Chapter 4195 — Count Yourself Lucky

"You two came all this way just to tell me this?" Wei Zhao glanced at them and said flatly. "Then I really must thank you for your kindness. I can find a partner on my own.＊

"Ha! We've crossed paths long enough to count as old friends, haven't we? No need to puff yourself up and play the swollen-faced fat man in front of us. Don't stand on ceremony with this young master, and don't be embarrassed—if you need one, I really can introduce you to a partner. I can't just stand by and watch you become everyone's laughingstock, can I? Not even able to find a partner—how pitiful is that! Hahahaha!" Xu Lingchong laughed wildly.

Of course he had no such goodwill as to introduce Wei Zhao to any partner. Setting aside the fact that Wei Zhao would never agree, if he did agree it would only be courting death. No guessing was needed to know that this partner would inevitably be one of Xu Lingchong's own people—a veritable time bomb, a schemer who would bury a man alive with no room for negotiation!

"Say no more. Please leave, both of you!" Wei Zhao could not be bothered to waste words on these two and moved directly to seal his cave dwelling.

"So eager to send us off?" Meng Zhou had finally seized a chance and was preparing a few taunts when the corner of his eye caught the scene inside the cave, and he froze. "Eh?"

By then Xu Lingchong had also noticed something amiss inside. A figure seemed to be curled up in the quilt on the bed—and more to the point, a woman's garment had been taken off and laid aside nearby!

Xu Lingchong's expression changed at once, and he demanded in a shrill, savage voice, "Is it that slut Shangguan Lan'er?!"

Though he could no longer be counted a man, and though he no longer harbored any improper designs on Shangguan Lan'er, his heart was still warped. The mere sight of Shangguan Lan'er with Wei Zhao filled him with extreme displeasure, and he wished he could hack these two colluding dogs to pieces on the spot!

Without waiting for Wei Zhao to react, Xu Lingchong darted in with a single stride and, without a word, made to yank back the quilt. This was not entirely a fit of impulse—he had his calculations.

In his reckoning, if his guess was right and the one on the bed truly was Shangguan Lan'er, then exposing Wei Zhao's secret affair with her would inevitably damage Wei Zhao's prospects. With the right maneuvering afterward, it was not even impossible to cut Wei Zhao's future short on the spot.

One had to understand that the customs of Yunjie Island had largely been handed down from ancient times. Even cultivators still viewed the barrier between men and women with great strictness. If Wei Zhao and Shangguan Lan'er had been properly wed, that would be one thing—but the two of them now had no status between them whatsoever, and to be brazenly coupling together like this...

If this got out, it would be more than a matter of offending public morals. It would be a slap in the face of that great personage Shangguan Tianxia—and when the time came, they would not even need to lift a finger. Shangguan Tianxia would be the first to show Wei Zhao no mercy!

Xu Lingchong's sudden charge inside caught even Wei Zhao off guard. Only when he saw Xu Lingchong reaching for the quilt did he come to his senses, and with a great shock he pursued in a flash.

Even if it was not Shangguan Lan'er, Huang Xiaotao inside was utterly unclad. How could he let a bastard like Xu Lingchong see her?

Wei Zhao struck from behind, arriving even as Xu Lingchong advanced, and seized him by the collar. Then his true qi erupted and he hauled back violently. Xu Lingchong was dragged clean off his feet; he staggered back several zhang and crashed into the wall with a boom, so forceful that it nearly shattered the cave dwelling's restrictive formation!

"Aiya, you're asking for death!" Xu Lingchong had been sent sprawling in a heap, and his shame turned to fury; he scrambled up and made to strike.

He was, after all, an expert of the mid-Golden Core stage—merely disheveled, not truly hurt. Had he not been caught unprepared, he could never have been so easily handled by Wei Zhao.

Meng Zhou, standing beside him, was also raring to go. This time Wei Zhao had struck first; if he sought his own death, he had only himself to blame. The Sandie Pavilion's rules forbade launching attacks on fellow disciples, but there was no rule saying one could not act in self-defense when attacked.

Yet before the two of them could move, Wei Zhao was the first to speak, with a cold laugh. "Senior Brother Xu, the two of you are trespassing in my cave dwelling, aren't you? The inner-sect tournament is at hand—if the higher-ups were to learn of this, tell me, would you still be competing in it? Heh heh..."

"You! Hmph!" Xu Lingchong was instantly choked speechless. Only then did he realize that he had been the first to trespass, and by the Sandie Pavilion's rules, whatever they did after that was wrong—the other party could kill them on the spot with impunity.

Meng Zhou had no choice but to stop as well, yet he still refused to leave just like that. His eyes roved straight to the quilt on the bed; he itched to reach out and strip it back, to see clearly the face of the person inside.

"What? You two still don't wish to leave? Does that mean you want me to have someone see you out?" Wei Zhao stood between the two of them and the bed, and said with a cold curl of his lip.

"Hmph, we'll see about that!" Xu Lingchong backed toward the doorway in a show of weakness, while secretly shooting Meng Zhou a look—a signal for the two of them to strike at once, one from the left and one from the right.

So long as they could strip back the quilt and confirm that the one inside was indeed Shangguan Lan'er, then even bearing the crime of trespass would not matter. By then all eyes would be on Wei Zhao, and this fellow would surely die a miserable death!

Wei Zhao saw through their intent and thought to himself that this was bad. One was mid-Golden Core and the other early-Golden Core; if they truly struck at once from left and right, it would be nearly impossible for him alone to stop them both.

Just as the two sides faced off, a sound of footsteps suddenly came from outside the door—Miserable Senior Brother, Xiao Che, and the others had heard the commotion and come rushing over.

"Junior Brother Lin, are you all right?" The cave door stood wide open, and Miserable Senior Brother, seeing the tense standoff inside, asked with concern.

"I'm fine. The question is whether Senior Brothers Xu and Meng are fine," Wei Zhao said, casting them a cold sidelong glance.

"Hmph, count yourself lucky today. Brother Meng, let's go!" Seeing the situation turn unfavorable, Xu Lingchong, though unwilling, had no choice but to withdraw first with Meng Zhou.

With so many people drawn over to watch, if they forcibly made a move now, even if they did discover it was Shangguan Lan'er, it would do them no good—because in that case Shangguan Tianxia would not go after Wei Zhao first, but would come straight to settle accounts with the two of them. Such a fury was more than they could bear!

Watching the two leave in unwillingness, Wei Zhao finally let out a breath of relief. After saying a word to Miserable Senior Brother and the others, he at last sealed the cave dwelling and let Huang Xiaotao come out.

"Have they gone?" Huang Xiaotao cautiously poked her head out from under the covers. (To be continued..) R527