During the chaotic period towards the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Prince of Liang usurped power and secretly eliminated the heir to the throne. Tian Anye, a humble charcoal seller, unintentionally gets entangled in this conspiracy. In a series of intense battles where allies and enemies become blurred, the secrets hidden within Tian Anye and the truth behind the sacrifice of the people in Liang City are unveiled. In the end, Tian Anye fights against the imperial soldiers, saving a mother and child and escaping from the city of Chang'an.
The story follows a child bride turned widow, Dou E, who is wrongly convicted of crimes by a corrupt court official for actions perpetrated by a rejected suitor, Mule Zhang. After her execution, three prophesied phenomena occur to prove her innocence, including blood raining from the sky, snow in June and a three-year drought. After a visit from the ghost of Dou E, her father eventually brings the corrupt court official, a doctor and Mule Zhang to justice, thereby vindicating his daughter.