Jiang Ye was thinking, “Who are you looking down on?”

Meanwhile, the nearby players from Apartment 9999 like Wan Xin and Ouyang Fan were thinking—

Why didn’t this good thing land on me?

After all, no matter how much of the Quick Battle Card reward pool you end up with, beating Lin Shen was real, solid glory!

By then, who knows how many players would remember their face and name.

From that point on, walking through the world would come with a bit of fame.

Guys like them—who didn’t have a martial arts dream when they were young?

Who didn’t want to roam the world with a sword, and after all the ups and downs, become the legend of the land?

Even if people figured out it was a fake match, it still beat being an unknown nobody.

Too bad though—

Lin Jing seemed to be here specifically for Jiang Ye.

At that moment, he raised his brows directly at Jiang Ye: “What do you think?”

Jiang Ye thought to himself: I think I’ll just sit and watch.

He actually wanted to boldly say: I’ll beat you fair and square, no need for a fake match.

But on second thought—

Lin Jing looked upright on the outside, but was actually crafty as h*ll, always scheming!

If he gave even a hint that he wanted to beat Lin Jing with real skill,

That guy might just turn around and find someone else to stage a fake match with, ending the Quick Battle early.

Then Jiang Ye would walk away with nothing.

And he’d lose the chance to fight Lin Jing, too.

So, for the moment, he didn’t know how to respond.

Lin Jing chuckled all of a sudden: “What? Disillusioned by me? Or think this is shameful?”

“Not really.” Jiang Ye waved it off and said directly, “Just like how in a money-worshiping world people laugh at the poor but not the prostitute, in a world where strength rules, fake matches aren’t shameful—being weak is.”

“I’m thinking, you could indeed use a fake match to end the Quick Battle early, to avoid another match with that mysterious Bald Guy.”

“But that mysterious Bald Guy, he’s real. We might dodge him for a while, but not forever.”

“Right now, because of the Global Kill-on-Sight Order, the top players across the server are essentially competing.”

“And what we’re competing for is the reward for that Order.”

“For that reward, chances are we’ll end up facing that Bald Guy again in Apartment 0000…”

He hadn’t even finished talking.

Lin Jing nodded: “I know what you’re trying to say.”

“In fact, that’s part of my consideration too.”

Then, after thinking for a bit, he asked Jiang Ye, “Have you ever seen a resurrection ability?”

Jiang Ye nodded: “I’ve seen it by chance.” Yang Wenchao had one.

Lin Jing continued explaining: “Normally, resurrection abilities can be used in the Duel Arena too.”

“For example, if a player with that ability is killed in the Arena, the match doesn’t end right away—they revive on the spot.”

“What I mean is, death in the Duel Room is virtual, but the simulation of player abilities is 100% real.”

“So I’m thinking…”

“That mysterious Bald Guy, he actually doesn’t have a resurrection ability.”

“The five times I killed him, he truly died each time.”

“It’s just that death in the Duel Arena is virtual, so he didn’t actually die.”

“But if it were in the real world…”

“He’d be really dead.”

As soon as he said that, Wan Xin and Ouyang Fan nodded.

“Yeah, makes total sense!”

“That Bald Guy’s ability basically exploits the Duel Room’s bug!”

“So he’s all cocky in the Arena, but in real life, one death and that’s it!”

Lin Jing nodded again and analyzed:

“Of course, I suspect that the methods I used to kill him before won’t work again in real life.”

“So I need to hold something back, in order to kill him for real when it counts.”

Hearing all that, Jiang Ye also nodded slightly, inwardly impressed—that Bald Guy’s ability really was messed up.

It’s basically like—he didn’t have a resurrection ability,

But every time he died, he gained something, like immunity from that type of death.

If that was the only thing, it’d be a trash ability.

But when paired with the Duel Arena’s virtual death, it became totally broken!

Someone like that, yeah—you really had to kill him in the real world to be done with it once and for all.

But if Jiang Ye had that Bald Guy’s power…

He’d probably turtle in the Duel Room till the end of time, collecting every type of death, and only then step out into the world.

But then he found it weird: “That guy’s matched with you five times, right? Where’s he getting all those Privilege Cards?”

“And if he’s trying to collect death types, he should be losing matches nonstop… where’s his money coming from?”

Wan Xin was just about to answer when Lin Jing blurted out, “Probably being kept.”

“Kept??” Jiang Ye was dumbfounded.

Lin Jing raised an eyebrow: “Surprised? Didn’t you get a quest from a cross-apartment NPC and even got your reward early?”

“In that case, you could be considered ‘kept’ by an NPC.”

Then he glanced over at Ouyang Fan and continued, “And Ouyang, he cozied up to the Apartment Administrator and got some perks too.”

“I’m guessing that Bald Guy probably caught the attention of the Duoe Organization.”

“His ability requires him to soak in the Duel Room long-term—perfect match for the Duoe Organization’s goals.”

D*mn…

So the Duoe Organization really had long arms.

The newbie period wasn’t even over, and they were already “sponsoring” players.

Then again, when they were selling Win Streak Packages, they were probably also gathering intel on new players.

Recruiting one or two promising newbies was nothing out of the ordinary.

Just then, the halftime break ended, and Lin Jing’s match was about to start again.

He looked at Jiang Ye and said, “Think carefully about the fake match.”

“When this one’s done, I’ll come find you guys.”

With that, his figure disappeared from the spectator area and appeared on the Arena.

At the same time, his new opponent appeared—a young girl with delicate features and a somewhat ethereal vibe.

Whistles rang out from the crowd, singing praises to the beauty.

Wan Xin stared at the girl and asked Jiang Ye,

“You’re not seriously thinking it’s shameful to do a fake match, are you?”

“If you do, I can reluctantly take your place.”

Jiang Ye shot him a glare: “How generous of you.”

He tapped his finger on the armrest of the spectator seat a few times, frowned, and muttered, “I just feel like Lin Shen might have other reasons for doing a fake match…”

He didn’t spell it out, so Wan Xin didn’t get it and was about to ask.

On the other side, Ouyang Fan chimed in, “I think so too…”

He leaned on his chin, lowered his voice, and said,

“I think during the last match, when the Bald Guy’s shadow invaded Lin Shen’s body, Lin Shen clearly panicked a bit…”

“So I think he’s not just trying to minimize losses from the Quick Battle. More importantly, he doesn’t want the Bald Guy invading his body again…”

Jiang Ye nodded. He was thinking the same thing.

Wan Xin finally caught on: “So that Bald Guy really is creepy…”

Ouyang continued, “I got the feeling, when Lin Shen mentioned the Bald Guy just now, there was a hint of killing intent in his tone.”

“I think, yeah, he doesn’t want to run into the Bald Guy in the Arena again, but he does want to kill him in the real world…”

Then Ouyang lowered his voice even more: “You guys think… could it be that Bald Guy discovered some secret about Lin Shen?”

Wan Xin immediately perked up and whispered excitedly, “What secret?”

Ouyang rolled his eyes: “How should I know? I’m just guessing!”

Wan Xin blurted out, “What if Lin Shen’s got some system bound to him, and the Bald Guy found out, so now Lin Shen doesn’t even wanna bother with Quick Battle and just wants to kill him to shut him up?”

As he guessed, Wan Xin even sounded pretty hyped.

But Ouyang just looked more and more speechless, replying half-heartedly, “Sure, sure! You figured it out. Guess Lin Shen has to shut you up too now!”

Wan Xin quickly laughed it off: “Hahaha just messing around…”

And just like that, the chat got a lot more light-hearted.

And in the Duel Arena, as soon as the whistle blew, that pretty young girl vanished from sight, seemingly skilled in some powerful stealth technique.

Jiang Ye wasn’t planning to watch this match. He waved at Wan Xin and said, “I’ve got something to do. I’m heading out for a bit.”

Wan Xin blinked. “Huh? Then about that fake match with Lin Shen…”

Before he could finish, Jiang Ye’s figure had already vanished from the spectator stands.

Wan Xin’s eyes lit up. He thought maybe—just maybe—that fake match spot might actually fall to him!

But… there were still several competitors sitting nearby…

This whole group, all from Apartment 9999, had their own schemes in mind.

Meanwhile, after leaving Lin Jing’s area, Jiang Ye directly used a Privilege Card.

He selected his match target as—Lin Jing’s Duel Arena, No. 18!

But the Privilege Card gave a prompt:

[Your selected match target has already been chosen by someone else. You may choose to:]

[Stick with the current match target]

[Change to a different target]

Naturally, Jiang Ye chose to stick with the current match target.

Waiting a little longer was no big deal.

After Lin Jing finished his match with the young girl and returned to the spectator area, Jiang Ye was nowhere to be seen.

Before he could say anything, Wan Xin quickly chimed in, “Jiang Ye said he had something to do and left. Didn’t say when he’d be back.”

“Lin Shen, if you’re in a hurry, maybe… pick someone else?”

Lin Jing’s expression changed subtly, clearly deep in thought.

His eyes swept across the players from Apartment 9999 and he left behind one line: “You guys chat. I’ve got something to take care of too.”

With that, he walked away.

Wan Xin figured Lin Jing probably didn’t think much of him and had gone to look for Wang Chengjin’s group instead.

He couldn’t help but feel a bit stifled.

Truthfully, he was one of the first strong players to arrive at Apartment 9999.

Back then, there were only about a dozen names on the War God Ranking, and his rank had been pretty high.

Those dozen guys had once popped champagne together, toasting boldly and swearing they’d always stay on top.

But over time, more and more elites poured in, and all of them, one way or another, slipped in rank. They were all frustrated.

And Wan Xin? He dropped the hardest.

After that match with Jiang Ye, he completely fell off the War God Ranking…

He looked easygoing, but the bitterness and frustration inside—only he knew.

It’s like how many nameless nobodies remain nobodies for life.

They’ve never stood atop the mountain, never seen the true strong ones…

So when they look up at the peak, at the powerful, they don’t feel that gut-wrenching sourness.

But Wan Xin was different.

He had stood on that mountain. He had once believed he was one of the elite.

It’s like that saying—

I could’ve endured the darkness…

If I had never seen the light.

Really, the whole “bad luck” and “cursed life” persona—was just a cover he gave himself.

That way, he could explain—more gracefully—why his rank kept falling, why he couldn’t keep up with the others…

Yeah, he was just unlucky, that’s all.

But the bitterness, the unwillingness…

Maybe only those who’ve seen their dreams shatter can understand Beidao’s The Polish Visitor.

Wan Xin sighed heavily in his heart.

On the surface, though, he kept his cool and told Ouyang Fan and the other players from Apartment 9999,

“I’ve got something to take care of too. When Lin Shen’s ready for the fake match, make sure someone calls me back.”

Ouyang didn’t notice his mood and casually teased, “You, Mr. Bad Luck, dare to say you’ve ‘got something’? Aren’t you afraid that ‘something’ might be trouble?”

“F**k you!” Wan Xin kicked at him, then disappeared from the stands.

What Wan Xin didn’t know was—

By walking off, he ended up missing Lin Jing’s “fake match.”

Because it only took one more match before—

A new Bald Guy stepped onto Lin Jing’s Duel Arena.

Yes, not that mysterious Bald Guy.

But… Jiang Ye, the Bald Guy!

When he appeared on the Arena in his bald form,

Back on Ouyang’s side of the stands, a nearby player exclaimed,

“Holy sh*t? Lin Shen already set up the fake match? So it’s Jiang Ye after all?”

Ouyang blinked a few times, then quickly frowned. “This match… probably isn’t a fake one arranged by Lin Shen.”

“What do you mean?” the guy next to him was stunned. “You’re saying this Jiang Ye—he challenged Lin Shen himself?”

Ouyang nodded, his eyes flickering with all kinds of emotion.

Seeing Ouyang’s expression, the guy’s eyes went wide: “Wait—are you saying this Jiang Ye… really thinks he can beat Lin Shen?”

Ouyang Fan didn’t answer.

But the truth was, back when Lin Jing and Jiang Ye were talking, he’d already sensed it—

Jiang Ye seemed like he really wanted to beat Lin Jing with his own skill!

And it might’ve been—

That when he sold the Quick Battle Card to Lin Jing, he already had this move in mind!

So when Lin Jing proposed the fake match, that’s why he hesitated instead of agreeing on the spot…

This guy…

Ouyang pressed his lips together and stared at the Arena.

He didn’t even bother messaging Wan Xin.

Elsewhere, Wang Chengjin, Jiang Wenhan, Li Junqi, and Sha Bo—the former “Four Heavenly Kings” who once surrounded the Light-type player on the top floor of Apartment 9999—were also in the spectator stands.

Originally, Wang Chengjin had planned to step away and go match with Lin Jing for the fake match.

But the moment he saw this match, his eyes went wide: “That Bald Guy… isn’t that Jiang Ye?”

“How did he match with Lin Shen before me?”

“So who’s doing the fake match now, me or him?”

Li Junqi, sitting beside him, eyes darkened as he immediately guessed,

“This guy probably wants to have a real match with Lin Shen.”

Sha Bo looked shocked. “Him, going all out against Lin Shen?”

Jiang Wenhan raised an eyebrow, watching with interest. “He might not actually be trying to win. Just getting the chance to fight Lin Shen is already a valuable learning experience.”

Wang Chengjin frowned, a sense of unease creeping into his chest.

Meanwhile, in other parts of the stands, people were chatting:

“What’s with another Bald Guy? Is hiding your identity trendy now?”

“I can’t stand this kind of thing! Why so secretive? Got something to hide?”

Of course, beyond all the Bald Guy talk, some surprised voices called out—

“Holy sh*t! That Bald Guy… that—that’s the one who fought Zhao Yudie!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep