In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

On the contrary, Murakami remained calm and bowed his head, saying, "Please allow me to step forward a few steps and personally decipher the mystery for the Prince of Han."

"I said, open it!" Li Yuanchang repeated, his majestic and magnetic voice carrying an air of unyielding authority.

Suddenly, silence fell.

The air in the entire palace was almost still.

Kawakumano kept his head down, sweat dripping from his chin.

Sensing the abnormal magnetic field, Guo Chao and his guards placed their hands on the hilts of their swords and leaned forward, ready to prepare.

Murakami saw it and had no choice but to open the box on the spot.

Upon opening the box, a rolled-up map was indeed found inside, tied with a bright yellow ribbon and a wooden handle. It was exquisitely crafted, resembling the handwriting of the Japanese emperor and imitating a Tang Dynasty edict.

"Please allow me to open it for His Highness the Prince of Han," Murakami said, placing the box on the ground before reaching out to take it.

"Wait!" Li Yuanchang called out, then added, "Push it over here!"

Murakami paused, then froze in place.

"Don't you understand?" Li Yuanchang's deep voice echoed, as chilling as the cold wind outside.

Murakami took a deep breath: "Yes!"

He grabbed the map, but didn't push it out.

Li Yuanchang squinted, seemingly sensing something. Just as he was about to say something, suddenly, an anomaly occurred.

Murakami rolled forward, and a dagger suddenly appeared in his hand. He propelled himself forward like a cannonball by using his legs.

"what!"

Amidst the gasps of surprise from the servants and attendants, pairs of eyes collectively changed color.

"die!"

Murakami gritted his teeth, his expression ferocious.

"Protect the Emperor!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

One after another, figures rushed out; they were the battle-hardened guards of the Prince of Han's mansion.

Murakami's eyes gleamed with a bloodthirsty and chilling murderous intent. He disregarded everything around him, willing to risk his life for Li Yuanchang's, trying to stab him in the chest with the dagger before anyone else could.

Time seemed to stand still.

Li Yuanchang stood there, cold and calm, without even blinking an eye.

Crack!

Murakami's dagger, which was only a meter away, suddenly stopped, sparks flying.

That's a knife!

Guo Chao stood in front of Li Yuanchang, blocking the almost fatal blow.

Murakami's expression changed.

boom!

As Guo Chao blocked the attack with his sword, he also kicked out.

Murakami's body flew away like a kite with a broken string.

All of this happened in an instant. Murakami's failure to get close enough to Li Yuanchang to launch a fatal attack sealed the assassination's fate.

"Protect the Emperor!!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

All the guards drew their swords and pounced on Murakami like tigers and wolves, instantly surrounding him.

He intended to carry out a second assassination, but here, he didn't even have the first chance, so why would his guards give him a second one?

boom!

With the Tang sword slashing at him, Murakami, who only had a dagger, was forced to retreat step by step, rolling on the ground and only managing to maneuver by leaning against a pillar.

bang bang bang...

At the same time, a dense, heavy sound of footsteps could be heard outside.

The guards smashed through the doors and windows and rushed in.

Seeing this, Kawakumano was filled with despair.

"My plan failed; it is fate!"

"Better to be shattered jade than to survive as a broken tile!"

He roared to the sky and charged towards Li Yuanchang, determined to fight to the death.

His grief and indignation made it seem as if he were some great loyal minister, while Li Yuanchang was a treacherous minister who usurped the emperor's power and seized the empress's position.

puff! !

Just as he took his first step, a swift-thinking guard slashed him with his sword, and his head flew off instantly, blood spurting everywhere.

In just one second, he died on the spot.

Li Yuanchang looked at him with disdain. "This low-class stuff doesn't even deserve to say that."

On the other side, the assassin Murakami was also quickly subdued. Facing the attack of his battle-hardened guards, he did not try to run, but he was almost powerless to fight back. He was knocked to the ground and subdued, and the dagger in his hand slipped out.

boom!

The dagger was stepped on.

Li Yuanchang bent down and slowly picked it up.

By this time, the situation was completely under control, and the valiant guards had taken Murakami into custody.

"Your Highness, we are guilty of a capital offense; we failed to find any weapons!" Guo Chao and the others knelt down in unison.

Li Yuanchang shook his head and picked up the map that had been scattered on the ground.

"Get up. It's not your fault. This map is fake. There's a hidden trick inside the wooden handle; the dagger is concealed inside."

Guo Chao and the others were slightly surprised. Was this even possible?

Li Yuanchang strolled slowly to the village and said indifferently, "That's it?"

"You lot think you can emulate Jing Ke's assassination attempt on the King of Qin?"

"Are you worthy?"

Snapped!

Li Yuanchang slapped Murakami hard across the face, making him cough up blood.

"You treacherous minister Li Yuanchang, you not only betrayed the Tang Dynasty, but also colluded with traitors from my tribe to invade our Japanese territory and kill my elder brother! Every citizen of Japan has the right to kill you!"

"You'll die a horrible death!"

Murakami roared, his eyes bloodshot, filled with extreme resentment.

Li Yuanchang was not angry at all, saying that there were plenty of people who said he would die a horrible death.

He asked with feigned interest, "You killed your elder brother? Who is your elder brother?"

"Miyamoto Takekawa!!" Murakami roared, struggling with immense strength, but he was still pinned to the ground, his nose making intimate contact with the ground.

"It's him! So it's him! I knew you looked familiar. You really do look remarkably like him!" Li Yuanchang suddenly realized. He had thought he'd seen him somewhere before. It turned out he was the younger brother of the Japanese general.

At this moment, Guo Chao and the others lifted his head and examined it carefully: "It really is!"

"Li Yuanchang, even in the underworld, I won't let you go!" Murakami roared.

Li Yuanchang said calmly, "You two brothers were indeed notable figures. At least you died on the road to battle, so you can be considered warriors."

"However, you've followed the wrong person. You're going to die today."

"Did you have any last words before you died?"

"My last words are that you will die a horrible death!" Murakami cursed, knowing that his assassination attempt had failed and that he was about to die, so he put all his strength into hurling insults and even tried to struggle.

Blood-tinged saliva flew onto Li Yuanchang's clothes.

"Drag him away and behead him," he said calmly, giving him a swift and painless death without any torture.

Although Murakami was an enemy, his audacity in attempting to assassinate someone knowing he would die is still questionable.

This is the same as Jing Ke's assassination attempt on the King of Qin; it's almost impossible. Even if they succeeded, they would be chopped into mincemeat. They never intended to leave once they came.

"yes!"

"Li Yuanchang, Li Yuanchang!" Murakami kept shouting until he was dragged away.

Immediately afterwards, Li Yuanchang summoned Xue Rengui for a private meeting.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"

"Your Highness, I heard there was an assassination attempt in the palace just now?" Xue Rengui looked him up and down, slightly worried.

Li Yuanchang nodded: "It's nothing. The assassin is dead. He was sent by the Emperor of Japan."

"It's them again!" Xue Rengui frowned.

Li Yuanchang smiled and said, "I was just worried about not having a legitimate reason to launch an attack when this old bastard Emperor arrived. Now, even the title of a vassal state of the Tang Empire can't be protected."

"I think it's time!" he said, his eyes turning sharp and murderous.