On the strange and wondrous continent of Youzhou, monsters lurk in dark alleys, while sinister arts ensnare human hearts.
The Demon-Suppression Bureau is the dynasty’s last line of defense, tasked with hunting down the demons and spirits who wreak havoc among humankind. Yet clues behind a string of bizarre murders all point to a mysterious organization even the imperial court dares not speak of: the Pavilion of Despair. It feeds on despair in people’s hearts and offers the world’s anguished wishes as sacrifices. Its designs are powerful enough to topple the entire dynasty.
Meanwhile, the Cangyue Academy, sacred ground for cultivators across the land, and its affiliated cultivation schools should stand above worldly affairs. Yet undercurrents swirl there, too. Exceptionally gifted students are disappearing one after another, and every clue leads to the long-vanished Welcoming Hall. Legend says that anyone who steps through its doors can have any wish granted, yet no one has ever been seen returning.
When the youngest Mirror Inspector in the Demon-Suppression Bureau is ordered to investigate a demonized corpse that emerged from a forbidden site at Cangyue Academy, the shocking secrets of all three factions finally begin to come to light...
Should he uphold the law and purge the monsters? Fall into despair in exchange for power? Or seek a glimmer of hope in the academy’s ancient legacy?
The fate of the human, demon, and divine realms rests in the hands of one young man. His ultimate dream is to transform this corrupt dynasty into the wonderful, ideal 21st century: a world where technology and demons coexist, alongside humans and gods!
