More by Priest
Twenty years earlier, the ‘Blade of the South’ Li Zhi was condemned a bandit by imperial decree for establishing the 48 Strongholds of the Shu Mountains to shelter the destitute refugees of the world.
Twenty years later, a young man going by the name of Xie Yun, carrying an ‘Anping Command’, barges into the 48 Strongholds by night. Sir Gan Tang receives the command and descends the mountain, henceforth setting into motion the gears of fate.
Zhou Fei, a descendant of the ‘Blade of the South’, is born and raised within the 48 Strongholds, but has yet to experience the martial world. She begins to stray from this straight road after she encounters Xie Yun.
However, the current martial arts world is embroiled in turbulence, those once carefree and worry-less youths are swept without warning into the midst of turmoil and unrest; and ‘that’ secret which has been buried for 20 years, is about to be uncovered…
“There will come a day–you will cross the tranquil and noiseless waters of the Inkwash River; you will depart from this haven sheltered by mountains; and you will find yourself under a vast and shrouded night sky. When you witness in succession the collapse of countless colossal mountains and the evaporation of fathomless seas into desert, you must always remember: your fate rests on the tip of your blade, and the tip of your blade must always point forward.”
“I pray that by the cold steel of your sword, you will be able to cut through the darkness of night for a glimpse of the day.”
THE SLEEPING GOD STIRS
As snow quietly covers Dragon City in the final days of the lunar year, patients writhing in pain flock to the hospital. Baffled doctors call upon Zhao Yunlan and his team for help. As the case unfolds, Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan discover that one of the Four Hallowed Artifacts, the Merit Brush, has appeared in the Mortal Realm. In the wrong hands, its power can be transformative.
While each step toward the artifact only pulls the pair deeper into a vortex of mysteries, Zhao Yunlan keeps stumbling upon a name: Kunlun. Who is Kunlun, and what is his connection to the Merit Brush? As Zhao Yunlan closes in on the answer, will he also uncover the truth behind Shen Wei’s knowing gaze?
Zhao Yunlan is Chief of the Special Investigations Department: a secret group of uniquely skilled individuals who investigate strange happenings in modern-day Dragon City. Although laid-back and cheeky to those who don't know him, this tenacious and cunning man fits well into his role of the Guardian.
While investigating a mysterious death at a local university, Zhao Yunlan meets Shen Wei, a calm and cold professor who proves as intriguing as the case itself. Something about this reserved man feels strangely familiar. Zhao Yunlan can't help but notice the intensity of the professor's gaze, and wonders why their lives begin to intertwine—as if by fate.
When a mysterious illness knocks Zhao Yunlan off his feet, he enjoys being doted on by Shen Wei—until he discovers a grim secret that threatens to tear them apart. However, it’s not just their domestic bliss that’s on the verge of collapse. The Great Seal is cracking, order itself is about to break down and extinguish all life, and their only hope to stop the destruction is the final Hallowed Artifact: the Soul-Guarding Lamp. But even as the world threatens to crumble around them, Zhao Yunlan searches for the truth and a way to keep Shen Wei by his side, this time for all eternity.
The discovery of violet gold, a vital fuel for steam-powered machines, propelled Great Liang into an age of prosperity. But for Chang Geng, a young man raised on the impoverished northern frontier, the concerns of the empire are as distant as the stars above.
When raiders from the north attack Chang Geng’s small village, he discovers that the life he knows is a lie. His mother, his teacher...even his beloved godfather, the man he trusted most in the world, are not who they seem. As enemies of the empire circle ever closer, Chang Geng must travel to the heart of the capital—with his godfather as his guide—to meet his destiny.