The Eerie Visitors

Du Yu had not left his room for four days. Everyone in the Legend Management Bureau seemed to share an unspoken understanding, and no one went to disturb him.

Dong Qianqiu still monitored every potentially troublesome legend on her screen each day. If a legend strayed even slightly off course, she would send a voice transmission to its characters. After Du Yu's "instruction," she now often impersonated the Queen Mother when sending these transmissions, greatly improving her success rate at correcting legends.

"Knock, knock-"

That day, a low knocking sounded through the Legend Management Bureau as it went about its usual work. Visitors had arrived.

"Who is it?"

A staff member went to open the door as a matter of course. The Legend Management Bureau rarely received visitors, but things had clearly changed since Du Yu arrived. Most likely, someone else had come to make his acquaintance.

At first, Dong Qianqiu paid it no mind, assuming it was another Underworld Enforcer or unaffiliated immortal bringing Du Yu gifts. Yet moments later, the staff member who had gone to answer the door was shoved over, landing right in front of her.

Everyone in the Legend Management Bureau froze. In the thousands of years since the bureau's founding, no one had ever dared cause trouble here.

"Who dares?!" Dong Qianqiu turned and saw two people standing in the doorway.

One was a tall, bare-chested man, his entire body tattooed with strange patterns. Two deer antlers rose from his head toward the sky, and an uncanny aura emanated from him. The scantily clad woman beside him possessed the same air, with an added touch of sinister allure.

Dong Qianqiu was certain she had never seen either of them in the Underworld. Nor could she think of any prominent figures whose appearances matched theirs. Deciding to watch and wait, she slowly helped the fallen staff member up and asked, "What happened?"

"I don't know either..." The staff member rubbed his head. "I said we were working right now... and couldn't receive visitors. Then that man suddenly shoved me over."

"This is outrageous..." Dong Qianqiu murmured. "Even the Heavenly Court back then never dared openly oppose the Legend Management Bureau. Just who are these two? If they're confident enough to barge into the bureau, they clearly haven't come with good intentions... Go wait to the side for now..."

The staff member nodded and stepped aside.

"Where's the director?" Dong Qianqiu turned to another person. "Go fetch the director, quickly."

"Assistant Dong... We haven't seen the director for days..." the staff member said awkwardly.

Just then, the pair slowly entered the room, looked around, and asked:

"Who is Dong Qianqiu?"

Dong Qianqiu froze. She had assumed they were here for Du Yu, never expecting that she herself was their target. Still, if that was the case, it sounded as though there was nothing to worry about.

She slowly stepped forward as well. "I'm Dong Qianqiu."

"Good." The man gave a slight nod. "Come with me. Someone wants to see you."

"Come with you?" Dong Qianqiu regarded him coldly. "And if I refuse?"

"Don't spurn a favor." The man rolled his wrists. "Unless you want this place razed to the ground, you'd better come with us."

"Raze this place... to the ground?" Dong Qianqiu could scarcely believe her ears.

"Oh, come now! Speak nicely!" The alluring woman beside him, who also had a pair of horns, lightly swatted him, then turned to Dong Qianqiu. "Little sister Qianqiu, don't worry. We won't hurt you. Someone very important wants to see you."

Dong Qianqiu could not discern the pair's cultivation, so she did not dare act rashly. But she had worked here for a thousand years, knew few people to begin with, and had never made an enemy of anyone. Why would someone want to abduct her?

"Qianqiu can't go with you." A voice came from the distance, and a figure appeared in the corridor.

"Du Yu?" Dong Qianqiu glanced at him. "Are you all right now?"

"That's right." Du Yu smiled faintly, looking quite happy. "I talked with Little Zhongli for a long time and came to terms with a lot of things."

"Thank goodness..." The stone weighing on Dong Qianqiu's heart finally dropped.

"Let's leave that aside for now and deal with the trouble in front of us." Du Yu waved a hand and looked at the pair. "Who are you? Where are you taking Qianqiu?"

"Some things aren't convenient to discuss here." The man shook his head. "Besides, it's none of your business."

With that, the man reached straight for Dong Qianqiu. She channeled her energy, trying to repel his hand, but his strength proved overwhelming. He seized her wrist, leaving her completely unable to move.

"Stop!" Du Yu's gaze instantly turned icy, and murderous intent spread from him. "Let Qianqiu go."

"Oh?"

At the change in Du Yu, both visitors raised their eyebrows.

"The Eight Directions Ghost Record... So it was you?"

"Hmph." Ignoring them, Du Yu seized the man's wrist with tremendous force.

"An ant dares shake a tree," the man said coldly. Releasing Dong Qianqiu, he threw a punch at Du Yu instead.

His fist thundered toward Du Yu's face. Du Yu's expression chilled. Even with Zhongli Chun's borrowed strength, this man was clearly stronger than he was. He crossed both arms in front of himself to block and was driven back several steps.

Before Du Yu could regain his footing, the man thrust out a hand again, unleashing a black, ghostly gale at him. It lifted Du Yu off the ground and slammed him into the wall.

Du Yu grunted. Though the man was immensely powerful, he did not seem to be striking to kill. Du Yu immediately sprang up and used Zhongli Chun's Ghostly Movement Technique, flashing behind the man in an instant and striking at the back of his head with all his strength.

The man tilted his head slightly, evading the blow, then thrust out a hand at Du Yu.

Bang!

A tremendous crash rang out, and Du Yu staggered back several more steps.

"Not bad." The man looked back at Du Yu. "You can already borrow a ghost's strength without being possessed? It seems the ghost you chose trusts you a great deal."

The alluring woman standing nearby bent down and grinned at Du Yu. "Little brother Du Yu, you still can't draw on all of your ghost's power. If you need me to help beat him up, beg me, and I might consider it."

"Who exactly are you...?" Du Yu flexed his aching wrist. The man's strength surpassed even Zhongli Chun's, which meant he had to be a resounding name throughout the Underworld. Though the woman beside him had yet to act, Du Yu could clearly sense that her strength was on par with the man's.

"We are merely messengers unworthy of mention." The man wore a look of utter contempt for everything. "Dong Qianqiu, are you willing to come with us now?"

Already stunned by what she had witnessed, Dong Qianqiu hurriedly said, "I'll go with you. Don't fight Du Yu."

"Good." The man nodded and turned to leave. As he turned, a fierce blast of palm force swept toward him.

Boom!

The man raised a hand and deflected the blast. The entire Legend Management Bureau shook.

"Grand Judge!"

Du Yu and Dong Qianqiu both looked toward the brocade-robed figure outside the door.

"Well, this is a rare sight." Cui Jue walked into the room, his expression unchanged, and said coldly, "Someone actually came to cause trouble at the Legend Management Bureau?"

"Cui Jue?" The man recognized him at once. "I advise you not to interfere, or this will be difficult to settle."

"Oh?" Cui Jue sneered. "Is there anything in this Underworld that I can't settle? Short of some absurd nonsense like the Ten Courts of Yama waging war against the Five Directions Ghost Emperors, I doubt there's anything I, Cui Jue, can't resolve."

"Heh." The man smiled faintly. "In your eyes, the Ten Courts of Yama fighting the Five Directions Ghost Emperors would be the greatest possible calamity? Your horizons are far too narrow."

"You...?" Cui Jue was puzzled. This man spoke with astonishing arrogance, yet Cui Jue truly did not recognize him. Anyone who could withstand that palm strike had to be at least on par with the Eight Great Underworld Enforcers. He would have to take this seriously.

Without another word, Cui Jue summoned the Soul-Reaping Brush into his right hand and channeled his magical power. Yin energy instantly surged from the brush, and all the talismans affixed to it peeled away. Countless wailing souls flew in from every direction and plunged into it. The surrounding temperature plummeted, and the enormous Soul-Reaping Brush shone with spiritual radiance.

"Death-Urging Edict!" Cui Jue roared. The Soul-Reaping Brush rose into the air, swiftly inscribed a line of talismanic script, and sent it flying toward the man.

"Oh?" The man frowned. "This is a little troublesome. You really want to fight me seriously here?"

The man stamped both feet against the ground, unleashing an earth-shaking aura. His hands continuously formed seals before him, and bloody energy shot skyward from his body. Everyone caught the faint scent of blood:

"Blood Wave Art!"

The bloody light around the man exploded, colliding head-on with Cui Jue's Death-Urging Edict. After a tremendous crash that shook the earth and mountains, both forces dissolved into wisps of smoke.

Du Yu, Dong Qianqiu, and the others could only stare, dumbstruck. A magical battle of this level was beyond their ability to intervene in. Both combatants were clearly at the level of True Immortals.

The void shattered, and two more figures arrived. As they landed, everyone saw that they were Ox-Head and Horse-Face.

"Who dares touch my little brother Du?!" Ox-Head bellowed deafeningly the moment he landed. Beside him, traces of blood still clung to Horse-Face, who had evidently been torturing prisoners in hell just moments earlier.

"What's going on... Why are they all here?" Dong Qianqiu was puzzled. Turning around, she found Du Yu wearing a mischievous grin, phone in hand. At some point, he had secretly sent several GhostChat messages to summon help.

Horse-Face's eyes shifted as he surveyed the situation, and he quickly held Ox-Head back. "Third Brother, what's going on here? Shouldn't we ask first?"

"Ask?! Ask what!" Ox-Head snorted a blast of hot air. "Since ancient times, the Legend Management Bureau has been under the protection of all the immortals. Anyone who comes here to cause trouble can be beaten straight into oblivion. That's the rule!"

"Oh my..." At the scene before her, the alluring woman could not help laughing. "Now you're in trouble, Chi Ghost. You promised you'd finish this task cleanly and swiftly, but now three of the Eight Great Underworld Enforcers are here. What are you going to do? How about you beg me, and I'll help you?"