"A gold mine in the Qingyun Mountains, and Duanmu Ming cultivating in the Prefectural Governor's dungeon, aiming for the late stages of the Heaven Realm... This is way above my pay grade. I need to inform Father immediately!"
Su Hao stepped out of the room, his brow furrowed in thought.
Cough! Cough!
He doubled over, a mouthful of blood staining the ground. The two consecutive fights had taken their toll.
Hurriedly, Su Hao retrieved a bottle of Minor Rejuvenation Pills from his system inventory and swallowed one. The pill suppressed his injuries, allowing him to leave the courtyard and return to the City Constable's Office.
Back at the office, Su Yuan and Su Neng awaited his return. They had already taken care of the three gangs with ease. Dealing with Mortal Realm cultivators was child's play for Earth Realm experts like them. Anyone who resisted met a swift end.
"Young Master, the three gangs have been dealt with. We eliminated Chen Xuan at the Three Triads headquarters, but the other two Constables were searching the city for the Magistrate's assassin. We didn't engage them," Su Yuan reported.
"Come to my study. I have important instructions."
The three gangs were the least of Su Hao's concerns at the moment. The news he had received needed to reach the Su Clan as quickly as possible. It was both critical and urgent. The potential gold mine was of great import, while Duanmu Ming's impending breakthrough demanded immediate action.
Su Hao led the two men into his study, where he swiftly penned a letter detailing everything he had learned. He sealed the letter and handed it to Su Yuan.
"Su Yuan, depart for Fu City immediately. Travel in secret and deliver this letter directly to my father. This is of the utmost importance."
"As you command, Young Master!" Su Yuan accepted the letter with a solemn nod, securing it within his robes. He left the office immediately, wasting no time in procuring a fast horse to make the journey back to Fu City.
"Su Neng, I need you to keep an eye on the situation here. Report anything unusual, particularly anything involving the County Office."
"Yes, Young Master!" Su Neng bowed and exited the study.
Left alone, Su Hao rubbed his temples, his mind racing.
"I'll leave the rest to Father, but how do I deal with this County Magistrate?"
As the County Magistrate, Dugu Fan was a powerful figure. Su Hao couldn't simply kill him without cause. Even knowing his true identity wasn't enough; he needed proof. Of course, if Dugu Fan were to slip up and reveal his true nature, Su Hao wouldn't hesitate to act.
"For now, I'll keep him under surveillance and await Father's instructions."
Unable to formulate a concrete plan, Su Hao decided to wait for reinforcements.
He leaned back in his chair, his eyelids growing heavy. Soon, he drifted off to sleep.
That night, chaos gripped Qingyuan County. Constables swarmed the streets, searching for the Magistrate's attacker, while the three gangs were embroiled in their own internal purges. An atmosphere of fear and uncertainty descended upon the city.
After an unsuccessful search for the assassin, Lin Meng and Wu Xun ordered the city gates sealed and returned to the County Office to report to Fang Heng.
However, as they stepped into the County Office, they were greeted by an unsettling silence. In the main hall, they found three corpses, drained of all blood.
"Blood Demon!" Lin Meng gasped, his face paling at the sight.
Wu Xun shared his subordinate's fear, but he quickly shook it off and hurried towards Fang Heng's chambers. But the advisor's quarters were empty.
"Do you think the Blood Demon got to Fang Heng, too? What should we do?" Lin Meng asked, his voice trembling.
Wu Xun frowned. He'd always harbored suspicions about the Blood Demon, and now, with Fang Heng's disappearance, those suspicions were growing.
"We need to see the Magistrate immediately!"
The two men hurried towards Dugu Fan's chambers.
Dugu Fan had finally managed to suppress the blood poison raging within him.
"Though this blood poison acts up from time to time, it increases my strength each time it does. Once Master helps me refine it, I'll be able to break through to the Ninth Stage Earth Realm." He muttered to himself.
He'd been concealing his true strength. While outsiders believed him to be at the Seventh Stage, he'd already broken through to the Eighth Stage a year ago.
He sensed someone approaching his chambers and opened the door to find Lin Meng and Wu Xun rushing toward him.
"Magistrate, Advisor Fang is missing! We found three bodies in the main hall, completely drained of blood," Lin Meng reported.
"Fang Heng has been abducted, but he should be safe for now. I'll handle the matter personally. What progress have you made in finding the assassin?" Dugu Fan asked, unfazed by the news of the corpses.
"We haven't found any trace of the assassin," Lin Meng and Wu Xun confessed, kneeling in shame.
"What about the three gangs? Have them join the search. I want that assassin found! And have someone keep an eye on the City Constable's Office. I want to know everything Su Hao and his people were doing today."
The attack happening so soon after Su Hao's arrival was too much of a coincidence. He was beginning to suspect the Su Clan heir was behind it all. Su Hao and his men were the only ones in Qingyuan whose allegiances were unclear.
Just then, a constable rushed into the hall, his face pale with fright. He'd caught a glimpse of the corpses on his way in.
"What is it? Why are you panicking?" Lin Meng barked.
"My lords, Constable Chen Xuan has been murdered by the three gangs! They've pledged their allegiance to the City Constable's Office!"
"What? Are you saying Sun Hu and the others have submitted to Su Hao?" Lin Meng grabbed the man by the collar.
"N-no, sir. Sun Hu and the other leaders are missing. Xie Zhen and his men are in control now. They killed Constable Chen and pledged their loyalty to Su Hao."
"Sun Hu is missing?" Lin Meng's eyes widened in surprise. In the underworld, going missing usually meant one thing: death.
"Where did they go before they disappeared?" Wu Xun asked.
"They… they went to the Spring Breeze Pavilion at Young Master Su's invitation," the constable stammered.
"It was Su Hao," Wu Xun said, turning to Dugu Fan. "Should we confront him?"
"Su Hao…" Dugu Fan's eyes flashed with cold fury. "He's more ruthless than I gave him credit for. It seems I underestimated the ruthlessness of these clan heirs."
He'd thought dealing with a spoiled, pampered young master would be easy, but Su Hao's decisiveness caught him off guard.
"Keep the city gates closed. No one enters or leaves until further notice. Tomorrow morning, we pay a visit to the City Constable's Office. We'll use those corpses as leverage."
Now that he knew who he was dealing with, Dugu Fan decided to wait. He had just suppressed his blood poison and wasn't in peak condition. He would use the discovery of the blood-drained corpses to his advantage and accuse Su Hao of harboring the Blood Demon.
"As you command!" Lin Meng and Wu Xun bowed and exited the hall.
Outside the County Office, Lin Meng let out a sigh of relief.
"It's a good thing we weren't at the Three Triads headquarters. We might have ended up like Chen Xuan!"
"That Su Clan heir is as ruthless as they say! He doesn't hesitate to kill. I bet he has Fang Heng, too. This isn't some spoiled brat; he's a demon in disguise!" Wu Xun shuddered.
Whoever called Su Hao a good-for-nothing wastrel was dead wrong. His ruthlessness sent chills down Wu Xun's spine. To think he had believed those foolish rumors.