Chapter 4721 — What Is a Bottom Line?

"Well, well—what a small world! I thought some clueless fool had beaten us to it, but it turns out to be you, Mr. Show-Off himself!" Kang Jingming snapped once he'd recovered his wits, hopping mad. At the same time he couldn't resist leveling his laser cannon at Wei Zhao, itching for any excuse to put a shot into him.

Kang Jingming and Xu Lingchong were stunned—but in truth, Wei Zhao and Huo Yudie were even more stunned than they were. Wei Zhao had sensed them coming beforehand, yet his shock now was no act; he genuinely had not expected these two to show up here.

With an unobtrusive glance at the laser cannon in Kang Jingming's hand, Wei Zhao quietly readied himself for a fight. In terms of raw cultivation, the two of them posed no threat whatsoever—but that laser cannon could effortlessly annihilate a cultivator at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, and it had to be guarded against.

Worse, the two of them had planted themselves right at the exit. If fighting broke out, his and Huo Yudie's position would be terribly disadvantageous—they'd be like turtles trapped in a jar. If it came to blows, they absolutely had to strike first.

Meanwhile, Huo Yudie was also quietly gathering her qi. Running into these two here, at a time and place like this, made an amicable resolution all but impossible. She might be a woman, but if it truly came to a fight, she, Huo Yudie, would be the first to hit hard.

Unlike Kang Jingming, whose mind was fixed on finding an excuse to make trouble for Wei Zhao, Xu Lingchong's attention was on the Thunder Mystic Vine. After sweeping a glance over the cliff face, he frowned. "Hm? Why are all these Thunder Mystic Vines still immature? Don't tell me you two already hacked down the mature ones?"

"Are you blind? If we'd cut them, go on and find them. Did you eat them? We only just got here!" Wei Zhao retorted, curling his lip with obvious hostility.

Xu Lingchong and Kang Jingming exchanged a look. It was true that neither Wei Zhao nor Huo Yudie showed any sign of carrying Thunder Mystic Vine—after all, if they really had cut down a whole plant, the combined bulk would be far from small, and there'd be no hiding it on their persons.

"So you two came for the Thunder Mystic Vine as well?" Xu Lingchong asked again.

"Obviously. What else would anyone come to a place like this for—the scenery?" Wei Zhao's tone carried an unmistakable whiff of gunpowder; he gave the impression of a man stewing in his own frustration. He snorted coldly. "After all that trouble getting here, it turns out none of them are ripe yet. Whole trip wasted—nothing to do but go back empty-handed. What rotten luck!"

As he spoke, he threw a look at Huo Yudie and led the way out with a sour expression. Xu Lingchong and Kang Jingming made no move to stop them; since the other pair hadn't gotten any Thunder Mystic Vine anyway, letting them go was no loss. They obligingly stepped aside to open a path.

Huo Yudie followed Wei Zhao's lead with her heart in her throat—and to her amazement, they truly passed through without a hitch. She couldn't help admiring his composure and quick wits: carrying an entire Thunder Mystic Vine on him, yet he'd hoodwinked the other two so thoroughly. What an actor he was.

They let Wei Zhao and Huo Yudie pass. Kang Jingming had originally meant to pick a fight, but since Wei Zhao had so sensibly conceded and withdrawn—and since his superiors had told him not to provoke the man—he simply couldn't be bothered. Turning to Xu Lingchong, he said, "Young Master Xu, since that's the case, let's just dig them up ourselves. Forget that show-off."

"These two Thunder Mystic Vines aren't mature yet. Taking them back would be useless." Xu Lingchong shook his head with a frown.

"That's true enough." Kang Jingming thought it over, then suggested, "How about we pull them up roots and all and take them back? The higher-ups handed down the order, so let them sort out the details. We've done the best we could."

"Huh? Pull them up by the roots? That doesn't seem right." Xu Lingchong hesitated. He might not be a good man at heart, but he was, after all, a properly trained disciple of North Island's Tri-Stack Pavilion, and the subtle indoctrination of a great, prestigious sect shaped his conduct. At the very least, he knew the unwritten rule of leaving a margin in all things.

"But we can't just go back empty-handed like that show-off, can we? These two vines may not be ripe, but if we cut them and bring them back, we've done our duty, and the higher-ups can't say a word against us. If we leave now and they blame us later, neither of us can afford that..." Kang Jingming urged.

At the thought of the punishment that mysterious figure might mete out, Xu Lingchong couldn't suppress a shudder. He had no choice but to nod in agreement. "All right, then. We'll do as you say."

That settled, the two made ready to dig up the two unripe Thunder Mystic Vines. Wei Zhao had nearly reached the exit, but when he sensed what they were about, he was startled. Had it been anything else, he truly would not have cared—but this touched on the interests of all West Island, and above all on Ning Xuefei's interests. There was no way he could stand idly by.

Were it not for that consideration, Wei Zhao would long since have transplanted all these Thunder Mystic Vines into his jade pendant's space. Who would have left any for Xu Lingchong and Kang Jingming then?

"Stop right there!" Wei Zhao appeared abruptly behind the two of them, giving Xu Lingchong and Kang Jingming a real fright. They had never imagined the man would turn back after leaving!

Xu Lingchong instantly fell into a posture as if facing a mortal enemy. For all that he was now a Nascent Soul cultivator himself, he had suffered far too many losses at Wei Zhao's hands before, and deep down he was thoroughly cowed. Facing Wei Zhao alone, his first instinct would absolutely be to turn and run.

This time, though, was different. Beside him was Kang Jingming, decked out in hyper-advanced tech gear, whose combat power rivaled a cultivator of the Mystic Ascension stage. Naturally he would not be so easily cowed by Wei Zhao.

"What do you want, show-off? Don't tell me you've changed your mind and want a share of the pie now. Let me tell you—not a chance!" Kang Jingming said loftily, brandishing his laser cannon at Wei Zhao with a look of utter contempt.

Xu Lingchong, meanwhile, warily edged backward. Kang Jingming made a ready-made human shield, so he wasn't worried about a surprise attack from Wei Zhao—but Xu Lingchong himself had no such protection. If blades truly came out, he might well be effortlessly annihilated in a single exchange. What a sorry end that would be.

"You won't even spare unripe Thunder Mystic Vines—you mean to dig them up roots and all. And to think you're disciples of North Island's Tri-Stack Pavilion. Isn't that a bit lacking in any bottom line?" Huo Yudie, who had appeared behind Wei Zhao, glared at the two of them in outrage.

"Bottom line? What's that supposed to be?" Kang Jingming burst out laughing, his face a picture of swaggering provocation that fairly said, 'Come and bite me if you dare.' Right now he was dying for Wei Zhao to make a move—just the chance to let this sworn enemy taste the laser cannon's power! (Day three of the School Beauty drama's release! Shooting straight to the top of the trending charts! Please follow Yuren's public WeChat account yuren22.) (To be continued...)