My name is Chen Feng. I was an inconspicuous auto-repair apprentice in the Gobi Desert until my grandfather died and a black donkey-hide map, hidden in the lining of a wooden chest, dragged me into a world of bizarre wonders.
The horrifying night at Black Wind Pass, the phoenix-shaped ancient jade from the Western Xia royal tombs, the few cryptic words in my grandfather’s final letter, and the mysterious figures who inexplicably began pursuing me... All of it was like an invisible chain, binding me to leave the familiar Gobi behind and embark on the “Way” that even my grandfather had been so reluctant to discuss.
From the stony wastelands on the northern slopes of the Qilian Mountains to the thousand-year-old underground river beneath the Guanzhong Plain, from the cliffside coffin-plank trails in the Bashu forests to the frozen tombs amid the snowy mountains and black waters, I gripped my polished entrenching tool and followed the clues in my grandfather’s letter to find “Uncle Wang.” Instead, I plunged headlong into an even more complicated whirlpool: the trade’s lost codes, ingenious mechanisms in ancient tombs, betrayal and intrigue among fellow tomb raiders, and secrets buried underground so long that even the history books had neglected to record them.
Every time I entered a tomb, it was like wrestling with the King of Hell. I’ve seen coffins holding bodies that remained undecayed for a thousand years, and silk that crumbled to dust the moment it was unsealed. I’ve heard eerie sounds echoing through tomb chambers, and seen companions turn against one another over a single burial artifact. Grandfather said, “This trade costs you your good karma,” but as I went on, I discovered that the human heart was more inscrutable than any ancient tomb.
I never intended to become some “Mojin Captain.” I only wanted to solve the mysteries Grandfather left behind and find a little peace for my mother. But once you set foot on this path, there’s no turning back. The bones and treasures hidden deep beneath the yellow earth hold stories buried by time, and destinies that force people ever onward.
On this journey, I have to stay alive,
