Yama Rising

Everyone knew that someone wanted to do something to the Cathayan Underworld, but no one knew the exact details.

Only now were they getting a slight inkling that someone was trying to kick the Cathayan Underworld off the four pillars!

This was something extremely significant, significantly enough to start a war! Was this why they had invited everyone to this banquet? So they could gauge everyone's reactions?

None of the death gods were idiots, and several of them were already jumping onto this opportunity. "The four pillars were established with the requirement that they would undertake more international responsibilities in return for greater benefits. They are supposed to be the leaders of the world, and in order to fulfill that role, they would naturally have to be the most powerful underworlds."

"Indeed, with no international trade for 100 years, their GDP has to have fallen significantly. If they're no longer fit to occupy this position, then things have to change."

"I heard that there was a change in the administration, and following this transition, the Cathayan Underworld must be focusing on increasing their domestic productivity. Will they really be able to focus on their international duties under these circumstances?"

"Well, when you think about it, they've already shirked their international duties for over a century..."

Kural took a sip of sake as he listened in silence.

The flavor of the sake was very light and understated, but he felt as if there were red-hot daggers sliding down his throat, and all of the Yin energy in his entire body had tensed up.

These underworlds aren't even bothering to hide their intentions anymore... Could it be that they think that they've already won? Perhaps during a secret meeting that we have no right to attend, they've already determined that they've swayed enough votes to dethrone the Cathayan Underworld? No, that can't be it. If they've already determined that, then the Nipponese Underworld wouldn't even be bothering to keep up pretenses! The fact that Yanluo Qin is still staying in a pavilion reserved for one of the four pillars means that they aren't ready yet. In that case, are they trying to gauge how many people are going to support them? No, perhaps our silence is already enough... 

Countless thoughts were racing through everyone's heads, and no one dared to speak recklessly. They were all bound by all types of agreements and contracts with the four pillars or other first-rate underworlds, and if they were to say something wrong here, those agreements could be terminated or perhaps even severer consequences could follow.

Dracula swept his gaze across all of the death gods present, and he suddenly smiled as he said, "That was just a joke! Regardless of what state it's currently in, the Cathayan Underworld is still one of the four pillars, how could it possibly..."

Before he had a chance to finish his sentence, the entire building suddenly trembled slightly.

The tremors were very faint, so it definitely wasn't an earthquake, and after a brief moment of inactivity, all of the death gods abruptly raised their heads before turning to the pavilion that the Cathayan Underworld's representative team was situated in with stunned expressions.

What powerful Yin energy!

"That's a duke..." Dracula was in complete disbelief. "Why is there a duke here?"

Izanami was also completely incredulous. All of the Yama-Kings who came here had to pass through Osaka, so how had this one arrived?

They hadn't passed through Osaka, they had no entourage, and they hadn't been detected by the Nipponese Underworld's national protective array. Instead, they had appeared right above the pavilion in an instant! How had they managed to do that?

"This Yin energy..." Susanoo-no-Mikoto cast a wary gaze out the window, and a name suddenly occurred to him as exclaimed, "It belongs to the Plumed Serpent God!"

The Plumed Serpent God? 

All of the death gods present faltered slightly upon hearing this before drawing a sharp breath in unison. Indeed, it was the Plumed Serpent God!

That was the true ruler of the Alkebulan Underworlds, the mighty deity who had withstood a forbidden art and survived!

This was divine descent!

The Plumed Serpent God had arrived in Nara through divine descent!

Izanami was biting so hard down onto her own lower lips that she was about to draw blood! The Plumed Serpent God had the right to attend this conference, but how was this old monster still alive?!

How had he survived after withstanding a forbidden art head-on?!

Furthermore, why had he chosen to appear at the pavilion where the Cathayan Underworld's representative team was staying?!

All of a sudden, she felt as if what she had thought to be a sure thing was no longer guaranteed.

No one was focusing on the meal anymore, and everyone rushed out to stare at the pavilion where the Cathayan Underworld's representative team was staying.

The Plumed Serpent God was making no attempt to hide his Yin energy, which was so vast and powerful that all of the underworld emissaries present had been forced to their knees and were trembling uncontrollably. The blood-red canopies of the trees around them were swaying incessantly, and even the rocks on the ground had risen up into mid-air as if gravity had malfunctioned.

Boundless netherfire interspersed with gusts of Yin wind converged to form a vast vortex right above the Cathayan Underworld's pavilion, and it was as if there were countless stars glowing within the vortex. Several minutes later, it condensed to form a radiant pillar of light that illuminated the entirety of Nara!

BOOM!!! 

The earth quaked violently, and shortly thereafter, the light faded as the divine descent drew to a conclusion.

This meant that an extra death god had appeared in the pavilion that belonged to the Cathayan Underworld's representative team. Furthermore, this was an extremely significant death god.

Izanami drew a sharp breath as she instantly cast her gaze toward the other death gods, and just a single glance was enough to tell her that things were about to take a turn for the worse.

The other death gods were all avoiding her gaze, and some of them had even adopted suspicious expressions.

Indeed, the Alkebulan Underworlds only had a single vote because they formed a coalition. However, she suddenly came to realize what she and her master had overlooked.

They had overlooked the territory that was under the control of the Alkebulan Underworlds.

This was a vast territory spanning over thirty million square kilometers, which was 20% of all of the land in the world!

If the Plumed Serpent God had arrived conventionally without causing a commotion, then this wouldn't have been a cause for concern.

However, he had arrived through divine descent right in front of all of these death gods, making his return after several centuries of absence in the most emphatic fashion possible!

Furthermore, this old monster who had withstood a forbidden technique head-on and survived had gone directly to the room of the Cathayan Underworld's King Yanluo!

What did this entail?

It entailed that the Cathayan Underworld had extremely close ties with the Alkebulan Underworlds, and that the Alkebulan Underworlds would definitely support the Cathayan Underworld! This was an alliance between one of the four pillars with a territory of over ten million square kilometers and a coalition with a territory in excess of thirty million square kilometers. Together, they ruled over roughly a third of the world's total landmass, and they were standing in the same camp!

This is a massive oversight... Back when we were discussing this plan, we only considered that the Alkebulan Underworlds only had a single vote. As a result, we wrote them off as an insignificant factor. However, the one to arrive here is the Plumed Serpent God, and he's done so through divine descent! Such an arrival has a completely different impact than if he had just arrived normally! 

"Everyone..." She immediately tried to do some damage control, yet as soon as she opened her mouth to speak, Kuwal stepped forward before extending a respectful bow. "Lady Izanami, I just recalled that I have some important duties to attend to, so I'll be taking my leave now. Ah, by the way, the meal was very delicious."

He smiled and followed perfect etiquette as he turned to leave, and at the same time, the three death gods, Tanvana, Borne, and Antee also bade farewell before departing.

That was four votes!

They were hesitating! They were sitting on the fence!

Izanami was gritting her teeth so hard that they were on the verge of shattering! 

Even if there were only a single vote between them, there was no way they could kick out a collection of underworlds with close to a third of the entire world's landmass as their territory.

Their territories and populations gave them importance beyond the vote that they held.

Before she had a chance to say anything else, three more death gods also stood up, and one of them said with a smile, "Thank you for the delectable meal, Lady Izanami. We also have some matters to attend to, so we'll be leaving now."

After that, they didn't even wait for a response from Izanami before departing as if they were fleeing for their lives.

That's seven votes gone... Izanami was weeping internally.

Even if these people didn't vote for the Cathayan Underworld, that would be seven fewer votes for them. Furthermore, there was no lack of underworlds among them that had been lackeys to the Cathayan Underworld 100 years ago, such as the Red Moon Federation.

"Count Dracula." She turned to Dracula with a grim expression as she said, "Please inform the three pillars of this turn of events as quickly as possible, and please ask them to make haste in getting here to stabilize the situation!"

However, Dracula's reply made her want to tear her own hair out.

"My apologies," Dracula replied. "But as you're aware, I'm just here as a mouthpiece for the Argosian Underworld. I'm only here because Thanatos granted my clan of vampires access to all of Europa. Otherwise, why would we side with you? Don't forget that my clan has always relinquished our right to vote during past conferences."

He cast a wary gaze toward the Cathayan Underworld's pavilion before continuing, "If you have absolute confidence in bringing them down, then I obviously don't have any objections and can lend you more of my power. However, the Alkebulan Underworlds have clearly expressed support toward the Cathayan Underworld, and it's the Plumed Serpent God who arrived in person. Both of you are aware of what divine descent entails. Truth be told, access rights to all of Europa aren't worth making an enemy out of the Cathayan Underworld and all of the Alkebulan Underworlds for me. I'm going to return to Romania now, please inform the three pillars that an old man like me is not fit to take part in such a perilous conference."

After that, he really did depart toward his carriage, and right before entering the carriage, he turned around with a smile and said, "By the way, the meal really was very delicious. Thank you for your hospitality."

After that, he left.

The leader of Romania's clan of vampires had left after spending no more than three hours here.

Izanami was so enraged that she was trembling incessantly, and as more and more death gods began to depart, she also left the hall before rushing toward the main section of the pavilions.

This was something that she had to report right away.

The Cathayan Underworld was still the Cathayan Underworld. As soon as they displayed any power, there would immediately be sycophants willing to suck up to them! In the end, they had still underestimated the influence of the Cathayan Underworld!

………………………………………………

On the way back, Tanvana asked in a hesitant voice, "Is it really a good idea for us to turn down the Nipponese Underworld and the masterminds behind them like this?"

Kuwal took a glance at his surroundings but didn't say anything. Only after returning to their room and closing the door did he reply in a grim voice, "We had no choice. We are in Asia, and Asia is currently in a very good state, so there's no need for change. Only now do I understand that the Cathayan Underworld has been lying low because they have absolute confidence. I'm sure it wasn't a coincidence that the divine descent took place during the banquet, and it serves as a warning to us, telling us to be careful when considering who we side with. They didn't make a move for the first few days as they were waiting for their allies to arrive, and now, one of those allies has arrived in an emphatic fashion! What we don't know is if this is the extent of the Cathayan Underworld's allies or if there are still more to come, so we can't afford to make any rash decisions or premature commitments. I'm willing to bet that there would've definitely been other death gods who left the banquet after we did, and at the same time, the Cathayan Underworld will almost certainly be receiving its first batch of invitation requests tonight!"

The tables were beginning to turn, and the Cathayan Underworld was beginning to stage its retaliation.

It had remained dormant all this time, but as soon as it made it move, the situation was blown wide open. Kuwal could already sense that a war of attrition was brewing on the horizon, and the outcome of this war was going to be decided in the next few days!

He closed his eyes before reopening them, and after a long while, he asked through gritted teeth, "Where is the visiting card that we drafted for the Cathayan Underworld?"

"I have it," Tanvana replied.

"Get someone to submit it to the Cathayan Underworld right away! They're most likely also waiting for us."

"Is that really a good idea?" Antee asked in a hesitant voice. Even though he was an outsider when it came to all of this, he felt as if he were standing on the edge of a massive international vortex. "The Nipponese Underworld must have the support of at least one or two of the other three pillars for them to dare to disrespect the Cathayan Underworld like this. Should we really defect to the Cathayan Underworld's side so easily?"

"We're not defecting!" Kuwal countered as he rose to his feet. "We're merely... extending a gesture of friendliness. Before this, I was almost certain that the Cathayan Underworld was doomed, but after what happened tonight and thinking back to the history of the Cathayan Underworld, I'm not so sure about that now. However, this doesn't affect our vote. We need to wait and see and only make our decision at the last possible moment. The next two days will be when the two sides battle to the death!"