Yama Rising

The Harken shifted slightly as soon as the old monk struck out at them. That said, it immediately sat back down at once.

It didn’t move because it had to guard against more important things, such as the souls of Tengri and Temujin. After all, it needed to be able to react accordingly in the event of any contingencies, and it couldn’t afford to waste any of its energy on the God’s Whip.

And right now, it only had a window of seven minutes to work with.

If Zhao Yun fails, it would have to take Qin Ye and rush right out of Chonggu County, as well as contain the might of the Red Lotus of the Purgatory. Naturally, it simply didn’t have the latitude to keep these Yin soldiers at bay. Besides, the seven minute window was a one-off trigger, and it couldn’t be retracted as soon as it was activated.

“Vanish…” The old monk’s eyes blazed with boundless netherflames. Ryu Changmin’s abilities were completely meaningless in the face of an Abyssal Prefect’s abilities. At once, a hand reached out and grabbed him by the head.

Fast… The old monk moved beyond the speed of sound, causing a look of despair to surface in the depths of Ryu Changmin’s eyes. But, just then, a fan suddenly rapped the old man hard on the hand. It sounded no different from a gentle tap, but it instantly sent the old monk flying back hundreds of meters, spewing out copious amounts of Yin energy at once.

Whoosh… Phagpa’s entire body hurtled back into the distance. Yin energy poured out of his seven apertures, while his hand hung limply by his side as he stared at Qin Ye with shock and horror.

Emissary of Hell…

A true Emissary of Hell!

Unfortunately, things moved so quickly on the battlefield that he didn’t even have time to reel in shock and horror. A split second later, countless chains of interwoven Yin energy immediately surged out, stretching and extending endlessly as they plunged straight through the sea of fog like venomous vipers.

This was Qin Ye’s Heavenly Dragnet! There was nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide!

Qin Ye’s Yin energy erupted with great majesty, causing the sea of Yin energy all around him to boil and slosh about with increasing vigor. Then, he pulled hard, causing the Heavenly Dragnet to tighten around the cavalry that were caught within its domain. At once, the Yin soldiers lurched forward. The emblem beneath their feet flickered desperately with dazzling light, but it was unable to resist the might of an Abyssal Prefect.

Even then, Qin Ye didn’t let his guard down in the slightest bit. The muscles on his arms swelled, and his veins bulged and throbbed wildly, while Yin energy blossomed from his body like a blooming spider lily. He was keenly aware that the small army that they had would never be enough to stand in the way of an Abyssal Prefect. They would need at least half a million troops backed by the might of a top-grade military formation. But the fact that the enemy forces were still marching valiantly against them despite knowing full well that there was a Yama-King in their midst meant that the enemy forces had other cards hidden up their sleeves.

And these other cards would by no means be limited to the military formation that they were already employing right now.

In fact, the main reason why he was still standing valiantly before them was precisely to draw out all the cards they had hidden up their sleeves right now, and to prevent them from reaching the Martyr’s Shrine at all costs! Likewise, Qin Ye acted with no reservations!

“Rise!!” Qin Ye’s temples throbbed wildly as he roared at the top of his voice. At once, the chains formed from Yin energy changed directions and hurtled straight towards the Yin soldiers. But, just then, a dazzling red light suddenly filled the skies, causing the chains rushing out from his sleeves to suddenly crack and shatter into countless pieces!

Whoosh… It was like the rise of a bloody sun, tainting the dark sea of Yin energy with a macabre reddish hue. It was a seal. A scarlet seal that was crystal clear, with absolutely no impurities. Furthermore, the seal was carved with nine lifelike dragons that appeared to be swallowing the sun. A line of Mongolian text was etched right beneath the seal.

“Imperial Seal of the Yuan Dynasty!” The Harken leapt onto Qin Ye’s shoulder and gasped in horror, “Legend had it that the Imperial Seal of the Yuan Dynasty was lost to the Ming Dynasty. Furthermore, it is said that the seal is carved out of Bodian blood jade - a kind of jade that is completely crimson in colour, almost like a red haze. Who would’ve thought we would see the emergence of a long lost treasure like this? Which tomb was it buried under?”

The Yuan Dynasty was clearly an era that sealed many secrets with its demise. Nobody throughout the course of history had ever uncovered the lost imperial seal. Everything was lost, just like how the tomb of the Yuan Emperors had been lost with time… until they surfaced once again.

Right before their very eyes.

This was no different from how Zhu Yuanzhang had left a treasure trove to the descendants of the Zhu Clan deep in the recesses of Longxing Temple! Naturally, this meant that the emergence of the imperial seal could spell the emergence of the first of many cards that were hidden up the sleeves of the Yuan Emperors, but it was certainly by no means the very last one.

Under the protection of the light of the Imperial Seal, the Yin soldiers were once again spared from certain death. Even then, they stood up, but with much difficulty this time. Meanwhile, the rest of the Golden Horde began to charge over towards Qin Ye like a rushing tide. Qin Ye’s eyes flickered, and he promptly transformed into a gust of Yin energy and vanished from where he was standing.

At once, the Yin soldiers directed their attention back to their original target, only to realize that the mountaintop was now surrounded by six fan-shaped barriers that kept them right outside the mountaintop. Each barrier was over ten meters high, and hundreds of meters wide. Meanwhile, dense Yin energy also coalesced into a thick wall that surrounded the fan-shaped barriers like a mighty prison with unbreachable walls.

Here was a wall that separated two forces that were diametrically opposed to each other’s existence. Outside was a raging sea of Golden Horde cavalry, while inside was where a grand duel took place. As soon as Qin Ye vanished, the Golden Horde immediately charged towards the barriers and pounded against them with all their might.

They charged tirelessly. With each moment that passed, countless cavalry would approach the barrier, only to be blasted back with a powerful recoil. Yet, even then, the next wave would immediately pour forward and fill their place. It was almost as though none of them knew the concept of lethargy and repose.

At the same time, volley after volley of arrows lit with scarlet netherflames would pelt down onto the barriers endlessly. The archers drew their bows with relentless fervor. They knew full well that unless they did everything to ensure Tengri gained the upper hand, not a single one of them would be able to make it out of this place alive!

“Teacher…” One of the men with braided hair dressed in an imperial robe sat atop his bone carriage and stared intently at the mountaintop, “We don’t have much time.”

Phagpa stood right beside him, taciturn.

“I can sense… the soul of Emperor Taizu of Yuan duelling against his opponent… He might be the Great Khan, but we all know that he stands little chance against a Yama-King of Hell unless we’re there by his side.”

Phagpa responded with a sullen expression, “Nobody had anticipated the sudden emergence of Yama-class reinforcements… And nobody had expected the sudden collapse of Tengrism either. Everything has happened far too suddenly.”

“So, we simply cannot give them the time to wisen up to the situation!” The man tightened his grip around his armrest, “Failure will spell the demise of every single one of us here! Hell will never spare us. So… what are you waiting for?”

“There’s no meaning in keeping any more aces up our sleeves.” He gritted his teeth and turned to the mountaintop once more, “Tardiness… begets death. We’re fighting for time right now. Most of our artifacts wouldn’t work against a Yama-class Emissary of Hell. And since that’s the case, it leaves us with only one option.”

Phagpa took a deep breath, and he gulped nervously, “Understood.”

“Two hours.”

“Luck isn’t on our side. That thing… Given the number of Yin soldiers under our charge now, we’ll have at best two hours.” He sighed softly, and his eyes gleamed with renewed determination, “If we can’t take the mountaintop in the next two hours, then… death would be but a reprieve.”

Phagpa’s hands trembled softly as he spoke these words. Then, he lifted his eyes and turned to another segment of their forces, where he locked eyes with another pair of golden netherflames.

Four eyes met, and they both immediately understood what the other was thinking. Nobody was stupid. It was useless keeping their cards close to their chests any longer. Speed was the key to this battle. The sooner they took the Martyr’s Shrine, the greater their odds of victory! And so long as Tengri remained alive, then there would yet be hope for the great Yuan Dynasty!

Both men nodded imperceptibly at the other, following which both men immediately turned back and began to make a series of hand seals as they chanted a complex mantra.

Meanwhile, nobody noticed that there was a procession right at the back of the Yuan Dynasty forces, where nine coffins were being carried.

Each of these coffins were constructed out of goldenrod cedar, tied up with chains, and plastered all over with countless talismans, so much so that the original appearances of the coffin were practically concealed. Furthermore, these coffins were the traditional box coffins of the Cathayans.

As they chanted, the coffins began to drift up in unison, and black wisps of smoke began to appear on the surface of the Yin talismans on the coffins. Incidentally, the writing on the talismans indicated… Fourth Year of Emperor Huizong of Song.

This was a relic of the previous dynasty! And the fact that it was valued so highly by the Emperors of the Yuan Dynasty meant that it was without a doubt one of the most important treasures of the Song Dynasty!

…………………………………………….

Whoosh… Qin Ye’s figure appeared once again at the desert of the mountaintop. From here, the fan-shaped barriers appeared transparent to him, and he could see everything that was happening on the outside. That said, his sudden appearance startled the survivors so much so that they nearly jumped right out of their designated positions. One Sword One Mind’s lips quivered softly. Had they not been entrusted with an important mission, he would have run to the corner of the desert to take cover by now.

“Are you seeking death?” Qin Ye swept an incisive gaze across each of the survivors before him. He didn’t have the luxury of time to placate these survivors to do his bidding. The Mongol army was like an incessant river that was drumming wildly against the defences he had erected. He knew full well that the Mongol forces would soon discover that it was impossible to penetrate his defences without relying on extreme, overbearing might.

Therefore, what came next would most certainly be a sea of rage!

The Mongol army was most certainly going to tap into the deep reserves of their resources, pulling out the strongest aces they had hidden up their sleeves to breach the Martyr’s Shrine!

“Do your job if you don’t want to die!” He stared intently at each survivor, before taking his place at the center of the formation, where he proceeded to meditate.

He was at a numerical disadvantage, and even though he knew just how wild their attacks were soon going to grow, there wasn’t any possibility of a counterattack at all. All he could do right now was to passively defend.

Meanwhile, the survivors trembled as they stared at Qin Ye with great incredulity. In particular, the older survivors couldn’t help but stare at him with awe and respect.

After all, they had witnessed the sight of Qin Ye’s deployment of his Heavenly Dragnet. That alone reminded them of what an Emissary of Hell was like, and the sheer extent of power of an Abyssal Prefect.

He’s by no means as young as he looks… One of the men sized up Qin Ye, before cautiously closing his eyes once more - A thousand year spirit? Or several thousand years? These powerful Emissaries of Hell are truly terrifying…

To think that he’s able to single-handedly keep this many Yin soldiers at bay…

They’re God’s Whip! The stuff of legends!

The mortal realm is clearly lacking when it comes to dealing with the spirits of the netherworld…

But just as their hearts were fraught with a multitude of different thoughts, Qin Ye suddenly opened his eyes once more and shot to his feet. He stared into the distant skies, and there was clearly an expression of shock written all over his face. The survivors’ hearts immediately grew antsy.

What’s going on?

Why does he suddenly have a grave expression on his face? Could it be that… that…

BOOM! Just then, an overbearing presence descended from the skies, and it nearly forced them to lay prostrate on the ground! Everyone gasped in horror as they glanced at the mountaintop.

Right there, in the dense sea of fog around them, they could see nine pillars of golden light bursting straight from the abyss and rising high into the skies. These pillars were glowing with dazzling symbols of Yin Talismans, and they caused the rolling fog around them to stir endlessly. And as soon as they appeared, countless cracks began to surface on the fan-shaped barriers!

“What’s this…” Qin Ye was astounded. He had never felt such a terrifying pressure before. It wasn’t the might of Yin energy. Rather, it was the might of a heavenly presence!