The celestial tribulation of the immortals was extremely severe. If one could withstand it, they would ascend to become a higher-rank immortal; if not, they would lose all their cultivation from a lifetime. Of course, there were also those with particularly bad luck, who were directly split into pieces by heavenly thunderbolts and reduced to ashes—not a small number either.
However, the fame of the Medical Immortal had spread across the six realms. Even though Rong Yi had never met him in person before, he knew that the Medical Immortal of the Heavenly Realm was already the highest-ranking among the immortals. Why, then, did he still need to undergo a tribulation?
The Medical Immortal fell silent, a trace of compassion flickering in his gentle eyes.
He spoke slowly: "Heaven's secrets must not be revealed."
Rong Yi raised an eyebrow—oh? Keeping his lips sealed?
"You truly live up to being a member of the immortal clan. Even now, reincarnated as a mortal, you still enjoy putting on airs and playing mystifying games," he sneered, a hint of irritation in his heart—he hadn't expected that even as a phantom conjured from a past life's soul, the Medical Immortal would still adhere strictly to the principles of an immortal.
The immortal clan was originally no different from ordinary people, except that through cultivation, they comprehended the path to liberation, transcended the suffering of birth and death, and then transformed into immortals to govern all things in the world. They had always stood aloof, able to glimpse heaven's secrets and control the fate of all beings. However, they also had a principle: never to reveal the secrets of heaven and earth to anyone outside the immortal clan.
Of course, the reason the immortal clan did this was partly to prevent the leakage of heaven's secrets, which could cause unnecessary chaos; partly, it was just some hypocritical immortals playing tricks and being deliberately mysterious.
Rong Yi continued to ask: "Then, is your heart disease also caused by the Hundred Ghosts Devouring the Heart?"
The Medical Immortal nodded: "The Hundred Ghosts Devouring the Heart from the Abyss of Hell is the harshest punishment in the six realms. My heart has long been riddled with holes, unable to bear the pressure of reincarnation."
"So, you had a heart transplant?"
"Correct."
"But why did it recur?"
"That is the punishment from the Heavenly Realm, to remind me never to forget my sins."
"What crime did you commit?"
"No comment."
"Can't you heal yourself?"
"No."
Rong Yi felt skeptical: "But your medical skills can cure almost everyone in the world, yet you alone cannot heal yourself?"
"Yes, that is my fate as a healer." The bitter smile on the Medical Immortal's face deepened.
A hint of mockery returned to Rong Yi's eyes: "Fate? You actually believe in that... Fine, I won't ask anything else. Just tell me, why did you come to this mortal world? Why did you approach Qiqi?"
At the mention of the girl's name, the Medical Immortal's body suddenly trembled. Then, he quickly pressed his hand to his chest—from his furrowed brows, it was clear he was enduring immense pain at that moment.
Was it the pain of the Hundred Ghosts Devouring the Heart? Had it flared up again?
Rong Yi silently watched the man in the void before him—the vermilion dragon-shaped flame on his forehead was the mark of the Medical Immortal. It was said to originate from the Flame Emperor Shennong, who tasted hundreds of herbs for the world and pioneered medicine. Shennong was born in response to a divine dragon. Thus, later Medical Immortals bore this mark.
At that moment, the dragon-shaped flame, representing the identity of the Medical Immortal, flickered on and off with its owner's agony. After several cycles, the Medical Immortal's complexion finally eased, as if he had weathered another ordeal. However, this bout of heart pain had made the Medical Immortal's phantom even more transparent and weaker.