Ye Fan had to ascend, so he had to temporarily leave the secret realm. After he met with Lu Xiaoman and Li Zhaojun, he had already left the secret realm.

He didn’t want to meet more women to avoid wasting too much time; he didn’t want to favor one over the other, so he decided not to meet any of them. However, he had somewhat favored some because he had met Lu Xiaoman, Li Zhaojun, Qin Mengyao, and Yang Xiaoting beforehand, which was inherently unfair to the other women.

Ye Fan went directly to the Left Domain Star System, which was close to Jiang Huo Star, where he had been before and brought back Fantasy. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Here, he felt no power could interfere with his ascension plan. He could peacefully complete the final stages of his cultivation here, bringing his Pure Yang spiritual energy to the point of ascension, a matter he deemed very necessary.

Soon, he and Xi He had reached the predetermined location, close to the largest star in the Left Domain Star System. Nearby was also a significant black hole, not far from Ye Fan.

For Ye Fan, the power of the black hole was no longer frightening—his power exceeded the speed of light, leaving no risk of being trapped. Yet, escaping a black hole by speed was still a kind of trial for him, though he wasn’t attempting it right now.

Even with the cultivation level of Su Nu, handling the black hole was easy. She could even use it as a link for temporal connections, but now Ye Fan’s cultivation far exceeded that of Su Nu—his mastery of the void’s power surpassed the black hole’s power hundreds of times over.

Moreover, the void itself was like a powerful energy black hole, without the concept of space and time. Ye Fan had conquered the final spatial force entity in the universe—the void.

The two were entirely in cosmic space; around them were stars, but about one hundred light minutes away, almost within the inner solar system’s range, where Ye Fan felt no beings or energy bodies.

"Alright!" said Ye Fan, "I’ll choose here for now. You guard for me, and if any power attacks, handle it for me!" Ye Fan advised.

"Yes, master, I understand!" Xi He appeared very obedient. Ye Fan didn’t need to consider Xi He’s loyalty now, as there was no direct conflict of interest between them.

On the contrary, it was Xuan Nu and Su Nu he had to be more wary of. Even though Su Nu had disappeared, Ye Fan wasn’t sure if she had done so willingly, for he lacked necessary understanding about her.

...

...

After Ye Fan completed all the preparations before his final cultivation, he used his spiritual energy field to form a defense barrier about a light-year in diameter. This defense was deployed almost instantaneously, allowing him to notice anyone entering the barrier without major deviation.

Xi He was responsible for watching over him, and with Xi He’s cultivation level, in terms of spiritual energy, she was far above Ye Fan. Her knowledge was also vast, as her age in the universe was a secret, and Ye Fan didn’t know her exact age.

However, with Ye Fan’s current mastery of elemental forces, he was far above Xi He, and he didn’t need to worry about threats to his life, as Xi He had a Blood Oath with him.

In the cosmic space, almost a vacuum, with no material around him, Ye Fan needed to use powerful spiritual energy to complete his cultivation. He also had to complete his training of the ninth layer of the Nine Yang Divine Skill, something he hadn’t accomplished before.

Previously, he had only cultivated to the ninth layer. At the final junction, he dared not rashly break through, knowing there was no turning back once he did, as his cultivation level could at any time lead him into the celestial realm.

Previously, the celestial realm had always been a mystery. Ye Fan had never entered it, so he naturally didn’t know about the reverse channel. Now that the celestial gate was open, he had no more concerns.

At this moment, he could feel a formidable force gathering within him. In little time, this force had taken form. Once fully consolidated, he noticed his internal power increasing, and his Nascent Soul was showing signs of restlessness, indicating its full maturity.

In a flash between lightning and stone, thoughts emerged in Ye Fan’s mind, "Am I being too hasty in completing my ascension? Normally one must find a suitable place and need some artifacts to aid them, yet I have nothing at hand. Even though I am confident in resisting the Heavenly Tribulation, I’ve never truly seen just how powerful it can be..."

As Ye Fan felt his preparation was too hasty, the long-rumored Heavenly Tribulation finally descended upon him.

This Heavenly Tribulation was akin to past battles Ye Fan had experienced with cultivators; its power was relatively strong, yet it had its limitations. Compared to Ye Fan’s current cultivation, this Heavenly Tribulation couldn’t create a more direct impact.

Amidst the Heavenly Tribulation, Ye Fan remained unmoved, able to feel the surrounding flashes of lightning and slight elemental forces. This elemental force was so minor that he didn’t need to resist with any cultivation, effortlessly dissolving it into nothingness.

"Strange, why doesn’t this Heavenly Tribulation strike me?" Ye Fan realized that his previous concerns were unfounded as the Tribulation lost its mark. He worried instead that his ascension might not be accomplished.

Ascension is about defying fate, punished by nature—it’s a conversion between matter and eternity. All ordinary matter inevitably undergoes birth and death, existence and annihilation, but Ye Fan’s cultivation had already transcended such a state.

At this moment, Ye Fan no longer cared about Xi He’s location, nor about whether the Heavenly Tribulation would harm him. He began to feel the changes brought by the maturation of his Nascent Soul, with fundamental differences in his body.

"Could this be the power of eternity?" Ye Fan knew that becoming an Immortal only meant achieving a body that does not die or perdures, but attacks by those with higher cultivation could still destroy him. Even ancient beings like Xuan Nu and Xi He could not achieve true indestructibility. Immortality and eternity were, in fact, a paradox.

With the arrival of the final bolt of Heavenly Tribulation, Ye Fan’s body finished its ultimate transformation.