Yama Rising

Rumyantsev froze for an instant, before swinging his sword and parrying Liu Yu’s attack. It didn’t matter how strong Liu Yu was. He was merely an Infernal Judge. There was no way he could ever harm Rumyantsev.

“Are you mad?” Rumyantsev stared at Liu Yu with great consternation. Likewise, Qin Ye stared at Liu Yu, wondering why he would suddenly lay hands on Rumyantsev.

He could tell that copious amounts of Yin energy was pouring forth from Liu Yu’s body, and his eyes were completely bloodshot. He stared intently at Rumyantsev with tensed muscles, almost as though he were dead set on overwhelming Rumyantsev with sheer rage and fury.

He’s not acting… Has he really gone mad?

Qin Ye blinked as he took several steps back, seizing the opportunity to recover as much of his own Yin energy as he could. That said, he was also curious as to why this was happening.

“Am I mad?” Liu Yu’s entire body was shrouded with Yin energy. Even then, with a grimace on his face, he slowly marched forward towards Rumyantsev. A web of cracks appeared on the ground with each step that he took.

“Have I gone mad? Yeah, I’ve gone mad.”

As he spoke, he suddenly leapt up into the air as quick as lightning. The dim moonlight shone down on his body, and a shadow actually appeared right beneath his feet!

It was a ghastly shadow with a large head and dishevelled hair. With a shrill shriek, it peeled its slender, withered fingers shadow right off the ground and reached directly for Rumyantsev’s head!

Qin Ye was located dozens of meters away right now, but even he couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine. It was obvious that Liu Yu was putting his entire heart and soul into killing Rumyantsev right now.

“Damn it!” Rumyantsev cursed and vanished from his spot, only to reappear 50 meters away, where he promptly responded with coldness in his voice, “Liu Yu… don’t you think you’ve gone too far? What the hell are you so mad about?!”

Boom!!! The ground rumbled, and dust and debris scattered everywhere. At once, Liu Yu’s attacks caused ten deep grooves to appear in the ground where Rumyantsev had been just a moment ago. He slowly straightened his body and revealed a hideous smile on his face. All this while, his eyes remained transfixed on Rumyantsev and Rumyantsev only.

Is he really trying to kill me?

The netherflames in Rumyantsev’s eyes pulsated for a moment, and he slowly tightened his grip around the cross-hilted sword under his cloak.

Everything seemed to pause in this tense moment. Seconds later, Liu Yu sighed wistfully, “What am I supposed to do next?”

Rumyantsev was taken aback, and he immediately grew taciturn. However, Qin Ye’s eyes gleamed brightly because he immediately understood what was going on.

Liu Yu was indeed bent on killing Rumyantsev.

The reason? Because… his entire army of Yin soldiers was gone!

The Hanyang Underworld didn’t have many Yin soldiers to begin with. Qin Ye had learnt during the imperial court meeting last year that the twelve envoys had only learnt of the truth about Hell in recent years. Who would dare conscript new forces and expand their armies in such a short span of time?

Besides, how much could they possibly expand their forces in just ten years?

It would never exceed 70,000 Yin soldiers!

And of that number, approximately 50,000 Yin soldiers had been completely reduced to dust from Qin Ye’s stroke of Fate earlier. This was undoubtedly a devastating blow, especially to someone who was planning to seize control of Hell with the forces he had!

Furthermore, it wasn’t just the numbers that mattered, but the significance behind these numbers. After all, how was Liu Yu supposed to maintain law and order in his underworld without Yin soldiers? How was he supposed to find his voice on the international stage without the authority of military might backing him? How was he supposed to stand on equal footing with the other underworlds in the region?

Power and authority flows from the barrel of a gun. Without military might, his fate was clear.

He would have no choice but to become a vassal of the Russian Underworld.

This would be completely different from what he had been working towards all this while! He desired independence. He desired his own kingdom. Don’t forget - how did these Yin soldiers perish?

They were eviscerated by Fate. That said, he knew full well that Rumyantsev had met with Zhong Kui before, and he was clearly aware that Zhong Kui held Fate in his hands. However, he had clearly left out such an important piece of information all this while.

All alliances were built on the foundation of common interests. Liu Yu was filled with indignation, so much so that his heart verged on madness. He truly desired to kill Rumyantsev, but he knew better. He wasn’t a match for Rumyantsev. And even if he were, he couldn’t afford to make an enemy of the Russian Underworld, especially after already making an enemy of Hell.

Thus, he grew silent. He didn’t dare say another word. Everyone had their moments of temper. That said, it was far more important to have self-restraint and keep everything under control.

“My Lord… Have they… rebelled?” Kwon Kyung-ho muttered with astonishment.

“No…” Qin Ye continued watching their interactions closely. An intense murderous intent was still flowing from Liu Yu’s body. Unfortunately, it was no longer directed at Rumyantsev. Instead… it was directed at him.

He needed an outlet for venting.

He couldn’t swallow this bitter pill without doing a thing!

And who was the most suitable candidate for his venting of frustration?

Qin Ye silently and slowly took a few steps back. However, Liu Yu’s gaze had already landed directly on him

There weren’t any other emotions apart from the pure, unadulterated murderous intent that poured forth like waters from a cold spring. It was chilling to the bone.

“He’s making his move.” Ryu Changmin spoke gravely. An Abyssal Prefect and the strongest Infernal Judge of the old Hell were now joining forces. This was a force to be reckoned with.

“Do you sense the MV Sewol being dragged right out of the Yin Yang Mezzanine?” Qin Ye asked softly.

“No… In fact, I can sense that they’ve encountered an obstacle…”

Damn it!

Qin Ye cursed in his heart. Despite the intensity of Liu Yu’s incisive gaze, Qin Ye stood tall and stepped forward bravely, glaring right back into Liu Yu’s eyes.

His heart thumped wildly, and his palms were covered with sweat.

It’s a good thing that Rumyantsev hasn’t personally made a move just yet. I’m also a Judge, just like Liu Yu. I should be able to buy some time for the next step of our plans… right?

“How do you want to do this?” Rumyantsev glanced at Liu Yu, “Time is of the essence. I can get rid of him summarily…”

“No.”

With a faint smile, the Yin energy behind him erupted with such intensity that the surroundings even began to somewhat distort, “Let me do it.”

Otherwise, where am I supposed to vent all of this anger and frustration?!

If I can’t take your head with me, I’ll at least have to take the head of the other source of all my pain and problems!

The netherflames in Rumyantsev’s eyes flickered wildly. He was anxious to close out the problems that had arisen. Qin Ye stood valiantly in front of the massive vortex, directly in their way of entering the heart of Gonjiam Asylum. That said, he could also tell that Liu Yu was in a peculiar condition right now. Thus, he swallowed what he was about to say and gave in to Liu Yu.

After all, he wasn’t just a Marquis. He was also a special emissary of the Russian Underworld. And since that was the case, it was only natural for him to be considering the interests of the Russian Underworld before his own.

They weren’t willing to pass up on Liu Yu.

Granted, they had befriended Liu Yu with the primary intention of communicating with Hell through him. And now that direct negotiations with Hell had clearly fallen through… it was clear that they needed Liu Yu now more than ever.

Thus, after three seconds of deliberation, he flicked his sleeves and sheathed his jeweled cross-hilted sword, “Don’t let me down.”

“If you can’t take him down in three minutes’ time, then… I’ll make my move.”

Liu Yu chuckled.

“I won’t even need three minutes.”

Liu Yu walked over with his hands behind his back until he stood ten meters before Qin Ye. And then, he gazed deeply into Zhong Kui’s eyes, “I’ve given you a chance.”

Qin Ye remained silent. He didn’t care to say a thing at all. After all, it was only on the cusp of a duel with the strongest Infernal Judge in the history of the old Hell that he finally understood how overwhelming the pressure was. As Liu Yu spoke, his Yin energy slowly faded away, until there was completely nothing left emanating from his body.

But it hadn’t disappeared.

Rather, it was because Liu Yu had simply returned to his roots. It was like the sheathing of a sword in preparation for the battle ahead. The next release would undoubtedly be a fight to the death!

That said, it was still incredibly peculiar - so much so that even Rumyantsev couldn’t help but do a double take at Liu Yu with great surprise.

Just then, Liu Yu sighed, “We were once colleagues. Why did you have to force my hand like this?”

As he spoke, Qin Ye felt his heart suddenly seize up, and he reflexively shielded his chest with his hands without even realizing what he was doing. A split second later, and with a loud bang, a ring of pitch-black Yin energy shockwave erupted in front of him, sending him flying back dozens of meters at once!

Kkkrrr… His feet dug deep grooves as he ground to a halt. Moments later, he turned his attention to his arms, discovering to his horror that it was throbbing with immense pain.

It was so bad that even his bones were creaking. Was it… a kick? Or a punch? How did it contain such overwhelming force?

Unfortunately, before he could even process what went on, he immediately detected another wave of Yin energy aimed directly at his back, and a great sense of crisis surged from the base of his spine. At once, he turned his Judgment Pen into a lance and swung it behind his back.

Liu Yu moved too quickly!

In fact, it was so fast that Qin Ye couldn’t even keep up with his movements altogether!

Before he could even heave a sigh of relief, the overwhelming force bore down on him like a colossal mountain. It was so powerful that even the Judgment Pen couldn’t help but let out a soft whimper. Qin Ye immediately made the snap decision to drop his Judgment Pen and leap up from the ground.

“My Lord!!!” Ryu Changmin yelled out after Qin Ye. However, he could see Qin Ye discreetly shake his head back at him in the midst of his evasive maneuver.

It wasn’t time yet.

He had to keep his cards hidden close to his chest. Who knew whether Rumyantsev would be able to breach Ryu Changmin’s Judge-class domain ability or not? And if so, how long could Ryu Changmin possibly hold out under his sheer pressure? It was clearly premature to be taking action. Besides, it wasn’t as though Qin Ye were completely powerless right now.

“How can this bastard be so powerful?!” His eyes grew bloodshot, yet his mind was filled with unprecedented clarity. Even though he didn’t have much Yin energy left in his reserves, every bit of time he could buy counted.

Just then, his body came to a sudden halt.

Droplets of sweat dripped down onto the ground as he slid sideways abruptly and then slapped violently on the ground.

Rattle! At once, countless chains emerged from beneath the ground like venomous vipers, rising high into the air as they attempted to bind and tie up Liu Yu.

However, Liu Yu simply simply flipped in the air, and then completely vanished from sight once more!

So quick?

His mind was filled with abject disbelief. Is this the might of the one hailed as the strongest Infernal Judge of all time? Just how much stronger than Arthis is he?!

“After so many years, you still haven’t improved in the slightest bit.” Liu Yu chuckled coldly from behind, before whispering into Qin Ye’s ears through gritted teeth, “You’ve killed tens of thousands of my precious Yin soldiers… So, now, you pay with your life!!”

At once, he reached out for Qin Ye’s neck like a bolt of lightning!

However…

“What’s this…” Liu Yu immediately turned and looked at his hand. His fingers trembled desperately as he made his repeated attempts at Qin Ye’s neck. But no matter how much he tried, he simply couldn’t grab hold of Qin Ye’s neck.

“Haah--...” Qin Ye gasped for air, ignoring the throbbing pain in his bones, joints and internal organs in his entire body. At once, he whipped around and grabbed Liu Yu’s throat, “Colleague?”

“No matter how much of a weakling and coward I am, at least I identify myself as a born and bred Emissary of Hell. Even in death, I’ll always be a ghost of Fengdu.”

With ragged breaths, Qin Ye slowly tightened his grip around Liu Yu’s throat, “And the Emissaries of Hell have never recognized a traitor as one of their colleagues… ever!!”

As he spoke, he kicked out violently, striking Liu Yu squarely across the chest.

Just then, the Spatial Spirit appeared right behind Liu Yu with his mouth wide open, fervently devouring Liu Yu with all of his might. Meanwhile, as Liu Yu flew back, countless chains emerged from Qin Ye’s sleeves and instantly bound up Liu Yu’s body in the air.

Heavenly Dragnet!

Rattle… The chains forcibly hoisted up Liu Yu’s body. Ignoring the sharp pain ravaging his entire body, Qin Ye yelled at the top of his voice and rode a ferocious nethergale forward as he charged forward towards Liu Yu at once!

Then, with a beautiful flourish, Qin Ye threw his spear like a bolt of lightning straight for Liu Yu’s throat!

“It’s over.” Rumyantsev’s eyes gleamed brightly, and he shook his head as he slowly began to walk towards the vortex at the Gate of the Dead.

As expected… he’s absolutely peerless as far as Infernal Judges are concerned.

What he saw was completely different from what Qin Ye perceived.

Liu Yu had clearly been bound up and hoisted into the air, yet Qin Ye still saw… a terrifying evil ghost opening his bloody mouth!