Yama Rising

“Holy shit!!! Let go! Let go!!! He’s the one who took the divine molt, so why are you biting me?! Sss… Agh! I’m bleeding! I’m bleeding!!! Hurry up and let go of my hand, you rebel!!!”

“... Did you really have to do that? It’s just the disappearance of the divine molt. At most, we can just abandon the forward base to the sea of blight vermin. They’ll vanish as soon as they finish devouring the old Hell, and there will be nothing more to worry about them. So, did you really have to bite me that hard?!”

And when these netherflames were finally extinguished, the old Fengdu Necropolis would finally be washed away by the effluxion of time and become nothing more than a memory in the annals of the new Hell.

The Harken grew taciturn. After some time, it finally responded, “Has the Second King Yanluo departed?”

“So, all that’s left is us, huh…” The Harken panted softly as it stared blankly at the writhing mass of blight vermin below, “You know, I’ve been wondering whether I’d actually managed to evade Lord Ksitigarbha’s capture when he gained ascension, or whether… my escape was all part of their plans…”

Qin Ye didn’t know how to respond to that.

“Have you ever considered how I’ve never treated you with respect after discovering that you’d received the shard of King Yanluo’s Seal? Even if there was nothing deserving of respect about you back then, I should at least have accorded you some respect on account of the fact that you had the shard of King Yanluo’s Seal with you. But… I’d thought of killing you on more than one occasion.”

He had thought about these things before. However, he didn’t have a clue on what to think about these things.

“Moreover, the Second King Yanluo’s ascension was reported all over in the news, whether in the Heavens or on Earth, and regardless of the media. In short, the entire world flew into a frenzy across all Three Realms. But, with you, there was nothing.”

The Harken went on with some measure of emotion, “Had I known that there had always been someone watching you, and that this was all part of a greater examination for your right to ascension, I would have restrained myself. But… my injuries were too great, so much so that I wasn’t even able to peer into the mortal realm.”

Qin Ye smiled and patted the Harken’s head, “Likewise, I didn’t know I was undergoing a test either. Had I known, I would’ve felt some form of pressure to do well, and I wouldn’t have been driven into a corner on several occasions.”

Qin Ye nodded softly, “Speaking of which, I’ve got something I’d like to pick your mind on.”

“What do you mean?”

The Harken pondered for a moment, before responding, “That’s a difficult question.”

Qin Ye frowned, “Are you suggesting that we should temporarily set it aside? But that doesn’t cohere with what some of the other scholars think. According to their sources, some of the foreign superpowers have already started to develop the second generation of Forbidden Arts…”

It paused for a moment, and then continued, “I presume you haven’t had the time to read the scrolls about the Forbidden Arts, right? Forbidden Arts aren’t entirely akin to the nuclear weapons of the mortal realm. Anyway, take me back to the Mythic Palace of Reflections first. It’s not good to be discussing such matters here.”

The hall was just as quiet as ever. As soon as they appeared, the Harken leapt down from Qin Ye’s arms and raised its paws. At once, Yin energy flowed out, and a five-meter long sword covered with runes of Yin talismans and shrouded with Yin energy appeared in mid-air.

“Over 400 years ago, the Argosian Underworld triggered the Second Netherworld War. 30,000 Thebes Crusaders led the charge out from Mount Olympus, followed by tens of millions of Hierapolis Warriors, countless Glory Soldiers, Teutonic Knights and Macedonian Phalanx… You can’t even begin to imagine how crazy Thanatos had to be back then. He even mobilized his Twelve Pontiffs, ravaging Europa with his forces in an instant. The land of vampires, Transylvania, was nearly razed to the ground.”

Qin Ye listened intently as the Harken taught him more about the history of the netherworld. To this end, the Second King Yanluo had only alluded to these events, but never bothered delving any deeper into the details which were all set out in the records that the new Hell had on hand.

They were just like the mortal realm, but not quite like it at the same time. They were similar in terms of their geographical locations as well as their terms of reference, but the balance of power was completely different. The understanding of such differences was an impactful insight that opened his eyes to a whole new perspective.

“They don’t have any formal underworld in Alkebulan. In fact, each different locality even has their own method and means of tribal worship. For instance, the Sahara Desert is ruled over by only one powerful totem, but the vast oasis between the Sahara Desert and the Kalahari Desert situated south of the Sahara Desert is home to a dozen other tribes and corresponding totems…”

Qin Ye didn’t say anything. The manner in which the Harken put it across meant that there was more to it than meets the eye.

Holy shit!

“After the Argosian Underworld swept through Europa, they were faced with two choices - Firstly, they could head east into the Middle East, where they would face the challenge of another one of the top four underworlds, the Aegyptian Underworld. At that time, the Ten Pharoahs of Aegyptus, Khufu, Menes, Ramses, Tutankhamun and so on, had already received news of the fall of Europa. The famous Mamluk Army that once defeated the Mongol Empire’s forces were even garrisoned at the borders of modern day Turquia. Anubis even personally took to the fore and stationed himself at the forefront of the potential location of the clash. Obviously, Thanatos would never in his right mind pit himself against the world’s oldest underworld.”

“He chose to fight against the dozen or so Yama-class entities, led by Quetzalcoatl.”

So, was the first underworld to successfully develop Forbidden Arts… the Argosian Underworld? Qin Ye mulled over these thoughts.

“Incidentally, it was also this battle that catalyzed the Forbidden Arts research and developmental efforts of all underworlds. Approximately 100 years later, the four top underworlds declared that their research had borne fruit, and they cemented their position as the top underworlds in the netherworld. With that, they dispelled all their naysayers and determined the balance of power for the next few centuries to come.”

This is the prime opportunity to learn more about Forbidden Arts!

But if that’s the case… why does the Harken still say that it’s a difficult question?

1. Romania.

2. For those of you interested in reading up more about the Mamluk Army, here’s a link to the wiki page.