In the seventh year of the Republic of China, young Chu Yang sets out on an adventure to find his missing adoptive father, Zou Qi, an expert at authenticating antiques. With the help of Li Qingxia, a porcelain-authentication specialist, Chu Yang follows the mysterious clues Zou Qi left behind and gets swept up in the search for the treasure of Shi Dakai, the Wing King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
Together, they decipher coded messages hidden in porcelain and secrets locked in stone caskets, visiting Xishan Island, Shanwangping, and Liye in western Hunan. Along the way, they face repeated blockades by Japanese forces and the mysterious organization known as the Nine Dragons Society. As they uncover the tragic history of the Wing King’s defeat at the Dadu River, they ultimately discover that the true treasure is not gold or silver, but Shi Dakai’s noble resolve to give his life to save his entire army, and the flame of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s ideals. This quest spanning time and space ends with the realization that its true legacy is spiritual.
