Legend Management Bureau Chapter 190

[ … words ]

“Ah!” Du Yu exclaimed. “Sister Meng, I came here specifically to ask you about Goddess Houtu.”

“Eh?” Meng Po jumped in surprise. “How did you know I was talking about Houtu? Very few people know about this.”

“Don’t worry about that for now!” Du Yu replied. “Truth be told, I really shouldn’t be bothering you with this, but I desperately need to find out who is trying to kill me. To figure out their identities, I first need to know what exactly happened between Xingtian and me. To understand what happened between us, I have to ask Goddess Houtu. But to get any answers from her, I must first help her recover those fragmented memories. And to recover those fleeting memories, I had no choice but to come find you… Sister Meng, do you follow?”

Although his explanation was perfectly logical, Meng Po, hearing all of this for the very first time, was utterly bewildered.

“Of course I don’t follow…” Meng Po gave him a perplexed look. “You came all the way here just to find out who wants you dead. If you have that kind of free time, why not just investigate the identity of the assassins directly?”

“Because it’s a unique situation!” Du Yu groaned. “Ugh, how do I explain this? The killers aren’t assassins from the present, they are assassins from the future… They haven’t tried to kill me yet. No, wait, that’s not right either, since they’ve technically already made their move… Anyway, they haven’t tried to kill me in this particular world… Does that make sense?”

Meng Po scratched her forehead, looking completely lost.

Weaver Girl nodded from the sidelines. Du Yu’s explanation was as clear as it could be, but for an ordinary person, this entire concept was simply too bizarre to grasp.

“How about this…” Meng Po finally spoke up. “Just tell me exactly how you want me to help.”

“She forgot Xingtian?!” Meng Po froze. “Are you serious?”

“I am!”

“Could it be that she actually succeeded…?”

Meng Po pondered for a moment before shaking her head. “No, the sky over the Underworld is as gloomy as ever, and the ambient resentment remains oppressively heavy. It doesn’t look like she succeeded…”

“But Goddess Houtu genuinely doesn’t remember who Xingtian is…” Du Yu pressed. “If she hadn’t forgotten, she wouldn’t have any reason to lie to me…”

“How should I explain this to you…”

Meng Po thought for a moment before fishing the discarded handkerchief back out of the trash can.

“Yes, Sister Meng, use the handkerchief to demonstrate. Visual aids work best for me,” Du Yu said.

With a subtle flex of her hand, Meng Po summoned a surge of water magic. The mystical water enveloped the fabric, swirling rapidly before dissipating, leaving the entire handkerchief thoroughly washed.

She slowly unfurled the damp cloth. The dirt it had picked up from the floor was completely gone. Only the faded ink stain in the center remained, though the magical cleansing had noticeably lightened its dark hue.

“Du Yu, I’ve just washed away this drop of ink. What do you see?”

“Just like you said. Even if all the other memories are gone, that black spot is still there.”

Meng Po shook her head. “No, look closer. Is it still a black spot?”

Du Yu peered at it intently. While it had once been pitch black, it could now only be described as a grey smudge at best. The washing process had significantly faded its color.

“You’re saying… it’s not black anymore?” Du Yu asked. “It’s grey? What does that mean?”

Meng Po slowly lowered the handkerchief. “Exactly as you noted, the black spot is gone, leaving only a grey smudge. If you were to ask me right now whether this handkerchief has a black spot on it, I would say no.”

Du Yu furrowed his brows in deep thought before realization dawned on him. “Sister Meng, are you saying Goddess Houtu doesn’t remember Xingtian’s name, but the person himself still exists in her heart?”

“Exactly.” Meng Po nodded approvingly. “You catch on quick. The hardest color to wash out isn’t black, but grey. When doing laundry, you might turn a black stain grey on the very first wash, but that remaining grey smudge will stubbornly cling on even after ten more washes. When you asked Houtu who Xingtian was, she said she didn’t remember. But that doesn’t mean she truly forgot. Next time, try rephrasing the question. Ask her if she remembers a tall man wielding a massive axe.”

Du Yu let out a soft sigh. So that was how it worked?

In that case, Goddess Houtu’s memories must have been cleansed countless times by now. She spent her days using her own spiritual power to resist the effects of the Meng Po Soup. Whatever was meant to be forgotten had long vanished, while what was meant to be remembered remained deeply ingrained.

Even if she did remember a tall man with a giant axe, would she remember anything else?

It felt as though he was right back at square one. Having seemingly lost all his leads, Du Yu stood rooted to the spot in utter dismay.

Suddenly, a loud crash made everyone jump.

Du Yu whipped his head around. One of Meng Po’s subordinates had hoisted a heavy iron rod and viciously smashed it against the head of the bound man. The captive let out a muffled groan as blood began pouring freely from the wound.

Although Du Yu didn’t know these people, he couldn’t help but find the beating excessively cruel.

“Let me go…”

The bound man suddenly spoke.

“Even if you shatter my skull, I won’t die… You might as well just release me…”

Though his head hung so low that his face was entirely obscured, his voice rang with an unmistakable, unyielding tenacity.

“I can’t die here… Someone is waiting for me outside…” Blood dripped steadily from the man’s lips, painting a gruesome picture.

“Uh…”

Du Yu glanced back and forth between the battered man and Meng Po, torn on whether he should intervene. After all, sticking his nose into someone else’s business on their own turf was terrible etiquette. Furthermore, he didn’t know the first thing about this captive, so he had no way of judging who was in the right.

“Say… how about we take our leave for now?” Du Yu chuckled awkwardly. “I’ll go back and ask Goddess Houtu again. If I run into any more dead ends, I’ll come find you, Sister Meng.”

“Alright, you’re welcome anytime.” Meng Po nodded, then turned her attention to Weaver Girl. “Weaver Girl, are you going to visit Cowherd?”

“Yeah, I’m planning a surprise inspection to see if he’s been flirting with other women behind my back,” Weaver Girl declared.

“Hahaha!” Meng Po laughed brightly. “Don’t worry, you’ll always be part of our neighborhood. Your big sister here will keep that boy in line for you.”

With varying thoughts weighing on their minds, the trio bid farewell to Meng Po. Just as they were walking past the guards, the bound man suddenly lifted his head and stared straight at them.

That single glance was all it took. The three of them nearly shrieked in unison.

Even though the man’s face was caked in blood and his body was littered with fresh lacerations, they recognized him instantly.

They had all met him before!

He was the assassin known as Brother who had tried to kill Du Yu during the Legend of the White Snake!

“Holy crap!”

Du Yu cursed loudly. There was no way he could just walk away from this now.

“You, you, you…” Flustered and overly excited, Du Yu stammered, “You got caught?!”

Meng Po blinked in surprise at the bizarre scene. “Uh, little brother Du Yu, do you know each other?”

“Sister Meng, he’s the assassin I was just telling you about! The guy who wants me dead!” Du Yu exclaimed, gesturing wildly at the captive.

“Oh?” Sister Meng raised an eyebrow. “In that case, I’ll do you a favor and kill him myself. That way, your trip here wouldn’t be a complete waste.”

“Eh?” Hearing Meng Po’s offer brought Du Yu absolutely no joy. Instead, a nagging sense that something was wrong crept over him.

“Wait.” Weaver Girl suddenly stepped forward. “I have a few questions for him.”

Du Yu looked at Weaver Girl. He knew her mind was exceptionally sharp; having her interrogate the man wasn’t a bad idea.

Weaver Girl slowly approached the captive and demanded, “Why did you trespass into Meng Po’s residence? Was it on Saint’s orders?”

The man completely ignored the question. He spat a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the floor, then scrutinized Weaver Girl before turning his gaze to Du Yu. “You know me?” he croaked.

Weaver Girl and Du Yu frowned in unison. Something definitely wasn’t adding up here.

“Tell me, who am I?” the man asked coldly.

Weaver Girl glanced over her shoulder and whispered to Du Yu, “What do you think?”

Du Yu pondered for a second before whispering back, “The wounds on his body are fresh, but during the legend, all his scars were old ones… This proves that the Brother sitting right in front of us is the present Brother. He doesn’t have any intention of killing me yet, which probably means he hasn’t even met Saint.”

“Agreed.” Weaver Girl nodded. “Simply put, as long as we shadow him, we’ll eventually be led straight to Saint.”

Du Yu stared at Weaver Girl, his eyes narrowing in thought, before a sly smile tugged at his lips. “No, I have a much better idea.”

“A better idea?” Weaver Girl paused. “Like what?”

“If we just choose to tail him until he meets Saint, who knows how many more times his future self will try to assassinate me in the meantime. We should just rewrite his past right now, ensuring he never crosses paths with Saint in the first place.”

Weaver Girl was dumbfounded by the sheer audacity of his logic. That train of thought was wildly unconventional.

“So, what’s your master plan?”

Du Yu didn’t answer her. Instead, he spun around to face Meng Po. “Sister Meng, I want to save this guy and take him with me. Could you do me a solid and let him go?”

Both Weaver Girl and Qu Xi stared at Du Yu in total bafflement.

“Oh?” Meng Po blinked in confusion. “It’s not that I can’t let him go, it’s just… didn’t you say he was the assassin trying to kill you? Are you sure about this?”

“I’m not worried about it, so why should you be?” Du Yu chuckled. “Then it’s a deal. I’m taking him with me, so call off your guys.”

Meng Po nodded and waved her hand dismissively. Recognizing the command, her subordinates swiftly untied the man’s ropes.

“You holding up alright, brother?” Du Yu asked as he gently helped the battered man to his feet.

“I’m fine… thank you…” the man rasped weakly.

“Hey, don’t mention it.” Du Yu smiled. “Let me take you to get patched up first. Your injuries are pretty severe.”

“No… I can’t…” The man shook his head. “I am ashamed to refuse, but someone is waiting for me. I cannot go with you…”