Legend Management Bureau Chapter 11

[ … words ]

How could the figure sitting on the stone bench in front of him be considered human?

She was sprawled across the stone bench like a cat. Although she possessed an exceptionally enchanting human face, her body was entirely that of a tiger, covered in dark brown fur with a long leopard tail trailing behind her. She was the spitting image of a living Sphinx.

Du Yu had seen his fair share of demonic beasts and managed to remain somewhat composed, but what on earth was going on with the Queen Mother of the West?

That was definitely not how she was portrayed in TV dramas.

“Which region are you responsible for, rogue immortal? Why have I never seen you before?” she demanded.

The moment the human-faced, tiger-bodied Queen Mother spoke, a shiver ran down Du Yu’s spine. He had caught a very clear glimpse of the razor-sharp tiger fangs in her mouth.

“I… I started out spending a few years as a Paladin in Azeroth, and later I worked as a Summoner in Runeterra for a bit…” Du Yu spouted pure nonsense while quietly calling out to Dong Qianqiu. “Sister Qianqiu, why does the Queen Mother look like this?”

“The Queen Mother of the West hasn’t fully taken on a human form in this era. Whatever you do, don’t make a fuss about it, or you’ll incur her wrath,” Dong Qianqiu warned.

“Azeroth… Runeterra?” The Queen Mother eyed Du Yu with deep suspicion. “Are there truly realms under the heavens that I have never heard of? And what kind of immortal ranks are Paladin and Summoner?”

“That’s right.” The Queen Mother rose to her feet. “I nearly forgot. I heard… you found the Celestial Lord?”

“Oh, not only did I not find anyone, I don’t even know who you’re looking for,” Du Yu said, scratching his head.

“You didn’t find him?!” The Queen Mother leaped directly off the stone bench, glaring at Du Yu in the posture of a tiger ready to pounce on its prey. “Are you mocking me?”

“Not exactly.” Du Yu was at a loss for what to do. This literal tigress right in front of him was entirely unexpected. “Boss, don’t get worked up just yet. There’s something I need to ask you first…”

“Insolence!” the Queen Mother bellowed, her voice carrying the unmistakable roar of a tiger. Her leopard tail shot straight up into the air. “Not only do you mock me, but you dare come to Mount Kunlun to question me?”

“Boss, you have to believe me.” Du Yu was getting anxious himself. “No matter how many immortals you have around you, I am the only one who is whole-heartedly trying to help you.”

“Whole-heartedly trying to help me?” the Queen Mother said, suppressing her fury. “Hmph, then tell me, what predicament have I fallen into? And how exactly do you intend to help?”

Pointing at the ground beneath his feet, Du Yu replied, “The suns.”

The moment she heard those two words, the Queen Mother’s expression shifted drastically.

“What about… the suns?”

“I had planned to talk to you as a normal person, but it seems that won’t work anymore. Boss, I’m done pretending. I’m laying all my cards on the table,” Du Yu declared. “I’ve come from a place very far away to help this world shoot down the nine suns!”

“You…?” The Queen Mother was left momentarily speechless. But she quickly snapped out of it, her eyes glowing with a faint golden light as she scrutinized Du Yu intently. After a long pause, she murmured in astonishment, “You’re actually just a mortal…?”

“I’m not a simple mortal,” Du Yu corrected. “This is the first time I’ve come clean since arriving in this world. Boss, I’ll be honest with you. If the nine suns aren’t shot down, the world you live in now, as well as the world I came from, will completely vanish. All the ordinary people living on this earth will perish.”

The Queen Mother’s eyes widened in horror. Unable to utter a single word, her leopard tail dropped limply to the ground.

“Boss?” Du Yu waved a hand in front of her face. “Did you hear what I said?”

“I never imagined I would cause such a catastrophic disaster…”

“Boss, could you tell me how exactly this whole mess started?”

The Queen Mother fell silent for a long time before finally saying, “I created this disaster, so I will solve it myself. I need not trouble an outsider like you.”

“Boss, that’s where you’re wrong.” Du Yu shook his head and plopped right down next to her. Ignoring her completely shocked expression, he rambled on, “I just laid all my cards on the table, can’t you go all-in with me? I only want to help you solve the problem right in front of us. You need to tell me the exact details of the incident so I can actually assist you. You know how it goes—leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist!”

Du Yu stared earnestly at the Queen Mother, leaving her utterly bewildered.

‘What does this mortal mean?’ she thought. ‘Does he not realize who he is speaking to?’

Du Yu grew more excited as he spoke, genuinely treating the Queen Mother like an oversized house cat. He reached out, stroking the fur on her back as he continued, “Even if you don’t consider yourself, you have to think about your family…”

“Insolence!!!”

The Queen Mother had never experienced anything like this in her life. This was simply going too far!

Dong Qianqiu was also dumbfounded. “This kid is actually petting the Queen Mother of the West like a cat.”

Hearing the Queen Mother’s furious shout, the guards stationed outside immediately rushed in, spears in hand.

“Your Majesty, Queen Mother!”

Sensing that he might have crossed a line, Du Yu hurriedly stood up and said, “Boss, you really need to think this through…”

The guards were a bit puzzled. Although the Queen Mother’s voice had been incredibly sharp, her cheeks were flushed red, and she was glaring at Du Yu with a very strange expression.

“Your Majesty… are you alright?”

“I am fine. Leave us.”

“Ah, yes!”

Once the guards had withdrawn, the Queen Mother composed herself and said, “Even if I were to tell you, what could a mere mortal like you possibly do?”

“But telling me won’t cost you anything, and it might just give you a glimmer of hope, right?” Du Yu reasoned.

“Sigh.” The Queen Mother pondered for a long while before finally letting out a sigh. Shaking her head, she said, “Very well. Let us hope you are right.”

“Many years ago, Lingbao Tianzun gifted me a magical artifact known as the Nine-Treasure Glazed Lamp. That lamp was exceedingly rare and precious. Within it lay nine pearls of True Samadhi Fire, rotating in an endless cycle. The flames inside were eternal, never extinguishing or fading. I grew exceptionally fond of it, keeping it by my side to admire every day. However, a year ago, I accidentally knocked it over. As it turned out, those nine pearls of True Samadhi Fire had long since developed their own sentience. Growing rapidly upon contact with the wind, they transformed into nine massive fireballs and soared into the sky. Because their innate flames are completely inextinguishable, the mortals below have mistakenly called them the nine suns…”

“Ah, I get it now!” Du Yu exclaimed. “Boss, you must be looking for Lingbao Tianzun, right? If the product is defective, he needs to provide after-sales support!”

“Why would I seek out Lingbao Tianzun?” The Queen Mother furrowed her brows. “He warned me long ago never to knock over the glazed lamp. Now that the disaster has already struck, what could he possibly do to fix it?”

“Huh? So the Celestial Lord you’re trying to find isn’t Lingbao Tianzun?” Du Yu asked in confusion.

The Queen Mother looked at Du Yu as if he were a complete fool. After taking a moment to calm down, she explained, “Perhaps it has been too long since I conversed with a mortal, so I wasn’t clear enough. When it comes to the True Samadhi Fire, there is only one immortal in this world who can break it—Daode Tianzun.”

Du Yu raised an eyebrow. The name Daode Tianzun sounded incredibly familiar…

He searched his memory, and his brows shot up in realization.

‘Daode Tianzun… isn’t that Taishang Laojun?!’

“Ah! Laojun!” Du Yu exclaimed, acting as if he knew the man personally. “That makes sense. Taishang Laojun has always been the master of playing with the True Samadhi Fire!”

The Queen Mother let out another sigh. “But it has been an entire year, and we still haven’t found Daode Tianzun. With him absent, how can the mistake I made be salvaged…”

“If we know who we’re looking for, then things are much easier!” Du Yu finally had a grasp of the situation. He could probably mobilize the entire Legend Management Bureau’s network to investigate Taishang Laojun’s exact whereabouts during this time period.

“So, do you have a solution?” the Queen Mother asked, though her expression betrayed not a single shred of hope.

Just as Du Yu was about to reply, the face of Mr. Kongming suddenly surfaced in his mind.

“When you feel you are approaching the truth of the matter, please open the second silk pouch.”

‘Could he have meant right now?’

‘Did Mr. Kongming anticipate this exact situation?’

“Hey, I am speaking to you,” the Queen Mother said, prodding Du Yu with her front paw.

“Ah, I’m busy right now. Just wait a second.” Du Yu swatted her paw away without a second thought.

“Insolence… sheer insolence…” the Queen Mother muttered under her breath. But upon seeing Du Yu’s deeply focused expression, she didn’t dare interrupt. After all, the matter of fixing the suns couldn’t be spoken of to anyone else. Having an extra person to help was something she desperately wished for.

She watched as Du Yu retrieved a slip of paper from the incredibly tattered fanny pack at his waist, solemnly and slowly unfolding it.

On it was written clearly:

Even a person of such immense power is helpless against the nine suns. There must be two reasons for this: firstly, they lack a crucial person; secondly, they lack a necessary item. If they lack a crucial person, why has this person not shown themselves? If they lack a necessary item, has this item been kept hidden by someone year after year?

Reading Mr. Kongming’s words, a few tiny clues in Du Yu’s mind were rapidly magnified.

‘Why hasn’t Taishang Laojun shown himself?’

“Sister Qianqiu, I just remembered something.”

“What crazy scheme have you cooked up now?” Dong Qianqiu asked with a frown.

“Do you remember the immortal mentioned in Dayi’s story back then?”

“You mean the one who bestowed the magical artifact upon Dayi?”

“Exactly. Dayi once mentioned that after the immortal refined the pills, he summoned an artifact to collect the golden elixirs. That artifact was called the Purple Gold Red Gourd. Could you please tell me who the Purple Gold Red Gourd belongs to?”

“Are you suggesting…?” Dong Qianqiu realized what he meant. “I’ll look into it right away.”

The Queen Mother sat next to Du Yu without uttering a single word. Her face screamed of displeasure, but she was afraid he actually had a good solution and didn’t want to break his train of thought.

Glancing at the Queen Mother’s expression, Du Yu couldn’t help but chuckle. “Your Majesty, Queen Mother, it’s fine. Isn’t this just a case of a cat breaking some furniture in the house? Rest easy, I’ll help you handle it.”

‘A cat?’

The Queen Mother looked around.

‘Could he be talking about me?’ Furious, she nearly bared her tiger fangs, cursing inwardly, ‘Insolence. This man is simply far too insolent!’

“Du Yu, I found it. Your guess was spot on. The Purple Gold Red Gourd is a magical artifact Taishang Laojun uses specifically to store his immortal elixirs,” Dong Qianqiu reported.

“Then that confirms it.” Du Yu thought to himself that Mr. Kongming was truly a godsend; his approach to solving problems was incredibly sharp. “If someone as powerful as the Queen Mother of the West, the head of the immortals, can’t solve this issue, it’s definitively because the crucial person is missing. But why wouldn’t Taishang Laojun show himself?”

After pondering for a moment, Du Yu said, “I think there are two possibilities. First, Taishang Laojun is fully absorbed in doing something—like refining pills—which is why he hasn’t realized there have been ten suns in the sky for the past year.”

“Is that even possible?” Dong Qianqiu asked.

“I think it is. According to Dayi’s account, Taishang Laojun enters a state of absolute trance when refining pills. At that point, he definitely wouldn’t notice any anomalies in the sky. Never mind Taishang Laojun—even I’ve entered a similar trance state. When I was deeply engrossed in something, I went a full seven days without sleep or rest.”

Hearing this, Dong Qianqiu raised an eyebrow. She thought to herself that while Du Yu seemed like a complete slacker, he surprisingly possessed such an intense, dedicated side. They always said a man was most charming when he was fully focused. In Dong Qianqiu’s heart, Du Yu looked quite a bit more appealing right now.

“Seven days without sleep or rest,” Dong Qianqiu asked. “What were you doing?”

“Playing video games.”

“Du Yu!” Dong Qianqiu shrieked. “If you spout nonsense to me one more time, I will definitely make you pay!”

“Alright, alright, I was just making a joke,” Du Yu chuckled. “What I just mentioned was only one possibility. Following Mr. Kongming’s prediction, there is a second possibility—they are missing a crucial item to resolve this matter. That means even if they locate Taishang Laojun, it would be useless.”

“And what do you think this crucial item is?” Dong Qianqiu asked, suppressing her rage.

“Mr. Kongming has already provided the answer.” Du Yu glanced at the silk pouch in his hand. “This item has been kept hidden away for years. If we’re talking about one of Taishang Laojun’s artifacts that has been hidden by someone else for years, I can only think of one possibility…”

“Ah!” Dong Qianqiu finally understood. Dayi! Dayi had obtained one of Taishang Laojun’s artifacts, yet he had refused to let it see the light of day for years!

So the ultimate answer to the problem still lay with Dayi.

“Boss!” Du Yu declared to the Queen Mother. “I have a solution for the suns.”

“Truly?!” Overcome with sheer excitement, the Queen Mother’s pupils dilated drastically.

‘It seems the human-faced, tiger-bodied Queen Mother really is just a giant cat after all…’

“Yes, but I need to go and verify this right now. As for you, Boss, I need you to do me a favor.”

“Speak.”

“When this issue with the suns is resolved, I want you to offer the Elixir of Immortality as a reward.”

“That is easily done.” The Queen Mother rummaged around under the stone bench with her paw for a moment. “I can give it to you right now.”

“It’s not for me,” Du Yu explained. “There will be a hero who shoots down the suns, named Dayi. When that time comes, I’ll have to trouble you to descend to the mortal realm and hand the elixir over to him.”

“Dayi?” The Queen Mother pondered the name for a moment. “Very well, I understand.”

“Also.” A thought suddenly crossed Du Yu’s mind, and he added, “It would be best if there were two pills of the Elixir of Immortality.”

“Two pills…?”

“Yes. Is there a problem?”

“No… no problem.” The Queen Mother’s pupils instantly constricted into thin slits.

“Okay, that’s fantastic!” Du Yu was so thrilled he practically jumped into the air.

He dug through his battered fanny pack for quite a while before pulling out a teleportation talisman and sticking it onto his body. “Boss, I’ll be taking my leave now. Oh, by the way, try not to fill your living space with so much thick mist in the future. The excess humidity is bad for your joints.”

“Insolence!” the Queen Mother snapped. “Do you think I enjoy living like this? If those ten suns weren’t constantly boiling the Jade Pool, why would there be such billowing mist rolling around my home?”

“Ah?” Du Yu exclaimed in surprise. “So that’s why? I thought you were doing it on purpose.”

With a “swish,” Du Yu vanished without a trace.

Watching the empty space where Du Yu had just been, the Queen Mother felt a mix of lingering irritation and sudden distraction.

“I forgot to ask his name…”

After freezing for a moment, the Queen Mother suddenly remembered something and hastily dragged a wooden box out from beneath the stone bench.

She gently opened the lid and peered inside.

Only one and a half pills of the Elixir of Immortality remained.