Chapter 493: Mercenary Tao's Name, Turning Coat
"Hehe, as expected of a sharp beast, realizing the danger so quickly~"
White Mask leaned back against a fox burning with ice-blue flames. Without wearing a mask, she smiled very comfortably.
And the information broker standing in front of her wore a black cloak and a white Hannya demon mask on his face. With the concealment of the Space, his true identity couldn't be seen clearly at all.
This kind of avatar was very common. It was a special avatar frequently used by many information brokers and Reincarnators when doing shady business, precisely so that others wouldn't know it was them who leaked the information.
"Yes. Judging from the current signs, Mercenary Tao has already realized that someone in the Space is deliberately releasing his intelligence, and he suspects his most familiar information broker, Black Butler. Black Butler is very annoyed, and right now is using his own intelligence channels to find out who is buying and leaking Mercenary Tao's information."
White Mask lay back. That fox spirit body docilely adjusted its posture to make White Mask more comfortable. After the initial panic and fury following the disappearance of His Eminence [Eternal Fate], this woman had completely let herself go at this time.
She found that she was already close enough to those so-called top-tier Reincarnators. She would take down a title with enough weight in the Title Contention Battle of the upcoming new cycle.
What Sage Hongchen? All trash. If His Eminence had chosen me to enter the B711 world back then, I believe with my abilities, I absolutely wouldn't have let that guy Mercenary Tao gain such a big advantage.
On White Mask's right hand flashed a luster that only she could see.
Without even looking at the person, she raised her hand. A C-Class Singularity along with ten thousand Dimensional Points had already been transferred to this information broker who had disguised his identity.
"Little Jinzi, you did well. Next, continue to spread Mercenary Tao's intelligence. It's best to drag in those who have had entanglements with him as well. I want to make this beast become suspicious of everything..."
She lay back, her delicate and fair lower legs exposed from under the white robe with gold edges, trembling gently.
She knew that those guys like Great Demon probably also had some thoughts about her and were secretly contacting each other, but she didn't put those guys in her eyes.
They are all just a bunch of idiots. But White Mask didn't have a magnanimous personality. She added:
"Mix the news that the remnants of Great Demon and the Fifth Element are secretly plotting to encircle and kill Mercenary Tao into those messages and release them together. As for the truth, falsehood, and quantity of the information, grasp it yourself. Oh, right, who else was there... Heaven's Will. That woman named Heaven's Will seems to be getting more and more famous recently. She had interactions with Mercenary Tao; put her in too."
The information broker called Little Jinzi kept his head down, only feeling that White Mask seemed to act on whatever whim came to mind, but this transaction was becoming increasingly dangerous.
He felt an intense unease. This group of people was not only scheming against an extremely dangerous fierce beast like Mercenary Tao, but internally they were also unstable. This group of Reincarnators who regarded themselves as hunters and avengers also guarded against and schemed against each other.
Almost after every transaction, he would receive orders from his employer to spread unfavorable news about the others.
Can such a group of people really successfully encircle and kill Mercenary Tao...
White Mask stood up abruptly. Her pretty, maiden-like delicate face suddenly leaned close to Little Jinzi, her eyes narrowing like dangerous crescent moons.
"I smell fear and shrinking back. Little Jinzi, are you thinking that with our disjointed alliance, we probably can't kill Mercenary Tao?"
[Jin Ruohai]'s pupils shrank, subconsciously looking at the description on his avatar. Although this was the other party's personal space and the isolation effect wasn't as strong as the public space, the avatar theoretically could still isolate all prying, mind-reading, and perception effects.
Seeing this, White Mask laughed loudly. She liked most to see these idiots being played around by her. With just a little psychological suggestion, the other party would act exactly as she thought.
This gave her a natural mentality of looking down on these mediocre people. This mentality wasn't based on strength, but based on... intellect and strategy.
"Alright, Little Jinzi, stop looking. Your thoughts are simply transparent at a guess. I hope you won't be discovered by Mercenary Tao. That guy... tsk, is indeed not considered an idiot. If you are seen through by him, you will die~"
Jin Ruohai nodded and left White Mask's personal space without saying a word. He was indeed somewhat afraid.
He decided that after this job was finished, he would completely abandon the identity of Jin Ruohai, change to another avatar, change to another codename, give up all his previous connections, and start all over again.
He returned to his apartment-sized personal space. It was decorated by him like a luxurious clubhouse, quite extravagant. Lighting high-end aromatherapy and smelling this scent, he finally completely relaxed.
[XX53562211 sent a message: Mr. Jin Ruohai, I heard you are a famous information broker in the East District. I want to make a deal with you]
A Space communication message suddenly appeared before his eyes, making Jin Ruohai frown. At this time, he had already changed back to the avatar commonly used under the codename Jin Ruohai—an image of a middle-aged man wearing a high-end red suit, with slightly graying temples, and a steady temperament.
This communication message came out of nowhere, but he felt this codename was a bit familiar.
[XX53562211 sent a message: Oh right, forgot to introduce myself. I am Mercenary Tao]
The communication message popping up again made Jin Ruohai subconsciously stand up abruptly. It was as if an electric current rose from his tailbone, instantly making his whole body numb, and his face became extremely pale.
That's right, this codename starting with double X is Mercenary Tao!
Because Mercenary Tao's stall almost always had high-value items recently, when he was looking for suitable items for many people, he had sent offers at Mercenary Tao's stall. Therefore, he had some subconscious memory of this number.
Why did Mercenary Tao seek me out?!
Did he find out?!
Jin Ruohai's heart began to beat wildly disappointingly. He subconsciously wanted to leave the Space and return to the real world to temporarily avoid Mercenary Tao. But just as this thought appeared, another message popped up.
[XX53562211 sent a message: Don't be nervous. I have no ill intentions in seeking you out. Perhaps you don't know, I am actually a collaborator with a very strong spirit of contract. Black Butler can prove this. Cooperate with me, and I won't touch you...]
This string of ellipses seemed to say, if you don't cooperate with me, I won't guarantee I won't target you...
Prejudice in people's hearts is a huge mountain. Jin Ruohai only felt that every word of Mercenary Tao's revealed a meaning of threat. At this time, he again felt the sensation from when he was played with by White Mask just now; the other party firmly controlled the rhythm of the conversation and saw his thoughts very clearly.
Damn it, I clearly shouldn't have had any dealings with Mercenary Tao. Did someone else analyze my personality and habits?
Black Butler's appearance emerged in Jin Ruohai's mind. As an information broker whose reputation was growing increasingly louder nowadays due to Mercenary Tao's rise, Black Butler had already exerted a certain impact on his connections.
Judging others by himself, he felt that for Black Butler, he would definitely be willing to speak ill of him in front of Mercenary Tao. Because among White Mask's few regular information brokers was himself. Finding a way to kill him might not be a bad thing for Mercenary Tao and Black Butler.
Moreover... a guy like Mercenary Tao looked like the type who would be happy if someone asked him to kill.
Jin Ruohai frowned deeply, and ultimately agreed to Mercenary Tao's application to enter his personal space.
In the next moment, the pink robe appeared in his personal space. Long black hair scattered behind him. Mercenary Tao sat down on his high-end sofa on his own, the signature cruel smile on his lips.
Just meeting Mercenary Tao's eyes made Jin Ruohai feel psychologically uncomfortable. It wasn't just because the face of that avatar was very grotesque, but because Mercenary Tao seemed to exude aggressiveness all the time. That look was as if he was constantly prying into his psychology.
This made Jin Ruohai somewhat uneasy. But as an information broker who could gain the trust of many people, he also had his own means. Secretly using the modified prosthetics in his body to inject himself with several tubes of medicine, he quickly calmed down.
"Mr. Mercenary Tao, you seeking me out... how do you want to cooperate? I remember didn't you always cooperate with Black Butler before?"
Kaito's eyes narrowed, his smile as usual.
"I think with your intelligence channels, you should know that information and intelligence about me are currently circulating in many places in the Space, right?"
Jin Ruohai gave a vague response, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Driven by the medicine, his expression was fairly normal.
"Who would cooperate long-term with an information broker with a loose mouth? Wouldn't you say so, Mr. Jin Ruohai?"
Jin Ruohai's heart stirred. Connecting it to the previous part about Black Butler furiously tracing the information of the intelligence leaker, he realized that Black Butler's anger was probably, on the one hand, due to losing Mercenary Tao's trust and losing a long-term cash cow, and on the other hand, because it caused Mercenary Tao's dissatisfaction. He was afraid!
Thinking like this, a smile also appeared on Jin Ruohai's face.
Anyone could see that Mercenary Tao was a Reincarnator with super potential. It was almost a certainty that he would become a powerful Title Level Reincarnator in the upcoming new cycle.
Moreover, Mercenary Tao hadn't established his own faction yet. This was a major client who constantly had a large number of purchasing and selling needs!
Jin Ruohai stood up, a reserved but confident smile appearing on his refined face.
"Then Mr. Tao has found the right person. In the East District nowadays, speaking of connections and reputation, among information brokers I am probably ranked among the very top. A newcomer like Black Butler who hasn't even survived three months naturally has many shortcomings..."
Without needing to use abilities, Kaito could clearly perceive the greed and stupidity in the other party's heart.
The smile on his lips became increasingly obvious, and similarly undisguised greed appeared. He leaned his body forward, almost reaching in front of Jin Ruohai.
Looking straight into Jin Ruohai's eyes, he spoke:
"You should know my style. As our tentative first transaction, I want you to help me find out the information of someone's next mission world."
Jin Ruohai's heart skipped a beat, and sure enough, he heard Kaito speak.
"White Mask. That woman should be your customer, right? Find the information of her next mission world, and I will let you extract a certain profit from her Scarlet Drop Card. You should be clear about her net worth. How about it? Even I don't often offer this kind of price..."
His pupils trembled, almost suspecting that the plan of White Mask and the others had already been exposed, but Mercenary Tao had already spoken further.
"Don't overthink it. This matter has no connection with the recent constant leaking of my information. It's just that my hands are itching unbearably, and I want to find a nice guy to hunt."
Kaito's words were half true and half false. He indeed wasn't sure who was secretly preparing to deal with him, but he didn't really care about that kind of thing either. As long as he killed all targets who might have enmity with him one by one, he wouldn't even need to look for an answer.
As a special Reincarnator holding a [Card], White Mask was very naturally listed as the first hunting target by Kaito.
Seeing Jin Ruohai not answering, Kaito's eyes narrowed.
"Mr. Jin Ruohai, you wouldn't hear my target and then not want to trade with me anymore, would you?"
"Ha~ If that's the case, once my hunt fails, I will blame you for it."
Jin Ruohai's expression froze. Mercenary Tao's threat was so straightforward that the hormones spurred by those medicines could almost no longer suppress his violently beating heart.
He hesitated for a long time, his expression constantly changing. Scenes of White Mask and the others scheming against each other, and the deeds of Mercenary Tao constantly counter-killing higher-tier Reincarnators along the way, repeatedly appeared in his mind.
Finally, he slapped his thigh hard and made a decision.
"Her next mission world is highly likely a magic or magecraft-side world. Recently she asked me to collect similar things for her, including... Holy Relics. I think you should be able to guess her purpose."
Jin Ruohai actually knew very well that White Mask looked down on him, treating him like a stupid pig. She didn't even separate the various pieces of intelligence among several information brokers to look for, so much so that even he could guess her mission world.
At this time, he handed it all over to Mercenary Tao at once.
But he still held something back, not telling Mercenary Tao the news about that alliance. Once Mercenary Tao's hunt failed, he still retained room to maneuver.
"Very good, Mr. Jin Ruohai. You made a wise choice."
After Kaito left Jin Ruohai's personal space and returned to the public space, he once again put on an expression of hard-to-conceal anger.
In his heart, however, he was laughing constantly. Without paying anything himself, he got an information broker like Jin Ruohai to directly sell out his long-time employer.
A person's name is like the shadow of a tree. This was the harvest of his consistently high-profile behavior under the identity of [Mercenary Tao]. His illustrious and domineering style of acting made him, as a latecomer, have a higher value in the hearts of information brokers like Jin Ruohai than old-timers like White Mask.
This intangible value would continuously accumulate until finally, his name would become a symbol. Others would no longer dare to spread news detrimental to him, just like those Supremes at this moment.
When Kaito returned to his personal space, Song Xian had already informed him through Space communication that Eastern Xia had agreed to his request. From then on, his [Paradise] would become a true lawless zone.
Kaito returned to the real world, sitting in the manor, laughing loudly.
In his hand, he pinched an item that had also been sealed for a long time.
[Cursed Meme · Desire]
This thing would become his first big gift in the Paradise. He wanted to stir up a new frenzy of chaos!
[Collapse Value: 343/500 (Order is relatively stable)]
[Collapse Bonus: Less than 1, not effective]
Not enough. This world is still far from chaotic enough...
(End of Chapter)
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