A martial artist falls from a cliff to his death. A rival stands, triumphant above. The beginning of an all too familiar story. Yet, in the time of recuperation and return, time passes and sometimes, the transformation that occurs is not the one you expect. This is a 4,500 word short story set in the A Thousand Li universe featuring as yet to be seen characters in the universe. Does not need to be read to follow the main series.

Expectation conceals the truth. Noblewoman and cultivator Li Yao is called to a small village to investigate a mysterious illness that has drained residents of their chi. Accompanying her are her suitors Xiang An and Shen Wei, both more trouble than they're worth in Li Yao's eyes. Perhaps not all is as it seems. In the village and her suitors. This is a short story set in the A Thousand Li universe. Does not need to be read to follow the main series.

The march to the throne is littered with the bodies of the great and small in equal measure Born an Imperial Prince, Qu Yuan always knew his options were to strive for the throne or escape. When he’s forced to put his escape plan into action too early, he’s forced out of the imperial palace into the countryside where the war for the throne rages. Walking blood-soaked fields and burnt out villages, Qu Yuan will be forced to ask a simple question. Is his search for immortality more important than the lives of his kingdom?

Take a step. Take a bow. Look around, how far you've come. For an immortal, the mortal world has little to offer them. Except, perhaps, perspective. Descent from the Mountain is a short story set in the A Thousand Li universe. This story can be read as a stand-alone. There are no spoilers for later works and the short story does not include individuals from the main series.

“When living in peace, one must think of danger.” These were the words Protector Chan’s Master had left him. Now, the greedy eye of a king has landed on their sect once more. In the search to reach the Divine Peak, all too many will fall by the wayside, ground under the bitter dust of desire. Between craving and enlightenment, between the heavens and earth, lies a single man. Making a choice, over what, in the end; is most important in the search for immortality.

Winter is a time of reflection and cultivation for the Verdant Green Waters Sect. For Wu Ying, this peaceful interlude is interrupted by a new assignment that pits him against the mortal world’s conventions of class and privilege. A short story in the world of A Thousand Li by Tao Wong.

A blade cuts both ways Newly minted an Elder of the Verdant Green Waters sect, sword prodigy Elder Cheng Zhao Wan - the Sundering Blade - is forced to leave the sect to fulfil an old obligation. A benefactor from the past is injured and has demanded Elder Cheng locate his assailant. Forced to listen to the ramblings of a dying old man, amidst a small and unfamiliar sect, who Elder Cheng can trust is unknown. Was the injury nothing more than happenstance, or is something more dire afoot? For once, Elder Cheng finds that his skill with the sword might be the least of his gifts. A Thousand Li: the Sundering Blade is a world of A Thousand Li novel, featuring a much younger Master Cheng before he meets Wu Ying. A xianxia fantasy novel, The Sundering Blade is a standalone prequel to the bestselling A Thousand Li series and features high flying martial arts, tense battle scenes and contemplations of the Dao and karma alike.

A New York Times Notable Book for 2011 One of The Economist's 2011 Books of the Year People speak different languages, and always have. The Ancient Greeks took no notice of anything unless it was said in Greek; the Romans made everyone speak Latin; and in India, people learned their neighbors' languages—as did many ordinary Europeans in times past (Christopher Columbus knew Italian, Portuguese, and Castilian Spanish as well as the classical languages). But today, we all use translation to cope with the diversity of languages. Without translation there would be no world news, not much of a reading list in any subject at college, no repair manuals for cars or planes; we wouldn't even be able to put together flat-pack furniture. Is That a Fish in Your Ear? ranges across the whole of human experience, from foreign films to philosophy, to show why translation is at the heart of what we do and who we are. Among many other things, David Bellos asks: What's the difference between translating unprepared natural speech and translating Madame Bovary? How do you translate a joke? What's the difference between a native tongue and a learned one? Can you translate between any pair of languages, or only between some? What really goes on when world leaders speak at the UN? Can machines ever replace human translators, and if not, why? But the biggest question Bellos asks is this: How do we ever really know that we've understood what anybody else says—in our own language or in another? Surprising, witty, and written with great joie de vivre, this book is all about how we comprehend other people and shows us how, ultimately, translation is another name for the human condition.

From a prize-winning author, this book charts the course of Christianity from ancient history onwards.

What Do Gods & Demons Have in Common? Perhaps nothing, perhaps a lot. A glimpse into a world where an immortal and a demon partake in meal while plotting moves that will shake the middle kingdom and share gossip of other, more contentious issues. This is a 3,000 word short story set in the A Thousand Li universe featuring as yet to be seen characters in the universe. Does not need to be read to follow the main series.