Yama Rising

Qin Ye looked around him. The north of Mongol Empire, stretching from Khuree all the way to Sukhbaatar, was in a complete mess. This was a war that was completely invisible to the mortal realm, but it was still part of one’s biological instincts to avoid harm as much as possible. And to that end, even the living creatures could easily sense that temperatures had dipped to sub-zero levels due to the dense Yin energy in the surroundings. In fact, if one listened closely enough, they would even be able to hear faint traces of moan and wails. Nobody would be foolish enough to enter these lands.

The clouds of Yin energy were still roiling in the sky, swirling into vortices from time to time. Yet, for the most part, it could simply be described as boundless darkness. Anyone living creatures that entered these land of the dead would almost immediately sense something land on their backs, before being afflicted with a sensation of pain and agony that would be worse than torture.

“Everyone has come a long way. Thank you for your hard work.” Qin Ye retracted his gaze and then nodded to the Mythic Spirits around, “Unfortunately, the Second King Yanluo’s standing orders are that the seal to Hell would remain shut for as long as the Third King Yanluo remains undecided. Therefore, it is with much regret that I inform you that we’ll have to part ways here.”

“That’s fine.” Chieftain Woolf cracked open his lips and attempted to smile anthropomorphically, “Prefect Qin, the Alkebulan Underworlds will always be a friend to Hell.”

“I look forward to meeting with you in your capacity as the King Yanluo of Hell.” The other Mythic Spirits also extended kind words to Qin Ye, but refrained from staying much longer. After all, they had far more important matters to deal with, such as how they were going to deal with Catherine the Great and Peter the Great, and how they were going to secure the payout from the Russian Underworld. Even if Qin Ye were to extend them an invitation to Hell right now, they would quite likely have turned him down.

Thus, he watched as the Mythic Spirits departed. It was only then that Qin Ye finally heaved a sigh of relief. He felt over the moon.

The external conflicts had all been resolved, and Hell could retreat back into its own shell once more. Naturally, that meant…

Unification efforts!

His gaze flickered softly. These were words that had been buried in his heart for far too long, and it was finally time to raise this matter to the forefront for discussion.

The foundations for the negotiations with the mortal realm had already been laid. Furthermore, this incident with the Russian Underworld had secured them substantial reparations that would easily be sufficient to support the development of an entire district in Hell!

All they needed to do now was to hunker down and turn their attention to training elites for the next ten years, and Everburn would be nigh invincible within Hell!

“Dong Zhuo… your days are numbered…” He gently stroked the Harken’s back, and the Harken turned back, “What’s up? Are you finally ready to send troops for the unification of Hell?’

Qin Ye nodded, “Yes.”

“Cathay’s Underworld can still be said to be in its warring states era, torn asunder by the vassals known as Dong Zhuo and Su Daji. Moreover, we’re not aware of the situation in other districts just yet. For instance, the central plains and the northwest are still completely unknown to us. But the silver lining to that is that once negotiations with the mortal realm go through, and the trade routes have been established, we’ll at least be able to properly develop the district that is under our charge right now.”

Oh, right.

There’s still the issue of developing Forbidden Arts.

These were all things that needed money and resources. The present dispute with the Russian Underworld had been triggered entirely as a result of materials used to create Forbidden Arts. Naturally, other materials required to develop Forbidden Arts couldn’t be cheap either.

It’s fine… Everything is slowly going in the right direction. Only two years have passed now, and we’ve still got… a long time ahead of us.

“What are you going to do next?” The Harken leapt down from Qin Ye’s bosom and walked to the golden carriage. The Resentment Crystals were still there because nobody had touched them. Everyone knew full well that Hell was the only one qualified and entitled to recover these resources. Anyone else who took them, regardless of reason, would be deemed to be making designs on the development of Forbidden Arts.

And as for Hell?

What difference does it make if they had one additional instance of Forbidden Arts under their arsenal?

The Harken opened his mouth and took a deep breath. At once, a black hole opened up and devoured the carriage in its entirety. Qin Ye raised his brows and asked, “Is everything alright?”

But before the Harken could even respond, another voice resounded from the darkness, “It’s fine. The Resentment Crystals are special resources. Their crystals possess the ability to isolate all power systems, but if you infuse it with power, it can also gain the properties of a perfect conductor of energy. Together with Angel’s Crystals and Satan’s Bones, these three types of resources are often known as the three building blocks of Forbidden Arts.”

Black Mamba?

Qin Ye turned around with surprise, only to realize that Black Mamba didn’t do anything to conceal his form. Soon, a serpentine-headed creature slowly marched out of the darkness.

“Is there something else you wish to discuss?”

“Just some small matters that weren’t convenient to be discussed in front of the other Mythic Spirits.” Black Mamba spoke with great respect, and even bowed before the Harken. Then, he pulled out a scroll, “These are the things that the Black Mamba Underworld needs, and also our list of potential exports. Please take a--...”

But before he could complete his sentence, both Qin Ye and the Harken immediately raised their heads at the same time.

Because at that moment, a bright light suddenly rushed out from Qin Ye’s chest, revealing a line of golden words in the air.

Name: Qin Ye (Nickname - Dogballs)

Place of Origin: Liu Er Mound Village, Gazi Gully, Tang An County, Qingguang City

Family Members: Grandfather (deceased), Parents (deceased)

Date of Birth: 1 October 1938

“Hell’s Records?” Black Mamba gasped in horror. At that moment, he was fully convinced that Qin Ye was definitely one of the strongest contenders for the throne as the next King Yanluo of Hell!

Otherwise, something as important as this would never have appeared in his hands.

His mind spun quickly with some thoughts that he’d already been mulling over for a little while. It wasn’t difficult to see why Hell’s Records had suddenly appeared. Qin Ye had earlier explained that the test set by the Second King Yanluo was hardly an easy one. Managing people and international relations was naturally one of the key indicators of a good leader. Naturally, there was no doubt that this entire episode had to be one of the test questions to his potential successors.

But… even then, this alone didn’t justify the presence of Hell’s Records! He could tell from the dense Yin energy emanating from it that it was the original artifact. And even if it wasn’t, it would have to be a copy that was infinitely close to that of the original!

Thus, it stood a little bit more respectfully before Qin Ye. That said, Qin Ye wasn’t looking at him. He was more interested in the words written on Hell’s Records.

It just so happened that he hadn’t taken a look at the number of merit points he had accrued ever since becoming an Abyssal Prefect. So, he took a look.

And then, he turned back and slapped himself.

Bloody hell… is this a forgery that I’m looking at?!

“Don’t give yourself false hopes. What you see is exactly what it is.” The Harken quipped coldly.

Qin Ye opened Hell’s Record once more with great disdain.

Merit Points: 6,320,000 / 150,000,000.

Silence.

Thud! Qin Ye threw Hell’s Records straight to the ground and couldn’t help but break out in curses, “150 million?! Who are you kidding?!”

How can you joke around with matters of such great importance like becoming a Yama-King?! However, the Harken immediately slapped him across the face, “Do you know how hard I’d worked back then as an Abyssal Prefect, cultivating as hard as I can and stretching myself across every important matter occurring in both the mortal realm and the netherworld? And yet, I didn’t even get close to becoming a Yama-King even after all that! Do you think your greed is really justified?!”

Just then, the ground trembled slightly.

Qin-vigilant-Ye immediately picked up Hell’s Record once more and turned his back to Black Mamba as he patted the book down, “I’m not angry, I’m not angry at all… It was just the slip of the fingers…”

As he spoke, the sky was suddenly filled with a great eruption of light!

Light! Boundless light!

It was a golden glow that engulfed the entire Mongol Empire, almost like a veil that gently draped around the lands, penetrating the dark clouds of lingering Yin energy with unbelievable speeds before turning into a brocade of colourful haze. The beams of light flowed elegantly and gracefully, rippling with waves that extended millions of miles on end. Then, the curtain of arcane light slowly came together and began to swirl majestically like a glorious dance.

A blurry figure emerged from the heart of the vortex of light. And then, its presence was projected through the misty veil of light straight to the wilderness all around.

The figure appeared to be that of a bodhisattva clothed with white robes. However, he wore a string of human bones across his neck. His hands were adorned with bracelets woven with gold and feathers, while his entire body was covered with intricate tattoos. His facial features appeared ordinary, and somehow benevolent and kind. Despite that, he seemed also to exude a sense of divine fury and wrath.

His presence was ethereal and grand, and high and mighty. It evoked feelings of purity, admiration and worship from the heart. It was no different from standing before a divine god.

“Holy crap…” Qin Ye gasped in horror. But before he could say anything further, the Harken did a double take, and then murmured, “Is this the embodiment of Tengrism?”

They weren’t the only ones. At that moment, countless people in the Mongol Empire witnessed this surreal sight. The brocade of golden light quickly dispelled the roiling clouds of Yin energy generated by the arrival of the Mythic Spirits, and cast divine light over all of the Mongol Empire.

“Blessed Tengri…” Numerous believers immediately dropped what they were doing and clasped their hands together in devout worship. Even the non-believers couldn’t help but stare at the skies with their mouths agape.

The divine light shone brightly, and it continued to radiate across the entire lands. Not a single person was unmoved by this sight.

“What the hell is this?” A store clerk whipped out his cellphone and immediately snapped photos of the skies, “This is definitely not the light of the sun. Am I mistaken here? There seems to be someone hidden in this light! A figure… A human figure?!”

“Oh god! Is this the manifestation of Tengri?!”

Elsewhere, on the streets, a car rear ended the vehicle in front violently. Even then, the driver simply rolled down his window and pulled down his sunglasses before looking upon the brilliant lights in the sky with his lips agape. Several more vehicles ahead on this street were all involved in similar rear-end collisions, yet no driver thought to even step out of their vehicles. Everyone simply froze in horror as they stared at the skies.

“Is this… Tengri?” “Is this supposed to be a natural phenomenon?” “I can’t believe what I’m seeing right now! This must be one of the rarest mirages we’ve witnessed in this last century, isn’t it?” “Did the state not declare any warnings?”

Back in the Mongol Empire’s special agency. The Headquarters of the Tengri Guards. An old man dressed in the Mongol Empire’s military uniform stared at the screen before him in great disbelief, “What the hell is going on?! What’s the cause of this mirage? This is definitely no mean natural phenomenon!”

“I don’t know…” The staff member tapped desperately at the keyboard before him. He was sweating profusely, “There’s no Yin energy detected, nor is this true energy. This… this seems to be a purely natural phenomenon…”

But the old man ignored these signs. His facial muscles were all throbbing gently, and the corners of his eyes were even twitching slightly. The Mongol Empire had never witnessed such horrific supernatural incidents before. But, ever since last night, everything seemed to have devolved into complete chaos.

How can this be a natural sight?

The old man was vexed. He wondered if he should pry open his staff member’s head to see if it was filled with rice, or whether he should simply resign so that he wouldn’t get pissed by this bunch of idiots any longer!

Then, just as the anger in his heart was intensifying, he heard a soft beep from the machines. One of the staff members froze, and then immediately turned back and reported at the top of his voice, “Sir, we’ve located it!”

“100 kilometers outside Sukhbaatar! That’s where the light is congregating!”

………………………………………………..

Qin Ye didn’t leave.

Mortals weren’t able to see Emissaries of Hell to begin with, so he couldn’t care less about the fact that he was located at the heart of the supernatural phenomenon.

He simply glanced up at the majestic sight. But, just then, he suddenly noticed…

The ethereal image in the sky had opened his eyes!

His eyes were scarlet in colour, and he was staring directly at Qin Ye. Then, a split second later, a crack appeared on the top of his head, almost like a crumbling statue!

Crack… Everyone in the Mongol Empire could hear the crack. Moments later… Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack! The projection of Tengri actually cracked right down the middle and then split into two!

“The collapse of faith…” Black Mamba stared at the vault of the heavens with great emotion, “The Mongol Empire’s faith in Tengri will gradually disappear, because their underworld is no longer in existence, and is now part of the system of Hell. This is also the first time I’ve personally witnessed the extinction of an entire system of faith.”

Is this what it means to annihilate an underworld?

Is it the eradication of faith? Of an entire system of divinity?

Qin Ye watched with great emotions in his heart. At the same time, the golden light in the sky intensified to the extreme and erupted at once. Simultaneously, the lotus platform that Tengri was located on exploded into smithereens, transforming into countless petals of light! And then…

Like a violent tornado, it all rushed straight into Hell’s Records!