Chapter 85: Being serious, okay? (Revised)

The air seemed to stagnate for a few seconds.

Professor Luo De'an and Teacher Su Jingchuan looked at each other, seeing the same confusion in each other's eyes.

"Tuo... ni Lao Shi?"

Professor Luo De'an repeated this name that sounded a bit strange, but Ying Duo blurted it out without hesitation, as if it were indeed that kind of name.

Names of this type are rare; if he knew it, he should have an impression.

"Is he a teacher from our Academy? What's his full name?"

Ying Duo watched the two teachers with question marks appearing above their heads; Yang Yixie felt mischievous, so he decisively frantically tapped the narrow keyboard on his phone in landscape mode, starting his nonsense fabrication.

"If you want to cut or dye your hair, who should you see? Of course, it's our all-powerful Tuo Ni Lao Shi!"

He even tried to imitate the exaggerated tone from those shampoo-cut-and-blow advertisements, but his paralyzed face and mechanical speech made the final effect extremely bizarre.

"Fashionable styling, cutting-edge color, your beauty is my responsibility."

"Tuo Ni Lao Shi, creating your exclusive hairstyle, lighting up a splendid life—find Tuo Ni, you won't be wrong."

Professor Luo De'an: "......"

Teacher Su Jingchuan: "......"

The expressions on the two teachers' faces shifted from initial seriousness to familiar blankness and helplessness, mixed with a hint of self-doubt: "Why are we even discussing this here?"

Ah, this is suffocating, the exclusive communication experience when facing Ying Duo...

Tuo Ni Lao Shi? What exactly is that? A code name? Or a barber master from some stall in the Slum?

Su Jingchuan's mouth twitched slightly; he suppressed the urge to dunk this fluorescent-green head into holy water, gritting his teeth as he spoke again to confirm.

"Speak clearly—where is this 'Tuo Ni Lao Shi'? Is he someone from the Academy, or a barbershop somewhere?"

Can't hit, really can't hit.

The kid's brain is already messed up; who knows if hitting him would make things worse.

Besides, you're a teacher, and Ying Duo is still a patient.

Beating patients and students will result in wage deductions and require writing a self-criticism.

Ying Duo watched the two NPCs relentlessly pursue the "hairstylist" question, his conviction strengthening.

Look at that impatient appearance.

Tsk, these NPCs are indeed moved by the player's cool exclusive hairstyle.

Ying Duo doesn't know if the character interface has hidden attributes he can't view, but if it does, he believes his charm stat is definitely maxed out.

Otherwise, how to explain? Since entering this "Newbie Village," countless NPCs have come one after another to ask, even trying to touch his signature fluorescent-green hair.

From the Heresy Tribunal down to the flashy colors—ah, no, the Entropy Light Sect—countless NPCs run up to ask him where he dyed his hair.

Heh, before they acted like they were facing a formidable foe, insisting on forcing players to shave their heads; now they find my hairstyle not only cool but harmless, so they're all for it?

Want to get the same style too?

These petty NPC tricks, players have long seen through.

But unfortunately, Ying Duo's fluorescent-green hair was meticulously designed by Yang Yixie when creating the character; he tweaked the hue, saturation, and brightness sliders for a long time before finally producing this "artwork."

NPCs lack the system, so they naturally can't understand this high-end customization.

If they want to dye, let them go find the game world's "Tuo Ni Lao Shi"—what does it have to do with players?

"Go find the all-powerful Tuo Ni Lao Shi."

Ying Duo gazed sincerely at the two teachers with his hollow golden eyes, as if sharing a precious game tip.

Professor Luo De'an & Teacher Su Jingchuan: "......"

The two fell silent again.

Su Jingchuan rubbed his forehead, feeling this was more exhausting than continuously handling ten student brawl incidents.

He turned toward Professor Luo De'an and said softly:

"It seems asking directly won't yield anything, given his mental state... sigh, perhaps we should try other avenues, like checking the places he often went before enrollment and the people he contacted."

Ying Duo's answer sounded reasonable, yet carried an unreliable feeling.

Rather, Ying Duo himself is just unreliable...

Since taking charge of Ying Duo, their work style has repeatedly swung between "serious investigation" and "abstract comedy."

The Tuo Ni Lao Shi he mentions—where should we even start looking?

"Perhaps we can try communicating with the Heresy Tribunal?"

Professor Luo De'an proposed, noting that earlier the Heresy Tribunal had taken Ying Duo away for questioning, so they likely conducted some investigation into his situation.

They later received a reply from the Heresy Tribunal, but the content basically described Ying Duo's mistaken worldview and hoped they would promptly arrange for him to see a doctor about his brain.

"Sure, the Heresy Tribunal wouldn't withhold a student's data; I've also previously investigated some of Ying Duo's circumstances."

The two chatted on as if no one else were there, completely ignoring that the protagonist of their discussion was right beside them watching.

Even when Su Jingchuan placed the file he'd just had someone investigate on the table, Ying Duo naturally leaned in, craning his neck to peek at the contents.

Let him see how the "player's" backstory is written...

The Dome-forged identity he was given isn't special—typical orphaned parents, no relatives, quite clean, and quite templated.

Lin Xi beside him instinctively glanced at Ying Duo, seeing him in a "I haven't seen this either, hurry let me look too" bystander pose, his mouth corner involuntarily twitched sharply.

Hey hey hey, could you have a bit more sense of urgency?

They're currently investigating your identity background, and your "curious baby" act is what nonsense is this!

Do you truly believe in the Dome's technical prowess, thinking your background is flawless and can withstand any scrutiny?

Frankly, Ying Duo's identity template is a dime a dozen in the Slum; it won't withstand close inspection, and even slightly experienced investigators can sniff out something off.

However, since Ying Duo has successfully infiltrated Mitra Academy, the Dome likely subsequently refined his identity background with more thorough "patches" and "polish"...

Probably?

Lin Xun silently broke into a sweat for the organization's logistical work in his heart.

Watching Ying Duo's eager expression as he pored over his own file, Professor Luo De'an inexplicably felt, like the Dome undercover present, a sudden inexplicable feeling of suffocation welling up in his chest.

Professor Luo De'an reached out, silently putting the documents back into the paper bag, trying to block that overly 'scorching' gaze.