Yama Rising

Qin Ye nodded in response before turning to the second King Yanluo with a skeptical expression. "You just said that if you want something from someone, you have to give them something first, could it be that you want something from me..."

Pretend I never said anything! 

The death glare from the second King Yanluo encouraged Qin Ye to make the wise decision to stop what he was saying. Before he had a chance to continue, the second King Yanluo said, "One final thing: I checked through all of Xu Fu's memories during the past few days, and now I have a piece of good news and a piece of bad news. Which one would you like to hear first?"

Before Qin Ye even had a chance to reply, the second King Yanluo continued with a smile, "The bad news it is then."

Can I refuse? 

The second King Yanluo was clearly very pleased by Qin Ye's speechless expression, and he casually crossed his legs as he said, "Through my assessment of Xu Fu's memories, I discovered that unfortunately, there is only one part of his memories that I'm unable to access."

"Is it his memories following Nikola Tesla's death?" Qin Ye asked.

The second King Yanluo nodded in response. "Those memories spanned a very long time, from handing over that box to Richardman to his return to Cathay, then to his next trip to Usonia. This is a period of more than a century, and I think he was modifying Gui Xu during that time. So the question is, why has he hidden the memories of Gui Xu's modification process?"

Qin Ye sighed, "It must be because he didn't want anyone else to see the process of creation and method of usage of the new energy resource."

The second King Yanluo nodded in agreement. "Out of his 2,000 years of memories, these are the only memories that he concealed. Regardless of whether we consider his motive, his mindset, or the timing, we can basically confirm beyond a reasonable doubt that the box he handed over to Richardman contains all of the notes pertaining to the new energy resource."

Qin Ye was both relieved and a little dismayed to hear this. "Then what's the good news?"

A cold look appeared in the second King Yanluo's eyes as he replied, "The good news is obviously that I was able to track down the Emissary of Hell who's been colluding with him through his memories."

A cold look also appeared in Qin Ye's eyes upon hearing this, and his heart was filled with killing intent.

No nation could tolerate traitors like this.

"Who is it?'

"Yin soldiers have already been sent out to apprehend him," the second King Yanluo replied calmly as he picked up his teacup again. "I'm certain you won't be able to guess who it is."

………………………………………………

Mortal realm, Temple of the Lands.

Following the conclusion of the supernatural disasters, there had been a sudden increase in the number of Temples of the Lands and City God Temples in the mortal realm. Furthermore, all of them had been funded by the state, and no one knew why this was the case. This chapter of history had already been hidden by the government.

Every Temple of the Lands and City Lord Temple had its own set of caretakers, and this one was on exception.

Several men in camouflage clothing were standing outside a certain City God Temple, and they were currently staring at it with surprised expressions. "Are you sure this is the place?"

It was a lively and bustling temple with lots of visitors. Even though the state hadn't issued any detailed statements on what had happened during the past decade, everyone had a rough idea of what had taken place, and during the three ghost festivals, every single Temple of the Lands and City Lord Temple would always be teeming with visitors. Some were praying to have illnesses alleviated, some were praying for good marks at school... In any case, regardless of what the subject matter was, it couldn't hurt to pray every once in a while.

What was surprising to the group of men was how crude and simplistic the construction of this temple was. Aside from a plaque hanging above its door, there were no other adornments. The incense at the entrance was being sold at 10 dollars per three sticks, and there wasn't even an offering box.

This was the temple that belonged to the city god whom the second King Yanluo had ordered them to capture!

One of the men was a little unsure of how to proceed, and after standing still on the spot with furrowed brows for a short while, he said, "Let's go in and take a look, I'm sure the second King Yanluo wouldn't have made a mistake."

As soon as they made their way to the entrance, a chubby Taoist priest emerged from within the temple before raising a palm in front of his own chest. "Boundless Sovereign. May I ask the reason for your visit, Emissaries of Hell?"

All city gods were corpses possessed by Emissaries of Hell, and the same applied to the men in camouflage clothing, so the Taoist priest was immediately able to identify them.

The group of men was led by a man who was around 180 centimeters in height. He appeared to be in his early thirties with thick and coarse facial hair, and he inspected his surroundings briefly before pulling out a token. "We're here to apprehend someone."

The Taoist priest drew a sharp breath upon hearing this, and he immediately began to fall to his knees. "City God Zhao Dehan pays his respects to the esteemed Emissaries of Hell."

The man caught him before he could kneel down, and he inched his face slightly closer to Zhao Dehan's as a hint of a smile appeared on his face. "So you're Zhao Dehan."

"That's right," Zhao Dehan replied with a puzzled expression. "May I ask your name?"

The man made a subtle hand gesture, and the men in camouflage clothing immediately surrounded Zhao Dehan, following which the man replied in a calm voice, "I am an Emissary of Hell from Ashmound, my name is Zhao Dian. Come to think of it, we both share the same surname. Please come with us, Mr. Zhao."

"Wh, what are you doing?" Zhao Dehan was quite perplexed by the situation, and right at this moment, a monk hurriedly rushed out of the temple before joining his palms together.

"Amitabha. I was unaware of your arrival, please forgive me for not greeting you sooner."

"There's no need for formalities," Zhao Dian replied with a smile. "City God Zhao, lead the way."

"Where do you want me to take you?"

"Into the temple, of course," Zhao Dian replied as he feigned a surprised expression. "Is there an issue?"

"Of course not." Zhao Dehan swung his horsetail whisk around before leading the way, walking around the city god's statue. Beyond the statue was a spacious courtyard, and walking along the semi-enclosed corridor, Zhao Dian was able to see the peach blossoms and abundance of lush bamboo growing in the courtyard, as well as some stone tables and stone chairs. 

A surprised look appeared on his face as he said, "Looks like you're living the good life here, City God Zhao. It seems that the job of city god comes with great benefits."

Zhao Dehan smiled and replied, "All we do is serve Hell and Ashmound to the best of our abilities, and we are certainly very thankful for the opportunity."

"Indeed," the monk also chimed in with a smile. "City God Zhao and I have been working diligently and saving every penny that we can. In our spare time, all we do is clean and organize this courtyard. May I ask the reason for your visit?"

"It's nothing much," Zhao Dian replied in a seemingly nonchalant manner as he glanced at the rows of lanterns hanging on either side of the corridor. "City God Zhao has colluded with external forces and committed treason. During the past three years, he's smuggled 130,000 tons of Hell's Yin Jade out of the Cathayan Underworld, alongside leaking all types of sensitive information. In total, he's earned over 88 million HLs for these dealings, and he is to be apprehended and taken to Ashmound right away."

Zhao Dehan's jaw immediately dropped straight to the ground upon hearing this, and he stared at the group of men with an incredulous expression. Meanwhile, the monk's legs gave out from under him, and he had to lean against a pillar for support as he turned to Zhao Dehan as if he had seen a ghost, then turned his gaze toward Zhao Dian. Several seconds later, he asked, "Could there have been a mistake? The City God Temples and Temples of the Lands in Ashmound have always been a unified entity, how could he have possibly gained access to an avenue like this? On top of that, this City God Temple is extremely crude and basic, where has all of the money that he's smuggled gone to?"

"I must've been framed!" Zhao Dehan suddenly returned to his senses and fell heavily to his knees. His entire body was trembling as he declared, "I swear on the honor of all of my ancestors that I've never done such a thing! Think about it, what would I even want all that money for?"

He raised his head, and he was so worked up that his expression had become slightly twisted. "If it's for myself, then why haven't I used the money to renovate this courtyard? Am I keeping the money just to look at it? Aside from the wage handed down to me, I haven't dared to spend even an extra cent of the City God Temple's money. This temple is an old Taoist temple that hasn't been renovated for several decades! If all corrupt officials lived in places like this, the netherworldly citizens would be jumping for joy!"

The monk also joined his palms together as he asked again, "Could there have been a mistake?"

Zhao Dian bent down and helped Zhao Dehan to his feet as he said with a smile, "We'll know whether there's been a mistake or not once we go in. The second King Yanluo has inspected this place in person, and he's determined that there are no signs suggesting that you've left this place. If you really have dabbled in embezzlement, then everything must be hidden in here. Let's keep going, Mr. Zhao."

A look of indignant rage appeared on Zhao Dehan's face. "The third King Yanluo worked so hard to create this dynasty! He's dedicated himself fully to improving the lives of the people, and I'm honored to have been assigned this important responsibility, how could I betray his trust like that? If you don't believe me, then come and search through the temple as you please! If you find what you're looking for, then you can do whatever you want with me!"

"Benefactor Zhao..." The monk was rather concerned, but Zhao Dehan waved away his concerns with a shake of his head. 

"There's no need to talk about this any further, let the proof be in the pudding! Come with me everyone, I'll show you the truth."

All of a sudden, one of the men in camouflage clothing made his way over to Zhao Dian before whispering something into his ear.

A smile appeared on Zhao Dian's face, and he latched onto Zhao Dehan's arm before asking, "Where are you going, City God Zhao?"

"You want to search this place, don't you?" Zhao Dehan yelled with a furious expression. "Then do as you please! This is a tiny temple, where could I possibly be hiding such a massive volume of embezzled funds? This is blatant slander, and I'm going to clear my name! I have nothing to hide, and I'm going to prove it!"

"Hold on, Mr. Zhao," Zhao Dian said in an unhurried voice. "Why are we going into the temple? Why don't we conduct the search here?"

Before Zhao Dehan had a chance to say anything, he continued, "Every day, your temple receives offerings and HLs that are then sent to the Ashmound Underworld. Following the conclusion of the war of unification, Yanluo Qin himself issued an order, stating that the largest HL note in the mortal realm could only be 100,000 in value, and that the conversion rate to underworld HLs would be 100:1. During the past three years, 280 million HLs have been burned during the three ghost festivals and death anniversaries of relatives and friends. This county has the lowest number in the entire Eastmount Province in this regard, and even the counties with the smallest populations have reached numbers of over 300 million. As for the county with the highest population, Dongyang County, the number they reached was as high as 500 million. City Lord Zhao, may I ask where all the other money went?"

Zhao Dehan pressed a hand against the pillar beside him, and he was just about to speak when Zhao Dian cut him off once again, and his voice was becoming louder and louder, as if he were passing judgment down upon Zhao Dehan.

"You obtained HLs from the mortal realm, then exchanged it for Yin jade in the underworld, which you transported back to the mortal realm. From Wuyang, you ventured out to Mirage City, and for your efforts, you received gold of an equivalent value in the mortal realm. These were all your wily little tactics, and the entire process was overseen exclusively by low-level Emissaries of Hell. Due to the fact that what was being transported back was gold rather than Yin energy, there was no Yin energy to be detected. I'm impressed, City Lord Zhao. Through these tricks, you were able to gather 88 million HLs worth of gold. The entire City God Temple must've already been forged into a city of gold by you, right? According to the records, the City God Temple has undergone 33 major renovations during the past three years, but after each renovation, the temple looked exactly the same as before. The heavens are constantly watching, do you really think you can pull the wool over Hell's eyes?"

With that final sentence, he suddenly smashed one of the pillars beside him, but it didn't snap because the center of the pillar was a pillar constructed entirely from gold.

The monk's mouth gaped widely open as he stared at the dazzling golden pillar with a stunned expression. After a full five seconds of stunned stupor, he turned toward Zhao Dehan with an incredulous expression, only to discover that Zhao Dehan had already collapsed to the ground. He then cast his gaze toward this entire temple.

"What else do you have to say for yourself?" Zhao Dian asked as he stared intently at Zhao Dehan.

Dead silence.

The golden pillar was so dazzling that no one was able to say anything.

Several seconds later, Zhao Dehan let loose a ghastly wail as he frantically crawled over to Zhao Dian before grabbing onto his trousers. "Your Excellency, everything that I've embezzled is all here! These past few years have been a nightmare for me! I couldn't resist the temptation, but I didn't dare to spend even a single cent of this money!"