Lu Tu suddenly called out to Liu Yang and the other two who were preparing to walk: "You can't ride horses, so it'll be faster for me to go by myself."

Without further ado, Liu Yang and Nie Yun picked up their axes and chopped off the heads of the Wuhuan soldiers one by one. The other villagers then brought straw ropes, strung the nine heads together, and placed them on Lu Tu's horse.

Lu Tu instructed Nie Yun to continue guarding the place, while Liu Yang and Liu Hu were to return to the village to fetch some grain for distribution.

After explaining everything, Lü Tu mounted his horse and galloped towards Wuchuan City, leaving behind a trail of bloody heads. Many villagers along the way saw this and were so shocked that they covered their mouths in disbelief.

At the gates of Wuchuan, the soldiers guarding the city saw a man and a horse covered in blood, carrying many heads, staggering towards them from afar. The soldiers were so frightened that they immediately went into high alert.

He raised his spear and shouted, "You audacious scoundrel, if you dare take another step forward, you will be killed without mercy!"

Fortunately, Lü Tu reacted quickly and pulled on the reins, otherwise he would have been stabbed through the heart. He looked angrily at the leading soldier: "I am Lü Tu, a platoon leader in the border army! I killed the Wuhuan cavalry. Come, collect your reward!"

Someone nudged Zhou Tong, the city's garrison captain, and whispered, "Captain, this man led a group into the city to buy grain earlier."

It was only then that Zhou Tong recognized Lü Tu. As Zhou Taishan's distant nephew, he naturally knew that Lü Tu had offended Zhou Yabing.

He spat dismissively and said, "What are you? You, a mere squad leader, think you can kill a Wuhuan person?"

Lu Tu picked up the severed head behind him and said, "Open your dog eyes wide and see clearly whether this is a Wuhuan person or not!"

Only then did Zhou Tong examine the heads closely. Although the hair was disheveled, the features of the golden-haired, blue-eyed Wuhuan people were complete. They were none other than the Wuhuan cavalry that struck fear into the hearts of the border troops!

He was startled and looked at Lü Tu in surprise. He couldn't believe that so many Wuhuan cavalrymen were actually killed by this guy in front of him. Even if he had his men to help him, it was impossible!

It should be noted that, looking at the entire border army group, a small squad of Wuhuan cavalry capable of killing nearly ten men would require at least several hundred elite border troops.

"Bullshit! I think these heads are clearly yours, disguised and used to take advantage of the situation. I've seen plenty of cunning and deceitful people like you!"

Lu Tu pulled out his squad leader's token, revealing his identity: "I'm too lazy to argue with you. I'll hand it over, and the Commandant will find someone to verify it!"

Having said that, Lü Tu ignored the guards holding long spears in front of him and shouted, "Get out of the way!"

Lu Tu was already in a bad mood, and when he came to hand over his military merits, he was deliberately made difficult. Fortunately, he was the one who had the foresight to come on his own. If Liu Yang and the others had come, he would have at least given up his military merits to someone else, or he might have even been punished.

Therefore, this shout, mixed with a hint of anger from Lü Tu, immediately intimidated the soldiers guarding him, especially when they saw Lü Tu covered in blood and still exuding murderous intent.

Even without Zhou Tong's orders, they spontaneously made way for each other.

Zhou Tong angrily said, "Are you trying to rebel?"

Lu Tu glanced at him sideways: "Who are you?"

"I am Zhou Tong, the captain of the South Gate City Defense Team!"

Upon hearing the name, Lü Tu immediately understood. City defense was a lucrative job. Collecting taxes from the people and merchants who entered the city was a considerable income. It seemed that Zhou Taishan had far too many connections in Wuchuan City!

"My name is Lü Tu. Remember my name. This may be the last time we talk."

After saying that, Lü Tu spurred his warhorse forward and knocked Zhou Tong off balance.

Although Zhou Tong was angry, he had also heard that Lü Tu was extremely skilled. His previous attempts to make things difficult for Lü Tu had yielded no results. With a quick thought, he instructed the soldier beside him, "Go to Lord Zhou's residence immediately and tell him everything about Lü Tu!"

"yes!"

Zhou Tong watched Lü Tu's departing figure and gritted his teeth inwardly: "You want to gain military merit? I'll make sure you don't get your way!"

Logically speaking, Lu Tu's direct superior was Zhou Taishan, but Zhou Taishan's hostility towards him had reached the point where it no longer needed to be hidden. At this time, wouldn't it be foolish to offer up one's head?

So he simply rode directly to the residence of the Wuchuan Commandant. The Commandant was the highest-ranking official in Wuchuan. If he couldn't get the military merit he deserved from him, it meant that this path was completely blocked, and he wouldn't need to kill Wuhuan to gain military merit in the future.

Having prepared for the worst, Lü Tu arrived at the Commandant's Office and dismounted a long distance ahead of time. This was the Commandant's Office's rule: except for messengers delivering urgent messages, everyone had to dismount and hand over their swords.

When Lü Tu appeared in front of the Commandant's mansion dressed like this, he still startled the guards, who all gripped their swords and asked warily, "Who are you, and what brings you here?"

Lu Tu pulled out his squad leader's badge: "I'm here to collect my military merits. These are all Wuhuan cavalrymen I killed!"

The guards exchanged glances, all seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

After examining it closely, they confirmed that it was indeed the head of a Wuhuan person and were overjoyed: "Good lad, you killed so many Wuhuan soldiers?"

Lu Tu did not seek credit: "Some of them were killed by my soldiers; we suffered heavy casualties."

The guard waved his hand dismissively: "Don't worry about casualties. As long as you can kill the Karasuma, you're a real man! You wait here, I'll go report this!"

Seeing that the attitude of these people was completely different from that of Zhou Tong, the guard at the South Gate, Lu Tu felt a little more at ease and cupped his hands to them, saying, "Thank you all for your help."

This scene attracted many nearby residents and passersby. Someone shouted, "Someone killed a lot of Wuhuan soldiers!"

In no time, the streets were almost completely surrounded by people chattering about Lü Tu and the heads of those Wuhuan soldiers.

"Look at this man! He's a fierce warrior! He killed so many Wuhuan soldiers all by himself! He's truly amazing!"

"Why does he look so familiar? Isn't he the one who married that skinny woman at the market the other day?"

"It really is him! I thought he would starve to death after marrying that skinny woman, but I never expected him to be so capable that he could actually kill the Wuhuan cavalry!"

Among the crowd were several matchmakers who eagerly stepped forward and bowed to Lü Tu, asking, "Hero, do you have any plans to take a concubine?"

Lu Tu politely declined: "I'm sorry, I live a life of constant danger and bloodshed, and I don't have that idea at the moment."

Upon hearing this, the matchmakers secretly regretted that such a fine young man was not only skilled but also so handsome. How come they had never seen him before?

Before long, the guard who had gone to report earlier came out with an excited look on his face and waved to Lü Tu, saying, "Brother, the Commandant wants you to come in!"