Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

"Commander Cao, we've been waiting for you."

As soon as Cao Xiong arrived at the Hundred-Household Barracks, he saw the magistrate of Guobei County sitting in a chair with a worried expression.

"What trouble has Your Excellency encountered that you are in such a hurry?"

Cao Xiong remained calm and sat down in Wei Qiang's seat.

"This matter is strange. More than half a month ago, people started being killed in the western district of the outer city. At first, I didn't pay much attention to it, as it was a quagmire."

"A motley crew of people from all walks of life."

"But people kept dying, and the manner of their deaths was the same: their heads were all removed out of thin air."

"After I sent my constables to investigate, no one else died, and I thought the matter was settled."

"But who knew that seven or eight days ago, people started dying one after another. This time, the dead either lost an arm or both legs."

"According to the coroner's confirmation, this victim was killed in the same manner as the victim in the previous headless case; both were murdered with a knife, and..."

At this point, the magistrate looked up at Cao Xiong and said, "He used a scalpel."

"Lancet?"

Cao Xiong frowned. The willow-leaf knife was the standard-issue knife for Ming Dynasty soldiers, but it was not exclusive to them.

The willow-leaf knife has a wide tip, is not easy to break, and has strong chopping power, making it the first choice for many swordsmen in the martial arts world.

"right."

The magistrate's eyes narrowed. "The murderer first stopped committing crimes after the bandit suppression campaign began at the Hundred Household Office in Guobei County, and then resumed his crimes after the soldiers returned."

"I have already investigated all the people in the western district of the outer city who are skilled with scalpels, and none of them are the murderer."

"Therefore, I suspect that the murderer was most likely a government soldier."

Cao Xiong tapped his fingers incessantly on the table, confirming the magistrate's suspicions.

Determining whether the murderer was a soldier from the Hundred Households Office was not difficult, Cao Xiong thought to himself.

"Magistrate, are people dying every night, or is the killer's frequency of attacks irregular?"

"Basically, people are being killed every night, and the number of deaths is increasing."

The magistrate's face showed even more distress; if things continued like this, his term as magistrate would come to an end.

"Leave the investigation at the garrison to me. Tonight, I will gather all the officers and soldiers at the garrison and wait until tomorrow to see if the murderer will strike again tonight."

The magistrate looked relieved. "Then thank you very much for your cooperation, Commander."

After the magistrate of Guobei County left, Cao Xiong summoned Wang Er and instructed him to inform all the squad leaders that there was a mission the next morning and that everyone had to stay at the garrison tonight.

……

Night fell as scheduled.

The outer city of Guobei County, western district.

The case of the mutilated corpse has created an atmosphere of fear and unease.

The once bustling and chaotic streets are now mostly deserted, with only a few vendors rushing home and even gangsters who used to come out every night to freeload rarely showing up.

The most famous red-light district is deserted.

The homeless refugees who had gathered in the western district were also evacuated to other places by the county government.

A figure clad in a black robe, wearing a demon mask, and wielding a willow-leaf dagger moved swiftly across the rooftops.

It eventually stopped above a courtyard.

"The Red Sleeve Gang, this is our target tonight."

The masked man slowly drew his willow-leaf dagger, its blade gleaming coldly.

"I was just too old-fashioned before, insisting on killing evil people."

"Actually, it doesn't matter who you kill, the important thing is to kill a lot."

The masked man leaped down from the rooftop, killing two Red Sleeve Gang members on patrol with a single blow.

"Help!"

The commotion immediately attracted the attention of the other gang members, and seven or eight burly men wielding clubs, knives, and axes surrounded them from all sides.

"Hmph, you're the murderer who committed the dismemberment case before, aren't you? I didn't expect you to be so bold as to come to the headquarters of my Red Sleeve Gang."

The round-faced man leading the group grinned maliciously, his thick beard swaying with his expression. "I heard you're a pervert, you like collecting dismembered limbs. Heh heh, I like perverts, they're got the kicks."

The round-faced man licked his lips, a glint of greed flashing in his eyes.

"So noisy!"

The masked man suddenly moved, his figure incredibly fast, and in an instant, two more gang members were killed.

"You have guts, go get them!"

"Bang bang bang~"

The masked man neither dodged nor avoided the blows, letting the knives and clubs fall on him.

The members of the Red Sleeve Gang felt as if they were being struck on a block of iron; apart from hearing a loud crash, they couldn't harm the masked man.

In less than two minutes, the entire courtyard was filled with the corpses of the Red Sleeve Gang.

The masked man trampled over the corpses, searching room by room for any survivors. Occasionally, sounds of fighting could be heard from inside the rooms, before silence returned.

The masked man's black robe was stained red with blood. He dragged corpses out of the house and laid them all out in the courtyard.

It's like creating a work of art.

"one two three……"

The masked man counted the corpses and found a total of twenty-eight, which did not match the number of Red Sleeve Gang members he knew.

"Those small fry are lucky."

The masked man muttered something to himself, then, starting with the first corpse, he cut off both legs and put them into the sack he had brought with him.

Hehe~

Finally, the masked man set a fire and quickly disappeared into the darkness, carrying a sack that was still dripping blood.

Just over ten minutes later, a group of people dressed in the same Red Sleeve Gang uniforms, carrying weapons, hurriedly ran back to the courtyard.

"Put out the fire! Who the hell did this? I'll chop him up!"

"Boss, the brothers who died, they've lost both legs. It's the pervert from the mutilation case."

……

Early morning, Guobei County, Baihu Office.

Last night, under Cao Xiong's arrangement, all the officers and soldiers stayed in the Hundred Household Office.

"Uncle Cao, I kept watch the whole time last night, and not a single fly got out."

Wang Er rubbed his lower back and came to Cao Xiong to report.

"Alright, all you can do is complain. Go and notify all the officers and soldiers to assemble. Today I'll be instructing you on martial arts training."

"Okay!"

Wang Er excitedly ran out of the barracks.

This was the excuse Cao Xiong came up with for leaving all the officers and soldiers at the Hundred Households Office last night.

Now, all we have to do is wait for news from the county magistrate.

Not long after, the magistrate of Guobei County arrived at the barracks under the escort of his yamen runners.

"Chief Cao, last night a small gang was attacked by a murderer. More than twenty people died, all of them were killed with lancets and lost both legs."

"Oh? But I left all the officers and soldiers at the centurion's post last night."

Cao Xiong was also somewhat doubtful. Could it really not have been done by the soldiers?

That's not bad news for him. If it really was his men who did it, then that would be truly hilarious.

The county magistrate paced back and forth in the barracks, wondering, "Where exactly did things go wrong?"

"Your Excellency, why don't you come with me to the drill ground to confirm this?"

The magistrate stopped, put his hands behind his back, and nodded.

"This is the only way."

Soon, Cao Xiong arrived at the drill ground with the county magistrate.

He called Wang Er over, "How's it going? Has everyone arrived?"

"Report to the commander-in-chief that all junior officers and soldiers have assembled and no one is absent."

"but……"

Wang Er paused here.

"explain!"

Cao Xiong's heart skipped a beat.

"Fang Zheng hasn't been to the centurion's office for several days, so he wasn't here last night."

Cao Xiong suddenly looked up, a cold glint in his eyes.

"Square~"