During the Jingtai period, in search of his missing sister Shen Yue, the down-and-out scholar Shen Yan strayed into the mysterious town "Forgotten River Crossing" that did not exist on the map. This place lies day and night, and spirits and ghosts come and go. The bankless river passing through the town can reveal the true nature of all living beings. Those who want to cross the river have to abandon their most cherished things to make the journey.
Carrying the half-fox heart amulet embroidered by his sister, Shen Yan, with the help of Ajiu, a girl in red who leads the way with a red lantern, deals with painted ghosts, tree demons, and black-robed pursuers. However, he discovers that his sister's disappearance hides the secret of the fox clan, and that the Forgotten River Crossing itself is actually a realm formed by thousands of unfinished obsessions.
The lantern illuminates the ghosts in people's hearts, but it is difficult to write about the deep feelings and shallow relationships with pen and ink. When obsession becomes a fetter, Shen Yan will eventually understand: at some crossings, what is crossed is never a road, but people who cannot be let go, and a past that cannot be returned.
