Yama Rising

Rather, it was more accurate to say that there weren’t many trees left in sight.

Works had been halted for today. However, the scaffolding and machinery and tools on site, and even the towering cranes with their arms looming over them gave them an insight as to the buzz of construction works that would be carried out on a regular day in Hell.

Is this truly the new Hell? An underworld that had barely turned one year old?!

This was because he saw Hell’s Gate. Logically speaking, Hell’s Gate would be the only building in Hell right now. This was the default start-up mechanic, and Hell would be considered to have done fairly well if they could even maintain the order around it and keep out any unwanted Yin spirits. But now…

Furthermore, Hell’s Gate wasn’t the only building that was standing in sight. He could tell that a snow-white building had been erected right beside Hell’s Gate. It was built in a completely different style and aesthetic altogether, and its existence immediately drew the attention of the thirteen Infernal Judges. Their eyes lingered on the strange building for some time, before they finally turned away.

But now that he had seen everything with his own eyes, he suddenly realized that… the cited GDP growth rate of 1000% might very well have been true…

Qin Ye had essentially turned a destitute land into a massive site for construction works. It wasn’t hard to imagine the kind of soaring growth Hell would experience as soon as the works were completed, and the basic amenities for his citizens were fully in place. But… how is all this possible?

“What is it…” Chaghan, the famous Mongol, responded with an equally drifty voice. What Liu Yu failed to notice was the fact that Chaghan’s gaze was still lingering on the construction sites, the ghostly citizens around, as well as the auditorium that stood completed beside Hell’s Gate.

My grass plains… have actually been surpassed by the new Hell!

“You… back then, how long did it take you to control the grasslands and earn the trust of your citizens?”

“Then… would you look over there…” Liu Yu pointed into the distance with great reluctance, right at the ghostly citizens who were hiding in their construction sites and in the distant woods, peeking out from behind their cover and watching the feudal officials with great interest.

To their minds, a newly established underworld should be filled with helpless, confused and cranky ghosts.

“He’s actually… managed to earn the trust of his citizens?” Chaghan’s facial muscles twitched uncontrollably, and he gnashed his teeth as he turned to Liu Yu, only to realize that Liu Yu had the exact same expression as him.

We can’t afford to wait any longer!

This was undoubtedly the best shot that they had. An army of 100,000 was garrisoned outside, so why wouldn’t the new King Yanluo of Hell consider their proposition seriously? On the other hand, if they held back now, they would never have the same kind of leverage over Hell again!

They absolutely had to impel the new Hell to cross their names off the register in this very visit.

Gao Changgong’s green ghostly mask completely covered the exact same expression of shock underneath, but it did nothing to conceal how he was rubbing his fingers against each other with immense vexation and frustration.

“A new underworld… can actually achieve that much in just a single year… How is it even possible…” He murmured to himself as he glanced at the worksites and the forest of equipment and tools. Then, almost as though he recalled something important, he suddenly turned back to Qin Ye.

What did you think the new Hell was supposed to look like?

“He’s… flexing back at us right now…” He sighed softly. It was no different from their conduct towards him earlier. Qin Ye hadn’t said much back then, and Gao Changgong had naturally interpreted it as a sign of weakness. That said, what else could Qin Ye do but to bite the bullet and suppress his rage back then?

Absurd. Even a random conscription of troops from an underworld that has been in existence from hundreds of years would be able to level all of the forces that the new Hell could muster right now.

You can pit your military might against me, but I’ll raise you my rate of development and growth. And when Hell has reached a critical amount of growth, I’ll take you all down in one fell swoop! What’s the use of having a numerical advantage at the start?

And he wasn’t the only one. Guo Ziyi, Ma Fubo, Chang Yuchun and Han Qinhu still looked as glorious and magnificent in their flashy outfits as ever, and they even carried themselves with the same measure of poise. Unfortunately, there was now an eerie, peculiar silence among all of the feudal officials.

Nobody knew this, but his heart was momentarily swayed by what he had just seen.

Had the new Hell been as barren and destitute as everyone else had expected, and if Hell was unable to retrieve any of the old Hell’s legacy, then its development would most certainly only take off at least two hundred years in the future. And from there, it would take them yet another three hundred years before they could finally put themselves on par with the feudal officials. Then, unless the new Hell were blessed by a stroke of heavenly luck, they would need yet another several hundred years to muster a force powerful enough to stand against the twelve envoys, if they were bent on reining them in all at the same time. The horizon of such a timeline was well beyond their distant considerations.

By then, wouldn’t Hell be able to reclaim all of its lost territories? We’re talking about a population size of 1.5 billion people. How could us twelve feudal officials compare against these numbers? No… in fact, there’s only seven of us officials right now.

This single ripple of Hell had silently stirred up great, tumultuous waves in their hearts.

He was going to make them pay the price for running off their mouths earlier.

Everyone snapped back to their senses. Yu Qian and Yang Jiye trembled with excitement, and they stared at Qin Ye with wildly flickering flames in the depths of their eyes.

Yang Jiye also followed suit, “The rapid development of the new Hell exceeds all measures of my imagination. I’ve underestimated the will and foresight of Your Majesty. I… am willing to put my life on the line for Hell!”

He was making a last ditch effort.

So long as they refrained from disengaging from Hell right now, then everything could still be resolved through future negotiations.

They were essentially faced with a choice between life and death. Naturally, nobody was willing to pick death.

Nobody spoke.

“Chang Yuchun?! What’s the meaning of this?!!” “Chang Boren, Siam is an affluent land that represents the fruit of our joint labour! Are you thinking of ceding control of it to others?!”

How could they not be startled?

Are you hesitating? Are you looking to fly solo? Are you going to throw in the towel at the earliest signs of trouble?

“Lord Qin.” Liu Yu’s face sank. He hadn’t expected such a swift and powerful counterattack by the new King Yanluo of Hell, who simply let his actions speak far louder than any words he could possibly muster. More than anything, Liu Yu knew that things the longer things dragged out, the more difficult it was going to be to have a clean break from Hell.

He stared straight into Qin Ye’s eyes, before making everything explicit, “I hope to sign a treaty of non-aggression with Hell, and thus be granted complete independence.”

He hadn’t expected the situation to take a turn for the worse so abruptly. Could he truly be certain that the others wouldn’t have second thoughts on declaring their own independence. After all, wasn’t Chang Yuchun already showing signs of regret and remorse? And to think that he would actually be forced by the circumstances to be the first one to extend an olive branch to the King Yanluo of Hell! Who would have thought that the leverage that they’ve earned through the daunting threat of 100,000 Yin soldiers garrisoned outside would so quickly be rebuffed as soon as they stepped into the new Hell?