Chen Xuan, a graduate student in archaeology, accidentally triggered a Qin-era mechanism during an excavation at Mount Li. A fragment of an ancient bronze mirror that burst from the earth pierced his right eye. He awakened an S-rank Mystic Eye, able to discern the authenticity of any artifact, witness the memories of its former owner, and even awaken obsessions buried within relics for a thousand years. With this eye, he picked up a Warring States jade disc for a song and sold it for a fortune, shocking the antiques world. In a bronze sword, he saw the secret behind Bai Qi's slaughter of 400,000 Zhao soldiers. In a bloodstained jade bracelet, he read the final memories of a sacrificed girl, then used a carefully designed ritual to draw out her lingering resentment. But the Mystic Eye brought more than wealth and fame: it bound him to the fate of a guardian, a duty passed down for two thousand years. The mysterious Ancient Artifacts Research Association came looking for him. Qin Lan, their guide, told him that the Bone-Illuminating Mirror had three fragments, and whoever gathered them all could open the true mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang. Her family were descendants of the Mirror Guardians, tasked with watching over the First Emperor's tomb. From the ghost market in the capital to Japan's Shosoin Repository, from the Kunlun Valley of Death to the Vatican's underground archives, Chen Xuan pursued the fragments and uncovered truths buried by history. At last, he stood before the bronze gate of the underground palace at Mount Li. Beyond it lay not only the obsession of the First Emperor from two thousand years ago, but also a door being battered open from within by an unknown entity. From appraiser to guardian, it all began with the Bone-Illuminating Mirror.
