Chapter 396: The Harken's Response

Arthis and Qin Ye hovered about in mid-air, silent and speechless, refusing to believe that this was what had become of the divine beast of the old Hell. Nope… We don’t know each other… not at all…

Silence.

“Come on, tell me, how did you encounter Lord Ksitigarbha, and how did you get your hands on the Yin Beast Bell?” The Harken laid lazily on the ground. He wasn’t even looking at Qin Ye right now. Instead, he was simply rubbing its face against the ground it had earlier tenderized, “And don’t you dare lie to me. This is the only chance at reconciliation that I’m giving you.”

I’d almost forgotten that this was the Harken we’re talking about…

Thus, for the next ten minutes, Qin Ye recounted everything leading up to his encounter with Lord Ksitigarbha, without missing a single detail. Then, as soon as he was done, the Harken snorted coldly, “I’ve got to admit that you’re pretty smart.”

Arthis and Qin Ye both heaved a great sigh of relief.

“We were forced to do so only by the circumstances at that time.” Qin Ye sighed and smiled bitterly. Regardless of how the Harken had behaved earlier, an existence representing thirty million Yin was still nothing to laugh at.

As soon as the Harken fully recovers, they can immediately march for Amano-Iwato!

Was it simply because he was unhappy with them?

What was more important… was the big picture he was working towards!

Once the Array of the Nine Gods that had been strengthened by the second King Yanluo of Hell finally wears out after a hundred and fifty years, the truth about Hell would finally be made public. Unfortunately, no matter how confident Qin Ye was in his own abilities to rebuild Hell, it was quite something else to say with confidence that he would make Hell regain its former glory in just a hundred and fifty years.

But… what if they managed to raze a longstanding underworld to the ground in the meantime?

War was always the best way to flex one’s muscles to the world. The other options around were only the small countries and their corresponding underworlds, as well as the nameless god of death of the Orthodox Church of Rus. Naturally, the Nipponese underworld was the perfect choice for Hell.

The Harken was clearly unaware of the contemplations in Qin Ye’s mind. However, it still responded to the question, “It’s not as though there isn’t… but… it’s these options are just too difficult.”

It glanced up at the tiny Hell that hovered above its head and snorted unabashedly, “Even if I consumed the Hell in its entirety right now, it would barely accelerate the healing process.”

Qin Ye suppressed the stirring emotions in his heart and continued to perk up his ears to Harken’s spiel, “However… there’s hope to be found in Limbo.”

Qin Ye glossed over the Harken’s mockery and got straight to the point, “But… what if we have the Karmic Fire Divine Crossbows?”

Qin Ye’s smile broadened, “Fortunately, I’d just called for an imperial court meeting, and Lord Zhou was willing to offer up to Hell twenty thousand sets of Karmic Fire Divine Crossbows and a million Karmic Fire Divine Bolts.”

Good lad…

The Yin Beast Bell had secured him an audience with the Harken, and Qin Ye was seizing every opportunity to ride the momentum here. He sounded like he was stating facts, but the truth of the matter was that he was merely raising the Harken’s assessment of him.

Did Liu Yu and the rest turn vegan or something?

But before the Harken could even finish mulling over these things, Qin Ye promptly leaned over and added, “And everything seems to have fallen into place nicely, because I was just planning on using these one million Karmic Fire Divine Bolts to pave a way from the City of Salvation to Martial City.”

This time, the Harken’s eyes widened completely, and he stared intently at Qin Ye.

Arthis had somehow already slipped away before Qin Ye was even done with his request. The Harken drew a deep breath. Its colossal body rose and fell heavily. And then… it slowly got to its feet.

It was an affirmative statement.

“I’ll do the math.” It raised its paws and pinched its fingers together, “Three days. It’s only been three days, and yet you’ve already understood the intricacies of it all. Lord Ksitigarbha’s warning concerns the entire situation in the world. I would have thought that only a high ranking Emissary of Hell would have had the exposure to understand the depths of complexities undergirding his warning to you. Who would’ve thought…”

“It’s simple.” Qin Ye responded with confidence. He was fully aware that even the tone of voice in which he carried out this exchange with the Harken was of utmost importance. He couldn’t afford to reveal the slightest traces of weakness. On the other hand, the Harken knew that his intuition was right - That’s right, he’s already secretly begun to seize the initiative.

“One would be able to guess pretty much everything by making extrapolations and inferences from his warnings. That said, what I understand is no more than a guess on my part. If Lord Harken is willing, would you perhaps consider breaking it down for me so that I can dispel any lingering doubts on my heart?”

The Universal Grand Shift was important, but learning the truth from the Harken’s mouth was of even greater importance!

The Harken was growing increasingly breathless, presumably because its body was unable to sustain such an extended period of speech. Nevertheless, it continued, “Entities above the ranks of Abyssal Prefects are considered the true elites of Hell. We’re talking about a few hundred existences among billions of Yin spirits. The topic is merely a hypothetical situation, but it is still important to treat something like that with great importance for succession’s sake. After all, Hell faces a great number of rivals, and there’s always a possibility that it would one day be destroyed by an external coalition of forces. Apart from that, there’s an even greater likelihood that Hell would one day implode upon itself because of the disjointed gentries that tear Hell apart from within. Thus, the true elites and leaders of Hell would always have to come together to consider what they would do when a remote possibility like that becomes an eventuality.”

Thus, Qin Ye listened intently. This was the first time he was hearing an analysis from an entity that belonged to the core circle of the old Hell’s leadership, and he knew that an opportunity like that might not come again in the near future.

“Back then, all of the big shots agreed that… as soon as Hell collapses, what follows next… would undoubtedly be a reversion to Hell’s warring states era!”

“Kiddo, do you think you’re fortunate? You’re… merely at the opening act of a great era of war and strife. You’re nothing more than a digit among the competitors who have thrown their names into the ballot box. It’s going to be a battle royale out there, and the winner takes all. Do you think you’re already the King Yanluo of Hell? Haha… that’s nothing more than a ceremonial title right now. The road ahead is still long and fraught with uncertainties and difficulties. The dominos from Hell’s collapse are still falling, and we’re only just beginning to see its effects…”

1. This first appeared in Chapter 93.

2. This is what Izanami’s home is called.