Yama Rising

Yin clouds descended from the heavens, encompassing the entire Myriad Soul Pagoda in the blink of an eye. Thousands of specks of netherfire also came crashing down toward the side of the Myriad Soul Pagoda, presenting a truly surreal and breathtaking sight to behold.

However, none of this was able to stop the troops of Hell. On the slope, tens of thousands of heavy cavalry units formed a formidable black wave, which had already rushed several dozen meters up the pagoda. Behind them were hundreds of thousands of charging Yin soldiers, and the sound of long horns rang out across the heavens while countless flags were waving incessantly. The black wave was surging directly toward the only vulnerable spot on the Myriad Soul Pagoda with unstoppable force.

This was the final showdown that was going to decide who was going to be the ruler of Cathay, and neither side was willing to back down.

"Charge!" Chang Yuchun led from the front, forming the first wave alongside Zhou Yu, Ban Chao, Wang Meng, and the other envoys. It was like a clash between tides with the heavens crashing down from above, while the formidable army down below charged upward to meet it.

The two formidable waves clashed violently, kicking off the final chapter of this Battle of Zhuolu!

Right as he entered the Yin cloud, Chang Yuchun immediately drew to a halt.

Something wasn't quite right here!

He had charged into the Yin cloud with countless Yin soldiers around him, yet he felt as if he were completely alone and on his own in here!

It was as if he had been completely isolated from the rest of the world, plunged into a purgatory that was filled with boundless darkness and oppression. It was as if there were something in the darkness behind him, slowly reaching out toward him.

All of the heavy cavalry units were connected by chains, and the chains on either side of him were clearly moving, but as he reached out, he was unable to touch anyone else. His hand traced along the chains, but it felt as if the chains stretched on for an infinitely long distance with no end in sight.

"Who's there?!" All of a sudden, he swept his longsword through the air, but failed to strike anything.

He could hear the sound of faint breathing in the darkness. Who was it that was breathing?

He wasn't the only one here.

All of the Yin soldiers had charged into the Yin cloud as a collective unit, yet all of them had been relegated to their own independent spaces.

Qin Ye could also hear that faint sound of breathing. It was extremely quiet, but at the same time, it was also somehow extremely invasive, influencing one's heartbeat to match the rhythm of the breathing.

That was Chiyou's breathing. The fact that he had begun breathing indicated that the resurrection process had well and truly begun, and there wasn't going to be much time left for the army of Hell.

Right at this moment, a burst of dazzling light suddenly shone down upon the darkness.

It was like a lighthouse in a storm, shining down from several hundred meters up above, illuminating every single corner of the darkness. The black wave in front of Chang Yuchun rapidly revolved, forming an inky-black vortex, and a burst of golden light erupted out of the revolving vortex.

Is this it?

For a brief moment, Qin Ye wondered whether he should enter the vortex, but he only hesitated for a split-second before flying into the vortex as a gust of Yin wind.

At this point, there was no going back!

However, right as he rushed into the vortex, the entire world seemed to stand still for an instant, immediately following which Nothingness's voice rang out beside his ears. "You only have four hours. At the top of the Myriad Soul Pagoda, the profound bipolar metal chains are connected to the four symbol array. You'll find out the specifics once you get up there, what I'm here to tell you is that the flames of the four symbol array have already been lit. Each of the four flames in the four symbol array will burn for one hour, and once all four flames burn out, Chiyou will return."

Qin Ye's eyelids twitched slightly upon hearing this. Upon entering this place, even Nothingness was clearly beginning to grow anxious, as evidenced by the fact that They had taken the initiative to approach Qin Ye and were speaking much more than normal.

"What's the deal with these Yin clouds?" Qin Ye asked.

"This is an automatic defense measure. Chiyou still hasn't completely resurrected, but his instincts have already returned. As a bearer of the fortune and faith of Cathay, his capabilities are far beyond what you can imagine. He is rejecting your entrance to the Myriad Soul Pagoda. You really do not have much time left."

Qin Ye nodded in response. "I hope you can help us when the time comes."

Nothingness didn't say anything.

"I managed to break through the Myriad Soul Pagoda's defenses even without you. If you don't want to go back on your own promise and break the rules you established yourself, then lend us your assistance elsewhere!"

There was still no response, and it seemed that Nothingness had already left.

"Fuck!" Qin Ye cursed to himself before rushing into the vortex.

In the instant that emerged from the vortex, he was greeted by the sight of what appeared to be a boundless space.

There was no ground or sky, all that could be seen were Yin clouds stretching as far as the eye could see in all directions. Different body parts were drifting through the Yin clouds, including mouths, tongues, ears, eyes, and noses. They were like asteroids of an asteroid belt, revolving around the nine-petaled lotus flower platform at the center.

A scarlet lotus flower that was around 100 meters in size was growing, seemingly out of thin air. Its main stem was split up into countless branches, and several hundred scarlet lotus flowers were swaying in the darkness like stars in the sky. The army of Hell was situated layer upon layer several kilometers away from the lotus flower platform.

Behind the scarlet lotus flower was an open bronze gate, upon which were engraved extremely antiquated patterns, and the gate was standing in the middle of space without any support structures.

Qin Ye was unable to describe what he was seeing in words, but he found this place to be extremely fitting as an ancient battlefield between gods and demons.

Fierce wind was blowing all around him, and Qin Ye didn't waste any time as he raised a hand. "All troops, heed my call!"

"We're here, Your Excellency!"

"Prior to setting off, you've all already been assigned duties, so enact your duties as planned!"

Zhao Yun abruptly raised his head as he cast his gaze toward Qin Ye, and he seemed to want to say something, but refrained from doing so in the end. Instead, he merely cupped his fist in a salute. "Yes!"

The duties assigned to everyone had been assigned prior to their attack on Zhuolu. However, at the time, they had been planning for a large-scale battle. Under those circumstances, even if Qin Ye were to face the inner demon on his own, the other Yama-Kings would be able to reinforce him. However, that was not the case now.

They had to overcome the enemy before the flames of the four symbol array burned out, so there was no time for delay!

At the very most, they would only have four hours before Chiyou's return. They didn't dare to gamble, nor could they afford to take a gamble. The entire army was going to create an opportunity for Qin Ye to scale to the top of the pagoda, but that would mean that he would be facing the inner demon on his own.

Even with the Dusk Legionnaire at his disposal, there was no way that he would be a match for the inner demon. Thus, he would have to hold on for dear life until Zhao Yun arrived, but that was certainly easier said than done against an opponent as formidable as the inner demon!

"Your Excellency..." Zhao Yun still wanted to say something, but Qin Ye shook his head to cut him off.

"The Myriad Soul Pagoda is like a hand that's slowly pushing us toward the edge of a cliff. Setting aside whether the four flames actually reflect the amount of time it would take for Chiyou to complete his resurrection, even if they don't, we can't afford to play it safe and go up one level at a time. If the rate of Chiyou's resurrection exceeds the rate at which our army advances, then no one will be able to stop the inner demon with a resurrected Chiyou on its side. If that happens, the only solution will be to go to the world's gate and request assistance from the second King Yanluo, but that will only be a last resort. For now, we march!"

As soon as his voice trailed off, he immediately flew directly toward the gate as a gust of Yin wind.

As the saying went, fortune favors the brave, and Qin Ye could only hope to create his own luck through courage.

"Charge!"

A thunderous war cry rang out as all of Hell's troops advanced directly toward the bronze gate like an inky-black wave.

Come! This is the final war that will decide who reigns supreme in Cathay. Let's see who will get the last laugh!

Wang Meng was already primed to peak condition as he charged directly toward the bronze gate. The other envoys were advancing beside, forming an unstoppable wave that was sweeping through everything in its path.

At the same time, the scarlet lotus flower at the center quickly spread open, revealing several hundred demonic ghostly immortals seated on the lotus flower platforms within the flower.

Yin energy erupted into the heavens as an earth-shattering roar rang out, and a giant monkey Yin spirit with three eyes, six ears, and a forked tail abruptly stood up before letting loose a thunderous roar. "Kill them all!"

In the next instant, several hundred bursts of netherfire and Yin wind swept through the air. These were the true elite among Chiyou's forces, and every single one of them was at least at the Anitya Hellguard level. In the blink of an eye, the sweeping Yin wind and flicking netherfire had given the entire scene a hellish complexion.

"Karmic Fire Legion, ready your arrows!" Zhou Yu was spurring on his steed relentlessly as he charged on ahead with a fierce look in his eyes.

The sound of pounding war drums rang out, and all of the demonic ghostly immortals' eyes immediately widened at the sight that they were greeted by.

Countless balls of scorching crimson fire had appeared in the sky, numbering at least over 100,000!

"Fire!" a general roared, and all of the arrows were released at once, flying through the air like rain to form a bright red bridge between the two armies. The storm of arrows was like a plague of locusts, eradicating everything in its wake, and several demonic ghostly immortals that were lacking in defensive prowess were immediately sent tumbling down amid agonized howls.

Beneath the storm of scarlet karmic fire, the two armies clashed violently. Yin energy exploded through the air, forming shockwaves that were visible to the naked eye spreading in all directions.

Both sides were completely absorbed by the desire to vanquish their enemies, and right at this moment, a demonic ghostly immortal threw its head back and roared to the heavens, following which its body swelled rapidly in size, reaching a height of 20 to 30 meters in the blink of an eye.

Immediately thereafter, the mace it was wielding came crashing down with devastating force, instantly crushing around a dozen Yin soldiers. However, before it had a chance to unleash another attack, its body had already been sliced in half by Hell's army.

Seated atop the lotus flower, Envy's Yin energy had already swelled to a peak, forming a terrifying vortex of reddish-black Yin energy that was several kilometers in diameter.

However, he wasn't doing anything.

He was facing four Yama-Kings, so the best course of action for him was to remain still. However, that didn't mean that he was fearful of the enemy!

Envy slowly stood up as he watched the approaching army. He was determined not to allow them to advance beyond this point, even if he had to die here!

However, right at this moment, the entire army suddenly parted down the middle, splitting up into two groups that rushed directly toward the gate behind Envy!

Envy faltered slightly upon seeing this, then immediately let loose a ferocious roar as his arms elongated infinitely before sweeping violently toward either side of him.

You're not getting past me!

However, right as he was about to lash out, he was stopped cold in his tracks, then looked down at his own arms with a grim expression.

Two azure Soul Shackles had wound themselves around his arms, preventing him from moving as he pleased. At the same time, a burst of incredibly fearsome Yin energy had already completely locked onto him.

Yin energy and tens of thousands of specks of netherfire had formed an enormous vortex in front of him, and the Soul Shackles were protruding out of the vortex.

Envy slowly withdrew his arms as he asked, "What is your name?"

A female voice rang out from within the vortex in response. "I am Reincarnation King Arakshasa, the one who will put an end to your life!"

As soon as her voice trailed off, countless Soul Shackles that were burning with scorching karmic fire erupted out of the vortex!