#522Chapter 495 Tao Baibai's name, betrayal (4K)AI Model: gemini-2.5-flash
"Chapter 495: Tao Pai Pai's Name, Betrayal (4K+)"
"Hehe, as expected of a sharp beast, you sensed the danger so quickly~"
White Mask leaned back on a fox's body, which was burning with ice-blue flames. She wasn't wearing a mask and was smiling very contentedly.
The information broker standing in front of her was cloaked in black and wore a white Hannya mask on his face. With the concealment of Space, his true identity was completely indistinguishable.
Such avatars are very common, often used by many information brokers and Reincarnators when conducting illicit business, precisely to prevent others from knowing that he leaked the information.
"Yes, according to current indications, Tao Pai Pai has realized that someone in Paradise is deliberately releasing information about him and suspects his most familiar information broker, Black Butler. Black Butler is very annoyed and is currently using his own information channels to find out who is buying and leaking Tao Pai Pai's information."
White Mask lay back, and the fox spirit docilely adjusted its posture to make White Mask more comfortable. After the initial panic and rage following the disappearance of Lord Destiny Eternal, this Woman finally let herself go completely.
She found that she was already close enough to those so-called top Reincarnators, and she would win a sufficiently important Title in the upcoming Title-level Reincarnator competition of the next cycle.
All those like Sage Hong Chen are useless. If Lord had chosen her to enter the B711 world then, she believed that with her ability, she would never have let Tao Pai Pai gain such a huge advantage.
On White Mask's right hand, a luster visible only to her shimmered.
Without looking at anyone, she raised her hand, and a c-rank special point along with ten thousand dimensional points had already been transferred to this disguised information broker.
"Little Jinzi, you've done well. Next, continue to spread information about Tao Pai Pai. It would be best if you also dragged in those who have had dealings with him. I want to make this beast paranoid…"
She lay back, her delicate, fair calves exposed from beneath her gold-trimmed white robe, twitching gently.
She knew that Great Demon and the others probably had some ideas about her too and were secretly contacting each other, but she didn't pay them any mind.
They were just a bunch of fools, but White Mask was not a magnanimous character. She added,
"Spread the news that Great Demon and the remnants of the Fifth Element are secretly plotting to encircle and kill Tao Pai Pai, mixed in with those messages. As for the truthfulness and quantity of the information, you decide. Oh, and who else was it… Destiny, that Woman named Destiny seems to be gaining more and more fame recently. She had an interaction with Tao Pai Pai, put her in there too."
The information broker, called Little Jinzi, lowered his head, feeling that White Mask seemed to be making things up as she went, but this transaction was becoming increasingly dangerous.
He felt a strong sense of unease; this group was not only plotting against an extremely dangerous beast like Tao Pai Pai, but they were also unstable internally. These Reincarnators, who saw themselves as hunters and avengers, were also wary of and plotting against each other.
Almost every time he completed a transaction, he would receive orders from the employer to spread unfavorable information about others.
Could such a group of people really successfully encircle and kill Tao Pai Pai…
White Mask suddenly stood up. Her delicate face, as exquisite as a young girl's, suddenly moved close to Little Jinzi, her eyes narrowed like dangerous crescent moons.
"I smell fear and retreat, Little Jinzi. Are you thinking that with our scattered alliance, we probably can't kill Tao Pai Pai?"
Jing Ruohai's pupils constricted, and he subconsciously looked at the description on his avatar. Although this was the other party's private Space, and the isolation effect was not as strong as in public Space, the avatar theoretically could still block all peeking, mind-reading, and perception effects.
Seeing this, White Mask laughed heartily. She loved watching these fools being played by her, a slight psychological hint, and the other party would act as she wished.
This gave her a natural condescending attitude towards these mediocre people, an attitude not based on strength, but on… Mental, strategy.
"Alright, Little Jinzi, stop looking. Your thoughts are so easy to guess. I hope Tao Pai Pai doesn't discover you. That guy… tsk, he's not stupid. If he sees through you, you'll die~"
Jing Ruohai nodded and left White Mask's private Space without a word. He was indeed a little scared.
He decided that after this job was over, he would completely abandon the identity of Jing Ruohai, change to a new avatar, a new codename, give up all his previous connections, and start anew.
He returned to his apartment-sized private Space, which he had decorated like a luxurious club, quite extravagant, with high-end incense burning. Smelling this scent, he finally relaxed completely.
"XX53562211 sent a message: Mr. Jing Ruohai, I heard you are a famous information broker in the East District. I would like to make a deal with you."
A Space message suddenly appeared before his eyes, making Jing Ruohai frown. He had already switched back to the avatar commonly used by the codename Jing Ruohai, which was a middle-aged man in a high-end red suit with slightly graying temples, exuding a steady demeanor.
This message was abrupt, but he felt the codename was somewhat familiar.
"XX53562211 sent a message: Oh, I forgot to introduce myself, I am Tao Pai Pai."
The reappearing message made Jing Ruohai instinctively stand up abruptly, as if a current of electricity rose from his tailbone, instantly numbing his entire body and turning his face extremely pale.
That's right, this codename starting with double X is Tao Pai Pai!
Because Tao Pai Pai's stall almost always had high-value items recently, he had sent quotes at Tao Pai Pai's stall many times when looking for suitable items for others, so he had some subconscious memory of this number.
How did Tao Pai Pai find him?!
Had he been discovered?!
Jing Ruohai's heart began to pound uncontrollably. He subconsciously wanted to leave Space and return to the real world to temporarily avoid Tao Pai Pai, but just as this thought emerged, another message appeared.
"XX53562211 sent a message: Don't be nervous, I have no ill intentions in looking for you. Perhaps you don't know, I am actually a very contract-abiding cooperator. Black Butler can confirm this. If you cooperate with me, I won't touch you…"
This string of ellipses seemed to say, if you don't cooperate with me, I can't guarantee I won't target you…
Prejudice in people's hearts is a great mountain. Jing Ruohai felt that every word of Tao Pai Pai's conveyed a sense of threat. He now felt the same way he did when he was just being toyed with by White Mask; the other party firmly controlled the rhythm of the conversation and clearly saw his thoughts.
Damn it, I clearly haven't had any dealings with Tao Pai Pai. Did others analyze my personality and habits?
Black Butler's image appeared in Jing Ruohai's mind. As an information broker whose reputation was growing increasingly prominent due to Tao Pai Pai's rise, Black Butler was now having some influence on his connections.
Putting himself in Black Butler's shoes, he felt that Black Butler would certainly be willing to badmouth him in front of Tao Pai Pai, because he was one of White Mask's few regular information brokers. Finding a way to kill him might not be a bad thing for either Tao Pai Pai or Black Butler.
Moreover… a guy like Tao Pai Pai seemed to be the type who would be happy if someone asked him to kill…
Jing Ruohai frowned, and finally agreed to Tao Pai Pai's request to enter his private Space.
The next moment, a pink robe appeared in his private Space, black hair cascading behind him. Mr. Tao Pai Pai sat in his high-end sofa, a characteristic cruel smile on his lips.
Just making eye contact with Mr. Tao Pai Pai made Jing Ruohai feel uncomfortable. It wasn't just because the avatar's face was grotesque, but because Mr. Tao Pai Pai seemed to exude aggression at all times, his gaze seemingly always prying into his Mental state.
This made Jing Ruohai a bit uneasy, but as an information broker who could earn the trust of many, he also had his own methods. He secretly used the modified prosthetics in his body to inject himself with several doses of medicine, and he quickly calmed down.
"Mr. Tao Pai Pai, you're looking for me. How do you want to cooperate? I remember you've always cooperated with Black Butler before, haven't you?"
Bai Cangshu's eyes narrowed, his smile as usual.
"With your information channels, you should know that information and intelligence about me are now circulating in many places in Paradise, right?"
Jing Ruohai gave a vague affirmative, noncommittal. Under the influence of the medicine, his expression remained relatively normal.
"Who would cooperate long-term with an information broker with a loose tongue, wouldn't you agree, Mr. Jing Ruohai?"
Jing Ruohai's heart stirred. Connecting this to Black Butler's previous furious pursuit of the information leaker, he realized that Black Butler's anger was probably twofold: on one hand, he had lost Tao Pai Pai's trust and a long-term cash cow; on the other hand, he had incurred Tao Pai Pai's displeasure, and he was terrified!
Thinking this, a smile also appeared on Jing Ruohai's face.
Tao Pai Pai was a Reincarnator with super potential that everyone could see, almost certainly destined to become a powerful Title-level Reincarnator in the upcoming new cycle.
Moreover, Tao Pai Pai had not yet established his own forces, and he was a major client with constant high-volume buying and selling needs!
Jing Ruohai stood up, a reserved but confident smile on his refined face.
"Then Mr. Tao has found the right person. In the East District now, when it comes to connections and credibility among information brokers, I am probably among the top few. Newcomers like Black Butler, who haven't even been active for three months, naturally have many shortcomings…"
Bai Cangshu could clearly perceive the other party's greed and foolishness without needing to use any abilities.
The smile on his lips became even more pronounced, and an undisguised look of greed appeared. He leaned forward, almost reaching Jing Ruohai's face.
Staring directly into Jing Ruohai's eyes, he spoke,
"You should know my style. For our first, tentative transaction, I want you to help me find information about someone's next mission world."
Jing Ruohai's heart skipped a beat, and sure enough, he heard Bai Cangshu speak.
"White Mask, that Woman should be your client, right? Find information about her next mission world, and I will let you extract a certain amount of profit from her scarlet drop card. You should know her worth. How about it? Even I don't often offer such a price…"
His pupils trembled, almost suspecting that White Mask's plan had been exposed, but Tao Pai Pai had already spoken further.
"Don't overthink it. This has nothing to do with the recent leaks of my information. I'm just feeling a bit restless and want to hunt down a good target."
Bai Cangshu's words were half-true, half-false. He was indeed unsure who was secretly preparing to deal with him, but he didn't really care about such things. As long as he killed all possible targets who might hold a grudge against him one by one, he wouldn't even need to find the answer.
White Mask, as a special Reincarnator possessing a card, was naturally listed by Bai Cangshu as his first hunting target.
Seeing Jing Ruohai not respond, Bai Cangshu's eyes narrowed.
"Mr. Jing Ruohai, you wouldn't hear my target and then not want to trade with me, would you?"
"Ha~ In that case, if my hunt fails, I'll blame you."
Jing Ruohai's expression froze. Tao Pai Pai's threat was so direct that the hormones stimulated by the medicine could barely suppress his furiously pounding heart.
He hesitated for a long time, his expression constantly changing. The scenes of White Mask and the others plotting against each other, and Tao Pai Pai's various feats of slaying higher-ranked Reincarnators, repeatedly flashed through his mind.
Finally, he slapped his thigh hard, having made a decision.
"Her next mission world is likely to be a world of magic or sorcery. Recently, she's been asking me to collect similar items for her, including… Holy Relics. I think you can guess her purpose."
Jing Ruohai actually knew very well that White Mask looked down on him, treating him like a fool, and didn't even bother to have different information brokers search for various pieces of information, so much so that he could guess her mission world.
Now, he handed it all over to Tao Pai Pai at once.
But he still held back, not telling Tao Pai Pai about the alliance. If Tao Pai Pai failed in his hunt, he would still have room to maneuver.
"Very good, Mr. Jing Ruohai, you have made a wise choice."
After Bai Cangshu left Jing Ruohai's private Space and returned to the public Space, he once again put on a look of barely concealed anger.
In his heart, however, he kept laughing. He had given nothing, yet Jing Ruohai, this information broker, had directly sold out his long-term employer.
A person's name, a tree's shadow—this was the reward for his high-profile conduct as Tao Pai Pai. His flamboyant and overbearing style had made him, as a newcomer, more valuable in the eyes of information brokers like Jing Ruohai than veterans like White Mask.
This intangible value would continue to accumulate until, eventually, his name would become a symbol. Others would no longer dare to spread unfavorable news about him, just like those Supreme Experts now.
When Bai Cangshu returned to his private Space, Song Xian had already informed him via Space communication that East Xia had agreed to his request, and from now on, his Paradise would become a true no-man's land.
Bai Cangshu returned to the real world, sitting in his manor, laughing heartily.
In his hand, he held an item that had also been sealed for a long time.
Curse Meme · Desire
This thing will be his first grand gift in his Paradise. He wants to ignite a new wave of chaos!
"Collapse Value: 343/500 (Order is relatively stable)"
"Collapse Bonus: Less than 1, not effective"
It's not enough, this world is far from chaotic enough…
Ch. 522 / 787