Yama Rising

The Yin spirits within the city walls hadn’t even had the opportunity to look up.

Because if they did, they would have discovered the spell arrays that had appeared right above the four city walls.

They appeared with mysterious runic symbols that emanated hellish black Yin energy. The spell arrays rotated slowly, but the shockwave accompanying its appearance immediately blew away all Yin spirits within a fifty meter radius.

A split second later--

Whoosh!

It was like a majestic meteor shower.

As the spell array continued to spin, it began to pour out spots of sparkling white light, almost as though constellations of the milky way were being created from nothingness. Qin Ye, Arthis and the remaining 20,000 Yin soldiers watched the massive screen of Yin energy with bated breaths and clenched fists.

There’s no room for mistakes… We absolutely have to win this war!

There was an unprecedented urgency stirring in the depths of Qin Ye’s heart, far beyond any that he had ever experienced before. His heart was practically leaping out of his chest, and his breaths grew ragged. The palms of his hand were also completely soaked through with sweat. Incidentally, Arthis was experiencing the exact same thing.

This was a war that would determine the fate of the nation. Nobody wanted to leave something like that to pure chance and luck.

Limbo. All the Yin spirits, whether within or without Shanhai Pass, stared at the massive spell arrays above the city walls with their jaws agape. Two seconds later, the panic-stricken Yin spirits screamed in terror and began to scatter in all directions as quickly as they could!

From afar, it looked no different from a sun suddenly exploding on itself as the bits and pieces forming the whole splintered in all directions.

“My… god…” One of the ghostly citizens trembled as he stared at the sky, before shrieking at the top of his voice, “Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!! Oh god!!! Someone dares to attack hell…”

Shk!

But a stray arrow soon plunged straight through his head. Unfortunately, the ghostly citizens soon discovered something far more startling.

The wide roads in the city that they all knew too well was now filled with countless skeletal war horses that were rushing out like a tidal wave. Endless Yin soldiers followed closely behind the charge of the cavalry with their spears and shields raised menacingly in the air. Then, the last to follow were the archers. Banners of war flew high everywhere across the city. It was as though someone had trampled on an anthill, and the entire swarm of ants were pouring out from hiding right now!

Boom, boom, boom! The entire ground shook to the beat of their march.

“These are… the banners of all of our forces…” The ghostly citizens retreated from the main roads as they retreated to the sides. Those who recognized the flags exclaimed in horror, before fleeing back to the safety of their own homes where they took shelter from the chaos that ensued.

War…

War had begun! This was a real and proper war! A war of the underworlds! A war that was taking place under the mortal realm!

“By Hell’s Dictum, all rabble shall disperse!!!” The Qufu Yin soldiers yelled at the top of their voices. The ghostly citizens who weren’t able to escape from the main roads in time were instantly decimated with a single slash. In fact… this wasn’t the only road on which the exact same scene was panning out. In fact, all four inner city gates of Shanhai Pass had earlier opened at the exact same time, making room for the march of four large armies as they rushed straight for the outer city walls.

Meanwhile, the ballistae and cannons located on the inner city walls slowly began to charge up with Yin energy. Everything happened in the blink of an eye, almost as if the entire colossal city was baring its fangs the moment it was attacked!

Come…

Even broken jade is more precious than a piece of ceramic tile!

…………………………………………………….

West outer city walls.

All the Shanhai Pass Yin soldiers stationed here were frozen in horror as the massive spell array blossomed with starbursts right in front of their very eyes.

Their commander was a soldier dressed in modern military uniform, and he knew full well that this was no starburst. Rather… they were all spots of netherflames!

Enemy attack… It’s an enemy attack!! He turned around and bellowed, “Stop them!! They’re dead meat as soon as our reinforcements arrive!”

Boom!! But before he could even finish speaking, a vast shockwave of Yin energy blossomed from the westerly walls, and a valiant figure rushed straight out like a bolt of lightning. The long spear in her arm flourished with Yin energy like a blooming flower as it flew straight towards the enemy commander’s head!

“You’re courting death!!” The Qufu commander yelled at the top of his voice as he drew his sword to confront the enemy commander.

Sparks flew. A split second later, a miserable scream rang out. One party landed stably, while the other collapsed limply onto the ground. The rest of the Qufu Yin soldiers who were standing behind the enemy female commander stood frozen in place as they watched their own commander turn into a clump of netherflame that soon dissipated into the sky.

Dead?

Shanhai Pass was an immensely large city, and there were easily tens of thousands of troops guarding the walls that stood hundreds of meters wide from end to end. Countless Yin soldiers surrounded the enemy female commander and her troops like a watertight barrel, but none of them dared to make a single move.

He’s seriously dead? A single clash, and he was reduced to nothing but netherflames?

Killed in a single blow?

Several lesser commanders stepped forward in place of their now-deceased main commander and spoke with great trembling, “W-who are you?!” 

Mu Guiying stood her ground valiantly with a long spear in hand. Her hair was swept to the side along with her majestic cloak, and she hardly exhibited any traits one traditionally would associate with women. Instead, she exuded a ferocious aura of an apex predator, waiting to strike.

Whoosh… She raised her spear and pointed its tip at the lesser commanders who had stepped forward, and they immediately cowered and even retreated several steps back.

This was the overbearing valiance of thousands. The notion of instantly disposing of a Hellguard-class commander was simply too shocking, and every single one of the Qufu Yin soldiers who had witnessed this sight couldn’t help but feel awed and fearful of the valiant lady general that was Mu Guiying.

“Mu Guiying, Emissary of Hell.” Mu Guiying swept her gaze from commander to commander, “I was commanded to slay the impertinent. Evildoers shall be purged, but those who surrender shall be spared!”

Buzz… As soon as she said this, a multitude of netherflames erupted in the sky behind her. The transmission of Hell’s forces was finally complete. At once, all 20,000 troops roared in unison, “By Hell’s Dictum, all rabble shall disperse!”

Spear to spear, and sword to sword. Hell’s forces were surrounded on all sides, and yet… not a single one of Qufu’s Yin soldiers dared to make a single move.

This very moment exemplified the gap in military literacy of both factions.

70% of Hell’s forces were in fact Yang Jiye’s soldiers. They have been trained day and night back in the Felipinas, so much so that they had internalized everything they were to do in the event of war. In fact, not a single one of them could properly be called uninitiated when it came to doing battle in the first place.

But Shanhai Pass was completely different. They didn’t have the support of famous, reputable generals of ancient times, and they were forced to train their own soldiers from scratch. To make matters worse, the true elites among their midst were all deployed to the coastal areas to deal with the daolord’s approach. Furthermore, none of them had experienced proper warfare before. At best, they would only have scouted out the regions and taken down a Yin beast or two as prized trophies for their lords and generals.

But how could a Hunter-class Yin beast possibly resist the march of an army in the first place? Even a sea of Yin spirits could achieve the same effects!

Beyond that, the Yin soldiers of Qufu had never experienced proper warfare comprising the mighty clash of forces numbering tens of thousands at once.

Thus, none of them responded. None of them even knew remotely what the appropriate response should be.

They were completely stunned. But Mu Guiying clearly wasn’t having any of that. Three seconds later, she erupted with a furious cry, “CHARGE!!!”

The tip of her spear gleamed coldly, and then, a dazzling dance of spear strikes flourished.

She rushed forward in an instant, taking the lead as she dove headlong into the enemy lines. She raised her spear high, and then slammed it down onto the ground with mighty devastation!

BOOM!!!

A massive gully instantly appeared right above the city walls, spreading tens of meters with an ear-splitting crack. It was almost as though the entire enemy formation had been split into two by her powerful strike, and dust and debris scattered everywhere. Simultaneously, the 20,000-strong army behind her roared with fury and poured forth towards the enemy lines like raging waters!

“Victory to Hell!!! Charge!!!”

“Resist them… Fight back!!!” The lesser commanders of the Qufu army felt a chill run down their spine as they desperately shouted, “We must hold on! Reinforcements will be arriving here shortly!!”

They could already see the wave of Yin soldiers rushing out from the inner city gates.

The front lines of the Qufu Yin soldiers wanted nothing more than to retreat. Whether military discipline, morale or fighting spirit, they had already been utterly defeated. The great difference between war veterans and greenhorns was as apparent as it got. Unfortunately…

They were obstructed by the ranks of their own comrades that stood behind them. The backlines pushed forward, propping up the entire formation of troops. Unfortunately, this also meant that the front lines had absolutely no room for retreat!

A terrifying display of Yin energy erupted from the forces that bore down onto them. In that very instant, Hell’s forces appeared no different from an avalanche roaring down the sides of Mount Tai. The battle-hardened veterans rushed valiantly ahead like a roaring tiger, displaying without reservation their terrifying murderous intent. Trembling with fear, Qufu’s Yin soldiers instinctively picked up their long spears and held it up feebly. Yet, they found themselves unable to even muster the slightest of peeps.

Unfortunately, their worst nightmare was only just beginning.

When Hell’s forces were only ten meters away from the frontlines of the Qufu Yin soldiers, their formation suddenly staggered slightly, allowing an entire row of a hundred Black Armored Troops to surface onto the frontlines of the charge unhurriedly and in unison. Then, they drew their weapons.

Black Armored Troops of the Tang Dynasty!

Buzz!!

The air crackled and popped with tension.

And this was the final scene that the frontlines of Qufu’s army saw.

It was plain and simple, and yet the cold gleam of the Black Armored Troops’ concerted slash instantly decimated the frontlines of all who stood in their way, reducing them to nothing more than wisps of netherflames and clouds of Yin energy. The Black Armored Troops marched in front like reapers of souls with no emotions whatsoever. Every location that they passed was completely reduced to dust.

Dozens of Yin spirits fell with every swing of their blades. Qufu’s soldiers were arrayed with a seemingly watertight formation, and yet not a single one could resist the firm approach of the Black Armored Troops. Within moments, Hell’s forces had already pushed Qufu’s soldiers back by hundreds of meters!

They were unstoppable!

This was the might of the true forces of Hell!

One slash, and the skies were filled with countless spots of netherflames. Another slash, and the netherflames would be reduced into a cloud of Yin energy. They marched on with a ferocious tempo, never stopping and never slowing. On the other hand, the morale of Qufu’s frontline forces instantly fell to rock bottom. Every single one of them desperately fought to retreat from the frontlines - This is war… This is completely different from our expectations!

But their heads were sliced cleanly off their shoulders as soon as they turned back. At some point in time, another group of Yin soldiers dressed in Tang Dynasty armor had arrived right behind the dwindling Qufu forces.

And the man who stood right in the middle of these Tang Dynasty reinforcements was a man dressed like a Tang Dynasty official. However, it was not Lai Junchen.

He didn’t say a single word. Instead, he simply gazed coldly at a location that was three hundred meters away, where the Black Armored Troops were still advancing like demon gods descending into the mortal realm. It had only been a few short moments since the arrival of the enemy invaders, and yet the segment of the city walls that were hundreds of meters wide had already transformed into an advancing moat of sorts due to the hundred or so Black Armored Troops interspersed between the regular forces of Hell. They were practically invincible!

This is the bona fide army of Hell… And these are the fabled Black Armored Troops!! The man screamed in horror in his heart. The Black Armored Troops were practically the pride of all who lived during the great Tang Dynasty. He was all too familiar with what their existence represented. Naturally, he couldn’t keep his lips from quivering slightly.

There were over a dozen Hellguard-class Yin spirits and over fifty Hunter-class Yin spirits standing right behind him, blazing with battle intent at this very moment.

Apart from that, there were a multitude of Yin soldiers dressed in black armor that was formed up in ranks right behind what appeared to be the commander of these reinforcements.

These Yin soldiers stretched on for a hundred meters or so. At a glance, one would be able to tell that there were easily 30,000 Yin soldiers gathered up atop the city walls with an air of sobriety about them. However, not a single one of them marched ahead.

Rather, they were unable to march ahead.

The city walls that once used to look far too wide to them were now way too narrow for their current purposes.

At least, it wasn’t wide enough for tens of thousands of troops to clash against each other.

They must be stopped!

If we allow this to go on any longer, then everything that Qufu is built on is bound to collapse bit by bit like a shattering mirror.

But… how am I supposed to go about doing that?!

After a long time, he gnashed his teeth, “Onwards… And hold them off! All who dare retreat shall be executed for treason!”

“Yes!!!” Seven Hellguards bellowed back, leading their own army of soldiers forward like another wave in the ocean to reinforce the crumbling line of defense ahead of them.

The shield-bearers marched in front like a wall of shields that stretched on for hundreds of meters. Countless spears peeked out from the gaps between the shields, followed by archers who soon ignited their arrows with netherflames.

Everyone was poised to strike!

The archers at the backlines had their arrows trained on Mu Guiying’s forces. Once Qufu’s frontline forces crumbled completely, what awaited them was going to be an all-encompassing counterattack.

Qufu’s reactions weren’t slow, especially given the fact that none of them had ever anticipated someone breaching the outer walls and entering the city in the first place!

After all, Qufu’s Shanhai Pass was supposed to be an unbreakable fortress!

Then, as soon as the army marched out, the Tang Dynasty commander turned around and whispered through gnashed teeth, “Prepare the Mohist Mechanical Beast.”

“Mr Li!!” The rest of the Hellguards couldn’t help but gasp in horror, “But there are still tens of thousands of our own forces on the city walls!”

“Do you not understand what I’ve just said?!!” Mr Li bellowed back with great rage, and the netherflames in his eyes immediately turned red, “We cannot let them enter the inner city at any cost! Qufu has fifty-six years of history right now. So long as we can stand firm, we’d undoubtedly be the next hell!!”

“Go! Prepare the Mohist Mechanical Beast!” His seven apertures were billowing with Yin energy by now, “I don’t want to see a single living creature on this city wall when I’m done… not even a single ghost!”