Yama Rising

Inside a brightly lit room, Liu Yu sat with a grim expression on his face, holding an imperial edict so tightly with his hands that the material was creasing beneath his fingers.

"What is it, Your Excellency?" a black-robed middle-aged man in the room asked with furrowed brows.

This was a room that was around 100 square meters in area with incense burners fashioned in the form of cranes giving off a faint fragrance. At this moment, the doors of the room were tightly shut, and different types of fruits and intricate snacks had been carefully arranged on the eight immortal table at the center of the room. Including Liu Yu, there were four men seated around the table.

They were Chu Linh Th?ch, Th?m ?i?n T?, and V??ng Tr?n ác.

"Take a look for yourself." Liu Yu tossed the imperial edict onto the table like a dirty rag, causing the jade plates that were carrying the fruits and snacks to clatter loudly. Chu Linh Th?ch raised an eyebrow as he took the imperial edict before taking a look, upon which a grim look also appeared on his face.

"What does it say?" Th?m ?i?n T? and V??ng Tr?n ác asked in unison.

However, Chu Linh Th?ch offered no reply. Instead, he picked up his teacup with tightly furrowed brows before taking a sip.

Meanwhile, a cold smile appeared on Liu Yu's face as he stroked his own beard. "That rascal in Everburn is summoning me to see him."

After a full five seconds of silence, Th?m ?i?n T? asked in a surprised voice, "That's it?"

"That's it!" Liu Yu suddenly slammed the table, and all of the teacups were almost knocked over.

The entire room fell silent again.

In any dynasty, Th?m ?i?n T?, V??ng Tr?n ác, and Chu Linh Th?ch would've been considered to be top-tier warriors. They were completely ruthless and fearless in battle, yet in this moment, all three of them had fallen into an uneasy silence.

Several seconds later, Chu Linh Th?ch heaved a forlorn sigh. "The times have changed, Your Excellency. Yanluo Qin is no longer the same pushover he once was. Following the past 20 years of development, the Cathayan Underworld has reached great heights once again. It's time that we bowed our heads to him."

He looked up at the palatial lantern overhead, which was antiquated in style, but was giving off electrical light. "Ever since the new energy resource was released to the world, even the three pillars have abandoned the idea of trying to knock down the Cathayan Underworld. With each passing base station that's set up, their relationship with the Cathayan Underworld grows closer and closer. The times have well and truly changed, Your Excellency."

Liu Yu didn't say anything, and only after a long while did he heave a long sigh. "Did I make a mistake?"

"Not necessarily," V??ng Tr?n ác signed. "Under those circumstances, who wouldn't have been tempted to claim some territory for themselves? The only mistake we made was that we weren't decisive enough, and it certainly didn't help that Yu Qian and Yang Jiye had to mess with our plans. Also, Hell was far more decisive than we anticipated. After the imperial court meeting, they used new weapons to establish a brief and fragile relationship of mutual benefit with us, thereby causing us to miss the ideal opportunity, and after that, they immediately took down Ashmound. At that point, it was already too late for us. Then came the intervention of the second King Yanluo and the return of Ghost King Zhao, and all of that took place within a span of just three years. Everything changed in those three short years..."

He heaved a faint sigh and shook his head as he fell silent.

Thus, the room fell into silence again.

Finally, Liu Yu opened his mouth to speak. "There's no point in dwelling on the past. What should we do about this imperial edict?"

Chu Linh Th?ch's brows were tightly furrowed as he asked, "Are you worried that he'll exact vengeance on you?"

A cold smile appeared on Liu Yu's face as he replied, "The third King Yanluo is definitely not one to just forget about grudges. Have you still not figured that out at this point? He's much more able to swallow humiliation than the second King Yanluo, but whenever he's chosen to strike back, I can't think of an instance where he's failed. To be honest, I'm not afraid of the second King Yanluo. At least with him, you always know what's coming. However, there's no way to tell what the third King Yanluo is thinking, and if he does choose to strike you down, he'll make sure to do it in one fell swoop."

He picked up his teacup as if he wanted to take a sip, but set it down without doing so in the end. "Zhou Gongjin, Wang Meng, and the others pledged their loyalty to him even before us, but what happened to them? They were still essentially banished to grassroots units for over 10 years. No one in the nation was even aware of where those renowned historic figures were! If they hadn't put their lives on the line during the Battle of Zhuolu, they'd still be toiling away with no reward for the foreseeable future. If I accept this summons..."

His fists clenched up tightly as the silken tablecloth bunched up in his hands.

Am I walking to my own execution?

The entire imperial edict only consisted of a single sentence, but that only made it all the more unsettling.

"Perhaps we can defect to the Nipponese Underworld," Th?m ?i?n T? murmured. "We've interacted quite frequently with them over the past century."

"Are you an idiot?" V??ng Tr?n ác snapped. "Do you think the armies of the three eastern provinces are just there for show? Why do you think Qin Hui was assigned to the three eastern provinces? The economic center of the Cathayan Underworld lies on the coastline in cities like Ashmound and the City of Salvation! Why would an Abyssal Prefect like Qin Hui have been sent to the three eastern provinces instead of those places? I'm willing to bet that if we display any intention of defecting to the Nipponese Underworld at all, we'll be dead before we know it! There's no way we'd be able to get past the Strait of Tsushima! Also, how do you plan to pass through the Array of the Nine Gods? We were connected to the Nipponese Underworld through Otakemaru, but Otakemaru has been missing for decades!"

Amid the heated conversation, Liu Yu remained silent, and only after a full minute had passed did he heave a resigned sigh. "I will be traveling to Everburn to meet Yanluo Qin in three weeks. Prior to that, gather all of the documents detailing our dealings with the Nipponese Underworld in preparation for the meeting."

………………………………………………..

Cathayan Underworld, six paths of reincarnation.

This was a certain section of the six paths of reincarnation with a long corridor that was 10 meters wide, and the walls were lined with lanterns in the shape of the Pixiu Chimera's head. Furthermore, there were Yin soldiers stationed along the corridor at five-step intervals.

There was no sound whatsoever, and one wouldn't even be able to tell if the heavily armored Yin soldiers were dead or alive if not for the netherfire burning in their eyes.

A group of red-robed servants drifted onto the ground in a respectful manner, and Qin Ye was situated at the center of the ground with his hands clasped behind his back, flying atop a Yin cloud.

There seemed to be no end to the corridor, and the monotonous scenery gave one a sense that the path was constantly repeating. Aside from the round halls that appeared once every kilometer, it was as if one had entered the world of reincarnation.

Finally, 15 minutes later, what appeared up ahead was a giant gate as opposed to another round hall. The gate was 20 meters tall and 15 meters wide, and the left half of the gate carried a relief of the Harken, while the right bore the design of the Pixiu chimera. At the center was an extremely complex Lu Ban lock with a total of 32 rods.

Arthis was already standing beside the Lu Ban lock, and her brows furrowed slightly at the sight of Qin Ye. "What brings you here?"

Qin Ye waved a dismissive hand, and the servants on either side of him immediately departed, leaving only him and Arthis behind. He gently stroked the gate as he said, "I had always heard that the safest of cities had the most secure of prisons, and it seems that this place is a perfect example."

"... I'm sorry, but this place is not a prison, it's called the Nine Dragon Abyss, and it doesn't have anything to do with the safety of the city. By the way, when are you going to be able to develop internet? I bet my Diamond rank account has already fallen off!"

Do you have to be so boring?! Can't you just humor me for once?!

Qin Ye cast a disdainful gaze toward Arthis.

This was the downside of having too much power. There was simply no one that he could confide in anymore.

"Open the gate!" Qin Ye snapped. He couldn't even find anyone to fool around with anymore, and it was a little disheartening.

I guess I can't have everything...

The extremely complex 32-rod Lu Ban lock slowly opened up in front of Qin Ye, revealing an icy world beyond.

There was white netherfire everywhere, and the area was lit by massive candles. Down the center was a massive path, either side of which was lined by lanterns crafted in the shape of the heads of Hell's divine beasts, and they were all burning with netherfire. Qin Ye knew that if any urgent situations were to arise, those flames would immediately erupt to transform this place into a sea of fire.

These were reincarnation karmic flames, flames of an even higher caliber than hellish karmic flames, and any being below the Infernal Judge level would be instantly killed on contact.

On either side of the path were a total of 10 gates, every single one of which was forged from A-grade ore, ensuring that they were absolutely soundproof and devoid of any gaps.

This was like the most secure prison in the Cathayan Underworld, and unless Arthis opened these gates in person, there was no other way to open them.

There was no one here, nor any light present. If anyone were to be locked into this place, then they would have to face eternal darkness.

Qin Ye was here to see someone.

As Arthis opened the fourth cell on the left, a room with lavish decor was revealed.

The room was around 100 square meters in size, and it was constructed in an antiquated Cathayan style. Inside the room was a person reading a book in silence.

To be more accurate, it was a spirit.

His physical body was already gone, and all that remained was a pale, shadow-like soul. All alone in this spacious room, it seemed like an extremely lonely existence.

A thin silver chain was locked around each of his four limbs, and the chains were very long, allowing him to move freely throughout the entire room. He seemed to have a decent degree of freedom, but all those well-versed in material sciences would be able to identify the material of the chains as spirit vanquishing rock. Even a Yama-King wouldn't be able to break free from these chains.

"Long time no see, Mr. Xu," Qin Ye said.

Xu Fu flipped over a page in his book, then nodded with a calm expression. "Indeed. Take a seat."

The three of them sat down at the eight immortal table at the center of the room, and Xu Fu said, "The books you sent me this time are quite good. Next time, please send me the Twenty-Four Histories. I'm planning to rewrite the history of Cathay."

"I'm glad to hear it," Qin Ye replied with a faint smile. "Have you been well, Mr. Xu."

"I have, thank you for asking," Xu Fu chuckled. "I'm surprised you still remember someone like me."

After the second King Yanluo searched Xu Fu's soul, he didn't destroy it. However, the soul was incomplete, so it was impossible for Xu Fu to enter the cycle of reincarnation. Otherwise, Qin Ye wouldn't have allowed such a ticking time bomb to remain in the Cathayan Underworld.

The Nine Dragon Abyss was the ideal place for him to stay, in his current form, Xu Fu wouldn't be able to stray far away from the six paths of reincarnation even if he were released.

"Do you need something from me?"

"I do," Qin Ye said as he looked straight into Xu Fu's eyes. "I have a question. How familiar are you with Amano-Iwato?"

Xu Fu's expression changed slightly upon hearing this. "Could it be that you're planning to take down Izanami?!"