Yama Rising

"I understand," Qin Ye replied with a nod. "Between me and the inner demon, one of us has to die, so there's no need for you to try and fan the flames."

Everyone has some things in their lives that are worth fighting for and striving toward. Even the most spineless cowards would be willing to rise up defiantly for the things that they cherished the most.

Nothingness nodded in response, then flicked a finger through the air, and a streak of light flew into Qin Ye's glabella. "That is the piece of Qin Zhongguo's soul that was captured by the second King Yanluo. It's completely undetectable, but with it, you'll be able to sense the location of the inner demon."

After that, Nothingness vanished into a cloud of white mist, and only then did Qin Ye allow himself a sigh of relief before turning to Zhao Yun with a faint smile.

"Congratulations, Your Excellency!" Zhao Yun cupped his fist in an elated salute as he extended a deep now. "There are only seven advanced Yama-Kings left in the world, and you are the eighth one!"

An emotional smile appeared on Qin Ye's face. Who could've imagined that a coward like him would be able to reach such dizzying heights from his humble beginnings back in Clear Creek County?

What did this mean? It meant that no matter how talented one was, the dao of cowardice was always number one!

Qin Ye resisted the urge to verbalize that rather shameful sentiment, then asked, "Did Arakshasa become a Yama-King?"

"That's right!" In the wake of these two massive pieces of good news, Zhao Yun was barely able to contain his elation. "Three days before you completed your breakthrough, Arakshasa had already completed her breakthrough. She has given herself the title of the Reincarnation King, and the Harken has granted her the title of the Yama-King of the First Palace in your stead."

A nostalgic look appeared in Qin Ye's eyes.

She's finally made it…

This was definitely good news. Where was the Cathayan Underworld lacking in comparison with the three pillars? It was lacking in age, thereby resulting in a massive disparity between their populations, as well as the number of mid and high-grade underworld emissaries that could only arise through the passage of time.

All of the other three pillars had formidable death gods that had arisen throughout the course of history, yet the Cathayan Underworld only had three death gods, one of which was severely injured and nowhere near the height of its powers.

As a result, he was constantly feeling insecure whenever he had to engage in direct confrontation with the other three pillars. However, he finally had some confidence now.

He looked up to the heavens with anticipation in his eyes as he murmured to himself, "In another 1,000 years, Qin Changxin and the others could become Yama-Kings as well. Once that happens, the Cathayan Underworld will truly have nothing to fear."

Perhaps by then, space exploration would've already become prevalent in the underworld. Brand new civilizations would emerge on the colonized planes, and there was even a possibility that the religions that had already been lost to the sands of time could be resurrected! For example, there were the three new continent religions that were hanging on by a thread, and the Celtic religion, which was about to fall. If that were to happen, how many more ruler death gods would emerge?

That would be a truly exciting era.

However…

A cold look appeared in his eyes as he inspected his surroundings with a grim expression. Even here, he could sense a sinister gaze watching him.

Before anything else could be done, he had to take care of the inner demon first.

This was the biggest crisis that had arisen since his inauguration, and the inner demon was provoking him without any inhibitions!

"Brother Zhao." Qin Ye turned to Zhao Yun with a serious expression. "Have there been riots taking place in the Cathayan Underworld recently?"

A stunned look appeared on Zhao Yun's face upon hearing this, and he immediately nodded in response. "Yes. There have been seven riots thus far, each one on a larger scale than the previous one. We've launched thorough investigations and found no reasons for our netherworldly citizens to rise up in revolt. There were even some who were praising Hell the previous day, only to rise up in revolt the next day, and it's all been extremely perplexing."

Qin Ye nodded in response and didn't immediately reply.

How could he take care of the inner demon?

It wasn't in the underworld as it had no anchor point there. However, searching for it in the mortal realm would be no different from searching for a needle in a haystack.

The inner demon was able to switch from host to host at will and was nigh untraceable. While it was true that with the piece of Qin Zhongguo's soul given to him, he could sense the presence of the inner demon, but what was he going to do with that?

How many people had the inner demon possessed over the past century? If he were to approach its host, would it not notice? As a being above the Yama-King level, it would be able to scour through the entire nation with a single glance, so there was no opportunity for him to strike.

The inner demon could just wait until he had almost reached its host, then switch to another host on the other side of the nation! What would he be able to do then?

In addition to that, even Zhao Yun most likely wasn't a match for the inner demon, so he wouldn't be able to do anything to it even if it didn't run away.

"Have you heard of the inner demon?" Qin Ye suddenly asked.

Zhao Yun shook his head in response. "I have not."

"Then, can you sense the presence of another being above the Yama-King level here in Cathay in the mortal realm?"

Zhao Yun closed his eyes for a full 10 minutes, then reopened his eyes as a grim look appeared on his face. "I am unable to sense such a presence."

Qin Ye nodded in response. "The riots in the Cathayan Underworld were caused by the attempts of a Yin spirit above the Yama-King level, known as the inner demon, to enter the Cathayan Underworld. I'll tell you about the specific details later, let's go and meet an old friend for now."

He cast his gaze downward as he spoke. He didn't know how long his breakthrough had taken, but several thousand investigators had already gathered down below, and they were all looking up at the sky with anxious expressions.

If he wanted to bring down the inner demon, he couldn't just rely on the power of the underworld alone as that would essentially be submitting himself to a stance of passivity from the get-go. In order to maximize his chances, he needed to take advantage of the surveillance network across the entirety of Cathay.

There was nothing that Cathay couldn't do as long as the government decided that it had to be done, and that was the main advantage of an autocratic political system.

……………………………………

Zheng Shuguo was looking up at the sky with a nervous expression. The two beings in the sky above were giving off ridiculously vast Yin energy, and they seemed to be conversing about something.

No one had brought out their true energy weapons as they didn't want to escalate the situation. Furthermore, they knew that their weapons were going to be completely ineffective on these two Yin spirits, who stood at the very pinnacle of the cultivation world.

They had already been here for nine whole days, and more and more investigators had been sent from other areas as reinforcements, including even several Infernal Judges. No one dared to let down their guard. After all, these two Yin spirits could easily tip the entirety of Cathay on its head if they wished to do so.

Just as these thoughts were flashing through his mind, he suddenly felt something, and he shuddered before immediately raising his head, only to discover that Qin Ye was also looking down at him.

It was too far away for him to identify Qin Ye, but Qin Ye's gaze alone was enough to make him feel as if he had stepped into hell, and his mind instantly went completely blank.

He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but he wasn't able to muster up a single word. A blur flashed before his eyes, and the two Yin spirits were already standing in front of him.

So fast!

They were unfathomably fast! If they wanted to take his life, he wouldn't even be aware of what was happening before he dropped dead!

However, the fear and caution in his heart was gradually replaced by a sense of relief as he had already identified the two Yin spirits standing before him.

"Welcome, Yanluo Qin, Ghost King Zhao." He extended a hand forward in a friendly manner.

He had only been in charge at the Special Investigations Department for three years, and he had heard about some of the past matters, but they weren't very clear to him. However, all investigators had to know those who were in power in Hell.

"Hello." Qin Ye also extended a hand to shake Zheng Shuguo's hand with a smile. "May I ask who you are?"

"I am the director of the Special Investigations Department, Zheng Shuguo."

Does that mean Old Man Lei has also retired? Times really have changed… How many people from back at the Academy of Cultivators have already started families? How many of them are still holding down jobs in the Special Investigations Departments? How many of them… are still alive?

A hint of bittersweet nostalgia welled up in his heart, yet these emotions immediately faded with a brief flash of the Nostalgia Yin rune within his glabella.

Zheng Shuguo was only a nascent Abyssal Prefect, so he was naturally unable to sense something as advanced as the Nostalgia Yin rune. However, Zhao Yun was immediately able to sense it, and he swung around to stare at Qin Ye with a stunned expression.

Was that just a figment of my imagination just now? I feel like I just sensed something related to the fundamental essence of Yin runes! Where has Yanluo Qin been these past few years?

"Abyssal Prefect Arakshasa of Hell is making a breakthrough to become a Yama-King, and in order to not take any Yin energy from her, I came to the mortal realm to make my breakthrough. Apologies for any disturbance I may have caused," Qin Ye said with a smile as he withdrew his hand. "Also, all of the Yin spirits in Cathay have just been wiped out, and no evil ghosts above the Anitya Hellguard level will appear in at least the next 50 years."

A wry smile appeared on Zheng Shuguo's face.

This was fantastic news, but didn't this mean that the status of the Special Investigations Department was going to fall once again?

Did the Special Investigations Department even have any purpose for existing at this point? He was quickly contemplating whether he should be reporting this piece of information to his higher-ups.

Qin Ye paid no heed to what Zheng Shuguo was thinking. Instead, his smile faded as a grim look appeared on his face, and he said, "Mr. Zheng, I require a strictly confidential conference hall right now. I want to invite all of the provincial-level officials related to Yin spirits for an important meeting."

A serious look appeared in Zheng Shuguo's face upon hearing this, and he asked, "What level of importance is the meeting?"

"It concerns the safety of the entire nation," Qin Ye replied. "Hell needs your help. I only recently became aware of the fact that there has always been a Yin spirit above the Yama-King level lurking in the mortal realm. It has already existed for thousands of years, and not long ago, it officially declared war on Hell."

An evil ghost above the Yama-King level?!

Zheng Shuguo was astonished to hear this. "I'll organize the meeting right away!"

……………………………………

10 PM.

A plane touched down at the Yanjing airstrip. Not many people were aware of the existence of this exclusive airstrip. Behind the airstrip was a row of antiquated buildings with golden tiles and red walls, and even though it was 10 o'clock at night, the buildings were still brightly lit inside.

A Hongqi sedan with a number plate that began with the number "0" was parked in the parking lot, and in the side hall, several young men and a middle-aged man were gathered together, drinking tea, taking occasional glances at the main hall.

Most of the people sitting here were wearing Mao suits, while the rest were wearing military uniforms, and they were all at least at the senior colonel rank. In fact, there were even a few major generals among them.

One of the major generals turned to a square-faced man with a smile and asked, "Secretary Li, what's going on today? Even the deputy prime minister, Director Zheng of the Special Investigations Department, and all of those directors that are related to affairs on the other side are over here. Did something happen on the other side again?"

His smile faded as he spoke.

No one wanted to experience another 10 years of horrific supernatural disasters!

Secretary Li shook his head in response. "I'm not sure what's happening, either, but just like you said, the fact that all of these people are here means that something serious is afoot."

Everyone fell silent and turned toward the main hall with concerned expressions.

They had only enjoyed a few years of peace.

During the war against those invisible monsters, countless investigators had given their lives, and only they were aware of just how terrifying the extent of the supernatural disasters had been.

The peace that they had was extremely hard-fought, and no one wanted to lose it.