Legend Management Bureau Chapter 229

[ … words ]

After taking his seat, Du Yu pulled a pair of earphones from his bag and slowly put them on.

He stared blankly out the window, listening to a quiet song through his earphones, lost in thought.

The monotony of his daily routine had left his mind somewhat numb. It felt like a long time since he had really taken a good look at this bustling world.

The bus rattled and swayed, inching forward along the road as the automated voice prompt chimed through the cabin.

“Dear passengers, please offer your seats to the elderly, children, sick, disabled, pregnant, and those in need. Thank you.”

He wondered just how little faith this bus had in modern manners to remind people to give up their seats hundreds of times a day.

Before the bus even reached the next stop, the masked woman suddenly stood up and walked straight toward Du Yu.

Qu Xi’s heart skipped a beat. It seemed they were making their move.

Zhi Nv also realized this. She turned her head to look at Ying Ning, who understood immediately and stood up as well.

“Zhang Hua! Are you Zhang Hua?” Ying Ning laughed loudly. “We were classmates! It has been far too long!”

Qu Xi seemed to understand Ying Ning’s strategy. This must have been arranged by Zhi Nv in advance.

No matter who tried to approach Du Yu, they had to be intercepted first.

The only problem was that Ying Ning did not sound like a modern person at all. Who nowadays still used such archaic terms for a classmate?

“I am not. You have the wrong person!” The masked woman scoffed coldly, trying to step around Ying Ning to speak with Du Yu.

“No, you must be Zhang Hua!” Ying Ning smiled, shifting left and right to continuously block the woman’s path. “Think back to when we were sweet sixteen, studying together for three cold years. How could you completely forget?”

The masked woman tried several times but simply could not bypass Ying Ning, growing noticeably irritated.

“Stop blocking my way! I do not know you!”

“How could that be?” Ying Ning said with a smile. “Take a closer look at me.”

The masked woman frowned and could only look at the stern-faced man sitting in the first row.

The stern-faced man shook his head imperceptibly.

The masked woman sighed and retreated to her spot.

“This…” Qu Xi watched the two women helplessly. Their speech and mannerisms were clearly not of the modern era, yet they openly and aboveboard chatted about their school days.

Meanwhile, Du Yu, wearing his earphones, continued to stare blankly out the window, completely oblivious to what was happening behind him.

Zhi Nv breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness she had briefed Ying Ning beforehand.

Thinking it over, the simplest way for the Seven Holy Heroes to interfere would be to make Du Yu leave his seat, thus saving him from death.

Therefore, someone would inevitably try to strike up a conversation with him during this time. Their goal was to talk to Du Yu by any means necessary, and Zhi Nv’s group had to stop them at all costs.

It was inconvenient for Zhi Nv to show her face right from the start, so she could only entrust this task to Ying Ning, who had boarded the bus with her.

With the failure of this plan, the atmosphere among the Seven Holy Heroes distinctly shifted.

They seemed to realize that their opponents this time were unusual. Even though neither side had Du Yu, the Legend Management Bureau appeared to have another mastermind holding the fort. Their ability to adapt was clearly stronger than expected.

‘Could it be that the Seven Holy Heroes have no other schemes?’

Zhi Nv murmured to herself. She discreetly glanced at a few nearby passengers, and a bold idea formed in her mind.

‘Could it be…’

‘Saint does not know I am the Great Pivot?’

Zhi Nv’s mind raced as she pondered this, realizing it was actually quite possible.

Her identity as the Great Pivot was only exposed because of Du Yu’s disappearance, which was information Saint did not possess.

‘Thinking about it this way…’

‘I am the biggest variable in this incident. Even if the future Saint remembers that I am the Great Pivot, that will be after his resurrection.’

With this thought, Zhi Nv felt a bit of relief. Although they were outnumbered, they still had a chance of winning.

Then again, was this not exactly how Du Yu felt every time he entered a legend?

Intervening in a legend as a mere mortal—but as long as he had an idea, there would always be a solution to everything.

Soon, the bus arrived at the next stop.

To everyone’s surprise, nearly twenty passengers boarded at this stop. Zhi Nv glanced around and saw that all twenty-something of them were mortals. The bus was instantly packed to the brim.

Seeing so many people getting on, the stern-faced man was clearly taken aback. He turned back to look at the masked woman.

Unsure of what went wrong, the masked woman could only shake her head helplessly.

Zhi Nv grew suspicious after witnessing their exchange. ‘Did their plan hit a snag?’

It was strange when she thought about it. From the beginning, only the Great Pivots were able to board at every crowded stop, yet suddenly a massive influx of mortals had flooded in at this one.

This brought both advantages and disadvantages. Earlier, when the bus wasn’t full, it was highly likely that Du Yu would not have offered his seat to Zhou Zhuangshi. But now that all the empty seats were taken, Du Yu offering his seat became inevitable. However, the obvious drawback was that all the Great Pivots were now in close contact with mortals. They had to act with extreme caution, as even the slightest unusual movement would draw suspicion from the mortals.

With the increase in passengers, the tense atmosphere on the bus was instantly diluted. The mortals began chatting with each other and making phone calls, filling the air with noisy chatter.

Sitting in front of Du Yu, Zhan Qisheng felt somewhat uncomfortable.

He had noticed a girl who had just boarded standing right in front of him, staring at him intently.

During their preparatory meeting, Zhi Nv had explicitly stated that they must pay attention to anyone who kept their eyes on them.

“Miss, is there something you wish to say to me?” Zhan Qisheng asked slowly.

“Ah?!”

The girl in front of him jumped in surprise, her face flushing crimson.

Zhan Qisheng frowned in confusion. Although the girl appeared to be a mortal, her behavior was eccentric. Could she also be one of the Seven Holy Heroes?

The girl smiled sheepishly and said, “Handsome, you look really good! Are you a celebrity filming a reality show? Can I add your WeChat?”

Zhan Qisheng sighed helplessly. It seemed he had overthought things.

“I am afraid I cannot give out my contact information,” he replied formally.

Hearing this, the girl looked embarrassed. Under the gaze of the surrounding passengers, she nodded silently and shuffled off to stand somewhere else.

Although their exchange lasted no more than two sentences, it still caught Du Yu’s attention.

Sitting behind Zhan Qisheng, Du Yu smiled wryly and looked at the back of the long-haired man in front of him. Even without seeing his face, anyone confident enough to rock that hairstyle had to be incredibly handsome, right?

“Must be nice being handsome. You even get hit on while riding the bus,” Du Yu muttered to himself before tuning back into his music.

At that moment, Du Yu probably never imagined that fully half the people on this crowded bus were there specifically for him.

“Ding-dong.”

Several notification chimes rang out simultaneously across the bus, and Qu Xi’s mobile phone was among them.

She picked it up and saw a new message in their group chat.

“Zhou Zhuangshi will board at the next stop. Before then, the Seven Holy Heroes will definitely make a move. Everyone, act according to the situation.”

Qu Xi read the message from Zhi Nv and nodded silently.

Right at that moment, they saw the stern-faced man who had been sitting in the first row suddenly stand up.

It was only when he stood that Qu Xi realized just how exceptionally tall and straight his posture was. He emitted a tremendously powerful aura, making it highly likely that he was one of the primary fighters of the Seven Holy Heroes.

Seeing this, Zhan Qisheng let out a cold snort. He reached down to button his trench coat and stood up as well. Both men had been seated in the first row of the bus, and now they had risen together.

The two men stepped into the aisle, standing face to face.

Zhan Qisheng scrutinized the man’s features, confirming to himself that he had never seen this person before, nor had he ever known the Immortal Realm to have such a figure. Yet, he was undeniably an immortal being, with a cultivation level at least on par with the Eight Great Underworld Messengers.

The man turned and walked toward the rear door, his eyes constantly tracking in Du Yu’s direction.

Zhan Qisheng followed him toward the back, continuously using his own body to block the path between the man and Du Yu.

Qu Xi’s heart leaped into her throat. Both men were extremely tall, making them stand out starkly on the crowded bus as they slowly shuffled toward the back row together.

“Are you getting off too?” the stern-faced man suddenly asked Zhan Qisheng.

Zhan Qisheng frowned and replied, “If you are getting off, then I shall join you.”

“In that case, let us go together.” The man smiled faintly, brushing straight past Du Yu and heading for the rear doors.

Zhan Qisheng felt a bit puzzled. This master was actually just going to get off the bus?

‘If he really gets off, should I follow him?’

‘If I do, wouldn’t we have even fewer of our people left on the bus?’

He turned his head to look at Zhi Nv.

Zhi Nv considered for a brief moment, then silently nodded.

Zhan Qisheng nodded back. Without any further hesitation, he followed.

He understood Zhi Nv’s intention. If he could draw away this dangerous figure, it would actually be a good thing for Zhi Nv and the others.

Sure enough, the man made no erratic moves. He simply stood by the rear door, and Zhan Qisheng stopped beside him.

It had to be said that if anyone looked closely at these two, they would quickly notice something amiss. Neither of them held onto the bus handrails, yet they were as steady as Mount Tai, remaining completely unshaken no matter how much the bus violently swayed.

The stern-faced man turned his head, glancing at Qu Xi in the back row, and then at the masked woman sitting in front of her.

Upon seeing the masked woman, the stern-faced man furrowed his brows, his lips moving as if using Voice Transmission to speak with her.

The masked woman seemed to receive an order. She immediately stood up and shouted, “Ah! I lost my mobile phone!”

Hearing this, the driver slammed on the brakes, drastically reducing their speed.

The passengers on the bus fell silent, staring at the sudden turn of events.

“Oh no…” Zhi Nv cried out internally. If the bus stopped here, they might not make it in time to pick up Zhou Zhuangshi at the next stop!

Zhan Qisheng also sensed the danger. This bus absolutely could not stop here under any circumstances; the key figure of this storyline hadn’t even appeared yet.

With this in mind, he discreetly reached out a hand, conjuring a fierce gust of wind at the rear of the bus to propel it forward.

The driver panicked. He was stomping on the brakes with all his might, yet the bus showed absolutely no intention of stopping.

The stern-faced man frowned. He hadn’t expected Zhan Qisheng’s wind magic to be so potent. If he didn’t come up with a plan quickly, the bus would be pulling into the station before long.

Suddenly, he thought of a scheme and called out, “Driver! The thief must still be on the bus. Why don’t you drive straight to the police station!”