Chapter 2693

Black Emperor felt a sense of relief. With his wife by his side, his infinite life held a touch of warmth and brilliance. Naturally, he cherished this warmth and did not wish to lose it.

After the celebration for Zhu Yanyi, once everyone had reached an agreement, Black Emperor invited Fire Emperor and her wife to join them.

Since marrying, Fire Emperor’s favorite pastime was wandering through various planes with his wife, sampling delicious foods along the way. When Black Emperor summoned him, he arrived with a lingering sense of reluctance to leave his travels behind.

"Black Emperor, you could have handled this yourself. Why involve me?" Fire Emperor asked with a smile.

Zhu Yanyi noticed that Fire Emperor and Black Emperor shared a remarkably close bond, perhaps even closer than that of Immortal Emperor. Immortal Emperor seemed closer to Empress, as she often called her "Brother." While Fire Emperor got along well with Empress, her primary connection was with Black Emperor.

"If there were no urgent matter, I wouldn't have called you," Black Emperor replied. "What do you say? Shall we go to the outer universe to play with the gods of other universes?"

Fire Emperor’s eyes lit up. "It has been difficult to find anything entertaining in all these years. Since such a fun opportunity has arisen, we must go."

With Fire Emperor’s agreement, Black Emperor announced, "Thus, the Supreme Team of the Supreme Universe is formed. Our first eight members are: myself and my wife, Immortal Emperor and his wife, Supreme Yan Emperor and his wife, the Medical God, and you, Fire Emperor, along with your wife."

"Homophones are always troublesome," Empress remarked from the side. "Common people refer to the ruler of the Underworld as King Yanluo. Supreme Yan Emperor is the Emperor of all Yanluos, the Emperor among Emperors. Henceforth, in daily life, we shall address you as Yan Huang. This distinguishes you from Fire Emperor, especially as we prepare for the War of All Beings. It will be confusing to call one Yan Emperor and the other Fire Emperor."

"Do not change it," Fire Emperor spoke before Yan Aohan could respond. "An Emperor is more尊贵 (noble) than a King. We cannot downgrade ourselves automatically. Let us call me Fire Emperor. I am the God of Fire, and my title is Fire Emperor. 'Yan' means fire, so it is easier to distinguish."

"Let us follow your suggestion and call you Fire Emperor," Black Emperor agreed. After all, in the term 'Di Huang' (Emperor-King), 'Di' (Emperor) comes before 'Huang' (King).

Empress realized her haste and apologized to Yan Aohan. "I am sorry, Yan Emperor. It was my mistake."

Empress never shied away from admitting her errors.

Yan Aohan shook his head slightly. "It is merely a title. I do not mind."

"The main concern is not being looked down upon externally," Black Emperor explained. "Here, 'Di Huang' and 'Huang Di' mean the same. But outside, they do not. Calling Fire Emperor 'Fire Emperor' in daily life is also very good."

"Now that the titles are settled, our next task is to build synergy," Immortal Emperor added.

Black Emperor nodded. "Indeed. I believe we should handle future matters together. This way, our synergy will gradually develop. Since the War of All Beings is still billions of years away, we have ample time to cultivate this synergy."

The others had no objections. Black Emperor was the leader, and his reasoning was sound and understandable.

The eight of them spent their days chatting, playing chess occasionally, and discussing various topics. Time passed slowly and steadily for a year.

One day, Yan Xizhong rushed in. "Father, Mother, something has happened."

"Why are you so flustered? Calm down and speak slowly," Yan Aohan said sternly.

Yan Xizhong hurriedly handed over a document. "Father, a massive plague has broken out in this plane. Not only animals but many humans have died. No cure has been found, and the mortality rate continues to rise. The number of souls arriving in the Yanluo Realm is increasing rapidly. If this continues, the population of living beings in this plane will plummet."

Yan Aohan took the document and read it. "Have you investigated?"

"As soon as I received the news, I sent Uncle Black and Uncle White to dispatch local Black and White Impermanences. The reports are true. They returned with a string of wandering souls. These souls died unjustly due to illness and cannot enter the City of Unjust Deaths. They need their souls cleansed of bacteria before reincarnation."

Yan Xizhong continued seriously, "I also had many doctors in the Yanluo Realm analyze the plague. During the analysis, some of the doctors’ souls became infected. Although they can recover through soul jade cultivation, their souls have sustained damage."

Yan Aohan passed the document to Zhu Yanyi. After reading it, she said, "Let us go see the souls of those who died from the plague and the infected doctors in the Yanluo Realm."

Seeing Zhu Yanyi’s calm demeanor, Yan Xizhong relaxed. With her mother present, she was not worried about the infection spreading further. This was why she had rushed to see Yan Aohan and the others.

The infected doctors, whose souls carried the plague, were isolated in the soul-cleansing area. Zhu Yanyi examined them and nodded slightly. "I will prepare medicine. Once they take it, they will be fine."

For Zhu Yanyi, these plague bacteria were trivial. She prepared a medicinal powder, stabilized the souls in the Yanluo Realm, and then said, "Now, let us go to this plane."

The plane infected by the plague was called the Tian Shui Plane. Its inhabitants were generally fierce but had good characters, speaking truthfully. Their only flaw was a tendency toward bravado and fighting due to their fierce nature.

Zhu Yanyi traveled to this plane accompanied by Yan Aohan. The other six deities joined them as well. As Black Emperor put it, this would be their first mission to build synergy as a team of eight.

Upon arrival, Zhu Yanyi observed the plague-stricken area. The local officials were decent; they did not resort to killing to stop the plague. Instead, they sealed the entry and exit fortresses and arranged for doctors to treat the sick.

Zhu Yanyi observed everything. "This plague is considered a natural disaster. Although the people here are fierce, they fight openly and honestly, without using阴谋 (schemes) or tricks. The officials are also decent. Why did the plague occur? Did the plague spread to the wrong place?"

Zhu Yanyi did not dwell on the nature of the plague itself. Sometimes, the spread of plague was beyond human control. However, if it was caused by heavenly will, Zhu Yanyi naturally had to inquire further.