Chapter 296: Chapter 296

To be honest, Jiang Ye had wanted to kill the Mask Master a long time ago.

But this time, he hadn’t fully decided whether to use that flawed version of the Time-Limited Instant Kill item card.

After all, that card came from Chubby Guy.

And Chubby Guy was full of secrets, hiding too deeply.

Jiang Ye didn’t dare to trust him completely.

In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he suspected...

Could that flawed Time-Limited Instant Kill card be some kind of forgery created by Chubby Guy using certain methods?

It looked like it had the effect of a Time-Limited Instant Kill, but in reality, it might just be a fake disguise item meant to deceive?

After all, Jiang Ye wasn’t very familiar with card-type items.

When Jiang Ye fabricated the idea of the Time-Limited Instant Kill item, he had only told Zhou Yuling.

But among those big shots, all kinds of tricks were common, and information naturally spread quickly.

Maybe the Card Grandmaster learned about the fabricated Time-Limited Instant Kill item from Zhou Yuling or some administrator?

It was even possible that he doubted the authenticity of such an item and deliberately forged it as a card item to test whether Administrator 4444 really possessed it.

Moreover, even if that Time-Limited Instant Kill card was genuine, the pitfalls of a flawed item couldn’t be ignored.

Jiang Ye actually wanted to find someone else to test that item.

So that if he used it recklessly and failed to turn the Mask Master into a clone, he wouldn’t offend him...

But if he really wanted to find someone to test it, that would waste a chance to use the Time-Limited Instant Kill.

For a moment, he wasn’t sure what to do.

When Zhang Minghan’s clone entered the Mask Master’s little shop, he didn’t plan to act immediately but wanted to probe a bit first.

However, what surprised him was—

This time entering the Mask Master’s shop, the owner was not in a hidden state.

Instead, he was standing inside the shop in the form of a bald middle-aged man.

And he was directly talking to a customer.

The two had gentle expressions and seemed to be chatting quite happily?

Seeing this scene, Jiang Ye’s heart skipped a beat.

In this case, the Mask Master not wearing the Zhang Minghan version of the mimic mask wasn’t his clone.

Later, even if he entered the studio again to trade, the master might not wear the Zhang Minghan version of the mimic mask again.

If Jiang Ye deliberately reminded him, it would inevitably arouse suspicion.

It seemed this wasn’t the time to kill the Mask Master.

Just as he was thinking this, the Mask Master looked over at him.

The originally gentle expression instantly changed.

It was as if a creditor saw a deadbeat who owed him five million yuan and wouldn’t pay...

Of course, the customer talking to him also looked toward Jiang Ye.

But what surprised Jiang Ye was—

That customer looked at him as if he had seen a ghost.

“Zhang Minghan?! How do you have the qualification to enter the Mask Master’s shop??”

But Jiang Ye had synchronized with Zhang Minghan’s memories and didn’t remember this person.

He could feel that this person’s tone was unfriendly toward him.

So, raising an eyebrow, he replied:

“Not only do I have entry qualifications, I’m also a VIP customer. May I ask who you are?”

The customer was a man in his early thirties. When he heard “VIP customer,” his eyes widened again as he scrutinized Jiang Ye from top to bottom, full of disbelief.

“You? A VIP? Well, it’s true you don’t know me.”

“But look at this, then you’ll know how I know you :)”

Saying this, the man seemed to be searching for something in his spatial equipment. The rıghtful source is novelꞁire.net

Soon, he took out a small droplet-shaped gadget.

With two fingers pinching it, the droplet burst, turning into water mist.

The mist quickly condensed into a water screen, and on that screen was a clear image—

Zhang Minghan, naked, bruised and battered, looking utterly miserable.

Blood and tears smeared all over his face, but he didn’t dare to wipe them.

Instead, he was almost crawling on the ground, repeatedly slapping his own face with a “piapiapia” sound.

While slapping, he kept pleading with the big shot for mercy, begging to be spared...

Then, the big shot kicked him away with one foot.

Jiang Ye had some impression of this scene.

It should have been when Zhang Minghan was very weak in the early days.

Actually, he hadn’t done anything wrong, just casually observing a somewhat powerful player.

But that guy took a dislike to him and wanted to kill him on the spot.

Yes, no grievances, just a pure dislike and deliberately provoking trouble.

Zhang Minghan was stunned but knew he was no match, so he could only admit defeat and beg for mercy.

That guy seemed to like how weak and pitiful Zhang Minghan looked.

So he made Zhang Minghan strip naked and kneel, begging for mercy while slapping himself.

This was quite humiliating, especially since there were quite a few bystanders at the time.

But Zhang Minghan had no choice if he wanted to survive.

Fortunately, his pathetic begging pleased the provocateur.

In the end, he was only kicked away, and the provocation was over...

Actually, scenes appeared quite often in Zhang Minghan’s memories.

And this wasn’t even the most humiliating one.

But after Zhang Minghan became stronger, he avenged all those who could be avenged.

Many enemies died before he could get to them...

The scene this customer showed was from quite a long time ago.

Unexpectedly, some of those bystanders were still alive now.

They even recorded the video back then...

Looking at the video now, Jiang Ye felt a little uncomfortable.

But it wasn’t a big problem.

After all, that scene was not his own experience.

He wasn’t Zhang Minghan himself.

Still, to avoid suspicion, he deliberately held his breath, flushed his face red.

He even widened his eyes fiercely, the blood vessels in his eyes full of red veins, making it look like he was extremely humiliated.

Just then, the Mask Master looked at him and exclaimed:

“Holy crap? That’s you?!”

After all, he had a very good impression of Zhang Minghan and couldn’t imagine he had such a pathetic past...

Jiang Ye felt like he was stabbed and, in a fit of shame and anger, shouted:

“That’s not me! Someone’s impersonating me! This video is definitely fake!”

His outburst naturally pleased the customer.

The man sneered contemptuously and sarcastically said:

“A loser is a loser, huh~”

Jiang Ye immediately felt like someone stabbed him in the spine and flew into a rage:

“What did you say? Who are you calling a loser!”

Then he turned to the Mask Master and asked:

“Shop owner, is there a rule in our store that customers aren’t allowed to fight each other?!”

Before the Mask Master could reply, the customer sneered disdainfully:

“Heh, you’re just a useless pretty boy, how dare you fight me?”

“Don’t think no one knows how you got to where you are! I don’t even want to dirty my hands killing you!”

Jiang Ye was furious, his face red and his neck thick, as if he was about to break the store rules and fight right then and there.

However, the Mask Master stopped him.

While holding him back and persuading him, he subtly glanced out of Jiang Ye’s field of vision and gave the customer a look.

The customer was being stared down by Jiang Ye and naturally didn’t want to argue with the Mask Master’s silent warning.

Still, he openly stepped forward and continued to look at Jiang Ye with disdain:

“Even if you are a VIP customer, this shop is a place for business. You’re not allowed to fight with customers.”

“But if you really dare to fight me, I’m willing to grant you that.”

Saying this, the customer flipped his hand, and a...

He held the rattle’s handle and casually shook it twice. The rattle emitted a low, deep drumbeat.

Accompanying the rhythm, he raised an eyebrow and said arrogantly:

“This is the Extreme Battle Arena Drum I got from Master Ji Zhan.”

“Though it looks like a rattle, if both you and I each hold one of the two drumstrings on this rattle and pull them off together, the drum surface will transform into a special arena space.”

“You and I can then have a fair fight.”

He slowed the shaking, and the drumbeat slowed down.

His voice became lighter, dripping with mockery:

“A loser like you, who would give up dignity just to survive...”

“Really wouldn’t dare to fight me, right?”

Then he said to the Mask Master:

“Shop owner, don’t bother stopping him. I’m sure he wouldn’t dare fight me for real!”

The Mask Master seemed to be convinced, thinking Zhang Minghan was indeed too weak to do anything reckless.

But Jiang Ye, no longer restrained, didn’t actually make a move.

He suddenly had a realization, his gaze shifting between the customer and the Mask Master.

Finally, he angrily said, “I guess you two must be working together to trap me?”

“Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that the customer in the store when I came in held my dirty secret?”

“Could it be that you, shop owner, are willing to do anything to get back the Nomadic Merchant Mask?”

“If I’m not mistaken...”

“If I agree to the fight later, you two will team up and make me bet the Nomadic Merchant Mask, right?!”

At this moment, although he appeared calm, his face was still flushed, unable to hide his anger.

His gaze at the customer still carried murderous intent, as if he wanted to kill the guy holding his dirty secrets.

The customer’s expression didn’t change, but the drumbeat rhythm in his hand slightly faltered.

He snorted at Jiang Ye:

“Bet? Heh, now that you mention it, I actually want to bet with you.”

“Just bet your Nomadic Merchant Mask. If you don’t dare, wouldn’t that prove you’re just a loser who rose up by riding on women?”

“Heh heh! What’s that called? Giving you a chance, and you’re useless!”

“You just said the video is fake, right?”

“That’s fine. At worst, I’ll make it public so all the apartment players can judge whether this video is real or not!”

“Heh! Heh! Fine!” Jiang Ye gritted his teeth, looking like he was laughing in anger.

He glared at the customer again and said word by word:

“Are you waiting here?”

“You want me to bet the Nomadic Merchant Mask, and your bet is just this damn dirty secret video, right?”

The customer raised an eyebrow: “Whoa, that’s pretty clever. No wonder a loser like you could survive until now.”

“Heh! Loser?” Jiang Ye sneered coldly again.

In this state, obviously, he was completely provoked by anger.

So much so that he looked imposing even while furious.

“Isn’t it just a fair fight? Do you really think I don’t dare?”

“Is it just the Nomadic Merchant Mask? I dare bet it, but do you really want it?”

“I don’t care if you dislike me or you just want to do a favor for the Mask Master alone...”

“But you crossed me, and that will definitely be the biggest mistake of your life!”

“Hahaha!” The man in his early thirties laughed out loud.

His contemptuous gaze toward Jiang Ye grew even stronger:

“I see you’re no kid anymore. You’ve experienced the harshness of reality and the beatings from the strong. So why are you still so naive?”

“This blazing, chuunibyou soul of yours? Shouldn’t you be shouting—Thirty years on the east side of the river, thirty years on the west, don’t underestimate a poor youth?”

“Thirty years? No. Three minutes.” Jiang Ye seemed to suppress his anger and completely calm down.

He looked more imposing, like a cold-faced king of hell.

“In three minutes, you’ll regret it.”

“No. In three minutes, you’ll perish.”

“Hahaha...” The young customer laughed again.

But this time, he didn’t say much, just confirmed smoothly:

“So, you’re saying you agree to the fight?”

Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow: “Agreed. But I want to change the bet a bit.”

The Mask Master stood behind Jiang Ye, his eyes rolling slightly.

The customer raised an eyebrow: “You don’t want to bet the Nomadic Merchant Mask? Well, other than that mask, I doubt you have anything else I want.”

Jiang Ye suddenly smiled: “The Nomadic Merchant Mask can be my bet.”

“But your bet, I don’t value.”

“Just a piece of dirty secret video. I’m not some idol; why should I care about my face?”

“Besides, any random mimic mask can change appearances. That dirty secret’s value is definitely far less than the Nomadic Merchant Mask.”

The young customer seemed fully confident in his strength, so he said indifferently: “Then what do you want me to add to the bet?”

Jiang Ye shook his head: “No. No need for you to add anything.”

Then he turned to look at the Mask Master.

His gaze was complicated, lips curled with disdain, and he sneered:

“Don’t think I don’t know that this provocation and fight are closely related to you.”

“Since you insist on forcing me, then letting you join the game and adding a bet for our fight shouldn’t be too much, right?”

The Mask Master frowned: “Bets for the Extreme Battle Arena can only be agreed upon by both combatants. Even if I wanted to add something, I can’t.”

Jiang Ye raised an indifferent eyebrow: “Then just use other items to restrict it.”

The Mask Master hesitated. In truth, he was a little fearful inside.

Because this Zhang Minghan was acting a bit strange.

Since he already saw this as provocation, why agree?

Why even specially let him add a bet?

This attitude made it seem like he was very confident about this fight.

But the Mask Master could clearly see Zhang Minghan’s data panel.

His strength was obviously not outstanding.

Even if he had some powerful items...

The Extreme Battle Arena was different from a normal arena; it tested the bare strength of the two combatants.

That meant no items could be used during the fight.

With his data panel, where did his confidence come from?

After hesitating, the Mask Master said in a deep voice:

“Tell me first, what kind of bet do you want me to add?”