Legend Management Bureau Chapter 283

[ … words ]

Du Yu found it incredibly bizarre. He distinctly remembered fighting alongside Xing Tian in the Yellow Emperor’s camp just a moment ago. Yet, for some unknown reason, when he opened his eyes, a tunnel appeared before him once again.

‘Am I dreaming again?’

Du Yu had been to this tunnel before. He clearly remembered taking only three steps inside, yet over ten hours had passed in the real world. It was extremely eerie.

‘This place is bizarre. I need to wake up right now.’

Du Yu continuously slapped his own cheeks until they stung, but he didn’t feel like he was waking up at all.

‘How strange… Am I really dreaming?’

He then pinched his thigh.

It hurt sharply.

“This…?”

He raised his head again and looked toward the stone door at the end of the tunnel.

The stone door was exactly as he remembered it from last time, covered in thick vines, looking as if it hadn’t been opened in thousands of years.

‘Where exactly is this?’ Du Yu felt an ominous premonition. It seemed someone was constantly trying to get him to enter the door, but common sense dictated that the more eager the other party was, the more cautious he needed to be.

Thus, he turned around and glanced behind him, hoping to find an escape route.

He was fine before turning around, but that single glance gave him a massive fright.

Behind him was actually a massive spatial vortex.

Although Du Yu didn’t understand the origins of this vortex, his instincts screamed that if he stepped into it, he would be torn to shreds.

‘The most pressing matter right now is to find a way out of here… Last time, just taking three steps cost me so much time, and I’ve already been here for several minutes…’

Du Yu glanced around. There was only one path left: the stone door at the end of the tunnel.

He had no choice but to gather his courage and slowly walk forward.

In the massive tunnel, the only sound was his own footsteps.

For some reason, the closer he got to the stone door, the faster his heart beat, as if something incredibly eerie was contained within.

Suddenly, a strange, powerful gust of wind blew from behind him, sweeping up the fallen leaves on the ground.

To his astonishment, as those leaves approached the stone door, they gradually slowed down until they completely stopped in mid-air.

Du Yu widened his eyes at the sight. The fragmented, dry leaves seemed frozen in time, hovering motionless in the air.

He reached out and touched them, and the leaves slowly drifted forward under his nudge.

‘What in the world is behind this stone door?’

As Du Yu drew closer to the stone door, the surroundings grew increasingly bizarre.

Some of the withered leaves suspended in the air were actually slowly turning a vibrant, emerald green.

Finally, he stood before it. It was a simple stone door bearing incredibly rough polishing marks, as if someone had built it in a frantic hurry.

Du Yu looked down. On the ground at the base of the stone door was a peculiar semicircle.

It looked as though something had once been placed on this semicircle. Now, there was only an imprint, but the object itself was gone.

‘How strange…’

He crouched down and carefully examined the shape on the ground. He realized that this semicircle likely had its other half inside the door, meaning the stone door divided a full circle directly down the middle. He simply couldn’t imagine what kind of object had once rested here.

After searching around and finding no clues, Du Yu could only stand back up and shift his gaze to the stone door.

He reached out and touched it. It felt icy cold, no different from ordinary stone.

‘Standing around like this won’t solve anything…’

After hesitating for a long while, he stretched out his hand and, as if possessed by some unseen force, knocked on the stone door.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

The crisp sound of his knuckles striking the stone slab echoed throughout the tunnel.

‘Am I an idiot…?’

Du Yu let out a soft sigh. This door hadn’t been opened in at least a thousand years. What was the point of knocking? Was it really possible for someone to be inside?

He shook his head, but just as he was about to turn away, he heard answering knocks coming from the other side of the stone door.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Huh?” Du Yu jumped in fright, thinking he had misheard. “Someone is inside?!”

He felt that this was entirely too absurd. Was there some creepy figure currently standing face-to-face with him, separated only by this stone door?

“Who are you?”

Du Yu asked tentatively, but no one answered from within.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

The knocking sound echoed from inside the door again.

Du Yu had a bad feeling about this and couldn’t help but take a step back. His subconscious screamed that whatever was behind the door was far from normal.

Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock!!!!

Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock!!!!

The knocking grew increasingly frantic; the person inside was seemingly desperate to get out.

Bang! Bang! Bang!!!

Bang! Bang! Bang!!!

The knocking transformed into heavy crashing sounds. The person inside seemed to be throwing their entire weight against the stone door with all their might, yet the stone door didn’t budge an inch.

“Hey!” Du Yu called out, his voice trembling slightly. “What are you doing? Who exactly are you? Stop being so scary, alright…?”

Before he could even finish his sentence, the massive stone door suddenly shifted, shaking loose a cloud of dust. But like the leaves, the dust seemed frozen in time; it remained suspended in the air without slowly settling.

Before Du Yu could react, the stone door actually began to rise slowly.

The door was opening!

“Ahhh!!!!!!”

Du Yu let out a miserable shriek and abruptly snapped his eyes open.

He felt himself shaking violently, completely disoriented.

It took him about ten seconds to figure out what was going on.

He was currently slung across A Can’s back. Beside him were the Seven Holy Heroes, Zhi Nv, Zhan Qisheng, and the rest of the group. Everyone was sprinting toward some destination while carrying him.

“What’s going on?”

Du Yu slowly lifted his head and looked at the sky. He realized that they were in the Underworld, which gave him an inexplicable sense of relief. However, every joint in his body was throbbing with dull pain.

“Brother Yu?! You’re awake?” A Can exclaimed.

“Where is this? What are you guys doing?” Du Yu asked weakly.

“Thank goodness! You’ve been unconscious for almost two days!” A Can said with a face full of worry. “We are currently on our way to find Lady Houtu. You’re injured, so just get some rest first.”

“Finding Lady Houtu?” Du Yu felt his head spinning constantly. “Why are we looking for Lady Houtu? Oh right, has the legend concluded?”

“The legend is over,” A Can confirmed. “Based on the results, we completed this one pretty well. Now, there is only one final step left.”

“The final step? What is it?” Du Yu asked in confusion.

A Kui slowly spoke up from the side. “It’s the ‘Threads.’ We need to find Lady Houtu and cut all the Threads before they manifest completely. According to Brother A’xiang, the Threads are about to appear.”

“Oh… right…” Du Yu shook his head to clear his mind a bit. “That is a major issue. A Can, you don’t need to carry me anymore. Put me down; I can walk on my own…”

“Brother Yu…” A Can said with a heavy expression. “Stop talking nonsense. Your arms and legs are all broken. Hua Tuo originally said you’d need over a week to wake up. Who would’ve thought you’d open your eyes today…”

“My arms…?” Du Yu froze. “My arms and legs are broken?!”

He looked down and, sure enough, found that thick casts enveloped his limbs. There were likely quite a few other broken bones all over his body, bringing a piercing pain that penetrated his very core.

“What in the world happened?” Du Yu stared at his own body in a panic.

“It should be because Xing Tian’s power was far too potent for your mortal body to handle…” A Can explained. “You really suffered, Brother Yu…”

“No… I don’t quite get it. Since I’m already in this state, why did you guys drag me along?” Du Yu finally realized the absurdity of the situation. “You should have left me in bed to recover!”

“It was my idea,” Jin Jianglang interjected. “Because quite a few minor problems occurred during this legend, I have a vague, ominous premonition. That’s why I brought you along. If something goes wrong… you’d be able to come up with ideas.”

“Good grief… this is asking way too much of a person.” Du Yu sighed helplessly. “I reckon I could be nominated as one of the ‘Top Ten Figures Who Moved the Underworld’ this year…”

“By the way, Brother Yu,” A Can suddenly said. “Were you having a nightmare just now?”

“A nightmare?”

“Yeah,” A Can confirmed. “When I was carrying you just now, I felt you shivering violently the entire time… I’ve never seen you like that.”

Hearing A Can say this, Du Yu slowly recalled…

That door!

He had witnessed the scene beyond that door with his own eyes!

Yet, Du Yu couldn’t recall what exactly was inside the door at all. It was as if that specific memory had suddenly vanished from his mind.

Vaguely, he only remembered that the scene inside the door was extremely bizarre.

No, to be precise, it was both bizarre and terrifying.

Just thinking about it now made his hands instantly go icy cold, and his entire body couldn’t stop shivering.

“What on earth did I see?!”

“So it really was a nightmare?” A Can said. “Brother Yu, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. You still have us by your side. We will help you.”

Du Yu nodded absentmindedly and replied, “I-I understand…”

Everything made Du Yu feel deeply unsettled. Ever since they entered Xing Tian’s legend, it seemed as if something unusual had occurred.

But what exactly was it?

It wasn’t long before the group finally arrived at their destination.

Western Queen Mother was currently standing outside a dilapidated temple, quietly waiting.

Seeing everyone flying over from afar, a trace of joy appeared on her face. But when her eyes landed on Du Yu’s injuries, a sliver of concern inevitably showed.

“Stinky Young Kid, what happened to you?” Western Queen Mother asked.

“I’m fine… My youthful vigor got the better of me, and I got into a fight with someone…”

Western Queen Mother immediately walked up, fished out several sparkling pills from her robes, and handed them to Du Yu. “Stinky Young Kid, swallow these immediately!”

“Good lord…” Du Yu couldn’t help but feel a little anxious as he stared at those pills overflowing with spiritual energy. “Big Cat, I’m just a Mortal. Can I even eat these?”

“I told you to eat them, so eat them. Do you think this Queen is trying to kill you?”