Yama Rising

The entire hall erupted into a frenzy. It only took one second to go from stunned silence to a raucous commotion.

Zu Chongzhi and Lu Ban were the ones who kicked off the celebration, and before the foreign scientists even had a chance to react, three figures rushed over while screaming at the top of their lungs, laughing and sobbing as they plunged headfirst into the two-man huddle of Zu Chongzhi and Lu Ban like a trio of madmen.

They were, of course, none other than Xu Chengyang, Pang Hai, and Deng Ruifeng.

"We did it! We did it!!" Deng Ruifeng was hugging Pang Hai and Xu Chengyang so tightly that he was on the verge of snapping their necks as he yelled with all his might, "The degree of fusion is 100% with 0% leakage and 0% breakage rate! Hahahaha!!"

Pang Hai was rather weak and frail, and he had already grown accustomed to being jostled around like a ragdoll. His voice was choking up, and he habitually dabbed at the corners of his own eyes, even though he no longer had tears.

Everyone was expressing their excitement in different ways. Some were embracing those around them while yelling and laughing with all their might, while others had their heads lowered as their bodies trembled uncontrollably, preferring to bask in the gravity of the occasion in silence.

"Wait for us, new era, we're coming!!" A thunderous roar of celebration suddenly rang out from one of the scientists.

They had been working on this project day and night for three and half years. Hundreds of researchers had constantly been working without rest, and even their King Yanluo had come to the Yin Mountains Research Center in person.

They were almost crippled by the fear that they would be unable to develop anything in the end.

They had doubted themselves countless times, wondering if they were pursuing the right path.

However, no one articulated any of this.

All of the scientists had buried these doubts and fears, only allowing them to act as motivation and fuel to work even harder!

They were putting their own backs against the wall and working as if their lives depended on it, just like during the atomic bomb, the hydrogen bomb, and the artificial satellite projects. With those experiences behind them, they were already accustomed to fighting through adversity with tenacity and determination.

It was thanks to their hard work that Cathay had risen in the mortal realm, and it was also because of them that the Cathayan Underworld finally had a chance to make a resurgence following a century-long slumber!

Even though Yin spirits didn't have tears, the sound of sobbing rang out across the entire laboratory, and many of the Cathayan Underworld's scientists were locked in tight embraces with one another as they sobbed without any regard for their own image. It was as if they were trying to lift the massive weight from their shoulders with their sobs, and they were bawling with all their might.

No one knew how much pressure they had been under.

No one knew how many times they had doubted themselves and skirted near the edges of the pit of despair.

All of their efforts had finally bore fruit, and no one disrupted this scene of joyous celebration.

None of the foreign scientists joined their huddles. They were also aware of just how much pressure the Cathayan Underworld's scientists would've been under during the initial stages of the development process.

While it was true that they had also participated in the development of the new energy resource, they knew that they had only come in for the tail-end of the project, but they were absent during the beginning stages, where the going would've been at its toughest.

Thus, even though they were also excited and elated beyond belief, none of them interrupted the Cathayan Underworld's scientists. Instead, they merely looked on with joyous smiles.

All of a sudden, the sound of applause rang out. Emoven was clapping so vigorously that her hands quickly became red and swollen, and her voice was choking up as she said, "Every major scientific research and development project is a battle. These are extremely stern tests for the scientists involved physically, mentally, psychologically, and spiritually. You have emerged victorious with flying colors from this grueling battle!"

Franklin was also joining in on the applause with a hint of envy in his eyes. "Congratulations. From this day forth, your names will go down in the history of the underworld as some of the most influential scientists of all time!"

"You are the pioneers of the new energy resource! Congratulations to you all!"

"Congratulations, you've flung open the gates to the next era! The entire world will undergo massive changes because of you!"

"Your achievements will illuminate the path ahead for the entire underworld for at least the next few centuries!"

"Even if you enter the cycle of reincarnation someday, your names will forever be remembered in the underworld!"

Congratulations were flying in left, right, and center, and the five architects finally realized their own lack of composure. After separating from one another, Zu Chongzhi was still rubbing at his own eyes as he sobbed, "I'm sorry, I'm just... so happy..."

Looking back, even they didn't know how they had endured all of those grueling days and nights.

There were occasionally research and development projects that lasted decades in the mortal realm, such as controlled nuclear fusion and sending astronauts to the moon, but a quick search would tell you that those projects didn't run continuously throughout their durations.

Instead, the projects only went on for a year, maybe a year and a half at the very most, and if no outcomes arose, then they would be temporarily set aside and await future restarts.

Controlled nuclear fusion was an example of this; it had already been shut down and reopened countless times.

Throughout the history of the mortal realm, there were virtually no research and development projects like this one, which spanned a period of over three years and involved hundreds of scientists, all of which were confined to their laboratories until the project was completed!

Living humans would simply be crushed by such a grueling project, which meant that this was only possible in the underworld.

If the new energy resource were the second world war, then the emergence of the new energy resource on this day would be equivalent to the pivotal Battle of Moscow!

This was the crown jewel of the scientific world, and even the round table of the Argosian Underworld hadn't achieved such prestigious honors before!

"Why are you crying?" Volta made his way over to Zu Chongzhi with a smile before spreading his arms open and locking Zu Chongzhi in a tight embrace as he whispered in his ears, "I'm going to be honest, I'm extremely, extremely envious of you right now."

He released Zu Chongzhi before shaking his hand vigorously as continued, "I never thought that this project would come into fruition in the Cathayan Underworld, but you've shown me just how narrow-minded I am through your actions. Congratulations."

Following Volta's departure, Emoven strode over to the architects, and her makeup was a little messy due to the eruption of netherfire from her eyes. Under normal circumstances, she had always kept her presentation immaculate, but she didn't care about that at all at this moment as he grabbed onto Lu Ban's hand and gave it a vigorous shake. "I am incredibly thankful that the mighty death gods of Northern Europa have signed this research and development agreement with your nation. Congratulations to you all! This is a piece of technology is going to change the entire world, and I'm immensely honored to have been able to witness its birth."

Franklin was already sick of waiting his turn, and he latched tightly onto Xu Chengyang's hand as he said, "Don't cry, this is the time to be celebrating! Do you know how envious I am of you? Your names will go down in the history of the entire world! There is no greater honor for a scientist! I can't think of anything else to say aside from congratulations, but my congratulations are as genuine as can be, so please accept them!"

"The beauty of science lies in the fact that you never know when the next surprise will arrive!"

"We weren't expecting to witness something at all, so we didn't prepare anything! Damn it, I should've brought my champagne!"

"Everyone was completely caught off guard! We were wallowing in the pits of despair just a few hours ago, but now, we're on top of the world! I'm so happy I could kiss you right now!"

Indeed, in the constant battle that was scientific development, one could never predict when victory was going to come.

No one could've anticipated that there would be such a drastic turn of events no more than half a day since the failure of the Genesis experiment.

The only thing that one could do was to constantly expect the unexpected.

Right at this moment, Qin Ye clapped his hands together, and all of the scientists finally turned their attention toward him, as if they had only just recalled that there were still two Yama-Kings present.

"Take a rest, everyone," Qin Ye said with a smile. "Tomorrow afternoon, we'll be holding a dinner banquet for everyone in the Yin Mountains! If you don't wish to rest, there will be designated locations with suitable environments for you to hold discussions as you please. Also..."

He paused momentarily before continuing, "The emergence of the new energy resource means that all of your patents will be in use again, and I think it's time we discuss all of your patents during the coming month. Ah, that reminds me, for confidentiality purposes, please remain in the Cathayan Underworld during this upcoming period of time. We'll be counting on all of you for the research projects to come."

"Of course!"

"Even if you hadn't said that, we have no plans of leaving in the short term!"

"I wouldn't leave even if you tried to chase me away! You'll have to throw out my dead body if you want me to leave!"

The new energy resource had indeed been born, but there were still many things left that had to be done, such as integrating the energy resource with machinery and examining the performance of the new energy resource under different environments.

It was also imperative to test the highest and lowest wattages that could be reached by normal electric generators and top-tier electric generators.

These things all seemed like trivial details, but every single one of those parameters would be a new thesis that would be enough to stun the entire world! If anyone wanted to reference these theses, they would have to do so at very high costs!

This was another form of patent. Many patents weren't owned by a single person. For example, the Cathayan Underworld had contributed over 2,000 patents to the 5G technology patent in the mortal realm, yet the final number that came to pass was only 30% of all of the patents used in the development of 5G technology. Usonia had submitted over 1,000 patents, but the final number that passed was also around 30%. Thus, the patent usage fees were distributed to many parties.

Having been impoverished for so long, they finally had a chance to earn massive incomes, and there was no way they were going to leave!

Qin Ye nodded with a smile, then exchanged a glance with Ksitigarbha before departing in silence.

The other underworld emissaries were going to take care of the rest, including the cleanup and the celebrations. After some time, the next stage of research would commence, and only after the education plan was implemented would the Yin Mountains Research Center welcome a period of peace and quiet.

By the time Qin Ye and Ksitigarbha reappeared, they were already standing at the peak of the tallest mountain in the Yin Mountain Range.

Neither of them said anything.

Qin Ye spread open his arms as he repressed the excitement in his own heart, looking as if he wanted to embrace the entire world. Fierce gusts of Yin wind were blowing past his ears, but he didn't release any Yin energy to resist them.

"So this is what it feels like to stand at the top of the world," he sighed after a long while, and his arms finally fell back to his sides.

He truly didn't think that this would be the day...

He was only running a test and had thought that there would perhaps only be a 50% chance of success, and the immediate success had knocked him clean off his feet!

"I thought you would yell at the sky a few times," Ksitigarbha said with a faint smile.

"I wanted to do that," Qin Ye replied with a smile. "But it feels a little embarrassing to do that with you standing next to me."

After that, he cast an intense gaze toward the boundless desert up ahead, as if he wanted to see past them into the Russian Underworld and the Aegyptian Underworld that stood further in the distance.

The gates of the new era have already swung open, yet you're still living in an ignorant dream.

The emergence of the new energy resource was nothing less than disaster for them.

"Less than 20 years ago, I first came to Hell and witnessed a bleak nation that had lost all hope, filled with Yin spirits that were only just barely getting by. Arakshasa and I were the only underworld emissaries at the time." He closed his eyes with a smile as he said, "The Cathayan Underworld had just been razed to the ground, and blight vermin were everywhere, while the three divine artifacts were nowhere to be found. However, on this day, no more than 20 years after the Cathayan Underworld had been in its worst state for thousands of years, Everburn and Ashmound are thriving, the six paths of reincarnation have been established in Lotus City, the three divine artifacts have been restored to their rightful places, and Outer Mongolia has also returned! I wouldn't dare to proclaim that I've done an exceptional job, but at the very least, I can say that I've perhaps lived up to my role as King Yanluo."

His words were a little disjointed from excessive excitement as he continued, "I've been scared before and have thought countless times about giving up. During the Cathayan Underworld's century-long absence, they took our speaking rights and plundered our territory. I'm going to make them cough up everything that they've taken from us and more! All those who have betrayed us, who have tried to lash out at us when we're down, just you wait! When the new energy resource is revealed to the entire world, I'll make sure you're left ruing your past decisions!"