Five hundred years after the journey to the West, the Three Realms have seen the Buddhist and Daoist systems harden into a new ruling class, while turmoil in the Sea of Chaos foretells an imbalance in the Heavenly Dao.
Mara Papiyan, who should have vanished along with the Boneless Sarira, has returned to the mortal world, sparking a crisis over the reforging of the Twelve-Petal World-Destroying Black Lotus. His return hints at the price cultivators must pay to break free of the rules.
