Li Ting, a descendant of the Nine Gates, is skilled in the Five Elements arts and has been solving ancient tomb mysteries since childhood. Zhang Qishan, who once held sway over both the underworld and respectable society throughout Changsha, has long since stepped back from the limelight and left tomb raiding behind. A secret report that the Japanese army is excavating the Mystic Tomb forces the two to join hands. Only after entering the tomb does Li Ting realize that the dangers of this expedition go beyond corpse fiends and demons. Zhang Qishan has a secret of his own, too...
The rain in Changsha never seems to stop once it starts. Li Ting sat curled up in a private room on the teahouse's second floor, fingers absently tracing the rim of her cup, while her eyes watched the narrow alley across the way through the curtain of rain. A faded lantern hung at the alley's entrance, swaying in the wind like a half-dead eye. Dusk had fallen, and few people remained on the street. The only sound was raindrops striking the blue-gray flagstones, monotonous and somber.
She was waiting for someone. A man surnamed Zhang, who had once been important enough that both sides of Changsha's underworld had to show him some respect. Zhang Qishan.
