Yama Rising

The time left until the explosion was... zero seconds.

Boundless destructive light radiated in all directions.

It was like witnessing the birth of the universe, the Big Bang itself! The ball of light had become twisted to the extreme, and it abruptly exploded, illuminating the entirety of Ashmound with its boundless devastating light. The light tore through the wind and devoured heaven and earth, leaving behind only a deafening boom.

BOOM!!! 

All of the netherworldly citizens closed their eyes in that instant. Even though Yin spirits were no longer sensitive to light and darkness, this all-encompassing light of destruction still went beyond their maximum tolerance capacity.

"NO!!" A netherworldly citizen who hadn't managed to escape yet felt a buzzing in his mind, and just as he was about to turn around, he was already inundated by a sea of light.

"No... Save me..." He cast a final despairing gaze toward the figure at the forefront that was being illuminated by the light, but the figure didn't turn around.

Zhao Yun was observing the explosion before him with a calm yet grim expression. It was indeed as powerful as a forbidden art, and in that instant, time seemed to have slowed down in his eyes. His Yin energy had already been condensed to the very max, and everything seemed to have transformed into a slideshow that was moving along frame by frame. He looked on as the ball of light exploded in Ashmound Port, instantly reducing the entire port to ashes.

He saw even more than that. He saw that virtually none of the Yin spirits living at the center of the city had managed to escape.

Half an hour simply hadn't been enough for them to escape in time.

Those were millions of Yin spirits, and they were crying and begging with all their might, but they were unable to escape from the shockwaves of the explosion. Countless elderly Yin spirits reflexively reached out toward him with beseeching despair in their eyes.

Save me... I don't want to die... 

However, he still didn't turn around.

One hand after another reached out to him. 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000... All of them were reduced to netherfire, which was then devoured by the all-encompassing light, then swept up by the shockwaves to form a black barrier that rose up into the sky before rapidly expanding outward.

In the wake of the devastating light, all of the Ashmound's remaining buildings, the ones that didn't belong to the Reflection Palace, the ones that had been painstakingly constructed during the course of the past six years, were reduced to dust. This light was completely unstoppable, and it seemed that the only way that it would come to a rest would be for its power to run out naturally.

"Xu Fu... You are truly a despicable man." Zhao Yun finally grabbed onto his Courage of Dragons Silver Spear. "Millions of Yin spirits from Ashmound are waiting for you to join them in death."

Why was it that there was such a massive disparity between those who had consumed the Taisui fungus?

Lee Jung-sook had chosen to dedicate herself fully to the business sphere, becoming a leading figure in Daehan's business world.

Qin Ye had chosen to retain his humanity and was now serving Hell for the greater good.

So why was it that Xu Fu and Bu Wantian had diverged onto a completely different path, branding themselves as gods, only to commit heinous, devilish deeds?

In the blink of an eye, the light had already reached him, and he let loose a loud roar before abruptly plunging his spear down toward the ground. In the next instant, boundless Yin energy rose up into the heavens before spreading outward in a frenzy on either side of him, forming a boundless black barrier.

If someone could look down onto this scene from high up in the sky, they would see a ball of scintillating light in Ashmound of the Cathayan Underworld surrounded by boundless Yin energy, forming a prison that trapped the radiance firmly within. After a span of no more than half a second, countless shimmering Yin runes that were flashing incessantly had appeared on the Yin energy barrier.

It was as if the dark night had trapped the sun before the radiance of golden stars had appeared. This was a clash between day and night, a duel between destruction and salvation. The light and the Yin energy barrier clashed amid an earth-shattering boom.

They struggled and warred with one another, and the devastating radiance was giving off immense destructive power within the black circle, threatening to destroy everything, only to be kept at bay by the dark night around it.

For a short time, the light really had been stopped!

In the distance, Gou Yongjun heaved a faint sigh of relief, but his hands were still trembling slightly. In the instant that the clash took place, his heart had leaped into his throat, and there were most likely countless others experiencing the same emotions. Even now, his soul was still trembling violently within his spiritual body.

"He did it... He did it!!" Gou Yongjun exclaimed in a trembling voice as he clapped a hand over his own heart. However, as soon as the words left his mouth, he discovered that his voice was being echoed.

Countless Yin spirits, millions of netherworldly citizens were looking on at this astonishing scene. Their bodies were trembling incessantly as they looked on with pitiful, beseeching eyes, staring intently at Ashmound Port.

"He did it! He really did it!"

"My god... He managed to contain the explosion!"

"I can't believe it!!"

In that instant, the sobbing voices of countless netherworldly citizens rang out. They had only been a second away from certain death.

The black barrier was like the line between life and death, and it was the only thing keeping them safe.

However, before they even had a chance to celebrate, a crisp crack suddenly rang out between heaven and earth.

A pristine white rift then opened up in front of Zhao Yun, and boundless light instantly surged forth, sweeping across the entire earth.

It was also in this instant that a loud dragon's roar erupted, and Zhao Yun's black hair was raised up by in excess of three meters. At the same time, half of his black hair had already been transformed into inky-black flames.

Unbeknownst to everyone, Zhao Yun was gritting his teeth tightly as he stood before the all-devouring light with bloodshot eyes. His Yin energy was surging forward in a ferocious flood, yet he was still forced back several dozen steps amid a furious roar.

"Are you going to take on your true form as a ghost king?" the Harken asked as it gnashed its fangs together. "If you do that, you'll be noticed by the Heavenly Dao! The Heavenly Dao can accept your existence, but not if you withstand the power of a forbidden art on your own! That's going too far!"

It cast an intense gaze toward Zhao Yun as it continued, "Didn't Dogballs tell you to prioritize yourself above all else?"

Zhao Yun didn't reply.

In reality, he was completely unable to reply. No one could comprehend the pressure that he was currently under. He felt as if he were carrying the weight of an entire mountain, and all of the bones in his arms were creaking loudly while wisps of Yin energy were flowing through the gaps between his teeth.

I know what Lord Qin told me, but there are millions of Yin spirits standing behind me! They are counting on me for their survival! Just a little more.. Maybe if I withstand the explosion for a second longer, it'll run out of power. 

Even Zhao Yun was aware that he was only lying to himself, but he couldn't stop now!

He was situated the closest to the explosion, and he could clearly see that the explosion wasn't even halfway done, let alone close to its end!

With each passing second, new explosions would erupt before him one after another, releasing more devastating light. If he were to let go now, the explosion wouldn't just erase Ashmound from the map of the Cathayan Underworld, around a fifth of the entire Eastmount Province would disappear along with it!

There was no way that he could back down now.

All of a sudden, the black barrier that had enveloped the sun finally began to shatter amid a string of clear cracks.

This was truly an awe-inspiring sight, and all of the netherworldly citizens who had survived were looking on with astonishment in their eyes. They were staring at the barrier that was keeping them alive, yet countless cracks were currently appearing all over the surface of the barrier. The white radiance of death instantly broke through with an earth-shattering explosion, and ferocious winds swept through the air as the entire barrier collapsed.

Only now did everyone comprehend just how close life and death could be.

"How is this... possible..."

Time seemed to have completely stopped, and Gou Yongjun's mouth gaped wide open as he stared at this doomsday-like scene. Yin energy and true energy interspersed with one another while blinding white light had risen up to several hundred meters, forming a sinister and twisted mushroom cloud that was erupting up layer upon layer like a staircase before crashing down with devastating force. Tsunamis hundreds of meters tall erupted out of the sea in all directions, and the nearby mountains were instantly flattened upon contact.

Dead silence.

The netherfire in the eyes of all of the Yin spirit's were flickering erratically, and their mouths were wide agape, but they couldn't muster up a single word. They watched as the black barrier disintegrated rapidly, and someone's legs suddenly gave out from under them as they fell to their knees.

"Hold on..."

"You have to hold on, Lord Zhao! Please!"

"I don't want to die... Waaah!"

After that one Yin spirit fell to their knees, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands quickly followed suit! In the span of several seconds following the collapse of the black barrier, millions of Yin spirits had already fallen to their knees behind Zhao Yun.

They were instinctively, devoutly, and pitifully praying for what could well be the final time in their lives.

I can't do it... 

Zhao Yun's teeth were gritted together tightly, and he felt as if he were wrestling with a mountain. Devastating destructive power was all around him, and it was so fearsome that even his heart was trembling uncontrollably. He had already been forced back several hundred meters, yet right in the instant that the black barrier completely collapsed, he suddenly let loose a loud roar, and his entire body became enveloped in Yin energy.

Yin energy erupted into the heavens, forming an inky-black phoenix that revolved around him, making him appear like a deity that was rising up from the ashes.

His tattered suit of silver armor was riddled with countless marks inflicted by swords, sabers, spears, and halberds, and it was giving off a primitive aura. Through the suit of armor, complex red tattoos could be seen all over his face, and his cape had already transformed into a pair of inky-black wings that were riddled with golden eyes, giving him an impossibly sinister yet also incredibly awe-inspiring appearance.

"Sixfold Ghost Kings..." He was holding back the devastating white light with all his might, and veins were bulging on his forehead as he chanted through gritted teeth, "Immortals of Hell, almighty cycle of reincarnation, please lend me your power..." 

The Harken was looking on with trembling lips, yet it didn't utter so much as a single word.

Crack crack crack... Boundless Yin energy was already spilling out from his arms, which were riddled with wounds, and they seemed to be on the verge of shattering. Right after his voice trailed off, he joined his palms together with all his might.

Boom! 

His body had taken on a half substantial, half illusionary form, and as his palms were joined together, countless Yin runes surged forth in all directions amid an earth-shattering boom, carrying with them golden radiance and wisps of Yin energy. The Yin runes were also imbued with Zhao Yun's fierce, single-minded determination as they proliferated outward.

Countless Yin runes had appeared in the sky above the entire Eastmount Province, and the total number of these Yin runes was in the tens of millions! Some were complex, some were simplistic, and all of them were flying toward Ashmound like stars racing toward the moon!

"My god..." Gou Yongjun drew a sharp breath as he involuntarily backtracked many steps. His legs were trembling, and he almost crashed into the secretary behind him. Under normal circumstances, the secretary would've reflexively steadied him, but currently, the secretary was far too astounded by what he was seeing to react.

He was looking forward with a flabbergasted expression, and aside from some of the Yin spirits who were still in a frenzied panic, all of them were also staring at the scenes unfolding at Ashmound Port in a slack-jawed manner. Their world views and frames of mind were brutally torn apart before being reformed, making space for this unforgettable sight.

Countless Yin runes filled the entire sky, completely enveloping the devastating ball of light alongside gusts of inky-black Yin wind. At this point, the ball of light had swelled to several kilometers in size, and the Yin runes were revolving around it, forming a gigantic Yin rune vortex that was several hundred kilometers in size and sealing the ball of light from all sides.