If you're made a fake emperor, why did you change the country's name?

West of the city.

Inside the mansion of a lonely old man.

boom!

The teacup shattered on the ground, spilling tea everywhere.

Zhao Yu's face was full of gloom as he cursed, "Damn beggar, how dare you ruin my lotus root body!"

Grandpa Hai and an old man knelt to one side, heads bowed and silent.

Zhao Yu looked at the old man and demanded, "Farmer, how much longer until the other lotus root body is formed?"

The old man bowed his head and reported, "Your Majesty, the other lotus root body has not yet taken shape. It will take at least another month to take shape, and even after it takes shape, it will still take at least another month to nurture it with medicinal herbs."

Zhao Yu paced back and forth, finally cursing under his breath, "Damn it."

"Your Majesty, should we activate the next spy?" Hai Gonggong asked.

After thinking it over, Zhao Yu nodded.

"Let the coffin maker do it. I want to see if this beggar, who can ruin my lotus root sound, can stop the coffin nails!"

"This servant obeys." Eunuch Hai bowed and withdrew.

Farmers and coffin makers were among his backup plans left in the capital; all of them were martial artists at the Celestial Realm with special cultivation techniques.

This is also what gives him the confidence to regain his position.

As Zhao Yu pondered, the image of the golden Emperor's Sword flashed through his mind, filling him with a burning desire.

He had a premonition that the imperial weapon was more powerful than all his imperial weapons!

He licked his lips and muttered greedily to himself, "Once I kill you, everything you have will be mine."

.............

Inside the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, the star map revolves, its brilliance subdued.

The various star charts on the ground disappeared, replaced by an open-air pavilion. Wisps of energy formed lines that flowed across the sky above the pavilion, creating an extraordinary and mysterious scene.

Zhao Yu knew that this was because the nation's fortunes had increased, and the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion had automatically upgraded and innovated.

The elder of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion was already waiting here.

"His Majesty."

Zhao Yu nodded, without uttering any further words.

"Let's begin, let's look at the Prince of Zhennan first."

"Yes."

The Elder of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion walked to the original spot of the bronze mirror, but the mirror had vanished, leaving only a small pool.

The Elder of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion made a hand seal, and ripples appeared on the water in front of him, with water vapor rising and quickly covering the entire pavilion.

This is because the moonlight refracted onto the water mist, forming a mirage that made people feel as if they were there.

The image appears.

The magnificent ancient building features a convex main hall, with a high platform standing on the protrusion, where a middle-aged man is displaying items.

"A thousand-year-old black he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum) with a unique aroma, the only one of its kind in the Qin Dynasty. Starting price: ten thousand taels of gold!"

The other areas were packed with people; at a glance, it was a sea of ​​people!

Meanwhile, the Prince of Zhennan was sitting in one of the VIP seats, spending lavishly and quickly acquiring the medicinal herb for 15,000 taels of gold.

The image quickly disappeared.

Zhao Yu frowned slightly and instructed Qiu Ping beside him, "Have someone investigate the effects of this Rongguang He Shou Wu (Polygonum multiflorum) later, and make sure it's detailed."

"Yes."

Zhao Yu turned around. "I'll use the second chance. I want to see Zhao Yu."

The old man from the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion nodded and activated the secret technique once more.

The image in the water mirror distorted for a moment, then finally settled on an inconspicuous courtyard of a residential house.

The courtyard was small and even somewhat dilapidated.

In the scene, Zhao Yu is pacing back and forth angrily. Two people are kneeling in front of him, one is fat and the other is old but strong.

"Farmer, how much longer until the other lotus root body is ready!" Zhao Yu's voice was filled with barely suppressed frustration.

"Your Majesty, it will take at least another month to reshape the body, and even with the subsequent nurturing using secret techniques, it will still take another month."

Zhao Yu cursed under his breath, "Damn it."

Eunuch Hai asked, "Your Majesty, should we activate other agents?"

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Yu nodded. "Go find the coffin maker and have him take care of it. I want to see how long this beggar can live."

At this point in the scene, the light from the water mirror dissipated, and tranquility returned.

The elder of Tianji Pavilion stepped aside.

Zhao Yu remained silent.

Farmer, coffin maker...

Just as he had expected, Zhao Yu had far more hidden cards than he had imagined, and each one sounded like a formidable opponent.

These martial artists, whose professions are codenamed after themselves, probably all possess unpredictable and bizarre methods.

Zhao Yu snapped out of his daze. "You've worked hard. Let's call it a day."

"Your Majesty, I respectfully see you off."

After leaving the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, Zhao Yu immediately returned to the Imperial Study.

"Summon Qiu Ping and Meng Qianshan to an audience!"

Before long, Qiu Ping, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and Meng Qianshan, the commander of the Imperial Guards, entered the hall one after the other.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"

"Rise." Zhao Yu raised his hand and cut straight to the point. "Qiu Ping, immediately send someone to secretly keep an eye on that courtyard in the west of the city. Remember, just monitor it, don't alert them."

"Your subject obeys the decree," Qiu Ping replied crisply.

Zhao Yu then looked at Meng Qianshan.

"General Meng, someone will infiltrate the palace tonight to assassinate you."

Upon hearing this, Meng Qianshan's murderous aura intensified.

"This subordinate will immediately dispatch three times the manpower to ensure the palace is guarded like an iron fortress!"

"No." Zhao Yu shook his head. "On the contrary, all patrols will be reduced by half tonight. Everything will be as usual, even more relaxed than usual."

Meng Qianshan was taken aback, somewhat puzzled.

"Your Majesty, this..."

"Lure the snake out of its hole," Zhao Yu explained. "There's no such thing as a thousand days of guarding against a thief, only a thousand days of thievery. You can't guard against it all the time. Only by letting him jump out on his own can we catch him in one fell swoop. What I want is not to scare him away, but to keep him here."

Meng Qianshan instantly understood Zhao Yu's intention and clasped his hands in acceptance of the order.

"Understood, sir!"

"Go and make arrangements first, have General Meng secretly keep watch outside the palace tonight," Zhao Yu added.

After Meng Qianshan left, only Zhao Yu and Qiu Ping remained in the imperial study.

"Qiu Ping, have the Embroidered Uniform Guards also set up hidden sentries within the palace. If there is any unusual activity, they should work with the Imperial Guards to immediately seal off all exits."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

As night deepened, the palace shed its daytime hustle and bustle and fell into silence.

The imperial study was brightly lit, and Zhao Yu sat upright behind the dragon desk, seemingly engrossed in reviewing memorials.

All was quiet except for the soft scratching of the pen on the paper.

Time passed slowly, and soon it was past midnight.

The candlelight burning inside the hall suddenly tilted to one side without warning, the flames flickered violently, and then returned to normal.

This detail is so minute that ordinary people would never notice it.

But Zhao Yu stopped moving.

Almost at the same time, a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz rang in his ear; it came from Meng Baishan, who was hiding in the shadows outside the hall.

"Your Majesty, no outsiders have entered."

Zhao Yu frowned slightly.

impossible.

Although the fluctuation of that aura was subtle, it was definitely not an illusion.

Meng Baishan is a veteran expert at the Celestial Realm, with extremely keen senses. If he failed to detect it, what methods did the infiltrator use?

Just as he was pondering this, the protective influence of the nation's destiny within him took effect, and he suddenly felt something.

Zhao Yu's gaze was drawn by his senses, slowly rising and falling towards the corner of the window in the Imperial Study.

In the corner of the window, a small, white paper figure peeked out and looked at him.

The paper figure had a strange smile painted on its face, and two empty pupils stared straight at him, looking incredibly eerie in the dim candlelight.

A chill ran down my spine.

Zhao Yu's scalp tingled instantly.

"General Meng, by the window! Make your move!"

He shouted out loud.

Before the words were even finished, a powerful surge of energy burst through the window and rushed straight at the strange paper figure.

Just as the energy was about to touch it, the paper figure suddenly burst into flames with a hiss, turning into a clump of ashes and disappearing into the air in the blink of an eye.

Meng Baishan appeared in the hall, looking at the empty windowsill with a somewhat grim expression.

"This old minister is incompetent; he failed to leave any survivors."

Zhao Yu waved his hand, still feeling lingering fear.

"It's not your fault. This thing's methods are too bizarre; no one can react in time."

Meng Baishan's expression was solemn.

"Your Majesty, this person's methods are impossible to guard against, we cannot wait any longer. This old minister suggests that the entire city be immediately sealed off, and all coffin shops and paper offering shops be thoroughly investigated. Anyone connected to this trade should be detained first!"

Zhao Yu nodded in agreement.

Although he is protected by the nation's fortune and the palace is defended by the Nine Dragons Formation, it is still best to be cautious about such unpredictable methods.

"We'll do as you say."

He paused, then added.

"Order Qiu Ping to investigate tonight where this paper figure comes from!"