Right after he asked, Yu Li took the initiative to walk up to him.
She leaned down slightly, eyes curving as she smiled politely.
“Would you like me to open the wine for you?”
Her soft, sweet voice made her seem extra obedient. And with those beautiful fox-like eyes staring straight at him like that—what man could resist?
Cen Xiu was dumbstruck on the spot.
What the h*ll—why though???
She couldn’t seriously be trying to seduce someone right in front of her own boss, could she?!
Even Qi Mai was a little thrown off by the situation. But knowing who was sitting on the other side—Young Master from the Bo family—he naturally didn’t dare say a word.
The man was still sitting steadily on the sofa, and his eyes hadn’t left Yu Li from the start.
When he heard her question, his gaze flickered slightly. He didn’t answer right away, but instead asked an unrelated question out of nowhere.
“How long have you been here?”
His voice was low and mellow, like it was wrapped in a thin veil—restrained but simmering underneath.
Yu Li slowly sat down beside him. Seeing that he didn’t object at all, she turned her head and answered sweetly, “I just clocked in five minutes ago.”
Bo Jingmo clearly hadn’t expected that answer. His gaze paused briefly before turning to look directly at her stunningly fair face. His heart skipped a beat—just one, but enough for him to quietly shift his eyes away. A low “mm” escaped his throat.
A few seconds later, the man’s thin lips parted slightly. “Go ahead.”
That realization washed away the sulky frustration that had been building inside Bo Jingmo.
He couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from lifting as he narrowed his eyes, locking his gaze on the girl next to him.
In the dim private room, the girl’s fair and slender fingers gently picked up the aged, expensive bottle of red wine. Under the light, the glass reflected a deep and mysterious luster.
Her fingers deftly wrapped around the neck of the bottle. She picked up the corkscrew from the table and carefully twisted the spiral into the cork. Her other hand held the bottle steady to keep it from moving.
With each turn, the cork began to rise. At the final moment, she gave a gentle tug—the cork came out in one piece, not a single bit broken.
Her expression was focused, her movements calm and graceful. Her lowered lashes cast shadows over her cheeks, making her look even more exquisitely beautiful. She easily drew the attention of everyone in the room.
After finishing, she poured the wine into a glass, picked it up, and gently offered it to the man beside her. With a faint smile, her voice came soft and smooth:
“Young Master Bo, have a drink.”
Right then, the man’s pitch-black pupils were frighteningly dark, like they were burning with desire. His lips were pressed into a tight line as he tried to suppress the rush of emotion inside.
His gaze dropped. He looked at the glass being handed to him, and under the dim lighting, the red wine shimmered like a gem, making her slender fingers look even more delicate.
He pressed his tongue to the roof of his mouth, forced down the strange feeling in his chest, and took the glass—his fingertips barely brushing hers. His voice was hoarse.
Yu Li sat back on the sofa after that, then turned and smiled at Cen Xiu across the way. “Boss, would you like a glass too?”
Bo Jingmo’s movement froze slightly when he heard that. He casually lifted his eyes to glance at Cen Xiu, his expression completely unreadable.
But Cen Xiu felt it clearly—like he was being stared down by death itself.
A chill crept up his back. While cursing in his head Aren’t I the boss here?! Isn’t it normal for a waitress to pour me a drink?!, he waved his hand and bent down to get a glass himself.
“I’ll pour it myself, I’ll pour it myself.”
He poured one for Qi Mai as well, then finally got down to business.
Glancing at Yu Li beside him, he paused a moment before slowly starting: “This is Qi Mai. Like me, he’s been through several… instances.”
As soon as he said that, Cen Xiu instinctively looked at Yu Li’s face, trying to catch any cracks in her expression.
But the girl still wore that polite smile, listening quietly like what they were talking about was no big deal.
Bo Jingmo also looked over at her. She just blinked at him gently—pure and sweet on the surface.
He took a sip of wine, thoughtful.
Earlier, he seemed to have caught a very familiar, intoxicating scent on this girl. Just like that NPC.
But now… it was gone.
Bo Jingmo tightened his grip on the wine glass, his gaze shadowed and unreadable.
Cen Xiu saw Yu Li and knew there was no point asking more. He waved her off. “You can wait outside for now.”
Yu Li stood up, nodded with a gentle smile, and replied, “Alright.”
Once she was out the door, Cen Xiu finally turned to Bo Jingmo with a smile. “Young Master Bo, did you officially enter the instance yesterday?”
Bo Jingmo gave a soft “mm.” His long fingers swirled the wine glass, the liquid inside shimmering with pale ripples under the light.
After a moment of silence, he suddenly asked, “That NPC from yesterday’s instance—when you interacted with her, did you notice anything… off?”
Meeting those pitch-black eyes, Cen Xiu froze for a second. “…Off?”
He looked at Qi Mai too, but the guy looked just as confused.
What could possibly be “off” about an NPC?
Seeing their reactions, Bo Jingmo knew he wouldn’t get an answer—but strangely, he realized… he didn’t care about one anymore.
That NPC suddenly didn’t feel important at all.
Bo Jingmo lowered his eyes and downed the rest of his wine in one go. Then he stood up, his tone cold and distant with politeness.
“That’s all. I’ve asked what I needed.”
Cen Xiu was stunned. He had thought Bo Jingmo wanted to know more about the System—like rankings, points, or information on other players.
But it seemed like he only cared about that NPC.
No—now he didn’t even care about her anymore.
Instead, he was in a hurry to leave.
Cen Xiu quickly stood and blurted out his real intention: “Young Master Bo, I actually wanted to talk about a possible collaboration. Would you consider working with us? We’ve got experience and a pretty solid team already. Your strength is impressive—if we work together, in future instances we could definitely—”
He was cut off instantly.
Bo Jingmo glanced at him, then said something so shocking it left Cen Xiu speechless.
“I can’t team up with you. Once I become a ghost in the game, I lose all self-awareness.”
That was even possible?
Cen Xiu’s brain stalled—so in the last instance, Bo Jingmo… wasn’t even controlling himself?
That couldn’t be. His name had shown up on the final leaderboard.
He even helped Jiang Xi’s group complete the mission—and had the highest score.
How could he do all that without being conscious?
Cen Xiu had never seen Bo Jingmo in full slaughter mode, so he couldn’t make sense of what he’d just heard.
All he could do was nod blankly. “Okay, then you…”
Halfway through, he didn’t even know how to continue.
What was he supposed to say? So if we meet in the game… could you go easy on me?
That’d be way too embarrassing.
Cen Xiu’s expression went through a series of internal meltdowns as he watched Bo Jingmo head for the door. After hesitating a long moment, he still couldn’t resist saying:
“But that NPC… she really was the most unique one I’ve ever encountered.”
At that exact moment, the door opened—just in time for those words to reach Yu Li’s ears outside.
She turned her head, and her gaze met all three of theirs inside the room.