Background of Dunhuang: Under a Thousand Walls

The modern people who know Dunhuang best will break into the scene where it was first born. Chen Yuan is a top mural restorer who believes in science and rationality. He can analyze the mineral composition and brushwork of every inch of the Mogao Grottoes murals, but he has never been able to resonate with the beliefs behind them. During an emergency repair, in order to protect a flying Taoist trace, his fingertips accidentally touched the hidden lotus pattern. He was caught by a bright light and fell into the vortex of time and space. He went from the protection room in the 21st century to the yellow sand of the Tang Dynasty Gobi in just a blink of an eye. He fell from the sky and was regarded as a "stranger descended from heaven" by the painters of the Mogao Grottoes. Here, he has no assistance from modern equipment, only the advanced knowledge reserve in his mind and the most primitive and fiery creative scene in front of him. In order to survive, he must use modern chemical knowledge to reconcile mineral pigments from thousands of years ago, and use structural mechanics to understand the construction of grottoes. The rationality he is proud of constantly collides and rubs against the devout faith and pure ingenuity of the painters. He will no longer be a restorer and spectator of the mural, but an witness and participant of its birth. He will witness the birth of magnificent murals with his eyes, touch the temperature of faith with his hands, and protect this holy land of art amidst the intrigues, lack of resources and external threats. Eventually, Chen Yuan will discover that his time travel was not an accident. He is the most critical and most secret puzzle piece in completing this great inheritance that spans thousands of years. This is an epic dialogue between modern reason and ancient faith, and also a legend about civilization, inheritance and self-salvation.