Yama Rising

He wasn’t the only one either. Every other Yin spirit on board the Russian flotilla froze in horror.

The golden curtain of light before them rippled wildly. This was none other than the Array of the Nine Gods that sequestered Cathay from the rest of the world. This was a barrier that was often said to be rigid as an unbreakable wall, and yet it flowed as soft as a curtain. Just then, a giant hand appeared to push gently on the other side of the curtain.

Rustle… The palm print was prominent. Countless symbols of Yin Talismans appeared to crackle on the surface of the golden curtain. Then, seconds later, with a soft rustle, a brilliant light erupted from the golden curtains, dazzling the night sky.

It was almost as though a rift had opened in the sky. The curtain tore open, sending a flurry of Yin Talismans shimmering into the night sky around. Meanwhile, dense Yin energy poured out from the crack, followed closely by the emergence of a massive hand blazing with blistering netherflames.

Thud, thud, thud, thud! Back on the seas. The emissaries of both the Russian flotilla and the Alkebulan fleet instinctively got down on their knees. Their bodies trembled violently, yet they kept their heads bowed low.

“What the hell is going on? What terrifying monster is this?!” Ivantov’s lips quivered wildly as he lay prostrate on the ground, “I-I’ve seen the Tsar in person, but… the breath of this monster is even more t-t-terrifying than the Tsar himself!”

“Yama-King! This has to be a Yama-King!! One of the Yama-Kings of the Ten Palaces? Only they could possibly rival the might of the Tsar! B-but then again, does it even make sense that a mere flotilla bearing reparations would attract the gaze of a Yama-King of Hell?!”

Dead silence.

The fiery hand crackled wildly, emitting a pale blue light that shone with greater brilliance than the Array of the Nine Gods. Just then, a voice boomed across the seas, “Heed my words.”

“You may enter, but anyone who leaves the designated areas will be killed without trial.”

“Anyone who interacts with undesignated Yin spirits shall be killed without trial.”

“Anyone who attempts to spy on the internal affairs of Hell, or does anything beyond your designated tasks, shall be killed without trial.”

The repeated mentions of being killed without trial caused all of the Yin spirits to tremble with great fear. The voice spoke with great tyranny and authority, and they felt as though a god of death’s hand was weighing heavily on them all. It was almost like they were facing some cosmic powers that were completely beyond their comprehension. Not a single one of them dared to even breathe loudly.

The hair on the nape of their necks stood on end, yet nobody said a word. Three seconds later, the voice boomed once more, “Understand?”

“Yes!!!” The Yin spirits yelled back at the top of their voices. The immense fear in their heart meant that they would have acceded to any of the voice’s requests in any event. After all, they could all tell that this was an entity that none of them could afford to mess with.

“Get up.” At once, the oppressive weight on their shoulders lifted at once, and the lingering traces of the voice chuckled softly like a departing god, “The fact that you’re here means that you’re our friends and partners, so long as you play by the rules. Now, follow me through the Array of the Nine Gods. You have 10 minutes.”

Yes… Ivantov responded in his heart as he scrambled to his feet, kept his head down and ran back to his cabin. Then, as soon as he arrived, he slammed the door shut and heaved a sigh of relief.

How terrifying… He hadn’t dared to look up for a single moment. Terror crept through his heart like a brood of maggots, and it was more gut-wrenching than death itself. The netherflames in his eyes had even been stifled so greatly that they were on the cusp of being completely extinguished.

And it was then that he finally began to question whether the Council of the Russian Underworld had made the right decision or not.

When the Tsar first informed everyone of the war reparations, the entire Council erupted into an uproar, incensed by what the Tsar was forced to agree to. This was why it was the Pyotr that came, rather than any other merchant fleet.

I can’t accept this, so I’m going to protest in this little way of mine! I’ll use the Pyotr to send you a signal! Once the border is open, I’ll have my sailors charge straight into your port. These were the orders that Ivantov had received.

But he didn’t dare do so now.”

“Mr Ivantov!” Just then, there was suddenly a knock on the door, “Something’s gone wrong… Something’s gone wrong! The Yin beast Anglo is… is… it’s retreating!!”

Ivantov’s mind went numb at once. Everything was going wrong. He gritted his teeth and rushed out of his cabin once more, where he immediately barked through gritted teeth, “To hell with that blasted--...”

And then, he gasped in horror.

Retreating. They were retreating rapidly! So fast that it was even kicking up waves that were over 10 meters high! Anglo roared from underwater as it retreated desperately for its life!

Bloody hell! Is that idiot courting death?!

Ivantov could swear that he was seeing stars right now, and he barked orders without hesitation, “Stop it at once! Hold it steady! Where’s our beastmaster? What the hell are they doing?! Where the hell are they?!!!”

It was understandable why he was going mad.

After all, he was controlling a mothership bearing war reparations, and they were departing almost as soon as they were granted entry. What would Hell think?

“It’s no use! Sir, Anglo has suddenly gone into a frenzy. We’ve tried three different measures of seizing control of it, but all to no avail!!”

Damn it… damn it!!! How did things come to this!

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the time to be languishing in his problems. He immediately looked up into the deep skies and shouted desperately, “Great Emissary of Hell!!! Our Yin beast has gone out of control, and we don’t know the cause! Please forgive--...”

He started out incredibly loud, but then soon trailed off to a soft murmur, “P-p-p-please f-f-forgive us…”

Just then, the colossal palm spanning thousands of meters on end appeared once more. But this time, it was clear that an Emissary of Hell was standing right in the heart of the blazing palm.

The Alkebulan fleet passed through the Array of the Nine Gods like insects under their human master, and not a single sailor on board those ships dared to even look up. Everyone kept their heads bowed low with incomparable reverence and awe, as they took a brave step into the mystical lands that had remained closed to the world for the last hundred years.

This was a sight that they would forever remember in their hearts. It was a moment that redefined everything they knew of the netherworld.

Overbearing might, and overflowing grace.

As soon as Ivantov cried out, the Emissary of Hell that stood in the heart of the palm appeared to look his way, and then… smile. A split second later, the Emissary of Hell suddenly vanished into thin air, and the colossal hand actually reached right over to the Russian flotilla!

“My god!!!” It was as quick as lightning. A split second later, the colossal hand was already directly over the Russian flotilla. Ivantov screamed at the top of his voice, and immediately clutched his head and crouched down onto the ground. Many of the other Yin spirits likewise braced themselves and lay prone on the ground.

Is Hell really going to make a move against the Pyotr?!

Then, in the next moment, he felt himself… flying.

T-t-t-t… His teeth were chattering wildly as the winds swept past him. He forcefully repressed the intense fear in his heart and decided to peek out at what was going on.

They were flying.

They were actually flying!

The Pyotr - a beast that was tens of kilometers large, had been lifted right off the surface of the seas, leaving the Anglo’s colossal body struggling in mid-air as water poured off its body.

How the hell did this happen?!

I mean… what the hell is going on here?!

Even the sailors on the Alkebulan fleet froze in shock. Their emissaries stared at the colossal hand in the sky with their lips agape. The Anglo was a massive narwhal, and it was currently soaring through the skies as though it came right out of a fantasy story. The damp surface of its body reflected the bright gleam of the moonlight, while the series of complex buildings on its back shuddered in fear. Even the Anglo couldn’t help but chirp softly in amazement.

“Blessings of the ancestors…” One of the Alkebulan Yin spirits lowered his head and began to chant a prayer in his heart.

And he wasn’t the only one. In fact, every Yin spirit that had witnessed the amazing sight couldn’t help but stare aghast at the unbelievable sight before their eyes. They saw the Anglo rebelling against its masters, the colossal flaming hand hovering over the Pyotr, flicking its wrist softly, and then… the Pyotr lifted right out of the sea.

It was merely a flick.

Just like how a person would flick off dust on his shoulders.

“Is this what the might of a top underworld is like…” The Alkebulan Yin spirits gazed blankly at the skies as the Anglo soared through the air. A dark shadow swept right over the Alkebulan fleet, rushed straight through the Array of the Nine Gods, and then finally landed on the sea on the other side with a terrifying crash.

The Pyotr was now silent.

Completely silent.

“My god…” “W-what the hell is this?!” “W-w-w-what in the world just happened? D-did we… fly through the air?” “Anglo… flew? How?!”

Back in the mortal realm. Yan Capital, inside the conference room. Lei Jun immediately shot to his feet and stared intently at the screen.

He knew all too well how powerful the snap of the wrist earlier had been. And yet, that flick of the wrist didn’t even cause the seas to stir wildly. This only meant that the man’s control of Yin energy was already beyond his imagination!

“Director Lei?” The other leaders gathered in the room looked up at Lei Jun at the same time. They weren’t daft. After all, daft people couldn’t possibly rise through the ranks like the leaders did. One of the old men exclaimed, “How powerful does that Emissary of Hell have to be to be able to do something like that?”

They knew that he was powerful. After all, as soon as the Pyotr appeared on the screen, one of the experts did a rough estimation and concluded that the Pyotr was between 45 to 50 kilometers long from end to end.

That was almost akin to a large island.

A living island.

Yet who would’ve thought that it would be flicked right out of the sea with such great ease and precision?

Thus, they knew the man was powerful, but they wanted to know just how powerful this man was.

Lei Jun didn’t respond.

Seconds later, he shook his head and slumped back into his seat, only to realize that his palms were already filled with cold sweat.

“Very strong.”

“That earlier flick of his could easily have leveled Yan Capital as we know it, and we wouldn’t even have the chance to react or resist…”

The eyes of the leaders flickered wildly, as they turned back and stared aghast at the screen of Yin energy.

Is this Hell’s true strength? Are they finally flexing their might?

That said, there wasn’t a modicum of fear in their hearts. All they felt was immense anticipation.

After all, such a display of strength told them that the nightmare faced by the mortal realm would soon come to an end!

………………………………………………

CRASH!!! Netherworld. Beyond the boundary. The Pyotr crashed straight into the waters, sending a terrifying wave soaring into the skies. Countless Yin soldiers on board the Pyotr scrambled to stand up, but they found their legs weak and unresponsive to their minds. The sheer thought of having flown through the air unsettled them deeply. Likewise, Ivantov lay completely frazzled on the ground, and he stared blankly at the sky for a long time, until he finally chuckled bitterly.

He shivered wildly as he chuckled.

He understood…

He finally understood it all.

The mothership known as the Pyotr was built on the body of a colossal beast known as the Anglo. It was armed with a multitude of Yin Talismans, Yin soldiers and other weapons that allowed it to stand toe to toe with a Yama-King without even backing down. But the Yin Talismans that they were all so proud of didn’t even go off earlier. It was almost as though a grown man had punched right through the thin sheet of paper that was the Yin Talismans and grabbed the Anglo by the nape of its neck.

This is… beyond the gods of death…

Only the realm beyond could possibly accomplish this! And this isn’t even the might of the Second King Yanluo of Hell!

He finally understood why the Anglo had desperately sought to retreat earlier. It was because the Anglo had instinctively detected an existence that could instantly crush it. The disparity in their strength was far too apparent. Right now, Ivantov had only one thought in his mind - It’s a good thing I didn’t comply with the orders of the Russian Underworld back then. Otherwise, had I sailed the Pyotr at top speed into the Ashmound Port, my soul might not even be intact right now!