When people are born, the Heavenly Book writes a sentence pronouncing their fate: it contains everything they will ever be able to do in this life.
The number of words in your sentence determines how long you can live. When a word is crossed out, you die.
Shen Yan, sixteen years old, has only half a word in his sentence.
Half a word means he was never supposed to live to adulthood.
Until he discovers that the ink crossed out in the Heavenly Book is still there. It's just that no one else can see it.
Other people's opportunities, other people's talents, the paths to survival the Heavenly Book erased from other people's lives... He can reclaim them all and write them into his own sentence.
But every stroke of borrowed ink must be repaid with his life.
“The Heavenly Book says you can only live to sixteen.”
“Then I'll write myself a whole new book.”
