Yama Rising

It was only a letter, but Qin Ye felt as if it were burning a hole through his hand.

All of the names on the letter were like eyes that had witnessed the evolution of human civilization. Every single death god on this list had lived for hundreds, maybe even thousands of years. There were several dozen underworlds of different scales listed here, and all of those names that were known far and wide, and were as old as time itself were listed on this sheet of paper.

If the Cathayan Underworld were analogous to a region of the sea, then this would be the entire ocean in its full glory.

Qin Ye took a deep breath before folding up the letter in his hands. He knew that this was no invitation letter, it was a declaration of war! Qin Ye could virtually sense the killing intent lurking within every single word of every single line.

He carefully folded the letter back up before slipping it back into the envelope, then pressed the envelope shut using the red spider lily as he said in a calm voice, "The four pillars hold so much power. They can decide the fate of so many nations' economies and hold significant speaking rights on the world stage. Who wouldn't be tempted by such a prestigious title?"

He set the envelope down onto the table and sighed, "I can already imagine just how perilous and tumultuous this conference is going to be. All of the underworlds that have been constantly vying to replace us will most likely pounce on us like starving wolves. They'll do everything in their power to tear chunks out of us under the leadership of the other three pillars, and that's not even taking into account the countless other things that are most likely brewing under the surface."

A grim look appeared on Secretary Jiang's face. Even he was aware of just how perilous this conference was going to be.

Perhaps Qin Ye's safety wouldn't be under any threat, but the fate of the Cathayan Underworld was very much on the line.

The four pillars wasn't just a title, it entailed immense power and granted an underworld the ability to secure more benefits from the world than anyone else. In addition to that, all of the four pillars are extremely influential, and most importantly, all of them hold veto rights on the world stage.

They could use those veto rights to refute any proposals that were detrimental to them, and this advantage essentially made them invincible on the world stage. It wasn't difficult to imagine how many underworlds were desperately yearning for this right, and it was even easier to imagine just how many starving wolves would emerge from the shadows if one of the four pillars were to fall from grace.

"When did this letter arrive?" Qin Ye asked in a calm voice.

Secretary Jiang also calmed down as he replied, "It probably arrived quite a while ago."

"Probably?"

A resigned look appeared on Secretary Jiang's face as he explained, "My Lord, we do not have other avenues through which the outside world can communicate with us. We don't know how long ago this messenger bird was sent out, and it most likely tracked your Yin energy from when you made that trip out to sea. It was only discovered this week by the Yin soldiers patrolling the sea, so it's impossible to ascertain exactly when it was supposed to have arrived."

Qin Ye rubbed his own glabella in a resigned manner upon hearing this.

It wasn't that the Cathayan Underworld didn't want to open up avenues of communication, it simply didn't dare to do so.

Without the support of an energy resource, communication could only be facilitated through the use of messenger birds, and in the hands of a Yama-King, a great deal of information could be extracted out of a messenger bird. Even Qin Ye could cast several anti-reconnaissance arts that could thwart an Abyssal Prefect on a messenger bird. However, the coastline of the nation was far too long, and if they were to open up the Array of the Nine Gods, it would simply be unfeasible to assign an Abyssal Prefect with the duty of constantly monitoring incoming messenger birds.

Thankfully, the existence of the Array of the Nine Gods erased those concerns. Qin Ye heaved a faint sigh as he mused, "Currently, every word and action from the Cathayan Underworld is like dancing on the tip of a knife, and everyone else has their eyes firmly fixed on us. The fact that we've been absent from the international stage for so long would undoubtedly arouse suspicions from many underworlds. So be it, I'll just have to handle things as they come."

Seeing as the situation was already set in stone, the only thing he could do now was figure out how to make the best of everything.

…………………………………………………..

Time passed by one day after another, and everyone was making final preparations. Soon, the 20th of May arrived, and finally, all of the rosters were finalized.

The roster of 43 Emissaries of Hell was expanded by two, reaching 45 representatives in total. The two late additions were young Emissaries of Hell who had exceptional memory and fast reactions.

One of them was called Zhao Zhenghu, while the other was named Xu Yilong, and they were responsible for reminding Qin Ye about all of the affairs concerning the major underworlds.

For example, in order to break the ice, small talk was a must during meetings with other underworld leaders. Leader A would say something like: "The XX project that your nation recently proposed is very beneficial to the entire world." to which Leader B would respond with something like: "The XX measures taken by your nation are considerably ahead of its time." Thus, conversation would begin flowing, and the two leaders would be able to move on to different topics of conversation. It could be said that this exchange of small talk was imperative to assessing one's political inclinations and objectives.

It seemed like a trivial task, but if it weren't for the exceptional memories and adaptive abilities of these two Emissaries of Hell, they wouldn't even have been considered for this task. After all, it would be thoroughly humiliating if Qin Ye were to mention one nation's exploits to its leader, only for those exploits to actually apply to another nation. Similarly, if another underworld leader were to express friendly intentions toward Qin Ye, but Qin Ye couldn't reciprocate in kind, then he would be looked down on from the get-go as that would be a sign that Qin Ye wasn't keeping up to date with international affairs and was a clueless fool.

That would be unbefitting of his status as the leader of the Cathayan Underworld, and it would also strike the other party with the feeling that Qin Ye wasn't taking them seriously.

These were things that underworld politicians would inevitably have to face, and it wasn't much different in the mortal realm. Every single step taken had its own purpose, so nothing could be allowed to go wrong.

On the 28th of May, the second King Yanluo's lessons drew to a conclusion, and everyone was given a break. The Cathayan Underworld's reply letter had already been sent to the Nipponese Underworld, and the team of representatives was going to set off on the 1st of June. During the three days in between, Qin Ye and the second King Yanluo decided to give everyone a rest so they could recuperate and organize their thoughts.

After all, this was highly intensive training, and it had been conducted in a very short time.

"In order to have a thorough understanding of the world and all of the major underworlds, a process of accumulation is required." In the King Yanluo's office, the second King Yanluo was seated on the couch, gently blowing into a teacup. "Dedicated training for less than a month is still far too short."

Everyone had been forced to cram a massive amount of information into their heads, and whether they could remember all of it was one thing, whether they could actually make use of all of this information appropriately was an entirely different matter.

However, there was no time for them to consolidate.

The second King Yanluo set down his teacup and said, "In three days, you'll be entering Amano-Iwato. Don't worry about keeping up appearances, I have a pretty impressive-looking treasure boat that will be more than enough to stun those hillbillies."

"Is there really no way for you to come with us?" Qin Ye asked with a hopeful expression.

A faint smile appeared on the second King Yanluo's face. "What are you so afraid of? Are you a little virgin girl? Are you afraid that your first time will hurt?"

Fuck off! 

Qin Ye was on the verge of hurling his spear at this lackadaisical bastard! He was ashamed of having such a predecessor!

The second King Yanluo continued, "You have to experience all of these things yourself. You are the ruler of Hell, and there's no one who can help you during the negotiations. You have to think carefully about everything and constantly be flexible and adaptable. Also..."

He paused momentarily before continuing, "Have you thought about what your objective is for this conference?"

Qin Ye thought about this for a few seconds, then replied, "I want to leave my mark on this world and endure this conference without any significant setbacks, then begin to establish relations with the major underworlds."

"What are you going to use to establish those relations?" the second King Yanluo asked. "Ore? Resources? Forgive me for being frank, but only third-rate countries export those things. As for first-rate underworlds, what they export is technology. Advanced underworlds specialize in purchasing resources from their original production sites, then use those resources to create technology that can be sold for several times or even tenfold the price that they paid."

The second King Yanluo was clearly implying something here.

Qin Ye's eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at the second King Yanluo for a few seconds before asking, "Are you saying we should offer an energy resource?"

"Perhaps," the second King Yanluo replied with a frustrating smirk. "However, shouldn't you be considering the more important question, which is how you can get your hands on this energy resource?"

"Of course it's through corresponding with the representatives of the Usonian Underworld, then..." Qin Ye abruptly flattered before he could finish.

Indeed, how was he supposed to obtain this energy resource? By communicating with the representatives of the Usonian Underworld?

There were three major factions in the Usonian Underworld, the Incas, the Mayans, and the Aztecs. Each of them had their own representatives, and in order to secure the energy resource, he had to make contact with the representatives of Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa.

Were they even going to attend the conference?

The second King Yanluo didn't interrupt him, and several seconds later, Qin Ye nodded to himself as he said, "They'll definitely come. Even if they don't care about what the death gods under their command are doing, they still have to know, but how can I attract the attention of those representatives?"

The representatives would definitely initiate conversation with him, but that would be it. It would only be a meaningless greeting unless he could make more out of the conversation.

The state of the new continent was simply far too special. It was extremely rare to see the demise of a death god, and that was most likely going to take place within the next two or three centuries. Due to their circumstances, Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa didn't want anything from other underworlds, so how was Qin Ye supposed to strike a deal with them?

They were already close to insane, so at the very most, all they would do would be to greet the representatives of the Cathayan Underworld. If Qin Ye were to forcibly approach them and try to strike up a deal, then he would only arouse suspicions from other underworld leaders, thinking that he was trying to exert his influence upon the new continent. As a result, he would be doing nothing but making enemies for himself.

The second King Yanluo seemed to have gleaned his thoughts, and he smiled as he said, "If you want something from someone, you have to give them something first. Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa's thought process actually isn't incorrect. Aside from assimilating with the Heavenly Dao, there is no other path for them to take. However, if they could progress beyond the Yama-King level, then the Heavenly Dao wouldn't dare to devour them, and they would be able to extend their lives. However, there simply aren't enough Yin spirits on the Usonian continent for them to devour to reach that level. In 1492, Christopher Columbus first reached the new continent. At the time, the indigenous Usonian population was around eighty million, and they were followers of three major religions. However, after 1640, the indigenous population declined dramatically to only six million. By the time the 19th century rolled around, that number had dropped even further to 250,000. In 1703, the Madison administration implemented the 'scalp policy'. Anyone who could submit the scalp of an indigenous Usonian, regardless of what age or gender they were, could receive 50 to 100 US dollars as a reward. As a result of these successive destructive blows, this ethnicity currently only exists in name. Even though there are supposedly thirty million indigenous Usonians right now, 99% of them are mixed-race Usonians. On top of that, they are no longer followers of the three major religions as the death gods hadn't assisted them in any way during the devastating disasters they had faced."

Qin Ye sighed, "Intervention in the affairs of other realms cannot take place unless absolutely necessary. All the death gods could've done would've been to relay dreams, and that would only be of negligible help. At the time, the colonialists on the new continent were truly a bunch of demons."

"Indeed..." the second King Yanluo sighed. "If you prove to be too incapable a leader, Cathay will also suffer the same fate one day."

Qin Ye nodded with a grim expression upon hearing this.

"If you can execute this well, Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa will be our greatest allies," the second King Yanluo continued. "They've completely gone insane, so they're not afraid to even wreak havoc at the conference, and not many people would dare to oppose any proposals that they make. If you can get them to stand on our side, then this conference will truly become very interesting."

The second King Yanluo's eyes were glowing like those of a fox, and Qin Ye said, "First, we have to make them develop an interest in the Cathayan Underworld. Do you have a way to do that?"

The cunning look in the second King Yanluo's eyes grew even more pronounced. "Take a guess."

Qin Ye really wanted to stand up and slap him across the face, but that would be akin to committing suicide.

"I'll leave you to think about the answer to that question." The second King Yanluo rose to his feet as he said, "If you find the right answer and execute well, there's a very good chance you could receive an unexpected powerful ally during this conference. If you can't find the right answer, then you'll just have to force your way onward. Here, this is for you."

He waved a hand through the air, and a rock the size of a small finger appeared in Qin Ye's grasp.

"This is a Heavenmend Rock, which can allow one to experience the Great Dao of heaven and earth. Only by meditating on this thing can one prevent themselves from being assimilated by the Heavenly Dao. This is a priceless treasure, and only I have a supply. Give that to the representatives of Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa. I've opened the door for you, as for what you need to do after that, that's for you to think about."