He swallowed the bloodied parchment in the mud; in his broken body, Great Yan's soul endured

Gu Mochen forced out a series of heavy, labored breaths from deep within his throat, like a broken bellows.

Thick, bloody saliva dripped incessantly from the corners of his withered, sunken mouth onto the ground.

His whole body was convulsing violently, his eyes were filled with spiderweb-like blood vessels, and even his pupils were dilated.

Two figures shrouded in black fur cloaks stood high above him, looking down at him.

Inukami Jusaburo's lips curled into a sinister and contemptuous smirk as he casually toyed with a blood-red pill emitting a strange, sweet fragrance between his right index finger and thumb.

The pills shimmered with an eerie glow under the dim light of the oil lamp. With each movement in the air, Gu Mochen on the ground would wriggle forward half an inch like a puppet on strings.

Park Roejang, standing beside him, expressionlessly pulled out a sheepskin document already covered with blood-red sealing wax from his pocket and flicked it at the side of Gu Mochen's blood-stained face.

"Your Highness, why suffer such inhuman torture?"

Inukami Jusaburo, speaking in a broken and strange Central Plains, lightly stepped on Gu Mochen's twitching right hand with his toe, grinding it hard twice, his tone full of cat-and-mouse mockery.

"My lord has sent us to assist the Prince in achieving his great cause; it is clearly stated in this document."

As long as the prince stamps the golden seal of Prince An...

The two naval ports of Laizhou and Dengzhou were assigned to be stationed by the Great Wa and Silla fleets.

This supreme Bliss Pills, however many you desire, the divine physician can provide you with as many as you need."

Park Roejang chimed in quietly from the side.

"Not only will there be miraculous medicine to relieve the pain, but the kingdoms of the Haidong will also send 30,000 armored soldiers and 100 elite warships to sail downstream and help Your Highness sweep through the capital and secure your throne."

"Given the prince's current condition, without a miraculous medicine to keep him alive, he probably wouldn't even survive tonight's bitter cold."

The red pill, exuding a deadly allure, swayed slowly before Gu Mochen's eyes, its intense sweet fragrance filling his nostrils.

Gu Mochen's bones seemed to be emitting a yearning cry, his nerve endings screaming for submission.

So that's what those two scoundrels were thinking all along.

Trembling and convulsing, he raised his bloodied and mangled right hand, his five fingers spread, and painstakingly reached towards the red pill at Inukami Jusaburo's fingertip.

The smugness and disdain in Inukami Jusaburo's eyes finally blossomed completely without any attempt to conceal them.

He was even prepared to force Gu Mochen touched the pill.

However, just as that blood-stained finger was about to touch the Bliss Pills,

A ruthless and brutal glint suddenly flashed in the depths of Gu Mochen's previously unfocused, scarlet eyes.

The outstretched hand was abruptly deflected in a split second.

His five fingers, like steel claws, gripped the parchment scroll on the ground tightly, and he yanked it sharply into his arms.

"Puff!"

Under Inukami Jusaburo's shocked and furious gaze, Gu Mochen suddenly rolled over.

With his teeth clenched, covered in blood and foam, ignoring the mud and sealing wax that clung to it, he viciously bit off most of the entire sheepskin document in one bite, chewing it voraciously and ferociously, the mixture of poisonous blood and saliva mingling with his own.

The tough, tanned sheepskin tore his oral mucosa inch by inch, and blood gushed out wildly from the corners of his mouth.

But a near-maniacal laugh appeared on his face, his Adam's apple bobbed violently, and he swallowed the document containing the treasonous clauses.

"You're insane! You idiot!"

Inukami Jusaburo flew into a rage and kicked Gu Mochen hard in the ribs with his heavy boot.

With a sharp crack, Gu Mochen was kicked and slid several feet along the ground before crashing heavily into the stone pillar.

The excruciating pain of broken ribs was like a giant hammer, violently jolting Gu Mochen awake from his descent into drug addiction.

Fueled by the excruciating physical pain, Gu Mochen wrapped his arms around the stone pillar and, with the last of his strength, slammed his forehead hard against the stone surface.

"Bang!"

A dull thud echoed.

Dark red blood instantly streamed down his forehead, blurring his vision, but also forcefully suppressing the frantic urge to beg for mercy deep within his nerves.

He slowly slid down the stone pillar and sat down, struggling to lift his head.

His face no longer showed any weakness, only the overwhelming ferocity and pride that belonged to the princes of the Great Yan royal family.

Gu Mochen had previously been secretly colluding with the Tubo, intending to use them as a tool to kill Gu Moran.

But his promises were nothing but empty words.

His real intention was to wait until Gu Moran and the Tubo were both weakened, and then he would take them down in one fell swoop!

How could he, the Prince An, be a traitor who would collude with the enemy and betray his country?!

Gu Mochen stretched out a finger with a broken nail and pointed it directly at the noses of Inukami Jusaburo and Park Roejang, roaring loudly with blood and foam in his mouth.

"You bastard..."

Those barbaric scum who eat raw meat and drink blood on the island!

Gu Mochen coughed violently, spitting out a glob of thick blood mixed with bits of sheepskin, his voice hoarse as if roaring like a demon.

"I only consider you lackeys who come to Dayan to Great Yan fortune through trade..."

How dare they set their sights on the naval docks of my Great Yan, intending to station troops on Great Yan's land?!

Even if my father squandered the Great Yan, even if the court was completely rotten...

Even if I rot and die here, turning into a pile of stinking flesh...

That is also the land of my Great Yan Gu Clan, the world of the sons of Han!

He stared intently at the Bliss Pills, his eyes surging with a resolute determination to perish together with it, and a wild, dying laugh escaped his throat.

You dare to challenge me?!

Even if this poison crushes my bones today, I will never sell an inch of the Gu Clan's sea territory!

roll!

Get the hell back here and tell your dog master on that island!

As long as one person from Great Yan is still alive

You despicable scoundrels, the moment you set foot on the beach, you will be utterly destroyed!

Inukami Jusaburo was furious. Just as his hand reached for his waist, the torchlight from outside shone in.

As the firelight flickered, three goose-feather sabers were raised simultaneously, their blades pressing against the doorframe, the cold light grazing the back of Inukami Jusaburo's hand.

He stopped moving.

The short blade was just half an inch away from being drawn.

But there were four people standing at the door.

Zhou Huaili was at the forefront, followed by three veterans from the Prince An's Residence.

The three men were burly and upright, and their knives were wielded with no flair whatsoever.

The knife tip points forward, and the soles of the feet are placed on the ground, one in front of the other.

Zhou Huaili stared at Inukami Jusaburo's hand.

Take your hand away.

Inukami Jusaburo slowly raised his head.

"You want me to stay?"

"No." Zhou Huaili stepped aside, making half a step back. "I'm asking you to get lost."