[…… You have your limits.]
The influential figure hesitated before speaking in a low voice.
He had deliberately emphasized the word "limits," his warning tone extremely obvious. However, he also knew that Bai Cha understood the bigger picture, and he felt more at ease with the Shadow faction than the Light faction.
More importantly, Bai Cha listened to him.
In the last sentence, Bai Cha had put the call on speakerphone. Although "limits" meant Bai Cha shouldn't go too far, it also clearly handed the decision-making power to Bai Cha. Tu Qingqiu's expression changed immediately upon hearing this.
This was different from what the family head had said. He, from a collateral branch, could easily guess who would be in trouble if anything went wrong.
Bai Cha's expression remained unchanged. He looked up and coldly scanned the surroundings, his voice growing colder, "What, do you all still want to watch me discipline my own family?"
The people around them were instantly stifled. They had come to spectate only to be kicked out, so they had to turn and leave sheepishly. However, their steps were extremely slow, their ears perked to listen to the commotion behind them.
Tu Qingqiu wanted to stop the international guests around them. After all, he wasn't stupid and knew that the more people there were, the more chaotic it would become, which would be more beneficial to him. In private, Bai Cha would probably tear him apart.
Rumor had it that Bai Cha's interrogation methods were second to none, and in reality, no criminal processed by Bai Cha had ever escaped providing information. The thought was chilling.
Seeing the people around him about to leave, Tu Qingqiu immediately became displeased. Just as he was about to speak, Bai Cha stepped forward and kicked him, shattering his front teeth and sending him flying several meters away.
Bai Cha turned his head. Half of the so-called contestants who had followed Tu Qingqiu looked confused, while the other half looked guilty. However, all of them shared a most prominent emotion: fear.
In just an instant, Bai Cha took in their expressions.
"Zhiying, you're joining the fun too." Bai Cha's tone was a little stiff, but clearly not as cold as when he spoke to Tu Qingqiu. Bai Cha hadn't paid attention to Zhiying since she was rejected from joining the Shadow faction, and he hadn't expected to see her at this moment.
Zhiying was not the combat type. Her ability was similar to shared perception. Ye family brothers' vision and hearing were both shared. Bai Cha knew with his toes what Tu Qingqiu's intention was in bringing them.
These useless people with trash-tier strength had come up with a cheating method.
This was too naive. Such tricks might work on ordinary people, but for the strong, it was simply courting death.
"Zhiying, Ye Xuan..." Bai Cha called out three or four names and waved his hand, "Come here."
Zhiying and the others exchanged glances. The others were immediately unhappy. Some had been brought there inexplicably, genuinely believing they could participate in the world competition, and indeed, they didn't know what was happening. But some knew what was going on. Seeing Bai Cha's actions, they realized he intended to divide them and settle scores, so they immediately shouted.
"Zhiyue, you are with the Light faction, how can you go over there?" One of those left behind immediately became anxious and shouted at Zhiyue and Principal Gu, "Principal Gu, are you also..."
However, what surprised everyone was that neither Zhiyue nor Gu Zitan moved. They could understand Gu Zitan's actions, but to their astonishment, even Zhiyue remained motionless.
"Bang!"
Bai Cha would not be polite to these people. He kicked each of those who were about to cause trouble towards Tu Qingqiu, who was already lying on the ground groaning.
"Perhaps it's because I haven't made a move in a long time that you think I have a good temper." Bai Cha walked step by step towards the terrified people lying on the ground, his face expressionless. "But you should know that you will only be happy when I am happy. At least be smart enough to avoid me."
The foreign friends around them tried to slow down. Everyone was enjoying the spectacle when they heard a sound of breaking air accompanied by a strong energy fluctuation. Everyone instinctively turned their heads to look behind them.
It was a brilliant and dazzling pink, pure and passionate. A sharp pink arrow cut through the sky, heading towards Tu Qingqiu and the others lying on the ground.
Bai Cha frowned, and his demonic energy transformed into a long spear, lightly parrying the pink crystal arrow in front of Tu Qingqiu.
Explosions followed one after another. As the smoke and aurora dispersed, a scene of devastation was revealed. Except for Tu Qingqiu, whom Bai Cha had saved, everyone else was blown to pieces, leaving no remains.
Bai Cha shook his black spear and looked at the pink sprite sitting elegantly on the crystal chandelier with her legs crossed.
The crystal arrow that Bai Cha had blocked with his spear felt distinctly different from the surrounding arrows; it was just an empty shell. The surrounding crystal arrows, however, carried strong energy fluctuations, and even if they hit Bai Cha, he would have been injured.
Perhaps due to her trust in Freya, Bai Cha did not dodge, only blocking it lightly. As expected, it was easily blocked. That arrow was purely a smoke bomb, making a lot of noise and smoke, but having little power.
Freya had once again shifted the hatred onto herself.
When Bai Cha wanted to find someone to settle the score for the sacrifice of his family back then, Freya had used an arrow to eliminate the prime suspects for Bai Cha, causing international public opinion to heavily promote the animosity between Balance Beam and Z country.
And now, Freya had once again intervened to help Bai Cha intercept the hatred of the Light faction. Although it was a drop in the bucket, it was her way of supporting Bai Cha.
Their stances were different. If Bai Cha had made a move, it would have been a war between the two factions. However, she was a bounty hunter, semi-independent. Moreover, she simply couldn't stand to see Bai Cha being bullied.
"Oh my~ I helped Miss Bai Cha deal with such an annoying person. How will Miss Bai thank me?" Freya dangled her slender legs and winked playfully at Bai Cha, putting on a show in front of people from various countries. "Miss Bai~"
Bai Cha was suddenly amused and exasperated. This girl was truly willful.
"Miss Freya's intervention was a bit unnecessary. This is our family affair." Bai Cha puffed out his chest, playing along with Freya's serious act. "If I hadn't saved someone, Miss Freya would be in much bigger trouble."
"Oh my~ Then I'll thank Miss Bai instead?" Freya giggled and swayed her exquisite pink crystal bow, leaping from the crystal chandelier on the ceiling. "But I just don't like seeing people I dislike around, don't you think so, my good sister?"
Suddenly called out, Freya's expression froze. She, who was like a melon thief happily watching, was suddenly pulled into the melon patch and became the melon, then was patted and told that this watermelon was also ripe. She was a bit speechless.
If you're saving your husband, why are you dragging me into this?
"Yes, yes, and hurry up and rejoin your team." Freya, with a headache, glanced at Asteria, who stood by with a serious expression, feeling overwhelmed.
If you're going to join in the fun, shouldn't you pick a better time? Saving Bai Cha in front of Libra is like slapping Libra in the face, isn't it?
Asteria remained silent, saying nothing, and turned to leave the scene. Freya followed along with a smile, completely unconcerned. Tu Qingqiu was taken away by Bai Cha, and one could guess with their toes that his fate would not be good. Everyone tacitly dispersed, leaving only those who needed to continue touring the hall.
As expected, the next day, news of "Second-in-command of Balance Beam interferes in Z country's affairs, resulting in five deaths and one injury" immediately hit the trending headlines. Not a single word about Bai Cha injuring anyone was revealed.
After all, it was not Bai Cha who had killed anyone at that time. Instead, he had even stepped in to protect one person. People from all countries were present, so even those from the Light faction had no way to smear Bai Cha.
However, because a video of Freya and Bai Cha "confronting" each other was leaked, the relationship between Balance Beam and Z country was reported to be increasingly strained.
Outside, the news of discord between the second-in-command of Balance Beam and the leader of the Shadow faction was spreading like wildfire, while the two parties involved in the news were lying in a small room adjusting their training plans.
"Chacha, are you planning to train those two burdens into first-class warriors within these few months?" Freya propped her chin on her hand and lay on Bai Cha's bed, lazily watching Bai Cha typing rapidly on the computer.
Bai Cha's thinking was always cautious and meticulous. He created a neat spreadsheet with tasks, completion times, available time, rest time... every item and time frame clearly listed.
They say that people who are serious are the most charming, and Freya found Bai Cha more and more attractive as she watched him focus on his work.
Her fingers were fair and slender. At first glance, they truly looked like the delicate hands of a young lady from a wealthy family who had never touched anything difficult, fair and white. However, only when held could one feel the calluses left from prolonged training and weapon handling.
The clacking of the keyboard sounded like rhythmic music, and Bai Cha's fingers were like dancing moonlight. Freya lay beside Bai Cha, feeling peaceful and comfortable.
As Bai Cha was about to finish making the plan, he found that the usually lively Freya had gone quiet. Uncharacteristically quiet, he lowered his head and found Freya staring at him intently.
Bai Cha asked doubtfully, "What's wrong?"
"I've contracted a disease called hand control." Freya extended her small hand, trying hard to purse her lips to show her grievance, but her almond-shaped pink eyes were curved, and she couldn't hide the laughter within.
Bai Cha helplessly placed his right hand on Freya's hand and continued typing with his left. Freya was instantly satisfied, grabbing Bai Cha's hand and playing with it non-stop.
[Gong Yuechen: There's an inside mole. Someone has committed many illegal and disciplinary acts, destroyed evidence, and framed you.]
[Bai Cha: Already know.]
[Gong Yuechen: ... Huh?]
Gong Yuechen scratched his head, feeling a bit awkward. Previously, the Neutral faction and the Shadow faction had a subordinate relationship. The Neutral faction would provide information and missions, and the Shadow faction would be responsible for carrying them out. But later, the Shadow faction's status rose so rapidly that the Neutral faction often didn't dare to speak up.
It wasn't that the Shadow faction was overly strong, but rather that the Neutral faction was often unreliable. Although he didn't want to admit it, he had to say that the Shadow faction had contributed significantly to the stabilization of Z country.
Moreover, if it weren't for the Shadow faction having strategists and advisors in every generation, the Shadow faction would have been framed countless times.
[Bai Cha: This World Competition is the first match after the crisis prophecy. All countries with prophesied children have sent their strongest representatives so that they can gain an advantage after resolving the Dragon Mother crisis.]
A long time had passed since the last prophecy. The surface was calm, but inwardly, currents were surging.
While various countries and organizations were secretly preparing, they also did not forget to compete. Especially the few countries with prophesied children; if they couldn't secure a prominent position this time, they might as well give up.
[Bai Cha: I will return in two days. I hope you won't collapse when the intelligent people are not around.]
[Bai Cha: Even if I find out how many moles there are, whether you want to eliminate them or not is another matter.]
Gong Yuechen was speechless. Actually, he knew that the collapse Bai Cha mentioned was not the Neutral faction, but the Shadow faction. The Shadow faction had always been like a vine attached to the Neutral faction, a stable root providing shelter from the wind and rain for the big tree. However, in recent years, the Neutral faction's attitude and response speed had been disheartening, leaving Gong Yuechen with nothing to say.
It was not until evening that Li Rong's team arrived and handed the evidence USB drive to Bai Cha, explaining the situation in detail.
"Perhaps because technological development is too important in people's hearts, and those people have new important research projects and directions, most people actually lean towards the Light faction," Li Rong said truthfully. "And most people prefer comfort and don't want trouble."
"What about you?" Bai Cha held the USB drive and looked at Li Rong. "You don't want trouble either, do you?"