An Illustrated Record of China’s Mountains and Rivers

A brush, a map, and a painter travel across the mountains and rivers of China, restoring distorted history with ink and awakening the slumbering dragon veins.

During the Republic of China era, Shen Mo, a painter at the Institute of Geography and Rivers, makes an unexpected discovery while cataloguing ancient books: a mysterious handwritten copy of the Commentary on the Water Classic. Hidden within its pages is a fragment of the ancient Map of the Land, recording the paths of China's earth veins and the flow of its fortune.

Deep in the Qinling Mountains, an abandoned road from the ancient Shu kingdom glows at night. Two teams sent to investigate vanish one after another. Drawn into the mystery, Shen Mo sets off for the Qinling Mountains. At the end of the ancient road, he encounters a dragon vein ensnared by Historical Ink. It is the heart of the Qinling Mountains, the backbone of Chinese civilization.

Historical Ink is formed from the errors and prejudices of history. It coils around the dragon's heart, corroding the earth veins. Bao Si's downfall of the Zhou dynasty, Qin Shi Huang's tyranny, Wu Zetian's usurpation of the throne... Every oversimplified account of history and every demonized figure becomes a black chain, binding the vitality of this land.

Shen Mo awakens the power of a Vein Communicator: his brushwork can restore historical truth and cleanse Historical Ink. Accompanied by Jiang Yueming, heir to the Qinling Sword Pavilion, and Bai Lu, a genius from the Academy of Erudition, he embarks on a journey across China's mountains and rivers. He traces the Yellow River to its source and speaks with the River Earl; heads south to the Grand Canal to unravel a thousand-year-old grievance hidden in its bustling streets; and travels east to the Great Wall to restore the First Pass Under Heaven to its true form.

At last, atop Kunlun, the forefather of all mountains, Shen Mo faces the mastermind, the Tushan Clan, in a battle of narratives that will decide China's fate. Whichever story has the greater power to define reality will determine the future of these mountains and rivers.