Bait

The chaos downstairs rose in waves; the people here certainly knew how to scream.

Bai Wanyang saw Jiang Cifei and Dr. Luo being led out of their small building as well.

Jiang Cifei wore a gentle smile on his face, even nodding to the Bureau headquarters personnel escorting him as he cooperatively held out his hands to be handcuffed.

Dr. Luo was as calm as ever, his brow furrowing slightly as if he were more annoyed by the current situation than afraid for his own safety.

The two made no unnecessary movements, did not attempt to explain themselves, and certainly did not resist, acting as submissive as two chickens being plucked from a cage.

This wasn't cowardice; it was self-awareness.

They knew their own limits. Faced with a regular army like the headquarters—fully armed and clearly prepared—any resistance was no different from suicide.

The wise know when to submit.

Bai Wanyang held his breath, shrinking into the corner of the room while activating the hidden effect of the black feather.

His body rapidly became transparent and faded, and his presence was suppressed to its minimum.

He didn't dare move or breathe deeply, praying in his heart that the search downstairs would end quickly and the headquarters personnel would leave as soon as possible.

He was just an accidental passerby, a localized loser who had overslept; he shouldn't be attracting any attention.

Rhythmic footsteps ascended the stairs.

It was more than one person.

Bai Wanyang's heart leaped into his throat.

He curled up in the corner, clutching the black feather tightly and lowering his head.

The door was kicked open violently.

Two headquarters members appeared at the doorway, their expressions solemn.

They didn't enter immediately.

One of them raised his left arm, where an inconspicuous black box on the outside of his sleeve began to beep. A miniature lens on top scanned the room.

When the lens swept over the corner where Bai Wanyang was hiding, the beeping suddenly became sharp and rapid, and a red light flashed.

“Target found. Location confirmed,” the headquarters member said sternly.

The other person immediately reached out and pointed toward Bai Wanyang's position, his tone brook no argument.

“Come out. Hands on your head.”

His concealment failed.

All of Bai Wanyang's luck and illusions were shattered.

He slowly loosened his grip, deactivated his hidden state, and stood up from the corner, raising his hands above his head.

A sense of despair spread through his heart, but his face remained expressionless, showing only the numbness of someone resigned to their fate.

One team member stepped forward, expertly searching him and easily finding the black feather.

He placed the black feather into a specialized airtight container.

The other person used handcuffs to bind Bai Wanyang's hands.

The moment the handcuffs clicked shut, a weak current surged through his body, bringing a strange paralyzing sensation that further suppressed his ability to resist.

Bai Wanyang was escorted downstairs.

Begonia Alley was a mess. The street workers were gathered together, crouching against the wall and shivering in fear.

Jiang Cifei and Dr. Luo were among them.

Jiang Cifei took a moment to cast a suspicious glance at Bai Wanyang.

It was as if he were asking, “Did you lure the headquarters people here?”

Bai Wanyang assumed he would be detained with the others.

But he was wrong.

The two men escorting him didn't put him with the other guests. Instead, they led him to a small, open area in the center.

It might have originally been an... open-air trading plaza; many... balloons could be seen on the ground.

They forced Bai Wanyang to his knees, using alloy chains to wrench his hands behind his back and shackle them to his ankle chains, forcing him into a humiliating posture that made it nearly impossible to move.

Then, they stepped back a few paces.

A man who looked like a commander walked over, casting a condescending glance at Bai Wanyang.

He didn't speak, merely making a gesture to the side.

Another headquarters member raised a gun.

It was a specialized firearm with a strange design, its body an ominous dark red. The muzzle was aimed steadily at the center of Bai Wanyang's forehead.

The shadow of death instantly engulfed Bai Wanyang.

I'm going to die!

Just like this, right here, executed in public like a stray dog?

Just because I attacked Zhang Songyun?

Was the power behind Zhang Songyun really that great?

Damn it, whose illegitimate son is that scumbag anyway!

Or was it just bad luck—getting caught in a headquarters purge and being treated as an unstable element that needed to be cleared out?

This isn't the ancient era; is a public execution really necessary!

Bai Wanyang tried to straighten his back, but the weight of the chains and his posture forced him to remain kneeling.

Cold sweat broke out on his forehead and slid down his cheeks. Fear surged in his chest, his heart pounded wildly, his throat tightened, and his breathing became difficult.

Fragments of the past flashed through his mind.

Once, he was a promising newcomer in the Amber City Investigation Bureau with powerful abilities, living a life that was stable and smooth, if not luxurious.

He had led his classmates to survival during a disaster, was trusted by his colleagues, and recognized by his superiors.

At that time, he felt that while the future was dangerous, it was full of hope.

Then the face of that maggot, Zhang Songyun, had slowly seeped into his life.

His abilities began to destabilize, his luck took a sharp turn for the worse, until he finally woke up in the hospital to find he had lost everything.

The classmates he had selflessly helped never visited; they only made endless demands.

He had fallen from the clouds into the mud in a very short amount of time.

Bai Wanyang didn't want to blame his classmates; they were just ordinary people who had likely been influenced by Zhang Songyun's interference, their personalities twisted.

He was just unwilling to accept it.

So he had grabbed a poisonous lifeline, taken a blade, and sought revenge.

In the end, he hadn't even managed to get his revenge personally before being thrown out of the city like trash, and now he was about to be disposed of like trash.

What a complete and utter failure.

Bai Wanyang closed his eyes, waiting to be shot.

One second.

Two seconds.

Nothing happened.

The moment for his life to flash before his eyes had already passed, so why hadn't they fired yet?

Bai Wanyang's eyelashes fluttered as he opened his eyes again.

The gunman was still standing there, the muzzle still aimed at him, but there was no sign of him pulling the trigger.

The commander stood to the side, his gaze occasionally sweeping over him before moving away. He looked somewhat anxious, as if he were waiting for something.

Bai Wanyang's heartbeat slowly returned to normal, his fear receding and being replaced by a confused unease.

It wasn't an immediate execution.

They had tied him here, put on a show of wanting to kill him, and even put a gun to his head, yet they hadn't acted.

Why?

To make an example of him?

Did they really need such a complex demonstration for the people of Begonia Alley?

Given the headquarters' style, if they really wanted to kill the chicken to warn the monkeys, a single shot would be the most efficient way.

Unless the person they were targeting wasn't someone from Begonia Alley, and it wasn't Bai Wanyang either.

A bold thought flashed through Bai Wanyang's mind.

Tying him up in a conspicuous place and acting as if they were about to execute him...

Who was this show for?

Someone with the ability, the reason, and the potential interest to care whether he lived or died.

Yue Shi.

At that thought, Bai Wanyang's eyes widened and his body tensed.

“Are they trying to use me as bait to lure out Yue Shi, then use me as a hostage to exchange for Zhang Songyun?”

“Do they think Yue Shi and I are close?”

It was hard to say.

Good luck to them.