Rachel gasped, her newfound composure vanishing instantly.
What lay upon her lap was a bomb…
A bomb!
Bai Ye took out wires from the cake box, looped them around Rachel's neck, and then pulled out two more to encircle her wrists, carefully connecting the wires.
"Miss Rachel, I really mean no harm," Bai Ye said with a smile. "I just want to use this to test how much your boyfriend loves you."
Rachel's face turned deathly pale. "What do you mean?"
Bai Ye smiled, picked up Rachel's bag, opened it, and took out her phone. He quickly found the number he wanted in the contacts and dialed it.
"Hello? Rachel, what's up calling me at this hour?"
A deep voice boomed, completely different from the hoarse one he'd heard last night. So, that voice had indeed been processed by the machine inside the Bat-suit.
"Mr. Bruce Wayne?" Bai Ye asked with a smile. "It's Bai Ye. You shouldn't be unfamiliar with me, right?"
On the other end of the line, Batman was instantly startled. He almost blurted out a question asking Bai Ye why he had Rachel's phone, but his reason held him back.
"Bai Ye?" Batman said. "I'm sorry, I don't think we know each other. I don't seem to know you?"
"You don't know me? That's fine," Bai Ye said. "Because I didn't sleep well last night, I'm very angry. When I'm angry, I like to give gifts to people, like our beautiful Miss Rachel. Oh, and do you know it's her birthday today?"
Rachel looked up. "I celebrated my birthday two months ago with him."
"It doesn't matter, we can celebrate it again," Bai Ye shrugged at Rachel, then continued. "Mr. Bruce, can you guess what my gift is? Here's a hint: it's the same type as the one I gave Commissioner Gordon."
Batman clenched his fists, knowing Bai Ye was deliberately trying to provoke him. He took a deep breath. "Sir, this is not a funny joke."
Bai Ye chuckled. "Of course, you can consider it a joke."
As he spoke, Bai Ye connected the final wire, and the bomb's digital timer began to tick.
Bai Ye continued, "Do you hear that? It's already started counting down. The bomb will detonate in an hour and a half."
Batman sounded extremely agitated and stood up. "Sir, do you know you are committing a crime?"
Bai Ye nodded. "I do."
This left Batman speechless. He'd dealt with many criminals, but this was the first time he'd encountered one so brazen. Even the Joker beautified his crimes with mad ramblings.
Bai Ye said, "I've added a leveling device to the bomb, so Miss Rachel normally can't move away from it. It can only be disarmed while she's holding it. If it fails, can you guess what the outcome would be? Of course, there's a more stable, one-hundred-percent sure way to disarm it."
Batman said, "What do you want? For me to stop pursuing you?"
"So, you admit you're the guy who was wearing a leotard and showing off your muscles last night?"
Bai Ye laughed heartily, then said, "I saw the Joker's declaration of war on you, and I found it very interesting. If you're willing to unmask yourself and announce to the world that you are Batman, I guarantee that bomb won't explode. Of course, the reason the Dark Knight is the Dark Knight is because he only operates at night. If you appear in broad daylight, you'll be challenging the established order. You should know what that would lead to. So, take your time and consider it. You have an hour and a half."
After speaking, Bai Ye hung up the phone without waiting for Batman's reply.
"Miss Rachel," Bai Ye leaned down and said, "if you don't want the bomb to explode, remember not to stand up or move around carelessly. See the transparent tubes on both sides? The ones with the small balls inside. Try to keep the balls in the center as much as possible, because if they touch the sides, it will... ga/"
But at that very moment…
The woman suddenly opened her mouth, her tongue flicking out a blade, which she held in her mouth. With a sudden jerk of her head, she sent it flying forward.
Bai Ye instinctively dodged his head. With a clatter, the blade grazed his cheek and flew out, hitting the elevator door with a crisp sound.
Bai Ye grinned. "You've got a lot of tricks."
Bai Ye grabbed the woman's arm and lifted her up, then threw her to the side.
…