Yama Rising

Qin Ye's eyes narrowed slightly upon hearing mention of this light tower.

This was a light tower that had been constructed using an evil Taisui fungus and over 100 human lives, and it really had attracted someone or something!

Was this man a human or a ghost?

Did he come from the legendary Peach Blossom Spring? Where exactly was this Peach Blossom Spring?

Was there really a hidden power in the territory of the Cathayan Underworld that even the second King Yanluo couldn't track down?

"Yes, yes!" Bu Wantian kowtowed vigorously several times in succession.

The man on the boat smiled and said, "Don't be so nervous, we are the same type of people."

The same type of people...

No one else said anything, and Qin Ye finally rose to his feet.

Almost all six of the people who had consumed the Taisui fungus were in Cathay. The Taisui fungus couldn't be found overseas, and this was already the fourth person.

There was Qin Ye, Lee Jung-sook, Bu Wantian, and this man, who had been alive since at least the Song Dynasty and was most definitely still alive today.

Initially, he didn't feel too strongly about the Taisui fungus. The first person aside from himself that he knew of who had also consumed the Taisui fungus was Lee Jung-sook. They were a dynamic duo, and she was certainly no heinous character, so their relationship had been quite harmonious...

Of course, aside from the instance where he ditched her for a few hours to drink with a married man until the early hours of the morning... It was… pretty harmonious...

Qin Ye was trying to deceive himself with all his might...

However, after meeting Bu Wantian, his mindset changed.

The Taisui fungus was a dual-edged sword. If an evil individual were to obtain it, then they would be able to commit unimaginably heinous deeds. They had far too much time and far too many opportunities to accomplish what they wanted to do.

If the Taisui fungus were consumed by one with an evil heart, then it would be a ticking time bomb.

The fact that the man knew about the existence of the light tower in the mortal coil meant that he was definitely not a righteous figure!

It was clear that this man's ideologies wouldn't be aligned with Qin Ye's.

"Come, raise your head and come to me." The voice of the man was very gentle as he said, "Those who have eaten the Taisui fungus and survived are all vastly fortunate. Legend has it that half of the people who consumed the Taisui fungus would be able to survive, while the other would be transformed into monsters, but throughout my research on the Taisui fungus spanning over 1,000 years, I've found that the survival rate is only 1% at best..."

"Who on earth is this man?" Qin Ye was astonished to hear this. "He's conducted over 1,000 years of research on the Taisui fungus? This memory is from the Song Dynasty... That means he's been alive throughout the entire history of Cathayan civilization! He's even lived through the Qin and Han Dynasties!"

Qin Ye repressed the shock in his own heart as he continued watching.

What he wanted the most was to see the man's face! Perhaps his prayers were heard, and Bu Wantian finally raised his head in an uneasy manner to appraise the man with awe and veneration in his eyes.

The man was very handsome in appearance with long and slender eyebrows, red phoenix eyes [1], and a long flowing beard. His black hair was arranged in a simple manner with a jade hairpin extending through it. 

He was wearing a black long robe, and it was impossible to identify the quality of the robe, but there were some faint patterns that mostly blended into the material. In addition to that, there was a five-clawed dragon embroidered in golden thread onto both the front and the back of the robe. During that era, wearing a robe bearing such a design would've definitely been a crime punishable by a death verdict extending to his entire family[The golden dragon is the symbol of the emperor, so anyone who wears clothing bearing such a design would be accused of treason. In fact, anyone who even wore a golden robe would be accused of the same crime.], but he appeared to be completely unfazed by this prospect.

There was a very special disposition about him that was very difficult to describe. Only after pondering the matter for a long while did the word "carefree" spring into his mind.

It was as if nothing would be able to evoke an emotional response within him.

This was a man whom one would never forget after seeing him in a crowd. His disposition was like a stream of serenity and purity in a chaotic and noisy crowd, and Qin Ye was struggling to link someone like him with something as heinous as the light tower in the mortal coil.

Only after Bu Wantian made his way toward the man did Qin Ye discover that they were situated on the shore of a sea.

It was nighttime, but this area of the sea was very unique. Even in the darkness of the night, it could be clearly seen that the surface of the sea was divided into different colors.

One side was yellow while the other side was blue, and the divide was very clear. This was a miraculous scene that one would never forget.

It was the Yellow River's inlet!

Bu Wantian had traveled all the way from the Fujian Province to the Yellow River's inlet, which was located in the present-day city of Wuyang!

Why had he traveled such a long way?

Qin Ye repressed his befuddlement as he continued watching. Bu Wantian only dared to sneak a single glance at the man before withdrawing his gaze, following which he was led by the man into the boat's cabin.

The cabin was very luxurious. The events in this memory most likely took place not long after Bu Wantian created the light tower in the mortal coil, and it was clear that he was still quite uneasy and jittery. This was his memory, so the image was being presented from his point of view, and he was constantly averting his gaze, not daring to look directly at the man.

This was a sign that he was feeling inferior and lacking in confidence.

"There's no need to be so nervous, Brother," the man said with a smile as he led Bu Wantian to the seats at the center of the cabin. These were chairs constructed in the classic Song Dynasty style, and the craftsmanship was extremely intricate. There was a table between the two of them, upon which sat a green jade flute.

The entire cabin was extremely luxurious, and all of the servants were children who appeared to be around 10 years of age. However, their faces were deathly pale, and they seemed to have no sentient will, moving like mindless wooden puppets.

The man gently picked up the flute before brandishing it like a hand fan. "We are the only two people who have ever occupied these two seats in this boat. I am extremely fortunate to have found someone else like myself in this long life of mine."

He set down the jade flute with a reminiscent look before picking up his teacup. "I wanted to prepare the most ceremonious welcome for you, but the true body of this boat sank around 1,000 years ago in the sea roughly 150 nautical miles east of here. At this point, it's most likely already become a paradise for fish, so I must beg your forgiveness for this subpar welcome."

"I, it's fine..." Bu Wantian finally spoke, but his voice was clearly a little panicked. "Ar... Are you a deity?"

The man seemed to be rather taken aback by this question, and he chuckled, "I'm only someone who's lived a little longer than you have."

He then set down his teacup as he asked in a casual voice, "Do you know why I call it the light tower in the mortal coil?"

Bu Wantian shook his head in response.

"It's because the place we're going to is far away from this mortal coil, it is a true paradise that's outside of this world." The man leaned forward slightly as he said, "It's a place that only people who were chosen by the heavens, like you and I, can go. We are the owners of that place, and everything else there is merely our slaves."

Bu Wantian drew a sharp breath upon hearing this, and his voice began to tremble with excitement as he asked, "Where is it? C, can I go there now?"

"Unfortunately not. On top of that, I'm unable to come out at the moment," the man said as he gently stroked the ring on one of his fingers. "If you go to where I am in your current state, the only fate that awaits you is death. In addition to that, the light tower in the mortal coil still isn't complete. Once it's complete, you'll be able to travel with me to the promised land."

Bu Wantian gulped nervously before asking in a raspy voice, "Why is it that you can live there, but I would die?"

The man smiled and flicked a finger through the air. The entire boat instantly trembled, and in the next instant, an earth-shattering boom sounded outside.

Bu Wantian shuddered before hurriedly rushing over to the window to take a look. Just a moment ago, the sea had been extremely calm and placid, but right now, a massive vortex that was over 100 meters in size had appeared on its surface, and it was only around a kilometer away from them.

Thud... Bu Wantian's legs gave out from under him as he sat down onto the ground, and everyone was stunned to see this.

"Abyssal Prefect... I can't tell exactly what his cultivation rank is, but he's definitely at least at the Abyssal Prefect level!" Zhang Heng said as he held onto his own beard in a death grip. "It's downright incredible to think that he was able to cultivate to the Abyssal Prefect level within 1,000 years!"

How could someone like him have been concealed in the mortal realm for so long?

Despite how unbelievable it was, the fact of the matter was that he really had managed to hide himself this entire time. Furthermore, he was lying completely still like a viper waiting to strike.

The most terrifying thing was always the unknown.

No one said anything else as they continued to watch intently.

"Once the light tower in the mortal coil is complete, you'll also attain this level of power. Once that time comes, I'll give you the address, and my door will be wide open to you," the man said with a smile before casually taking a sip of tea.

It was clear that Bu Wantian had been completely won over by everything that he had witnessed, and his voice was shaking as he said, "Y... Yes! I'll do as you say! Esteemed deity, where do I need to go?"

The man smiled and said, "There's no hurry. You probably still don't know how to establish the light tower in the mortal coil, so I'll send someone to keep in contact with you. It'll take a long time to complete this feat, so it's best for us to maintain communication during the process."

"I'll do as you say!"

The man turned to the side and called out, "Chang You."

The cabin's door was opened, and an armored man strode in. "My Lord."

It was Huang Yunqing!

Qin Ye immediately recognized him. As expected, Huang Yunqing really did come from that mysterious place!

"From now on, stay near Mr. Bu at all times, and provide instructions to him where necessary. Take care not to meet up too frequently, and be wary of the current imperial teacher, understood?"

"Yes!"

Thus, Huang Yunqing, or in other words, Chang You, departed. Following his departure, the man smiled and said, "As for the location..."

Everyone was listening intently, but right at this moment, the man suddenly paused.

He closed his eyes as if he were sensing something, and all of a sudden, he said, "An unwelcome guest is no different from a thief. Who is it that's eavesdropping on our conversation?"

There's someone else? 

Lu Ban's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this. No one found this to be strange, but Qin Ye's pupils abruptly contracted as right when the man's trailed off, he turned to look directly at Qin Ye!

This wasn't a coincidence where he just so happened to be looking in Qin Ye's general direction, his eyes were as sharp as razors, and Qin Ye was certain that the man had spotted him!

He didn't know what kind of strange ability it was that allowed a projection of the man in a memory from thousands of years ago to have sensed him, but the fact of the matter was that he was looking directly at him!

This was downright incredible!

"Leave this place right now..." Qin Ye said in a grim voice. All of the scholars faltered slightly before turning to him with puzzled expressions.

"Leave! Now!" Qin Ye yelled, and almost at the exact same moment, the man in the memory abruptly grabbed onto his jade flute before giving it a gentle shake. The jade flute immediately parted to reveal a short sword with a blade that shimmered like rippling water. Immediately thereafter, the sword was slashed directly toward Qin Ye.

It was impossible to describe.

The sword strike was as fast as fast could be, but there was no sonic boom. There was a dazzling sword projection that sliced through the memory, traveling through space before instantly reaching the real world!

This was the most fearsome sword strike that Qin Ye had ever seen, regardless of whether it was in terms of speed, power, or aura. Even Rumyantsev's sword hadn't struck him with this type of feeling. As the sword projection pierced through the illusory and arrived in reality, all of the fine hairs all over his body stood on end, and a sense of extreme peril welled up in his heart!

"Pr... Protect the King Yanluo!!" Zu Chongzhi was the first one to react as his voice instantly sprang up a few octaves. Several scholars immediately pounced toward Qin Ye, and the sound of thundering footsteps could already be head coming from outside. All of a sudden, Qin Ye found himself completely surrounded.

Right at this moment, countless cracks that resembled a cobweb suddenly appeared in mid-air.

"It's the Nightjade Glass barrier... Thank goodness..." Shang Yang heaved a faint sigh of relief, yet right as his voice trailed off, the situation escalated even further.

Crack... Crack... The barrier that was supposed to only be vulnerable to attacks from Yama-King level beings didn't even last 10 seconds in the face of the sword projection before shattering explosively, sending glass shards raining in all directions.

"That... That man is at the Yama-King level!! He's a Yama-King level cultivator!!" Lu Ban immediately dove onto Qin Ye, and Qin Ye didn't refuse. This sword strike was impossible to evade, and he had already drawn upon all of the Yin energy within his body in preparation to protect himself.

However... it wasn't enough.

He knew that the gap between an Abyssal Prefect and a Yama-King was far too large.

In the blink of an eye, the sword projection had already traveled no more than 10 meters away from them. Right at this moment, the surrounding ground and walls abruptly shattered, disintegrating into dust.

[1] [This is a term used to describe an eye shape that is slender with outer corners that are slightly upturned while the inner corners are turned downward.]