Legend Management Bureau Chapter 379

[ … words ]

Shiranui Asuka carefully considered the words Xiao Qi had just spoken, unexpectedly falling into deep contemplation.

‘Must I abandon Xie Yujiao now?’

Seeing that Shiranui Asuka remained silent for a long time, Shuten Doji couldn’t figure out what was going on.

“Little Xiang, aren’t we leaving?” Shuten asked tentatively.

But A’xiang’s brows were tightly knit, her mind clearly occupied.

“What a huge pain…” Shuten Doji sighed. He slowly turned around, and the horde of demons behind him followed suit.

Cowherd showed no fear as he stared at the man before him.

“Brother.”

Shuten pulled a cigarette from his pocket and offered it to Cowherd.

“Can you do me a favor and let it slide with this woman for now?” Shuten asked, pointing at Xie Yujiao.

Cowherd quietly took a drag from his cigarette and replied, “Brother, if you were in my shoes and someone had brutally murdered the woman you loved, would you just let it go?”

Shuten knew he was somewhat in the wrong here.

In all his years as a leader, he had never felt so unjustified.

In the underworld, rules were absolute—one was one, and two was two.

If you made a mistake, you admitted it; if you took a beating, you stood your ground.

By urging the other party to back down now, he was the one being unreasonable.

Furthermore, the man before him had no intention of harming the innocent, nor did he want Little Xiang’s life. He simply wanted revenge.

Shuten casually glanced back at Shiranui Asuka, as if waiting for an order, but she remained lost in thought, saying nothing.

“Sigh…” Shuten let out a heavy sigh. “What a huge pain… Brother, I know you’re in the right, but I have my own difficulties. If you don’t leave, it’s going to put me in a really tough spot…”

Hearing this, Cowherd remained silent. He pulled a cigarette from his own pocket, placed it in Shuten’s mouth, and lit it for him.

“Demon, I’ve returned your cigarette; we’re even. You don’t need to put yourself in a difficult position from here on out. Life and death will be left to fate.”

At the mention of ‘life and death will be left to fate,’ Ootengu and Ibaraki Doji, standing behind Shuten, sensed that things were going south and stepped forward.

Shuten nodded and declared, “Cowherd, you’re a genuinely good man. If we had met anywhere else, I definitely would have bought you a drink.”

Cowherd flicked the cigarette butt from his lips and replied, “No need, I don’t touch alcohol. We’ve been chatting for a while; it’s about time you introduced yourself.”

“Fusang demon, Shuten Doji.”

The moment the words left his mouth, a terrifying aura erupted from Shuten, forcing Cowherd to take a step back.

It was no exaggeration to say that Shuten Doji’s Demonic Energy could completely crush Cowherd.

After all, Shuten was a Fusang Demon King, while Cowherd was merely a wandering ghost from the Underworld.

“Truly astonishing,” Cowherd chuckled. “But for Zhi Nv, I’ll lay my life on the line.”

Right at that moment, massive dark shadows blotted out the sky.

Zhi Er and Qiang Nv descended, bringing with them a vast multitude of thugs from the Inner Yellow Springs.

“I was wondering what the hell was going on.” Qiang Nv scratched her ear as she landed. “I’ve been wandering the Battlefield forever without finding a single opponent. You’re something else, Cowherd—didn’t you just gather them all in one place?”

Zhi Er took a step forward, shielding Cowherd behind him. “Brother Lang! Are you alright?”

Cowherd paused, turning to look at the thousands of people Zhi Er and Qiang Nv had brought. “Zhi Er, I didn’t send out a call. Why are you all here?”

“Brother Lang, don’t blame me. I’ve been secretly following you,” Zhi Er admitted with his head bowed. “You’re my benefactor; I couldn’t let anything happen to you.”

“Did you bring Qiang Nv too?”

“Uh… not quite.” Zhi Er gave a wry smile. “It seems Sister Qiang Nv is just looking for a fight.”

The situation had already reached a boiling point, so Cowherd asked no further questions. He slowly turned around to face Shuten Doji.

Cowherd now had Zhi Er and Qiang Nv backing him up.

Meanwhile, Shuten had Ootengu and Ibaraki behind him.

Hordes of fighters stood behind both sides.

Without exception, every single one of them exuded an aura of Evil.

More importantly, whether it was the Fusang demon alliance or the thugs of the Inner Yellow Springs, not a single person had been corrupted by Mahakala’s reverse-chanted sutra. This group of evildoers was like a breath of fresh air on the Battlefield, consistently maintaining their sense of self.

Yet, these people were now poised to strike. If even one person made a move, the situation would immediately spiral into the worst-case scenario.

“A’xiang, stop hesitating!” the Voice Transmitter Xiao Qi shouted in Asuka’s mind. “Just look at the situation in front of you. You have to make a choice right now!”

As if coming to a resolute decision, Shiranui Asuka slowly raised her head and stepped between the two factions.

“Everyone… can we please not fight?” Asuka asked timidly.

Shuten furrowed his brows. “Little Xiang, do you think I want to fight? This is the first time in a thousand years that I’ve gone against my own morals, and it’s solely to ensure nothing happens to you.”

Asuka then looked at Cowherd and pleaded, “Brother Cowherd, can you let Sister Xie Yujiao go?”

Cowherd shook his head and replied, “Young lady, you’re inexperienced in the ways of the world, so I won’t give you a hard time. But how can one have it both ways in this life? You want Xie Yujiao to be safe, you want Shuten Doji to be safe, and you want me to let go of my hatred. It’s ridiculous. Does the whole world revolve around you?”

Shiranui Asuka knew she was being incredibly selfish, but she was completely out of options.

She had no idea how to resolve the current stalemate. If she stubbornly insisted on protecting Xie Yujiao, a war would break out between the two sides, and the casualties would be immeasurable.

Asuka finally understood that everyone had to grow up eventually.

Trying to hold onto everything would only result in losing even more in the end.

“Everyone, I understand,” Asuka said, tears brimming in her eyes. “I’ve made my choice. Put your weapons away.”

Both armies turned their gazes toward her.

Asuka walked over to Shuten Doji and softly declared, “Shuten, let’s go.”

“Go? Go where?”

Asuka whispered, “To rendezvous with Brother Fire God and attack the Grand Buddha together.”

A’xiang’s decision was self-evident: she had given up on Xie Yujiao.

She walked up to Xie Yujiao, bowed deeply, and whispered, “Sister Xie Yujiao, I’m sorry…”

Xie Yujiao offered a bitter smile and replied, “A’xiang, don’t be silly. You made the right choice. If I were in your shoes, I would have done exactly the same.”

Asuka gave an expressionless nod, then turned and walked away.

Seeing A’xiang leave, Shuten Doji naturally had no reason to stay. He gave Cowherd a nod and followed after her.

The myriad of demons departed one after another, leaving only Cowherd, Xie Yujiao, and the others behind.

“Brother Lang, what’s our move?” Zhi Er asked.

“Go and help those demons,” Cowherd commanded. “They seem to have a way to defeat the enemy. I’ll come find you all as soon as I finish up things on my end.”

Zhi Er felt uneasy about this. “Brother Lang, but if you’re going to fight, I can help you…”

“Life and death will be left to fate.” Cowherd waved him off. “Go.”