This is a novel of political intrigue, strategic battles of wits, suspense, and deduction. Jiang Xuesheng, a modern narcotics squad captain, dies on a mission. When he opens his eyes again, he has become the orphaned heir of a general stationed on the northern frontier of the Ironblood Kingdom.
His parents were killed in an enemy raid. Poison was mixed into the army's provisions, driving the soldiers mad as puppets. Every clue points to a sordid deal, buried twenty years ago beneath a layer of ice.
At court, Ying Lie, ruler of the Ironblood Kingdom, sits firmly in control of the game.
He once held a "wolfdog" on a leash: Ji Yexiao, ruler of the Zhongshan Kingdom, who carries the bloodline of a shaman god and is considered ill-omened by his people.
Twenty years ago, Ying Lie helped him murder his elder brother and seize the throne, in exchange for "controlled friction" along the border and the use of sinister shamanic arts.
Now the wolfdog has swallowed the Southern Zhao national preceptor's "Divine Communion Powder," broken free of his chains, and turned to sink his teeth into his master's throat.
A stunning epic of cross-cultural power struggles. A modern detective's soul travels to an ancient frontier, using his investigative eye to unravel the mysteries and his resolve to fight against chaos with the heart of law. The two powerful protagonists are torn between national and personal vendettas and the fog of their identities, creating intense tension.