735: The New Lord of the Underworld

Above the firmament, six rays of light—platinum, gold, purple, blue, green, and brown—bloomed.

The lights intertwined, forming a brilliant cloud.

Within that cloud, a giant bronze door slowly emerged.

Accompanied by the deep, ancient sound of a bell, the bronze door slowly opened.

From within, two figures, one tall and one short, walked out simultaneously.

They were Xiao Ling and Zhang Lingxiao.

They had come from Reincarnation, freed from the shackles of life and death, and gained the qualification for Rebirth.

Before the bronze door, Zhang Lingxiao bowed deeply to Xiao Ling and said, "Empress Dowager, this humble Daoist is going to be reincarnated. We shall meet in the Human World."

The two were still Souls at this moment.

To return to the Human World, they had to enter their Physical Bodies.

And Zhang Lingxiao's Physical Body had already been placed before the Hall of Supreme Harmony, awaiting his Soul's return.

"Good... good."

Xiao Ling was clearly unaccustomed to the title "Empress Dowager," and merely nodded timidly.

At the same time, she was somewhat confused.

Her own Physical Body must have long since rotted into mud, so how could she be reincarnated?

Zhang Lingxiao seemed to see Xiao Ling's confusion and explained, "Empress Dowager, rest assured, His Majesty the Human Emperor has already retrieved your Physical Body."

"Retrieved my Physical Body???"

Xiao Ling was a little confused.

Just then, Lin Xuan's voice rang out.

"Xiao-mei, come back."

Xiao Ling looked down and was instantly stunned.

At this moment, Lin Xuan had already returned to his Physical Body.

And in his arms, there was a woman in a long green dress.

"Is that... me???" Xiao Ling was completely bewildered.

The woman in Lin Xuan's arms was actually herself.

No, to be precise, it should be her corpse.

But... hadn't she been dead for over forty years?

Even if it hadn't rotted, how could the Physical Body be preserved so perfectly?

And... the long dress she was wearing was the same one she wore before she died!

How... how was this possible?

At this moment, not only Xiao Ling didn't believe it.

Even the Gods seated in the sky were filled with astonishment.

"This... this is too explosive. Where did you get the Physical Body? Did you repair it?"

Amir looked at Elebella, casting an admiring gaze.

"How could that be..."

Elebella shook her head and said, "Holy Light can only heal living beings, it can't repair a Physical Body. And... sigh, the Empress Dowager has been dead for so many years; it's already a miracle that her Physical Body hasn't rotted."

Then, Elebella looked at Salaman and asked, "Did you do it? You are the Goddess of Nature and Life, so you have the ability to prevent a Physical Body from decaying."

Salaman shook her head and said, "That would have required starting to preserve her Physical Body over forty years ago, but forty years ago, I was still planning the elves' migration to the Human World. How could I have preserved Qin Yang's grandmother's Physical Body..."

All the Gods looked perplexed, not knowing how this was achieved.

It wasn't until Aka, who had incarnated as an old man, coughed twice and said, "Why... why don't you all ask the Head of the Gods?"

"You?" Elebella looked at him, and after a moment of confusion, a sudden realization flashed in her beautiful eyes.

"Could it be... you went back forty years?"

Elebella asked in astonishment.

That's right.

The current Akatosh already possessed both the Divine Authority of Space-Time and Time.

In the past, he could only view past and future timelines, but could not intervene in the river of time.

But after killing the Time Elder in the Heroic Divine Realm, Qin Yang bestowed the Divine Authority of Time upon him.

Now, he could repeatedly jump between the past and the future.

"Yes, the Human Emperor sent me back forty-three years ago, and after the Empress Dowager's death, I brought back her Physical Body," Akatosh said proudly.

"It really is like that!"

"Awesome, old Dragon!"

The Goddess of Harvest, Amir, praised, "Let's buy lottery tickets together in the future!"

The Goddess of Nature, Salaman, frowned and said, "Then why didn't you go earlier and save the Empress Dowager?"

"Can't save her, oh~"

Salaman had barely asked when Amir, beside her, explained, "That would disrupt Karma and cause the future to change."

Akatosh also nodded and said, "That's right, changing the past would disrupt the timeline, but..."

Speaking of this, he looked down and said, "Bringing back a Physical Body that died alone is like bringing back a handful of yellow earth; it changes nothing."

Hearing this, all the Gods suddenly understood.

The Goddess of Elements, completely hidden in her magic robe, couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "That's... such an innovative idea."

And at this moment, Qin Yang's voice echoed in the sky again.

"Your descendant, Qin Yang, respectfully invites the Empress Dowager to return to life."

Everyone looked, and saw the Human Emperor bowing to Xiao Ling before the bronze door.

Upon seeing this, all the ministers sighed at the Human Emperor's character.

Qin Yang had transcended above the Gods, yet he had not forgotten his roots.

Indeed, the culture of Shenzhou had always been like this.

No matter how strong or high a descendant was, they had to respect their elders; this is why there was an unbroken Legacy.

"Your subjects, respectfully welcome the Empress Dowager back to life!"

Before the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the ministers bowed their heads and knelt, shouting in unison.

Xiao Ling had never seen such a spectacle.

She was immediately flustered and at a loss.

Fortunately, Lin Xuan's gaze remained gentle.

After a moment of hesitation, she floated down towards them, and under everyone's gaze, embraced Lin Xuan.

As her eyelashes fluttered like wings, Lin Xuan clearly perceived that the Physical Body in his arms gradually gained warmth.

"Ling'er..."

At this moment, Lin Xuan was so excited that he choked up.

He had never dreamed that the only regret in his life could be mended.

No, not mended, but completely erased.

He now felt like kowtowing to his grandson, Qin Yang, in the sky.

Speaking of kowtowing, Lin Xuan called out to Lin Xiaoer, "Xiao'er, come quickly, kowtow to your mother."

Hearing Lin Xuan's voice, Lin Xiaoer woke up from her daze.

Looking at the woman in Lin Xuan's arms, who appeared even younger than herself, she felt it was somewhat unreal... and didn't know how to face her.

Finally, Qin Chuan pulled her, leading a group of children, to greet Xiao Ling.

Actually, if anyone was bewildered, it was the Empress Dowager who was the most bewildered.

After her death, she entered the Hell of "Oblivion," and her experiences of these past decades were a blank, as if she had merely slept.

Waking up, the daughter who was once in swaddling clothes had grown up, not only having her own husband but also leading a large group of descendants behind her.

Xiao Ling's gaze swept over everyone, and feeling shy, she whispered to Lin Xuan:

"Our daughter is so beautiful, she looks like you~"

"It's just that this son-in-law looks a bit simple-minded..."

"Also, are all these girls our granddaughters?"

Lin Xuan shook his head and said, "No, they are all granddaughters-in-law."

Xiao Ling: "Ah? So many?"

Lin Xuan: "This is just a part of them."

...Above the sky, Qin Yang did not go forward to reunite.

He used the time his family was digesting their joy and astonishment to go to Zhang Lingxiao.

At this moment, Zhang Lingxiao's Soul had returned to his Physical Body and was slowly Awakening.

As soon as he saw Qin Yang arrive, he immediately knelt and bowed in salute.

"Rise, there's no need for formality between us, minister and emperor."

Qin Yang waved his hand and said, "You are a meritorious minister of Shenzhou, and this time you helped me obtain the Hell Path. What reward do you desire?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Lingxiao still knelt and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty traveled far to the Netherworld for your subject; this kindness can never be fully repaid. How dare I ask for any reward?"

"Repaying kindness and receiving rewards are not in conflict."

Qin Yang smiled and said, "However, you are already the Imperial Advisor, second only to one person. There is nothing higher I can bestow upon you, the only thing I can think of is to grant you Godhood."

"Godhood?" Zhang Lingxiao was stunned, somewhat confused.

Qin Yang nodded and said, "I have just established the Six Paths of Reincarnation, and the Hell Path among them lacks a supervisor."

Speaking of this, he looked at Zhang Lingxiao and said, "I want to appoint you as the Lord of the Netherworld, to control departed Souls and the Reincarnation of life and death. How is this reward, Fate Controlling Evil Emperor?"