Yusheng lives in an underground blood bank that must stay hidden, making a living by selling his blood. His arms are covered in overlapping needle marks.
Xu Mo is trapped in the dampest, darkest corner of his family's estate, a forgotten young master whose legs are paralyzed and who is seen as useless.
Their hasty encounter begins with a theft. The bloodstained cash Yusheng hands over becomes the only warmth in Xu Mo's bleak world, so hot it almost burns.
“Next time it hurts, bite me.” He holds out his arm, covered in needle marks, to Xu Mo's lips.
Xu Mo turns away, his voice barely audible. “Dirty...”
Yusheng smiles, but ice forms in his eyes. “Do you think the money from selling blood is dirty, or do you think I'm dirty?”
Later, when Yusheng, covered in blood and like a cornered beast, pins him against the wall and rasps, “What about now... Which of us is dirtier now?” Xu Mo finally understands that some marks have already sunk into the bone, thicker than blood and heavier than life.
Theme: Even in the mire, souls can illuminate one another and find redemption.
