Guarding the River of Time-Chapter 297 - 288: Lady Houtu and the Mysterious Figure in the River

Chapter 297: Chapter 288: Lady Houtu and the Mysterious Figure in the River

A green sprout, accompanied by a faint rustling sound, broke through the soil.

Upon seeing it sprout, Su Mu was also taken aback. Could it be... it’s actually a seed?

Su Mu continued to water it with river water, but the green sprout did not keep growing.

He didn’t bother with it anymore, thinking he’d see what happens when it grows.

Sitting cross-legged, Su Mu began meditating for cultivation; patrolling by day, cultivating by night, this had become Su Mu’s daily routine.

As he sat, he didn’t know why, but his eyelids suddenly felt heavy, a wave of drowsiness hit him, and Su Mu slowly closed his eyes, falling asleep...

In his dream, somewhat groggily, he seemed to see the green sprout in front of him growing rapidly, soon becoming a large tree, lush with leaves, emitting a slight immortal light.

The next second, this tree began to shrink, transforming into a human figure.

Su Mu stared at this figure, yet no matter how he looked, he couldn’t make out the figure’s appearance.

Suddenly, this figure knelt down before Su Mu.

Finally, he slowly walked toward the riverbank, entering the water step by step, until the river completely submerged his head, ultimately vanishing into the water.

.....

Su Mu abruptly opened his eyes to find it was already daylight.

Hoo—

He let out a long sigh; it turns out it was just a dream.

But when he looked closely, he found a small pit on the ground in front of him, and the green sprout he had planted yesterday was gone!

Su Mu quickly stood up, went to the pit, and indeed, it was missing.

He recalled the dream from last night. Could it be, that was not just a dream?

The green sprout grew into a big tree, then turned into a person, and finally walked into the river and disappeared???

What kind of bizarre treasure is this??

Su Mu walked to the riverbank, looking at where the figure disappeared, expanded his divine sense, but couldn’t detect any signs.

To search, Su Mu even called Little Tiger Whale, who mobilized its followers to search far and wide along the river, but still found no trace.

Su Mu was inexplicably frustrated; after all the effort, he got nothing in return, and it turned into a person and ran away?

Su Mu was truly annoyed, having exchanged three Ginseng Fruits for a treasure that grew legs and ran away??

Who wouldn’t be angry?

...

Meanwhile, on a tributary of the River of Time, inside a small courtyard.

The old tenth was leisurely lying on a reclining chair, enjoying the breeze, sipping some wine, and humming a little tune.

Beside him was a small pot, cooking some pickles and pieces of tender white tofu.

"Eat pickles, roll tofu~~~"

....

The task given from above was to repair all eleven stone bridges he was responsible for within twenty years.

With the help of that predecessor, he managed to finish twenty years ahead of schedule, but he wasn’t in a hurry to report back to the underworld. He’d use the remaining time to enjoy a good rest, and slack off a bit.

Having worked in the underworld for so many years, he knew the nature of those few big bosses too well. Completing the task early would at most earn a verbal compliment, followed by more new tasks, treating him like a workhorse.

As the saying goes, an employee who can’t slack off isn’t a good one!

.....

The door of the courtyard suddenly burst open.

The old tenth frowned and muttered under his breath, "Damn, who’s here?"

Seeing a middle-aged man in a purple-black robe of imposing demeanor, the old tenth quickly got up and took small steps to welcome him.

"Lord Three Emperors, what wind has blown you here?"

The old tenth smiled, revealing a set of neat, big black teeth.

Seeing the old tenth leisurely eating, the imposing man also gave a cold snort and said, "King of the Wheel of Reincarnation is really enjoying himself! Your life is better than mine."

Hearing this sarcastic remark, the old tenth awkwardly laughed, "I just got some time to relax."

...

"Lord Three Emperors, please sit."

The old tenth said, smiling.

The imposing man sat down and asked with a serious face, "Has the Lady been here? Did she say anything to you?"

Upon hearing this, the old tenth was taken aback, puzzled, "The Lady’s been here? No, I haven’t seen her."

"Lord Three Emperors, you must be joking, how could the Lady come here, who am I to deserve that."

....

"Do you think... I’d joke with you?"

"If I didn’t have concrete information, would I come?"

The imposing man pressed on relentlessly, "Spill the truth, have you gotten yourself into some huge trouble? Even the Lady is alerted."

Hearing this, the old tenth felt a little guilty inside, after all... the Three-Life Main Fruit was taken by the predecessor under his watch; how could that not be a huge blunder...

The old tenth swallowed, extending a trembling finger toward the tree crown above.

The imposing man followed the old tenth’s finger, discovering something unbelievable, and stood up abruptly, asking incredulously, "Where’s the Main Fruit??!"

"It... it was taken." The old tenth stammered in response.

Upon hearing this, the imposing man was dumbfounded, his face turning red, "By whom??!"

"The predecessor guarding the river." The old tenth spread his hands, answering truthfully.

Hearing this response, the imposing man fell into silence, as only the legendary man guarding the River of Time could have the power to pluck the Three-Life Main Fruit.

"You didn’t think to stop him?" The imposing man questioned.

Huh? 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The old tenth pointed at himself, "Me?"

He almost laughed at this question from his boss; could I even stop him??

That’s like asking Benn Boar to deal with Tang Monk’s group.

Is that something I could do??

The imposing man closed his eyes, letting out a long breath, "I should have a general understanding of the situation now."

"The Lady probably visited because of this issue too, but... we don’t need to worry about it, she must have her way of handling it."

"Lord Three Emperors and I were thinking the same." The old tenth answered with a smile.

.....

"I see you are so relaxed."

"How’s the bridge repair going?"

The imposing man took a gentle sip of the tea on the table.

"To answer my lord."

"All finished."

With the boss on site, it couldn’t be hidden.

Sigh, my days of slacking off were over before they even began?

Hearing this response, the imposing man spat out his tea, "What did you say??"

"It was only with the help of that predecessor guarding the river, it was completed so quickly." The old tenth replied.

....

"I see." The imposing man murmured, "You kid, you actually got that predecessor to help you, what did you give him in return?"

"That predecessor, surely didn’t help you for free?"