Mystic Blue Tavern—a strangely eerie name. It sat on the edge of Qianning City’s second ring road, in a secluded spot few ever lingered. "Tavern" felt retro; nowadays, "bar" was far more common.
In Qianning, a city teeming with the rich and powerful, all sorts of shady characters thrived easily. Brothels, bars, KTVs—these dark zones drew a chaotic mix of people doing things that defied morals and laws in ordinary eyes.
Without connections and sharp instincts, you couldn’t run a decent-sized bar here. The underworld and authorities, every pest could devour you whole, bones and all. That was the unspoken rule.
But Mystic Blue Tavern was an anomaly. It had settled in Qianning about a year ago, silently. No announcements, no grand opening—its presence felt unnaturally natural. This angered the local underworld. By custom, opening a bar required presenting a visiting card; everyone shared profits and avoided trouble. After all, it was just a way to make a living. Opening without greeting the higher-ups? That was like slapping everyone’s face.
After learning the owner was an outsider with no strong ties, some bar bosses got greedy. They planned to extort the tavern, teaching its owner a lesson. As the saying goes, even a mighty dragon can’t overpower the local snake. Bars rooted here for generations had tangled webs of connections—impossible to untangle easily.
First, white-collar forces like the Administration for Industry and Commerce and Health Bureau caused trouble. But a single call from above shut them down with a scolding. Qianning’s local snakes weren’t fools; they knew the tavern had protectors. Logically, they should back off. The tavern wasn’t stealing business—it just sat quietly.
Things seemed settled. Then one drunken local snake got mocked for fearing Mystic Blue Tavern, called a coward. People fight for pride, Buddhas for incense. Local snakes valued face most. In a rage, he rallied thirty thugs to smash the tavern’s storefront. Drunk, they brought steel pipes, iron rods, even homemade shotguns. Such vandalism was routine in Qianning; no one considered consequences.
Mystic Blue Tavern showed them the cost: all thirty vanished without a trace, never seen again. No bodies, no remains—but everyone knew they were dead. The authorities merely muttered "serves them right" and dropped it.
Then Qianning’s underworld realized: Mystic Blue Tavern was an unbreakable, thorny iron plate. Mess with it, and you’d die with no one to bury you. The tavern stayed low-key, never open to the public. Only qualified guests entered. Those in the know understood its danger—a beast that devours without spitting bones. They avoided it; no fool would approach.
Bai Ling’s destination this time was precisely Mystic Blue Tavern. As mentioned, it only served Containment Entities and Meteorological Bureau staff. Bai Ling herself was one of its nominal masterminds.
The sedan slid into the tavern’s underground garage. At the gate, guards checked IDs. Butler Mo produced a black magnetic card edged with silver thread. A guard scanned it, confirmed, and waved them through. Throughout, he didn’t dare glance toward Bai Ling, let alone verify her identity.
Feared and revered, Bai Ling felt nothing amiss. For a Containment Entity, such gazes were normal. She was their king. No one would dare impersonate her here. Did they think this gathering place for lethal Entities was a harmless bar? Bai Ling needed no ID. Most Entities didn’t—themselves were the verification, nearly impossible to forge.
"Please step out," Butler Mo said softly, opening the door. "Shall I accompany you?" Nominally Meteorological Bureau staff, he could enter safely. But the atmosphere there was utterly terrifying. Surrounded by Entities lethal to humans—even if they held back, that pins-and-needles dread was unforgettable.
"No need," Bai Ling replied. "I’m only informing Lu Xian about that reckless junior’s fate and reporting Entity status to your Bureau. Wait here. Later, take me home."
Lu Xian, another mastermind behind the tavern, was one of few Entities who sat as equals with Bai Ling. Rarely free from the Bureau’s reach, he was far more harmless than her, disliking killing. Almost human—if not for his godlike abilities. Like Bai Ling, he had his own Bureau title: Earthly Immortal.
After Bai Ling forced the Bureau to submit, Qianning became a paradise for Entities. Most evaders gathered here. Without Lu Xian establishing this tavern, Bai Ling’s temperament might have turned nights into a demon dance.
"Understood," Butler Mo said. "But won’t you change? Entering in that uniform might harm your image." Dutiful as a butler, he mustered courage as Bai Ling headed for the elevator in her Qianning High School uniform.
"Oh dear," she murmured. "I’m so used to it, I forgot."
"Shall I prepare suitable attire?"
"No trouble needed."
Bai Ling thought briefly. Her school uniform instantly transformed into a tailored black evening gown. It outlined her shapely figure, adding mature allure. Her back revealed snow-white skin and tempting shoulder blades—breathtaking, like art.
