Chapter 4655 — Trying It Out for Himself

Wei Zhao was gazing at Ning Xuefei, slightly dazed, when she happened to look his way as well. Their eyes met, and in that instant time seemed to freeze.

Wei Zhao had never harbored any improper designs on Ning Xuefei, yet in that one moment their hearts drew unknowably closer by a considerable measure. Suddenly, Wei Zhao felt a startling flutter in his chest.

Under the gaze of Ning Xuefei's eyes, so full of hope, Wei Zhao drew a deep breath. This sudden trial on West Island—he feared he would have to find a way to thrust himself into the middle of it.

"This trial on West Island will officially begin in two days' time. Should any of you be interested, you may all sign up when the hour comes; I am confident it will not disappoint." Having made her announcement, Ning Shanghe raised her cup to the assembly, drained it in a single draft, and then departed first with Ning Xuefei.

The hall fell utterly silent. Since the host had taken her leave, it meant the birthday feast had drawn to its close. Yet the crowd plainly had not yet recovered from the surprise of moments before; one and all stared with burning eyes at the backs disappearing through the great doorway.

To be able to take part in this West Island trial at all was already an unexpected gain. And should one distinguish oneself during the trial, there was all the more the chance of leaping up to become the West Island princess's husband—a chance to ascend to heaven in a single step!

A long while later, the assembled company finally departed one after another, returning to their lodgings to begin their preparations. Not everyone might take part in this exceedingly rare West Island trial, but any person possessed of strength and ambition would never let slip an opportunity so seldom met and so eagerly sought.

"Young Master Xu, this is all wrong. That lecher Wei Zhao is certain to take part in this trial—if he's chosen to be Ning Xuefei's husband, then we'll have failed so utterly it'll be a complete disgrace!" Back in their room, Kang Jingming could not help voicing his worry. Failing a mission meant severe punishment, and he had no wish to be the scapegoat.

"You think I need you to tell me that? You imagine I don't see such a simple point? Have you got a better idea?" Xu Lingchong paced irritably back and forth in the room. Ning Shanghe's sudden announcement was a fine opportunity for others, but for the two of them it was a colossal headache—was this not handing Wei Zhao a heaven-sent chance to attach himself to Ning Xuefei?

"No..." Kang Jingming shook his head helplessly. A few days ago, during the welcome banquet, he had tried to ruin the relationship between Ning Xuefei and Wei Zhao, only to be exposed on the spot. Even now he had not thought of how to sow further discord, and to his surprise Wei Zhao's side had instead gained a chance to draw closer to Ning Xuefei. What were they to do now?

"No? Then what are you farting about?" Xu Lingchong flung his hand aside irritably, his face all unease and fury.

As the two were speaking, a faint red shadow suddenly slipped in through the window. Xu Lingchong and Kang Jingming both tensed with excitement at once—a blood bat message!

Xu Lingchong hurried to take the slip of paper from the blood bat's back. As expected, it bore the latest instructions from the mysterious man. Yet when he had read it through, Xu Lingchong was left staring blankly, his expression thoroughly strange.

"Young Master Xu, what does the higher-up say?" Kang Jingming asked cautiously from one side.

"The higher-up already knows that Ning Shanghe means to choose a husband for her daughter through the West Island trial. He orders us to do everything we can to keep Wei Zhao from succeeding—even if we must resort to any means and sabotage the trial itself. However..." Xu Lingchong paused abruptly here.

"However what?" Kang Jingming asked at once.

"The higher-up's meaning is that it would be best if we could come out on top in this West Island trial and seize the chance to climb up to the West Island princess..." As he said this, Xu Lingchong's expression could not help turning somewhat odd.

"This... Young Master Xu, why not try it yourself?" Kang Jingming seized the moment to suggest.

"Bugger your arse—don't you know what I'm like?!" Xu Lingchong flew into a shamefaced rage at these words, his eyes fairly spitting fire as though he could kill. Had this been the past, he would have been a thousand times willing for such a thing, but in the present circumstances, try it his arse!

Kang Jingming promptly shrank back his neck. That Xu Lingchong had been snipped was no secret among them; in truth, anyone familiar with Xu Lingchong knew that the man was not merely incomplete in body—his mind had long since been warped as well. Otherwise, why else would he be forever inseparable from the likes of Meng Zhou?

"Uh, then shall I do it?" Kang Jingming said after a moment's hesitation. He had wanted to say this from the very start. To rise to heaven in one step by riding on the coattails of Ning Xuefei, the West Island princess—such a thing he had always looked forward to. This was precisely how he had done things back in the secular world; at heart the fellow was a petty wretch who loved to climb to prominence by clinging to women.

The West Island princess—what an exalted and noble station that was. Once he became her husband, he would in future be a great personage standing at the very pinnacle of West Island. With skillful means, it was not even impossible to supplant her entirely and become the true master of West Island. When that time came, why would he need to toil like a miserable underling for the Center, or watch Xu Lingchong's face?

What was more, Ning Xuefei was not merely the West Island princess—she was herself a peerless beauty of the highest order. Any man would drool over a woman of such charms, save for a physiologically deficient, psychologically warped madman like Xu Lingchong.

Yet even though Kang Jingming drooled over Ning Xuefei, he had never dared harbor any wild hopes. After all, with his meager strength and standing, the gulf between him and this West Island princess was simply too vast. A toad lusting after swan meat should not dream of gulping it down in such a fashion—were word of it to get out, he would be laughed to death.

But now things were different. Kang Jingming himself carried no weight, but what if the vast, mysterious organization of the Center stood behind him as his backing? Then nothing was impossible, was it?

The longer he had been in the Center, the more fully he recognized the might of that mysterious organization, and the more profoundly his heart was shaken. If this time he could win the full support of the higher-ups, Kang Jingming believed he would absolutely have a chance of succeeding—and no small chance at that!

"You?" Xu Lingchong looked him up and down at these words, his face plainly showing some distrust—it lacked only the four large characters "overrating his own ability" written upon it.

"I... I was only making a suggestion..." Kang Jingming's heart could not help quailing. If the other knew that he had all along been thinking only of seizing the chance to rise, he would be in for a bitter time.

"Fine. As things stand, there's no one else but you." Xu Lingchong thought it over and could only nod. Though in his heart of hearts he felt the lad was unworthy of Ning Xuefei, the trouble was that he could not go himself—so who else could it be but Kang Jingming?

"Many thanks, Young Master Xu!" Kang Jingming was overjoyed. This trip to West Island had truly not been in vain—his turn for fortune had come!

"Get paper and brush. I'll report this matter to the higher-up. From what I know, the West Island trial is not so easy as it sounds; when the time comes, we may well need the higher-up to send reinforcements." Xu Lingchong made his decision on the spot. R1152