285: Chapter 285 The Assassin Like Smoke

Upon hearing this, Luo Ningshuang's gaze subconsciously swept across the crowd surrounding the execution ground, yet she found nothing out of the ordinary.

She could only lower her voice to ask, "Is someone planning to raid the execution ground?"

Chen Hu replied, "Indeed."

Luo Ningshuang immediately said, "Then I will call for another troop to come over."

"No need!" Chen Hu replied dismissively. "With me personally overseeing the execution, those people won't be able to stir up any trouble!"

Although there were experts in the Blood Refining Realm among the group coming to raid the execution ground, he did not consider them a threat.

However, he found it somewhat strange. The news of him killing Marquis Weiwu had already spread, so why did these people still have the audacity to raid the execution ground right under his nose?

Furthermore, the Zhou Family was merely a local aristocratic family. Their strongest member was only in the Bone Refining Realm; how could they hire someone in the Blood Refining Realm to raid the execution ground? Or perhaps, was the Zhou Family hiding some secret?

Out of curiosity, he used his Eye of Insight to check the identity of this Blood Refining Realm expert. However, the individual did not belong to any faction, so he could not determine the reason for the raid.

Meanwhile, inside a house over two hundred meters away from the execution ground, a masked youth stood beside a narrow window. His gaze was fixed on a woman upon the execution platform, and a flash of deep affection and determination crossed his eyes as he murmured to himself, "Ruyan, rest assured, I will definitely rescue you!"

"Ruyan?" Chen Hu softly uttered the name. He then picked up the execution roster and flipped through it, finding a woman named Zhou Ruyan listed there.

This woman was only eighteen and was the youngest daughter of Zhou Chengbang. Both her appearance and figure were extraordinary. She was quite well-known in Yulong City for frequently organizing gatherings for the younger generation, and she was also skilled in poetry and painting. She was considered a top talent in Yulong City, and she had many suitors.

"Could that guy be a simp for Zhou Ruyan?" Chen Hu thought to himself. He felt somewhat speechless; anyone named Ruyan seemed to have a knack for seducing people.

The previous Zhao Ruyan had hooked up with Governor-General Zhao Tianqing's third son. Now, this Zhou Ruyan was even more impressive, having managed to hook up with a young Young Master who possessed a Blood Refining guard.

Inside the second floor of the house, the black-clad, masked youth turned to the old man in the room and asked, "Uncle An, when should we make our move?"

"Young Master, is it really worth it?" the old man called Uncle An asked solemnly. "There are so many beautiful women in this world..."

Before Uncle An could finish, Mo Jingyuan interrupted him. "Uncle An, you don't understand. Ruyan is different from other women; my heart can only hold her!"

"But Young Master, you might lose your life for her!" Uncle An urged. "There are rumors that two days ago, Chen Hu killed Marquis Weiwu. His cultivation is unfathomable!"

However, Mo Jingyuan scoffed. "Uncle An, you're overthinking it. How old is Chen Hu? He's only in his early twenties. How could he possibly have killed Marquis Weiwu?"

"But I cannot see through his cultivation!" Uncle An insisted.

Mo Jingyuan replied, "Uncle An, he must have cultivated some technique to conceal his cultivation."

"Very well, then I shall test him!" Uncle An paused before continuing, "Young Master, if I am no match for Chen Hu, do not worry about Zhou Ruyan. Just flee immediately!"

"No, I must rescue Ruyan!" Mo Jingyuan said with unyielding determination.

"Sigh!" Uncle An sighed helplessly. His Young Master was perfectly normal until he encountered Zhou Ruyan; once he encountered her, or anything related to her, his brain would immediately short-circuit.

He had once suspected that Zhou Ruyan had planted a Gu in his Young Master. It was only after checking his Young Master's body multiple times and finding no Gu that he dismissed this suspicion.

"Uncle An, hurry up and make your move!" Mo Jingyuan urged again.

"Very well, Young Master, I shall go now!" Uncle An flashed out of the room, then disguised himself as an ordinary old man and appeared at the side of the execution platform.

The next moment, he flicked his wrist, and a sky full of hidden weapons shot straight toward the execution platform.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" A layer of light manifested around Chen Hu, enveloping both himself and Luo Ningshuang. He then raised his hand and struck out with a palm, which squarely hit the chest of Uncle An, who had just lunged toward him.

"Boom!" Uncle An flew backward, his body exploding into a mist of blood in mid-air.

The moment Uncle An made his move, Mo Jingyuan had charged toward the execution ground with his subordinates. However, halfway there, he saw Uncle An's body explode.

For a moment, the subordinates he had brought all faltered, but Mo Jingyuan continued to charge toward the execution ground.

"Take him down!" Luo Ningshuang raised an eyebrow and shouted coldly. Immediately, the Brocade Guard beside her surged forward.

Within a short while, all seven people, including Mo Jingyuan, were captured alive and brought before Chen Hu.

"Commander, how should we deal with them?" Luo Ningshuang asked.

Chen Hu waved his hand. "Add a few more execution platforms and behead them all together!"

Mo Jingyuan was lucky; he happened to be placed right next to Zhou Ruyan.

"Ruyan, I'm sorry. I failed to rescue you!" Mo Jingyuan said, his face filled with shame.

"Useless! You're all useless! Didn't you brag about how powerful your Uncle An was? How could he not even block a single palm strike from that Chen Hu?" Zhou Ruyan not only failed to show gratitude toward Mo Jingyuan but instead complained with a resentful tone.

"I'm sorry, Ruyan. I didn't know Uncle An was so useless!" Even though he was about to die, Mo Jingyuan still didn't forget to fawn over Zhou Ruyan.

If Uncle An were to come back to life and hear Mo Jingyuan's words, he would likely be angry enough to die all over again.

"Enough! I don't want to hear your nonsense. Can all your apologies save my life?" Zhou Ruyan sneered.

"I'm sorry!" Mo Jingyuan said again, before falling into silence.

Time passed, and soon it was noon. Chen Hu gave the order, "Behead them all!"

As soon as the order was given, the executioners swung their blades down, and hundreds of heads fell to the ground.

The surrounding crowd watching the spectacle felt no fear; instead, they all clapped and cheered.

Upon returning to the government office, Chen Hu received news that all the tax silver and grain had been returned to the people.

Chen Hu then prepared to leave Yulong Prefecture. He planned to lead his army to capture the four county cities under the jurisdiction of Yulong Prefecture.

To save time, he decided not to take these five thousand Tier 4 Black Armor Soldiers with him. Instead, he took Nangong Hongyan and used Near and Far to instantly appear ten miles outside one of the county cities.

With a wave of his hand, another five thousand Tier 4 Black Armor Soldiers appeared behind them. The two then led the five thousand Black Armor Soldiers unhurriedly toward the city gate.

As they approached, the soldiers at the city gate spotted them and immediately began to close the gates.

Chen Hu did not intervene. After all, for him, breaking through the city was a very simple matter.

Soon, the officials of the county city appeared on the city walls.

"Two hundred men, advance and attack the city!" Chen Hu waved his hand. Immediately, two hundred Black Armor Soldiers surged toward the city walls.

In less than fifteen minutes, the two hundred Black Armor Soldiers had already captured the city walls and opened the gates to welcome Chen Hu inside.

Just like in Yulong Prefecture, Chen Hu divided the five thousand Black Armor Soldiers into three groups: one group to take over the four city gates, one group to take over the county military camp, and the final group to take over the county government office.

Upon arriving at the county government office, Chen Hu purchased a batch of Puppet officials and instructed them to take the rosters and proceed to confiscate the officials' mansions.