Chapter 2234

The pain was indeed excruciating. Yan Aohan had warned her that activating the Yanhou mark would feel like skin being scraped off and bones being ground down. She had worried she wouldn’t be able to endure it.

Fortunately, though the pain was severe, she could still bear it. It hadn’t reached the point of being unbearable. Zhu Yanyi did not know that Yan Aohan had already transferred one-third of the pain away from her.

Entering the Dongxu realm was a joy, but the agony radiating from the Yanhou mark on her back made her want to curse her ancestors.

They say childbirth is ten times more painful than ordinary suffering. But this pain was ten times that, or even a hundred times. She couldn’t even speak, let alone complain.

However, she refused to lose consciousness. She knew Yan Aohan was watching her closely.

She bit her tongue. Pain is pain, she told herself. Just think of it as practicing for childbirth. At least I’ll have experience when the real thing happens.

She comforted herself with this thought, letting her mind wander.

Reaching the Dongxu realm meant that further cultivation in this Saint Realm would be difficult. Although it was a cultivation world, its spiritual energy was not suitable for those preparing to ascend. From now on, her focus would shift to gaining experience.

She needed to plan her next steps. What should she experience? Perhaps she should travel to other realms to study medicine thoroughly.

Her original purpose for coming to the Saint Academy was to learn medicine. She had discovered that her medical skills were already quite advanced, but her cultivation had improved significantly.

Now that her cultivation was nearing a plateau, she needed to focus on mastering medicine and pill refining. She would need to constantly challenge herself to refine pills of higher grades.

Besides pills, she also needed to create medicinal powders. For Zhu Yanyi, pills were for cultivators, while powders were mostly for mortals, since she still had to gain experience among ordinary people.

She had not forgotten her mission. The next step was to deepen her understanding of the medical path.

Only by continuously elevating her medical research could she become a true Medical God. Although "Medical Saint" and Medical God sounded similar, the difference in order was vast, like the distance between heaven and earth.

She was undoubtedly a Medical Saint, but her next goal was to strive for the title of Medical God.

To break through to that level, she first needed to understand various medical techniques, gather the strengths of all schools, and integrate them to create her own medical path.

Yes, "medical path" was a general term, but the true path was defined by the individual. They said there were three thousand great paths; in fact, there were three thousand medical paths, depending on how far one walked on their chosen road.

As Zhu Yanyi thought this, the pain in her back seemed to fade.

Zhu Yanyi did not see it, but Yan Aohan did. The Yanhou mark slowly emerged from her back, blooming into four flowers, each a different color: red, white, black, and purple. Each color represented control over a different aspect of the Underworld. Red was the Flower of Death, white the Flower of Life, black the Flower of Reincarnation, and purple the Flower of Judgment. From now on, she would share absolute power over the Underworld with him, holding the authority to judge and strip life from its inhabitants.

Simultaneously, in the sky above the Underworld, both Yin Spirits and Yin Messengers saw two faces—one male, one female—Yan Aohan and Zhu Yanyi. From this moment on, all Yin Spirits, Yin Messengers, and souls knew that their male and female masters had truly returned to their positions. The Lords of the Underworld were complete, and no more errors would occur.

The souls were confused, but the Yin Spirits and Yin Messengers cheered. They knew they were finally safe, having found their true backing and destination.

"Wow, what happened to the Boss and Sister-in-law? They’ve become the Lords of the Underworld," Old Black exclaimed in awe.

"The Boss has been the Lord of the Underworld for a long time," Old White said.

Zhan Diting, standing nearby, explained, "It’s not quite like that. Every realm has a sun and a moon, yang and yin. The God Realm has the Supreme Black Emperor and the Peerless Empress. The Immortal Realm has the Peerless Immortal Emperor and Empress. Our Underworld must also have a Yan Emperor and Yan Empress. The Heavenly Dao is telling us that our Emperor and Empress are set. Although they haven’t reached the position of Imperial Venerable yet, from now on, everything in the Underworld is their decision. Even if the Buddha Realm sends representatives, no one can enter without their permission."

As a Diting, Zhan Diting knew the past and future. He understood many things Old Black and Old White did not, which is why he could explain it to them.

Old Black and Old White were surprised by this revelation and became curious.

Zhan Diting took a deep breath. "It’s good. With the Boss and Little Sister-in-law here, we don’t have to worry about danger anymore."

The appearance of the Yan Emperor and Yan Empress meant the Underworld was fully established. Even the Supreme Black Emperor could no longer interfere in its affairs.

Xie Jifan in the God Realm naturally sensed this. He smiled slightly and placed a chess piece.

Wu Xunmei noticed his smile. "What good news is this?"

"Our sister has broken through to the Dongxu realm. She and the Yan Emperor now truly control the Underworld. As their cultivation deepens, their control will become more proficient, and she will eventually become the true Yan Empress. I no longer need to watch over the Underworld. Wife, my burden is lighter. Isn’t this good news?"

Xie Jifan looked at Wu Xunmei with a smile.

Wu Xunmei nodded slightly. "In that case, it is indeed good news. But, husband, I heard you teased someone below recently. Who was it?"

Xie Jifan knew what she was asking. "When the God Realm was established, it required Emperors from various realms. The God Realm has me, the Immortal Realm has Mingyue, and the Underworld has Yan Aohan. This was settled. However, in the Heavenly Dao’s calculation of 'Four Nines,' there is one path left: the Four Directions Dojo. I went down to test someone who possessed the power of the Vermilion Bird, one of the Four Directions. If successful, the next step is to find the Four Direction Emperors to take their positions."

"The Four Direction Emperors? You mean Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise?" Wu Xunmei asked.

Xie Jifan nodded. "Once the Four Direction Emperors emerge, I can relax and do nothing. Wife, we can travel everywhere."

No wonder he was so enthusiastic. The real reason was this.

Wu Xunmei smiled. "I don’t know how many years we’ll have to wait."

"It doesn’t matter. As long as they can begin to control these powers, it is enough," Yan Aohan said with a smile.