The action begins in Dubai, where a nasty band of British evil-doers plans to steal an ancient scroll long ago torn into two parts. One half is stored in an art museum in China, the other in Taiwan, and they are to be officially reunited in a joint Chinese-Taiwanese exhibition which serves as a background countdown to the action. Competing for the treasure is the main villain of the piece, the young Japanese yakuza boss Yamamoto (Tong Daiwei), sporting a long blond pony-tail and living in a gadget- and girl-filled mansion that would make Goldfinger feel the need to redecorate.