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Chapter 639: A New Twist (1)

It sighed deeply. Treason? Far be it from that. At best, this can only be considered tax evasion. Who knows just what kind of mountainous wealth of Yin spirit stones each of these clans had accumulated through such large-scale smuggling activity? If the old Hell would just probe deeper, their investigations would easily uncover a massive syndicate involving a multitude of corrupt civil servants, ranging from the most insignificant of border agents, right up to governors and high officials. In fact, the Zhu Clan probably had so much influence that they probably even had the Abyssal prefects of the Pearl River region answering to them.

That’s not right… Given your bubbly personality, you should already have leapt right out of your pokeball just like a mischievous little pikachu… Or did I inadvertently cast a downer on the atmosphere with my masterball antics?

Just what was it?

He furrowed his thick brows. Just then, Kwon Kyung-ho and Ryu Changmin finally returned with their faces glowing and flushed with excitement, “My Lord! We’ve taken a look. We’ve struck gold! This is practically a mountain of treasures--...”

Oblivious to his surroundings, Qin Ye massaged his temples as he slowly began to pace around, evidently swamped in his own thoughts. That brilliant notion still eluded him, but he simply wasn’t willing to let things lie just like that - That earlier spark of inspiration had arisen when we were talking about Zhu Clan’s contact to the Alkebulan missions back in Cathay…

He had a feeling that he was immeasurably close to the answer that he was looking for. In fact, he could sense that he was on the cusp of a massive discovery, and so long as he could find and open the right door, it would open his eyes to a whole new world of possibilities out there!

That’s not it… Qin Ye stared blankly at the opulent decor adorning the ceiling as he murmured back, “Then, what about those in the mortal realm?”

It’s not this either… But I’m definitely getting closer!

“There’s definitely the possibility of harm, but I think that the bigger problem that Hell is facing right now is how to deal with the first official talks of bilateral diplomacy with the Russian underworld. The potential harm that these Alkebulan missions can cause… is but a drop in the ocean compared to the threat of the Russian Underworld that looms right over your head.”

Just then, Qin Ye’s eyes widened abruptly.

Qin Ye shook his head softly as he continued to delve deeper into his own thoughts. That said, his eyes gleamed ever more brightly as time went by. Then, after approximately 10 minutes had passed, he suddenly smiled, “That’s it.”

The Harken stared at him with eyes filled with sheer disbelief.

Firstly, they were testing Hell’s attitude towards the Russian Underworld’s development of Forbidden Arts.

Thirdly, this was an issue that Hell could only resolve through pure, unadulterated diplomacy. Unfortunately, Hell simply wasn’t prepared for something like that right now. They didn’t even have the right ceremonial lineup to match up to the Russian Underworld. They didn’t have a single Yama-King that could front negotiations on their behalf, nor did they have any commensurately powerful armies to be mobilized on short notice. If not for the fact that happened to chance upon the Zhu Clan’s treasure trove, Hell’s armies wouldn’t even have a military formation at their disposal. Every single omission on Hell’s part would be interpreted as evidence of loopholes in the narrative that Hell was attempting to sell to the rest of the world.

In other words, Hell had essentially been forced into a situation where it had no choice but to respond to a regional development in its capacity as one of the P4 of the Federation of Underworlds. All eyes were on Hell, and if Hell even did so much as to slip up in the slightest, the consequences would be unthinkable!

“What should we do?”

The Harken nodded.

The best course of action right now was to stymie any developments by ignoring foreign affairs. Unfortunately, the Russian Underworld had already come knocking on their door, and even successfully made contact with an Emissary of Hell. The development of Forbidden Arts was a massive thing, especially since it affected the right of any underworld to hold clout among the Federation of Underworld. Naturally, it was impossible to simply turn a blind eye to it.

The Harken’s eyes gleamed softly, almost as though he finally understood something. However, he didn’t interject, and instead continued to listen intently.

“Your deductions are spot on.” Qin Ye turned to the Harken and continued, “The Russian Underworld wants to avoid the sanctions of the international underworlds, so it has likely already made contact with one of the four top underworlds. After all, they probably also appreciate that if they hadn’t obtained the support of the four top underworlds, they would never be able to stand up under the sanctions against them!”

“Haa--...” The Harken took a deep breath and continued where Qin Ye left off, “And that’s just the start. Once they learn of the truth about Hell, then the underworlds that wish to kick Hell out of the P4, as well as those who wish to get a foot into P4 would immediately seize the opportunity to test their suspicions of what might have happened to Hell. And the best means to do so would be to strike at Hell’s vassal states in order to draw Hell’s attention. We would be forced to retaliate and engage with them on these skirmishes. This will stretch Hell’s resources and finances even more, and put a huge strain on Hell’s future development…”

Put differently, Hell didn’t have any room for error in the way in which they handled the Russian Underworld’s request! They were essentially standing at the precipice between life and death!

“Notify the Coalition of Alkebulan Underworlds.” Qin Ye chuckled coldly, “Tell them that one of the P4 underworlds is currently supporting the Russian Underworld’s efforts to develop the Forbidden Arts, and tell them that it’s likely going to be the second generation of Forbidden Arts at that. How do you think those Mythic Spirits of the Alkebulan Underworlds are going to react?”

“Absolutely feasible!” Qin Ye responded with categorical certainty, “And that’s because… this is the Russian Underworld we’re talking about!”

“Second premise. The Russian Underworld shares a long border with Europa. In turn, Europa is currently governed by the Argosian Underworld under the charge of none other than Thanatos. On the other hand, it is separated from the Aegyptian Underworld of the Middle East by other nations. Therefore, which underworld do you think the Mythic Spirits of Alkebulan will think is the culprit for stirring the Russian Underworld to the research and development of Forbidden Arts? Is it Argos, or Aegyptus?”

“Not war, but… the fact that they were the first ones to have been attacked with Forbidden Arts! The Mythic Spirits, the pillars of the Alkebulan Underworlds, sustained heavy injuries and casualties as a result of the Forbidden Arts! One can only imagine the kind of revulsion they have against Forbidden Arts!”

“Granted, they wouldn’t usually deign to interfere with global politics, but what if they were faced with the prospects of Forbidden Arts?”

“And what about the prospects of the development of second generation Forbidden Arts spurred on by none other than the Argosian Underworld?”

The Harken gasped, “And… the Russian Underworld can’t even clear its own name, because… the Resentment Crystal Vein is currently located in the Mongol Empire!”

“At last count, there were 37 Mythic Spirits in Alkebulan… And that’s not counting the Yanluo-class Plumed Serpent God, otherwise known as the Quetzalcoatl…”