I and countless versions of myself simultaneously travel through time.

Outside the Void Heaven Palace, Ye Yan stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on the layers upon layers of ancient restrictions.

Since he acquired the "appearance of a Dao Ancestor," he has been diligently cultivating every day and has never slacked off.

The breakthroughs in cultivation techniques, combat skills, alchemy, formations, weapon crafting, and divine sense brought him a taste of success and made him understand a principle even more clearly: talent is given by the character's stats.

But the real strength that can be held in one's hands must be honed bit by bit by oneself. Others may spend decades cultivating, but he can't do it in a year. Not to mention that most of Ye Yan's current strength comes from the cultivation world.

Most of the cultivation techniques he practiced were original. Only one was passed down, which was an incomplete cultivation technique that had fallen from the spirit realm to the human realm, called the "Return of All Things to the Origin Technique".

This cultivation method emphasizes the balance of the five elements and the harmony of yin and yang, which coincides with his five spiritual roots constitution.

When Ye Yan obtained it, he only had the first three levels; the rest had long been lost.

Instead of searching for the remaining parts, he chose to deduce and complete the rest himself.

From Core Formation to Nascent Soul, and from Nascent Soul to the peak, he created every step of the cultivation method himself.

It can be said that Ye Yan has carved out his own path entirely on his own two hands.

The greatest advantage of having the "Taoist Ancestor's Talent" lies in this all-round, flawless breakthrough ability.

While others need decades or even centuries to study ancient restrictions, he can see through seven or eight parts of them with just a sweep of his divine sense. While others need to rely on various magical artifacts and treasures to break formations, he can casually toss out a few array flags and insert them into the key nodes of the restrictions, tearing a hole in those seemingly impregnable defenses.

At this moment, the array flags in his hands flew out like raindrops, accurately planting themselves in every weak spot of the golden barrier.

The banners shimmered with a shimmering, iridescent light—the flames he had seized. The restrictions vibrated with a buzzing sound, their spiritual light flickering like a trapped beast making its final struggle.

Just then, two figures flew out from the depths of the Void Heaven Palace.

The two white-robed elders were both at the Nascent Soul stage. The one in the lead had a thin face, deep eyes, and a calm and steady aura. He was Elder Ximen of the Star Palace.

Ye Yan recognized him at a glance.

In the original story, this person almost killed Han Li and also stole the Blood Jade Spider. He was the most ruthless among the Star Palace Law Enforcement Elders and also had the greatest hatred for Han Li.

"Who are you?" Elder Ximen landed ten feet in front of Ye Yan, his brows furrowed, his gaze sweeping over Ye Yan, but he couldn't discern the other's cultivation level no matter what.

Alarm bells rang in his mind. Anyone he couldn't see through was either an ordinary person or someone far beyond him, and the person in front of him was clearly not the former.

"The Void Heaven Palace is under the jurisdiction of my Star Palace. If you wish to break the restriction, please think twice." Elder Ximen's tone was still polite, but his words carried an undeniable warning.

Ye Yan glanced at him sideways, her brows furrowing slightly. "Oh? You're teaching me how to do things?"

The sound wasn't loud, but it exploded in Elder Ximen's ears like thunder. The invisible pressure made his chest feel tight, and he almost stumbled backward.

The other white-robed elder behind him was even more pale, and he could hardly breathe.

Ye Yan ignored them and continued what he was doing. His divine sense surged out like a tide, enveloping the entire Void Heaven Palace's restrictions.

Analyzing, dismantling, and reassembling, the restrictions that would normally take months to dissipate naturally collapsed at a visible speed in his hands.

The five elements of spiritual light flowed around him, intertwining red, cyan, blue, gold, and brown, drawing dazzling ribbons of light in the void. The light was sacred and majestic, as if an immortal had descended to earth, leaving the two Star Palace elders present in awe.

They had never seen such a complete spiritual light from any cultivator before.

Just then, a small opening in the restriction of the Void Heaven Palace was completely opened.

Ye Yan flashed and instantly teleported into the hall. There were very few treasures left in the hall. Han Li and Yuan Yao had just escaped and taken most of the valuables with them.

Ye Yan didn't care. He came to the Void Heaven Palace not for those treasures.

His gaze swept over the remaining traces in the hall, and his divine sense perceived the lingering aura in the air.

Ancestor Jiyin, Qingyi Jushi, Manhuzi, Wan Tianming, and other Nascent Soul level monsters have all left, leaving only the people from the Star Palace still controlling the remaining restrictions of the Void Heaven Palace.

"Since you're here, don't leave." Ye Yan raised his hand and waved, and a five-element spiritual light transformed into five-colored chains, directly forcing the white-robed elder's nascent soul out of his body.

The nascent soul screamed in terror, trying to escape, but was trapped by a barrier casually set up by Ye Yan, unable to move.

"Consider this a small gift." Ye Yan put the two Nascent Souls into the barrier and then looked at the two lifeless bodies.

A Nascent Soul stage body is a rare treasure even outside. It can be used to possess the body of a cultivator without a physical body. He put the body into his storage bag and turned to leave the Void Heaven Palace.

Outside the hall, Elder Ximen had not yet escaped far.

When he saw Ye Yan emerge, his expression changed drastically. Without saying a word, he burned his essence blood and transformed into a streak of blood light, fleeing towards the horizon.

He had lived for hundreds of years and had never seen such a terrifying being. It could force out a nascent soul with a wave of its hand and seal it away with a wave of its hand, leaving the nascent soul with no room for resistance.

This level of strength is beyond what someone in the Nascent Soul stage could possess.

Ye Yan stood with his hands behind his back, his clothes fluttering in the wind, his gaze as cold as a deep pool, fixed on that hurried figure.

He didn't raise his voice, simply uttering, "Did I tell you to move?"

Before he finished speaking, his figure had already disappeared from the spot. In the void, a spatial rift opened silently, and Ye Yan's hand reached out from the rift, his five fingers like hooks, directly grabbing Elder Ximen's throat.

"cough!"

"Little one, you're pretty good at running."

Elder Ximen's eyes bulged out, and his legs kicked wildly in the air, but he couldn't muster even the slightest strength to resist.

He felt as if a mountain was pressing down on his neck, and his spiritual power was completely blocked, making it impossible for him to even burn his essence blood.

Ye Yan held his neck as if he were a chicken waiting to be slaughtered, and slowly flew towards Tianxing City.

Tianxing City is the largest cultivator city in the Chaotic Star Sea and the headquarters of the Star Palace.

Ye Yan stood in mid-air above Tianxing City, with the great formation that had been passed down for thousands of years beneath his feet.

The array's spiritual light had already illuminated, clearly indicating that the Star Palace cultivators within the city had sensed the invasion and activated their defenses.

Ye Yan did not lower his cultivation level or conceal his aura. He released the pressure of the late-stage peak Nascent Soul realm without reservation, like an invisible mountain that made all the cultivators in Tianxing City unable to breathe.

Those rogue cultivators who had reached the Core Formation or Foundation Establishment stages turned pale. Some collapsed to the ground, while others scrambled and crawled out of the city.

"Disperse." Ye Yan waved his hand casually, and the rogue cultivators he had captured were lifted by a gentle force and landed steadily outside the city.

They were stunned for a moment, then ran away without looking back. This level of being was not someone they could afford to provoke.

In a small teahouse in the city, Han Li was silently sipping a cup of spiritual tea.

He had just escaped from the Void Heaven Palace and, through his connection with Ling Yuling, managed to sneak into Tianxing City to temporarily evade the Star Palace's pursuit.

He appeared calm on the surface, but in his heart he was planning his next move.

Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a figure in the air out of the corner of his eye and instinctively looked up.

The figure stood above Tianxing City, hands behind his back, robes fluttering in the wind.

He did not deliberately reveal his true nature, but the spiritual light of the five elements flowed freely around him, refracting a colorful halo in the sunlight.

In the void beside him, a huge symbol was drawn using some kind of spiritual power.

1+1=3.

Han Li's hand jerked violently, and the teacup almost fell to the ground.

That was the secret code he and Ye Yan had agreed upon when they parted ways in Tiannan. For decades, he thought he would never see that symbol again in his life.

"Leaf..." Han Li murmured to himself.

Ling Yuling, standing beside him, noticed Han Li's unusual behavior and followed his gaze, also seeing the figure in the air. She frowned, then flashed to Ye Yan's side, cupping her hands in greeting, "Senior, what brings you to Tianxing City?"

Ling Yuling was a Core Formation cultivator and held a high position in the Star Palace. She spoke respectfully, but her eyes held a hint of wariness.

She couldn't see through Ye Yan's cultivation level, but she knew that he was unfathomable and definitely not someone she could afford to offend.

Ye Yan glanced down at her and smiled slightly: "You're a girl, yet you act like a tomboy, trying to flirt with some young lady?"

Ling Yuling was taken aback, then looked embarrassed.

She had indeed always disguised herself as a man and walked among the stars, and very few people could see through her identity.

The person in front of her recognized her immediately, which left her somewhat at a loss.

"Senior is joking..." Ling Yuling coughed lightly, thinking that Ye Yan was about to make trouble, and was very nervous.

"No need to be nervous." Ye Yan waved his hand, his tone indifferent. "I'm here for an old friend. Open the formation. I'm not good at killing and don't want to commit any more bloodshed."

He released the divine sense lines behind him, and the rogue cultivators and Star Palace elders who had been bound by him were immediately granted a pardon and scattered in all directions.

Ye Yan then took Elder Ximen's nascent soul out of the barrier, and with a wave of his hand, the nascent soul transformed into a ray of light and disappeared into his storage bag.

Ling Yuling's face darkened.

That was the Nascent Soul of the Star Palace Law Enforcement Elder, one of the core forces of their Star Palace, and it was treated as a trophy.

"This can be considered revenge for an old friend." Ye Yan smiled, without explaining further. "That old friend also just arrived with you; you should know that."

His gaze fell on the small teahouse in the city.

Han Li remained seated, his teacup now cold, but his gaze never left the figure in the air.

Ye Yan vanished from the spot in a flash.

The next moment, he was already sitting opposite Han Li.

Han Li's body tensed instantly, his palm pressed against the storage bag, and his spiritual energy circulated wildly within his body.

He instinctively wanted to make a move, but the oppressive aura emanating from Ye Yan made it difficult for him to even move a finger.

Early stage of Core Formation.

Ye Yan looked at Han Li, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Even after decades apart, Han Li remains the same Han Li: cautious, vigilant, and never letting his guard down.

He raised his hand and gently patted Han Li's shoulder, sending a divine sense message into Han Li's sea of ​​consciousness.

"Lizi, it's me."

Han Li was jolted, and his pupils dilated suddenly.

He stared at Ye Yan's face again and again. The face had matured a lot compared to decades ago, but the contours of his eyebrows and eyes remained unchanged. Those eyes were still the same as he remembered.

"Ye Zi...you've reached the Nascent Soul stage?" Han Li's voice was somewhat hoarse.

Ye Yan nodded and whispered in his ear, "It was just a coincidence. Unlike you, with the little green bottle in your hand, you're the star wherever you go."

Han Li's lips twitched, but he didn't say anything.