Time always passed by very quickly when in deep thought, and after a long while, the sliding door was slowly pulled back, following which Qin Changxin and Zhao Yun entered the room.

Both of them had smiles on their faces and were giving off a slight scent of alcohol. It was clear that they had just gone for a small celebration to savor the success and to offload the immense pressure that had been weighing on them during the past few days.

"Lord Qin?" Qin Changxin was rather taken aback to see Qin Ye in the room, and he asked, "What yer doin' 'ere?"

Qin Ye's complex trains of thought were instantly derailed by Qin Changxin's northeastern accent, and he almost spat out the tea in his mouth. "Didn't you already fix your accent? Why do you sound like that again?" [1]

"Oh? My apologies." Qin Changxin cleared his throat before asking in standard mandarin, "Is it better now?"

Now that Qin Changxin had been switched to the right channel, Qin Ye gestured for the two of them to join him, and after they had taken a seat, he said in a grim voice, "Just now, the president of the GTO invited me to discuss some matters relating to the next world trade conference."

Qin Changxin didn't know anything about this. After all, it was his first time attending an international conference. However, Zhao Yun immediately realized what the problem was, and he said, "If I recall correctly, it should be our turn to host the next world trade conference."

Qin Ye nodded in response.

Qin Changxin immediately also came to understand what the issue was. It was very obvious: the host nation would have to facilitate all of the participants of the conference, and with several dozen death gods gathered in the Cathayan Underworld, even if they were all blind, they would still be able to tell that something was amiss!

What could they do?

The relaxed and joyful atmosphere in the air instantly vanished, and he massaged his own temples with tightly furrowed brows as he asked, "How long do we have left, Your Excellency?"

"15 years," Qin Ye replied with a shake of his head. "Don't think about fooling the other death gods. 15 years is nowhere near enough for us to develop to a point where we can compare with the world's top civilizations. Refusing to host the conference is also not an option. The Cathayan Underworld has just returned to the top of the world's political stage, and the most important thing we need to do is re-establish our influence and reputation. Hosting an international conference would be the perfect opportunity for this, and if we take any backward steps or show any weakness, the three pillars will immediately pounce. They've never set aside their doubts toward the Cathayan Underworld, and this conference is an opportunity for them as well."

He pursed his lips before continuing in a grim voice, "If they discover the true state of our Cathayan Underworld, I'm willing to bet that a world war would be on the horizon!"

Silence.

Everyone fell into deep thought. No one had anticipated that the opposition's challenges would come so thick and fast. This victory was only the beginning of the power struggle that they found themselves at the very center of.

Qin Changxin's eyes were filled with deep concern. He knew that if they were to fail, not only would any future retaliation against the Nipponese Underworld become a complete pipe dream, there was a good chance that Izanami would be able to dominate him, and that was something that he definitely didn't want to see happen! Amid the contemplative silence, he suddenly suggested, "We could hold the conference at Formosa."

Qin Ye faltered slightly upon hearing this before his eyes immediately lit up. However, instead of replying right away, he began to quickly consider this option.

If the conference were held in a mainland city, there was no way that they would be able to stop all of the death gods from going to other parts of the nation. Not only did they not have any high-grade underworld emissaries, they didn't even have any mid-grade ones!

An education system still hadn't been established, so normal Yin spirits had no idea how to cultivate. Once the education system was inplace, they would have to deal with a period of unrest, which would stem from the desire to progress faster in cultivation, leading to Yin spirits devouring other Yin spirits or even turning to blood food in the mortal realm. There was no way to produce a significant number of mid-grade and low-grade underworld emissaries within 15 years!

Without that foundation, any Soul Hunter or Anitya Hellguards from any of the nations attending the conference could go anywhere they liked in the Cathayan Underworld, and the true state of the Cathayan Underworld would be completely uncovered.

"Formosa is a far easier location to contain," Qin Changxin said in a calm voice. "If we hold the conference at Formosa, all we'll need to do is conduct surveillance on its coastlines, and that's very easy to accomplish. As such, we'll be able to effectively foil attempts made by foreign underworld emissaries to uncover the state of our nation. Those underworld emissaries will be referred to as envoys, but in reality, they're not different from spies, and no one is going to pass the opportunity to see the Cathayan Underworld for themselves!"

"Indeed," Zhao Yun chimed in with tightly furrowed brows. "In addition to that, there's no way we'll be able to reconstruct the mainland in 15 years, but it's not impossible to reconstruct Formosa! All we need to do is to establish two cities on the island. In fact, we already have more than that. I recall that we already have three cities, namely Dayuan, Dongfan, and Liuqiu, which correspond with Formosa North, Formosa Central, and Formosa South, respectively, so we certainly have a good foundation to work with."

Qin Ye remained silent, and only after a long while did he nod in response.

At the very least, there was no better way to proceed at the moment.

"However, if we do that, we'll have to incline our resources toward the three cities of Formosa during the next 15 years," Qin Ye sighed. "The city construction won't be very difficult. It'll take five years at most to construct all of the antiquated Cathayan-style buildings required and give Formosa a complete facelift, but at the same time, we'll have to educate the people of Formosa in proper etiquette and other important areas to ensure that the quality of the population matches the city. On top of that, we have to deal with the dissatisfaction that'll arise in the mainland in the wake of our decision to incline resources toward Formosa. After all, most of the netherworldly citizens right now are from the century, and this is a sensitive political issue."

Zhao Yun nodded in response. "We have to gather the power of the entire nation to make Formosa a worthy location to hold the conference, and this is something that can't be delayed. We should set off right away, then discuss this further once we return to the Cathayan Underworld."

Qin Ye nodded as he rose to his feet, then grabbed onto both Zhao Yun and Qin Changxin's hand as said with a serious expression, "Let's stick through this tough period together. As long as we can endure the next 100 years, we will enter our era! In fact, we may not even need 100 years. After 50 years, we'll no longer need to hide and cower like this, and another 50 years will be enough to propel us to the very top!"

"Yes!!"

This was only an initial plan, and perhaps they would be able to come up with better options once they returned to the Cathayan Underworld.

………………………………………………

The floating fortress slowly departed from Osaka, traveling back to the Cathayan Underworld.

The Nipponese Underworld wasn't very far away from the Cathayan Underworld, and it didn't take long for them to reach Formosa. Right as they passed through the Array of the Nine Gods, Qin Ye immediately ordered for the fortress to draw to a halt.

"You go back for now, I have to travel to Usonia right away," Qin Ye said as he peered out at the sea from the top floor of the fortress. "After passing Formosa, we'll be reaching the Felipinas, and that would be the best place for me to set off from on my journey to Usonia."

Qin Changxin hesitated momentarily before asking, "Would it not be wiser to go back and do some preparation first?"

Qin Ye shook his head in response, then gestured for the surrounding servants to leave. Following their departure, he swept a hand through the air in a cautious manner to completely soundproof the entire room, then said in a serious voice, "I thought about many things in the past few hours, and I've finally managed to arrange my thoughts. The most important thing for us right now isn't Formosa. I'll leave the construction of Formosa to you and the panel of advisors, and I want to see a clear plan when I get back. What's most important now is Xu Fu's notes! In order to obtain something, sacrifices have to be made, and there's no way to have everything. We may have won this time, but we have to resolve the energy resource issue within 10 years. That is the key to establishing our Cathayan Underworld on the world stage! In order to recruit the three major research centers, the five nations of Northern Europa, the Alkebulan Underworlds, and the new continent to our side, we've made far too many promises. If these people find out that our new energy resource is a pipe dream, then they'll all turn on us, and in the current state of the Cathayn Underworld, that would be a lethal blow."

He clenched his fists tightly as he continued, "Hence, I can't rest until I get my hands on those notes and see for myself what's written on them."

Qin Changxin still wanted to say something more, but before he could do so, Qin Ye continued, "Rest assured, the new continent is relatively safe for me. At the very least, Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa won't conspire against me, and I have no fundamental conflicts of interest with the other death gods. If they dare to try and strike at me, then they'll be courting death."

Zhao Yun didn't try to stop him. "Rest assured, during your absence, the Harken, Mr. Qin, Arakshasa, and I will look after the nation for you, and that's not to mention that the second King Yanluo is also present. When do you plan to set off?"

"I'll be leaving in two hours," Qin Ye replied as he turned to Zhao Yun. "But before that, I have something I need to do. Give me a copy of your insights from your breakthrough to transcend beyond the Yama-King level and an account of your experiences in contending with the Heavenly Dao."

Zhao Yun was rather hesitant upon hearing this, and after a long silence, he finally said, "Please consider this carefully, my Lord. Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa are not good people, and they're only respectful to you now as they want to live. If they succeed and two beings above the Yama-King level appear on the new continent, then that would definitely not be a good thing."

His eyes narrowed slightly as he continued in a grim voice, "They have experienced desperation and insanity before, and they're well aware of what benefits they could reap from the world with their insanity. If two beings above the Yama-King level try to recklessly impose their will on the world at once, there's no way we'll be able to stop them, and the order of the entire world would completely collapse. Of course, that's the absolute worst outcome."

He paused momentarily, and a hint of killing intent crept into his voice as he continued, "If they pass away, then the new continent will be without rulers. By then, the Cathayan Underworld should be fully developed, and we'll have the ability to fight for a massive slice of that cake! The one that conquers that vast territory will become one of the overlords of the next era! In conclusion, it's far better for us and the entire world for them to die rather than to remain alive."

"Don't worry, they won't survive," Qin Ye replied with a sly smile. "However, integrity is the most important thing in the world."

He turned around to look at the sea with a cold expression as he said, "I'll give them your breakthrough insights and the method the second King Yanluo used to make his breakthrough, but the second King Yanluo is a living human! There's no way the method that he used will be suitable for Mictlantecutli and Mictetikasiwa, so perhaps they'll only be able to extend their own lives for a century or two, but they won't be able to blame anyone after that."

Zhao Yun smiled and nodded in response. "I understand."

Seeing as the decision had already been made, there was no need to waste any further time with words. Two hours later, a streak of Yin energy flew out of the floating fortress, heading directly toward the Felipinas.

Less than an hour later, the Felipinas Underworld had already appeared in Qin Ye's field of view. Rows of spear-wielding Yin soldiers were standing atop the tall city walls in an orderly fashion, and within the antiquated city, one tall wooden building was standing next to another. Countless Yin spirits were traversing through the city, and netherfire was flashing all throughout.

Qin Ye concealed himself from view, yet in the instant that he passed through the city wall, a piercing alarm immediately rang out.

The sound of the alarm echoed throughout the entire city, and there was an instant of complete silence, immediately following which all of the Yin spirits screamed and scattered in all directions. The Yin soldiers on the city wall also faltered slightly before yelling in unison, "Enemy attack!! Get into formation!!"

At the same time, a burst of Infernal Judge level Yin energy erupted into the heavens from the center of the city, and Yang Jiye's cold voice rang out like rumbling thunder. "Who dares to encroach upon the territory of one of the four pillars' 12 envoys? Show yourself!"

[1] [The northeastern part of China (which is where I come from coincidentally LOL) has a very distinct accent that's more rustic-sounding and absolutely rife with slang.]

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