Legend Management Bureau Chapter 80

[ … words ]

With tonight’s rebellion at the Zhang Family Stronghold finally quelled, Du Yu could at last breathe a sigh of relief.

The people of the stronghold slowly gathered in the plaza, the vast majority of them wounded.

Seeing this scene, Zhang Jian was filled with bitter heartache. When Du Yu told him that Zhang San had also lost his life, tears visibly welled up in the middle-aged man’s eyes.

Had he known this would happen, he would rather not have returned to the Zhang Family Stronghold. At the very least, it would have allowed his brothers to live a few more days.

But since the tragedy had already occurred, Zhang Jian silently swore in his heart that he absolutely could not let his brothers continue working as bandits.

“Stronghold Leader, if there is nothing else, I still have some things to discuss with those two.” Du Yu stood before Zhang Jian, pointing at Yingning and Zhan Qisheng in the distance. “Unless there’s an emergency, please tell the brothers to stay away from my residence for now. You know how it is—those two are both highly skilled experts with eccentric temperaments.”

“Mm… go ahead, sir,” Zhang Jian nodded. “I’ve already sent someone to retrieve Zhang San’s body from your residence. No one will disturb you for the time being. Once you finish your conversation, I hope you can come find me again. I have some matters I wish to discuss with you.”

“Leader, you…” Du Yu knew that Zhang Jian definitely wanted to talk about him taking over the stronghold, so he didn’t rush to agree, merely nodding in silence.

Du Yu led Zhan Qisheng and Yingning back to his residence. Seeing the two of them sitting together right in front of him felt rather surreal.

“Why is there no end to this?” Du Yu closed the door, walked inside, and sat down. “Do you really care that much about Empress Houtu?”

Zhan Qisheng shook his head upon hearing this. “Yingning is naive, but are you stupid too? And you call yourself an Operator! How can you lack even this basic common sense?”

“Now that’s just uncalled for! How am I stupid?” Du Yu slammed a hand on the table. “You can call me ugly, you can call me broke, but how dare you call me stupid?”

Zhan Qisheng coldly snorted. With a sweeping wave of his large hand, he pulled a copy of the Classic of Mountains and Seas from his waist, flipping to a specific page. “See for yourself!”

Du Yu was completely baffled. Who just whips out a book in the middle of a conversation?

“What’s there to look at? You act as if no one has ever read the Classic of Mountains and Seas before…” Du Yu muttered to himself as he scanned the page. “Gonggong sired Houtu, Houtu sired Xin, Xin sired Kuafu… So what? Is there something wrong with that?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Du Yu froze.

“Huh? Houtu sired Xin, Xin sired Kuafu…?” It slowly began to dawn on him. “Wait, wait a minute! Let’s get this straight. My classical Chinese might not be the best, but does this word ‘sired’ mean gave birth to?”

“It means exactly what you think it means. Houtu is Kuafu’s grandmother,” Zhan Qisheng declared coldly. “They are both from the Gonggong bloodline. Yingning, we killed Kuafu together. Do you really think Houtu wouldn’t find out?”

Yingning offered a bitter smile. “We haven’t seen each other in five thousand years, and this is what you want to talk to me about?”

“I’m doing this for your safety!” As soon as Zhan Qisheng said this, he felt it sounded a bit off, like he was making grandiose excuses for himself.

Du Yu also furrowed his brows in thought. ‘So Yingning is Empress Houtu’s sworn enemy… but why does Empress Houtu seem to dote on her so much? Could it be that she doesn’t know yet?’

“If Empress Houtu hadn’t spent a century looking for me, I probably would have forgotten what the sun looked like by now,” Yingning murmured, keeping her head lowered. “If she wants my life, she can take it right now.”

“She won’t…” Du Yu extended a hand and reasoned. “If Empress Houtu wanted you dead, your soul would have scattered long ago. Since she kept you around, it naturally means she wants you to live.”

“I don’t know what her intentions are, but there’s no way she doesn’t care about a blood feud,” Zhan Qisheng argued anxiously.

“Let’s stop talking about Houtu and talk about the Director,” Du Yu interjected.

“The Director…?” Zhan Qisheng hesitated for a moment. “If you want to know about the Director, you can go ask him directly. Why are you asking me?”

“Zhan Qisheng, something massive has happened in the Underworld.”

“Something massive?” Zhan Qisheng pondered for a second before scoffing, “Even if the Underworld collapsed, what does that have to do with me?”

“Normally, it really wouldn’t have anything to do with you, but this time, you’ve been dragged into it,” Du Yu said, looking at Zhan Qisheng with utter seriousness. “And the one who dragged you into it is the Director.”

“I still don’t understand. The Director is in the Heavenly Court, so what does he have to do with the Underworld?” Zhan Qisheng asked, looking utterly perplexed.

“The Heavenly Court…?” Du Yu was momentarily stunned, but quickly realized the disconnect. “You must not know. After you left, the Legend Management Bureau relocated to the Underworld.”

“Oh?” Zhan Qisheng replied in a completely apathetic tone. “I see.”

“But none of that matters. A few days ago, the Director orchestrated an assassination against the Great Emperor of Fengdu, and attempted to frame the Great Emperor of Mount Tai for the crime. Unfortunately for him, the plot was exposed.” Du Yu paused before continuing, “I suspect he kept a hidden trump card. This trump card was that if his plan failed, he would have you assassinate Zhang Jian within the legend. Zhang Jian is destined to become the Jade Emperor. If he dies here, the present-day Jade Emperor will also die, and no one knows what catastrophic consequences that would bring.”

Hearing this, Zhan Qisheng froze slightly and asked, “Is what you’re saying true?”

“Of course it’s true. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Yingning. She witnessed the whole thing.”

Zhan Qisheng looked over at Yingning. Yingning did not meet his gaze, simply giving a slight nod.

“It’s true that I received a message from the Director not long ago,” Zhan Qisheng admitted. “But why would he do such a thing?”

“A message?” Du Yu stared at Zhan Qisheng in confusion. “Wait a second, how did the Director contact you? Logically speaking, the Legend Management Bureau shouldn’t be able to monitor you at all.”

“To be honest, I admire the Director for it,” Zhan Qisheng chuckled bitterly. “I have no idea how many tens of thousands of legends he combed through before finally pinpointing my immortal cave from various clues. He must have transmitted his voice to mortals, instructing them to carve words outside my cave. After a few exchanges, I understood his intentions. He wanted me to kill Zhang Jian before he could become the Jade Emperor. In exchange, he promised me two conditions: first, that I could see Yingning, and second, that the Legend Management Bureau would permanently strike my name from their records, severing all ties.”

“I see… So that’s why you came here today…”

“Actually, I was supposed to make my move at the Investiture of the Gods terrace, but there were far too many mighty figures from the Immortal Realm present. I couldn’t find an opening,” Zhan Qisheng lamented, shaking his head.

A sudden realization dawned on Du Yu. The person he had spotted that day really was Zhan Qisheng. It was Zhan Qisheng’s killing intent that had triggered the legend’s critical error alert, but he had held back and chosen not to strike at that moment.

“Now that Yingning isn’t with the Director at all, I have no reason to kill Zhang Jian. As for whether or not the Legend Management Bureau cuts ties with me, that doesn’t matter much anymore.” Zhan Qisheng slowly stood up and declared, “I am taking Yingning away from here now. You can go ahead and do whatever it is you need to do.”

Yingning was startled, casting a glance at Zhan Qisheng.

Du Yu remained silent, closely observing Yingning’s expression. Her eyes were filled with complex emotions; it looked as though she wanted to leave with Zhan Qisheng, yet was deeply afraid of something.

Perhaps the trauma of five thousand years wasn’t so easily healed after all.

“No,” Du Yu said, also getting to his feet and confronting Zhan Qisheng. “I told you earlier, whoever I bring with me, I will definitely bring back.”

“What?” Zhan Qisheng frowned in confusion. “Do you still not understand my relationship with Yingning? Her feelings for me far exceed whatever she feels for you!”

“That has nothing to do with me.” Du Yu stared right back at Zhan Qisheng. “If I abandon her in a legend set thousands of years in the past, how would my actions be any different from what you did back then?”

“You…!” Zhan Qisheng snapped impatiently. “How is this the same? She would be with me now, not entirely alone!”

“The fact that she’s with you is exactly why I’m worried.” Du Yu firmly grabbed Yingning’s hand. “You don’t understand the meaning behind Yingning’s smile. I’m terrified that, in the end, you will still abandon her.”

“How is that possible?!” Zhan Qisheng argued. “I am unburdened now. If Yingning stays with me, she will definitely regain her smile!”

“Regain her smile? Ha!” Du Yu barked out a laugh fueled by pure anger. “This is exactly why I said you don’t understand her smile. If you truly loved her, you would cherish her tears, not obsess over her smile. If the current Yingning stayed with you, even if she smiled every single day, she wouldn’t be truly happy.”

After speaking, Du Yu pulled Yingning behind him. Surprisingly, Yingning didn’t put up any resistance, quietly following his lead.

“Zhan Qisheng, leave on your own. At the very least, this time, I absolutely will not abandon Yingning. If, a long time from now, you finally understand the meaning behind her smile, I might entrust her to you. Besides, I’ll be entering legends plenty of times, so we’re bound to meet again.” Du Yu’s tone was dead serious. It wasn’t a negotiation; it sounded more like an absolute command.

‘The meaning behind Yingning’s smile?’ Zhan Qisheng’s mind instantly flashed back to thousands of years ago. The very first time he met Yingning, a hollow, emotionless smile was plastered across her face. It was distant and cold, yet undeniably beautiful.

Du Yu pulled out a green calligraphy brush and declared, “Come back, Pikachu.”

“Pikachu…?”

“I mean, come back in, Yingning.”

In Du Yu’s impression, Yingning had smiled the least today, yet it allowed others to feel far more of her genuine emotions. The current her was delicate and sensitive—just like a normal girl.

Yingning slowly nodded. Transforming into a streak of green light, she darted into the brush.

“She has made her choice,” Du Yu said, patting Zhan Qisheng on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, you aren’t heartbroken over a breakup just yet. At most, you could call it a long-distance relationship. If Yingning ever wants to send you a voice transmission in the future, I absolutely won’t stop her.”

Zhan Qisheng looked utterly desolate. Within a single day, he had been reunited with Yingning, only to lose her all over again.

Five thousand years ago, he had chosen to walk away from Yingning. This time, Yingning was the one who chose to let him go.

Zhan Qisheng stood in silence for a long time before finally speaking up, “Operator, what is your name?”

“My name is Du Yu.”

“Du Yu?” Zhan Qisheng was taken aback for a moment. “Surnamed Du… Could it be that you are my fated tribulation?”

“Fated tribulation? Damn, that sounds a bit suggestive.” Du Yu suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. ‘Wait, does this Zhan Qisheng swing both ways?’

“Forget it.” Zhan Qisheng offered no explanation. Shaking his head with a bitter smile, he asked, “Du Yu, in this current legend… do you need any help?”