While Cheshire Cat leisurely snacked on popcorn and people-watched, the Sports Master was in a dire state.
Facing the Mimic Master felt like fighting his own shadow. Every move he made, the opponent could perfectly replicate and counter. Even his signature moves were copied after a single glance.
If it were just that, the Sports Master wouldn't have minded. He'd simply be facing a plagiarist, nothing to worry about.
But he soon discovered it wasn't that simple.
The Mimic Master not only used his own moves but also employed techniques he hadn't even deployed yet. Even more unsettling, the Sports Master saw the reflections of Cheshire Cat and other individuals he'd previously fought on the Mimic Master.
Finally, the Mimic Master unleashed Cheshire Cat's signature move, ending the battle.
Meanwhile, Bai Qi was also actively preparing.
It wasn't that Bai Qi was arrogant, but he genuinely had important matters to attend to.
Tara's theft of the Cadmus plan and its delivery to Waller was, in essence, an attempt to create trouble for Bai Qi.
Knowing about the Cadmus plan, Waller would undoubtedly dispatch forces to Kutor for sabotage. And Kutor, as Bai Qi's base, was of paramount importance.
If Tara discovered Bai Qi wasn't in Kutor but somewhere else, wouldn't Tara seize the opportunity to cause trouble for Bai Qi?
No need to think.
The answer was a resounding yes.
The leak of the Cadmus plan was undoubtedly bad news for the Illuminati. However, it was a different story for Bai Qi.
Knowing Tara would appear, Bai Qi planned to use this to his advantage, setting up magical traps to ensnare him in Kutor.
To avoid alerting Tara and tipping him off, Bai Qi had cast a spell around Xiao Yu's palace before his departure, obscuring any traces of their presence from the outside. He also had the darkened Xiao Yu reduce her use of hunter-killer ninjas, and her daily life was attended to by human maids.
Through their combined efforts, while Tara knew Xiao Yu was no longer in Sector Thirteen, he was unaware she was in Kutor.
Bai Qi only taught Xiao Yu for a little over an hour each day. This was partly to control the progress of her demon script studies, but more importantly, Bai Qi needed to dedicate significant time to preparing the magic required to deal with Tara.
Now that the preparations were complete, this situation had arrived at the perfect time.
With the prepared magic, Bai Qi arrived at the palace where Xiao Yu resided.
Not long after entering the palace, several children ran out from a nearby room, chattering noisily, followed by a maid drenched in sweat.
Upon seeing Bai Qi, the maid immediately knelt to the ground in fright.
"What's going on? Where did these children come from?"
As the saying goes, young calves fear no tigers. The children, far from being scared by Bai Qi, approached him with laughter, tugging at his arm and asking him to play.
When these children grew up, would they feel a sense of dread for their actions?
Bai Qi didn't get angry. Instead, he crouched down with a smile and magically produced a small cake.
Upon seeing the cake, the children's eyes lit up.
Bai Qi said, "Whoever can tell me how you got here and who brought you will get this cake."
The children exchanged glances and then, in unison, said, "Big Sister Xiao Yu."
Hearing this, Bai Qi showed an expression of "I knew it."
It made sense. Xiao Yu was at an age where she loved to play. If she got bored playing by herself, she would naturally seek out peers.
Bai Qi wouldn't have said anything if she'd just found playmates. But why were they all such handsome young boys? Learning bad habits at such a young age, keeping boy toys? What was she trying to do, conquer the world?
Handing the cake to the maid, Bai Qi stood up and headed to Xiao Yu's room.
As soon as he entered, Bai Qi saw Xiao Yu, wearing a sports jersey, playing indoor basketball with several young boys.
Indeed, Xiao Yu's physique was impressive. Even four boys of similar age couldn't stop her. She broke through their defense, drove to the basket, and slammed the ball in with a dunk.
"Here, have some water and rest."
Seeing Xiao Yu drenched in sweat, Bai Qi picked up a nearby water bottle and tossed it to her.
Xiao Yu took the bottle, unscrewed the cap, and took several large gulps. She then draped a dry towel around her neck, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and walked towards Bai Qi. After a few steps, she called out to the boys she'd been playing with, "Training ends here for today. Look at you all, so weak. We'll continue tomorrow. Everyone go home."
Well, those were some bold words. Fortunately, they were playing basketball; otherwise, one might misunderstand.
But speaking of which, judging by her tone and demeanor, Xiao Yu was finally starting to exude a queenly aura.
After the children had left the room, Xiao Yu sat on the bed and asked Bai Qi, who had just entered, "Didn't we finish today's lesson? Are we having extra classes?"
Bai Qi shook his head and said, "No, I came to talk to you about Tara."
Mention of Tara caused Xiao Yu's nerves to tighten.
She had initially sought Bai Qi's tutelage in demon script to understand the magic book she'd brought from the antique shop, intending to learn powerful dark magic to deal with Tara.
However, as time passed, Xiao Yu became increasingly immersed in her queenly lifestyle. Moreover, Tara hadn't reappeared for a long time, and she had, over time, forgotten about it.
Now that Bai Qi had brought it up again, Xiao Yu instinctively looked towards the bookshelf.
Among a row of books, several dark magic texts were tucked away.
Seeing that none of the books were missing, her tense posture relaxed.
Bai Qi wouldn't give Xiao Yu such things. These books didn't belong to her; they were brought by Xiao Yu from the antique shop. In her free time, Xiao Yu would pore over these dark magic books, wishing to learn the powerful dark magic within.
However, as she read, Xiao Yu discovered that after her recent studies, she could understand most of the demon script, but only the inconsequential parts. When it came to truly critical passages, she still couldn't comprehend them.
Whenever Xiao Yu asked Bai Qi, he would evade her with various excuses, saying things like "Rome wasn't built in a day," or "You need to eat one bite at a time." He would tell her that her inability to understand was due to insufficient learning and that she needed to study even harder.
"Are you planning to deal with Tara?"
Xiao Yu raised an eyebrow and asked tentatively.
Bai Qi nodded. "Yes, I've made all the necessary preparations. Now, I just need your help."
"Alright, whatever you say. But you should tell me the specifics of the plan now, shouldn't you?"
That's right. From the very beginning, Bai Qi hadn't told Xiao Yu his plan. Even when Xiao Yu had tried several times to pry even a sliver of information about his plan, Bai Qi had calmly changed the subject.
Now that the preparations were complete, it was time to reveal his hand.