Yama Rising

I can't let things continue like this!

Qin Ye wasn't saying anything, but his nerves were constantly jangling. The press conference was still ongoing and there hadn't been too much controversy thus far. After all, the scientists present weren't going to raise questions using things that they couldn't even verify.

However, if things were to continue like this, something was going to have to give!

The only sign of his anxiety was his fingers, which were constantly tapping the table as a gesture to relieve some tension, and his mind was racing incessantly.

Zu Chongzhi was in the process of reading out the first part of the report, which spanned seven pages. There were still six pages left until the end of this first part, and these six pages contained too much technical content, making them far too easy to nitpick.

At Zu Chongzhi and Lu Ban's level of expertise, even if their logic were to be unraveled, it wouldn't unravel catastrophically. Furthermore, the Cathayan Underworld had a being above the Yama-King level in the form of Zhao Yun. He wouldn't know how to answer the technical questions about the project, but it could be said that his understanding of Yin runes exceeded that of the rest of the world.

Some theories that seemed to be implausible could be explained through different Yin rune combinations proposed by a being above the Yama-King level. If they couldn't even ensure that the presentation would be at least mostly plausible, then Qin Ye wouldn't even have decided to hold this press conference.

Unfortunately, the fact of the matter was that they were trying to swindle the rest of the world, and if Zu Chongzhi continued reading this first part of the presentation, something catastrophic was bound to happen. There were several theories involved in this first part that even Zhao Yun couldn't be certain of their viability.

In the scientific fields, blurred lines and gray areas couldn't be allowed to exist. Prior to this, Qin Ye had been holding onto a sliver of hope that perhaps the flaws in their presentation wouldn't be uncovered, but after the first round of questions, it was clear that he had been too naive, after all.

Thus, he gritted his teeth and carefully released a wisp of Yin energy, which whispered into Lu Ban's ear. "We can't continue reading this section of the presentation. Let me ask you this: are you and Zu Chongzhi willing to be disgraced?"

Lu Ban was rather taken aback by this sudden question, but before he had a chance to say anything, Qin Ye continued, "You are known to the rest of the world as the god of carpentry and masonry, and the father of pi, respectively… Are you willing to set aside those titles for now? I assure you that the disgrace that you suffer here will be made up for in spades within the next 20 years! However, during this time, you'll be denounced and scoffed at by all of your contemporaries… Are you willing to accept this for the sake of the Cathayan Underworld?"

Lu Ban shuddered ever so slightly upon hearing this, and only after a brief silence did he reply, "I am."

Qin Ye gritted his teeth as he continued, "Alright, then open up your consciousness and allow my consciousness to enter your body. Also, tell Zu Chongzhi to find an opportune moment to conclude the first part of the presentation as soon as possible!"

He could already sense that there were several scientists who were already preparing to ask further questions, and he didn't want to wait for the next question to be raised!

An important lesson that he had learned as King Yanluo was that adaptation was just as important as sound planning, and that when it came time for decisions to be made, they had to be made quickly and decisively!

Lu Ban gritted his teeth tightly, then gave a slight nod before turning to say something to Zu Chongzhi. A hint of surprise surfaced in Zu Chongzhi's eyes upon hearing what Lu Ban had to say, and several seconds later, he also nodded with a complex expression.

After that, he continued delivering the presentation as if nothing had happened.

"There is a very interesting theory in the mortal realm known as string theory. The basic viewpoint of string theory is that the fundamental units of the natural world aren't particles such as electrons, photons, neutrinos, and quarks. Instead, those units are minuscule strings, including open-ended strings and circular close-ended strings. The different vibrations and activity of the strings produce all types of different fundamental particles, and energy and matter can be converted into one another, so string theory doesn't prove that matter doesn't exist. The strings in string theory exist on an extremely tiny scale, and that controls their properties and basic principles. There are also several types of larger membrane-like objects, aptly named 'membranes'. Objectively speaking, the space that we exist in is likely to be a D3 membrane that exists in a 9+1 vector of space and time, and Yin runes are also membranes, forming layers that envelop the Yin runes below them. In order to discover true fermions or bosons, one would have to examine the most fundamental structures and determine whether space exists in the form of strings or points. According to the experiments that we've performed, we've already broken down Yin runes into proton Yin runes that cannot be broken down any further…"

10 minutes later, he picked up his teacup and took a sip, then cleared his throat a few times, but when he attempted to continue speaking, he discovered that his voice was a little hoarse, and a wry smile appeared on his face as he said, "Looks like my age is catching up to me."

It was also at this moment that Lu Ban surreptitiously took his place, then turned to everyone present with a smile as he said, "As the main architect of the project, Mr. Zu Chongzhi is responsible for research and experimentation, while I'm responsible for other areas. Please allow Main Architect Zu to take a moment of rest while I continue the presentation."

This was a very reasonable request.

Yin spirits didn't have to worry about physical fatigue, but mental fatigue was certainly still something that had to be considered, and no one was going to refute that point. In terms of age, Zu Chongzhi was far older than all of the other scientists present, perhaps even older than all of them combined, so no one denied him the chance to rest.

Everyone failed to notice that in the instant Lu Ban stepped up to the lectern, Qin Ye's eyes abruptly lit up before slowly falling shut as he sat beneath the stage.

His consciousness had already completely entered Lu Ban's soul, and this was the simplest type of possession. There was no difficulty involved, and with his lofty cultivation rank, no one would notice what he was doing.

I don't want to lie to the world, I just need a bit more time.

At the same time, Lu Ban also closed his eyes momentarily before reopening them, and unbeknownst to everyone, the man standing in front of the lectern had become the Cathayan Underworld's King Yanluo.

A derisive smile appeared on his face, but it was concealed beneath his white beard so no one could see it.

He then quickly adopted a serious expression, and he knew that what he was about to do next was most likely going to make Zu Chongzhi and Lu Ban denounced as pseudoscientists by the entire academic world.

Rest assured, the disgrace that you suffer today will act as fuel for you to light up the entire world in the future!

He clenched his fists tightly as he said, "Due to the differences in our assigned duties, please allow me to deliver the second part of the report."

All of the scientists immediately raised their heads with befuddled expressions upon hearing this.

Did this mean that the first part was over? No, it clearly wasn't over yet!

There was no clear conclusion, nor any solid evidence to support what had been said! There had to be at least a third of the presentation missing, and that was clear to everyone present, but they were moving on to the second part now?

Qin Ye paid no heed to the commotion that was beginning to arise within the venue as he continued, "The part that I'm responsible for is the promotion of the new energy resource for civilian and military use."

The commotion gradually died down out of respect for the speaker, but all of the scientists present were still utterly perplexed as they exchanged puzzled glances with their contemporaries.

There was clearly something wrong, but they couldn't figure out exactly what was amiss.

Maria turned to Khilok and was just about to say something, only to discover that Khilok, who had sat through Zu Chongzhi's address like a detached wooden statue, had suddenly become extremely interested in the presentation and was staring intently up at Lu Ban on the stage.

He wasn't the only one, all of the consortium and national representatives were displaying the exact same reaction.

They had all been on the verge of sleep during Zu Chongzhi's long and technical presentation, but all of them had suddenly been reinvigorated by this current segment. Some of them were even leaning forward and tapping their recorders on the shoulder, indicating to them not to miss even a single word that was said.

Qin Ye could see all of this from the stage, and he took a deep breath. He knew that his actions would lead to the research and development team being heavily criticized by the entire academic world. In fact, the Cathayan Underworld would likely be denounced for this, but he had no choice!

He couldn't allow the press conference to continue, knowing that it was destined to end in disaster. He had to seize the initiative and establish his own tempo. With that in mind, he cast his gaze past the scientists, towards the consortium and national representatives behind them.

Science was the driving force of the world, but scientists weren't the rulers of the world. Instead, that distinction belonged to these all-important representatives.

As long as these people felt this press conference to be acceptable, then the opinions of the scientists didn't actually have a decisive impact. Around half a month, while he had been discussing with the entire research team and Zhao Yun and the Harken strategies to help them weather the storm that was this Great Revelation Debate, everyone had been thinking about the issue from an academic point of view, yet he had suggested this new incision point that took advantage of human psychology.

If Zu Chongzhi and the others could handle everything thrown at them by all of the world's leading physicists, then he wouldn't have used this backup plan, as even he felt ashamed to do something like this. However, someone had to do this and bear the consequences.

Amid the silence, Qin Ye said through Lu Ban's mouth, "According to the physical effect of electricity, we made a prediction. Seeing as proton Yin runes are so similar to protons in the mortal realm, then the prediction we've made is that electron Yin runes will also be very similar to electrons in the mortal realm. In that case, the energy resource that we can derive from these Yin runes should be very similar to electricity in the mortal realm. In that case…"

He paused momentarily as he stroked his own beard with a smile before continuing, "Can we also predict that all electric circuits and appliance templates from the mortal realm can also be used in the underworld?"

The netherfire in the eyes of all of the consortium and national representatives in the venue instantly spiked up to three meters in height upon hearing this.

What did this entail? It entailed countless employment opportunities and the rise of at least several dozen new industries! In fact, the emergence of an 11th powerhouse consortium wouldn't even be out of the equation!

However, in contrast with them, Archimedes and Aristotle, who were seated at the back, were astonished by this abrupt change in subject, and their mouths gaped open as they exchanged a shocked glance.

"They can't just change the subject like this!" Aristotle exclaimed. "Prior to this, they were discussing whether particles existed or not, and whether they existed in the present or only in the past. If this point had been refuted, all of the national and consortium representatives would make careful consideration about how to proceed, but they've suddenly started discussing the project's developmental potential now! They're still talking about the same project, but these are different facets of the project entirely! All of what is being said now can only eventuate if the new energy resource is viable, and they haven't proved that yet!"

He immediately prepared to rise to his feet and protest. Among all of the scientists present, only death gods serving in the political sphere like them could identify this problem. Most of the other scientists were still engrossed in the report delivered by Zu Chongzhi earlier, leading to a failure to realize the fact that "Lu Ban" was attempting to swindle everyone!

If he didn't point this out and demand the discussion to return to the first part of the report, that first part would be accepted to have concluded and the press conference would continue while the most important questions still hadn't been answered!

However, as soon as he stood up, Archimedes grabbed onto his white lab coat before gently shaking his head, then gestured up ahead with a steely expression.

Aristotle reflexively cast his gaze forward upon seeing this, and right in front of them, all of the consortium representatives were waiting to pounce like sharks that had smelled blood!