Yama Rising

“The total turnover of the first Great Sale has reached 100 million HL! That works out to an average spending of approximately 5,000 HL per capita! This is the miracle of Ashmound City!”

“Changes to Ashmound City: farms, pastures, orchards and industrial zones have been earmarked to be established in due course. How close will things get to the state of affairs in the mortal realm?”

“That’s right…” This was a study group organized by the neighbourhood committee. A gray-haired Yin spirit chuckled with great joy, “We used to see Yin spirits idling about at every corner of the streets. But now?”

A middle-aged woman smiled and sighed, “To think that we’d see these names, even in Hell. You know, Hell is truly shaping up to become no different from the mortal realm. What a masterstroke by the government. We’re seeing the establishment of industries right now, and it’s probably going to be followed by the development of arts and culture. We’re practically on the cusp of the establishment of an entire nation!”

Was there anyone who didn’t feel proud that their nation was becoming strong?

Ashmound City might have appeared like a bustling hub in the past, but the truth of the matter was that people didn’t feel assured of their livelihood. The government’s various acts of handing out entertainment amenities and facilities, the launch of currency, the establishment of banks, and even the registration of companies, was all a desperate bid to increase Ashmound City’s productiveness and spur the development of various industries. But unfortunately, after those moments of passion passed, everything went cold again.

Naturally, this meant that there were a lot of citizens idling at every corner of the city with no direction in their lives. Nobody minded spending less, even on food and drinks, since it wasn’t a necessity to Yin spirits to begin with, and there wasn’t much on offer anyway. But now, things were completely different.

They made huge gains from the sea trade, as well as the war reparations of the Russian Underworld, and these benefits naturally cascaded down into the budding industries in Hell, spurring their growth, whilst trickling down to the end users that were none other than the citizens of Hell. They now had goods of all kinds, ranging from clothes and food, to even needles and threads. This plugged the huge gap in the market and once again lit the fire in the hearts of all citizens. The construction of large factories had been announced, and that also marked the growth of production and generation of jobs. It was the dawn of a new age where the citizens of Hell would no longer be in want.

Every generation would invariably see their own fair share of self-made people. For instance, the ones who had the foresight to set up shop in the commercial streets back then would have made at least 300,000 to 400,000 HL from the Great Sale. There were even talks of some Yin spirits having become millionaires overnight, although such numbers were still few and far between.

“Everyone.” An old man with white hair stood up and waved the papers in his hand, “Hell has never eased up on improving our quality of life. Over the last six months, we’ve heard too many complaints that the government wasn’t doing enough, and there were even suggestions that the Yin spirits should defect to some other underworlds. Fortunately, we didn’t. Hell tried time and again, from the launch of currency, to the distribution of products, until now, when sea trade was finally established.”

“Sure, we might not have the capital to compete with the industry leaders, but these industry leaders would also have to rely on us to reach out to the less accessible communities! And that’s the reason for which we’re here today - to explore the possibilities of cooperation and seize the market before everything goes down! So, here’s the deal.” He paused for a moment, and then smiled, “Have you heard of the name Huang Liangchuan, a man more affectionately known as Old Huang?”

Sss… A cacophony of gasps echoed in the room. The old man went on, “I happen to have a fairly good relationship with Old Huang, and I’ve heard over the grapevine that the amount of deposits in the Central Bank is contracting rapidly. This is a good thing, because it proves that the market is slowly coming to life. A rolling stone grows no moss. In the past, Ashmound City had to search hard for means in order to plug the growing gaps in the market, and the search was bound to come up short eventually. But now, the market has come to life, and commerce has finally taken flight.”

After all, what would the merchants do if the stream of supplies one day ran out?

“I also have some news.” Another young man in his twenties spoke up. He ran an entertainment goods store, and business was now better than ever, “First of all, I’ve got to say that the recent turn of events have spelt the best news for us. Period. And that said, it just so happens that I live just a stone’s throw away from none other than Yanluo Qin’s personal assistant.”

The young man shook his head, “I can’t possibly be mistaken. He’s never introduced himself in that manner before, but I’ve seen him on several occasions, including back then when Yanluo Qin travelled around Hell, inspecting the major factories around these parts. That man was walking right alongside him, and he even seemed to know Yanluo Qin on a personal basis. It’s taken me quite some time, but I’m pleased to say that I’ve managed to get on his good side. This is also why I say we live in great times, because when else would you be able to even interact with someone as important and influential as that?”

“He’s very tight-lipped.” The young man sighed, “But he did reveal that Hell’s immediate concern is to stimulate the market. And then… there will be further movements in Hell in the near future. Don’t look at me like that. I don’t know what these changes might be. That said, he did mention that if Hell succeeds, then Hell’s industries will receive a huge boost.”

The Yin spirits grew silent and mulled over the implications-laden words. Just then, the door suddenly flung open, and a Yin spirit rushed into the hall with another set of papers in his hand, “Are you guys still having that meeting of yours? Quit it already! Come here and have a look at this breaking news!”

Without saying anything further, the Yin spirit that had just barged into the room immediately laid the papers in his hand onto the table, and everyone huddled around to catch a glimpse of the headline.

These were the two words splashed in scarlet font on the headlines. At once, the old man frowned in consternation, “What about that?”

“Keep reading on!!” The Yin spirit who had just barged into the room appeared to be in his forties. He immediately sat down and poured himself a cup of tea. Meanwhile, one of the other Yin spirits in his thirties abruptly shot to his feet and pointed at the papers, “Everyone… take a look here… This is breaking news indeed…”

The first line read: “Hell looks to the rest of the Cathayan Underworld! The Third Era of Hell is openly conscripting!”

“The last Hell had collapsed due to unforeseen circumstances, and Hell has been directionless for the last hundred years. The third era of Hell has arisen out of the ashes of the old Hell, inheriting the virtues of the old Hell and continuing its work. Since then, Everburn City has become the capital of the new Hell, the Book of Life and Death has returned to our possession, the economic center known as Ashmound City is thriving, while both Ghost King Zhao Zilong and Hell’s divine beast the Harken have returned to serve Hell. Let all who have ambition join us and fly the banner of Hell high above the farthest reaches in Cathay!”

“Requirements for recruitment: All under the age of 35, without any disabilities. As we all know, one’s strength and capacity to wield weapons are directly related to their life. Those with disabilities will unfortunately be disqualified from our selections.”

“During service, conscripted soldiers shall be entitled to insurance and housing allowance, which shall both be converted into domestic insurance and pension funds after their discharge…”

Purging an ordinary Yin spirit known as a wandering spirit - 1 merit point.

Purging a Soul Hunter - immediate promotion to officer.

Purging a Judge - immediate promotion to officer, with a view to be assigned as a commander of a division after the war for unification…”

Generous…

Allowances aside, the non-commissioned officers were easily already on par with the mortal realm. In fact, they could easily even gain monthly wages of up to 8,000 HL! This was beyond the imaginations of all Yin spirits in Ashmound City right now. After all, such monthly wages were easily equivalent to that of a high-ranking officer.

But these monetary compensation was nothing compared with the intangible benefits listed below.

That’s by no means a low-ranking official!

But now?

So long as one was lucky enough to land the killing blow on a Judge, he would almost certainly be set for life!