Legend Management Bureau Chapter 65

[ … words ]

“Still want to risk it all?” Dong Qianqiu asked in exasperation as she examined Du Yu’s injuries. “You’re always putting your life on the line at the drop of a hat. Do you have any idea how much you worry people?”

“Ah!” Du Yu suddenly remembered something. He hurriedly closed his eyes to check on Zhongli Chun.

“Little Zhongli, how are you doing?”

Zhongli Chun looked a bit weak, but it didn’t seem serious. She offered a faint smile and replied, “I am fine, Du Yu. Just a little tired.”

Du Yu inspected her condition and confirmed that her soul showed no signs of dissipating. Relieved, he opened his eyes and called out.

“Yingning, Yingning, how are you?”

Yingning also smiled weakly and said, “I am alright. I feel fine.”

Du Yu then carefully examined the calligraphy brush. Only after confirming it was undamaged did he finally heave a sigh of relief.

Watching from the side, Dong Qianqiu was utterly bewildered. “Du Yu, what are you doing?”

“Everyone!” Cui Jue, standing not far away, suddenly spoke up. “Please hear me out.”

Everyone silently turned to look at him. If no one stepped forward to mediate, the current situation would truly be impossible to resolve.

“Although today’s events were a farce, we have still gained quite a bit. At the very least, we now know that what the Great Emperor of Mount Tai said is true. It is time to put an end to this matter,” Cui Jue declared, sweeping his gaze across the crowd. “What we must do now is for the Yama Kings and the Ghost Emperors to unite. We need to mobilize the entire Underworld’s forces to find out exactly who is pulling the strings behind the scenes.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

However, Du Yu remained deep in thought. He could not shake the feeling that this whole affair was much more bizarre than it appeared.

He slowly walked over to King Biancheng and asked, “King Biancheng, may I ask you a few more questions?”

Du Yu had thoroughly stolen the spotlight during this incident. As a mere mortal, he had actually managed to fight Zhong Kui to a standstill. The various immortals could not help but view him in a new light.

Hearing Du Yu’s words, King Biancheng nodded expressionlessly. “What do you wish to ask?”

The crowd turned their attention back to King Biancheng. He was undoubtedly the most suspicious person present.

“You claimed that you attacked King Yama on the orders of the Great Emperor of Mount Tai, correct?”

“That is correct.” King Biancheng nodded. Horse-Face had already interrogated this information out of him, so there was no point in hiding it anymore.

“Then where and how exactly did the Eastern Emperor issue this order to you?”

“The Eastern Emperor gave me the order before I even ascended to immortality. It has been thousands of years since then.”

“What?!”

Du Yu’s question hit the nail right on the head. The nether immortals exchanged bewildered glances. This was a mission assigned over a millennium ago?!

The Great Emperor of Mount Tai was also taken aback. He pondered for a moment before saying, “That doesn’t make sense. Your position was bestowed upon you by the Great Emperor of Fengdu of the Northern Yin. Before you joined the immortal ranks, I didn’t even know you.”

King Biancheng smiled bitterly. “Eastern Emperor, I owe you a debt of gratitude, but I never expected you to truly abandon me at the critical moment.”

The Great Emperor of Mount Tai was even more confused. “King Biancheng, Bi Yuanbin, if there are some hidden circumstances, just explain them clearly. You and I have never been close, so why would you engrave a single sentence of mine into your heart for thousands of years?”

“Hahaha!” King Biancheng laughed, looking up at the sky. “Yes, yes, that is exactly what you said thousands of years ago.”

The Great Emperor of Mount Tai was about to say something else, but Du Yu stopped him.

“Chief, let me ask him. I feel like this matter isn’t that simple.”

Du Yu stepped forward and asked, “So what exactly did the Eastern Emperor do and say back then?”

“Since the Eastern Emperor insists on leaving me to die, I have no reason to regard our past ties either.” King Biancheng bowed to the crowd and explained, “In life, I held the rank of General Pingyuan. Just as I was about to deploy on a campaign, I heard a voice. A man spoke directly into my mind, introducing himself as the Great Emperor of Mount Tai and claiming he was going to grant me a heaven-defying opportunity.”

“He told me in great detail that during this campaign, as long as I stopped midway at a small hill in the wilderness and took a stroll up it, I would meet a noble benefactor. I would gain magical powers, enjoy eternal life, and become one of the Yama Kings ruling the Underworld.”

“However, to truly obtain this opportunity, I had to do one thing for him. Thousands of years after becoming a Yama King, a battle would erupt between the Yamas and the Ghost Emperors. When that time came, I had to help him assassinate the leader of the Yamas.”

“He said the circumstances of this battle would be highly unusual, requiring strict secrecy. Moreover, regardless of whether the assassination succeeded or failed, he would never publicly acknowledge his involvement. But in exchange, he guaranteed my safety. I was already advanced in years at the time, fraught with anxiety over the natural cycle of life, aging, sickness, and death. Hearing that I could join the ranks of immortals, I naturally agreed.”

King Biancheng looked at the crowd with a trace of disappointment and continued, “After visiting that small wilderness hill, I encountered the Great Emperor of Fengdu of the Northern Yin, who had descended to the mortal realm. Seeing my capable military leadership and extraordinary bearing, he indeed asked if I wished to become an immortal. Everything happened exactly as the Great Emperor of Mount Tai had predicted.”

“My life’s creed has always been to repay my debts. Since the Great Emperor of Mount Tai guided me to become an immortal, it was only natural for me to repay his kindness. I just never expected him to go back on his word. He never had any intention of keeping me safe.” King Biancheng stared at the Great Emperor of Mount Tai with lingering resentment.

“This…” Dong Qianqiu was stunned. “King Biancheng, that doesn’t sound right.”

“It doesn’t sound right?” King Biancheng turned to look at Dong Qianqiu in confusion. “What’s wrong with it?”

“I’ve read your legends…” Dong Qianqiu stammered. “When you were alive, you went to that small wilderness hill because you were exterminating bandits along the way…”

“What?!” King Biancheng’s eyes widened in an instant. “You mean…”

“That’s right…” Dong Qianqiu nodded. “Regardless of whether the Eastern Emperor sent you a telepathic message or not, you were always destined to become one of the Ten Yama Kings.”

The immortals began to murmur among themselves. What exactly was going on here?

Du Yu thought for a moment and turned to the Great Emperor of Mount Tai. “Eastern Emperor, did you ever say those words?”

“Me?” The Great Emperor of Mount Tai shook his head helplessly. “For me to know what would happen today over a thousand years ago is simply absurd. At that time, I didn’t even know who the Northern Emperor was planning to recruit. How could I have sent them a telepathic message?”

Du Yu nodded. The Eastern Emperor’s logic was completely flawless.

“That’s right. Only someone from the present would clearly know what was going to happen today.”

“My young friend, are you implying…?”

Du Yu looked at Bao Zheng and asked, “Lord Bao, why did all of you show up so soon after the Eastern Emperor arrived here?”

Bao Zheng frowned and thought for a second before replying, “Brother Du, to tell you the truth, it was because someone sent me a letter. The letter informed me that the Great Emperor of Mount Tai had left Mount Tai and appeared at the Mountain of No Return. I immediately sent telepathic messages to the other Yamas. Second Brother Zhong Kui happened to be a guest at my manor at the time, so he came along as well.”

Hearing this, Du Yu turned back to face the immortals and declared, “Since you are all immortal beings, you surely understand without me having to spell it out. Someone is absolutely manipulating things from the shadows. Therefore, we absolutely cannot fight among ourselves anymore.”

After saying that, Du Yu turned back to ask Bao Zheng, “Lord Bao, do you still have that letter?”

Bao Zheng nodded and pulled a piece of paper from his robes.

Du Yu originally thought he could look for clues in the handwriting, just like in the TV dramas starring Bao Zheng. He never expected him to pull out a computer-printed sheet of A4 paper.

The contents of the paper were essentially exactly as Bao Zheng had described.

“I originally thought the information was only half-true, but upon arriving, I discovered that the Eastern Emperor was indeed here,” Bao Zheng added.

The Great Emperor of Mount Tai finally understood everything. He stated, “So assassinating the Northern Emperor was merely a smokescreen. This person’s true goal was to eliminate me?!”

Du Yu nodded. “It seems that way.”

“First, they used seven or eight evil ghosts to launch a sneak attack and lure me here, and then they orchestrated a group attack by the Ten Yama Kings. What a ruthless scheme!”

“Uh…” Du Yu scratched his head and said, “Eastern Emperor… do you think there’s a possibility… that the sneak attack by those seven or eight evil ghosts… was actually just a misunderstanding?”

“Say no more, young friend!” The Great Emperor of Mount Tai patted Du Yu on the shoulder. “You have already been a massive help today. I will undoubtedly launch a full investigation and root out this culprit!”

With that, he turned his attention back to the other Yamas and offered a bow. “Everyone, what transpired today is not your fault. If you truly wish to aid the Northern Emperor, then you should do as I will and launch an investigation as quickly as possible.”

The Great Emperor of Mount Tai bowed very politely to everyone, then took the Five Ghost Emperors and flew off.

The Ten Yama Kings exchanged glances before turning their collective gaze toward King Biancheng.

“I have already told you everything I know. If you do not believe me, then lock me away in the Hell of Mirrors,” King Biancheng said.

“No…” Bao Zheng shook his head. “Not only do we not need to lock you in the Hell of Mirrors, but we also need to release King Zhuanlun as soon as possible.”

“Oh?” Du Yu raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. “Lord Bao, do you have a lead?”

“Of the ten of us, King Biancheng and King Zhuanlun place the most value on loyalty and camaraderie. I’m afraid that is exactly why they were chosen,” Bao Zheng murmured to himself. “I should have realized this much sooner…”

Bao Zheng discussed the matter with the other Yamas, and they all agreed that King Zhuanlun should be freed. They paid their respects to Du Yu, Dong Qianqiu, and the others, and then departed.

The Yamas and Ghost Emperors sent telepathic messages to the approaching ghost soldiers, spirit generals, spectral envoys, and judges, ordering them to stand down and withdraw.

At present, the only ones who had not yet left were the Eight Great Netherworld Envoys.

Du Yu was fairly familiar with a few of them, so he stepped forward to chat. Standing off to the side, Zhong Kui ironically felt like he was the one being isolated.

“Grand Judge,” Du Yu said. “Has your mood improved lately?”

“Hahaha!” Cui Jue laughed heartily. “As expected of Brother Du, you really helped untie the knot in my heart. My mood has been exceptionally pleasant lately, and I keep finding myself calling you Yuan Xiangqin.”

Amidst their banter, Horse-Face looked at the whip in his hands, then turned his head and asked, “But… Brother Du, how exactly do you plan on handling this situation?”

Du Yu pondered for a moment before addressing the group. “I have a terrifying theory. I originally intended to investigate it myself, but I figure I won’t be able to pull it off without your help.”

Dong Qianqiu was somewhat puzzled. “Du Yu, do you have a lead?”

Du Yu gathered everyone close and spoke in a hushed tone. “Sister Qianqiu, esteemed officials… I suspect there is a mole inside the Legend Management Bureau.”