Legend Management Bureau Chapter 241

[ … words ]

After hearing Du Yu’s words, Xiao Nian’s lips trembled with excitement.

“Even I do not remember everything so clearly, yet you know it all…”

Du Yu nodded and smiled. “Like I said, I am your fan. I remember every work you have appeared in. Honestly, I really like you.”

Overwhelmed by the unexpected praise, Xiao Nian immediately stood up, bowed to Du Yu, and said, “Thank you so much for liking my work! I have been acting for many years, and you might be my only audience…”

Du Yu felt like he had heard those words somewhere before. He also stood up and said to her, “Teacher Xu Liunian, I… am currently planning an entirely new form of drama, and I am in desperate need of an excellent, dedicated actor like yourself.”

“You say I am… an excellent, dedicated actor?” A special gleam shone in Xiao Nian’s eyes as she looked at Du Yu with immense excitement.

At this moment, a saying crossed Du Yu’s mind: One cannot achieve perfection without a touch of madness.

Xiao Nian’s acting skills far surpassed those of most actors. Even he found it hard to spot any flaws in the characters she played. Unfortunately, an actor like her would never become a star, as her looks were not outstanding enough, and she was not shrewd enough in her dealings with people.

“In my heart, you have always been the best actor,” Du Yu told her. “If you are willing to take on this challenge, I will explain the contents of the performance to you.”

“Good…” Du Yu nodded. “Our performance is quite different from ordinary filming. We do not have a fixed script. Every time, we wait for the script to ‘come to us on its own’.”

“Wait for the script to come on its own?” Having struggled in the entertainment industry for all these years, this was the first time Xiao Nian had ever heard of such a filming method.

“Exactly.” Du Yu nodded. “The scripts are divided into various levels of difficulty. We will never know what the next script is, but once it arrives, we must go all out and act the scene well. No matter how difficult the role is to play, you absolutely cannot refuse.”

Xiao Nian nodded thoughtfully and asked, “Producer Teacher, may I ask what genre of play we will be doing? Historical? Martial arts? Modern urban? Romance?”

“That is precisely what makes this filming so interesting,” Du Yu replied. “From Pan Gu separating Heaven and Earth in the primordial past to the economic reforms of the modern era, as long as it is an event recorded by future generations, we might have to perform it.”

“Ah…” Xiao Nian nodded with a look of astonishment. “So you are producing a massive mixed-genre play?”

“Pretty much.” Du Yu nodded. “We do not have fixed dialogue either. There is only an ‘ultimate goal’. As long as the ultimate goal is achieved, the rest is entirely up to your improvisation.”

“Understood, understood…” Xiao Nian nodded repeatedly.

“As for your pay, everything is negotiable.” Du Yu continued to feed Xiao Nian the job details of the Legend Management Bureau. “It can be paid monthly, or it can be paid per performance.”

“The pay is not important. As long as I can show off my skills, I will be completely satisfied.”

Du Yu mused inwardly that Xiao Nian was indeed a natural-born actor.

“But there is one thing…” Du Yu’s face suddenly darkened as he said to her, “I need to make this clear to you in advance. None of our scenes will have retakes. Everything is shot in one continuous take. No matter what unexpected situations arise, you must figure out a way to resolve them yourself. If you cannot solve them, you will very likely encounter danger. Best case scenario, someone dies. Worst case scenario, you yourself end up Soul Scattered And Spirit Dispersed.”

Hearing Du Yu’s words, the smile froze on Xiao Nian’s face.

After a long while, she finally spoke up, “Producer Teacher, you sure love to joke. If it means dying, just say dying. Why use such a terrifying phrase like ‘Soul Scattered And Spirit Dispersed’…”

“That is exactly the other thing I wanted to discuss with you.” Du Yu’s expression was incredibly stern as he told her:

“Xu Liunian, you are already dead.”

Xiao Nian’s mouth opened slightly, but she quickly snapped back to reality and asked, “Teacher, has our filming already started? Am I supposed to play a dead person now?”

“The filming has not started, and I am not joking with you,” Du Yu declared. “You have to accept the reality that the car accident from before was not special effects; it actually happened. The girls who brought you here are not actors. They are the Black and White Impermanence.”

Only then did Xiao Nian begin to recall the events that had previously occurred.

Ever since arriving in the Underworld, she had paid special attention to the sets here. Compared to the sets of television dramas, this place felt far too real.

Those vans flying all over the sky, the gloomy-looking staff members, and the perpetually pitch-black sky above—

Was all of this actually real?

Xiao Nian’s expression visibly changed. She slowly opened her mouth and asked, “So… was everything you just said a lie to trick me? If I am already dead and this is the Underworld, how could you possibly be my fan?”

“I am not lying to you,” Du Yu insisted. “I truly admire your acting skills. I sincerely respect your performances; just seeing it once was enough to make it unforgettable for a lifetime. And this place is indeed somewhere where we spend all day acting. I need your abilities.”

Du Yu’s words were filled with genuine emotion, without the slightest hint of falsehood, which left Xiao Nian in a difficult position.

She lost the enthusiasm from moments ago and stared blankly at the ground.

“But I did lie about one thing.” Du Yu picked up the A4 paper filled with Xiao Nian’s information and tore it to shreds right in front of her. “I have never actually watched any of these terrible movies you starred in. They are not worthy of you.”

Xiao Nian looked up at Du Yu and asked, “Since you have never seen any of the roles I played, how could you admire me?”

“You might not believe me when I say this, but I have indeed seen you perform, and it was breathtaking.” Du Yu smiled at her. “I also know that you are a master of makeup and can disguise yourself as anyone. For the nature of our work, these two qualities are simply perfect.”

Xiao Nian was stunned. Barely anyone knew about that!

She quietly pondered Du Yu’s words. It was true; she had been acting for over ten years, yet she was never remembered by anyone. The man standing before her was her sole audience.

“Even though you are already dead, just like I said, this place will allow you to unleash your full potential. Are you interested in working with me?” Du Yu extended his hand toward Xiao Nian.

Xiao Nian thought for a moment and asked, “Before I agree, I want to tell you my biggest flaw.”

“Your biggest flaw?” Du Yu did not quite understand what she meant.

“Yes…” Xiao Nian nodded. “I have always had a major flaw, and that is how difficult it is for me to detach from a character… Whenever I play a role, I immerse myself completely into it. If the character is a patient, I will slowly feel my body losing its strength. If the character is a martial artist, I will force myself to become physically robust. In other words, I cannot do anything that ‘contradicts’ the character.”

Du Yu instantly realized something.

No wonder Xiao Nian could not beat anyone when she played the beggar, but when she played the Black Impermanence, Fan Wujiu, her punches and kicks were incredibly convincing. Was it because she could only unleash the abilities of the “character” she was playing? Even when faced with mortal peril, she would not do anything contrary to her role.

To be honest, this was both a weakness and a strength.

“I think that is even better,” Du Yu replied. “I told you, all of our performances are a gamble with our own lives. Your style happens to be ‘steady’, allowing you to play a character flawlessly without revealing a single crack. To us, this kind of ability is ‘just right’.”

Hearing Du Yu say this, Xiao Nian finally reached out and shook his hand.

“If that is the case, then regardless of whether this is hell or not, and regardless of whether I am dead or not, I will continue to perform forever.” Xiao Nian looked at Du Yu and declared, “Even if there is only one audience member left in the entire world, I will not give up.”

“Good!”

After leaving Xiao Nian’s room, Du Yu breathed a sigh of relief.

On this day, he had obtained two of the Seven Holy Heroes at the same time.

Including the Ashamed Brothers and Shiranui Asuka, he had already gathered five people by his side.

In other words, in the days to come, it would be extremely difficult for these five people to assassinate him from the “future”.

Now, only the stern-faced man and the opera singer remained.

As for that strange opera-singing Scholar, the Ashamed Brothers had already gone to visit him carrying Zhi Nv’s letter. He believed there would be results very soon.

As for the stern-faced man, he still had no clues at the moment and could only take things one step at a time.

Du Yu had Dong Qianqiu send a voice transmission to the Western Queen Mother, informing her that the teleportation array had been built. Soon after, the Western Queen Mother appeared at the Legend Management Bureau.

Fearing that her appearance would cause an unnecessary commotion, she wore a face mask and sunglasses, dressed in casual clothes, making her look like a female celebrity.

As soon as she landed, she called Du Yu out to the courtyard and asked, “Is there any news of Houtu?”

“No.” Du Yu shook his head. “If Lady Houtu has truly gone mad, she will probably tear this whole Underworld apart. Big Cat, you need to think of a solution quickly.”

“Right now, there are three solutions.” The Western Queen Mother spoke with a heavy expression. “The first is to wait for Houtu to cause trouble and then convict her. This way, many Heavenly Venerables will step forward. No matter how high her cultivation is, she will not be able to gain the upper hand.”

“You call that a solution?” Du Yu shot the Western Queen Mother an exasperated look. “Aren’t you two best friends? And this rotten idea is all you could come up with?”

The Western Queen Mother glared at Du Yu with a hint of annoyance and snapped, “I have not finished speaking! That is only the first solution!”

“Then please, continue.”

“The second solution is for me to go find her right now and fight her privately. If I win, this matter will be dropped. If I lose, at least it will have consumed some of her cultivation.”

“This…” Du Yu hurriedly shook his head. “Big Cat, you two are both Heavenly Venerables. Putting aside how much destruction the two of you fighting would cause… what if one of you gets hurt? What would we do then?”

“You brat… you actually care quite a bit about the two of us, don’t you?”

“I’m telling the truth. You and Lady Houtu are both my good friends. I can’t just stand by and watch you fight for your lives.”

The Western Queen Mother nodded with a grave expression. “Then there is only the third solution left. If you do not want the two of us to risk our lives, then you will have to risk your life for us.”