As Slayer's figure vanished into the depths of the tunnel leading to the Eighteen Layers of Hell, the Palace of Yama finally fell quiet.

  But it was a panic-inducing silence.

  King Yama looked at the two empty doorframes (the door panels had been taken by Slayer), then at the cracked pen in the Judge's hand, and finally at the Yin Soldiers paralyzed by fear on the ground.

  "It's over." King Yama slumped onto his Dragon Throne, holding his forehead. "It's all over. The Ghost Gate is a ruin, the Bridge of Helplessness is blown in half, and I've even lost my front door... If the Celestial Court finds out about this, can I even keep my job as King Yama?"

  Daoist Singularity was squatting on the ground, counting the loot in his gunny sack.

  Hearing King Yama's lament, he stopped what he was doing.

  He stood up, dusted off his Daoist robe, and looked around.

  Indeed, the current Underworld looked like a refugee camp that had just survived a nuclear war. Broken walls, lingering smoke; the original gloomy, majestic atmosphere was completely gone.

  However.

  Singularity pushed up his glasses. Through the lenses, he didn't see ruins.

  He saw Opportunity.

  "Your Majesty." Singularity walked up to King Yama and bowed. "This humble Daoist believes this may not be a bad thing."

  "Not a bad thing?!" King Yama glared. "I've lost all my face!"

  "Can you eat face? Can face stop demons?" Singularity retorted, a hint of fanaticism in his tone. "For thousands of years, the Underworld's system hasn't been updated. The Bridge of Helplessness is too narrow, Meng Po's soup efficiency is too low, the Book of Life and Death queries at a snail's pace, and the Ghost Gate's defense array is an antique from the Investiture of the Gods era..."

  Singularity pointed at the empty doorway:

  "That macho man... although he is a vandal, he also helped us complete one task: Violent Demolition."

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  "If we don't smash these old pots and jars, how can we establish a new order?"

  Singularity pulled out his Heavenly Dao Tablet from his robe and pulled up a PPT titled "Underworld Modernization Reconstruction Plan v1.0" (Yes, he had prepared it long ago, he just never dared to show it).

  "Your Majesty, please look."

  Singularity swiped his finger, and holographic diagrams unfolded before King Yama:

  Holographic Light Bridges replacing the stone Naihe Bridge, increasing throughput by tenfold.

  Cloud-Based Book of Life and Death, achieving Three-Realms networking, real-time updates, no longer afraid of the book being burned.

  Gatling Defense Towers replacing Yin Soldiers with spears, achieving automated defense.

  Geothermal Power Stations (formerly Oil Cauldron Hell), solving the Underworld's energy crisis.

  "Since it's all broken anyway, let's... Renovate." Singularity's eyes shone with the unique light of an "Infrastructure Maniac." "We will turn the Underworld into a Cyber-Fortress integrating defense, management, and punishment!"

  King Yama looked at those cool designs. Although he didn't quite understand what "5G" or "Cloud" meant, he understood the most critical point:

  It looked very strong. And very expensive (prestigious).

  "But... what about that gun-toting lunatic?" King Yama pointed toward the back door. "He went to the Eighteen Layers of Hell, that's where the evil ghosts are kept..."

  Singularity smiled.

  "Your Majesty, haven't you realized yet?"

  Singularity put away the tablet, looking in the direction Slayer had left, and said faintly:

  "He is not trouble. He is our sharpest 'Tunnel Boring Machine' (Shield Machine)."

  "The Eighteen Layers of Hell have accumulated ten thousand years of evil ghosts; he's perfect for clearing them out. He handles the demolition, we handle the construction. He handles the killing, we handle the body collection (Resource Recovery)."

  "This is a perfect win-win."

  King Yama was silent for a long time.

  He looked at the devastated hall, then at the confident Singularity.

  Finally, King Yama took a deep breath and waved his hand grandly:

  "Permission granted! Minister Singularity, effective immediately, you are appointed as the 'Commander-in-Chief of Underworld Reconstruction'! As for that lunatic... whatever ammo and supplies he needs, the Underworld will supply with full force!"

  "No destruction, no construction! I'm going all in!"

  [System Prompt: Main Quest Updated.]

  [Quest Name: New Underworld · Cyber Era (Cyber Netherworld).]

  [Current Progress: 1%.]

  Singularity swallowed another Instant Cardio-Relief Pill (this time to celebrate).

  He turned around, looking at the ruins, as if he could already see the future Cyber-Underworld, a steel jungle flashing with neon lights.

  "Get to work, boys!"

  Singularity waved his whisk (which now looked more like a foreman's baton), "First, pick up the shell casings on the ground! That's Copper! It's very valuable!"

  Volume 1 "The BGM is Heavy Metal" ends here.

  The crisis in the Underworld is temporarily lifted, but a greater transformation has just begun.

  As Slayer punched through to the Eighteen Layers of Hell, the world behind him was about to be renewed.