On the other side.

Seeing that his attack had failed and that he hadn’t killed Wei Tu, the iron hammer giant hesitated.

—As long as Wei Tu was alive, he had to keep part of his focus on defending against another arrow aimed at his eye.

With a loud roar, he grabbed two county soldiers and hurled them into the formation, creating an opening as the officers momentarily shifted their attention. He then bolted toward the southeastern wall of Liu Family Fortress.

Despite his massive frame, his movements were surprisingly agile—like a giant pangolin weaving through the courtyard.

Finally, he found an opportunity. With a powerful step, he launched himself upward, gripping the eaves of the wall with one hand, attempting to scale it and escape.

But at that moment—

Several officers had already anticipated this moment of weakness.

They saw the exhaustion creeping into his movements and immediately hurled the flying claw hooks they carried at their waists.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The flying claws shot through the air, wrapping tightly around the iron hammer giant’s legs, arms, and the gaps between his armor plates.

A dozen officers pulled with all their might.

With a loud crash, the iron hammer giant fell backward, taking a section of the wall with him as he slammed heavily onto the ground.

The surrounding county soldiers immediately reformed their shield wall, completely surrounding him.

Long spears thrust forward, piercing his vital points.

In an instant.

Blood pooled across the ground.

The iron hammer giant let out a final, muffled groan before his massive body went still, his corpse bristling with spears.

“He’s finally dead.”

A collective sigh of relief rippled through the officers.

Though the battle for Liu Family Fortress was not yet over, they knew that this giant had been the strongest opponent they would face tonight.

If there had been other formidable enemies inside, they wouldn’t have stood idly by while the iron hammer giant fought alone and was slowly worn down to death.

“Press the attack! We can’t let any of the Martial Luck Pavilion remnants escape!”

One sharp-eyed officer immediately barked an order, rallying his unit to charge deeper into the fortress.

It was a show of unwavering commitment to eradicating Martial Luck Pavilion’s forces.

“I’m going too.”

Other officers, seeing this, instantly understood.

That officer wasn’t just trying to complete the mission—he was going after loot.

According to military custom—

Anything looted from Liu Family Fortress during the battle, as long as a soldier could carry it, would belong to them. Half would be handed over to their commanding officer, while the rest was theirs to keep.

Wei Tu saw this and didn’t hesitate.

He gripped his golden-backed blade and pushed forward into the fray.

—Two years ago, to forge his armor, he had borrowed eighty taels of silver from Wei Fei and Wei Hong.

With his officer’s salary alone, it would take him nearly a decade of saving—without spending a single coin—to pay off his debts.

As a mere Military Commandant, he didn’t have the rank or authority to embezzle military funds or exploit soldiers’ wages. At most, he could receive some hush money every year.

So this battlefield was his best shot at making quick money.

No need to hesitate.

Over an hour later.

The sky began to lighten.

The county soldiers regrouped outside Liu Family Fortress.

Compared to the tense and somber mood upon their arrival, now every officer and soldier wore a satisfied grin—each one carrying their spoils from the night’s battle.

Liu Family Fortress, as a sub-branch of Martial Luck Pavilion, didn’t hold an immense amount of wealth.

But for the county troops from Qingmu County, it was still a considerable fortune.

“Seventy-two casualties. One hundred and thirteen Martial Luck Pavilion fighters slain. A decisive victory.”

County Captain Xu finished his headcount and nodded to himself.

If it weren’t for the iron hammer giant causing chaos, their losses wouldn’t have been so high.

Wei Tu’s gaze swept over the group as he heard County Captain Xu’s command. “Wei Tu, you are our Military Commandant and responsible for overseeing merits and punishments. This time, I’ll leave the task of awarding merits and assigning blame to you.”

There were a total of three Military Commandants in Qingmu County. One had remained in the county, while the other two had followed him to Si Yang Town.

But compared to Wei Tu, who had performed outstandingly and secured two major achievements, the other had been utterly unimpressive.

Letting Wei Tu handle the awards and penalties would also ensure the troops had no objections.

As for Prefect He’s past suppression of Wei Tu—

County Captain Xu had already put that behind him. More than two years had passed, and Prefect He had long since lost influence.

Besides, he wasn’t promoting Wei Tu—just giving him some additional authority as a reward for his contributions in this battle.

“I accept the order,” Wei Tu responded calmly, cupping his fists.

County Captain Xu nodded in approval before turning to the assembled officers and soldiers. “Transmit my order—we will be temporarily stationed at Liu Family Fortress to continue hunting down any remaining Martial Luck Pavilion operatives!”

Some of the officers were visibly surprised by this command but still obeyed without hesitation.

During their surprise assault on Liu Family Fortress, they had ensured that not a single person had escaped.

How could there possibly be any remnants of Martial Luck Pavilion left in Si Yang Town?

Even if some had managed to flee, they would have long escaped by now.

However, Wei Tu understood the situation perfectly.

After a moment of thought, he muttered to himself, “County Captain Xu is probably using this as an excuse to extort the local gentry—power unused is power wasted…”

Though he considered himself an ordinary man in terms of talent, his past life’s exposure to vast amounts of information gave him a broader perspective than most in the county.

He could see right through County Captain Xu’s intentions.

That evening, inside Liu Family Fortress.

Wei Fei arrived carrying a fine jug of wine, along with a roasted chicken and a plate of boiled soybeans, looking for Wei Tu to drink and chat.

“This time, I really struck gold. I looted at least two hundred taels of silver,” Wei Fei said excitedly after downing a few cups of wine.

Although he was the adopted son of the Qingu Gang’s leader and had access to wealth, he had little actual silver at his disposal.

The fifty taels he had lent Wei Tu two years ago had come from his adoptive father, who saw potential in Wei Tu and had deliberately arranged for the loan.

Two hundred taels—this was equivalent to the liquid wealth of an average wealthy household in the county, excluding land and property.

“I didn’t do too bad myself. Got about eighty or ninety taels,” Wei Tu said with a chuckle, using his chopsticks to pick up some food.

Since reaching the Qi Perception Realm, his movements had become much sharper. Even compared to other officers, his speed and awareness were far superior.

So despite hanging back and entering late, he had still managed to collect a fair share of valuables.

“Besides silver…” Wei Fei suddenly leaned in and pulled out a worn booklet from his robe, lowering his voice. “I found this on that iron hammer brute.”

“We’re sworn brothers, so we’ll study it together.”

He grinned as he placed the book between them.

“A manual?” Wei Tu raised an eyebrow in surprise. He immediately recalled that after the iron hammer brute had died, while most of the officers had been scrambling for treasure, Wei Fei had lingered near the body for a moment.

At that time, Wei Tu had also wanted to loot the corpse, but he had been too close to County Captain Xu and surrounded by the captain’s personal guards, making it difficult to act.

By the time he had an opportunity, the iron hammer brute’s body had been stripped clean by the soldiers.

He hadn’t expected Wei Fei to have the same idea—and to have acted first.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep