When he wakes, Ji Quan, a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine, has transmigrated into the body of a dying man in Zhao during the Warring States period. He also finds a jade fragment tucked against his chest, taken from an ancient tomb. It is said to be a token passed down by sages of antiquity, one that can reveal the body's meridians.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Relying on his modern medical skills, he establishes a clinic in Handan: when plague strikes, he saves a city; when armies march to war, he saves an army. Bian Que comes to his door to seek his advice, Mohist craftsmen help him administer injections, Yin-Yang School scholars debate medical theory with him, and the Jixia Academy invites him to discuss the Way. In the Warring States era, where a hundred schools contend, people pause for the first time over the word "medicine."
Yet the brighter his medical art shines, the closer the blades in the shadows draw: the old case that framed his grandfather, the family jade fragment that was stolen, and the thousand-year backlash of the shamanic physicians are all waiting for him. Five jade pieces lie scattered across the Seven States. Finding them all will complete the path of the Five Returns.
He only wants to practice medicine and save lives, yet step by step he finds himself at the very heart of the struggle between the world's medical arts and the shamanic tradition.
