The Rites of Obedience

Spring and Autumn period, Lu. After the diplomatic visit of Jin envoy Han Xuanzi, a series of ritualistic deaths shakes the state’s scriptorium. Court historian Taishi Yin recruits five outcast disciples for a secret experiment on absolute obedience to the ancient texts. What begins as a scholarly exercise twists into a chain of murders, each victim a soul long rejected by their clan. As Han Xuanzi’s return threatens exposure, the experiment’s final bloody rite reveals that the greatest cruelty wears the mask of ritual.