Autumn, the twelfth year of the Republic of China.
The sky in Xuanji City is always gray. The steam rising from the ground mixes with the drizzle falling from the sky, creating a sticky haze in the halo of neon signs and talisman lanterns. The streets in the "lower ring" in the west of the city are narrow and cramped, with dense spiritual energy pipes and gear set drive shafts overhead. They are like steel vines wrapped around rows of old-style alleys and riveted steel towers that rise abruptly.
Chen Mo held a black cloth umbrella, stepped on the slippery bluestone, and turned into a narrower alley. Two white lanterns hang at the entrance of the alley, with ink characters on them - "Palace of Rebirth". This is his family's shop and his livelihood.
