The top singer at the Paramount vanishes into thin air inside a locked room, leaving behind nothing but a pool of eerie blood.
Lu Yao, a chemistry genius returning from overseas, is dragged into this bizarre murder case.
His partner is Qiao Chusheng, a patrol bureau detective from the Qinglong Gang: cold, taciturn, and never one to show the Colt at his waist without good reason.
One is a genius who uses equations to dissect human nature. The other is a guardian who holds fast to his principles in the space between the black and white worlds.
From a bank's locked room to a phantom at the opera house, from the Songjiang archives to the banks of the Qinhuai River, together they tear open the turbulent undercurrents beneath the glittering surface of Republican-era Shanghai.
A bronze mirror reveals a century-old conspiracy. A symbol points to the long-buried Nirvana Society.
But as the investigation progresses, Lu Yao discovers that someone has slipped an anonymous letter into his mailbox: "Beware of Song Wenyuan."
And Song Wenyuan was the victim in his very first case.
"If you're going to die someday, you'll have to ask me first."
"Fine. I'll ask you first."
