Chapter 17: Palace Jade Liquid Wine (Revised)

Then, in the dim and quiet bar, the bartender saw the boy with empty eyes and no expression, and spoke seriously in that flat tone:

Palace Jade Liquid Wine?

Bartender: "???"

The bartender looked at Ying Duo before him, bewildered, his eyes full of utter bewilderment.

He opened his mouth, wondering whether he had just hallucinated or if a notice had come from above, temporarily changing the password to a new one?

His mind raced, and he unconsciously glanced at the dazzling array of liquor bottles behind him, starting to check whether this might be the name of some new drink.

An eerie silence spread through the small bar, the bartender's CPU practically overheating from this question.

The problem was, he had practically watched this kid grow up, knowing he was definitely one of their own, but what the hell was this bewildering password?

And in the shadow behind the bar, there was a door to a private room that originally almost blended into the wall, extremely concealed.

The door was silently pulled open a narrow slit.

A cold, ageless male voice came from that dark slit, breaking the eerie standoff.

"Come in."

The voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unquestionable command tone.

Hearing that voice, the bartender's body jerked, fear and awe flashing across his face, and he immediately lowered his head.

He simply snatched up the already gleaming cup and began wiping it mechanically.

He said nothing, merely tilting his head slightly toward the private room to signal Ying Duo to go in.

He himself kept his head lowered, continuing to wipe the already spotless cup, as if trying to knead all his emotions into that cloth.

He didn't even dare to think about what had turned the child who used to shyly hide behind his parents, yet couldn't resist peeking out to observe him, into this ghastly state.

——————————————

Look, after all, someone still understands his password.

Ying Duo walked straight over, pushed open the heavy private room door, and the interior environment was utterly different from the noisy, dilapidated bar outside.

The extremely soundproof walls filtered out all noise, leaving only a near‑void silence.

The room's light was even dimmer, the only sources being a few strips of dark‑blue light embedded in the walls.

One could tell the map designer really liked light strips.

They clearly outlined the room's rough shape, simple yet full of futuristic tech feel, and in the center stood a wide black leather sofa.

In Yang Yixie's eyes, this was just a pile of light and dark blocks lacking detail, but the basic structure could still be made out.

Then, he 'saw' the person sitting on the sofa.

If there were a portrait, this white‑haired NPC would probably be handsome, but in Yang Yixie's eyes it remained a big mess of mosaic tiles.

First catching the eye were the horns that twisted out from his silver curls, outlined by the bluish light.

The NPC on the sofa had a head of soft, slightly curled silver‑white hair, with a small braid at one sideburn tied by a polished ornament made of unknown animal bone.

When Ying Duo entered, he indifferently lifted his eyes and glanced over.

They were inhuman horizontal pupils, as if molten gold flowed within, emitting a faint glow in the dimness, icy and sharp, seeming able to pierce flesh and gaze straight at the soul's essence.

His gaze swept over Ying Duo's equally unusual golden eyes.

Ying Duo's stiff, vacant expression, like that of a delicate doll, seemed to annoy him.

Bai Mu Yun gave a cold chuckle, his voice low and magnetic, yet utterly undisguised mockery.

"Mitra Academy has really fallen into decline."

Leaning back slightly, he wore an extremely fine off‑white high‑neck loose knit, with very drapey wide‑leg pants, giving off an air of lazy aloofness.

His fingers lay lazily on the sofa armrest, knuckles prominent.

"Even this obvious defective product that hasn't even gone through debugging managed to pass the entrance exam."

His words spared neither Ying Duo nor Mitra Academy, belittling both.

"Today is the regular reporting day; I was just wondering which unlucky soul got sent to listen to this boring nonsense."

Bai Mu Yun shifted to an even more relaxed posture, revealing the handcrafted bone ornaments on his neck and wrist, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the sofa armrest.

"I didn't expect something to actually sneak into Mitra Academy; you've caused quite a commotion, forcing me to come here in person......"

"Over three hundred points? Impressive; I heard you even blew up the exam hall."

Even in the game, through the screen, Yang Yixie could feel the NPC's words dripping with mockery and dissatisfaction.

He pursed his lips, "Who are you yin‑yang, sheep‑horn monster?"

Yang Yixie admitted that if this guy had a portrait he'd probably be handsome, but in this game he's just a pile of mosaic tiles.

Watching the horns sway conspicuously with the other's movements, Yang Yixie silently typed a line in the chat box, and Ying Duo spoke in that flat tone:

"Are you in a hurry to go back and wax your horns?"

Asked in that emotionless tone, the effect was as bizarre as a boss suddenly sternly asking at a serious company meeting what you had for lunch.

Oh, it's just that the statuses need to be slightly reversed, after all Bai Mu Yun is Ying Duo's superior.

But this seems even more rude.

Bai Mu Yun's fingertip tapping on the armrest stopped.

The smile vanished from his face, his golden horizontal pupils narrowed slightly, and he once again sized up Ying Duo from head to toe, seemingly trying to find something in that stiff face.

But he failed.

He let out a soft hum, as if finally realizing that this bewildering reply was Ying Duo's counterattack.

This was mocking him for just having scorned Ying Duo for wasting his time, but at least the kid knew he had just been talking about him.

"Looks like you haven't lost your mind and still have time to worry about this."

His tone was mocking, yet his every move only confirmed Yang Yixie's guess that he was a 'non‑human species'.

Mainly, Bai Mu Yun's horns on his head were indeed smooth and reflective, and since he didn't deny it, they must have been carefully maintained.

Following the usual pattern of most game plots, the player's hidden faction should be related to non-humans.

Although this guy's words are truly infuriating, the information he provides is surprisingly generous.

Bai Mu Yun stopped wasting words with Ying Duo, picked up a silver metal box from beside him, and took out a blood-drawing needle.

The needle tip glowed with a cold light under the azure light.

"Come here."

Yang Yixie let Ying Duo step forward as instructed; the focus of his diamond-shaped pupils showed no change, as if he were already accustomed to this.

He obediently stretched out his arm.

Bai Mu Yun's movements were practiced and swift—inserting the needle, drawing blood—dark red blood flowed through the conduit into the collection tube.

Throughout the process, Ying Duo remained like a senseless marionette; this obedience actually seemed even more abnormal.

【Name: Bai Mu Yun (Lv. 48)】

【Title: White Velvet's Traitor】

【Age: 26】

【Species: Aberrant Species】

【Faction: Dome】

【Affection: 10/100】

【Status: Healthy】

【Likes: magazines,....... (to be unlocked)】

This guy really isn't human.

Bai Mu Yun didn't really care about Ying Duo's condition; he pulled out the needle, didn't even apply any hemostatic measures, and Ying Duo didn't bother either.

With this little blood, his Blood Bar will refill on its own in a moment—no different from a mosquito bite.

Bai Mu Yun placed the blood collection tube into a peculiarly shaped miniature rune analyzer on the desk; the device emitted a faint hum, and several beams of light flashed inside as it scanned and analyzed the sample.

"Listen, 'Defective Product'."

Taking advantage of this moment, Bai Mu Yun simply laid out his upcoming plan to him in full detail.

"I know you have some connections with certain big figures in the Dome, but that doesn't make you special."

After entering the Academy, your task is very simple; you just need to get close to a certain person, and we will use means to arrange you in the same dormitory.