Ashmound.
As one of the most advanced cities in the Cathayan Underworld and the origin point of the new Qin Dynasty, the city was always teeming with bustling activity. Similarly, as one of the first cities to have been developed, it benefitted even more from economic policies than Everburn. As a result, it was the core of the entire nation's economy. In contrast, in the areas that were liberated later, such as the Westriver Province, the Cloudriver Province, and the Rich Province, economic systems were only just beginning to take shape.
After being conquered, Ashmound hadn't witnessed any battles, making it renowned as the safest city in the entire Cathayan Underworld, and this reputation also contributed to its prosperity.
Inside a teahouse, Huang Liangchuan was sitting in a booth, savoring a cup of Yin tea and indulging in its warm fragrance. The booth was constructed in a classic Ming Dynasty style with gold-plated crane lanterns, a screen with an intricately embroidered hibiscus flower on its surface, and beautifully crafted furniture. There was also a half-drawn bamboo curtain that further contributed to the air of natural elegance in the room, and drinking a pot of top-quality tea here was the best form of enjoyment that he could think of.
Seated beside him was an elderly man who appeared to be in his seventies, and after taking a draft out of his shisha, he blew out a plume of smoke and murmured, "Who could've foreseen the life we're living now? Just a few years ago, Everburn was so poor that there were only trees to rest on, yet now... Tsk tsk tsk, Old Man Huang, you're currently serving as the vice-manager of the Heaven and Earth Bank, can this life get any better?"
Huang Liangchuan gently placed the lid onto his teacup with a smile and said, "I used to be the manager, but I stepped down. My foresight and expertise are sorely lacking compared with the newer Yin spirits that specialized in the financial sector during their time in the mortal realm. However, I'm credited with the contribution of developing the first batch of Hell's Notes, so they can't just replace me outright. If they decide to release new versions of the currency at some point, I can still put in some work."
There was no indignation or regret in his voice at all.
He had worked hard and he had fought for everything that he had. Having served Hell for so many years, it was time for him to relax and enjoy the fruits of his labors.
Right at this moment, the elderly man's eyes narrowed slightly, and he pulled back the bamboo curtain with furrowed brows. "What's going on? Who's that flying over the city? Are they looking to get arrested? Governor Gou Yongjun of Ashmound was the top dog in the disciplinary committee back in the mortal realm, and he hates rule-breakers like this..."
"Who knows? Maybe they have a death wish?" Huang Liangchuan could also see a dense wall of Yin clouds rushing over from the west, and he shook his head as he continued, "The fact that they're able to fly indicates that they should be an Infernal Judge. Do they think that they can do whatever they want just because they've served Lord Qin for some years? I've never seen Lord Qin compromise when it comes to laws."
Not only could they see the approaching mass of Yin clouds, all of the netherworldly citizens in the entire city could see it as well.
However, they merely took a quick glance at it before shrugging and returning to whatever they were doing. Only the netherworldly citizens that were bored and had nothing to do decided to use this as a topic for conversation.
"Who's that?"
"Beats me! No one has ever dared to fly over Ashmound before. Yanluo Qin says that flying over cities is prohibited."
"Surely they're going to get arrested for this, right?"
"Who knows? They're able to fly, so they must be a high-ranking official. The avenues haven't been opened up yet, but apparently, in the future, we'll also be able to cultivate."
"Cultivate? Are you kidding me?"
"Hehe, you're far too lacking in experience, so you're amazed by everything. I bet you haven't even been dead for three years yet, right? You still have a long way to go..."
No one took much notice of this situation aside from Governor Gou Yongjun, who was looking on at the cloud of Yin energy from Reflection Palace with a cold expression. He turned to the side and instructed, "Instruct the guards on the city walls to fire at will if that person doesn't descend even after reaching the city gates!"
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Everything was very calm and placid. It was just like the Nipponese attack on Pearl Harbor. Even as the fighter aircrafts reached the airspace directly above the city, everyone still thought that it was merely a drill.
The smokers continued smoking, those drinking tea continued drinking, and public servants continued to busy themselves with their respective duties. Yin soldiers were patrolling the city walls as they did every single day, and no one could anticipate what was going to befall this vibrant city on this day.
The mass of Yin energy was coming closer and closer, and it was flying along at top speed. In the instant that it passed over the city gate, Qin Changxin's thunderous voice rang out across the entire city. "I bring an order from Yanluo Qin!" [1]
The voice was full of urgency, so much so that it was on the verge of cracking, and the emotions that it held struck a sense of unease into the hearts of all of the city's netherworldly citizens, thereby grabbing their attention. Standing on the highest floor of the Reflection Palace, Gou Yongjun's brows furrowed slightly, and he also cast his gaze toward the mass of Yin energy, as did the Emissaries of Hell who were currently issuing a report to him.
Countless gusts of Yin wind swept over the city, carrying Qin Changxin's voice with them, and due to the fact that he had been flying as if his life depended on it for an extended period of time, he was panting so heavily that even his voice was shaking.
He was just about to continue, but the words suddenly got stuck in his throat.
Countless netherworldly citizens, Emissaries of Hell, and Yin soldiers were standing before him, waiting for what he was about to say next. From his vantage point high up in the sky, the buildings and people were like countless matchboxes surrounded by innumerable ants.
Ashmound was a city with a legendary status, and on every street and in every alley, one could hear legendary stories about the current King Yanluo and his associates. Only the netherworldly citizens of this city had witnessed the might of the King Yanluo, the Yama-Kings and the Abyssal Prefects in person. As the first capital of Hell, this was definitely a city that its citizens could be proud of. As the first city in the Cathayan Underworld to have opened up to international trade, it was unique in its economic status and had attracted countless netherworldly citizens.
The netherworldly citizens of Hell had been fractured and separated once, but since the unification and founding of the nation, the population of Ashmound had already exceeded twenty million. Under normal circumstances, this would be something to be immensely proud of, yet Qin Changxin was currently feeling nothing but horror.
He truly didn't dare to imagine what would happen if a forbidden art were to explode here!
"Sir!" On the city wall, a commander was holding a megaphone, and he yelled, "The governor has ordered you to descend. Otherwise, you will be forcibly detained as you'll have broken Hell's anti-flight regulations."
Qin Changxin completely ignored him and took a deep breath before yelling, "By the order of the King Yanluo, all netherworldly citizens are to evacuate this city right away!! In 35 minutes, a forbidden art is going to explode in Ashmound Port, and its power is equivalent to a nuclear bomb in the mortal realm!! Again, you only have 35 minutes left! Open the city gates, open all of them! The Harken and General Zhao will be arriving imminently! Seal off Ashmound Port and evacuate the city! I'll be taking over the Reflection Palace in the meantime! Hurry! Now!!"
Dead silence.
On the top floor of the Reflection Palace, the netherfire in Gou Yongjun's eyes flickered violently, and he immediately rose to his feet.
All of the Emissaries of Hell around him also stood up to stare at the figure in the sky with incredulous expressions.
This is a coup!
A chill ran down Gou Yongjun's spine as this thought occurred to him, but he then immediately realized that this wasn't the case.
There were Yama-Kings in Hell, so there was no place for an Abyssal Prefect to stage a coup. On top of that, he wasn't leading an army, either. What was an Abyssal Prefect doing attacking Abyssal Prefects on his own? Did he have a death wish?
If this weren't a coup, then... could it be that what he had said was true?
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An even more intense chill ran down his spine as this thought occurred to him, and he immediately pushed open the window before roaring like a madman toward the deathly silent city outside, "Evacuate!! Everyone, evacuate! Did you not hear him?! Guards, open the city gates!! All members of the army and government officials must evacuate last after all of the citizens have evacuated!"
His voice alone was simply too insignificant, and none of the netherworldly citizens followed his instructions as they stood rooted to the spot, exchanging bewildered glances with one another.
This news was far too shocking and it had come far too abruptly, so everyone was struggling to believe it to be true. A nuclear bomb was about to explode in Ashmound? What a joke!
Right at this moment, countless Yin energy screens suddenly appeared all over Ashmound. Zhao Yun and the Harken were flying through the clouds, paying no heed to containing their own Yin energy at all. The two Yama-Kings were traveling directly toward Ashmound, leaving a gargantuan Yin cloud in their wake. Zhao Yun declared, "All citizens of Ashmound, evacuate right away! Seal off Ashmound Port! Mr. Qin is not joking, a forbidden art will explode in 35 minutes! When the time comes, it'll be up to fate to decide how many of you survive. What you have to do now is evacuate, and I mean all Yin spirits!!"
The screens then immediately disappeared.
Two seconds later, the entire city erupted into a raucous frenzy!
Clatter... Inside the teahouse, Huang Liangchuan's hand fan fell onto the ground. He stared up at the sky with dumbstruck expressions, and his hands began to tremble.
The elderly man beside him was also looking up at the sky with astonishment in his eyes, and both of them were struggling to process what they had just heard.
However, there was no time for them to think.
Right as Zhao Yun's declaration drew to a conclusion, the entire city erupted into complete pandemonium. Countless netherworldy citizens immediately rushed toward the nearest city gate as quickly as they could, while the yin soldiers frantically opened the gates. The city had been orderly and thriving just a moment ago, yet now, it had become a hub of frenzied and panicked activity.
"How is this possible?!" a Yin spirit yelled as he rushed away frantically with a horrified expression. "A nuclear bomb is going to explode in Ashmound? How is that possible?! Hey, don't push!! Stop!!"
The only response he received was a barrage of shoves.
The Entirety of Ashmound had descended into complete chaos, and Yin spirits were flooding in all directions. Thankfully, Yin spirits didn't possess actual substantial forms, so the congestion didn't mean that no one was able to get through or was being trampled to death. However, looking down onto Ashmound from above, the sight of tens of millions of Yin spirits fleeing the city was a truly astonishing one.
"Step aside! Let me through!"
"Hurry up!! The explosion is about to happen!"
"My god! How is this happening?"
"Don't push Don't shove! We'll all make it out of here~"
"Open the gate! Open the damn gate!!"
Screams and loud yells could be heard ringing out incessantly, and right at this moment, a resounding boom rang out within Ashmound.
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Zhao Yun and the Harken had appeared in front of the Reflection Palace, and the former was wielding his Courage of Dragons Silver Spear, which he gently swept through the air to release a streak of dazzling white light that parted heaven and earth, creating a deep trench in Ashmound. Immediately thereafter, he vanished into thin air in a flash, and when he reappeared, he was already standing above the Reflection Palace.
"Mr. Zhao." Gou Yongjun was already waiting there, and as soon as Zhao Yun appeared, he immediately rushed over with widely flickering netherflames in his eyes. "Is it really true? A nuclear explosion is going to take place in Ashmound in 35 minutes?"
Zhao Yun nodded in response. "I'm afraid so."
He immediately cast his gaze toward Ashmound, which had already completely descended into chaos, and he said, "All Yin spirits are to leave the city, and they're prohibited from crossing the mark I left on the ground. After leaving the city, run, get as far away from here as possible! Mr. Qin Changxin will be responsible for recovering the Reflection Palace, while you..."
"Of course we live and die with Ashmound!" Gou Yongjun declared before Zhao Yun even had a chance to finish. "As the governor of Ashmound, I have no excuse to flee while the city is in grave peril! We'll go and console the netherworldly citizens, and we won't set foot outside Ashmound until everyone has been evacuated!"
Zhao Yun didn't have time to delay any longer. After taking one final meaningful look at Gou Yongjun, he departed, sweeping away as a gust of Yin wind.
Qin Changxin was already making his way toward Gou Yongjun, and he said, "Governor Gou, make a tally of all of the Emissaries of Hell present in the city. All those who flee the city are to be fired and never considered for any future jobs ever again!"
"Yes!"
"Administrative Commissioner Fang, assign the relevant tasks to the Emissaries of Hell right away. Get them to organize the netherworldly citizens so they can evacuate efficiently. I can help transmit your voices into the ears of every Emissary of Hell in the city! Supervisor Cao, come with me to the rooftop of the Reflection Palace so we can activate it!"
"Yes!"
Zhao Yun paid no heed to all of these proceedings. Instead, by the time he reappeared, he was already at Ashmound Port. Qin Xinzhong was overlooking the proceedings here, so even though there was a loud commotion, everything was still quite orderly, and that came as a surprise to Zhao Yun. [2]
However, it was impossible to ignore the astonishing phenomenon taking place in the port.
Gui Xu had already completely opened up layer by layer like a lotus flower!
Dazzling light was shining within its body, and a series of profound runes rose up into the air. Massive waves were already being swept up in the port amid a string of resounding booms.
A massive ball of silver light that was over 100 meters in size had enveloped the Yingzhou immortal island at the very center of Gui Xu, and the ball of light was rapidly expanding, quickly reaching 500 meters... 1,000 meters... 2,000 meters... 3,000 meters!
It was becoming an all-devouring silver sun, and terrifying energy fluctuations were surging through heaven earth. Even the slightest contact with these energy fluctuations would bring about certain destruction. This was the radiance that was heralding widespread death and destruction, and it was illuminating the fear and tension, but also unyielding determination etched on the faces of all of the Yin soldiers.
Xu Fu hadn't lied.
"It's finally about to begin..." Zhao Yun murmured to himself as he repressed the fear that was welling up in his own heart. In the face of a forbidden art, even he couldn't help but be struck by a sense of extreme peril.
"All Yin soldiers of Ashmound heed my call!!" He raised a hand as he spoke, and his cape rose straight up like a scarlet crow.
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[1] [Quick reminder that Qin Changxin is Oda Nobunaga's new Cathayan name.]
[2] [Quick reminder that Qin Xinzhong is Oda Nobutada's new Cathayan name.]