Yama Rising

Their greatest fear had come true. They were now faced with the question that they hoped would never be asked of them.

The initiation module that was in the Russian Underworld’s possession was given to them by the Argosian Underworld. If they didn’t agree to the exchange now, would the Argosian Underworld continue to render them aid in the fields of Forbidden Arts in future? Moreover, the Russian Underworld had clearly already stepped on the toes of Hell, while the Hindustani Underworld and Aegyptian Underworld were located too far away to be of concern right now. Naturally, that leaves only the Argosian Underworld that can assist the Russian Underworld. They couldn’t simply leave Aristotle out in the lurch.

It was a decision so agonizing it felt no different from plunging a knife straight through the heart.

What they wanted was assistance, and not to be subjugated as a vassal state!

And the last thing that they wanted was to allow Hell to have any more hostages than they deserved to have.

“Dream on!” A colossal figure shifted slightly and roared back at Peter the Great, “Forbidden Arts… is something that should never have surfaced in this world to begin with!”

A dozen other silhouettes stepped forward with flickering flames in their eyes. Black Mamba promptly spoke up on behalf of them all, “If you want us to turn a blind eye to all this, fine - Three S-rank mines in the realms of mega-reserves. Furthermore, your compensation to us has nothing to do with any of your transgressions against Hell! Oh, and one other thing - you must give us your word that you shall never develop Forbidden Arts ever again!”

Every word was like an awl driven right through his heart.

They wanted so much to refuse, but they clearly didn’t have any grounds to do so anymore.

Like a star of enlightenment in the sky, the light slowly but surely grew more and more dazzling, until three seconds later, it erupted once more, forming an entire avenue of light! Before they could even realize it, the avenue of light instantly shoved the Mythic Spirits to the side, before promptly transforming into a remarkable carpet of light.

BOOM!!

Endless Yin soldiers stood valiantly in formation under the palace. Despite the fact that this was nothing more than an illusory image, the palpable courage and valor they exuded was nothing to laugh about. Despite all of what, the one image that immediately caught everyone’s eyes was the illusory projection of an ancient European emperor.

The true ruler of the Russain Underworld, and their oldest god of death!

It was the beginning of the end.

This was a demonstration of might.

It was the demonstration of the might of a Tsar, and it was a threat to those holding his people hostage to release them.

“This is the Russian Underworld’s Protector Yin Artifact, the Reverse Cross…” The Harken gasped in horror, “It can extend safe passage to certain areas located close to the borders of a nation. It possesses no offensive abilities whatsoever, yet it can repel all enemy forces. Does this mean that… the Tsar is personally receiving them?”

But before they could even begin to revel in their joy, another light suddenly rose high into the sky, transforming into a golden light that completely negated the effects of the Reverse Cross.

A golden curtain of light had appeared laterally across the avenue of light, and endless golden lotuses were blooming and fading away at the bottom of this golden curtain. A contrasting dark blue staircase of the underworld appeared on the other side of the curtain, billowing with endless Yin energy, almost as though it was a counterforce.

It was unable to extend directly to the feet of Peter the Great and the others.

That said, it was merely an illusion.

A snap decision.

“CHARGE!!!” Catherine the Great yelled out at the top of her voice. At once, a bone at her torso exploded, transforming into a terrifying vortex of bones and darkness. And right in the center of the swirling darkness, the pale face of a young girl slowly emerged. Then, her eyes opened abruptly with a menacing scarlet glow, and her hair thrusted forward like a powerful tide that crashed straight into the barrier ahead!

Attack!

Phweeee!!! At the same time, Peter the Great whistled loudly, and the bones of his entire body scrunched up together, causing him to transform into a glistening white bone sword. Catherine the Great immediately held him up like a mighty treasure sword. Then, like an angel of the night, the boundless Yin energy around her promptly coalesced into two beautiful wings, and she immediately took to the skies.

Pale sword marks suddenly appeared in the void, almost like a sword of light was painting brilliant strokes across the canvas of the night. Those who didn’t belong to the realms of the living had just engulfed these lands with eternal darkness. It was almost as though this majestic sight had been rehearsed countless times on end. All of them moved in tandem to the others. Even the cavalry behind leaned closer to their war horses and raised their weapons in tacit understanding. Then, a second later…

Rumble! The earth trembled, and Yin energy roared into the skies. 100 crusaders and 10,000 imperial guards charged straight towards the coalition of Mythic Spirits separating them from salvation. They were the elite warriors of the Russian Underworld, synonymous with killing machines, and they had only one thought right now.

Fast.

Countless golden lotus flowers appeared on the curtain of light upon impact. However, they soon realized to their dismay that the Yin energy from their attacks simply sank into the curtains like they were throwing mud into the sea. It was a terrifying sensation of seeing a ray of hope appear before their eyes, only to have it completely dashed once more.

“Interesting…” A voice remarked from behind Qin Ye. At some point, Phoenix of the Sunbird Tribe had already arrived right behind Qin Ye, and it extended a claw straight through the curtain of light, “This is the Life’s Gate, one of the Second King Yanluo’s forbidden techniques, often times also known to be the unparalleled defensive technique in the entire netherworld. Who would’ve thought that I would one day see this again…”

“So we can go over, but they can’t come over?” A humanoid creature entwined with the roots of plants and hovering in the sky immediately drifted over and put his hand through the curtain. Then, with an odd smile on his face, he glanced at the Tsar at the top of the stairs of light, “So… shouldn’t you be preparing to pay this ransom of ours soon?”

Even the Tsar was fraught with bewilderment right now - How did things turn out this way?

She sighed softly. Then, just as she was about to raise her hands once more, she discovered that… huge, ghastly netherflames had suddenly appeared all around her again!

As soon as they realized that the curtain of light was a one-way street that allowed passage to them, they immediately charged forward, surrounding the Russian Underworld’s remnant forces at once. Then, the Mythic Spirits opened their mouths, summoning a terrifying conflagration in their lips that swirled about madly like a dozen blazing suns.

“We… admit defeat. We accept your punishment.”

Or rather, the Mythic Spirits simply weren’t prepared to hold back right now.

All that remained was light. Boundless light.

It was a spectacle to behold. With Qin Ye as the dividing line, the forces before Qin Ye appeared to have fallen straight through a hellrift. Tens of thousands of Yin spirits were completely wiped off the surface of this world at once. Catherine the Great looked up into the sky with complete despondence. Her heart felt as though it was dripping with blood.

It's over… It’s all over…