "You're just a mortal; how could you possibly be Xiao Feng's master?"

"I'm in a distraction phase!"

"impossible!"

The woman was incredulous. As a settlement of immigrants from Blue Star, Xinxing had developed for a century, producing a large number of Nascent Soul cultivators and a few who had reached the Out-of-Body stage, but the Spirit Division stage remained legendary. According to cultivation manuals, even geniuses needed a thousand years of arduous cultivation to reach the Spirit Division realm.

Lin Chen said, "My cultivation is relatively slow; it took me several hundred years to reach the Nascent Soul stage."

"Wow, how old are you?"

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Chen's face darkened: "You little girl, do you even know how to talk?"

The woman realized she had said the wrong thing and quickly covered her mouth.

Lin Chen said no more and led Luo Cheng straight into the villa. Xiao Feng came out to greet them upon hearing the commotion, and was overjoyed to see his master and Luo Cheng.

"Master, you've arrived. Please come in."