Yama Rising

Gift?

You commit a crime and then seek to lead me on a wild goose chase?! How arrogant can you be? Do you really not give a damn about Hell’s existence?!

There aren’t any words written in blood. They must’ve thought that doing something like that was far too ordinary… He continued looking around for dozens of seconds, before finally chuckling bitterly.

“To the Emissary of Hell who assassinated our colleague: We shall repay you blood for blood, a hundredfold!”

What gall!

“Eh? Killing intent?” Ming Shiyin communicated through his thoughts, “You’re actually… displaying a palpable sense of killing intent? And a pretty decent showing of killing intent at that?”

Qin Ye didn’t respond. Instead, he stood in the middle of the carriage and addressed the others around, “Master Bai, please bring Grandmaster Chu back to the hotel. I’ll come look for you after thirty minutes.”

They promptly left, leaving Qin Ye in the carriage alone. Qin Ye surveyed his surroundings, and a wave of memory surged from the depths of his heart right back into his mind.

Dong… The carriage door silently shut, and Ming Shiyin flew out silently.

Qin Ye continued with a stiff voice, “Well, are you aware of when I’d consumed the fungus of aeons?”

Qin Ye swept a gaze calmly across the entire cabin of the carriage, “When I was two years old.”

Ming Shiyin didn’t respond. Qin Ye made it sound simple, but Ming Shiyin knew better - those who consumed the taisui fungus would either live, or transform into living monsters. Qin Ye had never mentioned anything about his grandfather before. He had always presented himself living a lonesome life in this word, barely scraping by and coming out on top of the wars back then, before seeing the establishment of modern day society. One could only imagine how rough his life must have been back then.

Qin Ye’s voice grew distant as he glanced at the Nipponese text formed by the dismembered bodies, “And they’re the ones who had started it all!”

“It’s not as though I haven’t killed someone before.” Qin Ye continued flatly, “In fact, most of the people I’d killed back then happened to be Nipponese invaders.”

Ming Shiyin finally responded, “No.”

It sighed, “The longer humans live, the more polarized they become in their demeanor. The first kind would assimilate fully into the society that they’re part of and become one of the old and wise. The other would instead frolic and laugh and do as they please precisely because they’re old enough to have gained the latitude to do so. Not everyone becomes the typical, well-considered old man who only speaks words of wisdom. Just like the case of Benjamin Button, the older they get, the younger they get. But it arises out of an expansion of their perspective. The breadth of one’s perspective causes the rules and regulations of the world to fade away. They no longer see a need to hold the same measure of reverence and concern for these rules, nor do they take themselves as seriously as before. Thus… they set themselves free.”

Ming Shiyin snorted and turned to Qin Ye, “You’re just like the second type of person.”

“You’re adaptable enough to keep with the times so that you’re not rendered obsolete with the effluxion of time. And you’re just like the exuberant and carefree communities of elderly who don’t shackle themselves with the concerns of this world. It’s impossible to assess what their true personality is like, and whether their actions are a mere pretense, or whether they come from the innermost part of their being.” It sighed softly, “A leopard doesn’t change its spots. But it doesn’t prevent itself from concealing its appearances.”

“Did you really think we were following you just because we had no other choice? Admittedly, there’s some correlation between the fate of Hell and your soul. But what about Arthis and I? We’ve lived long enough to witness three eras of prosperity in Cathay, and we have a wealth of experience under our belts. Do you really think there’s no other option here? If that’s what you think, you might have underestimated the power of Infernal Judges in Hell. We would never allow Hell to fall to the hands of a good-for-nothing Emissary.”

Qin Ye’s expressions faded away, and he indulged in a rare showing of the marks left behind by the vicissitudes of life, “That’s right… as times changed, I, too, realized that these days are no longer the same as those days of conflict and tension. In fact, I had long forgotten about this part of me that had been relegated to the recesses of my heart… at least, until today…”

“How dare they hide under the cover of their invisibility to mortals and invade Cathayan soil like that! And to think that they have the gall to send me a gift purchased with the lives of over seventy mortals!”

With that, he waved his hand, the carriage door opened wide, and he left without turning back anymore.

He could tell that the secret ninjas of Renpu had left a long time ago, and it was pointless staying here any longer. Thus, he made a beeline straight towards the hotel where Guardian Auctions were putting up at.

Guardian Auctions had booked out an entire floor. Qin Ye took the stairs up, and he noticed along the way that everyone standing guard were cultivators and experts in their own rights. That said, they immediately made way for Qin Ye as soon as they sensed the pressure of a Hellguard emanating from his body.

The two men sat down compliantly.

“The culprits who attacked the train are evil ghosts of the Hellguard level.” Qin Ye got straight to the point, “And they hail from Nippon. Are you certain you still wish to go ahead with the auction tomorrow? Are you really certain you’ll live to see the auction through?”

“Not everyone here has the same outstanding talent and strength as you do. We…”

It was hard to get off a tiger’s back.

He was well aware of the current conundrum faced by Guardian Auctions. It all started when they dug up the Obsidian Heaven’s Eye Bowl. In their elation, they broadcast the news of it to the entire world in an attempt to stir hype for their upcoming auction. Unfortunately, they also drew the unwanted attention of the Nipponese emissaries who traveled across the seas to reclaim what they deemed was theirs to begin with. Guardian Auctions was still underestimating what the bowl truly represented. And they had thought to cancel the auctions, but they were already riding on the tiger’s back - it was difficult to get off.

For instance, they drew the attention of the famous clan of Onmyojis, the Kamo Clan.

Guardian Auctions would have to count their lucky stars that they drew the attention of these groups because they were the ones who had provided Guardian Auctions with the X-magic box to safekeep the Obsidian Heaven’s Eye Bowl to be auctioned. Otherwise, not a single person on board the train tonight would have been left alive.

Without the X-magic box, the Nipponese emissaries would have a license to kill indiscriminately. In other words, the box had somehow ended up becoming a life-saving measure to Guardian Auctions. After all, the Nipponese emissaries would never cut a deal with Mitsubishi Corporation or the Kamo Clan in order to gain access to the box. Thus, as the weakest party around, Guardian Auctions would do everything they could within their abilities to protect their one and only lifeline right now. Naturally, who else could they call on for assistance but Qin Ye?

This was the first time he had encountered a conflict of such magnitude. He wasn’t sure of the depth of forces Yomi-no-Kuni had gathered at the East Cathay Sea, but this was undoubtedly still the largest-scale supernatural clash he would be participating in. Qin Ye’s eyes grew distant, and he remained taciturn for some time. Several moments later, he finally opened his eyes and muttered, “Are you… really unafraid of death? Are you truly confident that the X-magic box is foolproof?”

He would have responded affirmatively without hesitation before this incident. But he wasn’t sure anymore, after seeing the kind of monster he was truly facing.

“Sir.” He drew a deep breath and gazed intently at Qin Ye, “What if… we invited you to lend us your assistance? What do you think if we offer you 10% of the auction price of this bowl?”

“How long is it till we depart for the high seas?” Qin Ye asked placidly.

Three days, huh… Qin Ye gently sipped his tea.

The high seas would be the location of the final showdown! It was still unclear to him just how many regiments of Yomi-no-Kuni’s legendary forces were laying in wait. If he didn’t do everything he could to rally his forces on this end, what awaited him might well be the carnage that would clip his wings before he could even spread them and soar!

1. This is a reference to the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945.