Xu Ping’an only glanced once and immediately understood the situation.
His brows furrowed slightly as he pondered a way to break the deadlock.
The best plan for now was to bypass this plaza ahead and head straight to the Hall of Central Harmony to treat the Emperor.
As long as the Emperor got up, all of the Third Prince’s previous excuses would be null and void.
No matter how cunning he was, at least on this point, he wouldn’t be able to get past the truth.
Though it was also possible that he might be forced to throw the table outright.
At this moment, however, there seemed to be no better option to quickly quell this rebellion.
They could only gamble on this.
Xu Ping’an turned to Han Wujin and took out a Porcelain Bottle from the Medicine Box.
“You spread the powder inside this Porcelain Bottle out—can you cover the entire plaza as much as possible without alerting everyone?”
The Porcelain Bottle was small, only palm-sized, so naturally, the amount of powder inside was limited. This request was clearly quite demanding.
Han Wujin said nothing and took the bottle directly.
He stepped forward and tossed it into the air. The next second, a sharp and silent sword qi instantly sliced through the Porcelain Bottle.
In an instant, the entire bottle shattered into powder, and the medicine inside began to disperse with the wind.
Han Wujin did not stop his movement but swung his sword again.
This sword strike scattered the powder even further, and accompanied by a slight breeze, it was cast toward the plaza ahead.
Seeing this, Xu Ping’an smiled and nodded, giving a thumbs-up, while Han Wujin retreated a few steps expressionlessly, making no response.
Xu Ping’an glanced at Han Wujin.
“Wujin, from now on, just focus on Li Yu.
If she’s in mortal danger, go save her. That shouldn’t be too difficult for you.”
“Understood.”
“Any problems?”
“That old man is tricky.”
“…You should have said so earlier.”
Xu Ping’an rolled his eyes in annoyance, then reached into the Medicine Box and took out another Porcelain Bottle, handing it over.
“When you encounter that old man, just throw the powder from this bottle at him.”
“What does it do?”
Han Wujin took the bottle and glanced inside.
“This medicine is called Itchy Powder. Even a tiny amount on the skin causes unbearable itching. Be careful not to touch yourself—it’s very potent.”
Han Wujin nodded but said nothing more.
Xu Ping’an then took out his Folding Fan from his sleeve and lightly pressed the Pendant hanging at the end of the fan.
The pendant was a silver-framed jade design, with a pure silver outer ring encasing a jade piece inside.
But this was just the outward appearance. In fact, the small pendant held a secret mechanism that Xu Ping’an had specially commissioned.
Its greatest function was to hold two kinds of powder medicine inside.
By pressing the jade on both sides with force, it would release the powders.
Press once for one powder, twice for both, and thrice to close.
Xu Ping’an pressed once to activate it, and a small amount of powder slid out from the pendant.
He caught it with his hand, clapped his hands together, and strode forward.
The powder left lingering in the air drifted onto his clothes with his movements.
“Don’t follow me. From now on, protect Li Yu.”
Turning back to Han Wujin with a reminder, Xu Ping’an then boldly and openly walked out.
The miraculous thing was, it seemed as if no one noticed Xu Ping’an’s figure at all.
He calmly walked alongside each Soldier, and even when there was physical contact, those Soldiers instinctively made way.
They showed a brief look of confusion, glanced around, and then returned to their posts.
The powder just spread was a special medicine with a simple effect: it caused certain targets to subconsciously ignore specific things.
The powder in the pendant influenced that effect.
In other words, because of the powder, the Soldiers would subconsciously overlook Xu Ping’an standing before them.
On the condition that he did not act out of line.
If he acted too obviously, the powder’s effect would quickly dissipate.
Also, this powder generally only worked the first time—it would cause the body to reject it if applied a second time.
Looking at the Soldiers covered in Blood Fiend Qi, Xu Ping’an sighed silently.
Who among them was not born of parents? Why must they hurt each other?
But he didn’t linger and walked straight to the Hall of Central Harmony.
Before the hall, the Zhennan King Li Huan ignored Xu Ping’an’s presence.
Even the Soldiers holding shields were all on high alert, watching the soldiers the Third Prince brought, paying no attention to Xu Ping’an.
With their attention so focused, the powder’s effect reached its peak.
Because of this, a scene nearly miraculous occurred.
Xu Ping’an quietly passed through thousands of troops without a single person noticing him.
Just as he reached the great doors of the Hall of Central Harmony and was about to push them open, suddenly, the old man beside the Third Prince’s side’s gaze flickered and he shouted sharply,
“Who goes there!?”
The shout was full of power and carried far, instantly drawing everyone’s attention.
All eyes turned to the old man, and following his gaze, they fell upon Xu Ping’an.
At that moment, the effect of the powder Xu Ping’an used vanished.
In the chaotic army, Li Yuer, who was bound hand and foot, stared at that figure in disbelief.
“Sir?”
Li Huan finally noticed Xu Ping’an as well.
A flash of surprise appeared in his eyes before he quickly composed himself and spoke with curiosity,
“Mr. Xu?”
“Hmm. Where is the Emperor? I’m going to treat him now.”
[Since he was exposed, Xu Ping’an naturally no longer tried to hide anything. After all, the powder didn’t cause amnesia, only temporary ignorance of his presence. Once the effect wore off, those who saw him would surely recall the unnatural scene. So there was nothing left to conceal.]
Although Li Huan didn’t know what trick Xu Ping’an had used to safely reach the Hall of Central Harmony amidst thousands of chaotic troops,
“The Emperor is inside the hall. I entrust everything to Mr. Xu.”
Xu Ping’an nodded.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to rescue Li Yuer earlier, but if he acted too boldly, he would be discovered.
Li Yuer was currently under guard, and if she was rescued, he would be exposed.
At this moment, a few eunuchs nearby also understood Xu Ping’an’s identity and hurriedly came forward to guide him.
“Mr. Xu, please this way. The Emperor is in the inner chamber.”
“Good.”
Xu Ping’an prepared to enter.
Just then, the Third Prince’s face changed drastically as he shouted angrily,
“No! Stop him at once!!”
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