Through the experiences of the young Shen Yan, a mysterious entanglement surrounding the ancient tombs of Lingshan and a soul-nourishing jade slowly comes to light.
Shen Yan is a disciple who studies under the True Man Xuanqing at the Guan Shan Monastery. One day, following his master’s orders to gather pine resin at the foot of Lingshan, he happens upon a smooth, warm jade slip in a stream. Little does he know that this casual discovery will pull him into a turbulent undercurrent of intrigue.
Qin, the tomb keeper of Lingshan, visits the monastery and speaks of strange disturbances at the tombs: the burial mound has shifted, black smoke has appeared, and someone has tampered with the base of the stone stele that wards off evil. Blue cloth threads caught on the grass beside the stele point directly to a monastery disciple. Shen Yan’s heart tightens. The jade slip did come from the area around Lingshan, but he keeps quiet, afraid he will be framed.
Then a dead bird streaked with black ash is found beside the woodpile in the monastery kitchen. An inverted evil-warding talisman is pasted on the monastery gate, and half a jade slip and a corner of dark gray cloth turn up by the well in the west courtyard. Every clue suggests someone is plotting in secret, apparently targeting the jade slip in Shen Yan’s possession. It is, in fact, the soul-nourishing jade left behind when the lord of the Lingshan tombs passed away. When an evil force stirs the jade and sends it flying, Qin, the tomb keeper, appears just in time to demand answers. The truth gradually emerges: Qin wanted to seize the cultivation of the tomb lord contained in the jade, and had staged the framing and the summoning of evil all along. The mystery is finally solved when his father, the old tomb keeper, arrives in time.
The soul-nourishing jade recognizes Shen Yan as its master and remains with him, while peace returns to Guan Shan for now. But the black ash still lingering at the bottom of the stream and the faint chill in the air hint that this tale of an ancient tomb and a secret treasure may only be beginning. My new work is out! You’re welcome to read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Your support inspires me to write, and I will
