# 431
Chapter 431 – Draw Your Blades, All of You
The stranger’s appearance set the surrounding guests whispering; brows creased as they exchanged uneasy guesses.
On the dais, Baili Xin narrowed his eyes.
The next instant—
Lin Qiye felt the world dim. The hall’s light shifted to a deep, unnatural blue, as though an invisible sapphire dome had swallowed the room, plunging it into the depths of the sea.
Every guest froze mid-gesture.
Not just them—on the dais Baili Xin and Baili Jing, and behind Lin Qiye Cao Yuan and the others—everyone was locked in place…
Lin Qiye swept his gaze across the lifeless statues, frown deepening.
“What is this…” His voice was low, wary.
“Captain Lin, no need for alarm; this is merely a dimensional rift created by [Temporal Rift].”
A familiar voice came from behind. He turned: Chang Kangsheng approached with a polite smile.
“One of my Baili family’s forbidden relics—Forbidden Ruins Sequence 190, [Temporal Rift]. It opens a pocket where time halts; nothing that happens here touches the outside world. When the rift closes, time resumes its proper course.”
“I don’t care about your relic,” Lin Qiye said coldly. “What have you done to Baili Tuming?”
Chang Kangsheng pointed to the figure on the dais. “He’s right there.”
Ice flared in Lin Qiye’s eyes.
“Very well, Captain, we need to talk.” Chang Kangsheng’s tone stayed mild. “I wasn’t provoking you earlier. The young man on stage truly is our Baili Group’s designated heir, the chairman’s only son—Baili Tuming.
The one you know was merely adopted, a scapegoat dressed up to die in the real heir’s place. His surname was fake, his given name fake—a commoner child propped up and packaged as the successor.”
Lin Qiye stood stunned, storm-tossed inside.
Ever since reaching Guangzhou and touching the Baili Group, he’d sensed depths darker than he’d imagined. He’d even wondered if Baili Xin had been controlled or sidelined—never once had he considered that Baili Pangpang wasn’t Baili Xin’s son at all.
From the start, he’d been a discarded pawn.
“This is, at heart, a family matter,” Chang Kangsheng said earnestly. “Captain, weigh the gravity.”
“Family matter?” Lin Qiye’s voice was frosted steel. “Don’t forget—even if he’s your cast-off, he bears another title: Night Watch. Member of the Fifth Reserve Team. He can be a pawn, can forgo your empire, but if you dare lay a hand on him… you know the consequences.”
Chang Kangsheng smiled.
“You claim he’s Night Watch, a future special-team operative—can you prove it?”
Lin Qiye’s brows twitched.
“The one who attended training, joined Night Watch, became member 010 was never the boy you knew. It was the young master on stage.” Chang Kangsheng’s eyes crinkled. “If you doubt me, check every Night Watch file on Baili Tuming—see whose photo is attached.”
Lin Qiye’s pupils shrank; his face darkened. “You… altered his records?”
Chang Kangsheng merely continued, still smiling. “Thus, your ‘Baili Tuming’ never enlisted, let alone joined any special team. He’s just an ordinary civilian—no, let me correct: in society he doesn’t even qualify as ordinary. Every document, file, scrap of data on him has vanished. A ghost adopted by the Bailis; die here today and no one would notice.”
Lin Qiye’s fists clenched. “A brilliant switch—your family truly reaches heaven itself!”
“You flatter us,” Chang Kangsheng replied. “Legally, procedurally, this is internal business—no Night Watch jurisdiction. Surely a reserve special team won’t move against a law-abiding enterprise that generously funds Night Watch?”
Lin Qiye’s stare blazed. “What have you done to him?”
Chang Kangsheng lifted a brow. “Since Young Master Jing now stands there as Baili Tuming… the original has naturally vanished from this world.”
Lin Qiye’s body jolted.
“Captain, recall our bargain half an hour ago?” Chang Kangsheng went on. “You took [White Slash]; in return, when the Bailis need a favor—within your power and not against Night Watch code—you’d assist. Now we collect. We ask no action—only that you and your team stand quietly aside. After the banquet ends, two hundred million will land in your private account as… consolation. Agreed?”
As he finished, the deep blue around them began to ebb like a tide. He glanced about. “The rift is ending. They say Captain Lin is clever. Choose: champion a nameless corpse and offend the Bailis, or pocket the relic and compensation, bide your time, and ascend to full special-team status. You know the wiser path.”
Lin Qiye stared at him, then turned toward the father and son on the dais, trembling, nails drawing blood in his palms.
“Bailis… magnificent indeed!”
Pop—
The rift shattered; time snapped back into stride.
Guests resumed their murmurs.
Lin Qiye stood below the dais; the boy called Baili Tuming glowered while Baili Xin, calm and knowing, waited for his decision.
Lin Qiye drew a slow breath—and unclenched his fist.
Behind him, summoning circles flared!
Lin Qiye, Cao Yuan, An Qingyu, Jialan—black cases in hand—stood in the heart of the crowd.
Baili Xin’s expression shifted.
Lin Qiye lifted his gaze, eyes a furnace of gold-flecked fury.
He flung the case containing [White Slash] straight at Baili Xin; the chairman sidestepped, and the crate smashed against the wall, splintering. The snow-white blade spun out, quivering as it bit deep into stone.
“To hell with your White Slash…”
Snarling, Lin Qiye tore the tie from his collar, thumbed the latch on his case—two Straight Blades sprang into his grip!
“Fifth Reserve Team…”
He seized the blades; killing intent erupted skyward.
“Draw your blades—ALL OF YOU!!!”