Chapter 3: Is Someone Trying to Harm Bai Yuan?

“Who is it?”

“Who would come knocking on my door at this hour?”

Confusion filled Bai Yuan’s eyes as she glanced out the window.

The sky outside had already dimmed into darkness—the sun had long since clocked out.

Unable to figure out who it could be, Bai Yuan cautiously walked to the door and peered through the peephole.

Her pale pupils contracted slightly.

But the confusion within them only deepened.

The visitor was someone she recognized.

Yet they weren’t close at all—so how did she know where her dorm was?

Seeing the other party’s anxious and tense expression, Bai Yuan hesitated for a moment before opening the door.

She distinctly remembered paying enough—that money had taken her a long time to save up.

“Shopkeeper Yi, what brings you here so late at night?”

“I paid enough, didn’t I?”

Bai Yuan stood at about 1.45 meters tall.

The blue-haired少女 outside wasn’t much taller, so the two could nearly look each other in the eye.

The unexpected visitor didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she carefully examined Bai Yuan from head to toe before finally letting out a relieved breath.

“I’m sorry, Bai Yuan.”

“You haven’t used that bottle of spirit ink yet… have you?”

A trace of apology appeared on the blue-haired girl’s face as she bowed.

When she straightened, a faint blush colored her cheeks.

The urgency from before had vanished, replaced by a gentle, composed smile.

“Why are you asking that?”

“Is there a problem?”

Bai Yuan’s already pale face turned even whiter, her lips trembling slightly as she pressed for an answer.

She had already used the spirit ink she bought from Shopkeeper Yi earlier today.

Countless thoughts raced through her mind—

Could that ink be the reason she wrote everything incorrectly?

“It’s like this…”

“When I went back this evening to check inventory, I found an extra bottle of spirit ink.”

“After carefully investigating, I realized that bottle was actually your custom order.”

“Which means… the one I gave you earlier may have been swapped.”

“I’m really sorry!”

“I’ve brought your original ink, and I’ll return your money as well.”

Tears shimmered faintly in Yi Lian’s eyes as her expression grew even more apologetic.

She fumbled through her dress, pulling out a bottle of spirit ink along with a small pouch of Feather Coins, and handed them over.

“I’m deeply sorry—this happened because of my negligence.”

“As compensation, please accept these three half-price vouchers as well!”

Bai Yuan took the coins and ink in a daze.

Only then did she notice three light-blue vouchers tucked beneath the bottle.

“Um… could you let me see that bottle of ink?”

“I’d like to investigate who might be behind this.”

Yi Lian wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes and asked earnestly.

“I’ve already used some of it…”

“There’s only a little left.”

“Please wait a moment, I’ll go get it.”

Only after feeling the weight in her hands did Bai Yuan fully realize the seriousness of the situation.

She also wanted to know who had swapped her ink.

And what kind of side effects that substituted ink might have.

As the owner of a spirit materials shop, Yi Lian should be far more experienced than her.

Returning to her room, Bai Yuan set everything down on the table.

Her gaze fell upon the still-open bottle of spirit ink beside her.

Comparing the packaging, both bottles were identical—even the labels matched perfectly.

She had checked both the ink and the spirit brush before starting her creation.

Yet she hadn’t noticed anything wrong at the time.

“This is what’s left.”

“Can you tell if there’s anything different?”

“Will it have any negative effects?”

She brought the remaining ink out and handed it to Yi Lian, asking anxiously.

It was already upsetting enough to create a character she didn’t like.

Now she had learned her ink had been tampered with.

Her mood sank to rock bottom.

Soon after, a surge of anger rose in her chest.

Yi Lian accepted the ink with a solemn expression.

She waved her hand lightly over the bottle’s opening, then dipped a finger inside to examine it.

“Bai Yuan, are you feeling alright?”

“Has your White Paper Syndrome worsened?”

The ink glowed a deep blue, speckled with faint starlight.

Yi Lian’s face turned as pale as paper.

Someone was trying to harm Bai Yuan.

And it had happened in her shop.

Her expression darkened instantly.

“I think I’m fine…”

“It feels the same as before.”

“Shopkeeper Yi, please just tell me directly.”

Bai Yuan glanced at her pale palm.

Faint blue veins could be seen beneath her skin.

She lifted a few strands of her white hair—it felt just as smooth as ever.

“There’s a rare liquid called Wutu mixed into this ink.”

“It can blur the spirit characters you write, or even alter what you’ve written.”

“In more severe cases, it could worsen your White Paper Syndrome.”

Yi Lian’s lips moved slightly as she slowly revealed the truth.

This substance was colorless and odorless—

Once mixed into spirit ink, it was almost impossible to detect.

She had only noticed because the texture felt slightly smoother than her own ink.

Not only had Bai Yuan’s expression turned as dark as the bottom of a pot—

Inside her spirit space, Mo Xiao sat cross-legged upon the ink-colored sea, deep in thought.

This incident with the spirit ink had never happened in her previous life.

At the time of her birth, she had been unable to stop that bottle from reaching Bai Yuan.

But what puzzled her even more was this shopkeeper, Yi Lian.

Though it had been a long time, she clearly remembered Bai Yuan buying the ink from a middle-aged woman back then.

The name Yi Lian was correct—

But it definitely wasn’t this apologetic blue-haired girl standing here now.

Furthermore, if the ink had truly been swapped inside her shop, then she herself was the prime suspect.

Behind Mo Xiao, her tail flicked, stirring droplets of ink from the sea.

“I’m truly very sorry!”

“I will thoroughly investigate my staff, and also conduct inquiries within the academy.”

“I’ll inform you once I have results.”

Yi Lian bowed again, then took out another heavy pouch and handed it to Bai Yuan.

“I didn’t realize how serious this was earlier.”

“Please accept these 1,000 Feather Coins as my apology.”

Bai Yuan silently accepted the pouch.

Normally, receiving 1,000 Feather Coins would have made her jump with joy.

But now, she felt no happiness at all.

After apologizing once more, Yi Lian took the bottle of ink and left.

Her petite figure gradually disappeared into the dark corridor, her faint footsteps quickly fading away.

Hidden within the shadows, Yi Lian looked at the ink in her hand, her expression tinged with anger.

Her gaze flickered several times.

Then her small figure dissolved into a wisp of green smoke and vanished.

“Wuu…”

“Why do things like this keep happening to me?”

Bai Yuan locked the door and retreated to her bed, hugging her knees as she whimpered softly.

Her presence was already so faint—

Why would anyone still want to harm her?

Was it because she was a transfer student?

Or because she had no backing, all alone in the academy, making her seem like an easy target?

Black mist enveloped her small body.

Mo Xiao appeared behind her once more, wrapping her arms around her as her hand gently stroked Bai Yuan’s snow-white hair.

“Idiot master…”

“Someone noticing you is actually a good thing.”

“At least your White Paper Syndrome hasn’t worsened, right?”

“And that ink didn’t really affect you, did it?”

If it were the Mo Xiao from her previous life, she would have pulled Bai Yuan into her ample chest and comforted her.

But now, she didn’t have those conditions—

And comforting words didn’t come easily to her either.

“You’re the idiot!”

“Isn’t creating you the biggest impact already!?”

“My gentle big sister—wuu…”

Bai Yuan already knew why she had created a character so different from what she intended.

It was because that ink had altered her writing!

If she ever found out who did it—

She would never let them off lightly!

Mo Xiao’s dragon tail smacked hard against the bed.

Her idiot master really was an idiot.

Even after being deceived, she still didn’t realize it.

No one knew better than Mo Xiao how she herself had come into existence.

That bottle of spirit ink had been completely normal.

That Yi Lian had deliberately deceived Bai Yuan.

As for her true purpose—

Even Mo Xiao wasn’t entirely sure.