Yama Rising

Archimedes didn't say anything. He was extremely reluctant to allow Qin Ye to speak at a time like this, but there was no sound reason for him to turn down this request.

Both of them remained silent as they stared at one another, and everyone else in the hall was also completely silent. However, the silence was more deafening than even the loudest of squabbles.

Amid the silence, all of the scientists had involuntarily sat up straighter, and many of them were unconsciously wringing their own hands together in a futile attempt to relieve some tension. Even though they very rarely participated in conferences like this, they could all sense that the floodgates were about to be opened.

Was the tsunami going to completely inundate the Cathayan Underworld or was the Cathayan Underworld going to be able to weather the storm? Everything would be decided in the next few minutes.

No one dared to even breathe too loudly in fear of attracting attention to themselves, and even the lightest of pin drops would be audibly heard in this hall at this moment.

"What do you want to say?" After a brief silence, Archimedes finally said, "The Cathayan Underworld didn't request any time to speak during this conference..."

As soon as his voice trailed off, another burst of Yin energy erupted into the heavens.

This burst of Yin energy was so fearsome that as it swept through the hall, the netherfire in the eye of all of the scientists present were instantly snuffed out like a candle flame in the wind, only to immediately reignite again.

This was the fury of a being above the Yama-King level!

All of the scientists gasped as they reflexively pressed their backs tighter against the backs of their chairs. This was an action borne out of their self-preservation instincts in the face of an apex predator. At the same time, Osiris also took a deep breath before rising to his feet.

As the representative of the Aegyptian Underworld, which was hosting this conference, he could refrain from speaking under normal circumstances and only offer Archimedes his moral support, but at a time like this, he definitely couldn't remain silent any longer!

"General Zhao..." As soon as he opened his mouth to speak, he was sent flying back close to 20 meters as if he had just been struck by a giant hand.

Zhao Yun didn't even bother to take a glance at him. Instead, he swept his gaze across all of the horrified scientists looking on from below the stage. "Are you saying that the third King Yanluo of the Cathayan Underworld doesn't even have the right to speak here at this conference?

Archimedes was struggling to withstand the pressure exerted upon him by Zhao Yun as he said with gritted teeth, "Like I said, the Cathayan Underworld has not requested any time to speak during this conference..."

"My god!!"

"Ghost King Zhao!! Please calm down!!"

All of the scientists instantly rose to their feet as they frantically called out for Zhao Yun to restrain himself.

Right as Archimedes gave his reply, countless cracks suddenly appeared all over the walls and the ceiling of the entire hall!

Zhao Yun hadn't lashed out or anything like that, this was simply a result of the space collapsing in the face of his release of Yin energy.

All of the scientists had stood up as if they wanted to flee the scene, and they were utterly astonished by the power of a being above the Yama-King level!

Countless specks of netherfire were flickering erratically in countless eye sockets as Zhao Yun cast his gaze toward Archimedes again. "Does our King Yanluo have a right to speak in this conference?"

Archimedes could feel Yin energy converging toward him from all directions like an iron cage, completely immobilizing him and rendering him unable to utter even a single word.

He felt as if he had returned to the era where the entire world had been bullied by the second King Yanluo, and a series of traumatic memories instantly flooded through his mind.

"You should be thankful." Zhao Yun sat back down, and his voice was still calm and placid as he said, "Under our third King Yanluo, Hell advocates for peace. If the second King Yanluo were here in his stead, you wouldn't be able to leave this place alive!"

No shit! If the second King Yanluo was here, we wouldn't even dare to refuse!

Aristotle didn't dare to say anything as he stood off to the side, and he gulped nervously as he chewed down onto his own lower lip.

"We can talk reason and sense with all of you if we want, but I certainly have no obligation to do so! The almighty King Yanluo of the Cathayan Underworld requires your permission to speak during an international conference? Who the hell do you think you are?! If you want to say anything, get your twin gods to come here and speak to us instead!"

His voice was like rumbling thunder that shook the entire hall, and all of the scientists could feel the fine hairs on the back of their necks standing up on end.

This was still the same Cathayan Underworld...

Their new ruler may have been more reasonable and willing to play by the rules, but their patience was not to be tested!

It seemed that ever since the second King Yanluo ascended to the throne, the Cathayan Underworld's diplomacy strategies had gone completely off the deep end...

Zhao Yun turned toward the scientists seated in the hall as he said, "Now then, let me ask you all once again. The third King Yanluo of the Cathayan Underworld wants to deliver an address. Who wants to deny him this right?"

None of the Yin spirits dared to say anything.

Qin Ye maintained a calm facade on the outside, but on the inside, he was hyperventilating like a fangirl! Zhao Yun was always so friendly and amicable with him, and as a result, he had forgotten just how badass Zhao Yun could be!

Back when he and Zhao Yun had discussed this possible scenario, all Zhao Yun had said was: "Don't worry about that, you can leave it to be if it happens."

No wonder he had looked so confident!

Several seconds later, Zhao Yun rose to his feet before cupping his fist in a respectful salute as he bowed toward Qin Ye. "Looks like there are no longer any objects. Please go ahead, Yanluo Qin."

As a self-proclaimed Oscar-worthy actor, Qin Ye immediately put on a displeased expression as he reprimanded, "Ghost King Zhao, this is an international conference, and we should follow the rules here."

"Of course, please forgive me, Yanluo Qin," Zhao Yun replied as he lowered his head, and it was as if the fearsome aura he had just released had never appeared at all.

"If they need to have some sense talked into them, then just speak to them, there's no need to use force. Make sure this is the last time you do something like this."

After "reprimanding" Zhao Yun, Qin Ye made his way onto the main stage in a graceful manner. At this point, Archimedes had already vacated the lectern for him, but he was gritting his teeth so tightly from fury that he felt as if his teeth were about to shatter!

You're only reprimanding him now? Don't make me laugh! Where were you when he was intimidating everyone with his Yin energy?! You're not a diplomat, you're a fucking terrorist! Have you no shame?! Isn't the third King Yanluo supposed to be a man of reason?!

At this point, it had already become clear to Archimedes that this third King Yanluo seemed to be amicable and reasonable on the surface, but when it mattered, he was even more shameless and aggressive than the second King Yanluo!

The only difference was that the second King Yanluo threw his weight around without any regard for his own reputation, while Qin Ye was still keeping up appearances most of the time.

Among all of the world leaders he had ever come into contact with, these ones were definitely the most difficult ones to deal with.

Why is it that each passing generation of the Cathayan Underworld's ruler is more of a pain in the ass than the previous one?! Where do they keep finding these bastards from?!

However, there was no opportunity for him to vent his frustration. No one was paying any attention to him as all eyes were on Qin Ye.

Qin Ye stood behind the lectern in an elegant manner as he said, "Everyone, I don't have much to say. What I'm going to say next will be automatically recorded by image capture crystals, and I swear in the name of the third King Yanluo and the reputation of the Cathayan Underworld that everything I'm about to say next is the truth. Firstly, the Cathayan Underworld really is developing a new energy resource. What I can tell everyone is that the development process involves some secrets that we cannot reveal at this time. However, once the new energy resource is ready, all of the data you want to see will be released alongside the new energy resource's completion."

All of the scientists had already sat back down again, and upon hearing what Qin Ye had to say, a wave of hushed discussion immediately swept over the entire hall.

Franklin didn't say anything as he stared intently at Qin Ye. He didn't believe a single word that Qin Ye was saying!

Scientific research wasn't something that could be proven through empty words.

He wasn't going to believe Qin Ye until he actually released everything that the entire academic world wanted to see!

However, he couldn't raise any objections here. With that in mind, he cast a wary gaze toward Zhao Yun. He had a feeling that if he were to speak against Qin Ye now, Zhao Yun would immediately slap him all the way to Siberia!

Just because we're not saying anything doesn't mean we're incapable of thinking! Science is a pursuit that deals in concrete truths! You've been leading the entire world on for so long, yet you think you can continue to fool everyone with that so-called promise?

Qin Ye paid no heed to what the scientists were thinking as he made a grabbing motion, upon which a scroll appeared in his grasp.

"I will personally submit this scroll to the committee of the four pillars to be archived."

A faint smile appeared on his face, and a hint of anticipation surfaced in his eyes as he slowly unfurled the scroll. "This scroll was written by me in person, and here's what it says: upon the release of the Cathayan Underworld's new energy resource following its completion, the new energy resource will be made available to the entire academic world completely free of charge."

BOOM!!!

Everyone felt as if they had been struck by a bolt of lightning upon hearing this.

Franklin was looking up at the main stage with a derisive sneer, but his expression instantly stiffened before transforming into one of incredulity and shock.

He wasn't the only one, the jaws of all of the scientists present had dropped straight to the ground as they looked up at the main stage with astonished expressions as if the sun were rising up there.

Their expressions were also mirrored on the faces of Archimedes and Aristotle, who were also staring at Qin Ye in complete disbelief.

However, before they even had a chance to process what had just been said, Qin Ye continued, "The fees that the Cathayan Underworld will charge for its new energy resource will be determined by referencing the standard cost of electricity in the mortal realm. During the research and development process, all scientists deemed to be participants of the project will be viewed as patent holders, and their names will be included in the new energy resource developer records. Once every five years, all of the participants in the project will receive..."

He paused here, and all of the scientists present felt as if a jolt of electricity had surged all the way from the top of their heads to the tips of their toes!

All of them instantly sat bolt upright as they looked on with bated breath and scorching anticipation in their eyes!

Qin Ye smiled as he continued, "0.00000001% of the pure profits from the patent fees!"

Silence quickly descended over the entire venue.

In the next instant, the entire conference hall erupted like a volcano!

"Did I hear that right?! Are my ears playing tricks on me?!" Schrodinger sprang up from his seat like a jack in the box, but his gesture wasn't out of place at all as all of the astonished scientists around him had also sprung to their feet.

"Did I mishear him?! Is this real?!" Planck had thrown a hand over his own mouth to stifle his own voice in fear that he would wake himself up from this beautiful dream!

Most of the scientists were too stunned to even say anything, and they could only reflexively stand up as they stared at the figure on the main stage.

The hushed chatter quickly crescendoed into a raucous commotion, and all of the scientists were on the verge of going insane as they yelled with all their might, "Yanluo Qin, are you being serious right now?!"

"0.00000001%!? Are you sure?!"

"Has this been drafted as a national law of the Cathayan Underworld?! Is this really happening right now?!"

"Yanluo Qin, this decision of yours will surely go down in the history books as one of the most generous and significant decisions of all time!!"

Qin Ye smiled as he nodded in response. "My word is final on this matter. Ah, my apologies, I appear to have taken more than the five minutes that I asked for. Let's invite Mr. Archimedes back onto the stage so he can continue to oversee the voting process."

He turned toward Archimedes and gave him a slight nod, while Archimedes was staring back at him with utter incredulity in his eyes.

You want me to continue holding this vote?! Fuck off!!